Even the PX isn't safe...

This actually shocked me a bit... I used to think things are safer on base... Guess I was wrong.

Easter Craft, Day 5:

I've seen these fabric eggs sold in high end department stores. I've always thought they weere very cute, but honestly I can't afford to pay $20+ per egg. So I set out hunting for an easy tutorial on how I could make them myself. And thanks to Retro Mama we've got one!

Fabric Easter Egg Tutorial

Materials:
10"w x 5"h Quilting cotton, linen or other non-stretchy woven fabric in one or more prints
Thread
Fiberfill, Nature-fill or other similar polyester or natural stuffing
Disappearing Ink Pen
Scissors
Pins
Hand sewing needle
Pattern (I recommend printing it on card stock for easy tracing)

Seam allowances are 1/4"

Cut out the pieces. Place pattern piece perpendicular to the fabric selvedge, trace the pattern with disappearing ink (see photo below) and cut four pieces from desired fabric prints. You may cut multiple pieces simultaneously from the same print by folding the fabric over one or more times, cutting up to 4 pieces at once. (Tip: If you're using a scrap and don't know which way the selvedge is, test which direction the fabric is stretchiest. The fabric is stretchier going perpendicular to the selvedge, and less stretchy going parallel with the selvedge; you want the stretch going from top to bottom of the egg, not side to side, so your egg doesn't get too "fat" when you stuff it. Hopefully that makes sense.) Place pieces together for sewing. Always keeping track of which end is "up", place 2 fabric pieces, right sides together, pinning if desired. Do the same with the remaining two pieces. Transfer the two dots from the pattern to the fabric pieces on top. If using two different fabrics, make sure both pairs have one of each print and that the same print is on the top of both sets. Sew a seam along the right side of one set of egg pieces, from top dot to bottom dot, backstitching at the top and bottom. Do the same with the second set of pieces. Put the two halves together. Turn one set of egg pieces right side out, and place inside the other set of egg pieces, so that right sides are together on the inside. Match the seams at the top and bottom and pin. (Note the purple ink marks on the lower righthand side in the photo below that indicate where I will leave a hole for stuffing) Sew the two halves together. Sew around the outside edge of the egg, leaving a 1" hole on one side for turning and stuffing, backstitching at the beginning and end of the seam. Trim the seam allowances, taking care not to snip into the stitches and leaving the seam allowances wide around the open hole. Turn the egg right side out through the hole and it will look something like this Stuff the egg firmly with poly-fill or other stuffing, and close the hole with small slip stitches/ladder stitches. Voila! You have a completed egg.

Easter Craft, Day 4: Easter Nests

Haystack Bird Nests

• 12 ounces white chocolate chips
• 1 cup slivered almonds
• 1 cup shredded coconut, sweetened
• Food coloring, optional
  

Melt the white chocolate in a double boiler. When melted, add food coloring of your choice if you want colored nests as your finished product (I prefer just plain white - but maybe I'm boring). Stir in the almonds and coconut, coating well. Place a heaping tablespoon of the mixture onto a baking sheet that has been lined with wax paper, forming the mixture into the shape of a bird nest. Refrigerate until fully hardened. Fill the nests with "eggs" - jelly beans or foil-wrapped chocolate eggs. If you want the candy to stay in place inside the nest, use dabs of extra melted chocolate or cake icing as glue.

Virginia’s Eastern Shore Salutes Our Troops

Virginia’s Eastern Shore Salutes Our Troops
http://www.esvatourism.org/salute/

In honor of Memorial Day, the B&B and boutique inn owners on the Eastern Shore of Virginia have declared Thursday, May 14, 2009 “Virginia’s Eastern Shore Salutes Our Troops” day.

Twenty-one participating Eastern Shore B&Bs are offering a total of 50 rooms for FREE one-night stays to active military personnel and their special someone as a tribute to their military service. We want to recognize the sacrifice our men and women in uniform and their families make every day. In addition to a free night in a charming inn, many are offering extras such as dinner for two, free massage, and discounts for extended stays.

