DIY Thanksgiving Throw Pillows

It's almost Thanksgiving! Do you have your meal plans ready? Or, if you are not cooking this year, have you prepared your liver for wine?

We are really in the festive spirit here. But as I was going through my holiday boxes, I found a sad lacking of Thanksgiving stuff. My DIY Thanksgiving table runner was looking to be it. 

Since we are hosting this year, I really wanted our home to have reminders of Thanksgiving all over. So I took matters into my own hands, and started with these easy, adorable, and festive pillows!

Supplies:

Blank pillow case or slip cover in a thinner fabric (I made my own slip covers to fit my existing sofa pillows.)
Fabric paint
Small paint brushes in various sizes
Wax paper
A good movie to watch while you paint (I went with Jingle All the Way)

Start by creating your design. Make sure you size it to match the blank pillow cover you have. 

You are welcome to use our design! Just right click the image, then save it to your computer. All I ask is you give credit to us here at This inSane House.

When you have the design just as you want it, change your printer to "poster" setting. This will print the picture out on several pages maintaining the original size. 

Once it is printed, just tape it together. Trim any excess along the edges. You need to make it narrow enough to slip inside your pillow.

Slide your design into your pillow case. This is why you needed a thinner material. Now you can clearly see the design through the fabric, and it is time to start tracing!

Once you have traced your design, remove the paper and place wax paper inside your pillow. This will keep the paint from bleeding through onto the back of the pillow.

Let the painting commence!

I used two smaller brushes to paint the design on. Because I chose swirly-fancy-shmancy cursive font, it did take a while to make it perfect. Luckily I had a good movie on to keep me occupied. Side note: don't you just love requisitioning your kids stuff for your own purposes? Thanks kiddos for the use of your Sesame Street table!

Once you have finished painting, let it dry overnight before removing the wax paper. Easy peasy!

I was so happy with how it turned out, I decided to make another.

Happy crafting!!  Love the pillows but don't have the time to make them yourself, order them from our etsy shop!

DIY Burlap Thanksgiving Table Runner

We are in turkey month! I love November. A whole month to refocus on being thankful for the blessings in my life. Including turkey.

Over the next few weeks I will be sharing special DIY Thanksgiving projects for your table and home.

Today we will start with this beautifully simple and easily customized burlap table runner!

The first step was creating my design. I wanted to keep things simple this year, with a focus on what Thanksgiving is about: Giving Thanks. The fall leaves seemed like the perfect fit with the burlap.

I have a huge crush on burlap this Fall. It is easy to work with and very forgiving.

I started by measuring my table length and then adding 1.5 feet, so it would dangle over the sides. For the width I have read suggestions for either 1/3 the width of the table or 14". Because I had designed my graphic to fit on a standard 8.5 x 11" paper, I chose to make my runner 11" wide.  This made it just over 1/3 of my table width.

Burlap can have frayed, uneven edges if you don't cut it right. I found this awesome tip a while back and it has provided the perfect burlap cuts every time.

Start by marking your measurements on the burlap. I just used my paper as a guide.

Next, make a small cut. Find a strand of the burlap on the inside of your cut and carefully begin to pull on it.

You can seen that removing this strand gives you a perfect line for you to cut along.

Carefully cut your burlap along the line you created when you removed the string.

Look at how neat your edges will be! To prevent any future fraying, I recommend sealing the edges with fray check.

Once you have your burlap cut to size, it is time to trace on your design.

Because of the perforations in burlap, you can easily see your design when it rests under the burlap.

To trace my design, I used permanent markers in colors matching my design. This way if I wanted to paint in the words or leaves it would all match the original colors.

I started with the words then it was on to the leaf.

At this point I changed my mind about painting the design. I really liked the simplistic nature the permanent marker gave it. However, this could easily be customized with paint, glitter, or ribbon.

Looking good, but maybe too simple. It needed a little bit more. Out came an orange and a yellow permanent marker.

 Much better. And our resident Gabe-bot approved!

Quick and fairly painless, it is the perfect runner for our Thanksgiving table. Next I will share a similar technique to make custom Thanksgiving throw pillow covers. We will also be sharing a fun tutorial for a gobble turkey sign!

As promised, here is a free printable! Simply right click the image to save your computer, then print away!

Have fun crafting! And if you make this, please share it with us! Leave a comment here or on our Facebook page!

If you don't have time to craft your own, you can purchase one from our Etsy shop here!

DIY Pac-Man Costume For Under $15!

For Halloween I wanted to be Pac-Man.  Figuring it out took a little ingenuity, but overall wasn't too bad!  

