No-Sew T-Shirt Scarf

I recently lost 30 pounds (whoohoo!) so I have lots of clothes that don't fit anymore. I've taken a bunch to the local thrift store, but there are some left over that have stains or bleach spots or are misshapen or whatever. I know there are people in need, but I still wouldn't give them sub-par clothes. When I saw the scarf Cut Out and Keep did, I knew I had to give it a try. After all, it requires no sewing or buying of material on my part!

Needed:
old t-shirts
scissors

First you want to gather shirts that somewhat coordinate. I have loads of pink shirts (it's a weakness) and some white ones too.

Cut off the hem on all the shirts & set them aside, you'll need them later.

Cut the shirts into strips about an inch wide.

Give the loops a big stretch & wrap the loops around your hands to form a ringlet.

If you'd like, keep them separated by color.

Take the shirt hems and cut them into 5 inch sections.

Use the hem sections to tie together the shirt ringlets.

Keep going until the end.

As an added bonus, anyone who follows my blog is in the running to receive this scarf's twin! I had so much material left over, I was able to make a second scarf. As long as you follow this blog by December 8th, you're in the running. I will draw the winner on the 9th so I can have it shipped in time for Christmas! Who loves ya baby?

Felt Star Ornaments

This craft actually comes from my boss! She's pretty crafty herself & an amazing cook. (Okay, so she follows this blog, but all those things are true!) When I told her I was making my ornaments this year, she told me about some that she made. They're so cheap & easy that I had to give it a shot.

Needed (sorry no picture):
Felt
Yarn
Needle
Batting

Start by cutting stars out of felt. You'll want an even number. If you cut a star out of cardboard you can use it as a template and then all of your stars will be a uniform size. I did a Google search & found this that I used as my template.

Use the yarn and needle to sew two stars together, but leave one open side.

Stuff batting into the star. You don't want to make it too full, but you want to give it a 3-D look.

Sew the remaining side closed and use the yarn to create a loop so you can hang your ornament on the tree.

This would also be great as a banner. Just use the yarn to string several of them together. Thanks Kim for the great idea!

Mod Podge

I am a strong believer in not buying what you can make. Mod Podge is a necessity for crafters, but costs around $10 per bottle! I hate to tell people who spend that $10, but you can make it for around $1.

All you'll need is white school glue, water, and a jar to mix it in.

Unscrew the cap to the glue & squeeze the glue into the jar.

Fill the glue bottle back up with hot water & pour it into the jar with the glue.

Put the lid on the jar & shake that bad boy! You're all set to decoupage!

You might want to label it to avoid any nasty confusion!

Bonus Post: Chicken (or Turkey) Salad

In order to help you get rid of your Thanksgiving leftovers, I'm doing an extra post this week!
I normally make this salad with chicken, but I still have an abundance of turkey in my fridge. To be completely honest, I use canned chicken for this recipe. I was super skeptical of using the canned stuff at first, but it's really a time saver!

Needed (amounts will vary depending on how many folks you're feeding):
Turkey (or chicken)
Mayo (or Miracle Whip, which we prefer)
Grapes
Apple
Almond or walnut pieces --optional, I left those out this time
Salt & Pepper
Rolls (I used bagels this time because that's what I had on hand)

Shred the meat.

Dice grapes & apples. Add them, salt, pepper, and nuts (if you're using them).

Add enough mayo to moisten it & make it all stick together.

Put on rolls (or bagels in this case).

It's also really yummy if you have fresh tomato, lettuce & onion. Just slice all those bad boys & add them on top! To help with portions, I made enough for 3 sandwiches. I used about half a turkey breast, 6 grapes, half an apple, and 2 tablespoons of Miracle Whip.

Christmas Card Holder

We live in a tiny apartment. Every Christmas (and birthday), we struggle to find space to put our cards that our family sends us. We both come from pretty large families and they're all big on sending cards. Granted, I could buy something to showcase them all, but the ones I found are a little pricey. I decided to make something instead.

I headed to the local thrift store & found some really cheap frames. I grabbed one of the biggest ones I could find.

Sorry for the pictures in this post. My apartment has the worst lighting known to man!

I removed the backing & matting (the glass was already gone) and painted it with black acrylic craft paint. You can skip this step if you're okay with the way the frame looks.

Then I glued white ribbon to the frame. Make sure the glue you use is safe for all the materials you're using and also, make sure you pull the ribbon taut.

It's now hanging in my hallway waiting for all those lovely Christmas cards!

Finally! A decent picture!

Leftover Turkey Sandwich

This marks the last of my daily posts. I will cut them back to Mondays, Wednesdays, and Fridays. I'm starting classes soon & along with working at my (real) job, I won't have time to do daily posts. But that's okay because I have something planned for you guys three times a week until March!

I don't know if you guys are like me, but I get tired of having Thanksgiving leftovers. I love the food, but the monotony of it all really bores me & I lose the desire to eat all the food that's left in my fridge. There's a really great bread store here & they have some really amazing sandwiches. They have this sandwich called "Turkey Dinner". It's great! When I first read it on the menu I thought it sounded disgusting, but my husband decided to give it a shot. It was so good, I stole half of it from him. But why go buy it when I have so much turkey at my dispense? They use cracked wheat bread, but I decided to put it on wheat for me and white for the hubster. (Sorry no pictures for this one! I forgot!)

Ingredients (amounts depends on your taste):
turkey
cream cheese
cranberry sauce
lettuce
bread (I toasted mine a bit before assembling the sandwich)

Mix cream cheese & cranberry sauce together.
Layer turkey, cranberry mixture, and lettuce on bread.
Enjoy! It's super easy & so yummy!

Cinnamon-Honey Butter

This recipe is pretty well-known. I've known about it for a few years now. I don't know where I originally got it though. It's really easy too!

Ingredients:
1c room temperature butter
1c honey
1c powdered sugar
2tsp cinnamon

Beat butter for about a minute. You just want to break it up a bit.

Add honey, sugar, and cinnamon and beat for another minute or so.

Scrape down sides and beat again until smooth.
You can put the butter in individual containers to give away to neighbors, or put it in a big one and keep it for yourself!

 It's great on rolls...toast...a spoon. Seriously folks, this stuff is so good I could just it as is. But I don't for fear of a heart attack.
It's also really easy to double, triple, whatever. You just need to remember to keep it equal parts butter, honey & sugar. Then, however many sticks of butter you used, that's how many teaspoons of cinnamon you need. Easy peasy!