The Green Room - custom boutique dog crate covers, beds, and bumper pads tutorial directions instructions

The Green Room is painted in Benjamin Moore Dill Pickle! :)

Please click the images to view larger versions! :)

Another view...


Candleholder from Pottery Barn	Candles from Target, alphabet accents from Making Memories	My grandmother made this quilt for me when I was 15 :)	Instead of having a guestbook at our wedding that I knew I'd never look at, I had guests sign mats for a picture frame that I could display and see every day. :)


Curtains from Pottery Barn	Flower holders from Pottery Barn	This was my dad's childhood chest of drawers. It was dark brown, but we painted it white. :)	Mirror from Pottery Barn (I should've named this the Pottery Barn Room!)

February 2008

Miley and Howie have moved in! :)

The Green Room is Miley and Howie's favorite Room! It has a comfy couch, a big open space for playing, and best of all, a warm sunspot from the window! :) We decided to let them move in. ;)

Since their crates were going to be out in the open (and not stuffed in a closet. Not that they were before. *ahem* Hey it was a walk-in closet. What can I say.) I decided to spruce them up a bit! :)

First I made matching beds and bumper pads. Don't they look so soft and comfy? :D

To make the crates feel cozy and den-like, (and also cause they're just so stylish ;)) I made these crate covers out of this CUTE fabric I found at Hobby Lobby.

For the ultimate finishing touch, my friend Heather embroidered Miley and Howie's names on their crate covers! :)

I think they approve! :)

Their crates tuck perfectly away on each end on the couch.
They better not get any fatter cause these crates aren't gettin' any bigger! ;)

I had some fabric and ribbon left over, so I made some matching through pillows for the couch to tie everything together.
Wonder how long they'll last before Miley and Howie tear them up? ;)

Here's how the room looks with my new end tables. Err, dog crates. ;)

Custom Crate Covers & Bumper Pads Instructions

I used Simplicity pattern #4713 for the bumper pads and mattresses in the crates. For the crate cover, just measure your crate and cut your fabric about 2" bigger (enough for hemming). You need 5 pieces: Front, Back, Top, Side, and other Side. Lay the top piece on the crate (wrong side up) and pin the Sides to the top piece (also wrong side up) so that they hang down in place. Make sure you leave enough room to hem the bottom, but don't do that until the very last step. Go ahead and sew the two Side pieces to the Top piece. Then repeat with the Back piece. Sew at the top and also on both sides of the Back piece. I was constantly putting the cover back on the crate in between every step to make sure it was fitting correctly. :) Next pin the Front piece at the top. Measure where you need the window for the door, then cut it out and trim it in ribbon. Sew it in place, then hem all the way around the bottom and you're done!

Rag Quilt

I have been seeing these super cute rag quilts lately and have been dying to try one. I've always wanted to make a quilt (despite my glaring lack of sewing skillz) and these rag quilts looked like something I could handle. I am really *so bad* at sewing, so I always have tons of extra fabric left over from my sewing projects. I checked my stash and I had some really cute patterns leftover from the crate covers and some clothes I made for Miley that all coordinated. I also had some fleece that I decided to use instead of traditional quilt batting. Since I had all my supplies on hand and didn't even have to go to the store, I decided to get started late one Friday night. By the end of the next day, I had this quilt! It matches the green room perfectly and I already had a quilt rack hanging there so it was just perfect. :)

This is why they call it a "rag" quilt. It really is so soft and cuddly! :D

Miley and Howie approve. :D

Here are two sites I found useful when making my quilt!

Rag Quilt Instructions | Making a Rag Quilt

Like I said earlier, I made one change... I used fleece in in the middle instead of batting. I made it the same size as the other squares so I didn't have to sew the X to join the fabric and batting together. It was just all joined together when I sewed the seams. It definitely saved a step and it also gave the quilt a little more "raggedy" and softness to the edge. The blanket is very soft and comfy. On the flip side, it made the seams much more bulky and it was more difficult to sew them all together than it probably would've been had I done it the right way. lol. So if you wanna be a rebel like me, be sure and use a strong needle and possibly a walking foot for your sewing machine. I broke a couple needles until I finally read the manual to see which type of needle I was supposed to use for thick fabric. I just used my regular foot and it was fine.

You may have noticed this new addition to Miley and Howie's room sitting on top of the quilt rack... A drawing of Miley and Howie from one of my favorite portraits! The artist is Annie Brady and our friends Lori and Bill had this made for us when we vacationed together in Pigeon Forge. I *love* it and it matches the room perfectly!! :D

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