Happy New Year!

Happy New Year!

2008 has been wonderful for our family. I feel blessed to have a lovely and great friends.

I hope you've had a wonderful 2008, and here's wishing you a fantastic 2009.

This is our New Year Peace Tree. It's a little bare this year, but we figure that we will slowly fill it up in the coming years.

We spent a leisurely afternoon taking down the Christmas ornaments, and decided to leave the silver ornaments up. The girls and I decided that a white tree with doves would be the perfect New Years Tree. Our Peace Tree.....

So we got some leftover sheer fabric from my stash, and the girls helped me cut the piece into our "snow ribbons". Then we spent some time making peace dove ornaments. It made for a really fun afternoon....

Kids' Craft - Coffee Filter Flower

This is a great (and pretty) craft to do with your kids on a rainy day, or in our case, a cold freezing day:







Pretty, yes?


We bunched them up together, and I think it's nice enough to use as a centerpiece. My kids were awfully proud to see their work beautifully displayed.

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Yoga Bag from an old Robe Sweater

I cannot seem to find the picture I tool of the sweater I fashioned this yoga bag from. Essentially, it looked like a robe, and because it wasn't really flattering on me, it wasn't really being used.
I had recently given away my yoga bag, and I needed another one. So I made this bag out of the sweater, and the belt that came with it.
I'll soon be posting another tutorial of the yoga bag that I made for my yoga-fanatic sister. I took much more care making that bag. Isn't it strange that I'm not fussy when making things for myself, but when it comes to making gifts, I turn into the perfectionist?

And you have a serviceable yoga bag....

...click here to read more

Vively at Blogspot is now Vively Online!

Photo: Fireworks courtesy of *spud*

Thank you for visiting my website! As you may now have noticed, you are now on Vively Online.
I'm doing a celebratory dance, and setting off some fireworks (well, internally, at least).
I've always wanted my own domain name, and now I do... www.vivelyonline.com.
I thought that it would take a few days to transition, but in fact, it was more like a few clicks.

I will continue to write sewing and craft tutorials, as you seem to enjoy reading them as much as I enjoy writing them. I will share favorite recipes, wardrobe refashion undertakings, diy projects, kids activities, yoga tidbits and perhaps even share some belly dancing adventures with you.

I sincerely hope you enjoy reading this site as much as I enjoy sharing my experiences with you.

How to Make Your Own Wine Charms (Wine Glass Markers)

I hope you had an great Christmas!

Have you ever had the urge to make your own wine charms? I've had! Every time I see them, I think to myself that they are not too hard to make.

I wanted to give my friend some wine charms as part of a hostess gift, but I had a really hard time finding them at the stores. The lady at the local hallmark gave a "what are you talking about" look, when I asked her if they stocked wine charms/markers.
So I decided that I should really make my own.
I managed to find a pretty bracelet with different charms - perfect for the project!

Along with a bottle of wine, about eight of different charms like these would make awesome hostess gifts for that New Year's Eve party that you are going to:

These are the wine charms I ended up gifting. I packaged them prettily in a cute bag that I made at the same time I made the wine bottle bag

This is the bag I'm talking about

Some variations on wine charms:

Alright, you probably noticed that I went on a little wine charm bender! I just think they are so cute, yet rather useful.

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Take a Moment for yourself, and just Breathe

Photo: Every breath you take by mikelens

Around this time of the year, the stress starts to hit. Our stress-filled life contribute to bad breathing habits. Many of us tend to breath using only the top-region of our chests. With the added stress, it is not surprising that our breaths quicken, and get even more shallow. Shallow breathing can cause fatigue.
So, it is more important than ever for us to take just a moment to stop, and breath deeply.
In yoga, one of the breathing techniques is known as the three-part breath. The three-part breath teaches you to fully engage your diaphragm, help to oxygenate the blood, and relaxes the mind and body.

Sit or stand with the spine erect and elongated, and consciously allow your shoulders to relax. Inhale and exhale through your nose.

To inhale:
1. As you breathe in, allow you belly to expand and fill with air.
2. Next, allow your rib cage to open and allow air into your lungs.
3. Finally, allow the breath to fill all the way to your clavicle (collar bones)
This is all done in one inhale.
As you exhale, let your chest release the air first, and then allow your belly to deflate like a balloon.
Let your exhale be as long as your inhale.

Give yourself the time to take 10 deep 3-part breaths. You'll notice the difference!

Ridiculously Easy Wine Bottle Bag - A Tutorial

I made this wine bag yesterday because couldn't find any at home, and I wanted to bring wine to my friend's dinner party. It really is ridiculously easy, so much so that I feel a little silly posting this. However, I did take the pictures, and it did turn out pretty. So, I'm posting it anyway :)











Voila! You have yourself an awesome wine bag.

...click here to read more

Quick Tip - Hasty Casserole Carrier

I'm taking this opportunity to wish all who celebrate Christmas, a Very Merry Christmas!
I know that there are a lot of parties and potlucks at this time of the year and I would love to share a useful way of transporting those clumsy casserole dishes (I did not have the time to make one, and chances are, you would be busy doing other things at this time of the year too!)













Ta da!! Simple! You have yourself a pretty little make shift carrier that also happens to keep the dish warm!

...click here to read more

ReUse and ReCycle - Old Sweater Sleeve into Cute Pincushion.

I found myself doing more sewing nowadays, and I guess I've realized that a pincushion would be really useful. However, I don't really feel like digging in the storage for the little bit of batting or polyfil that I would need to create a wee little pincushion.
However, I did have some pieces of sweater leftover from my sweater resizing project to create this!

Well, really, you have a pin cushion now! You can add buttons, appliques and other notions to make it pretty. I got inspiration from this beautiful pincushion to embellish my own.

I suppose it could be even fancier... but I really like it this way!

...click here to read more