DIY - Dying a Tank Top

I bought a pack of 5 Men's Hanes Tank Tops in large the other day.  I did it with the intention of dying these tanks to use as tops, and also to use some as tops to sundresses.  Right now I am just going to go into the process of dying these tanks.

I buy them large because since I will be dying them, they will be in very hot water, so, no big surprise, they are going to shrink.  Sometimes they will have packs for women, but I could not find any, so the men's shirts will be fine.

For this project you will need:

Rit Liquid Dye, or whatever dye you want to use
tank tops or t shirts
metal pan
metal spoon
vinegar

The first thing I do is add very hot water to a pan, and then turn the stove on.  So that the water stays really hot.  I then add half a bottle of the dye to the pan and stir it with a metal spoon.  Next, get the tank wet with cold water from the sink, and squeeze.  You just want to put a wet tank in the dye bath, so that the dye takes evenly.

Now you will put the wet tank in the dye bath.  Just turn the heat on your stove down to low to keep the water hot.  Stir the tank in the dye bath to make sure that it is being dyed evenly.  I will stir the tank about every 5 minutes.

The tank will be done after 30 minutes.  Pour the dye bath out of the pan and add cold water.  Rinse the tank in the cold water, then fill the pan with cold water and add 1 cup of vinegar.  This is to set the dye.  Let it sit for 30 minutes.  You can now put your tank in the dryer to finish setting the dye.

Once dry, you are done and you have a new tank in whatever color you want.  You can also mix dye colors to get other colors that you might like.

I hope that you enjoyed this tutorial.  If you have any questions please feel free to contact me at anytime.  I would love to hear what you think about this project.

Have fun!!!
Debi

Favorite Friday Blog links Week 7

Hi everyone.  I just want to let all of you know that I am away right now, and that I will try to respond to all of your comments after I get back on Sunday.  Thank you for your patience. 

This is one of my favorite days of the week. It is Friday, and I get to tell all of you about some of my favorite blog links. I love waking up in the morning and finding all of these creative women's posts in my inbox. It is one of my favorite times of the day.

This is such a great week. We have four new blogs this week to read and talk about, so Let's get started.

Cozy Home Interiors

Take a look at our first blogger Allison and her post Refurbished Projects at Cozy Home Interiors.  The table above is so beautiful.  She did such a great job, and not just on this, but all of the other pieces that she refinished also.  I love the nobs on the drawers, they are so pretty.  Anyway click on the link above and take a look at what Allison has for you to see.

Next, take a look at the DIY Cake Stand at Oh Craft written by Tori.  It is a great tutorial, and I love this Cake Stand.  I want to make one.  I think that I have Cake Stand envy.  I just need to get away from my computer for long enough to go to a thrift shop so I can get the stuff to make it.  Anyway, back to Tori, she has lots of other stuff to see on her blog also, so take a leap and visit Tori at Oh Craft.

This next post and blog are from Danielle, and it is a Paint Chip Sample Table Makeover from Minimoz.  This is so creative, and not something I ever would have thought of doing.  I always end up with so many paint chips, this would be a great way not to waste paper.  I just thought this was really cute and definitely worth a mention.  Take a look at her blog, it is fascinating.

The last blog post for today looks so good, that I can't wait to try it.  It is from Heather, and it is her recipe for Meatless Monday Navajo Tacos from The Parsimonious Princess.  Don't these look great.  My mouth is watering for them.  I'm not sure, but it may be the Navajo Fry Bread that is drawing me in.  I love anything fried, and especially bread.  So click on the link above to her site, and I hope that you enjoy it as much as I did.

Well we are at the end of another Favorite Friday Blog Links Post.  I hope that all of you have a great weekend.

Let me know what you think of these blogs.  I sure do like reading them.  Tell me what blogs are your favorites.

