Day 22 & Day 23: Easy Maxi-Dress & Monogram Cocoa Mugs

I'm feeling a day late and a dollar short these days -- just can't keep up. My sister Leslie and her friend Kristen came down from Vegas yesterday to take Sis to the Taylor Swift concert so I spent the day cleaning and then enjoying their company.  But that just means you get a two-for-one today!  Yesterday I was almost prepared to share my super-cute, super-easy maxidress with you.  Here is the pin that inspired it all:

Source: asmallsnippet.blogspot.com via Amy on Pinterest

So cute and super simple.  I've had some fabric laying around for a long time for which I've been waiting and waiting to find the perfect use.  So I used some of my birthday money and bought a cute t-shirt and came up with this:

This was the first time I have used elastic thread so I was a little wary, but I followed the tutorial at A Small Snippet and I really like it.  Also, I didn't know if I would want a sash that tied in a bow in the back -- that seemed like something only a tiny girl like LeAna could pull off -- so I used the bottom part of the shirt that I cut off to make a gathered waistband.

I'm not sure if I'm loving that, but it works for now.  I'll probably keep my eye out for a wide belt in my thrifting to wear with it instead.  I think LeAna mentioned it it in her original post, but pictures of this dress on the hanger do not do it justice.  It's really pretty cute in real life.  Unfortunately I am pretty anti-photo-of-myself so you'll just have to take my word for it.  It WAS super-easy -- a good project for a beginning sew-er.  And cute.  And cheap.

Today's project is something that would be a great neighbor gift for Christmas.  I saw this idea for monogrammed cocoa mugs from Design Mom and it was love at first sight:

Source: None via Amy on Pinterest

First of all, Sketchblock is kind of the "it" font right now and I'm not ashamed to say that I LOVE it, so instantly that caught my attention.  Then, the mismatched white mugs?  You had me at hello.  I bought some porcelain paint a while back for a project that didn't really turn out so I already had that on hand {but it's pretty inexpensive if you don't}and the mugs can be found at Goodwill for less than 50 cents -- especially if you don't need them to match.  The mugs I found were Pottery Barn mugs for 35 cents apiece.  Sweet.  The process is pretty simple, and until you bake it you can wash the paint right off if you make a mistake. Sketchblock font is pretty forgiving, too, as far as this project is concerned because it's really just a bunch of scribbles.  The best part is that my kids were beyond thrilled to have their very own mugs.

 The day I was taking pictures of the mugs, I happened to find this recipe for 5 Minute Coffee Cake in a Cup on Prudent Baby so I thought I'd give that a whirl, too:

Source: prudentbaby.com via Amy on Pinterest

As promised, it was quick and delicious.  I love single serving treats I can make just for myself after the kids go to school!

Brent was working from home that day -- I DID NOT eat two of them.  Even though I may or may not have wanted to.  It doesn't look like much in that picture, but it was scrumptious.  Now I just need to make myself a cute mug and I'll be all set!

Join me tomorrow for some cute dishrags and hand towels I made for my kitchen and guest bathroom.  I promise I'll be on time now.  For a complete list of projects click here: