The adorable, always humorous MBA Jane is my way of honoring our Sisterhood Merit Badge program, now with 6,129 dues-paying members who have earned an amazing number of merit badges so far—8,751 total! Take it away, MBA Jane!!! MJ 

For this week’s Make It Easy/Light the Way Expert Level Merit Badge, I rolled up my flannel sleeves, channeled my inner lumberjack, sharpened my ax (Yes, I have an ax! Farmgirl here, dontcha know?) and got to chopping. Yes, I know, mid-winter isn’t exactly the time of year to be thinking of this chore, but to be honest, I underestimated how much lumber I would need and, truthfully, I can only store so much at one time, right? I mean, I need room on my back porch for craft projects, too. Like my Automatic Needle Threading Machine 3000 (it takes a lot of space).

But now, I’m about to break my own Wood Chopping and Stacking record, all in the name of Merit Badges! And a little in the name of Warm Toes, if we’re honest. Just like Honest Abe.

The Railsplitter. Abraham Lincoln here despicted as a young man chopping wood, 1909, via Wikimedia Commons.

First—since I’m not a young whippersnapper anymore—I stretched. Yes siree, I recommend a good loosening up of the ol’ pectorals, biceps, triceps, and uh … elbowceps? Is there a badge for learning anatomy?

After my short but sweet warm-up session, I did a quick jog around the house a few times to keep my adrenaline pumping and my metabolism working. And by “a quick jog around the house a few times,” I naturally mean, a quick tour of the fridge and the contents therein. Nourishment found and hunger abated, I resolved to get started for real this time.

After a quick cuppa tea.

A girl needs her strength, okay?

Okay, seriously now, I’m down to two pieces of kindling and a demolished chair someone left out by their curb. I really need some firewood, stat.

Stop distracting me, already!

I settled into my chopping with reckless abandon. (That’s just a literary term. Don’t chop wood with reckless abandon, peeps—that would be … well, reckless).

Photo by Kreuzschnabel via Wikimedia Commons

After laying down a good foundation, I started getting fancy with my stacking skillz. That’s right, folks, you’re looking at a Lincoln Log Queen, so don’t think I’m just going to stack the regular way. Leave that to the amateurs! I won’t settle for anything less than a high-quality, awe-inspiring, Taj Mahal of pine. The Eiffel Tower of ponderosa. The Buckingham Palace of fir.

Buckingham Palace? Now I need a tea break.

Isidore Verheyden – Afternoon Tea, 1905 via Wikimedia Commons

*several hours later*

It’s starting to shape up. My pectoids and my trapezius cuffs (??) are burning, but my masterpiece is looking aMAYzing. A little crooked, but that’s alright. Esthetics aren’t everything in this art form. There’s also form, shape, size, weight, imagination, and creativity. And the little dance you do when you get too much bark in your socks. Or when a rogue squirrel flies outta nowhere.

I wasn’t going to stop, by golly, until a neighbor wandered over to say the magical words. You fellow choppers know the ones I’m talking about:

Nice stack you got there, Jane.

Photo by Feci1024 via Wikimedia Commons

Any time now. They’re coming. I can feel it.

Any time.

Squirrel!

Welcome New Sisters! (click for current roster)

Merit Badge Awardees (click for latest awards)

My featured Merit Badge Awardee of the Week is … Linda Van Ausdell!!!

Linda Van Ausdell (#4347) has received a certificate of achievement in Farm Kitchen for earning an Intermediate Level Recipes Merit Badge!

“After I gathered up recipes with my mom, I put them in the computer and created a recipe book. I love the way it turned out. I’m glad it’s on the computer—I think I will get requests for the recipe book from other relatives.”

The adorable, always humorous MBA Jane is my way of honoring our Sisterhood Merit Badge program, now with 6,102 dues-paying members who have earned an amazing number of merit badges so far—8,722 total! Take it away, MBA Jane!!! MJ 

For this week’s Stitching and Crafting/Homespun Christmas Expert Level Merit Badge (Part II), I lovingly wrapped up the triplets’ homemade holiday gifts, and got to work on the grownup people of my life. There are so many friends I want to shower with presents, it’s hard to know where to start. Thank goodness for large cookie recipes, am I right? It never hurts to have extras lying around the kitchen during the month of December for those drop-ins you might have forgotten to shop for (I mean, craft for). And it never hurts to eat them.