Enjoy!!!
Debi

Oreo Cookie Cake Pops

Hi Everyone, I just wanted to let everyone know that I am reading everyones' messages, but since I am traveling I will not be able to respond until after I am home.  Thank you for all of your wonderful comments.
Cyber hugs to all.
Debi

This is a version of a recipe that my friend Shawna makes for parties.  They taste decadent, and I could eat about a million of them.  Of course, since I do not want to gain all of the weight back that I have lost, I limit myself to two or three.

Anyway, enough of that.  I have had to change this recipe a little, since my husband is allergic to cream cheese.  So I am using vanilla frosting instead of the cream cheese.  I have also decided  to use both milk chocolate and white chocolate to coat them on the outside.  I also decided that I wanted to roll them in red, white, and blue sprinkles for our service members, especially our son Danny.  (I have written before that he was just honorably discharged from the marines.)  These would be a great, fun, and easy recipe for a simple dessert for the Fourth of July.  I am posting this early, because I wanted to make sure that you would be able to have time to get the ingredients together.

Oreo Cookie Cake Pops

1 package oreo cookies (ground in food processor)
1  1/4 containers store bought vanilla frosting
4 squares quick melt vanilla melted
4 squares quick melt chocolate melted
sprinkles
lollipop sticks

Grind Oreos in a food processor.  Once finely ground add frosting and turn on processor until well blended.  You should be able to form balls out of the oreo mixture.  If it still seems to dry, you can add more frosting until you can form balls that do not fall apart.

This should make about 30  1 inch in diameter balls.  Make all of your balls first.  I put them in this little cake pop pan, but you could also just put them on wax paper on a cookie sheet.  You want to make sure that your balls are on the smaller side, because. I am going to show a picture of what happens if you make them too big.  They will not stay on the stick and they fall apart.

Also, the one tip that I learned was to stick the stick in the chocolate or vanilla candy melt, so that the cake pop will stick to the stick.

This is what happens if they are too large.

Next you can start putting the balls in the melted vanilla coating.  Then set them on the wax paper on the cookie sheet.  Once you have half of the balls covered in the vanilla coating you can put the sprinkles on them, and let them harden.  Then you will do the same thing with the chocolate coating as you did with the vanilla.

Originally I put the sticks in after the coating has hardened on all of the balls, but I found that then the coating was flat on one side, so that is why you have the instructions above about coating the stick with the coating.  ( you can find these at Walmart, Joann's, and Hobby Lobby in cake decorating section).  I also found a cardboard stand at Walmart that was cute to serve them on.  These went fast at the office.  I took them all and came home with only 4, and then we had friends over to try the last few.

They came out so cute.  I just love them for the 4th of July.

 Please let me know what you think of this recipe.  I would love to hear your comments or questions.

Enjoy!!!
Debi

Natural Hair Gel and Wednesdays Adorned From Above Blog Hop 5

Hi Everyone, I just wanted to let everyone know that I am reading everyone's messages, but since I am traveling I will not be able to respond until after I am home.  Thank you for all of your wonderful comments.
Cyber hugs to all.
Debi
 
Welcome to my Wednesday Adorned from Above Blog Hop 5. This week I am featuring the three top blog that were voted with the most likes by all of you. Make sure that you click on the like button for the blogs that you like the most for next weeks featured links.
 
I am thrilled to feature the following posts this week.  So without further ado, I would like to present these beautiful and informative bloggers.  To those of you that I featured I would love for you to feature this link to the blog showing that you are featured blogger at the Wednesday Adorned from Above Blog Hop.

I am a featured blogger at Wednesday Adorned From Above Blog Hop

Shopping With Pippa

 Our first blog posting this week is Thrifted Summery Preppy Outfit from Shopping With Pippa.  Take a look and see the cute clothes that Pippa is able to buy her family on a shoestring.  She always finds the cutest things.

Harlow's Exclusive

Next we have this really cute post called DIY Bench Seat Makeover from Harlow's Exclusive.  This is so cute.  What a great little bench seat set I have ever seen.  Take a look at her other ideas.  I think you will have a good time checking out her blog.

