Recent crafty projects

Ever since I returned home from Mississippi I've been on a singular mission to keep myself as busy as possible, occupying my time with baking, cleaning, organizing, purging, reading, and crafting. Yesterday was the first day I didn't do anything except wake up, go grocery shopping, and then go back to bed at 10 am (just about unprecedented). I woke up at 3pm feeling a bit guilty but very rested and ready to get back to my old routine (aiming for somewhere between keeping busy like a crazy woman and sleeping all day!).

Anyway, you can't claim to be that busy without having something to show for it! Here are a few projects that have been keeping my hands and mind occupied:

I am most excited about this Felt Dahlia pattern my friend Kat introduced me to, which can easily be made into a hair accessory, a pin on a cardigan, or attached to a ribbon for a bracelet. Its a great project to keep your hands busy while watching TV (multitasking has earned extra points these past few weeks on my mission to be BUSY)!

We needed a new phone book but I couldn't bring myself to spend $15 on a cute one. So, I bought a hideously ugly one for $5 and made a cover for it. And what's the deal, anyway, with having a book for addresses, a cell phone for storing phone numbers, and a separate sheet listing important birthdays!? It's too much to keep up with, people!

So we've been on a kick for the last year or so (have I mentioned this before?) to stick to a budget each week for groceries. At the beginning of the month I pull out grocery money for the whole month and place it in an envelope with any coupons we have. Up until now, we've been using an old envelope that was getting pretty worn down. I made this zippered grocery pouch to use instead, complete with sewn-in fabric dividers for separating the different weeks. It didn't occur to me that Ryan usually does the grocery shopping, and he's a little apprehensive about being at the store and whipping out this number, but I assured him it would be fine. Right?