Kitty Catnip Patchwork Toy

No parent is supposed to show favoritism, right? Well, since the pup came along last spring, I'll have to admit that the love scales have tilted a bit away from the kitty. My kitty that I have had since I was twelve. Together we've been through some rough times and some good times in the past 14 years of our lives. And these days I find myself constantly tripping over bones, squeaky toys, and tennis balls. So I thought it was high time to do something nice for him. Plus, Sew Mama Sew (one of my favorite blogs) is holding a contest for the month of October called Scrap Busters and I wanted to enter.

And thus we have what I like to call Kitty's Sticky Icky Icky patchwork toy. (Don't worry folks, it's just catnip.)

Assembly is very simple and will used up a few of those pesky scraps you have in a box next to your sewing machine.

You will need:
Dried Catnip (may be sold in bulk at your local co-op or grocery store)
Dry Rice
Insert (I used a reusable muslin teabag, but you could make you own or use something similar)
Scraps for outer bag

Measurements will vary based on how big of an insert you use. I sort of eyeballed mine.

Step 1:
Fill insert with rice and catnip. (the rice is so that when kitty begins to loose interest you can warm it up in the microwave and... viola! New again!)

Step 2: 

Assemble outer layer and patchwork piece. I used denim for most of the shell because my cat likes to grip his catnip toys in both claws and suck on them. So they need to be durable.

 Step 3:

With right sides together sew your patchwork piece to the back of the outer piece, leaving a 2" space in the side so that you can fit the insert in. Trim corners being careful not to cut the seam. Next, turn the shell right side out, pushing out the corners. Place catnip bag inside the shell.

Step 4: 

Topstitch around the outer shell 2 times to close the hole and reinforce the outer seams.

And it is ready to be introduced to the cat...

Mission accomplished.

Embroidery Buddies

Check out my first attempt at embroidery. These are little plush buddies I made for my brothers. Cute, eh?

Snowed in And Feeling Crafty

It is VERY snowy here in Seattle. We Seattleites are not accustomed to such weather, but I am enjoying it immensely. I decided to take the day to catch up on some crafts I've been meaning to do. Here I will share one:

For this yoga mat bag, I used the tutorial from Bored and Crafty. I think it turned out pretty well.

I'll wait to show the other stuff because these are Christmas presents after all! Got to have some element of surprise.

Candlemaking 101 : Molded Candles

I'm pretty new at candle making still, but a few weeks ago a friend who is an avid candle user asked me if it was more cost effective to make a candles or to buy them. So I investigated. And in general (as with many crafty things) it is much more cost effective to make candles rather than buy them... in the long run. Buying the supplies may add up at first, but once you have them, wax is not very expensive, and if you enjoy doing it, well then why the hell not? Its really pretty simple:

First you need ingredients and equipment. For the ingredients:

• Wax (with a medium melting point of 135-145 degrees. I found paraffin wax that meets this requirement for only $3/lb. Beeswax is more expensive but also works.)
• Stearic acid, 10% of the weight of the wax needed for your mold. (The recipe I used called for this, but I forgot to use it a couple times and it turned out fine for me without it, though the finished product was probably more fragile without it.)
• Scent, as desired.
• Color, as desired.

And for the equipment:

• double boiler or rarely used crockpot-like device (I use an old mini crockpot I originally bought for hot dips and have never used in about 5 years. Works like a charm, but I doubt I'll ever be able to get all the wax back out so keep that in mind,)
• a mold of some kind (I used a votive mold as shown above.)
• a wick appropriate for the diameter of the candle you wish to make (it will say on the packaging of the wick how think it should be.)
• chopstick, pencil, or skewer
• a ladle
• large bowl or bucket

Step 1 - Figure out how much wax you need by filling your mold with water and measuring it.
Step 2 - Melt the wax in double boiler or crockpot type device.

Step 3 - While the wax is melting, prepare the wicks and mold. First, apply vegetable oil to your mold. Then, if you are using scent, soak the wick in the essential oil for a few minutes before tying them to to your chopstick, pencil or skewer.

Step 4 - When the wax is melted, pour about a half inch into the mold to secure the wick in place. Let cool.

Step 5 - Pour in the rest of the wax, and place to mold into your cool bath. You might have to weigh it down if it decides to float.

Step 6 - Once they are cool, pop them out and you're done! If you are having a hard time getting them out, put them in the fridge for a bit and try again. If that still doesn't work, then you might be out of luck.

Crafty Gift Idea # 6 - Homemade Bath Salts

You will almost feel stupid when you learn about the simplicity of making bath salts. You will be like, "Why, oh why have I ever purchased bath salts? I could have made them myself all this time! I've been tricked... nay, swindled! I will never spend money on conventional bath salts ever again!"

Well, that might not be your reaction, but that's pretty much what I said.

So here's how you do it:

1) Get some sea salt (nothing fancy, but make sure its sea salt, I'm not sure how well table salt would work.)



2) Add a few drop of your favorite essential oils* to taste. (Lavender is a good if you want a calming bath, and citrus-y ones like sweet orange or lemon are good for an invigorating bath.)


3) Shake it up and...you guessed it... Bath salts.


