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This wall stencil naming contest from Cutting Edge Stencils is sooooo very dandy! It’s totally free to enter. Just email tara@broadcastbloggers.com with the name you would give the new design above. The contest ends tonight at midnight Pacific Time. Oh and you can learn about all the details of the contest by going HERE.   Have a dandy weekend my dandy followers! 🙂
Before Banjo came into our lives I worked out on a fairly regular basis. I loved going to the gym and how great the flowing endorphins made me feel. After he was born that changed. I tried to make it back to the gym, but it was hard to do that with a baby to take care of. Sure my gym had a free child care area, so I thought it was going to be so EASY to get back to the gym. Not a chance! When Banjo was about 4 months old I took him to the gym with me. He just stayed in his car seat and hung out in the child care area. 3 days later he got his first cold. Coincidence? I tried it again a few weeks later and the result was the same… yet another cold. So I tried to switch to an evening workout regimen when my husband was home to watch Banjo. That only lasted for so long. I was too tired to work out in the evening! Like many moms I needed something I could do at home, but I didn’t have the $$$ to spend on pricey workout equipment. Enter workout DVDs from Moms Into Fitness! They sent me their Boot Camp 2 DVD and it’s fabulous. Seriously the best workout program I have ever seen.Â
It’s so easy to follow and understand.  Lindsay Brin explains everything really well and she teaches the importance of having a solid core. Also, how to work that core. Plus, there’s cardio toning workouts that are only 10 minutes long! Perfect for the new mom or any mom who doesn’t have a lot of time to devote to working out!
Moms Into Fitness also has other core fitness videos:Â
How about a workout for pregnancy? Of course Moms Into Fitness has it!
 