The cookies, I mean.

Ideas …

Heat Therapy Packs for Gramma Barbie
• 1 pillowcase (will make three heat packs)
• Rice
• Essential oils or dried herbs

Cut pillowcase into three even rectangles. Sew bottom(s) closed. Stuff. Hand-stitch opening. Personalize with applique or ribbon/lace, if desired. Include directions to microwave for two minutes.

Photo, http://creativecaincabin.com/2014/07/august-felt-patterns/

Porcupine Pincushion for the sewers in your life
• Felt
• Needle and thread
• Stuffing
• Collection of pins

Cut out the shape of your porcupine, using free Internet downloadable patterns or freestyle your own. It doesn’t have to be a porcupine, of course, but they look adorable with pins … instead of disturbing.

Photo Coasters for family
• 4×4″ tiles (they’re about .16 each at home-improvement stores, such as Lowes, but I see them offered for free on Craigslist.com quite often. Or you might have a stack left over from your last tiling project)
• Mod Podge
• Sponge brush
• Felt
• Photos
• Clear acrylic spray

Trim your photo and felt to exactly match the size of your tiles. Glue felt to the bottom of the tile with regular glue, and the photo to the top with the Mod Podge and your sponge brush. Mod Podge the top of your photo as well. It will dry clear, so just use a nice, thin coat. After it dries, waterproof your masterpiece with the clear acrylic spray. Adorbs!

Coffee/Tea Hot Cup Sleeves for your warm beverage drinkers
• A coffee sleeve from your friendly neighborhood barista to use as a pattern
• Felt
• A cute button
• A small piece of grosgrain ribbon
• Hot glue, or needle and thread

Using your cardboard sleeve as a pattern, cut your felt to size. (If you’re a knitter, you could skip the felt and knit your coffee sleeve instead). Glue or sew your button on one side and your ribbon on the other. Mmm! Did somebody suggest a Candy Cane Mocha with whip?

Photo by MarissaHuber via Flickr.com

Leg Warmers/Boot Socks for the Fashion Divas in your life
• A sweater
• A bit of lace

Remove the arms of your sweater for the legs of your warmers. Attach lace to the top. (An alternative adornment to lace would be a couple large buttons.) Hem edges to prevent fraying (depending on fabric).

What’s more fun: making these gifts, giving them, or getting them? Let me know!

The adorable, always humorous MBA Jane is my way of honoring our Sisterhood Merit Badge program, now with 6,102 dues-paying members who have earned an amazing number of merit badges so far—8,722 total! Take it away, MBA Jane!!! MJ 

For this week’s Stitching and Crafting/Homespun Christmas Expert Level Merit Badge, I had really exercised some patience. I had to wait a whole year after earning my Beginning and Intermediate Level badges!

Luckily, Christmas comes each year, on the dot, lickety-split, ready or not, and I was prepared. (Not like a few holidays past, when I kinda forgot to be prepared and had to do my shopping at the Quick-E Mart on Christmas Eve. Nothing says Happy Holidays like a can of soda and an air freshener, am I right?)

Having made a whole tree-full of ornaments already, I only needed to add to my collection. Because, let’s be honest, when it comes to Christmas and merry making, more is more, right, girls? You know it’s true.

In addition to strictly decorating my Blue Spruce with handmade adorableness, I was also making all my gifts. Yep. These two hands of mine were going to be busy this season—and happy, too. You know the old expression, Idle hands are the devil’s handiwork Busy hands are jolly hands. That’s a saying, right? Hello?

To focus and share a few favorites of my handmade goodies this year, I concentrated first on the little rugrats of my life: Midge’s triplets. Three different homemade presents for three different kiddos. Here’s what I came up with:

A Fort Kit

• A queen- or king-sized sheet (Okay, okay, you got me. I didn’t exactly make the sheet, but I was fresh out of silkworms, all right?)

• A headlamp (These are inexpensive at around $5. I thought of going more old-school and using a candle, but I was fairly certain Midge would have my head. Right after the firemen left.)

