So I saw this thing on Pinterest...

Oops this is unlike me. I haven't blogged for 2 months! But I have been busy, as a new mom other things and a little person take priority.
We recently discovered mold in our  bathroom, yuck! So for the last month we have been renovating  a room thatwe first had other plans for, but with the mold, we vetoed those plans and just did a simple gut and renovate. It's not quite done yet but I will post pics after. All I can say is I can't wait to have a working and proper sized bathtub back. The old shallow tub was useless!
We have also been renovating our bedroom. Not big renos, just putting in a walk in closet and some paint to freshen up the room. again, it's not quite complete yet because we were using free skid wood for the wall and because of the ridiculous snow, the wood has been to wet and we need to wait for dryer weather to get more wood to finish the project.


So what have I been doing to be thrifty these past 2 or 3 months?

1. I made a new k'tan style carrier for myself.  My previous k'tan worked fine, but the material was thicker and it will probably be very hot if I wanted to use it for the summer, so I made anew one out of athletic mesh.  I'm pretty sure I'm going to have to make myself a Moby style wrap as Hans get's heavier and bigger.

2. I saw a pinterest project online on how to make your own cardigan onsie. It was quite simple to do.
I bought a simple onsie fromthe thrift store of course, cut the front in have and cut out av-neck. The I sewed on some stretchy, ribbed knit and added some buttons. Pinterest told meto replace the cuffs to match the edging but I don't think it's necessary. I then made a little tiny bow tie which can be snapped onto the onsie underneath (rather than an around-the-neck elastic) I also sewed some fake suspenders onto the white onsie. And of course I HAD to make amatching

3. I have a pantry in my kitchen with a really bland door. The door is too solid looking. I had a menu board on it but it didn't help. Plus menu boards, as fun as they are to make (I have a post about it somewhere) are really annoying to use. I don't have a fancy glass door in my pantry but I need something to break up the colour on this door. So I created along chalk board. Now I didn't just purchase chalk paint and slap it on the door because chalk board paint is a rip off! it costs at least $22 for a small can. Instead I bought the cheapest can of paint at Lowes that I could find, it was $11 and a box of plaster of paris, about $4. So I only spent a little less, but this amount stretches a lot further. I mixed according to instructions : 2/3 C PoP mixed with 3 T water, add to 2 C paint and voila, calk board paint. Ad a border and  now I can write a menu on my door, groceries, to do lists etc. No more frantically looking for paper when I need to write down a message or number,I can just scribble it on the door.

I think a lot of things are going to get labeled with chalk....lets hope I don't go too crazy with this!

Baby Wearing At Its Thriftiest.

Everyone is really big into baby wearing these days. I find that a really odd term to be honest; it sounds like you wear your childlike a piece of clothing. Finding the right carrier/wrap is almost as difficult as finding the cloth diaper that works best. Some carrier/wraps work for you and baby, some don't.  My first carrier was and ergo soft structure carrier. I still love this carrier, especially after I made the heart to heart insert for it so that my baby actually fits in it. but it's bulky, the type of bulky that gets in the way of trying to do work while cuddling. I also had a ring sling. I could not figure this thing out to save my life. I probably watched 25 different you tube videos showing detailed instructions on how to use a ring sling, but for some unknown reason to me, it wasn't working. I also have a Little Star sling that I found at a garage sale. I still haven't quite figured this one out either,but I don't dislike it as much as my ring sling. 

I really loved the idea of the Moby, but oh my...so much fabric and it seems so complicated. Then I discovered the K'tan baby wrap/carrier: 2 loops and a sash, as simple as that. The K'tan is about $60 on line, but I like to make things for my self, so when I stumbled upon this great chunk of leftover fabric in the good ol' VV boutique (Value Village), I went for it and made my own K'tan style wrap,and it works great. it's comfortable for both myself and little Hans. In fact, he's asleep in it as I type. The wrap cost me a total of $1.50 and maybe an hour of work...but work that I enjoy.

for the loops, I measured the length from my shoulder to my hip X2, finished the edges of the fabric and sewed the narrow (20 inch wide) ends together and connected the two loops with a smaller loop. Then I made a sash which I did out of three one yard pieces of fabric, gradually narrowing the ends after I sewed all three pieces together. I also had a bit of left over fabric so I made a bag to hold the wrap when not in use. 

Here are some pictures, selfies in a mirror to be exact (at least it's not a bathroom mirror, give me some credit!)

                                                                                                                           

I also started my family photo wall. I don't think I really need to describe it. Here's what it looks like so far: