Link Love No.68

How have you all been doing? I had a very fun and productive day today. I am working on several new projects that are kind of experimental for me, but I have the perfectly done items in my head. We will see if I can make them as I have planned. If I fail I will quietly chuck them...

I can't believe it is already September, I see Halloween items (and Christmas items too!) on store shelves. But I think it is always better to be prepared ahead of time for those upcoming holidays.


Parkers shared awesome Halloween dessert table idea with us. I am not big on Halloween stuff, but I know my kids will be soo happy if I do something like this for them.


Are you looking for some ideas that are inexpensive yet impressive? The Letter 4 created this fantastic wall decor without breaking the bank. Go check out their blog to see how it’s done!


I have seen many coffee filter wreaths, and I thought this one is a little different. Mary's Meanderingscreated this beautiful wrath out of tea dyed coffee filters. I love how she decorated it; just the right amount of accessories gave this wreath charm and beauty.


Boy my hair is getting long... I have been so busy and keep missing chances to make an appointment with my stylist. Meanwhile, I love trying fun hair-dos like this one Raising 4 Princesses shared. So beautiful!


Procraftination Station shared this awesome thrift store find cabinet makeover. This is what Iuliana said about the cabinet (before she worked on it) in her blog:

"This china cabinet was not made of real wood and looked very cheap, and of course beat up and old"...wow, it's not real wood? But look how she made it so pretty! This project is proof that a little bit of constructive imagination and elbow grease can make anything possible. :)


Thank you all for participating. See you at the next post!

"Girls World" Giveaway Winner

Hi all! There are a couple of announcements before I let you know who is receiving the gorgeous book signed by Jennifer Paganelli... (I like to drag out the suspense.:)

The first news is that Silhouette is having a special sale now through September 13th. Just use the promotion code: AUTUMN during the checkout process to knock 30% off

The second great news is that Shabby Apple is also having a great sale right now. To celebrate their newest line "Academia", they are having 15% off site wide with coupon code "Ivy".

But wait, it gets better. Right now Shabby Apple is offering FREE SHIPPING on standard domestic orders. Isn't that so exciting?

Be sure to find some time to visit them soon!

Ok... are you ready to find out the winner for the giveaway? Her name is...

Briawna

Congratulations! Please email me your shipping info, so I can send you the prize. I know you will treasure the book for years to come! :)

Those of you, who didn't win, don't be discouraged. Remember what I told you? I am posting one giveaway a week this month to celebrate Tea Rose Home’s 3rd birthday! I will be posting another giveaway next week; I know you will all love them!! (I am so excited, but I am not telling what it is yet. :) )

Link Party No. 68!/ Liberty of London Fabrics

I have been looking at the Liberty of London website lately. I have been in love with their fabric ever since I was in Jr. High (please don't guess how long ago that was...). If some of my dreams could come true, visiting the Liberty of London store is one of them.

I wanted to buy some newer fabrics from their website, but they are so expensive! Some of the fabrics were £21.00 to £34.95(that is roughly $34.00 to $56.00)for 150cm X 1 m. Oh, yea, and shipping. Isn't it funny $10 per yd. at quilt stores doesn't seem so bad compared to that.

Even though I want them soo much, I wasn't going to spend that kind money. Maybe for my birthday...

I went back to reorganize my sewing room, and guess what... I found my liberty fabrics I bought a LONG LONG time ago (it is vintage now right?). I had totally forgotten about them. Back in Jr. High and high school, I spent most of my allowance and money from a part time job on fabrics and sewing books. I bought Liberty of London fabrics too, and brought them with me when I move to the US. I used to pull them out and look at them and touch them. They were too precious to me; I could not put my scissors to them. I had to be sure of what I am going to make so I don't regret the use of the fabrics.

Well... I changed. They are still very valuable to me, but if I don't use them and just tuck them in a drawer that beauty is wasted.

I decided to make some fabric covered buttons for starters. I carefully selected the area of the design and cut out circles... and made some today. What fun! I just love how they turned out.


I have some other plans too, but I might have to wait for them, since I have so many other things I have to do first.

Do you have any projects you want to share? Is there any project that has made you happy?

Share them with us!

1. Please post something YOU made. It doesn't matter if it is crochet, quilt, clothing, anything would be fine. I want to see it! If you use someone's idea or patterns please give them the rightful credit.