• A stack of art supplies or books

• A pillow

• Clothespins and thumbtacks (for anchoring the sheet)

• Snacks (homemade, naturally)

The fun part of these Fort Kits is customizing them. You can use a gingham or calico sheet, a lace pillow, and a stack of Little House books for the little girl in your life, or you could use a Star Wars sheet and a glow-in-the-dark LightSabor instead of a lamp for your little men. A striped blanket, some Circus coloring books, and a box of Animal Crackers would be totally adorable … how cute are these?

Spy Kit

In a homemade bag similar to one you would use for keeping knitting needles (you know the kind—folds flat, has seams for sliding in needles), put:

• A makeup brush
• A stamp pad
• Scotch tape
• String
• A magnifying glass
• A small penlight
• A collection of disguises (cut-out mustaches, masks, a pair of old glasses, etc.)

Homemade Christmas Playdough

• 1 cup flour
• 1/2 cup salt
• 2 t cream of tartar
• 2 T coconut oil
• 1 cup water

In a medium saucepan, whisk together dry ingredients. Next, mix in the water and oil and stir until a thick batter is formed. Cook the mixture over low/medium heat until a thick dough forms. Turn out onto parchment paper and knead until smooth. Makes about 2 cups of dough.

Christmas customizations:

• Gingerbread Playdough: Add cinnamon, cloves, ginger, and nutmeg to your ingredients.
• Peppermint Playdough: Add peppermint extract and red food coloring (optional, they do make an organic version) to your ingredients.
• Pumpkin Pie Playdough: Add pumpkin pie spice and orange food coloring (optional, they do make an organic version) to your ingredients (the more, the better when it comes to your spices)
• Glitter Playdough: Add one bottle of glitter to each batch and knead in.
• Snickerdoodle Playdough: Add lots of cinnamon to your ingredients.
• Chocolate Playdough: Use half cocoa powder and half flour.

Now that the littlest minions were taken care of, it was time to make some more grown-up gifts … stay tuned!

The adorable, always humorous MBA Jane is my way of honoring our Sisterhood Merit Badge program, now with 6,102 dues-paying members who have earned an amazing number of merit badges so far—8,722 total! Take it away, MBA Jane!!! MJ 

For this week’s Stitching and Crafting/Nellie Will-Do Intermediate Level Merit Badge, I was excited to kill two birds with one stone, figuratively speaking, naturally. The first bird: earning a new Merit Badge with my crafty, sewing skillz. The second bird: bulking up my fashionista closet.

Eva Rinaldi Photography via Wikimedia Commons

Now those are two things I can get behind. Can I get an Amen?

I’d been hearing a lot about re-fashion. Like up-cycling, and re-cycling, you might say, but this type of doing good for your planet makes US look good, too. Win, win! How can you, too, earn this badge and look at clothing differently? I’m so glad you asked.

• At garage sales, thrift shops, or whenever you get some hand-me-downs from your friends, look at the pieces with new eyes. Use your imagination. Do you love the color, but the size is wrong? Maybe the fabric is fabulous, but the shorts are too short? Or the dress is great, except for the outdated Peter Pan collar? Perhaps the blouse has a stain on one sleeve? All is not lost, farmgirls! RE-FASHION!
• Now that your imagination is sparked, get out the ol’ sewing machine. Start small, like a skirt that’s way too long for your petite stature. Hemming is easy-peasy, lemon-squeasy. What if it’s the opposite problem, though? Shorts that are far too short? They can be saved, chickadee. A ruffle of lace at the bottom, and voila! Denim and lace are uber-adorable together (and totally in fashion this year, too). Don’t stop there with your jeans and lace combo—peekaboo lace patches in holey Levis are the bee’s knees.
• Once you’ve started to get the hang of it, try something a bit more difficult. Say, a huge dress that was in style 20 years ago (no judgments!). Start by taking it in. Maybe remove the sleeves altogether. Add a chunky belt. Saweet!

Photo by Ricardo peralta solis via Wikimedia Commons

• Know what you can do with a cable-knit sweater that doesn’t fit? The arms become leg warmers (so cute poking out the top of boots) and the torso part becomes a matching skirt. Didn’t see that one comin’, did ya?
• A man’s button-up shirt is a timeless lady’s dress. Take in slightly, or simply belt: this one doesn’t even really need sewing!
• Baggy pajama pants with a favorite pattern can be taken in and tightened to be your very own patterned skinny pants—so in vogue.
• Boring T-shirts can be jazzed up with a big bow in the back, lace down the sides, or re-fashioned into a halter tank. You can even stencil your favorite quote and have a one-of-a-kind “statement T.”
• Adding elbow patches in a heart or moon shape is a charming way to add style to a plain, long-sleeve shirt or jacket.
• Women’s cardigans can easily be transformed into a little girl’s sweater dress, and small ladies’ blouses can be reworked into toddler dresses.

