Giveaway: My "Thank You" to YOU!

Alright, we've made it 12 posts, 12 hours later! Thank you all so much for stopping by and celebrating my special 1 year Blogiversary with me. It's truly wonderful to see how far my blog, my sewing, my photography has developed throughout my first year of blogging. I'm really excited to see where it'll go, and for all the things this next year will bring. So, I'm giving away some of my favorite things to sew... some one-of-a-kind "K.Davis" creations, for one lucky person!

Here's How To Enter:

- write a comment telling me your favorite post from this blogiversary

- tweet/facebook/blog about this giveaway and let me know in a separate comment.

Be sure to catch up on all the other giveaways... they will close November 3rd, and winners will be announced on the 4th. Thanks again to all you readers... know you are loved!

Guest Blogger: My Furry 4 Legged Friend

I couldn't have completed my 1st blogiversary properly, without having some photos from my dear furry four-legged friend. He begged and pleaded to have the spotlight on himself...as usual!

He wants my female readers to listen up... and to come a little closer so he can share something with you...

I don't know about you, but I'm sure happy that it's the season for pants... and so are my legs...maybe not my hubby...but he'll get over it, I mean I did live through "Mustache March" !

Tutorial: Corkboard Makeover

I don't know about you... sometimes it gets pretty boring staring at cork board that is dull/lacking in color, and uninspiring. There are so many things you can do with a simple roll of cork, some tiny clothespins, thumbtacks, washi tape (or decorative duct tape), string, and photos! Here's a new look I gave my cork board... the possibilities are truly endless.

You'll need: a roll of cork and old frame-unless you already have a framed cork board (Paint up the frame with a fun bright color. I chose a "robin's egg blue", some small clothespins (paint them up so that they're fun and full of life), Japanese washi tape (which I purchased from here) or a printed masking tape, some thumbtacks, string, and a strong glue adhesive.

After gathering all your items, start by gluing those thumbtacks to the back of the clothespins. You can make a whole bunch, to be used for other projects, or stick to however many you would like for your cork board. I made 6. Let them dry for awhile, before actually using them.

Next, pick out whatever Japanese washi tape/decorative masking tape that you have. Washi tape is sold ALL over the internet right now..it's HUGE, and especially can be found on Etsy. As for decorative masking tape, your local Target, Walmart, Home Depot should sell some. My washi tape was ordered from here, and arrived in my box on base 7 days after I placed the order! Super stellar customer service, great prices, and the packaging was WAY cute when it showed up.

Then, you'll want to cut a couple 1 inch pieces from each tape roll and prepare the order that you want the flag bunting to go. Cut your desired length of string, and start applying the tape to the string, by using folding the tape in half around the string. Cut the ends of the tape to a point, to create the "flag" look. Continue until you've reached the end of your string.

Clip the ends of your flag bunting, onto two of the clothespins, and Voila... you have a nearly finished decorated cork board.

Lastly, hang up some fun photos on the board... I printed mine in B&W so that it wouldn't take away from the colors that I already added to my fun cork board.

The Lorax Project: Repurposing A Gum Ball Dispenser

A very long time ago, I picked up a fun little red gum ball dispenser from an auction (this is when we lived in Florida). I had intentions of using it... to dispense gum balls... but do you know how difficult it is to find the correct size gum ball to fit inside my little dispenser? I have searched high and low, and haven't come across any, and yet, I'm not willing to part with this cute little trinket. I have a tendency to use objects for something other than what they are intended for... it's just my thing. One day I'll take you on a tour of my home front, and will show you everything that's used for something other than what they were made for. So, I decided this cute little dispenser needed a new purpose, and here's what I came up with... for now (since I always change my mind!)

For now, it's going to be the keeper of my "K.Davis" sewing tags... because my tags are so colorful, I'm going to play "Make Believe" and pretend they are scrumptious little gum balls! I'm also throwing around the idea of using it to hold bobbins of thread. It's a cute way to display any old thing, but for now... it's home is in my sewing room.

If you were the owner of a red gum ball dispenser, what would you use it for?