2. Link to your specific post, that way it is easier for everybody to find and read it.

3. Please grab the "Tea Rose Home" grab button, and link back from your post. If you can mention the party in your post or place the button on your side bar, that would be great! I want more people to have a chance to come and show off their creation.


<center><a href="http://tearosehome.blogspot.com"><img border="0" id="BLOGGER_PHOTO_ID_5462799092490427250" style="cursor:pointer; cursor:hand;width: 126px; height: 160px;" alt="" src="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEgtc9CFJR6Te5CpNgHYGsz2oQcSPEa7ev57prQmm-wO7bU5-IXOUTAJV08BvA-pbdpS2QCr864re5ljtzEGNU20emgmsiG0eSXBf9nArpxdnE1SRy7EGrrnSSMYTt3mS2C3S9d6A8bRk7E/s200/GrabButtonLinkParty.jpg" /></a></center>

Tea Rose Home 3rd Bloggersary Giveaway/ Jennifer Paganelli Signed Book

Are you all excited? Yes! The Tea Rose Home 3rd bloggaversary's giveaway for the first week is a "Girls World" signed by Jennifer Paganelli! The book contains 21 sewing projects to make for little girls, but I think there are things that are for big girls too.:) I have a copy of my own that I bought, but it is not signed... Whoever wins the beautiful book, I will envy you!

Let me tell you a little bit about Jennifer and Sis Boom Fabrics...

Back in May I had an opportunity to meet Jennifer at the market and bloggers meet up. First of all, she was such a nice person. When you meet famous designers it is a little intimidating, but Jennifer had this presence about her that is very warm and sincere, I was able to say hi and took some pictures with her.

There are so many reasons why I love her Sis Boom Fabrics. I love her use of colors. Her fabric lines are very modern yet have a vintage and traditional feel too. I read somewhere that she uses tag sales, flea markets and European sources as a starting point to create her design. No wonder I love her art work so much, they are a mix of many things I love!

I think it was a couple summers ago, that I first "Met" one of her fabrics. It was Nelly from Honey Child collection. I bought a couple yards, and went home that day thinking that I was going to make a top for summer. I just have a hard time cutting in to beautiful fabric, but I am really motivated to sew something pretty.



When you go to her site, you will be greeted by gorgeous pictures (can you imagine how I was glue to computer screen oohing and awing her site?). They just take you to a different place.

Also, on her blog, she will share the latest updates and other fun things. Also, on the left sidebar there are links to shops where you can purchase her fabrics and patterns. One of the things I have been keeping an eye on is her laminates; there are so many things I want to make with them!

Jennifer, thank you so much for helping me to make this anniversary giveaway so special! :)

Ok, are you ready for the giveaway? Here are the rules:

1. Visit her site first and come back here to let me know which one was your most favorite thing (pattern and fabrics). (1st entry)

2. Become a follower on my main page. (2nd entry)

3. Blog about this giveaway, tweet, become fan on Facebook. (3rd entry)

I will run the giveaway until midnight of the 8th and post the winner on the 9th.
Good luck!

Link Love No. 67!

Mr. TRH was away this week attending a Wood Badge training camp. If you don't know what it is, that is ok; I didn't know either until he got involved with scouting. Basically, it is training for scout leaders.

He is not at all outdoorsy person, even though he is an Eagle Scout. We don't go camping as a family either. I was little worried about him... I felt like "one of my boys was going on his first campout!" (Well, maybe this was good practice for me since my oldest will start going on a campout once a month in about a year). After he packed everything, off he went...

Today the families were invited for lunch and a special program. I packed my kid and went to the camp ground. Me? I’m not an outdoorsy person either, but I really enjoyed being there.

Sitting there looking at the clear blue sky and mountains in a perfect breeze was so liberating. Also, there are so many different types of butterflies and blue dragonflies flying all over the place...there were hundreds flying about. It was just such a pretty sight. My kids were so excited to see so many bugs all in one place too.

Who knows, I might become more in tune with nature and start going camping someday. :)

I have the link love for this week, are you ready?

Look at this cute project shared by One Perfect Day. I love how simple and pretty the design is, very refreshing!


These pants totally rocks! I am Momma-Hear Me Roar created these stylish pants for her son. I love the color of the pants as well as the stylish pockets in the back. Great job Cheri!


Erin from Lemon Tree Creation shared her decorated nursery. Please head over to her post, because she shared so many cute creations and ideas with lots of pictures. I miss the excitement of trying to decide on the names and decorating a nursery for a new baby. Her post made me wanna decorate a nursery... (I am not saying that I want to have more babies, I just want to name them and decorate the nursery :).


You know, I just love this chandelier shared by Nest Full of Eggs. This is another perfect example of how a can of paint can make a huge difference on something dull or outdated. I will be looking for chandeliers like hers on my next trip to a thrift store. :)


Wow... Vixen Made really took themed party to a whole different level! Look at all the stuff she made for this party, amazing. My daughter loves Pinkalicious, I know she would squeal with joy if I threw a party like that. Thank you for sharing your creations and special day with us!


Thank you all for participating!

By the way, as I mentioned before, September 20th is Tea Rose Home's 3rd birthday! I am going to have special giveaways during this month and the first giveaway post will go up on Monday. Are you excited? You should be! I am hiding some awesome items up my sleeve, make sure to come back and enter for a chance to win!

Tutorial / Sunkissed Tunic

A couple month ago, I found this boys t-shirt at Target in the kids section. I think it was $ 3.49. For some reason I could not take my eyes off of this shirt, and decided to take it home...


I will share how I made the shirt into a girl`s tunic. The shirt was size M (and that is for an 8 - 10 year old) and my daughter just turned 6 and she is slightly small for her age. If you want to make a bigger sized tunic, you obviously need a bigger t-shirt. I hope this will give you a general idea for the sizing.

{you will need}

a t-shirt
matching thread
buttons (I used 4 small buttons, but you can do 3 bigger size buttons too.)
Lace type elastic

{How to}

1. First, cut rib knit around the neck and both sleeves off.


2. Cut open both sleeves at the seam and lay it flat. Out of one of the sleeves cut out two pockets. I made a template for the pocket out of a cereal box. Draw 4 1/2" X 5" square, when you cut, cut off the bottom corners to round it. Lay it on the sleeve, and add 1/4" seam and cut.


3. Look at the picture closely... from the tip of the shoulder to the marked point, it is 5". Draw a natural curve for the arm hole. From the marked point, draw a straight line to the bottom of the t-shirt. This will create an A-line on the sides.



4. Fold 1/4" seam towards the wrong side of the shirt and sew elastic on. With mine, I cut 2 - 8" elastic for the sleeves.


5. Sew elastic around the neck too. For the neck line I cut 17" elastic, but it is best to measure your child's head to decided on how long you will need.


6. To make the pocket, hand sew around the edge of the pocket with big stitches. Lay the template onto the fabric and pull the thread to gather the fabric. Press with iron. You will have nice curve for the bottom of the pocket.



7. Sew the sides of the shirt. Use your favorite method to treat the seams.


8. Pin the pockets on the shirt and sew. To decide on where to sew them it is best to let your child wear the tunic. That way it is easier to see where it is most convenient for her.


9. Cut up several 1" wide strips from the other sleeve to make ruffles for the front.


10. First, fold both ends and pin the 1" X 4 1/4" strip in the center of the shirt and sew.


11. To make ruffles use the largest stitch on your sewing machine and sew one edge of the strip and pull the thread. Use the pictures as a guide.


12.Pin them on both sides of the middle part and sew them on. As you can see, I used zigzag stitch to sew them on.


13. Add another layer to it using the same steps. I cut the bottom corners of the ruffles to create a more interesting look.



14. Sew buttons on. This was the fun but difficult part for me! I had several choices of buttons and I finally narrowed them down to these...


You want to see the final product?





Rachel had such a fun time taking pictures (believe me it's not like that always, I do not force her to do it, but when she is in the mood, it is so fun!)


Since I make the tunic a little late in the season, I will share one of the outfits planned for the fall.

I took these pictures on different days, but again, she was on a roll! She loved her brother's hand me down hat, maybe that made her feel like she is a "Model". :)

She was laughing, and air guitaring...


For some reasons, "walking"...


Cool dude?


...then my favorites. She absolutely loves her new tunic, she already wore it several times. Yea!




The summer is ending, now is the perfect time to find cheap t-shirts at the sales rack. Enjoy!