Kenya Snack Souvenir Zipper Pouch

Welcome to our "Do It Over Designers" Blog Hop! In case you haven't heard, the "Do It Over Designers" is a group of creative bloggers who love to recycle/upcycle/ DIY, hosted by  Anne @The Apple Street Cottage. It happens the 4th Saturday of every other month and it's all about taking something old and/or unused and 'doing it over' into something new. Once in a while, Anne will choose a theme for us to do over. This month it's PAPER! Thanks Anne for hosting this wonderful blog hop!

First off, I apologize for this lengthy post! Not to worry, though, I'm only sharing a portion of our trip! We recently got back from an almost month long cruise that started in Doha, Qatar after we spent a few days in Dubai before sailing. From there we cruised to Abu Dhabi and back to Dubai. After Dubai we spent four days at sea on our way to Port Victoria and La Digue, Seychelles where we spent a couple of days before heading to Mombasa, Kenya! It took us two days at sea to reach Kenya! Getting off the ship we were greeted by Kenya dancers which was quite exciting to see and hear!

I thought I had hit video to show a bit more, along with the music, but apparently I didn't. Anyway, what a fun way to be greeted!  We were scheduled to go on an almost ten hour long safari in Kenya! The ship arrived at 7am and was suppose to leave Kenya at 7pm. 

But those of us on the safari enjoyed it very much!  I think there were at lease ten trucks (going in different directions)!   

    

We got to see lots of elephants, rhinoceros, zebras, giraffes, and a variety of birds - but no lions. At one point, our truck was charged by an elephant and the driver quickly stepped on the gas! I guess we were too close to her baby. There were also lots of fascinating termite hills along the way .  .  . I had never seen or heard of termite hills before, but take a look at this one: 

They are supposed to be great for the ecosystem in Kenya - supporting plant and animal life there!

We realized later in the day we were not going to make it back to the ship by seven! Notice the expression on my face! Yep, that's me wondering where our driver was!

All the trucks were to meet at a diner along the safari route to make sure we were together and have a caravan of trucks back to the ship. Here's a pic of some of the trucks and our driver! LMAO!!!!

It was cool to see the caravan and be apart of that! And you know the ship was not going to leave without us, lol! It was a fun time with lots of new memories added to our bucket list!

Going to Kenya and being on a safari was a dream come true for my hubby, Gerald. As a young teenager, he and a group of friends made a pact back then that whoever became a millionaire would take all of them to Africa. Needless to say, no one became millionaires and unfortunately, most of his friends who made the pact are no longer living or in good health. But I did correspond with the wife of one of Gerald's childhood friends and asked her to check with her husband to see if he remembered the pact and he said he did! We are going to have them over soon to share our photos and experiences with them! 

Anyway, getting back to my "Do Over" souvenir project that I created from a potato chip bag.  While on the safari, we stopped a couple of times for refreshments and restroom breaks.  While there, I got a couple of bagged snacks,  potato chips and a bag of cashew nuts. Of course I had to read the bag labels to make sure I could eat what I was buying. I have to tell you I was truly impressed with what was stated on the back of the bags:

    

The manufacturers seemed quite concerned with the sustainability and quality of their product. And impressively, they were all made in Kenya! Also, satisfaction and allergen advice was also listed - something that I could not find on any of the Fritos Lays snack variety bags we have here in the states.

We bought the usual souvenirs like t-shirts and a few handmade trinkets, but I decided to make a Kenya Snack Souvenir Zipper Pouch with the potato chips bag I had. To me, the bag was something really authentic from Kenya! I also kept a cashew bag, but I tore the opening at an angle when I opened it and haven't quite figured out how to make something out of it.

I know we've all seen pouches made out of chip bags. There are lots of DIYs online - but I had never made one. So here goes!

I just needed a few supplies in addition to the chip bag:

• Scissors
• Wipes and Paper towels
• Duct Tape
• Zipper
• Stapler & staples

Disclosure I am a participant in the Amazon Services LLC Associates Program, an affiliate advertising program designed to provide a means for us to earn fees by linking to Amazon.com and affiliated sites, this post may contain links. I may receive a very small commission at no cost to you! The affiliate money I earn helps pay my crafting expenses. Thanks so much for your support!

How to:
Fortunately, I did manage to open the top of this bag without tearing.

Then I took a sharp pair of scissors and cut straight down the middle of the bag on the backside until I reached the sealed bottom portion .  .  .

where I was able to gently cut through the sealed portion.

Then I took my time trying to separate the sealed bottom edge.

Thank goodness I was able to neatly open the bottom of the bag to reveal chip crumbs inside. Naturally!

I used a Lysol wipe to remove the crumbs followed by a .  .  .

paper towel to dry the inside foil.

Then, I began applying duct tape in strips over the foil lining of the bag. Don't you just love the color and pattern design of the duct tape! It really matches the outside colors of the chip bag!

