From Duvet to Sham...

My sister got a great deal on three discontinued EMMIE SOT Duvet sets at Ikea, $5 for a twin duvet with 2 shams.

Ikea Emmie SOT Duvet Set

She has an Ikea Hemnes Day Bed that I think is discontinued as well but the link will show you an idea of what is still available from Ikea.  She needed two of the sets for the comforters when the bed is pulled out and made for guests.  The third was picked up to make shams.  It turned out to be a way cheap alternative to the fabric store!

However, she DOES NOT KNOW HOW TO SEW!  Since I lover her and am a total sucker I did it for her, just like every other sewing project she wants done :)

Final Sham

Using the tutorial here I made four extra shams for her new guest bed/day bed.  Turned out to be super easy and they are very cute. I also made the back and front contrasting, just like the original duvet.

Each duvet easily makes 4 shams if you lay it out correctly.  I made a template from some of my kids writing paper rolls and used that to cut the pieces out.  The template pieces needed are:

• 31" x 25" (front piece)
• 35" x 25" (back) or 2 pieces measurinjg 17.5" x 25"  

* Note: I cut the back and front of the Duvet apart prior to laying out the pieces. This made it way easy to cut the sham pieces out.

Mother's Day! Lavender Salt Scrub with Coconut Oil

I wanted to make something special to give my friends and sisters for Mother's Day.  I remember a baby shower I went to about a year ago where the favor was a cute little jar of body scrub.  Since I've never made it before I perused Pinterest and find a couple of ideas.  I basically combined and switched them out to use the ingredients I had on hand and that I wanted to use.

I LOVE Coconut Oil and have been trying to find more ways to incorporate it into my life.  So here is what I came up with:

2 - 2 1/4 Cups Epsom Salt
8-10 Drops of Essential Oil (I used lavender that I had from making Toilet Bombs)
1/2 - 2/3 Cup Coconut Oil

Simply Mix them in a bowl, adding coconut oil to your desired consistency.  I did not use as much as other people suggested because I personally like a scrub that isn't over oily.  You can just melt the oil and add to the salt, stirring well.  Drop the oil, spread out over the mixture, and stir again.  I added a drop of blue and drop of red food coloring to turn it a little lavender (stir really well and let it sit before you use it).  Then simply spoon it into cute jars.

I picked up these jars at Tai Pan Trading for $1 each set of three.  I know Ikea has something like it, or you could just use mason jars.  I just printed the labels on card stock, cut out with a round punch, punched a hole and tied them to the jars.  The little spoons are just desert tasting spoons from Bed Bath and Beyond ($5 for 6).

You could print the labels at FedEx Office for a waterproof label.  I typically take the file on a jump drive and have it printed on clear label sheet using the laser printer for waterproofing.  Didn't have time today!