Giveaway from Georgie

A few years ago (almost 2), while living in Germany, the hubby and I volunteered with a youth group (Club Beyond-Military Community Youth Ministries) and had a great time bonding with these military teens. Usually around spring break, a missions trip/service project was on our agenda... and we would pack our bags, sleep on a bus, and travel to another country to "serve" their people. Our last year, we headed to Turnov, Czech Republic... and that's where I met Georgie. She was part of our team, as an interpreter/linguist, and we've kept in touch ever since!

Hi, I´m Georgie from Czech Republic. I live in a small town but study in Prague International Business. I love traveling, languages and meeting new people. Making earrings is one of my many hobbies. Mostly I make them after exams, when I´m tired to think a lot, for fun or for someone´s birthday. I hope you´ll like them :)

I personally think she should start up an etsy shop! Today, Georgie has made one lucky winner two pairs of earrings... what a treat.

How to enter:

-follow my blog and let me know! (located on the top right with "Google Friend Connect")

-leave a fun comment for my dear friend Georgie.

-tweet, facebook, or blog about this giveaway (leave me a separate comment telling me you did)

Thanks Georgie for making some beautiful creations for a luck winner! Giveaway will close November 3, and winner announced on November 4th!

Recipe from "The Sometimes Single Mom"...

Are you guys enjoying all these posts?!? I think this is one, you won't want to miss...

This past summer, I participated in a fun "Summer Swap" on another blog, and I was paired up with an awesome military wife, Bonnie... from "The Sometimes Single Mom". It was such a fun treat to receive her package in the mail, and we've been in touch since. Today, she's sharing a recipe for a dessert with us. I've heard of Dirt Cakes before, but have never created one... and this recipe looks super delicious, and super easy...which is my kind of recipe.

Ingredients:

1 pack of oreos (20 oz)

1/4 cup butter softened

1 8oz package of cream cheese softened

1 cup powdered sugar (also known as confectioners sugar)

1 teaspoon vanilla extract

1 3.9 oz package of instant vanilla pudding mix
1 3.9 oz package of chocolate pudding mix

3 cups milk

1 12 oz container whipped topping (thawed)

Directions:

1- Smash your cookies!! It works easiest if you put them in a big ziplock bag and just smash away.

2- Combine butter, cream cheese, powdered sugar, and vanilla extract. Beat on low then beat medium. Add chocolate pudding

with milk to a bowl, beat on low.

3- Fold whipped topping into pudding mixture with rubber spatchula.

4- Mix vanilla pudding and chocolate pudding/whipped topping mixture

5- Assemble in ungreased 9x13 pan in layers

1. cookie

2. pudding

3. cookie

4. pudding

and so on and so forth until no pudding mix or cookie is left

Refrigerate for at least 3 hours before serving.

Thanks Bonnie, for what sounds to be, a YUMMY dessert recipe!! Here's what I'm thinking dear friends... in just a few days it will be Halloween... wouldn't it be fun to make a dirt cake, and decorate the top like a graveyard?! Yes, it's been done before... just looked it up in flickr...and here's a picture to prove it! Enjoy...and happy "non-baking" to you!

(source)

Guest Blogger: Sam

Our next guest blogger, has become a dear friend of mine here in Korea... not only do our hubby's work together, but she also has spent some time in Germany (and speaks Deutsch with me), and enjoys sewing and crafting just as much as I do! I asked Sam to guest blog post for me, and she's come up with a great little read for you... grab a coffee (maybe a yummy German pastry to go along with it) and enjoy some awesome fresh insight...

History – yours, mine and some in-between

The first time I lived over seas was the summer of 1990. I had one year of high school German under my belt and headed off to live with a wonderful German family outside of Frankfurt. I enjoyed learning more about the German people, keeping a list of my new words (which I still have) and traveling. We took trips around the local area and a big trip to the freshly former East Germany. I remember seeing East Germany for the first time. I didn’t know enough to understand the looks I received when I spoke English. Later after college I worked for Daimler-Benz. I lived in a dorm with other interns from all over the world. It was wonderful to have so many cultures together and often made for odd pairings. There were several girls from former Eastern countries. One girl in particular stood a bit further from me. As the months grew she began to talk to me and we became friends. When I left she wrote me a note telling me that she was surprised to learn I was not what she thought Americans were like. She had class each day to teach her of the horrible West. I did not meet the stereotypes. I also became close with a girl from Moscow and visited her that summer. She too commented that I was not what she had been taught. We were all blinded by the cold war and didn’t know it till we became friends.

