Monday 27 August 2012

Great Ideas - Magnetic Board from a Baking Tray

magnetic board baking tray great ideas muslim blog

I have seen many magnetic boards on the internet which have been made from baking trays - that I knew I had to make my very own to hang on my Kitchen Wall. This is a great upcycling project.

I already had some black spray paint left over from another project and I already had a spare baking tray so this 'Great Ideas' project didn't cost me any money - brilliant!

If you just need a magnetic board for hanging on the wall or for the children to learn their spelling with (with magnetic letters) then you could even use the baking tray as it is without spraying it!

I wanted it to look good on the kitchen wall so I decided to spray it a nice black colour - you could even decorate it with paper and fabrics which also work well apparently.

magnetic board baking tray great ideas muslim blog

Parties linked to this week are:
  Pink Hippo PartyMixitupapinchofjoy.comPhotobucket




Monday 20 August 2012

Time Out Chair Tutorial

time out chair tutorial muslim blog
 Here is a photograph of a project I did recently.  I have seen many photographs of Time Out Chairs on the internet. I have also seen them advertised online but at ridiculous prices. I had a small red chair which wasn't being used and thought I would make my own Time Out Chair with a bit of personal creativity

 My Instructions:
  • Sanded down the chair with sandpaper.
  • Painted one layer of paint (I used some leftover blue paint)
  • Painted another layer (as dark red was hard to cover!)
  • I printed out some letters on my printer and glued them onto the backrest of the chair - spelling out 'TIME OUT'
  • I used a plate and used permanent pens (Sharpie Pens) to draw a clock shape onto the seat of the chair. I then hand drew the numbers of the clock and the wording 'Time Out'.
  • I then gave the chair a coat of varnish.

 My children love the 'Time Out' chair luckily it doesn't get used to much as my youngest is not particularly naughty so it is more of a novelty for her!

time out chair tutorial muslim blog

Parties linked to this week are:
  Pink Hippo PartyMixitupapinchofjoy.comPhotobucket




Saturday 18 August 2012

Eid Mubarak

eid mubarak card muslim blog

Eid Mubarak to you all. Eid is a time of celebration for the Muslims who are celebrating the end of the month of Ramadan.  It is a Muslim Holiday that involves many visiting friends and family, sharing gifts and children are given new clothes to wear on this day by their parents.  This can be celebrated over a few days in some cultures but the first day after Ramadan is the main day of celebration. Our family have all been busy making lovely Eid cakes which is a tradition in our family, this year we will be sharing these with all or friends and family (both Muslim and Non-Muslim).

In the past I have never really had the opportunity to celebrate Eid fully. As a revert and because my in-laws live abroad I have only celebrated Eid at home with my husband and children.  This year however, I have met some lovely new Muslim friends and my children and I will be spending time with them for Eid so I am really looking forward to it inshallah.

As a crafter, the photograph above shows a card that I designed (my son designed actually!) which I will be giving to my friends on this blessed day IA.

To make this card, I bought some ready cut cream cards and envelopes from a local craft shop at quite a cheap price. My son (aged 13) designed the front of the card using Photoshop and I simply printed them out onto the card. It is really easy to place these cards into the majority of printers, my printer is just a basic Epson printer, for caution I normally only place one card at a time - but I don't think that is necessary - just me being cautious.

The photos below show the lovely cakes that we will be gifting to our friends and family IA

eid mubarak gifts muslim blog

eid mubarak gifts muslim blog


Parties linked to this week are:
  Pink Hippo PartyMixitupapinchofjoy.comPhotobucket




Monday 13 August 2012

Great Ideas - Ketchup Condiment Sachets as Ice Packs



The photo above shows my 5 year old daughter using a ketchup sachet as an ice pack. I saw this idea in a magazine a while ago and now use this practical tip all the time.  No more wasting a whole packet of frozen veg for children's bumps!

I also keep rice packs in the freezer for bigger bumps but for small children these sachets are much easier. My children think these are great, and they mould into the bumps perfectly.

I keep a few in the freezer door compartment and once the coldness has gone they swap them for another one - works brilliantly!

These are also great for the kids to use when they are feeling a bit hot in the warm weather - they are nice and cool on their warm skin!

Another idea for these frozen sachets are to put them into packed lunches to keep things cool.

Do you have any other ideas for these condiment sachets?



Parties linked to this week are:
  Pink Hippo PartyMixitupapinchofjoy.comPhotobucket





Monday 6 August 2012

DIY - Praying Hijab Tutorial


My children like to copy me when I am praying so obviously they also want to wear a praying hijab. There is not much choice for small children's size hijabs so I now make my own for them from spare fabric that I have.

I have in the past made them from cotton, but I much prefer the stretchy fabric as it gives a more comfy fit. The tutorial for this one is based from a normal sized hijab that most Muslim people will own. However you can make one from scratch by taking some simple measurements making sure that the opening for the face fits the size of your child's face. Also many praying hijabs are 2 pieces but for children this is more complicated and an all-in-one is much easier for them to put on themselves!

Requirements:
  • Stretchy fabric or cotton
  • Matching thread
  • Scissors
  • Paper to make pattern if needed.
  • Tape measure and pins




Mini Tutorial:

Step 1: Find out what measurements you need for fabric.  Lay out flat a hijab (which is folded) so make sure you double the measurements that are shown on the photograph for your fabric. The photograph shows my hijab size but yours may differ!
Step 2: Optional - Make a paper pattern by drawing around the hijab onto paper (I used craft paper sellotaped together to make large enough)
Step 3: As this is an adult size I measured smaller sizes onto the pattern. To get the smaller sizes all I did was measure with a tape measure around my children's faces to make sure that the opening was the right size. Then just guess a smaller length and width appropriate.
Step 4: Also mark out a semi circle style shape pattern to use at the front of the hijab for the forehead. (I actually used the already hemmed sleeve from the dress fabric)

diy praying hijab sewing tutorial girls muslim blog

Step 5: Using your pattern cut out the fabric making sure you add a few centimetres to make room to sew the hem. (You don't need to be exact with sizes as my photograph shows, the fabric I cut out had quite a small width because I had to go with the amount of fabric I had on the dress. As long as the space for the face is wide enough!) If you didn't make a pattern just lay the hijab onto the fabric and draw around it adding extra for hems
Step 6: Pin together where you need to sew. (I pinned 2 sides but depending on the amount of fabric you have you may be able to make this from one piece, so just pin one side)
Step 7: Sew along the pinned edges, making sure not to sew along the top and bottom openings.
Step 8: Pin and sew along the top and bottom making neat hems (I used the bottom of the dress so already had a hem sewed in for me yeah!)
Step 9: Cut out the semi circle style shape (you may have to adjust size). This is to cover the forehead. (I used the sleeve part of the dress as this already had a lovely neat hem to it.
Step 10: I pinned the forehead piece to the front of the hijab and sewed it into place. ( I kept trying this on my daughter carefully - using safety pins for safety to get it into the right place)

You now have a lovely hijab for your child. You could even do this for yourself too keeping the adult sizes. If you don't have a hijab to copy from I posted the measurements in the photograph so you could just try and make a pattern yourself from these measurements.

The photograph below is a collage of all the photographs I took.



Parties linked to this week are:
  Pink Hippo PartyMixitupapinchofjoy.comPhotobucket