Who knew, am I right? The possibilities are fantastic, and so is the fashion!

Welcome New Sisters! (click for current roster)

Merit Badge Awardees (click for latest awards)

My featured Merit Badge Awardee of the Week is … Kristie Bulla!!!

Kristie Bulla (#3679) has received a certificate of achievement in Each Other for earning a Beginner Level Farmgirl Gratitude Merit Badge!

“My mom had sent me a seriously blinged-out blank journal with my initial on it. This thing was so silly and shiny and sparkly, it made me giggle. I didn’t know what I would do with it until I read through some of the merit badges and saw the part about keeping a gratitude journal for the Farmgirl Gratitude badge. How perfect!! I was not in a position to purchase The Book of Awesome, but I did read a lot of entries from the Amazon site, and I read from www.1000awesomethings.com when I ran out of things to read from my first source.

On the day I started working on this badge, our oldest dog, Dakota (our practice kid right after we got married), passed away. Although heartbreaking, I was able to find a gift in that he went peacefully in his sleep with no suffering. Just last week, my purse was stolen while shopping with the kids, and I was yet again able to find the gifts and lessons in that less-than-positive experience. I think actively focusing on gratitude really helped me through both scenarios and then some.”

Welcome New Sisters! (click for current roster)

Merit Badge Awardees (click for latest awards)

My featured Merit Badge Awardee of the Week is … Linda Van Ausdell!!!

Linda Van Ausdell (#4347) has received a certificate of achievement in Cleaning Up for earning an Intermediate Level Recycling Merit Badge!

“I have been recycling for many years. When we had our kitchen redone, I put in a recycling center. I take my recycling every 2 weeks or so, and we only take in one garbage bag a week.

I works great and I don’t mind the extra time it takes. It’s worth it.”

Welcome New Sisters! (click for current roster)

Merit Badge Awardees (click for latest awards)

My featured Merit Badge Awardee of the Week is … Sherrilyn Askew!!!

Sherrilyn Askew (Sherri, #1350) has received a certificate of achievement in Make it Easy for earning a Beginner Level Make It! Merit Badge!

“I obtained a used toolbox on wheels, cleaned it up, and stored my tools inside, making sure I labeled the drawers with the types of tools within.

I also made a planter out of cedar.

Having the tools on wheels is very handy, as projects are often done based on space available.

I also learned that cedar is a soft wood that will split if you put the screws in too deep, but the drill has speed settings. Once I slowed the drill down, things went much better. (Drilling holes first did not stop it from splitting.)

My daughter and I made the first one together, then I made the second one. I am going to line them both with plastic, then plant my garlic in them.”

This week, I was thrilled to get a box from my dear friend and fellow farmgirl April Choate (Sister #658, sonshine4u). Enclosed were supplies for a project, a video CD, and the following handwritten letter:

Dear MaryJane and Meg,

I’m sitting on the floor in my craft room, buried by my current project of making aprons. It’s a glorious place to be! Thread bits and fabric cuttings, hissing iron and shiny shears. I’m having a blast!

The reason I’m writing has nothing to do with aprons, but it does have to do with being a farmgirl. You see, I have had this special project in various stages for over a year. In fact, I was inspired a month after I saw you in Kansas. Anyway, I finished it and can now share it with you.

I made a video tutorial for you, and have some of the supplies for you in the package. The rest, I’m pretty sure you’ll have around the farm. Open the package to find out what the fun is!

Much love,
April

I first met April a few years back when I was asked to be the keynote speaker at the Creative Connection Event in Minneapolis. After the event, Megan and I took a hired car and drove for about 45 minutes to April’s house, where she hosted a farmgirl chapter get-together that included Farmgirl Beer served by her husband! (I had no idea there was such a thing so I brought my bottle home in my suitcase.)

Here’s a video of the festivities. (But don’t get distracted from making it all the way to the bottom of this post to watch April’s surprise video:)

And now … here is April’s farmgirl genius video so you can see what all the henquarters cackling is about.