The last time I lived in Germany I rented a room from an older German couple. They were great and made me feel at home. They would invite me to their apartment to cook and make schnapps. One evening we were looking at a map of the world. They asked for me to show them where I lived, went to university etc. We got to talking about their travels. The elderly man began to talk about his time in the Nazi army during World War II. He cried as he told me about being at D-day and how he was forced into the war by threats to his sisters and mother. He had to shoot to stay alive. I realized that my view of the war was based on my family and my history books but not on the real life people who were there; that I had not heard the other side of the story. I am not saying by any means that I agree with the Nazi worldview. I am saying that we so often only see our side of history or of current events. When I returned to the states the following summer I went to see Saving Private Ryan. I had to leave the theater. I could not take a side and cheer as I had always done.

Living in South Korea often makes me think of my time in Germany. I realize I held a stereotype of South Koreans and didn’t realize it. They are friendly and helpful, technical and cultured, big city dwellers and country folk. The live divided in a country whose buildings are just about all built since the end of the war. Many families have families in the north that they will never see again. The north is taught interesting ideas about the south and the rest of the world for that matter. The war and the timeline that lead up to it may not be just like my history books taught. I now have real life people and their culture to add to the mix.

We all see life through the glasses of our experience and our culture. It is interesting to put some one else’s glasses on. It often shows us that some times things are not wrong, just different or not the color we thought they were.

...Fabric Giveaway...

As many of you know, I love to sew... okay I really LOVE to sew. Moving to Korea, I was very skeptical of what I would "enjoy" about this country... I was nervous about living here for 3 years, when most people only sign on for 1 year. I mean 3 years... that's a lot of time to be in one country. Before moving here, I had NO idea that Korea is where most designer's fabrics are printed... Guess what that means for me? The prices reflect HUGELY on the fact that they're made here! As soon as I found my "happy place", coincidentally named, "Happy Quilt", a warehouse FULL of rolls upon rolls of designer fabric (even Vera Bradley I might add!) I knew that living in Korea for 3 years was totally doable!

I'm pretty sure that before we move, half of our weight allowance is going to be yards upon yards of my favorite fabrics... but for today, I'd like to share some of my fabric collection with you! This giveaway includes some of my favorite fabric finds, from my "happy place"... a little over a quarter of each! My favorite, is the owl print right now (black and white fabric).

Here's how to enter:

-follow my blog, and let me know in a comment that you're a new follower.

-write me a fun comment about something you'd make with this awesome fabric.

-tweet, blog, or facebook about this giveaway and leave me a separate comment telling me.

Featured Artist and Shop: Crafty Christi

A couple weeks ago, I had the pleasure of photographing a sweet lady, and her adorable belly... and since then, she's opened up an etsy shop and I get to brag on her today! Remember how I'm trying to craft in ways of giving items new purposes? Well, Christiana does just that! Take a look...

Hello! I'm Christiana and I just started my first Etsy shop! I love art and being creative- its such a huge stress relief and it has always come natural to me. Ive been painting and drawing since I was a young girl and have always had an appreciation for all areas of art. I have a certificate in residential planning because I also have a love for Interior Design. I recently started experimenting with an idea I had to create candle luminaries out of glass jars. I know the idea isn't totally original- but I wanted to put my own spin on it! I love finding different shapes and sizes of jars when I go out "jar hunting" on trash day. :) Each luminary ends up having its own unique look.

Be sure to check out Christiana's etsy shop, you'll love the different luminaries she has listed... and to top it all off, she offers FREE SHIPPING!!

Recipe from: Tini (my sister)

Today I'm so excited to introduce you to my sister... Christina. Alright, alright...I call her Tini... and I suppose since I love my readers so much, you can call her that as well! I'm so excited to have her be a part of my "Blogiversary"!! Not only is my sister, a wife, a mother to 5 little ones (3 boys, 2 girls), a crafter and lover of all things fabric.... but she is also AMAZING in the kitchen. She puts me to shame. For all the cooks out there, here's a yummy recipe for you to try! Since it's nearly lunch time here in Korea...this post makes me super hungry!