 
Even app options for your phone!
There truly is a workout for everyone at Moms Into Fitness!
In my previous life I graduated from college and had no idea where I was going to turn for a job. I applied and I applied. I couldn’t find a job, so I applied some more. Nothing came of it, so I just stayed on at the hospital where I was already working. It was in my comfort zone, so why not? That being said I must admit that I’m so far out of the getting hired loop! I mean I’m a stay at home mommy now. Who would want to spend time away from this cutie?
I have no plans on getting back out there in the work force anytime soon. Do you ever think about how you are going to keep your hear in the job world from home? I do!  After all, I do want to go back to work outside of the home (even just part time) one day in the future. When kids are grown and in school! :) Fortunately for all of us stay at homers Mary Heston blogged about dillema today. Now I’m including this as a DIY type thing, but that’s what it is. It’s a DIY way of staying on top of your job related resources! :)   You aren’t going to want to miss her great posting!
Do it yourself home microdermabrasion kit? Yes please!
I’m looking a little bit different these days. That picture of me in the About section was taken in the fall. We haven’t gotten any family pictures taken since then, so I’ll just have to give you this sneak peek for the time being (sorry about the taken from my iPhone look): Â
There’s the new me…minus 40 something pounds!
Guess that I should delete the part about my having a few extra pounds, since that’s no longer the case! However, I am still a 30 something year old. So, something that I still struggle with? Those oh so gorgeous fine lines and discoloration on my face. Okay they are wrinkles and age spots. Why even try to make them sound more glamorous than they actually are?  Yes I have them. It’s a given now that I’m turning 33 in a few months. (Gasp! I actually just confirmed with you all my actual age!) Let’s face it. Our skin just changes as we age. All of those years of sun exposure and laughing. Yep I’ve got the laugh lines!  Just shows how happy I am.  :) Â
Well, now I have the solution to those problem areas. A few weeks ago I received the Personal MicroDerm and it’s perfectly fabulous! Seriously such a dandy product. Think microdermabrasion without the time and extra cost. Who really has the time to go for appointments at the dermatologist’s office? Not me. How about the $$$ to spend on those expensive treatments at the dermatologist’s office? Again not me! That’s what makes the Personal MicroDerm so dandy! It’s a value that will last and last with use from your very own home. What’s more is it actually works! After the very first treatment I noticed a difference in the way my skin looked and felt. The treated areas became smoother, more refined, and youthful looking. My forehead actually looked less line-y! Â
The Personal MicroDerm comes with discs for different skin types. The discs have a grit aluminum oxided coating to them. Then the device itself has a vacuum that pulls the skin to the disc that spins. Working the microdermabrasion miracle! It removes a very thin surface of your skin to get rid of dead skin, etc. And starts you on the way to smoother less wrinkled skin!  Also included is a very informative DVD on how to use the product. I need to note that it’s very important to follow the directions!  Patience is not one of my virtues, but it is an important one to have when using the Personal MicroDerm. I elected to go over an area (brown age spots people) on my face repeatedly instead of waiting until the next week for the next treatment. Not a good idea. Okay… it was a horrible idea that I will never repeat again. The Personal MicroDerm is intended to be used only once a week, because your skin needs time to recover between treatments. So I gave myself a true abrasion and that definitely smarts. Totally my fault.Â
If you are in the same aging category as me with fine lines, etc. then the Personal MicroDerm is for you! Give it a try, because it will save you time and money. And that’s just dandy! :)Â
Hair Remedies from The Wright Hair blog!
I use hair tips all the time and don’t think twice about sharing so I have put together some easy hair remedies.
When it comes to hair and keeping it healthy it is better for our hair not to wash it every day. Â For people such as myself who has incredibly greasy hair I have learned a few tricks to making my 2nd day hair look as good as just washing it.
Getting volume:
There are a couple of things to get volume. Â
Beach Hair: Mix a generous amount of table salt into a water bottle and spray into hair. Let set and scrunch dry hair with your hands for a beachy textured look.
Moisturized for Dry Hair: Â If you have extremely dry damaged hair use olive oil put a small amount on your hair and leave on the hair for 20mins once a week for hydration.
No time for a shower or Hair is to Greasy:
Accessorize it.   Use headbands, flowers, bows or anything else you like.  If you don’t have headbands they are easy to make.  Use old bra straps, just cut them off and secure them together.  Nylons or leggings also make good headbands.  I have also used the ties off of shirts.  My favorite headbands are using the foam rolls (they can be purchased at Justice or Claires.  Flowers can be purchased or made out of flowers from a craft store.  Accessorizing 2nd day hair is a good way to class up your style.
Can’t find a Bobbie Pin.   If you are out and need a bobbie pin and can’t find one try using a paper clip.
Static. When you wake up or put on a shirt that has lots of static it never fails that the static will end up on your or her hair. Take single fabric dryer sheet and rub it over your dry hair. Â
Strong Hard Setting Gel:Â Â If you need a really strong hold use an old trick of sugar and water mixed, **NOTE** heavy on the sugar. It is easier to apply with a small toothed comb.
***You can find Amber and some amazin
Hello all, My name is Edith and you can usually find me blogging over at Edeenut Creates. My good friend Tara asked me to join her today on Dandy Giveaway and share a fun and simple decoration idea for any party.
While deciding how to decorate for a recent Valentine’s Day party, I saw these cool looking paper plate balls and thought they might be cool to make. The instructions are found here at Family Fun, so you can make your own if you desire.
My basic idea was to slip a string of white Christmas lights inside each ball and poke some light tips out through the holes illuminating in the dim party room.
The light idea was put aside after more consideration and so were the paper plate balls in fact. But I still really like the balls and this image makes them look so fun for a party. Even though I didn’t actually use the paper plate balls for decorations I thought I would still share how easy and inexpensive they are to make if you want to make your own.
While I was contemplating the whole pink paper plate ball idea, I tried to find some pink paper plates to use. The only ones I found were in packs of 10 and would have been pretty pricey because for each ball you need 20 plates. The pack of 10 plates were almost $2.00 each.
I bought a pack of 100 white paper plates and a can of pink spray paint. The paint was $3 and the plates were $1.50.
In my back yard, I made sure the wall was protected with paper and cardboard, then working with 20 plates at a time, I sprayed a thin coat of paint on each one. They were in direct sunlight and so they dried fast.
By the time I sprayed the last one I could go back and move the first one off the paper to dry completely on the wall. But by this point though they were pretty much dry. I just didn’t want them to stick together if stacked up.
When I was completely done with 60 plates I was out of paint. I think I could have done 40 more plates though if I would have not done two coats of paint on some plates. Because I was out in the bright direct sunlight my eyes didn’t quite see the color of pink on the plates as it really was so I added another coat thinking it needed it. But after going inside with the plates I could see the color would have been fine with one coat.
Here is one ball hanging up above my table. I used clear nylon thread to hand it so it looks as if it’s floating in mid air. Even though here you can see the ceiling fan chains hanging down.
Also, you can see the pink color indoors is really rich with two coats. But if you want a deep rich color you could always do as many coats of paint as you wanted.
This painting method also makes these polyhedrons easy for any party idea. You could paint them in any color you want to go with your theme. Blue, red and white for the 4th of July would be very fun. Green for Your St. Patties Day get together. Make them for a baby shower, or Birthday. The possibilities are endless.
I know that many of you are way talented and have way fabulous blogs where you post about some dandy craftiness! Well, now it’s your turn to share with us! Go ahead and link your crafty post with Dandy Giveaway & More! Oh and on your personal blog posting please type that you linked up at http://www.dandygiveaway.com. :)  Also, feel free to share with your crafty friends so they can post their fun projects here!  I’ll go first to get this started in case there are a few who aren’t sure how it works.  Have a great weekend! See you on Monday for another week of dandy giveaways!
Back in the fall I helped my mom throw a baby shower for my sister-in-law. Well, I guess I should start with something from a few years back. When Banjo was a baby he spit up a lot. It was seriously out of control. Thank goodness for hardwood floors! One thing that I learned fast was when it came to burp cloths the prefold cloth diapers made the best ones. My mother-in-law sent me a tonof prefolds that she embellished with printed grosgrain ribbon. Perfectly absorbed and perfectly cute! So going back to the fall when I helped with the baby shower for my SIL… I knew that I wanted to make her some burp cloths using prefolds. I also knew that I wanted to make them look cute for presentation and using my favorite among favorites… FABRIC! So I created some burp cloths that incorporated all of the above!Â
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In addition to the prefold cloth diapers and fabric I used these supplies:
   