Supplies:
$0 Cardboard
$1 Roll of cheap duct tape *had this already
$1 Bag of Glue Sticks
$8 Quart of True Lemon Yellow Paint (Walmart brand)
$3 Black Paint (sample would be plenty) *had this already
$1 Black mesh *had this already
-----
$14 Total, I payed $9 because I had most of these supplies.

Tools:
Hot Glue Gun
Box Cutter
Paint Brush
Protractor
Ruler

I found an image of Pac-Man someone used for an algebra or trigonometry class.  I measured the diameter to be 2 3/8", and the length of the mouth to be 1 1/4".  

I got all my cardboard for free at Costco.  Usually there will be some slip sheets in their metal box bins, but if there isn't just ask around.

My first attempt was a 25"  circle with a 60 degree 13" equilateral triangle cut out of it.  To create the circle, you can use my tutorial from our Minnie Mouse Bean Bag Toss.  As you can see it was a little small.  OK A LOT SMALL!  Time for attempt #2. 

The next attempt I used a 36" circle with an 18" triangle.  For the triangle, draw an 18" line.  Next line up a protractor and mark a dash at 60 degrees.  Draw another 18" line from the end of the first line, through that dash.  Connect the two lines.  

Once you have your circle and triangle, place the triangle on the circle, lining up two corners to the outside of the circle.  Trace it, and cut out the lines.

For the arm hole, I took a couple different plates and saucers and matched them up with my arm until I found one that worked, traced it and cut it out.

Copy and cut for the second side.

For the connecting center, I measured from shoulder to shoulder which was 16."  I added 1" to be safe (I regret doing this because it doesn't sit directly on my shoulder), and 1" for the connecting kerf.  Cut your connecting center so the cardboard is horizontal.  This way it can roll and take shape.

Once you have your center cut, roll it up so it will take shape easier.  Next make a line 1/2" in on each side.  Take a blade and make cuts up to that line, bending inward as you go.

Begin your assembly.  I hot glued and duct taped the pieces together.  The top mouth section was the same as the rest of the center pieces, except I used stiffer cardboard (unbent), and I cut a rectangle out so I would be able to see.  The bottom I cut a piece 23"x18," and rolled 5" worth of it.

 

Once all the assembly was complete I finally got to the fun part!  PAINT!  I got a quart of Walmart's True Lemon Yellow paint and  I had some left over black chalkboard paint for the mouth.  

For the eyes, I wanted them to look like a backwards Pac Man. 

It took a couple different saucers and bowls to figure out a good size for them.  I drew a circle, measured to the center point, and drew a 60 degree triangle from it.  I wish I had done this before assembly and painting.  

Finally, I hot glued black mesh to the eyes and the front viewing rectangle.

Pac-Man in action!  

 

It was a lot of fun making it, and even more fun wearing it!  I did bump into a car at one point while trying to pick up a balloon that was running off in the wind.  The peripherals aren't great, but it's a small price to pay for a awesome costume!

Follow us on Facebook, Twitter, Blogspot, or Pinterest for more interesting content!

Here's a reader-made costume for her son that she posted on our Facebook page!  So flattered that it worked out great for him!

 

Preview of My Homemade Pac-Man Costume

DIY how-to soon to come, as soon as I get to getting it done!

Minnie Mouse Bean Bag Toss

For our daughter Abigail's birthday party, we decided to make a bean bag toss shaped like Minnie Mouse to match the theme.  It was a huge hit, and very easy to make!  So lets get started!

First, I took measurements of our Minnie Mouse invitations for reference and set up a scale so the circle of the head would be 36".

I made cardboard templates to begin with.  You can get large sheets of cardboard for free at Costco if you ask.  Sometimes they're just lying in the box bins.  To make the large circle which was 36" in diameter, I used 18" of string tied to a pencil.  I cut it a little long, wrapped the end in tape, and then put a push pin through the tape and string at 18."

Push the pushpin through the center of the cardboard, and trace a circle with the pencil.  Try and keep the pencil at a uniform angle.

Next make the ear template.  The ears are supposed to be a 25"x15" ellipse.  Here's a great way to draw a perfect ellipse.  If you do it that way, your foci will be at 20".  But since Abigail's party was coming upon us quickly, I just made a 25" circle and a 15" circle, and then free handed the elliptical curve. 

After I had cut out the ear template, it didn't look exactly right so I reshaped it again until I had it perfect.  Well, good enough at least!  I cut out two templates for the ears and chose my favorite of the two, but I got a nice preview of how it would turn out!

Trace the templates on mdf or plywood.  Mdf is preferred because you won't have to sand it for a smooth paint job.  Luckily I had some left over mdf from another project.  Lift the pieces your cutting up with blocks underneath, and support around it as well.  Just be careful none of the blocks are in the cutting zone.

