Scraps of Yarn July Crochet Along - finished!

Last night I finally managed to finish the July scraps of yarn crochet along challenge posted by Joanita over at Creative Crochet Toys. And just in time to show it off before the end of the month!

No clutter in 2015: week 30 update

OK, so I'm glad to report that I've accomplished almost everything I set out to do last week!

(Almost) Wordless Wednesday 29/July

Welcome to the last wordless wedesnday of July!

Christmas in July - DIY Scented Ornaments

Did you notice that July is almost over? And that Christmas is right around the corner? Well, it is. And because I always like to make a lot of handmade gifts, I have to start early. 

A couple of weeks ago, I discovered Patience Brewster and decided to join them in celebrating Christmas in July! And so scented ornaments came to be!

No clutter in 2015: week 29 update

My house is a mess. 

Not what you expected to read in a decluttering post, right? But it's the truth and since I named this blog Keeping it Real, I'm doing exactly that. 

(Almost) Wordless Wednesday 22/July

We spent last weekend with a couple of friends and tried to enjoy the good weather as much as possible.

These photos were taken on Saturday afternoon, in Sesimbra, Portugal.

Scraps of Yarn July Crochet Along - part 2

This weekend my time for anything remotely crafty was sorely reduced. The only thing I did manage to finish was part 2 of the July scraps of yarn crochet along challenge posted by Joanita over at Creative Crochet Toys.

 

Battleship printable game - the pirate version!

My kids love to play battleship, and especially now that my daughter already knows her numbers and letters it's an easy game that they can play alone (for a short while, at least, before they actually start trying to kill each other).

No clutter in 2015: week 28 update

We had a busy weekend, with our son's 8th birthday party and lots of friends and family coming over, I've been working late at the office almost everyday and, on top of that, we have more friends coming over next weekend.

But we still found a little time for decluttering.

(Almost) Wordless Wednesday 15/July

Can you believe this sunset, last Sunday? It almost looked as if the sky was on fire. I truly love summer!

The Panda Pillow - with free sewing pattern!

We've had a very busy weekend and while I still found time for a little crafting, I didn't finish any projects worth bragging about here. 

But, while going through all the patterns I have stashed in my craft closet (with the purpose of getting rid of the ones I won't use anymore - or never have), I found a hand drafted pattern for a pillow I made years ago for my son: the Panda Pillow. 

So today I decided to take a trip down memory lane and share the story of how this pillow came to be. I've also copied the pattern onto clean sheets and made a pdf out of it for anyone who wants to use it (though it's still a handmade pattern, so not very high quality).

Scraps of Yarn July Crochet Along - part 1

Just like in May and June, I accepted Joanita's challenge for yet another crochet along in July, again using just scraps of yarn.

No clutter in 2015 - week 27 update

Now that we have passed the middle-of-the-year bend-in-the-road and summer is here in full force, I've realized that I also need to accelerate my decluttering efforts. 

(Almost) Wordless Wednesday 8/July

From our bicycle rides through the countryside last month...

the endless country roads

DIY sports iPod armband pouch (with pattern)

I'm sort of an individualist when it comes to sports. I have zero talent for group sports and, to be honest, I prefer to work out alone. But I can't do it without is music.

After a series of less than fortunate mp3 players, my husband bought me an Ipod Shuffle for my birthday last year and ever since then I've been using it faithfully whenever I go to the gym. I've also been wanting to get a sports armband, to avoid having to hold the Ipod in my hand (sometimes I just roll the ear-buds cord around my neck at let it hang loose, but I'm pretty sure that's not exactly conducive to a long life either for the ear-buds or the Ipod itself).

Last weekend, I had enough and decided it shouldn't be too hard to make an armband to fit me and my Ipod.

So here is the story of how my homemade sports band came to be, along with the tutorial and the pattern, in case anyone wants to make one too.

Happy 4th of July!

I live in Portugal, so today is just another sunny saturday, but I still want to wish everyone in the US a great 4th of July!

Enjoy your Independence Day!

Scraps of Yarn June Crochet Along - finished!

I finally finished the June scraps of yarn mystery blanket crochet along!

I'm aware that we are already a couple of days into July and this was supposed to be a June challenge, but I was not able to finish the border (part 4 of the crochet along) before yesterday night. 

Well, the mystery is finally unraveled and the result is a cute square blanket, measuring about 60 x 60 cm, totally made using various scraps of yarn.

No clutter in 2015 - week 26 update

Well, we are now in the first week of July and half the year has gone by already. 

Last week I ended up replacing the decluttering update with another post (The Blogging Schedule for the usy Mom) which, even though it also revolves around the organization topic, doesn't add much on my decluttering journey. 

Which doesn't mean that I haven't been busy decluttering. Actually, I have been so busy that I have a huge pile of items on top of our guest-room bed waiting to be shipped out.

(Almost) Wordless Wednesday 1/July

Welcome to the first wordless Wednesday of July...which could also be named "unconventional zoo pictures".