Cream of Chicken & Wild Rice Soup

Ingredients:

1 large onion, chopped

1 large carrot, chopped

1 celery rib, chopped

¼ cup butter

½ cup flour

8 cups chicken broth

3 cups cooked wild rice

1 cup cubed, cooked chicken

¼ tsp salt

¼ tsp pepper

1 cup evaporated milk

¼ cup sniped chives

Directions:

~ In a large saucepan sauté onion, carrot and celery in butter until tender. Stir in flour until blended. Gradually, add broth and stir.

~ Stir in chicken, rice, salt and pepper.

~ Bring to boil over medium heat; cook and stir for 2 minutes until thickened. Stir in milk; cook 3-5 minutes longer.

~ Garnish with chives (or cracked pepper)

Yields 10 servings.

Guest Blogger: Ferial-Shmerial (tutorial and giveaway)

Let's kick of this blogiversary, by introducing you to an amazing lady... a lady that I have had the pleasure of befriending while living here in Korea. God has certainly blessed me by putting Ferial in my life. She's super talented- plays guitar and sings like a rockstar, great sense of style, and makes amazing creations. Today, Ferial will be sharing with you guys her super secret way of creating rosettes (and applying them to a headband). Oh, and if you're lucky you might even be able to win one... Enjoy dear friends!

Anyeonghaseyo from Korea! My name is Ferial-Shmerial and I hail from Northern California. My husband and I have lived in Korea now for 2+ years teaching English. During our time here in Korea we have had the pleasure of meeting and getting to know K. Davis, and what a wonderful lady she is! It is an absolute honor to be guest-blogging for her on this, her first blog-aversary!

After being in Korea for just a little while you begin to realize how CUTE it is. EVERYTHING is so cute! And being a female living here in Korea, you begin to adapt the cute. Accessories galore with tons of cute to choose from. One of the cute frenzies that has more recently taken over my soul has been the incorporation of hair-things. You know, clips, barrettes, headbands, etc. I never wore anything of the sort when I lived in California! But now, after 2+ years in Korea, I've embraced the cute-hair-thing-monster that was dying to come out. I've purchased my fair share of cute hair-things from the "cutsie shops" but one day I just decided to start making them myself, because how wonderful is it to have something that is 100% unique?

Here's how... You'll need some cheap plastic headbands to start. You'll also need some fun, cute fabric. I've used anything from handkerchiefs to old shirts and bags to actual purchased fabric. And the last thing you'll need is glue of some sort. I choose to use Super Glue, but only because I don't have a hot glue gun. Super Glue is a great, cheap alternative to the hot glue gun if you don't have one, and I've learned not to get it all over myself over time.

Start by cutting your chosen fabric into a few one-inch strips.

Put some glue at the very end of one of the sides of the headband and attach one of your fabric strips to the headband, making sure to leave a little fabric dangling off of the end. Begin wrapping the fabric around the headband, on an angle, using a dot of glue with each wrap.

Pull each wrap tight so that the fabric is resting flat on the headband, but don't pull too tight.

If you run out of fabric before you are finished wrapping the entire headband, do not fear! It is very easy to continue with a new strip of fabric. Glue down the ending of your previous strip of fabric to the underside of the headband. Take a new strip of fabric and glue it down right where your previous strip ended. Continue wrapping and dotting glue until you come to the other end of the headband. Leave a bit of fabric on this end also dangling.

To finish off, take those bits of dangling fabric on each side of the headband and tuck them on the outside** of the headband and then glue them down.

**If you tuck them on the inside of the headband it will cause an irritating pinch to the sides of your head when you wear the headband!**

And Voila! Fabric-covered headband!

Now to add a funky rosette: Take another strip of fabric (same color or different color!) and twist it around.

When your rosette has reached your desired size, finish it off discreetly, gluing down the end of the fabric to the underside of the rosette.

Once the headband and rosette are both dry, you can attach the rosette to the headband with the glue. I usually put the headband on my head and make a little marking of where I would like the rosette to be attached first. Make sure to glue down all ends of the rosette so that it is resting nice and flat against the headband.

