Crafts - DIY Purse Hook

Handbag Hook

There are a MILLION car purse hooks out there.  Some are great, other's not so much.  The hook that I use works for me.  Maybe it will work for you too.

S Shapes Caribiner

The hook that I use is a simple S shaped carabiner.  Carabiners are available pretty much anywhere (google, hardware stores, Target or craft stores).  I paid $3.95 for mine at LL Bean.  The most important consideration is the weight limit.  My hook holds up to 25 lbs.  That's MORE than enough to support my purse.

Clip one end to the headrest

Here's how it works.  Clip one end on the pole of the headrest.

Then clip on your bag.  That's it!

Now add your purse

I like my bag to hang in the front seat so that I have easy access to my purse while I'm driving.

Purse hanging in the front seat.

But say I need to pick up a friend or one of the kids.  I can easily swing the purse around so that it hangs in the back seat.

Purse hanging in the back seat.

That's it!

Here are the things I like best about this hook:

* It's nearly invisible when its not in use.
* It's easy to put on and take off.
* It doesn't need to be removed when it's not in use.
* It will not go flying if you need to stop short.

Other Options:

There are other car hook options available.  Here are a few:

Stay Put Purse Hook

The Stay Put Purse Hook is a nice option, but it must be removed if you have a passenger.

Car Go Purse Hook

I LOVE the Cargo handbag hook.  I think it's pretty and easy to use.  Cost is $30 each.

Handbag Handcuff

The Handbag Handcuff is the first purse hook I ever saw.  I loved the idea for decided to create my own version.  This product is available for $39.

All of these products are designed and sold my women for women.  If you find that you like or want the Car Go, Handbag Handcuff or the Stay Put hook I encourage to support these smart business women!

This post is courtesy of Mocha Kathy W.
For more Crafty ideas, CLICK HERE!

House Helpers - Ending Bathroom Stink

We need to have a frank talk about an embarrassing problem.  The problem, my friends, is Bathroom Stink!

We are a family of 5 and trust me when I tell you that bathroom stink is a very real issue!  The good news is that we've solved the problem quickly and cheaply and I'll show you how!

The key here is to PREVENT bathroom stink rather than to try and cover it after the fact.

There are lots of commercial products on the market for this purpose.  Most notably a toilet spray called Poo Pourri.  I have nothing bad to say about Poo Pourri - it works.   The problem is that it is (in my opinion) needlessly expensive!

Poo Pourri Toilet Spray

No. 2 Toilet Spray

DIY Toilet Spray

First, let’s review the basic concept:

If you add scented oil to the toilet water before you add anything stinky to the toilet, the smell gets trapped under the layer of oil.

How it works

Based on that concept, you could ANY scented oil.   This, my friends, is a DIY opportunity!

Leaving the bathroom smelling clean and fresh!

Making a DIY Version - 
Because you're just adding scented oil to the toilet water, any scented oil will work.  Apply 2-4 drops of essential oil in toilet water before you make a deposit leaves the ladies room smelling clean and fresh.

My family likes Lemon oil best.    

Lemon Oil

If you'd rather have a spray - No Problem!

If you decide that you’d rather have a bottle for spray, no problem, add 40-50 drops of scented oil to a 2 oz bottle of water (or alcohol) and make a spray.  Add 2-3 squirts of spray to the toilet before you go and voila!  You’re all set!

Blogger and Super Woman Jillee has a Poo Pourri knock off too.  Here's her recipe!

Pro Tips: 

• Make a label with instructions for the drops or the spray.  It’s counter intuitive to spray the toilet BEFORE you go.  A few simple instructions solve this problem quickly.  **Instruction wording listed below.
• Also, in the spirit of being delicate and ladylike, we call these “Doo Drops” or “No 2 Spray”
• Make sure the drops hit the water.  If they hit the side of the bowl and have to slide down into the bowl, they take a little longer to work. 
• You can add the drops after you’re already begun to go, but for best results put the drops in as soon as you discover that you need them.
• Husbands or (teenage boys) might require a few extra drops.
• If you buy scented oil online, it might not come in dropper bottles.  You can buy glass dropper bottles online. They are called Euro Droppers and they're available at Amazon.com or Etsy.com.

Euro Dropper Glass Bottles

Other Helpful Tips:

*  Keep a little bottle of essential oil in your purse to mask "nature's call" when you're out and about or visiting friends.

*  If you've visiting friends and family and you don't have your drops on hand, check for bath oil, perfume or tea tree oil.  All three work well in masking unpleasant toilet smells.  Just make sure to add them to the bowl BEFORE you go.  

*  If you're having a party or gathering at your home, every hour or so add a few drops (or squirts) to the toilet for who ever visits the bathroom next.

Leave drops (with instructions) in the bathroom

** Words for Instruction Label:

"DOO Drops"  To reduce or eliminate bathroom odor: Add 2-4 drops of Doo Drops (to toilet water) before you drop a "doo".

Blog Post Courtesy of Mocha Kathy W.

Party Favor - Angry Birds Goody Bags

I wanted to make cute fabric goody bags for my son's birthday party but was shocked to discover that Angry Birds fabric is hard to come by.  So, I improvised.

