Playing with Paper

I've been playing with paper, making decorations for Julia's graduation party.

I pinned a bunch of paper flowers and decided to make a combination of these two:

Punched tissue paper

Pretty Inked Edges

 I copied some of her jazz chorus music, punched out the scalloped circles, inked the edges and stuck a tiny brad through the center of the stack.  Don't forget to fluff!

What to do with a pile of tiny flowers?

Attach a few to the pennant banner to hang over the dessert bar.

One more week until the party.  As soon as this oppressive heat breaks, I'll be back out in the garden, weeding and planting annuals.  How are you keeping cool?

Pins of the Day

 A few weeks ago, I confessed my Pinterest addiction.  I finally started using some of the ideas I've pinned.  Here's what I made in the last 24 hours...

Nutella No-Bakes

These are so incredibly delicious.  They are chewy and chocolatey and melt in your mouth.

 Yesterday, I showed you some gifts for Julia's teachers.  The mug mats were great for the female teachers, but what about her male band director?  How about a little bag of Nutella No Bakes?  I had just pinned this folded Treat Bag, and it was the perfect size for a few cookies.  Mine is not as cute as the original, but it does the trick. (The thank you card she had already written is sticking out the top.)

I've been pinning lots of things for Julia's graduation party - decorations, recipes, games, etc.  In under an hour, I made 25 feet of garland from this link.  I used a paper punch for the scalloped circles and a Sizzix die that cuts 4 different sizes of circles at once.  Then I sat down at my sewing machine and put the pedal to the metal!  (The I broke the 25' tape measure. Oops.)

I need to review my Pinterest boards to see what to make today!

Monday Modern Mug Mats

 Happy Monday!  I just spent that last four hours making these super cute mug mats with a little help from my mother.  Julia graduated* from high school on Friday, and she wants to give gifts to a few teachers and her guidance counselor.  The underclassmen have a couple more days of final exams, so she's hoping to deliver these tomorrow.

When I was in Christmas Tree Shop a few weeks ago, I picked up a few mugs for $1 each with the thought that I could make matching mats for last minute gifts.  Now I need to buy more!

I dug through my scrap bin of modern prints and pulled all the blues for this one.  Pretty!

 

I'm not crazy about this green one, but it'll do.

 

I really like this bright one!  I think it will go to the Environmental Biology teacher.

 

I'm excited to be linking up to Sew Modern Monday again!  It's been a while.  I hope to see you all again soon.

* I'll need to do a graduation post tomorrow.

Proud Mama

If you don't like reading posts about bloggers' families, please skip this one!  Gushing about my awesome* kids follows...

The last few weeks have been a whirlwind of activities, even crazier than the usual end-of-year rush, since Julia will be graduating from high school soon.  Julia and Pete have given us something to be proud of every day!

You may already know that Julia is a Girl Scout bugler, possibly the only one in our council.  She played Taps at three events in May to honor our fallen heroes.  She was presented with a scholarship from the Vietnam Veterans for her service.  Pete is planning to join the Marine Corps, so he enjoys talking to Marines every chance he gets.

Echo Taps on Armed Forces Day at the Rhode Island Veterans Cemetery.

Pete has been working on his Eagle Scout project to send care packages to troops overseas.  He held a benefit concert on Memorial Day weekend to raise funds.  Of course, his band was the headliner!

Drumming for Eagle

The scholarships and awards are piling up around here!  National Honor Society, Italian Language Honor Society, Rebel Honor Roll (for athletes with good grades) and the Girl Scout Gold Award!

Three generations of National Honor Society members

Girl Scout Gold Award luncheon with Eagle Scout boyfriend and soon-to-be Eagle Scout brother (the one with the messy shirt with a missing button and missing/lost neckerchief)

Julia has been singing a lot lately, too.  Oh, and Pete sang with his band at an open mic night, but the rest of us arrived too late from another event to hear him.  He's so cool!

 "You've Got a Friend in Me" with the High School Jazz Band

 Today is the last day of classes for the seniors, so I made Julia pose on the porch with a photo from the first day of kindergarten.  (I saw this idea on Pinterest.  Here's the source.)

Last day of high school

First day of kindergarten

 

Later this week: senior honors night and senior prom.

Next week: senior class trip and graduation!

* My kids aren't perfect!  We encourage them to use their talents to help others.  They are kind and compassionate leaders.  We love them, even when they require constant nagging.  We are completely blessed!

Friday Craft Finish

I have along list of crafty projects to finish in the next month or so, most of them related to the end of the school year and graduation.  I volunteered to make the centerpieces for the high school Jazz Nite on June 2.  It is a fun night out with great music provided by the jazz band and jazz chorus in an intimate club setting.  The food and cash bar are a bonus!

Here's what I came up with...

 

The bowls are melted vinyl record albums.  Pete has been making them for a couple of years, but this was my first attempt.  I bought a stack of old albums at the Salvation Army store for $1 each.  The album goes into a 200 degree oven for 5 minutes to soften.  Set a metal bowl upside down on a cookie sheet, then place an album on top.  Using oven mitts, form the soft vinyl around an empty pot.  Repeat 14 times!

For the musical picks, I punched  G-clefs and notes out of black card stock with my Sizzix die cutter.  I glued two pieces together, sandwiching a thin wire in between.  Put three shapes together, wrap the wire around a wooden barbeque skewer, then wrap with floral tape.  Repeat 14 times!

Next week, I'll solicit some local nurseries for free or discounted plants.  I can't pick up the plants too early because I don't trust myself to keep them alive!  So far, I've spent only $15 for the albums.  I had everything else on hand. 

The original plan was to make 12 centerpieces.  When I started thinking about who would take them home, I realized we have 15 seniors in these two groups.  Make a few more and each senior can have one.  I might make another set of picks with the names of the seniors.  I'll also include business cards from the donating nurseries.

Up next, Pete's Eagle Scout project.  He is hosting a benefit concert tonight for Operation: Support Our Troops.  It will be a fun night!

Friday Finish

 I'm really excited that I was able to finish this quilt.  I started it during the Kaleidoscope Quilt Along last June!  I was keeping up with the instructions, but once the top was done it was set aside.  I had decided who I would give it to, and wouldn't need it for almost a year.  So there it sat in the WIP pile for 10 months!

When I finally decided to get going on my May/June project list, I flipped through the quilt along Flickr group for quilting inspiration.  Celeste Johnson's quilting was just the ticket.  I think it makes the shapes look faceted, like jewels.

I'm not completely happy with the back.  It would have been better with the darker solid on the ends, but the pieced strip of leftover triangles looked terrible next to the floral print.

 The quilting looks so cool on the solid back!

It's such a gorgeous day, just had to get one more shot!

I have a title in mind, but I can't tell you until after it is gifted.  The recipient might read this!

Edit: This quilt was gifted to my daughter's best friend, Genevieve, for her high school graduation. Her favorite color is purple, so as soon as I pulled the fabric, I knew it would be for her.

Quick Quilting

Just a quick post to show you what I'm working on today.

Enjoying a beautiful, sunny day!