Adding one strip at a time to cover .  .  .

all of the foil lining.

Then turning the bag over and cutting off all the exposed overlapping duct tape.

It was really hard at times to not get the chip bag wrinkled from the stickiness of the duct tape.

Next, lay a zipper right side down on the edge of the right side of the chip bag. Be sure to line up the zipper evenly to the edge of the chip bag. and begin stapling about midway on the zipper to the chip bag .  .  . 

all along the zipper and bag until reaching the end. 

Once that's done, flip the stapled zipper over and spread it out. 

Then begin covering the exposed staples with a strip of duct tape.

Trim the excess duct tape off and .  .  .

open the zipper or .  .  .

you won't be able to turn the pouch inside out later.

 Next, staple the ends on each side of the duct taped chip bag together and apply duct tape .  .  .

to cover the ends.

Once the ends of the pouch are covered, turn the pouch .  .  ..

inside out.

Smoothing the pouch out and paying close attention to the corners to make sure they are straight and smoothed out, too!

There are so many things you can keep in this cool, newly created zippered pouch! I might keep some pics I have from the safari in it! 

Perfect as a souvenir from Kenya!

What do you think?

Be sure to visit all of this month's creative "Paper" projects by the  "Do It Over

Designers"  listed below:

Pandora’s Box

Purple Hues & Me

Unique Creations by Anita

Sum of Their Stories

Tea and Forget-Me-Nots

Color Me Thrifty

Vintage Style Gal

The Apple Street Cottage

Birdz of a Feather

Exquisitely Unremarkable

Modern on Monticello

How To Make The Most Adorable Ribbon and Bows Wreath

Do you love decorating with ribbon and bows? I know I do! So let me show you how to make the most adorable ribbon and bows wreath using ribbon, a floral hoop and your Bowdabra! Of course you will need additional supplies like a yard stick, scissors and florals! This wreath is perfect for the spring season - but in reality, just by switching out the ribbon, it's perfect for any season or occasion! And the best part, you won't believe how easy it is to make!

 

This post first appeared on the Bowdabra.com/blog where I'm on the Design Team!

So let's get started!

Materials:

• Gold Metal Floral Hoop - 10"
• Plaid wired ribbon - 2.5" wide (70+ft.)
• Wired ribbon - 1.5" wide
• Yard stick/scissors
• Bowdabra and Wand
• Bowdabra Bow Wire
• Florals

How To:

Let's begin by cutting the 2.5" wide ribbon into 14" strips. I didn't know how many I would need for a 10" metal floral hoop, so I cut out quite a few to begin with. Next, take one ribbon strip and fold it in half. Then place the loop behind the floral hoop and make a slip knot by taking the two loose ends up and over the wire and through the loop .  .  . 

pulling the ribbon tight around the hoop.

Continue making ribbon slip knots around the hoop until .  .  .

the floral hoop is completely covered! I used sixty strips of ribbon to cover the hoop. If you multiply 60 by 14 inches you will get 840 inches of ribbon. Divided by 12 (a foot) I used 70ft of ribbon just for the slip knots.

                              

Give the ribbon tails a finished look called "dove-tail" by folding the ribbon ends together and cutting at an angle from the fold to the end corner. 

Snipping the ribbon ends into an upside down V shape!

Once all the ribbon ends are dove tailed, it's time to make the bow!

How To:

Fold a 36″ piece of Bowdabra wire in half and lay in the Bowdabra, You’ll have a loop at one end and two loose pieces at the opposite end. Tuck ends under. This length will be enough to make a loop to hang the wreath! Then place one floral bush down into the Bowdabra and .  .  . 

placing another floral bush into the opposite side of the  Bowdabra.

Next, leave the 2.5" ribbon on the roll and crease about an inch from the end of the ribbon and insert down into the Bowdabra. Then fold over a five inch loop and press into the Bowdabra.

Fold the ribbon to make a matching loop on the opposite side, down into the Bowdabra.

Then make two more loops on either side for a total of four loops.  

 Next, leave the 1.5" ribbon on the roll and crease the end and insert down into the Bowdabra leaving a tail. Then fold over a 4" inch loop and press into the Bowdabra. Fold over making a matching loop on opposite side, down into the Bowdabra leaving a matching tail, and cutting off excess ribbon.

Scrunch all the loops down using the Bowdabra wand.

Dovetail the ends of the ribbon by folding the ribbon together and cutting at an angle from the fold down to the corner tip.

Remove the Bowdabra wand.

While the bow is in the Bowdabra, thread the two loose ends of the bow wire through the loop, pulling tightly and tie in a knot at the back, gently pulling it out. 

Attach the bows and florals to the top of the ribbon wreath using the bow wire to tie a knot around the floral hoop and then making a loop with the wire to hang.

How adorable is this Ribbon and Bow Wreath!

Have fun making one!