With A Blast

Last we have a post that is all about easy cooking called 90 Minute Sweet Party Platter from With A Blast.  Now if you read my blog much, you know that there are times when I am all about easy.  Click on the link above and have a look at her delicious recipes for this dessert platter.

I want to thank everyone who linked with my Wednesdays Adorned From Above Blog Hop.  All of your projects are wonderful and I would post all of them if I could, but I think that the blog would probably be a little too long.  I hope that all of you link more posts today.


Your posts can include:

• anything DIY
• Recipes
• Arts and Crafts
• Sewing
• Knitting and Crochet Ideas and Patterns
• DIY Cleaning Solutions
• Natural Beauty Product Recipes
• Decorating Ideas
• Thrifting
• Book Reviews, Movie Reviews, Christian Music
• Inspirational Articles, Poetry, Life Stories, or Short Stories
• Bible Studies 

1. Bloggers, use the linky tool on the bottom of this post to share your best post. Non-bloggers, feel free to add a comment here with any ideas or thoughts you have. 
2. I would love for you to add the blog hop link posted below to the post that you are linking also.  It will give us additional opportunities for more people to see our blogs. This is not a requirement just a request.
3. Please take a look at what other people have posted and vote on the ones that you like.
4. I would also love for you to post a comment in my comments section telling me a little about yourself and your post.  This also is not a requirement just a request.  I would love getting to know you and your blog.
5. Please link your posts back to my blog hop. Linking back here helps build our little community by sending your readers to all of the other posts shared.  Just create a text link somewhere in your post back to this blog. (Especially since I do not have any buttons yet.)
6. Wednesdays Adorned From Above Blog Hop Link
7. I would love to have you follow me.

I am still on a quest for all things natural, and as usual my son Vince is my guinea pig.  He is always great to volunteer to try my new products.  He is also the only one I know who uses hair gel.

I did mucho research, and this is the recipe that I came up with.  My choices were either with gelatin, flax seed, or chia seed.  I chose the easier of the three ingredients, because I wanted to make this today, I didn't want to wait.

Natural Hair Gel

Ingredients:

1 1/2 tsp gelatin
3/4 cup boiling water
2 drops bergamot essential oil
2 drops clove essential oil
1 drop sandalwood essential oil

Directions:
Disolve the gelatin in the boiling water.  Once the gelatin is disolved, add the essential oils.  Pour into a squirt bottle and use as you would any hair gel.

Okay, so is this the easiest recipe every.  Anyone can make this, and just leave out the essential oils if you want unscented.



Let me know what you, or the men in your life think of this recipe.  I would love to hear from you.

Enjoy!!!
Debi

New Look

Hi Everyone,

Sorry if there has been any inconvenience this morning with the blog.  I have been updating the page, and I was having a hard time adjusting the picture at the top. 

I do love this picture.  It was taken at a bazaar in Kusadasi, Turkey two years ago.  I really like the colors in the laterns.  The picture that I just took down was taken at the Church of the Nativity in Bethlehem, Palistine last September.  It is a beautiful church, and the closest thing that you can get to to the birthplace of Jesus.

Have a great day.  Sorry for any inconvenience that I may have caused.

Debi

Natural Lemon Oil - Furniture Oil

Hi Everyone, I just wanted to let everyone know that I am reading everyones' messages, but since I am traveling I will not be able to respond until after I am home.  Thank you for all of your wonderful comments.
Cyber hugs to all.
Debi


When I was making my Natural Furniture Polish Spray last week, I also decided that I needed to make a Natural Lemon Oil for my furniture.  I live in Colorado and it is really dry, so a lot of our antiques need to be oiled, not just polished.  Otherwise, they get really dry and the finish will crack.

