Rachel Robin's Nest

Crafts, Projects and Recipes to Help Feather Your "Nest"

DIY Hot/Cold Pack May 23, 2012

Filed under: Sewing — raediantphoenix @ 1:01 pm
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This is probably an over-share, but my boyfriend has an infected gland in his armpit.  Yeah.  Gross.  At first it was scary cause he had a lump and we didn’t know what it was, but now it’s just funny.  And gross.

He’s supposed to be doing hot compresses three times a day, but because it’s a huge pain to put rice in a plastic baggie and heat it hot enough to be effective but not so hot that it melts the plastic, he hasn’t been keeping up with it.  Therefore, I decided to be an awesome, caring, crafty girlfriend, and make him one myself.

This project is fast, easy, and very inexpensive.  The resulting pack can be heated in the microwave to soothe sore muscles or chilled in the freezer to ice bumps and bruises.  All you need is some soft fabric, a sewing machine, and some rice!

DIY Hot/Cold Pack

Materials:

  • Flannel or fleece fabric
  • Plain rice (not quick cooking)
  • Optional scents–essential oils, tea bags etc
  • Basic sewing supplies–scissors, sewing machine, pins etc

Directions:

1.  Cut two squares of fabric to whatever size you’d like–I made mine fairly small at 6″ x 6″

2.  Pin the two squares together right sides facing

3.  Sew all the way around the edges with a 1/4″ seam allowance, leaving about a 2″-3″ gap for turning

4.  Clip the corners

5.  Turn right side out, pushing out corners with your fingers or a chopstick

6.  Using a funnel, fill the sack with rice until it is a pleasing fullness

7.  If you’d like a scented pack, add a few drops of your favorite essential oil, or do what I did and cut open a bag of your favorite tea and dump it inside!

8.  Pin the turning opening closed and stitch shut.  Make sure you completely close off the opening so you don’t have rice and/or tea spilling all over the place!

And there you have it!  Simple, fast, cheap and awesome.  Make a few to have around the house when injuries strike.  If you’re worried about it getting dirty, try making a washable pillowcase to go around the outside, using my Envelope Pillow Cover Tutorial.

 

DIY Tile Coasters May 18, 2012

Filed under: Crafts,DIY,For the home — raediantphoenix @ 3:12 pm
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Warning:  This project is highly addictive.  Once you get started, you will keep coming up with new, fun ideas that you can’t wait to try, and pretty soon every surface in your house will be covered with these awesome tile coasters.  But hey, at least then you don’t need to worry about water marks ever again, right?  Right??

This is a project that Erin from Wicked Vegan and I decided to attempt for our severely last minute flurry of crafts for the Summer Bazaar at work.  We started with enough tiles to do 7 sets of coasters.  By the time we were done, we doubled that number, because we just couldn’t stop.  They’re fun, pretty, and relatively easy to make.  And the best part is, they’re ridiculously cheap.

Also, I’d like to apologize in advance for the lack of photos.  We were so engrossed in the project we sort of forgot…Lame, I know, but it’s pretty straightforward!

DIY Tile Coasters (Via Pinterest)

Materials:

  • White 4″x4″ bathroom tiles ($0.16 a piece at Home Depot)
  • Mod Podge
  • Foam Brush(es)
  • X-Acto Knife and cutting surface for trimming
  • Scissors
  • Felt or sticky felt nubbins (found at Home Depot, $2.99 for 75)
  • Scrapbook paper, magazine pages, maps, photos, or anything else you’d like to put on your coasters
  • Clear spray-on sealer (We used Krylon indoor/outdoor)

Directions:

1.  The first thing to do is plan out your sets of tiles.  We decided to do sets of four, so we cut four corresponding images or pieces for each set.  We just traced the size of the tiles and cut out the squares, saving precision trimming for later.

2.  Once you have all of your squares cut out, glue each one down to the shiny surface of your tiles, carefully smoothing out any air bubbles.  We found that a medium, even coat of Mod Podge is best.  Not enough and the paper won’t stick, but too much will cause the paper to wrinkle.  Leave to dry for at least 20 minutes.

3.  Once the tiles have dried, use your X-Acto knife to precisely trim off any overhanging edges

4.  Using your foam brush, paint a thin, even coating of Mod Podge over the top and edges of your tile to begin sealing it.  Again, you want to go for a happy medium–not too much, but not too little.  Give each tile at least 5 coats of Mod Podge, letting each coat dry thoroughly in between, about 20 minutes

6.  Once the tiles have dried from their final coat of Mod Podge, bring them outside and spray the tops and sides evenly with your clear sealant, creating a final, waterproof seal.  Make sure to follow the directions on your sealant regarding use and drying time!

7.  Stick pieces of felt, or the handy little pre-made nubbins, on the bottom of each tile to create a surface-friendly bottom.

Let me tell you, Erin and I are totally obsessed with these.  Let’s just say we had intended to make about 10 different products for the craft fair and ended up with only 4, because we just could.not.stop. making these.

The map ones are our favorites–Cape Cod, Paris, London, Florence and Rome.  *Sigh* they just make me want to pack my bags and run away somewhere!

How would you decorate your coasters?

