Aluminum can tab bracelets

I've been seeing these tab bracelets around and I love them!  I have a recycling bin full of aluminum cans so I thought I would give it a try. 

To make a bracelet like this you will need 20 - 25 tabs and about 2-1/2 feet of elastic cord / thread.  I used a silver elastic thread for mine.  I won't  attempt to do a tutorial since there are so many good ones already out there.  Here are links to the two easiest to follow ones that I found:

http://www.instructables.com/id/Pop-Tab-Bracelets/

http://www.ehow.com/how_5427863_make-bracelets-soda-can-tabs.html

It's super easy - the whole thing took me maybe 10 minutes.  The best part is that if you ever get tired of the bracelet then you can just recycle it!

Happy Wednesday everyone!

T.A.A.F.O.M.F.T. and disaster averted...

"These are a few of my favorite things..."

I've been running around singing songs from The Sound of Music all day.  Don't you just love that movie?  David has requested that I please stop singing - he hates musicals.  He even hates it when his favorite tv show has an episode where they break out into song.  I pointed out the fact that he loves The Rocky Horror Picture Show.  Same difference, right?

So anyway, I've seen it done before and I thought it would be fun to do a version of "my favorite things" posts for my blog.  My first favorite thing is this wonderful pair of Christmas socks!  I love silly socks - the more colorful and flashy the better.  I know it may sound silly because most of the time no one can even see them, but it makes me smile!

Now to explain the "disaster averted" part of this post.  It has been snowing on and off since December 1st here in Tennessee and it is so cold right now.  This morning was a record low of 5 degrees!  We use electric space heaters for the apartment, but there are also wall heaters in some of the rooms.  Years ago when we first moved in the landlord told us that all of the wall heaters had been disconnected.  Well obviously they missed one because I woke up this morning to a strange burning smell.  I walked around the apartment trying to figure out what it was when I realized that the wall heater in the second bedroom was on.  I'm assuming since it was so cold that the furnace has some sort of emergency thermostat and it kicked on automatically.  The second bedroom is sort of our catch-all room, it has the turtle aquarium, my desk and computer, David's weight bench, and all of my crafting supplies.  The house that our apartment is in is very old so the closets are almost non-existent.  I have two 48 gallon plastic totes that I keep all of our extra linens in for that reason.  The totes and my desk are against the wall where the heater is - and since the heaters were "disconnected" I never worried.  Needless to say I was not a happy camper this morning.  I have since searched the entire apartment to make sure that nothing is touching or even close to a wall heater.  It's scary though, because the whole situation could have ended much differently.

So everyone out there please be careful with your heaters and such this winter!  Stay safe and have a happy Wednesday :)

Christmas Gift Sneak Peek...

My Mom is a bit of a "luddite" so I have no fears of her getting online and reading my blog.  So I think it's safe to show off a couple of her Christmas gifts a bit early.  For years she had been telling us how much she admires the "faceless angels" that they carry at Hallmark.  So my Dad and I were out shopping and we decided to check them out.

Her "faceless angels" are actually these beautiful figures designed by artist Susan Lordi.  The collection is called Willow Tree.  I'm in love with these and am already wishing for my own "faceless angel" collection!

One of the quotes from Lordi on the webpage says, "I try to keep the interpretation of Willow Tree open. I hope this makes it more personal, and allows the viewer to decide its meaning."  She really does an amazing job because when my Dad and I saw this first sculpture we immediately knew it was perfect to represent my sister and I.  I took pictures at all different angles to show you just how beautiful the figurine really is.

"Heart and Soul"

Open hearts, sharing souls, trusted friends

My sister is probably my closest confidant so I love that to me the two girls appear to be in deep conversation.

(The day we were shopping I was wearing my hair back in a pony tail just like this!)

(Did I mention that my sister is a blonde?)

Don't you love it?!

We also wanted a figurine that would represent my Mom and Dad.  This is the one that we picked out:

"Anniversary"

Love ever endures

I think this side is so sweet.  As of 12/31/10 my parents will have been married 33 years :)

I hope everyone has a happy Thursday!

It’s the first of December and we have snow in Tennessee!

Hello! I’m sorry that I haven’t posted in a few weeks, but this is such a busy time of year! I hope that everyone had a wonderful Thanksgiving. I had a great time with my friends and family and for once actually managed to not overeat.


Christmas time is already in full swing around my place. Tomorrow is the annual Bristol Christmas parade and I’m hoping that it won’t be too cold outside to go. I also hope to have some fun holiday decoration pictures to share soon.

I’ve still got a bunch of craft projects going on so I’ll be posting new pics for those as well. A couple of things that I have managed to accomplish as far as the blog goes is of course updating the background and overall layout. I also took the time to go back and tag all of my posts with labels so they are easier to find. This is definitely something I wish I had done from the beginning and will continue to do from now on. A word cloud can be found at the bottom of the blog.

I am behind on checking out all the new blog followers and I promise to catch up on that as soon as possible. In the future I also plan on only posting when I’ve actually got something to say. I know that may sound weird, but there are times when I wrack my brain for something to post about. I envy those of you who can update your blogs every day. I’ve joined in on different “topic of the day” posts, but they just seem like space fillers. I have so many hobbies that I enjoy so why not just post about those instead?

And this next thing that I want to talk about kind of sucks – and what I mean by that is how ridiculous it is that I would ever need to write about this in the first place. I basically want to say that in the future no “anonymous” comments will be accepted on this blog. If you have something that is important enough to say then you should want to sign your name to it. I will reject rude and offensive comments even if you do post them with your username. I enjoy blogging and even more than that I enjoy the feedback that I get. Helpful hints, compliments, and even constructive criticism are welcomed.

What I really can’t stand is so-called “unsolicited advice.” I apologize if that offends anyone, but I do have my reasons. Unsolicited advice is when you give counseling to someone who neither asked for nor wanted it. What I’ve discovered throughout my life is that if someone really wants your advice – they will ask for it. The best way that I know how to express this is to share part of a post that I read a while back:

“The giver of unsolicited advice may claim his motive is purely to be helpful, but the action is almost always driven in part by a conceited desire to show off (what he perceives as) his superior knowledge. As such, it comes across as argumentative, arrogant, and annoying — not kind, friendly, and helpful.”

So to the anonymous poster who proudly proclaimed of his expertise with his 4 year old RES I appreciate your concern for my turtles – I truly do. Although I would ask in the future that you not take the tidbits of info or the few pics that I choose to share to be a comprehensive review of their health, habitat, or anything else for that matter. Before I allow myself to become more annoyed I’ll stop here – and again I sincerely thank you for your concern.

Signed,

Jessie – proud owner of 2 RES
Herman – 13 years
Cecil – 12 years