For the past few years, my employer has celebrated Earth Day. We have a stretch of road that people volunteer to help clean up, weve gotten seeds to plant…and this year all the crafty people at work are invited to share & sell their wares that are handmade out of recycled goods. What better way to show off my talents than to sew a bunch of awesome recycled items. I sent out an email today to all my friends inviting them to donate to the cause by going through their closets & drawers to find any kind of clothing or household items they were not using or were slightly damaged to be refurbished into something awesome. I’m going to list out my wish list of items here in case anyone out there reading my blog wants the list and I will be adding to it too. I’m also going to post the types of items I’m thinking of making. Anything that doesn’t sell will be added to my Etsy shop at http://www.etsy.com/shop/janetsjunk.
Wish List:
- Children’s worn out jeans
- Animal prints
- Bright colors
- Cute florals
- Bright & cheery solid colors
- Flannel items
- Sewing supplies
- T-Shirts
- Placemats/Napkins
- Bedding
- Old neckties
Things I’m contemplating making:
- Purses/Totes/Wallets/Wristlets/Clutches
- Clothing for adults/kids (you’d be amazed what you can make out of an old tshirt or button down shirt)
- Aprons
- Bibs/Burp Cloths
- Garden Flags
- more to come…
Okay, I was home sick today and shortly before my son got home from school, I got up out of bed and was in a crafty mood. I found a website where someone had made little notepads using scrap paper and Monopoly property cards. I thought they were so cute I made a couple just for fun. They are nothing special but I think I’m going to throw these in my purse to take special notes on.
I bought a new cookbook at a recent book fair we had at work. There are lots of recipes in it that are simple and have ingredients both my husband & son would eat so I had to buy it. This is one that I adapted for us but for the most part, it’s the same as was in the book. Try it, you’ll like it. Oh and it freezes well! Enjoy…
Ingredients:
- Cooked hamburger meat, crumbled
- Chopped onions
- Chopped carrots
- Minced garlic
- Cream of Mushroom soup (any kind will do)
- Cooked potatoes (I had leftover fried potatoes from breakfast)
- Salt/Pepper
- Top & bottom of pie crust shell (pre-made is fine)
Oven to 350 degrees. Cook hamburger until it’s just about done. Add chopped onions, carrots & garlic. Cook the meat until done & drain. Add back to pan and salt/pepper to taste. Add cream soup & cooked potatoes. Mix and simmer until warmed through. Put bottom of pie crust in pie pan or dish (I used square glass dish). Add mixture and then place top of pie shell on dish. I cut out circles just for kicks & giggles. 
Bake at 350 degrees for 15 minutes. Turn heat up on oven to 400 degrees and cook another 10-15 minutes, making sure crust is not burning. Once crust is nicely browned, take out of oven & let cook for 5 minutes before cutting into and serving.
It was teacher appreciation week and I made this clutch for Chris’ teacher. I asked her what her favorite colors were and she said green & purple. So I used a beautiful green/brown fabric for the outside and green for the inside. The bird applique on the outside is the same green fabric as the lining and the eye is a purple jewel. And a clutch wouldn’t be complete without a wristband. Here it is without further adeu…
Lotsa pics…My friend liked my brown bag so much she requested I make her one just like it but with a big orange T on the front for Tennessee. I made the pattern for the bag myself just by what kind of style I wanted & size. I handmade the applique using the fabric for the lining, the outer fabric is a stretchy blue denim with a peek-a-boo bit of orange on the top end of the zipper and the lining is orange & quilted with soft fleece to give it stability & softness. Two denim inner pockets as well and I added my label.