 

DIY Mother’s Day Gift: Wrap Bracelet May 11, 2012

Filed under: Crafts,DIY — raediantphoenix @ 6:30 pm
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Mother’s Day is one of the those holidays that it’s so easy to forget or overlook.  It’s sort of made up, and is very gimmicky.  I mean, I treat my mom like royalty all year round–I don’t need an excuse!  ;)  

But if you’re like most of the world, you might have forgotten that Mother’s Day is on Sunday.  And like most of the world, you are probably looking for a quick, easy, beautiful gift for mom.  What could be better than something you made with your own two hands?  If your mom is like mine (sappy as all hell), she’s sure to love and appreciate a handmade gift above almost anything else. 

Therefore, I’d like to present you with this tutorial for making a beautiful wrap bracelet.  Make one in Mom’s favorite colors, or make a bunch to go with all her favorite outfits.  Of course, I found them on Pinterest, but you can find the original tutorial here.

DIY Wrap Bracelets (Via Honestly WTF)

Materials:

  • Leather cord
  • Ball chain or crystal chain (available for purchase here.  I also found limited selections at A.C. Moore)
  • Waxed linen cord (I used embroidery floss run through my sewing wax) or hemp
  • Button or other item to use for the closure
  • Scissors

Directions:

1. First you need to decide if you are making a single or a double length bracelet.  If single, cut a piece of leather cord that is a few inches more than twice the circumference of your wrist.  For a double, cut double that length.  Cut a length of ball chain or crystal chain to either single or double the circumference of your wrist

2.  Fold your cord  in half and knot the folded end in a loop just big enough to pass your button through.  This will be the closure of the bracelet

3.  Cut a healthy length of waxed linen or embroidery floss.  I used twice the length of my leather.  Basically just make sure you have enough, because if you don’t, you will be very sad and have to start over.

4.  Lay about 1/2 inch of the linen along the leather with the free end facing away from your knot, then begin wrapping the linen around the leather cording and itself, to secure the free end.

5.  Line up the free end of your ball or crystal chain on top of your leather cord and wrap the linen around the gap between the two balls and all the way around the leather twice.  Repeat this process all the way down your chain, until your bracelet is the desired length.

6.  Wrap the linen around the leather cord a few more times as at the beginning to secure

7.  Run the leather cord and the linen through your button or closure and knot to secure.

Aren’t these just beautiful?  I want to make a whole bunch of them in different colors and wear them all at the same time!  And they really couldn’t be easier–they come together in just a few minutes.

 

 

Homemade “Lara” Bars May 8, 2012

Filed under: Recipes — raediantphoenix @ 11:17 pm
Tags: , , , , , , , , , , , ,

I first became aware of Lara Bars on a weight-loss blog I was reading.  Yes, I read weight-loss blogs from time to time.  Sometimes they have great recipes!

Anyway, I was intrigued by their schtick–soy free, dairy free, raw, vegan and nutritious, made mostly from fruits and nuts.  So I went out and bought a few on sale for a dollar each at Stop and Shop.  I was instantly hooked.  Sweet, slightly savory, and ultra filling, but usually maxing out somewhere just over 200 calories apiece, they made a great on-the-go snack, and for someone who’s on-the-go a lot, this was very appealing.  Less appealing was the $1 each price tag (more when not on sale).

So, I hit the web, and started looking for recipes for my own.  And I found Damy Health.  Amy Layne came up with recipes that approximate the flavors and ingredients of almost all of the varieties of Lara Bars.  I bow down to her awesomeness.  I then went out to Whole Foods and purchased ingredients for my favorite so far, the PB&J bar.

Homemade PB&J Lara Bars (via Damy Health)

Ingredients: 

I quadrupled(ish) the recipe, to yield 12 bars.  The recipe below yields about 3 bars)

  • 1/4 cup dried cherries
  • 1/4 cup seedless, pitted dates
  • 1/2 cup raw peanuts (I used roasted, salted)
  • 1tbsp creamy natural peanut butter
  • pinch sea salt (I omitted this since my nuts were salted)

Directions:

1.  Place the dates and cherries in a food processor.  Blend until it forms a paste.  Transfer to a separate bowl.  (I do not own a food processor.  I used a blender.  It sucked.  A lot.  I ended up with lots of chunks because my blender was not up to the task.  If you don’t have a food processor, be forewarned that you’re in for a tough time of it.)

2.  Add nuts to the food processor and chop until they are very small pieces.

3.  Add nuts, salt and peanut butter to fruit paste.  Knead together with your hands.  This is fun!  You get your hands all gooey and yucky!

Yum! Fruit paste!

4.  Spread parchment paper onto a sheet tray, and press your fruit and nut “dough” evenly into the pan.  I used an empty bottle to roll it flat and a cutting board to keep the edges clean.

5.  Let set in the refrigerator for at least 20 minutes, then, using a sharp knife, cut into individual bars.

6.  Wrap in saran wrap or use individual baggies to seal in freshness.

And there you have it!  Homemade fruit and nut bars.  Unfortunately, because I bought my ingredients at Whole Paycheck Foods, the bars ended up costing about the same as they would in the grocery store:

The Peanuts were $4.49, the cherries were $4.99 and the dates were $4.99, for a total cost of about $15.00 (including PB I already had), and I only got 12 bars.  However, I’m sure that if I bought non-organic ingredients at the regular supermarket, they would be cheaper to make.  And despite the cost issue, they are SUPER tasty!

What’s your favorite flavor?

 

 
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