A Few of My Favorite Products

The Nester is hosting a Favorite Things Under $30 linky party this week. 

I love variety so I try lots of different products.  Anyone out there want to trade half empty bottles of potions and lotions?  :)  I'll share some of my long standing favorites and what I'm loving right now.

Three of my "old standby" favorites (aka I buy these over and over and over...)

1) Burt's Bees Beeswax lip balm (the original version).  I've been using this for years.  I love the hint of peppermint.

I have them stashed here, there, and everywhere!

2) Burt's Bees Almond Milk Hand Creme is very think and rich.  This rescues my dry hands during winter.

3) Bath & Body Works Wallflower Bulbs in Sleep (Vanilla & Lavendar), Stress Relief (Eucalyptus Spearmint), Cinnamon & Clove Buds, and Fresh Balsam.

Three favorites of the moment:

1) Essie nail polish colors that get solid coverage with two coats.  Add a clear top coat and your fingers will be pretty for a week.  I love these two colors because they are deep, rich shades but are neutral enough that they go with everything.  

In Stitches - "a cheeky blush pink"  This is not your nana's pink.

Brownie Points - "a creamy rich brown"  This has some red in it.  

2) The Body Shop White Musk Eau de Parfum

3) I love the fresh and clean scent of Mrs. Meyers Basil Countertop Spray and Dish Soap.  Cleaning never smelled so good!

Favorite products for Maximus and Brewster:

1) Nylabones Dura Chew "souper size" bones...especially bacon flavored.

2) Natural Balance Sweet Potato and Fish Treats (small breed)

3) Planet Dog Orbee Tuff  "Tennis Ball" 3 pack.  These rate 5 out of 5 chompers and last a very long time (even with the Saint Bernard!).

Okay it's time to go make your own favorites things list and link up here.  I'm sure I'll discover some new favorite things from your list...

Pinterest Challenge!

It's time to take something from my Pinterest board and DO IT!  Sherry (Young House Love), Katie (Bower Power), Erin (House of Earnest), and Ana White issued an unofficial Pinterest Challenge and I'm taking it!  You can link up your project on any of their sites.

Since I'm arriving fashionably late, I chose something quick.  I picked my pin of the Reusable Swiffer Duster Cloths tutorial from Sew Much Ado for two reasons.  I only had one Swiffer duster left and I remembered that she mentioned it could be done in under 30 minutes.  Perfect!

Here's Sew Much Ado's all flannel version.  Her tutorial is well written and easy to follow so I'm not going to write out the steps again in this post.

Source: sewmuchado.blogspot.com via Alison on Pinterest

I made mine with 4 layers of flannel and 4 layers of fleece.  The flannel becomes ragged in the wash but the fleece stays the same.  I like the mix of fabrics.  For bonus going green points, I used up some scraps from a quilt I made for my niece's birthday.

You don't have to be exact with the pieces for each layer.  I caught myself being entirely too serious because I've been cutting a lot of quilt pieces lately.  Relax, it's a duster!  :)  In Sew Much Ado's step #11 you "Beginning with narrowest layer, clip edges of flannel at 1/2" intervals along length of duster" anyway.  See good is good enough.  :)

My supplies

I started sewing with two piles of 4 pieces.  When I make the next duster, I'll alternate the layers of fleece and flannel and add 1-2 more layers of flannel.  

Sewn and cut up

This hadn't been washed yet.  It'll get fluffier each time it is washed and that'll help it work even better.  It's hard to see in the photos but there is the same amount of 'duster' on the top and bottom.

Mussed up a bit on the Swiffer Duster handle 

Even though this was a super fast project, Maximus the Little Prince Super Schnauzer settled in for the long haul...

The duster works well and inspired me to also make eight reusable Swiffer Sweeper/Wet Jet cloths the next day using scraps from another quilt and something a gal from my sewing class recommended.  It's pretty dang clever and cost effective.  I'll be including some reusable sweepers and dusters in future hostess, housewarming, and holiday gift baskets.

Now go check out the Reusable Swiffer Duster Cloths tutorial from Sew Much Ado and get to it.  I'll post a tutorial for my reusable Sweeper/Wet Jet cloths this weekend so check back later if you want to be a lean mean green cleaning machine!

Show Us Your Life: Connecting Non-Mom Bloggers

Kelly's Korner hosts a weekly Show Us Your Life series and this week's topic is Connecting Non-Mom Bloggers.  If this is your first visit to Welcome Sunshine Home, come on in and get comfy!  Don't mind the dog hair...

I'm Alison. I love quilting, DIY home projects, picnics, board games, long walks on the beach...Wait.  This is starting to sound like a personals ad.  Since I already have a loving husband and two dogs that dote after me, allow me to start over my introduction by sharing a special birthday limerick my sister-in-law, Melissa, wrote in my honor:

There once was a girl named Alison
Who thought DIY projects were oh so much fun.
From morning 'till night,
They're her heart's delight
She won't rest 'till Stewart's outdone.

