Upcycling fuzzy socks, for people with dogs

As we put winter in the rearview, some of your fuzzy socks are probably near the end of their useful life. ...Or are they? Gather your fuzzy socks that have holes, that have lost their elastic, or that you just never wear. I have two very easy ways for you to upcycle and reuse them—one for chores, and one for fun.

#1 - A dust mop.

Swiffer commercials. They make dusting and mopping look so easy. Just swiff your floors, la-la-la, aaaaaand just keep piling those disposable rags in the landfill. Friends, there is an eco-friendly—and just as easy—way to swiff. 

If you have pets and you ever wear fuzzy socks around the house, you've surely noticed the way those socks pick up fur off the floor. You don't even have to be crafty to make this quick DIY dust mop.

1. Cut a slit from the opening of a fuzzy sock just far enough so you can slide the sock over an old sponge mop. (Notice the bottom of my sock had grips, so I positioned the sock in a way that the grips would not be the part swiffing the floor.)
2. Secure the sock using the mop's features.
   If the mop has teeth or velcro for attaching disposable cloths, those can help hold the sock in place. You can also tuck the flaps of the sock into corners of the sponge-holder. Or, just gather the loose end of the sock off to one side and rubber-band it (like the drawstrings that close up Santa's sack).
3. Swiff your heart out.
4. Take the mop outside, remove the sock, and shake it vigorously to kick off the dust and fur. Repeat from Step 2. Throw the sock in the laundry when needed.

#2 - A dog toy.

Here is another craft project that's not even a project, and it reuses both a fuzzy sock and a plastic water bottle. Even if you never buy bottled water, you may be at an event where they're handing it out. Or you'll be around someone who's carrying a disposable bottle. 

1. Snag that empty plastic water bottle before it goes in the recycling bin (or, heaven forbid, into the trash).
2. Shove it into a fuzzy sock.
3. Optional: Sew up or tie off the open end of the sock.
4. Toss it to your dog and enjoy the playtime! (Do not leave the dog unattended with this toy.)
5. When the bottle is chewed and flattened, recycle it and repeat from Step 1.

Our dog goes nuts for this free homemade toy. He loves crunching on the noisy plastic inside something soft. I initially did sew up the open end of the sock (just a rough hand-stitch), but all the playtime has ripped new holes, so now we just shove a bottle into the sock and play fetch and tug-of-war with him. By staying involved in the game ourselves, we can make sure he doesn't pull the bottle out of the sock. The dog has figured out the key to "killing" the toy is to chew the lid off, and then he can really crush the bottle... which is why we don't leave him alone with it.

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Adventures in Cake Decorating #15 - Football-themed Cakes

Eight-year-olds and football. Apparently.

I have now made two different football-themed cakes for two different little boys. The latest one just recently for my nephew's 8th birthday, and the first one several years ago for a friend's son... for his 8th birthday. What a coincidence! So, here are the cakes:

This first one was a football field. Just a rectangular sheet cake, with green icing for the field turf and orange end zones for his favorite team. Football candies from a party store decorated the sides, while little plastic figurines of players and goal posts adorned the field. The team logo in the center was simply a cardboard cut-out. 

It was rather quick to put together. My friend and I experimented with food coloring spray for the green. It works well for fast, wide coverage, and gave us a darker green very easily. However, I think you can taste the spray more than a mixed-in dye.

A cookie design inspired this year's cake. I originally thought I might go for the rectangular football field again, until I started browsing Pinterest and saw these football stadium cookies. So I enlarged the design and made it three-dimensional for this football stadium cake.

This was a round chocolate cake, with fluffy white icing between the layers (using this copycat Ding Dong cream recipe). The outer frosting is green buttercream, made by mixing in, not spraying on, the food coloring. Gingerbread football-shaped cookies stand around the side, and mini M&Ms are the crowd in the stands. 

How I elevated the stands: I leveled my two round cakes (gave them flat tops) by cutting off their domes before frosting and stacking the layers. Then, I stacked and sculpted a rough slope—like building an old-fashioned stone wall but with frosting and cake scraps. Then I covered it with more frosting and the mini M's. Ta-da! 

Baking and decorating cookies (while simple on their own) plus the 3D scene made this cake's assembly more complicated. Len called it the six-hour cake. But anyway, it was fun to make, fun for people to see, and delicious to eat.

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