You can add other things to it as well, such as toasted kombu if you happen to have it, but really what is listed here works just fine. It's so effortless, I almost feel ashamed giving it away as a gift. Well, almost.

*Essential oils are readily available at most health food stores. I find it very useful to have several kinds on hand for around the house projects, such as soapmaking and natural home cleaners.

Crafty Gift Idea # 5 - Denim Laptop Snuggly

I was catching up on the Sew Mama Sew blog today and came across a post about gifts for college students. They had a pattern for a laptop cozy. And when I saw it, I remembered that back in my college days I made something similar that was also really easy (though this idea requires sewing whereas the one from Design*Sponge did not.)

If you have an old pair of jeans that you wouldn't mind parting with or perhaps you were thinking about making them into cut offs. You could make this. Don't ask me how I happened to find out that my trusty ibook fit into the leg of my pants, but it did. Making it a five minute job. And I ripped off the pocket and added that too. An easy gift for the college student or the business traveler in your life.

Crafty Gift Idea # 4 - Homemade Vanilla Extract

Believe it or not, but vanilla extract is unbelievably easy to make! And it is a great gift for the bakers in your life. All you gotta do is get a few vanilla beans (I use about 8 beans for 4 oz of extract), put them in a small jar and fill it with vodka or bourbon. Wait about a month, maybe swirl it around every few days, and it should be ready. As you use the vanilla, you can fill it with more alcohol. Or if you need a vanilla bean for a dessert, you can pluck one out and use the seeds. If you keep adding more alcohol and beans as you use them, you will have extract for years.

And if you happen to have extra vanilla beans, you can actually make vanilla sugar in much the same way. Take a bean, some sugar, put together in an airtight jar. Wait a couple weeks, remove bean, presto! Vanilla sugar. So simple.

Crafty Gift Idea # 2 - Oven Caramel Corn

Oven caramel corn is a quick, inexpensive, and simple gift to make people for stocking stuffers or hostess gifts during the holidays. Presenting it in cellophane bags gives it a Martha-y touch. Anyway, here's the recipe. Very tasty. Adapted from Betty Crocker.

Oven Caramel Corn
makes about 17 cups

15 c popped popcorn
2 c peanuts or walnuts or almonds or pecans (or a mix if you like)
1 c packed brown sugar
1/2 c butter
1/4 light corn syrup
1/2 tsp salt
1/2 tsp baking soda
1 cup semi-sweet chocolate chips (optional)

Heat oven to 200 degrees.

Place popcorn and nuts in a very large bowl or roasting pan, or 2 ungreased lasagna pans.

Heat brown sugar, butter, corn syrup, and salt in a 2-quart saucepan over medium heat, stirring occasionally, until bubbly around the edges. Continue cooking 5 minutes without stirring, remove from heat. Add baking soda and stir until foamy.

Pour sugar mixture over popcorn & nuts. Toss until coated evenly.

Bake 1 hour, stirring every 15 minutes. Take out, spread across foil on counter top to let cool. Meanwhile, melt the chocolate with a bit of vegetable oil and drizzle evenly over popcorn.

Store in airtight containers or give away fresh.

I skipped the chocolate for this one, but it still turned out pretty good.

Crafty Gift Idea # 1 - Spice Mixes

The holidays are looming and if you plan on making your own gifts this year you better get a move on. One good idea for the cooks in your life is to give homemade spice blends and rubs. Here are a couple great recipes I've found in 'Herb Mixtures & Spicy Blends' by Maggie Oster:

All Purpose Blend
makes 2 1/3 cups

5 Tb dried parsley
3 Tb dried oregano
2 1/2 Tb paprika
2 Tb celery seeds (ground)
2 tsp chile pepper flakes
2 Tb mustard seed (ground)
1 Tb marjoram
3 tsp garlic powder
1 tsp thyme
1 tsp chili powder

Mexican Spices Mix
makes: about 2/3 cup

1/4 c dried onion flakes
4 tsp cornstarch
4 Tb chili powder
3 tsp cumin seeds
3 tsp garlic powder
2 tsp hot pepper flakes
1 1/2 tsp dried oregano
2 Tb kosher salt

Spicy Jamaican Blend
makes: 1/2 cup

6 Tb ground allspice
3 tsp ground black pepper
1 1/2 tsp nutmeg
1 1/2 tsp cinnamon
1 1/2 tsp kosher salt (optional)
Lemon zest adds a nice flavor to a dish with these spices, but obviously wouldn't work as a gift in a jar.

You can layer the ingredients in a small glass jar for a nice presentation. Or throw this all in a food processor or a coffee grinder for a finer mix. For more of a punch with these mixes its best to buy ingredients whole such as dried chili peppers (like ancho or chipotle) and toast them in the oven or in a dry frying pan until fragrant. Pull off the stem and throw out the seeds. Next, throw them into your food processor (or a designated coffee grinder is actually better) This works great for cumin seeds too. They will stay fresh and potent for longer than buying powdered spices from the store.

Local Seattle resources for bulk spices:
World Spice Market on Western just West of Pike Market
Madison Market on 16th and Madison in Capitol Hill