                                      
– corrugated scalloped bulletin board border
– thin ribbon
– decorative long pins
– felt
– rubber bands
I started by cutting a piece of fabric slightly larger than the center of the prefold diaper. Then ironed the edges of the fabric in to make the seam creased for attaching to the prefold.
  
                           
Using pins to secure fabric down the center of the prefold:
Sewed around the fabric edge:
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The finished burp cloths:
Ready for creating a cupcake…
First, fold the thin part of the diaper in on the fabric (or under if you would like the fabric to show in a swirl at the top of the cupcake):
  
Then fold in half (long ways) again:
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Roll up like you would a sleeping bag:
Secure with a rubber band:
Cover around rubber band with the corrugated boarder:
           
 
                                                   
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                                               Add on a felt flower with the long pin in the center:
 
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                       Tie around a ribbon:
Voila! A Cupcake Burp Cloth!
If you choose to fold the burp cloth with the fabric showing then you will get the swirl effect for the “icing”.
These were fun to make and worked great for decorations on the cake table!
Oh and I linked up this crafty project at these crafty sites here: http://thediyshowoff.blogspot.com/
here: http://www.fingerprintsonthefridge.com/
here: http://iheartnaptime.blogspot.com/
and…
here: http://www.paisleypassions.blogspot.com/
and here:
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I’m so excited for this next guest posting, because I actually know her personally and she’s awesome! I know that you are going to find her to be just dandy! She crafts, she quilts, she photographs, she blogs… I told you she is awesome! This particular guest posting doesn’t pertain to her quilting, but I LOVE her quilts. In fact she is entered right now in a Halloween quilting contest and you can vote for her fabulous Spooky Wonky Log Cabin HERE. It’s quilt #1 so get voting! :)  And here is my friend and former roomie, Kati…
Hi! I’m Kati from the blue chair. Thanks so much to Tara for letting me do a guest post today about my blue chair. Tara and I were roommates in college. I certainly have some good stories, but we’ll stick to refurnishing chairs today.
I have a thing for chairs. I like to get them from Goodwill for around $5 and paint them. It’s become a bit of a problem. My husband even asked me recently to stop. I guess no more Goodwill chairs for a while, but at least I have my favorite chair to use every day while I sew. This is the chair that inspired my blog name—from the blue chair. This was a pretty sad little Goodwill find, but sturdy. He definitely had some potential, but needed a lot of love.
 