The design is pretty simple and is based on a picture i found for Angry Birds Space.

The process was pretty simple.  Here's what i did.

Total cost for a dozen goody bags was $8.  I bought 1 yard of plain red fabric (on sale), several pieces of felt, red ribbon.  I also used a glue gun.

I ended up not using the thread and opted instead to use a glue gun.  It was MUCH faster than sewing!

If your artistic, you can probably free hand draw the pattern.  If you're not so artistic, here's how you make a pattern.

So that i would have perfect circles, I used a bowl and a shot glass.

I used a bowl and a shot glass to draw the circles.  I made the triangles and the diamond without any help.

Next, cut out the shapes.

The large circle will be used for the eyes and the body.  Cut the large circle in half.

Next make the background for the eyes.

Fold a half circle in half and mark point.

Now for the body.  Take the other (uncut) half circle and fold it in half. 

Mark and cut this circle as pictured. 

This is what your circles should look like.

Now find the small circle.  Mark and cut as pictured.

This will be the white of the eye.

For the top of the beak, mark and cut the diamond as pictured.

Now your pattern is all ready.

If you are making 1 goody bag,

Cut:

1 - black eye piece

1- brown body piece

2- white eye pieces

1- gold lower beak (large triangle)

1- purple tongue (small triangle)

1 - gold upper beak (diamond)

Cut 1 square of red fabric for the goody bag.

Next, lay everything out to make sure that it looks good to you.

Adjust everything so that it's sitting just right then sew or hot glue it all in place.

In terms of placement , i centered the face on the center front of the bag.  I sewed the ribbon tie just above the eyes.

Next, fold the angry bird face in half and sew the back seam.

sew the back seam

Next, adjust the bag so that the face will be flat.  Sew the bottom seem.

sew the bottom seam

Turn the bag, inside out.  Finish the top edge.

Now fill with goodies!!!!

This post is courtesy of Kathy W.

Cinnamon Swirl Bread

Cinnamon Swirl Bread

Basic Swirl Bread (1 loaf)

2 1/2 cups all purpose flour

1/2 cup uncooked plain oatmeal

2 Tablespoons sugar

1 ½ teaspoon salt

1 Tablespoon oil

1 envelope of yeast

1 1/8 cup warm (NOT HOT) milk (room temp milk is fine)

Swirl: 1 Tablespoon melted butter, 1 Tablespoon cinnamon, 1/8 cup sugar

Make the sponge by combining 1 cup flour, oats, sugar, salt oil, yeast and milk in a large bowl. Mix well. This mixture is called the sponge.

Sponge

Stir in remaining 1 ½ cups of flour.

Dough

Cover with a damp cloth and allow it to rise in a warm draft free place. I usually just leave it on my counter top. Allow the dough to rise until it has doubled in size (about 1 hour).

Risen dough

Once the risen dough, grease 1 loaf pan and set it aside.

Turn dough onto a floured board or counter.

Turning risen dough out to knead

Knead the dough about 5 minutes until it is smooth and elastic.

Kneading dough

Done kneading

Using a well floured rolling pin, roll the dough out until it is a ½ inch thick rectangle.

Ready for the swirl

Add the swirl:

Spread melted butter over dough rectangle. Mix sugar and cinnamon in a bowl. Sprinkle evenly over melted butter.

Butter, cinnamon and sugar added

Starting at the long end of the dough, to roll it as tightly as you can.

Roll the dough tightly

The roll is too long for the pan. 

Tuck the ends under so that the loaf will fit snugly into the loaf pan.

Tuck the long ends under the dough

Now the dough fits in the pan

Waiting to rise

Cover and set aside to rise. Allow the dough to rise until it has doubled in size. (About 1 hour)

1 hour later, the bread has risen

Once dough has doubled in size, bake for 30 minutes in a 350 degree oven.

Fresh from the oven!

Remove from pan immediately. Set on a cooling rack.

Once cooled, slice and eat!

Variations:

For plain white bread: Don’t add the swirl (butter, cinnamon or sugar)

For pesto swirl bread: Use fresh or store bough pesto instead of cinnamon and sugar

For Garlic bread: Add 1 Tablespoon of garlic powder to sponge

For Wheat Bread: Make the sponge using 1 cup of wheat flour and 1/2 cup of all purpose flour. Once the sponge is mixed, add 1 ½ cup all purpose flour.

For Honey Oat Bread: Substitute honey for sugar in the dough.

For raisin bread: add ½ cup of raisins to sponge.

Special notes:

- If your milk is too hot it will kill the yeast and your bread won’t rise. Use room temp or slight warm milk for best results

- If you add oatmeal to the dough it will be a little wetter than usual. Don’t panic. That’s normal. Use a little extra flour when kneading and rolling.

- Be patient! As long as you didn’t kill the yeast, your bread should rise. It usually takes an hour or so.

- Don’t let the dough sit all day to rise. If you forget about it for a long time (4-5 hours) then come back, your bread will have risen and then fallen.

This post is Courtesy of Mocha Kathy W.