Friday, February 14, 2014

{♥ My Valentine's Project ♥}

Hiya! It's me, Hope. Happy Valentine's Day to you all!!  We are planning on throwing a big party to celebrate! BUT, we're not having our party until Saturday evening. If we'd known it was going to snow a foot or more - which cancelled school - we could have had it on the actual day, but oh well!


I've had this Valentine's Day decoration idea in my mind for quite sometime; to make a really cool garland of felt hearts using my sewing machine! Since the "big snow" had been predicted for several days, I figured we'd probably get the day off from school yesterday.  So, I went by our local craft store a couple days ago and picked up some different colors of felt.  I wanted to be prepared!

When I got up yesterday morning and looked out the window, I knew that I'd have the whole day to work on my special project! After getting dressed, I set about gathering my supplies on the kitchen table. To start off...I needed my good scissors - not the kind I use to cut paper but my special ones that I only use for fabric. I also got out my sewing machine, the measuring tape, and some spools of thread. Since sewing is hard work, I poured myself some pink lemonade and got a bowl of gummy bears for snacking on... nothing like a little sugar for energy, right?!?!


First, I cut lots & lots & LOTS of little hearts out of all 5 colors of felt; dark red, light red, hot pink, light pink, and white. I made the sizes different so it would be a little more interesting, too!



Next, I sat down and began to line up the hearts to sew together. My plan was to sew two long garlands; each long enough to reach across the whole kitchen and criss-cross in the middle.  Just as I was about to start sewing, Cindy came in and asked me what I was doing. I told her my project idea, and she asked if she could help.  My reply?  "TOTS!"


I thought to myself; "Well, here goes!!"  I slowly pushed my foot on the foot peddle and my machine started to hum.  Oh how I love that sound! 



As I kept placing one heart after another, after another, after another, I realized my garland was starting to get really long.  It was long enough to almost touch the floor! Fortunately Cindy rushed around the table to pick up the end so it wouldn't get tangled up in itself.  I was really happy that she was there to help me!
 

With Cindy's help, I kept adding more and more of my colorful felt hearts - it made me so happy to see it almost finished!


After 30 minutes, we were starting to make a LOT of progress! My Valentine's Day garland idea was coming to life right before my very eyes and it was just as I had imagined it would be!    

  

When we had finished the last garland, Cindy was so sweet.....she told me what a great idea it was and that she admired me for my creativity.  I felt so proud!


Then, she had a great idea - we should hold the garland up to be double-double sure that it was going to be long enough.  We didn't want to start decorating right before the party and find out that it was too short.....that would be such a bummer.  So we each grabbed hold of an end and started to stretch it out across the kitchen. 


I think it is going to be perfect, Cindy!  Don't you think?


"Yes, it's the perfect length, Hope.  You did a great job measuring it out!"  I was soooooo excited.   I just know the other girls are going to L.O.V.E. the two garlands when I pull them out on Saturday.  I can't wait!


So, we put the first garland away in my sewing box and then I heard a snarfing noise.  I looked down and OH NO!  Coconut was playing in the other garland.  I started to fuss at her but then I realized that Coconut probably only wanted to "help".  Even so, I didn't want to her to break it after all my hard work and planning!! 


So, I took a deep breath and got down on the floor to take it away from her.  Sweet little Coconut, I could tell by her eyes that she was only trying to help.  And, she really was holding it very gently!  It's almost like she knew how special it was!  I thanked her for her "help" and gave her a little bit of Valentine's love. 


Looking back, I swear this was her way of asking, "Will you be my Valentine?"  Just look at her cute little face!  Who can resist a face like that? I know I sure can't!



18 Inch Doll Outfits & 18 Inch Doll Accessories by:

Hope's butterfly jeans and top: eBay find
Cindy's Snowflake Sweater and grey leggings by American Girl®
Cindy's "snowman" socks; eBay find
Hope's Sewing Machine and accessories;  Our Generation® Sewing Collection



27 comments:

  1. thats a great idea! is there gonna be another post of them hanging them up?
    carina-

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    1. Hiya, Carina! Thank you! We are going to make a blog post with them hanging up, but not with us actually hanging them.
      ~Hope ☼

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  2. Coconut is so cute! Your garland idea was great, very pretty and simple :)
    ~Sallie-Mae, Chestnut Street

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    1. Hey Sallie-Mae!
      Thank you so much for your kind words about my garland!! I'm so thrilled my idea came to life and cant wait to hang them up for the party tomorrow!! And yes, nobody can resist sweet little Coconut, right?! ♥
      ~Hope ☼

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  3. Hiya Hope! That is so cute and adorable! We sometimes do that here, but not always, haha. Well I got to go, because my little sister wants to go and skateboard, haha.
    Bye! & Happy Valentine's Day! <3~Harmonie