When scouring for chairs I look for a few things—sturdy, solid wood, relatively good condition, and character (you don’t want just a plain old kitchen chair). Sit in it. Wiggle the back. Flip it upside down and make sure those legs are well attached. Once you have your chair, get it ready to paint.
Painting prep:
This guy needed some work, but it wasn’t too bad. I filled the deep scratches with wood filler then sanded the edges a bit to smooth things over. I cleaned it and wiped all surfaces down with an everyday kitchen cleaner. Then I wiped it with a clean, damp cloth.
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Replacing the seat:
I removed the original seat by flipping it over and unscrewing it from the bottom. Then I cut a piece of high density foam using the seat base as my template. My foam was 2†which is pretty thick but I sit in this guy while sewing. I wanted it to be comfortable. I used a little hot glue to adhere it to the seat base.
The seat fabric is Tufted Tweets in Grass by Laurie Wisburn. I chose the fabric for the seat cover because I adore it, but it’s quilting weight fabric and not available in décor weight. To strengthen the fabric, I fused it to heavy twill using Ultra Heat and Bond. This made it a bit more difficult to work with than normal décor weight fabric, but it made it durable for long-term use. After getting the fabric ready, I started stapling it on using a craft staple gun. I did the sides first and then the front and back, pulling the fabric as tightly as I could.
Painting:
To paint this guy I used Pacific Sea Teal in gloss by Bear from Home Depot. I chose to brush on the paint rather than spray painting because I was a bit particular about the color and there aren’t a lot of color options in spray paint. I used their Ultra paint with primer in it, making painting one easy step.
Finishing:
After allowing the paint to cure for a couple days, I attached the seat using the original hardware. After a little work, some new paint and fabric, I have a funky new sewing chair that I love!
Painted chairs make a fun accent in any room or a fabulous photography prop. For a super funky look, collect an assortment of chairs and paint them each a different color for your dining room table. My next chair project might be a pink one. My three-year-old has requested a pink chair for the dinner table. I just might indulge her.
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I just wanted to let everyone know the story of The Wright Hair…
I am fairly new to blogging about hair but I have been doing my oldest daughters hair since the day she was born almost 7 years ago. The first thing out of the doctor’s mouth was I hope you ordered a girl with a full head of hair. My oldest has the most gorgeous thick brown hair. Doing her hair was a so much fun and her hair always turned out so cute.
When my 2nd daughter arrived we were not so lucky with the hair genes. She has very thin straight hair. Her hair doesn’t grow very fast either. She is 3 now and her hair is cut into an A line. It was with the frustrations of my youngest hair that I started The Wright Hair Blog.
I figured if I struggled this much doing her hair there must be others struggling too. I am a working mom and getting my girls ready every morning is the best time of the day for me. This is our quality time without other distractions. Right now my girls and I are enjoying our time together. I am sure it will only be a short time before my oldest wants to do her own hair. But for now we invite you to join us on the Wrights Journey through hair. Because of being a working mom, sometimes we will do fancy dos and sometimes quick dos, other times are do’s are don’ts but we welcome everyone to come along for the ride.
I also want to share a few tips I have learned along my journey of doing hair.
Tip 1. For a smooth hairstyle especially for braids it is always better to do the hair while it is wet. So either right out of the tub or spray the area with a squirt bottle.
Tip 2. Remember that bobbie pins are your friends. If a style is not working exactly how you want use bobbie pins to move the hair and keep it in place. On the market now is bobbie pin that is about half the size as the old ones, these are perfect for little girl’s hair.
Tip 3. For infants use Karo Syrup or a stick of Glue to attach bows onto their head. Both of these are easy to use and will come off with water or during their bath.
Tip 4. If you want to use sponge curlers remember to make smaller parts if your daughter has thick hair. Otherwise the hair will not dry by morning.
Tip 5. For ringlets I use a special curling iron that has grooves in it. When using this curling iron the ringlets stay in all day and can be used for a 2nd day style (with a few touch ups)
For more tips and cut hairstyles check out my blog at thewrighthair.blogspot.com.
I would also love for all of you to share your styles and tips with me. You can post your pictures on my facebook page http://www.facebook.com/#!/pages/Hairstyles-for-girls-The-Wright-Hair/117955318220916?ref=sgm.
