Simple Sweater Hearts

This project is so simple.

I wasn't sure about them at first.

I mean, what is the point of a bunch of fabric hearts?

But then I decided, 

They are CUTE.

And there needs to be no more point or reason than that. :)

I doubled my material so that I had 2 layers. 

Then free handed a heart onto my material, which  happens to be an old sweater. 

I didn't worry about using a marker. It will be covered once sewn.

Then I pinned both pieces together. 

 

 Cut them out. 

Save the scrap pieces!

This is what I used to stuff my heart.

I had a giant needle on hand. 

Never used it before. 

It's perfect for sewing with yarn!

I cut about 30 inches of yarn. 

And started sewing around the edges. 

After it was all sewn, I hand tied the yarn into a knot, a couple time, then clipped the remaining yarn.

And the knots disappeared right into the fabric.

Working with a sweater is very forgiving.

All finished! 

And what a quick project!

And here I am, collecting my Jar Of Hearts....

DIY Burp Cloth's

Making Burp Cloth's is fairly easy.

Actually, it's really easy.

And quick.

So easy, I did not need to follow any directions.

I used a bath towel for my backside.

And a decorative cotton for the front side.

(If you use flannel, it makes it a bit tricky to sew. 

I used some interfacing when I use flannel, and it made it super easy)

 

I paid about $3.50 for the towel. And the fabric was on sale at Jo Anns. I paid $2.50 for half a yard; Which will do about 6 burp cloths.

 

How cute are those elephants!

PRE-WASH your material. 

FOR REAL, PRE-WASH IT!

I HATE this step. 

But if you DON'T do it, then when they are washed for the first time, the different material could shrink differently and make the whole thing look crooked and badly made.

 If your anything like me, you'll wash it with all of your other towels and clothes. 

So I had to pull out my lint brush. Took care of all the uglies left behind from my brown towels. LOL

My half yard of material measured enough to give me 6 burp cloths. 

I don't know if they are the "real" measurements of  actual store bought ones.

But it looked good to me.

I cut my material 17 1/2 inches by 7 1/2 inches.

And then cut the same measurements from the towel.

The towel was big enough to give me 12 backs of burp cloths. 

But I only cut 6. LOL :) 

Just letting you know how many I can get from it.

 

Take the material and place both pieces with the front sides facing together. 

You will be turning this inside out.

\

And then pin.

PIN.

The bath towel likes to stretch and pull.

So use LOTS of pins.

Sew one of the short ends.

I use a zigzag stitch. It helps catch all the material and make sure no frays happen.

And then sew down each side.

I also find it easier to also sew about 2 inches in on each side at the open end, leaving a hole for turning right side out.

Clip the corners.

Turn right side out.

Fold down your open end, and iron. 

Its easier to fold in because of the 2 inches sewn on each side.

Then stitch it closed.

 I add a decorative zigzag stitch.

I measure my length and divide by 3. 

So if your length is 18 inches, you would sew at 6 inches and 12 inches.

 Brush all of the fuzzes left behind from the bath towel, and admire your work.

I like to fold them  up. And before I give them away, I wrap some decorative ribbon around them and add a tag that says Burp Cloth's. 

Total Cost for 6 Decorative Burp Cloth's...$4.25

I made these for my newest niece to use, who will be joining the world in a little over 2 months. 

Home Made Laundry Detergent

I am a HUGE fan of saving money.

Awhile ago, I decided to make my own laundry detergent.

I was very leery of this. Positive in my mind that it just would never measure up to store bought brands.

But to my amazement, it worked. And it worked well!

I found this link from pinterest. Certain I would have to try at least 3 recipes before I found one I loved. But this was the one I used, and the one I will stick with. 

All of the instructions can be found on her page...

HowDoesShe

I purchased all of the items from the list on the previous website I just shared. 

And the total cost for me came to

$21.79

From my previous batch of this detergent, I got about 8 months worth of laundry.

I do an estimated 1 load of laundry a day.

That brings my total of laundry soap PER load of laundry to a grand total of about 

9 CENTS!

Yes, you read that right. 

It only cost me 9 cents a load for detergent.

I found this link for making Fabric Softener stretch farther.

Clarkscondensed

I haven't tried this yet. But I did soak my washcloths, and they smell so good.

I stored them in an airtight container.

And can't wait to see if they work.

If they work, I will be getting over 1000 "dryer sheets" per my bottle of Downy!

I hope they work! If so, it will cost me just a penny for each load!

I will keep you updated as to if they actually do in fact work for me.

***UPDATE***

The Downy Rags actually work fairly well.

Although, I don't seem to be able to get 10 loads from each rag.

I can get about 5 loads. 

Which is still a HUGE savings. I am getting FIVE x the amount I am paying for.

And that still makes me very, very happy.

How can saving money not make you happy, happy, happy!