This limerick was copied from A is for Alison where Melissa also shares some mildly embarrassing stories about me. Any who, Melissa (aka author M.J. Fifield) is also a "Non-Mom Blogger" over at My Pet Blog.  She writes about writing novels, tv, life, books, work, etc and is the reigning queen of proper grammar.  Ok, I'll stop now before this turns in a personals ad for Melissa.  :)

So, back to me now.  Hmm.  I think I'll wrap this post up by sharing some of my favorite Welcome Sunshine Home posts.

 My hometown

View Larger Map

Sunset Beach Picnic

Meet Me Under the Mistletoe Mantle 2010

Simple Handmade Chocolates

Brewster Update - A dog's story

Gift Wrap and Ribbon Organization Wall

2010 HGTV Green Home - Cape Cod

Laundry, Recycling, and Mud Room

Gorgeous and functional!  The floor to ceiling cupboards, shelving, and island made me swoon.  When Jake and I toured the house, I couldn't resist peeking in all the cupboards and drawers.  They even 'staged' laundry!  :)

Thanks for stopping by and come again soon!

Sewing Pouch and Knitting Needle Roll up

Jacob's mom loves to knit and sew.  Among many other things, she finds time to knit gorgeous baby sweater sets for newborns and sew doll clothes for my niece.  I made her a sewing pouch and knitting needle roll up staying true to the Butternick pattern (I'll include the pattern info below).

The sewing pouch has room for at least 8 full size spools of thread, a pin cushion, and other sewing doodads.

You could easily adjust the sizing of the pockets inside to fit other items, like jewelry for travel or small accessories for toys.

This roll up keeps knitting needles of all sizes neat and tidy...and away from couch cushions!  :)

I was careful to keep all my stitches straight and neat.

Pattern info:

Butternick B5006
Sewing Pouch - Pattern A
Knitting Hook Case - Pattern B

Do you knit?  I haven't learned how to do it but I truly admire knitted items.  I tried to crochet a doily one time and it ended up kind of looking like a thong...not a cute thong either.  :)  So, I think I'll stick with enjoying knitted gifts from others.  A friend recently gave me a pair of knitted slipper booties that are very warm and they have gripper material on the bottom.  That gripper stuff is priceless.  Now I won't break my neck on our carpet-less stairs.  More about the in-progress staircase renovation another day...

Work in progress

Hi there!  We're alive and well over here at Welcome Sunshine Home.  Just super, ridiculously BUSY with our day jobs and this ol' blog is our hobby.  We'll soon be back to sharing projects regularly so don't give up on us yet!  :)

I'll be sharing some more gifts that I sewed for Christmas 2010 soon.  I started a king sized quilt but haven't had time to work on it since January 9th.  Ok, my memory isn't that good.  I only know the exact date because that's the last time I watched anything instantly through Netflix (British series Monarch of the Glen) and I noticed when I logged into my Netflix account earlier.  :)  Any way, that king size quilt isn't going to sew itself and I'm hoping to get back to it soon.

How many craft, sewing, and house projects do you usually have going at once?  I always have different projects started and even more in mind (heck, I have a fistful of paint swatches in my purse right now).  Here are some projects that I already have all (or most) of the supplies necessary to complete the whole project.

Sewing

• Quilt to be completed before winter 2011
• Top Secret Christmas 2010 Birthday Gift for Melissa
• Apron using fabric received from Laura in Fall 2010
• Purse fabric and pattern purchased Fall 2010
• Aprons using fabric and patterns purchased April 2010

Home*

• Master Bedroom closet purge/organization started September 2010 - It is thisclose to being done!
• Finish staircase renovation started March 2010 (um, yeah, 2010)
• Kitchen pantry purge and organization started Fall 2010
• 3rd floor office to craft cave started Fall 2010
• Transform back room off kitchen into new office

*Lesson learned:  Fall is not the time to start new home projects!

Crafts

• Spring mantle and more...Jeez, I can't give away all my secrets and plans at once!

Recipes

• Pineapple Fried Rice 
• A whole bunch of stuff that I know I took photos of and can't think of right now...

Just for Fun

• Concerts, baseball, board game parties, vacation, home show, etc

Books
I recently started rereading George R.R. Martin's The Song of Fire and Ice series since the long-awaited A Dance with Dragons is coming out July 12th!  I've only ever read books 1-3 so no spoilers please...  I'm also planning to reread the Harry Potter series in 2011.  What's your favorite book series?

Are you familiar with the 'Gitter Done' party at Songbird?  Donna from Funky Junk Interiors used to host it.  It's a place to share anything that you've finished.   It doesn't have to be pretty, cute, or even be a project.  It can be as simple as finally getting caught up on all your shredding.  Which I had done but now it's piled up again.  Grr.  Considering all the different things I listed above that I have available to work on, I'm hoping to have at least one thing a month to link up.  :)

So, what's happening at your place?  Have you marked anything off your to-do list in 2011?  Jake said my to-do list for 2011 must include "Get longer to-do list."