Yay! New headband! And hopefully not too much glue on your fingers.

Once you get the hang of using the glue and fabric you can experiment with all sorts of different designs! Here are a few of my experiments:

Happy Headband-ing and Happy Blogiversary K. Davis!

As a thank you, to all my sweet readers, Ferial is generously giving away one of her creations (the blue rosette headband that she's modeling) to you!

How to enter:

-follow my blog, and write a comment telling me you're a new follower.

-leave a fun comment for my dear friend Ferial.

-tweet, facebook, or blog about this giveaway (leave me a separate comment telling me you did)

This giveaway will close November 3rd, and a winner will be announced November 4th!

Thank you Ferial for the awesome tutorial!! I'm sure there are going to be rosette headbands and pins being created immediately!

Happy Blogiversary To Me!

It's so hard to believe that it's already been one year of blogging...and I'm enjoying it so much, I'm just going to keep on going! Tons has happened since I first started writing my blog- We moved from Germany to Korea, I started my etsy shop, took my photography skills to the next level by setting up "shop", we started our adoption process... WOW... LOTS has happened, ay? And you all have supported me along the way (by reading and commenting) and today we are going to celebrate! I have a bunch of posts lined up (11 others to be exact) and hopefully I set it all up correctly they are scheduled to post every hour. Make sure you come back... we've got tutorials, recipes and a couple giveaways!

Piles of Rolls...

Okay, since you guys requested them... I sewed up a bunch just for you, and they're in the shop! I have all different colors- for both boys and girls. I have about two of each, and enough material to make more of "certain" ones, depending on which ones sell, so stay tuned.

Also, don't forget...tomorrow starts my 12 hour Blogiversary celebration! It'll start at 10:00 am (Korean time) and go until 10:00 pm. Giveaways will not close until November 3rd, so you'll have plenty of time to participate!

End of Rice Season

I loved being able to capture the "before and after" of the rice harvest, side by side. Next year, maybe I'll catch the machinery doing there thing.

Roll-Ups

I recently attempted to make a "Crayon Roll-Up" (a friend requested that I try my hand at them)... they're no new idea that I spontaneously came up with, they've been around for awhile... but I wanted to just have fun putting my own spin on them. I used my favorite designer's fabric, Amy Butler, and bundled up the roll-up with a stretchy cord/button closure. Easy peesy and way cute. If you guys request them, I can put some in the shop...

Almost a Week Away!

Feeling FOBulous lately...

Not too long ago, I sewed up a bunch of fobs (aka fun keychains that will help you find your keys at the bottom of your purse/bag in no time!) for MOPS birthday giveaways. It was tons of fun, so I decided to order my own hardware, and create some for my shop. They are sold separately (small and large sizes) or I have a 3 for deal... Just send me a message if you're interested in the deal, and I'll create a custom order for you. Perfect gifts to giveaway for birthdays or the holidays coming up.

The Lorax

Who hasn't read "The Lorax" by Dr. Seuss? If you haven't... stop reading this blog post (yes, this is probably the first time I'm going to tell you to NOT tune into my post!) and go pick up your very own copy. I had some time to kill a few weeks back, and so where did my little feet lead me? Yes, to the book section in our shop on base... and there my little fingers danced over the decent selection of children's books, and found one special one, written by the Dr.

For those that have read this book, you wouldn't be surprised to know, that as I sat in the shop and read this darling book, the tears just started to flow, and then all of a sudden I was weeping. A quick synopsis, for those that haven't read, can be found here. This book came home with me that day, and it has been read... A LOT (by me of course, the hubby refuses to touch it). Wow, it's just one of those little reminders to cherish what God has blessed us with...to re-evaluate our priorities... and to preserve the beauty.

Just days after reading this book, I happened upon 3 old Korean laboratory beakers... I could not pass them up... especially while upon inspection I noticed that the word "Lorex" was written on them... yes, a slightly different spelling... but still, same sound to me! I immediately picked them up, and repurposed them... Although Dr. Seuss Enterprises and Random House launched a movement, called "The Lorax Project", I'm going to try and incorporate more reusing/repurposing in my crafting over the next couple of months. So stay tuned for some fun tutorials on ways to give something "maybe not so useful", some meaning.