Packing and Projects

We're 10 days out from our trip and I am trying to get organized.  This is our first trip with Pyper and it is sooo clear that our traveling styles will never be the same.  As I am attempting to fit clothes, diapers, bottles, beach play toys, a ton of baby equipment and 10,000 other things into her case I am reminded just how far my life has come in a few years.  I spent over a month backpacking through Europe and southeast Asia ( 2 different trips) with just a small backpack.

Hiking in the Swiss Alps.

Riding elephants in Thailand.

 Everything I needed fit on my back and now I feel we will be lucky if everything fits on one luggage cart at the airport.  I was definitely taking my previous jet setting life style for granted!

I am also trying to complete as many birthday projects as I can before we leave.  Today I started by embellishing some fairy wings for Pyper to wear at her party.  They were originally Tinkerbell wings that I purchased from the Disney Store on clearance.

I thought they needed more pink and I wanted them to look more garden fairy than Tinkerbell.  I bought a stem of silk flowers from Joann's.  I pulled the flowers off and stitched them onto the wings.  Then I glued some rhinestones over the centers to cover the holes left from the stems and the stitches.  I think they look great and are much less expensive than some of the other wings I found online that were $25- $35.

I also worked on the tablecloth for my food table.  I was inspired by a wall of fabric I saw in a booth when I was at the wedding show.

I love the ruffles and thought it resembled a tutu.  I chose to make a table covering with a similar fabric panel in the front.  I made mine out of pink and orange fabric I purchased on clearance for $2.50 a yard.  It took 2 yards of pink and 1 yard of orange.  If I had it to do again I would have purchased more to make more dense ruffles but I was too lazy to go to the store again so I used what I had.  I also added pink tulle I had over the orange to add a little more fun.  

To make it I cut a piece for the top of my table and hemmed the edges.  Then I cut the remaining fabric into strips.

To ruffle the fabric I sewed a long stitch through the top of my fabric.  Then I just pulled one of the threads to make the fabric ruffle.   I attached the strips to a panel I made to hang down the front. 

 I chose to only make my ruffles in the front and not the sides or back.  The way my table will be positioned at the party you will only really see the front.  I did add a rod pocket on the back to slide in a dowel to help weigh the tablecloth down because the front is pretty heavy.

I left the edges unfinished because I liked the threads plus the fabric doesn't fray much.

I like how the finished project turned out and it cost less than $10.  Just a few more party projects to go!