When I was researching furniture oil the majority of them have olive oil or mineral oil, which is fine, but I also wanted to add jojoba oil for it absorption qualities.  I will also add my old standby of tea tree oil for its antibacterial qualities.

Natural Lemon Oil

Ingredients:

1/2 cup olive oil
1/4 cup jojoba oil
1/4 cup lemon juice
10 drops tea tree oil
10 drops lemon essential oil.

Pour all ingredients into a squirt bottle, and shake well.  Use as you would any other type of furniture oil.

Lemon Oil Finished

 

The table to the right is with nothing done, the center table has some  oil on it, and the table to the right has the bottom left corner oiled.  There is a marked improvement in the wood.  I think the oil had done a great job.  After I took the picture, I finished the table.  It looks great.

Let me know what you think.  Have you made your own furniture oil?  What recipe did you use?  I would love to hear from you.

Enjoy!!!
Debi

Sausage Ring

Unfortunately, I am going to have to take a break from our weekly Bible Study for the next few weeks.  I am going to be traveling, and will not have time to prepare the Bible Studies.  They take me about 6 hours to do, and I have just run out of time.  I will restart them on July 23rd.  I am sorry about that, but it was just too hectic.

Today I am going to give you a great recipe for Sunday Brunch.  I just call it a sausage ring.  I have been making it for about 5 years, and I do not remember where I read it, so I can not give you a source.  I think you are going to love it.  It is so good and easy.  Again, I love anything that is easy.  By the way, I do make complicated recipes, but I need time, and I never seem to have time.

Anyway on to the Sausage Ring.

Ingredients:

2 cans Grands Large Crescent rolls
2 lbs bulk maple sausage

Directions

Preheat oven to 350 degrees.

Cook your sausage until done.  Set aside.

Lay the crescent rolls in a circle on a large cookie sheet with the large side in the center overlapping. (So that it looks like a wreath, with the pointy ends on facing out.)

Next, spoon your cooked on the overlapping part of the crescent rolls.  Next, you will take the pointy part of the crescent rolls and pull them over the top of the sausage, and fold them underneath the bottoms of the wide part of the crescent rolls.

So that it looks like the picture above.  Put in oven and cook for 20 minutes, check to see of it is done.  If it still needs more time for the crescents rolls to be finished add 5 minutes at a time.

Once done, take it out and put on a serving platter.   Cut and serve.

We have added scrambled eggs to the center in the past.  It tastes great, and is really pretty.

Sorry that there are no pictures of it cooked.  I forgot to get the pictures before we started eating.

Let me know what you think of this recipe.  I love hearing comments from all of you.  Since I will be traveling, I may not be able to answer, but know that I really appreciate your thoughts.

Enjoy!!!
Debi

Kids in Mexico - Photography Series 2

My friend Wanda was showing these kids their pictures on her screen.

We travel quite a bit, and I love taking pictures of kids. The are so cute, innocent, and fun.

I had such a good time getting these shots.  The kids were really funny, and when they knew I was taking their pictures they were really clowning around.  They loved that they could see their picture on the screen on the back of my camera. 
Anyway, on to the pictures.  The saying is that every pictures says a 1000 words, and I really believe that can be true at times.  Have fun looking at them.

 

She was so cute, she had been eating candy and was licking her fingers.

I loved this baby, she is just so sweet

These boys were so funny.  They were just strutting.  They made me laugh.

This was a cute little brother and sister watching a soccer game.

I love doing this series of this little girl above.  She was having so much fun in the water.  Her movement was wonderful to catch.  These are just a few of what I took of her.

She was trying to learn how to blow bubbles with bubble gum, and had not yet figured it out.

Is there anything more free or beautiful then this girl in this picture.  I loved that her arms were opened wide.  I loved her dress, and the water and the beach, and the freedom that she seemed to feel that day.  It just says "Ain't Life Grand".


Let me know what you think of the pictures.  I would love to hear from you.

Enjoy!!!
Debi