The First Annual Minivan Express was a Success!!!

I have a love-hate relationship with the blogosphere. Love for all the great ideas that people share. Hate for not having the time nor talent to explore all of those pinterest-worthy projects. Our cousin on the west coast often shares many of these great ideas on her FB feed but usually they end up on my to-do (then forgotten about) list.  The Minivan Express from Erica at Confessions of a Homeschooler though was totally within my reach and had the added bonus of being time-sensitive, meaning that I had to get off my butt and get the gears in motion.

I'm only three or four years late...

... But you can now find me on instagram.

I first started this blog because I wanted to chronicle and share all my adventures in creating, learning and making. I'm beginning to realize though that adding ever more children to my life has really cut into my blogging time. So while I am still trying to blog as much as I can, I wanted a way to share my smaller projects without a whole blog entry, my longer projects before they are finished, and some of the poor quality pictures that I snap quickly with my phone. Hence instagram.



Check out all these pictures I took this autumn that I thought I'd have a chance to blog about....

... Obviously those blog posts never happened.

So if  you wanna see some of the daily pics of new dinner recipes, crafting with the kids, small sewing projects, or you just like being barraged by a stream of my self-indulgent photos then please follow me on instagram (@MakeJanemake).

The Stocking Set is Complete!

I really should have lit the fireplace for this picture.... but when you're trying to take a picture of stockings that seem to spin and all face different directions and you've got a excited toddler and a separation-anxious infant and a home-sick-from-school kindergartener all trying to squeeze into the picture as well, the last thing you want is a burned hand on a little screaming person.

Anyway, here's the kids' favourite Christmas decorations after the tree... their stockings. I'm so happy with how they turned out because I had no idea I would be making a matched set way back when I made the first stocking on a whim.

DIY Halloween: The Cheshire Cat How-To, Part Two

You came back for more after my long-winded Part One? Thanks for the interest! The first part of this tutorial in which I go over how I modified an existing (free!) dinosaur costume into a cat body is here. And the original, unmodified costume pattern is available here.

The hood part of the costume is where I made the most changes. Nothing mind-blowing or super innovative. Just adding a lining so that details could be added onto the hood or, in the case of my modified Buddy the Dinosaur costume, teeth could be inserted into the mouth opening.

DIY Halloween: The Cheshire Cat How-To, Part One

I know it's almost Christmas, but better late than never... and when I say never, I really mean never. This post might be lost to the abyss of mommy-brain for-EVER. So without further ado, the final Down the Rabbit Hole Halloween post... part one.

So here's a two-part, how-to post on making a full body animal costume by modifying a great free costume available from PBS.org --> Buddy the Dinosaur Costume. The first part will be just dealing with the body and then I'll write a separate post for the head.

Mini Pumpkin Cupcakes with Bourbon Buttercream

Nothing says Christmas like pumpkins and booze, right?

I originally set out to make pumpkin eggnog cupcakes but when I discovered that I'd used all my nutmeg making James Beard's Amazing Persimmon Bread as shared by David Lebovitz, I had to make a last minute substitution. Out went the Cuban rum and along came the Kentucky bourbon. (Also in case you're wondering, the persimmon bread recipe is absolutely delicious... and boozy as well).

Holiday Sewing - A New Hat

Oh boy, do I ever have an ambitious holiday sewing list this year! I know I probably won't get most of it done, but a girl can imagine, right? And what better place to start than with my fleece scraps accumulated from making various Canadian-climate, Halloween costume ensembles. (And yes, in the near future I'll finish up the posts from Halloween with a how-to for the Cheshire Cat costume ;)