Monday, December 31, 2012

My Little Pony Hats

 I know I've mentioned this before, but Emmy LOVES horses. Lately there's been a shift from really horses to the fantasy sort- unicorns pegasuses (Pegasi?) multicolored ponies. My Little Pony. Seriously, I walk around everyday with that song stuck in my head. It was only a matter of time before I busted out the yarn to make some pony hats.

 Of course, there are six mane (hahahaha, aren't I clever??) ponies, so I couldn't really stop at just one, could I? No, why that would be normal and not OCD at all.

                                                                             Rarity

Twilight Sparkle

Twilight Sparkle again

 I made a Fluttershy hat too, but the hair is all wrong. It really needs to be a lot longer. So, I'll post pictures of her when she's done. Next up will be Rainbow Dash and if I can find the right shade of orange, Applejack.

I think I overused the word "pony" in the post. 


Pony.


Wednesday, November 7, 2012

Halloween Wrap Up

 I probably should have posted this before Halloween. Ah, but that is why I'm not a famous blogger, I suppose. Anyway, I made our costumes again this year.

Emily was The Flash!



And of course, The Flash would need a really awesome matching Trick or Treat bag...

Her friend Wonder Woman got an awesome bag, too.

And I went as Amy Farrah Folwer. ... Not sure you want to see that.










Wednesday, October 10, 2012

Pottery Barn for Less


 I was crazy about this canopy the moment I saw it in the Pottery Barn Kid's catalogue. Emmy's bedroom has a sort of whimsical garden theme going on, so I immediately started imagining how oh-so cute her bed would look with this little woodland canopy hanging over it. 

Then I saw the price tag.

$99. Plus shipping. It's since been knocked down to $58, but that's still a lot of money for a wreath and some tulle.

So I went out and bought my own wreath and my own tulle. Two five-yard pieces of tulle to be exact. In total, it cost about $12.

I broke out the glue gun and glued A LOT. 


I used ribbon and an eye-screw to hang it from the the ceiling.

 (Pay no attention to the walls. We haven't painted them yet!)


And there you have it. A $99 wreath for twelve bucks. Not too shabby!







Tuesday, September 11, 2012

What's in a Name?

 Happiness is Homegrown wasn't this blog's original name. It used to be Heather in Wonderland. I renamed it last spring, after I left my job to be a full time stay-at-home Mama. I had these big plans to grow a garden in my half-acre yard. The "garden" was already there, a large triangle fenced in long ago by a previous owner. It was so overgrown, we hired someone to rotorill it for us. Oh, how beautiful it was when it was done. The smell of freshly turned New England dirt is a smell like no other. And soon, I told myself, it would be full of vegetables.

 Then we went to DC for a month. We came home to a flourishing weed patch. But we went out there and ripped a lot of them out and planted zucchini, green beans and tomatoes.

 I learned that summer that I do not have a green thumb. The zucchini grew and we made some delicious breads with it. We did have a few bowls fills of beans, but those tomatoes never stood a chance. Some little critter ate every little green tomato. Our neighbors had a garden box, no fence for protection, yet they had beautiful tomatoes. Of course, I'll bet the little buggers was too full after eating all my tomatoes.

 This year I bought a small barrel and stuffed some herbs in it. They're grown, and all but the tarragon are in good shape, by some miracle.

 I've kept a fish alive for 2.5 years. Maybe livestock is the way to go....

Thursday, August 16, 2012

 This blog was never intended as a business blog. It was supposed to be ablaut all things domestic and related to homemaking and raising little ones. Somehow, somewhere, I got derailed and the vast majority of my posts have been focused on my crocheted stuff.

 If my blog was to ever have a place in blog-history, it's for my LalaLoopsy inspired hat. Particularly the first one I ever made. It's pretty ugly compared to the other hats I've made since; the hair is too heavy, the eyes too far apart, and yet such a large percentage of my page views have been for that post. Go figure.

 Anyhow, I digress, running the risk of yet another post being about HeatherDoodle Designs.

 We started Kindergarten yesterday. Our first official school year! My hopes and goals for this blog are that it becomes a place to not only document this first year through words and pictures, but also to share ideas with others.

 On that note, we're off to the craft store or Wal-Mart to buy planters, soil and seeds, as Emily has asked that we grow a real "Kinder garden." Hard to say no to that!



Thursday, August 2, 2012

Horse Hat

Emily LOVES horses, so I'm surprised it's taken me this long to make a horse hat. I was going to leave it as just a hat with ears and hair, but when Emmy saw it, she asked me "Mommy, where's his face?" That settled it, and now the horse has a face.





Saturday, July 28, 2012

Mermaid Tail Photo Props

 Oh, if only I could still cram my baby into cute little things like mermaid tail cocoons. I designed this photo prop set this past week, and I'm really happy about the way it turned it. I could improve on the flower's beading, but that's a simple fix. :-)






Thursday, July 19, 2012

Where the Wild Things Are

 I'm not quite sure I'm going to put this Etsy. Maybe as a photo prop, but I'm not sure yet.