Lay the pieces out and screw it together with some 3/4" screws.  You can sink them a little deeper then the surface, wood putty and sand it if you want to.  I was in a hurry so I screwed them together and painted over the screws.

Draw and cut out your holes.  I put 1 in each ear, 2 for the eyes and 1 for a nose.  I used a tupperware lid that was a perfect size for this. 

To cut them, drill a hole on the inside of the circle close to the line with a spade bit preferably so it doesn't walk.  I used a 1/2" spade bit.  Make sure to support everything.

Throw a couple layers of paint on there!  We used Lowe's Chalkboard Paint.  Then we added a "flower" to keep the Luau theme of the party which was a couple pieces of tulle hot glued on. 

 TA DA!

Megan hand sewed some Minnie Mouse shaped bean bags to use, and the kids had a ball!

Thus far we're just leaning it up against a wall.  I'm still debating whether I should build a stand for it or not.  If I do, it will probably just be 2 2x4's cut at 45 degree angles on each side.  Eh, NAAAAA!  Looks good, works great, DONE!

Check out how the party went here!

Abigail's 2nd Birthday: Minnie Mouse Luau Party

Happy birthday Abby! Our little girl turned 2!

Abby has so many wonderful interests. Books, cars, coloring, accessorizing. But two of her favorites right now are swimming and Minnie Mouse. In planning for her birthday and thinking of ideas it became apparent there was only one great option: Minnie Mouse Luau and Pool Party!

When guests first arrived they were greeted with a giant Minnie Mouse hanging on the garage.

Making this was incredibly simple. A $5 sheet from Walmart, $3 can of black spray paint, and leftover tulle from her tutu. I traced out the Minnie head in pencil, then sprayed it in with spray paint. After it dried I connected a tulle flower with hot glue. Viola! Instant party announcement.

We spread the Minnie Mouse luau theme throughout our backyard. On our deck I attached green table clothes to the bottom, then sliced it to create a grass skirt appearance. To the rails I attached a fantastic flower garland that I ordered here.

Our garden fence received a colorful face lift with the addition of flower garland and Minnie Mouse heads. We also used the fence posts to display all the flower leis for everyone to pick and choose from.

Our trampoline became a tropical splash pad! We hung palm tree streamers from the posts. To turn this plain trampoline into a splash pad, we ran a garden hose and a little sprinkler under the bottom. Once turned on it splashed and sprayed everyone whenever they would jump.

Even the swing set club house displayed Minnie Mouse fun! I traced and cut a Minnie Mouse head on card board, spray painted it black, and attached a tulle flower. The kids loved pointing out all the Minnie's around the yard.

This has to be one of my favorite additions to the luau. A Minnie Mouse bean bag toss. Trent will expand upon this himself, but it was a fairly straightforward project that was a blast to play with.

To make the bean bags I traced a Minnie outline onto some scrap felt I had then hand stitched them closed. Too lazy (and busy) to drag out the sewing machine.

The happy birthday girl!We set up a bubble machine on the deck rail, and Abby was more than happy to run through the sea of bubbles covering the yard.

For birthday photos I picked up these coconut containers from our local Dollar Tree. They were cute on their own, but needed to be more festive. I traced Minnie Mouse ears onto card stock then cut and hot glued them onto the lids. The flowers came with the containers, but after designing the Thank You tags I attached them onto the flower stem.

Inside was a Minnie Mouse cookie and Minnie Mouse stickers.

Favors for kids and adults alike. Paper fans (it was hot!) and tropical clackers.

Gabe thinks they are magic wands. Works for me (a lot less noisy) ;)

Everyone spent a huge amount of time at this table. Sugar cookies to decorate with pink frosting and sprinkles, vegetable tray, fruit skewers, and goldfish. We also had large metal tubs filled with waters, sodas, and juice boxes.

We wanted to do something special for the meal that allowed our guests to be involved. Grilled flatbread pizzas!

The guests filled out a menu card then Trent and I would grill them up to order. Quick, fresh, and everyone was able to enjoy their perfect pizza.

A delicious flatbread fresh off the grill.

Then there was cake. Delicious cake.

Banana cake, vanilla custard filling, and lemon meringue frosting. Tropical but light. And most importantly, Abby loved it!

Side note: Abigail received this pink cozy coupe that day. She refused to leave it, even for cake. Trent had to pull the table up next to the car so she could enjoy her cake without leaving it. Silly girl.

And the happy girl, along with our wonderful family and friends all enjoyed a long dip in the pool on a hot day. Abigail, our little fish, could not have been happier.

A fantastic Minnie Mouse Luau to celebrate two years with this silly, loving, smart, precious little girl.

Happy birthday Abby! We love you!