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    1. Hey Harmonie!
      It's great to hear from you...Trey has told me so much about you! Thanks for your kind words about my garland...I really appreciate it!! And oh, okay! Have fun skateboarding!
      ~Hope (Trey's older sister) ☼

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    2. "Hiya Hope!
      Really? He has told so much about me... (blushes)...wow, usually the guys just keep it to themselves well I guess not in this case; haha.
      Oh and no problem; they are really cute!
      Well I got to go once again, geez I am so busy now." ~Harmonie
      "Come on Harmonie, don't want to be late" ~Maiya
      "Coming! Well bye, Hope!" ~Harmonie

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    3. Yeah, he's been telling me that he's been getting a lot of attention on the blog. I'm happy that he's made some new friends.
      Thanks again! Talk to you sometime!
      ~Hope ☼

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  4. So cute! You did a great job at the garland. Coconut is such a charm.

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    1. Thank you so much!!! I think its so neat that my idea came to life! Can't wait for the party later today!!!
      And yes, he is isn't he?! ♥
      ~Hope ☼

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  5. As always, the photos are perfection! I love the concept and the heart decorations. Coconut with the heart decoration photo is so adorable. Great job, keep up the great work! -Tara

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    1. Hiya Tara! Thank you so much for all of your kind words!! We all really REALLY appreciate it!! ♥♥♥
      ~Hope ☼

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  6. haha, yea he has been getting a lot of attention. I am glad for him too :)
    Oh and no problem! well i got to go...okay now this been busy and all, is really getting kind of annoying, haha.
    ~Harmonie

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  7. I LOVE your garland, Hope! You did a fantastic job! :)
    Oh, and I can't wait to see your Valentine's Day Party! :D
    And oh my, gosh! Coconut's face is so adorable! I'm with you, I could not resist that face!
    ~Jaclynn~

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    1. Hiya Jaclynn!
      Thank you so, so, SO much!!! :D
      Yeah, we hope to have the Valentine's Day party post up on the blog in the next few days! :)
      And yes, little Coconut is such a sweetie pie! ♥
      ~Hope ☼

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    2. You're VERY welcome!
      Yay! I'm so excited to see it! All of your posts are amazing! :D
      ~Jaclynn~

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    3. Thanks so much again!! That means so much! ♥
      ~Hope ☼

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  8. I love your blog! I just recently came across it, and it is so cute! Your pictures are incredible, mine aren't so great (I have a small Kodak.) What camera do you use? I love how the colors are really bright and pretty! do you have a american girl doll house, or do you just set up rooms?
    Keep up the good work!
    -Tg

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    1. Hello Tg, Thank you!! We use a Nikon DSLR for most of our photos on the blog. Sometimes we use our phone to grab one if we are on a trip somewhere but 99% are with our regular camera. We girls live in our "Dorm" which is like a doll house for sure. It was made especially for us cause we needed it to fit into the room in a very specific spot. It is made up of three separate levels that sit on top of each other. We have (2) bedrooms, kitchen, bathroom, laundry room, family room. Some of use girls share a bed and Trey sleeps on the couch in the Family room cause he doesn't have his own room. He dreams about one though! Thanks for your wonderful comment....be sure to follow us so you are made aware of when we have a new post! ~Hope ☼ & the D3 Girls.

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  9. Hi! Hope you and i have the same sewing machine! Its awesome! Your blog is amazing! You should check out ours. Pokadotpriness.com please check it out

    Till next time
    Mollly out

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    1. Well hello Molly!! That is so cool that we have the same sewing machine. Isn't it fun to create something with it? I will go and check out your blog! ~Hope ☼

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  10. Hello Hope! I love all your posts and I think it was a great idea for you to create those Valentine's Day decorations. I was wondering if you could ever do a blog post showing your dorm, I think lots of people would enjoy it!!!

    ~ Anamarie

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    1. Hello Anamarie, Thank you for your sweet comment! I think all the other girls loved my garlands too! We hope to be sharing photos from our Valentine's party soon....just been real busy around here with school. No more snow days to do fun stuff! :( Yes, we do plan on sharing posts that are specifically about certain rooms. We just have to have the time to do it....hopefully in the near future! Thanks for commenting and reading our blog! ~Hope ☼

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  11. those.heart.garlands.are.... ADORABLE!!

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  12. hey dollydormdiaries! When will your next post be?
    Carina-:)

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    1. Hi Carina! I just answered a similar question above! We really hope to be sharing photos from our Valentine's party soon....seriously we have just been real busy around here with getting back into the school schedule. No more snow days to do fun stuff like blog posts! :( I promise it will be soon though! ~Hope ☼

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