In response to the First Lady’s commitment to support military families, Eastern Shore B&Bs devised a way to give the troops what they need most – a quiet respite to spend time with a loved one in one of America’s special places. A secret hideaway tucked between the Chesapeake Bay and the Atlantic Ocean, this pristine peninsula offers serenity and small town hospitality.

To be eligible, military personnel need only provide proof of active service when they arrive at the B&B. You must be military personnel in active status to qualify.

How to Enter:

1. Review the participating B&Bs.
2. Select your first choice B&B by clicking on it in the first drop down menu.
3. Select your second choice B&B by clicking on it in the second drop down menu.
4. Complete the form including the contact number where we can reach you.
5. Click Submit to enter. Please submit only one entry military person. Duplicate entries will be discarded.
6. Submit your entry by April 16, 2009. We cannot accept entries after that date.
7. Winners will be selected at random and notified by the B&B. Expect to receive notification by April 24, 2009.
8. If we can’t connect with the winner after a few tries, we will draw another name to fill the slot.
9. No purchase necessary.

Easter Craft, Day 3:

I love these easter egg wreaths... But you go to the stores and they're anywhere from $30-$50... Which I just can't bring myself to pay! So, I had to figure out a way to make one myself... For much cheaper!

The Supply list:
Cardboard, Plastic Easter Eggs (I used 42 regular sized)
Easter Grass 1 1/2 inch wide Ribbon
Wire or Pipe Cleaners for bow and hanger an the back.
The Tool List:
Hot Glue Gun
Scissors
A Pencil with it's eraser never used.

Let's get started!

We started with a base of cardboard. I just grabbed any box and cut out two circles. If your cardboard is super thick and sturdy, you can use one thickness if you wish. The outside of my circle is 12 inches and the inside measures 9 inches. This makes the wreath a little over 13 inches in diameter. If you need or want a larger wreath, then cut bigger circles....and you'll need more eggs.

I added some hot glue to one of my circles in a pretty decorative fashion. Ha! Who am I kidding? I just squirted it around the frame!
Okay. Now it's time to start hot gluing the eggs down. Look at the top right of the photo. This is where I started. I put a little glob of hot glue on the bottom of the green one and set it down on the cardboard with the fat end on the inside. Make sure you place the eggs horizontal on the board. Do not have them standing at attention or tilting upward. Next I placed the pink egg next to the green one and put one small dab of glue in between the two to connect them. You could probably see it if you click on the picture to enlarge it. Next I added the purple one and connected it to the pink and green one with more glue. To sum this up, you will have glue on the bottom of all the eggs to adhere it to the cardboard and anywhere it touches another egg, you'll need to put a little dab on it too. This will build a nice and sturdy wreath. As you can see with the first three eggs, the purple one nestles right in with the other two. As you work around the wreath, this is not the case with every egg. Look at the next two (yellow & blue). The blue can't quite nestle in between the yellow and pink. Not a problem. Just make sure that when you continue with your wreath, your outside eggs are facing out like a sunburst and your inside eggs are facing inward to a center point. Do not worry about the gaps where you can see the cardboard. We'll fix that later.
When you get to the end, you will probably not have enough to finish out the wreath. This is PERFECT! You will need that space to put a bow there. By the way, I picked up these eggs (well actually 50 of them) at the local thrift shop for $2.50! Okay, the next step is to put the top layer on the wreath. I used 10 eggs...2 of each color. All I did was place them in a random fashion. You can look at the first picture for the example. You can place them over the places where you have the biggest gaps and then fill in or whatever you like. You will need to hot glue these down everywhere they touch another egg.
Next, start with a little grass and using your pencil as a tool push some grass with the eraser into the gaps of your wreath. Start with the the gaps under the top layer of your eggs. Then you will need to put them between the outside rim of the bottom layer of eggs. In the space where the gap is, put a little bed of hot glue and let it cool a few second and then put some grass there to cover the cardboard.After you are done "grassing" your wreath, trim the fly-a-ways from the outside of your wreath to shape your wreath. Don't forget to trim the inside too!

Add the bow to your wreath in the space not covered by the eggs and add a pipe cleaner to the back to make a hanger for the wreath and you're done!