RAWR!!

Saturday, July 14, 2012

Homemade Clay

  It was two ingredients. Three if you count the food coloring. I wouldn't. That was just a big mistake. Every time I find a recipe for play dough, slime, modeling clay on Pinterest, I just want to try it. So I bought some clear glue, added cornstarch, and made a huge mess. The recipe was as follows:

1/3 cup glue
1/4 cup cornstarch.

 Mix together. Add glue or cornstarch as needed for consistency.

At first, it was horrendously sticky. So added cornstarch. Then it was stiff and sticky. Then it started to dry and crumble, so we threw it away. Oh well, it was worth a shot.

Fluffy Bunny Hat

 I made this hat for my little niece-outlaw. ;-) I LOVE working with this yarn!



Sunday, July 8, 2012

Christmas in July

Who likes a sale? July 10-August 10, when you like my Facebook page, you'll get 15% off one item! :-D

Monday, July 2, 2012

"Up" Inspired baby afghan

                                                             Adventure is out there!





Friday, June 22, 2012

Still here!

Hello, all! I'm still here, I'm just behind on blogs and emails! I had surgery the other day, so I've been kind of out of commission. I have lots of pics to post and emails to send in the next few days.

Monday, June 4, 2012

Homemade Sloppy Joes

While leafing through a Williams Sonoma catalogue this weekend, I discovered "Sloppy Joe starter." For $13.95 a jar. Really?? For years, I've been making sloppy joes from scratch, and can make twice the food for half that price! And personally, I think it tastes better than anything out of a can or a jar. (Thanks, Ma!)

For starters, we don't start with "starter," we start with ground beef! (or ground turkey!) At least a pound, but use as much as you need, there are no specifics in this recipe. Brown it and drain as needed. Sprinkle in some garlic salt, pepper several dashes of Worcestershire sauce, and just a tiny tiny bit of cumin. Stir it all up very well, then add A LOT of ketchup. For one pound, I'd say at least a cup. But, eyeball it. It should look like the sloppy joe in the picture.

Homemade sloppy joes are delicious with homemade French fries, as seen in the other pic below. They're so simple! Add three inches of vegetable oil to a large frying pan and place over medium-high heat. Now slice your potatoes length-wise, then into French fry shapes. Add to the oil in small batches and sprinkle with garlic salt and pepper. Cook until golden brown, gently flipping with a spatula occasionally. When they're done, transfer them to a large plate covered with paper towels and add salt to taste.

DIY SLIME!!

We made slime today! On purpose! (Lol!) I found this recipe through Pinterest, pinned from http://domesticcharm.blogspot.com/2011/10/glow-in-dark-slime.html?m=1

She explains that the less Borax mixture you use, the runnier the slime. We had a great time experimenting with that!

Sorry about the photo quality - these are from my phone!

Sunday, May 27, 2012

Yo Gabba Gabba!!!

 (Where did that name come from, anyway??)


 While rockin' out to the Music is Awesome! cd in the car the other day, it hit me: I should design a few Yo Gabba Gabba hats! A week and three hats later, Toodee and Brobee have hit Etsy, and Foofa will join them tomorrow. :-)

Friday, May 25, 2012

Pinecone Owls

Emily and I went for a little walk yesterday and came across some big, beautiful pinecones. I couldn't resist scooping a few up! And with just a few googly eyes, some felt and ribbon, we had ourselves a little nest of owls!

Tuesday, May 22, 2012

Coming Soon...

It's been a little crazy here this past week, but I've been able to work on some new designs in the evenings. Introducing... Yo Gabba Gabba hats! Here's a sneak peek at Brobee! Look for him on Etsy in the next few days!

Saturday, May 19, 2012

American Girl Hats

HeatherDoodle Designs is now making hats for dolls, too! Any hat can be made for an American Girl or similar doll. Order one with a person-sized hat and get the doll sized one 50% off!

Important Dates

A fun way to display important dates.

Seaside Baby Afghan

Baby boy afghan, pattern to follow.

Crocheted Drawstring Satchel

I hate to admit this, but this started out as a slouchy hat. After a good 12 rows, I realized this would be a far better sack than a hat! Pattern to follow!

Tuna Avocado Sandwich

If I could eat Tuna Avocado sushi everyday, I'd be a happy girl. :-) However, that's probably not a good idea. I threw this sandwich together for lunch yesterday, and while it's not sushi, it's pretty good!

Take on can of tuna, drained, and add as little mayo or Greek yogurt as you need to make it stick together. Slice up some avocado and cucumber, and assemble your sandwich on your favorite bread. I added provolone cheese, as well. :-)

Sunday, April 22, 2012

New Lalaloopsy Hats

My poor, neglected blog - I haven't forgotten you! My laptop is on the fritz again, so I've had to try to blog from my phone.

I have two new Lalaloopsy hats to post! Enjoy!

Sunday, April 15, 2012

Happy Birthday Banner

It's basically a revised version on the baby shower banner, but here's my Happy Birthday banner.