Month: April 2015

Basil presents Dog Friendly destinations – Seattle, WA

Its another Travel Tuesday and I know I said I was going to do San Antonio, Texas but I changed my mind. I’m so excited to get back to the beautiful city of Seattle I thought I would do part 1 of probably many Seattle, Washington dog friendly destinations! These are only a few of the great spots in Seattle, it really is an amazingly dog friendly place. I’ll be posting more on other Travel Tuesdays so make sure to check back!Dog Friendly Destinations - Seattle, WA Soon we will be back on the West Coast and be going to a lot of West Coast destinations. Where do you want to see us go?

Travel well, nap well, live well!
-Abbey & Basil

 

DIY No Sew Bow Ties for Pets!

Happy Monday friends! For years Basil, being the 1st class hipster that he is, has been wearing bow ties. And for almost that same amount of time I have been purchasing him those bow ties. Okay so the cost isn’t that much each time, 1 bow tie retails for about $10-$20 but in the long run, that cost really adds up! So after buying Basil’s 20th bow tie (I know, I’m crazy!!) I figured I could make these, so I did!

Below you will find my simple DIY No Sew bow tie tutorial. Hopefully it works for you and your dog can look like a gentleman without breaking the bank! DIY No Sew Bow Tie Tutorial DIY No Sew Bow Tie Tutorial Step 1Step 1: There is a few things you’ll need!

• Large flat work area
• Hot glue gun
• Double sided Velcro
• Sharp scissors for cutting fabric
• Fabric
• Optional: elastic

The great thing about this project is most people have a lot of these craft supplies already in the their home. If you need anything on this list all of it can be found at your local craft store. I highly recommend using double-sided Velcro and it can be a little tricky to find. I ordered mine online(http://www.etsy.com) at a great deal. I also use a standard hot glue gun on the high setting. For my fabric, I found an amazing deal in the remnant fabric bin at Hobby Lobby. It was 1/8th a yard and only .59 cents! Also, I couldn’t pass up the Elvis in the 50’s pattern!
DIY No Sew Bow Tie Tutorial

Step 2: Cut out a square!

The size I picked was about 6 inches by 6 inches. This bow tie is going to be a little large for a medium size (20 lb.) dog but that how I like it. If you want a smaller tie make the square smaller. DIY No Sew Bow Tie Tutorial Step 3

Step 3: Flip square over and glue edges down!

It doesn’t have to be perfect! I glued the “hot dog” sides first and then the “hamburger” sides. You really just want to make clean edges for the front of the bow tie. DIY No Sew Bow Tie Tutorial Step 4

Step 4: Cut a small rectangular piece for the center of the tie!

I cut a 2×6 inch piece of fabric. Make sure the length is 3 times the size of the width. I flipped the fabric over and glued the edges down like I did with the first piece of fabric. DIY No Sew Bow Tie Tutorial Step 5
Step 5: Pinch to make your bow tie shape!

Pinch the large square that you created, from the back, to make the bow tie shape that looks best to you. When I did this it made Elvis’s face a little weird.DIY No Sew Bow Tie Tutorial Step 6

Step 6: Tie the long rectangular piece around the pinched square. Knot in the back!
Make sure the fabric is laying flat on the front. Knot fabric in the back and glue flaps down. This is also a great time to glue down what doesn’t look right!

DIY No Sew Bow Tie Tutorial Step 7 DIY No Sew Bow Tie Tutorial Step 7

Step 7: Measure & Attach Velcro!

I grabbed one of Basil’s everyday dog collars and placed the double sided Velcro on top to see how much I needed. For a 1 inch collar I recommend at least 2 inches of Velcro.

I cut the Velcro and glued the strip on to the center, back of the bow tie. Make sure to place the glue on the soft side of the Velcro! This way the Velcro teeth can grab onto the collar as well as the other side of the strip. If you prefer to use elastic you can glue a loop of elastic band in the same spot.DIY No Sew Bow Tie Tutorial Step 8

Step 8: Attach to collar and look awesome!

Wrap the Velcro around the collar in your preferred area. Think about how the collar is going to hang and sit once on your pet.

DIY No Sew Bow Tie Tutorial Look how cute he is! This bow tie is cute, easy, and lightweight. I hope you enjoyed this tutorial. Show me your pictures of your creations!

Tomorrow is Travel Tuesday and the featured city is San Antonio, Texas! So make sure to check back then!

Travel well, nap well, live well!
-Abbey & Basil

 

 

Rainy weekend can’t hold us down! 

It was another Boston Terriers of Charlotte meet up but it was also another rainy spring day. We didn’t let that hold us down and joined our friends are the local dog bar! They ran around like crazies and a good dry time was had by all!

 This was one of our last Charlotte meet ups before we head back west. I’m so glad it was a great one!

Today Basil is having a lazy, sleepy Sunday on the sofa. I think yesterday was a little bit too much fun!

Tomorrow I’ll be posting the No Sew Bow Tie DIY tutorial so make sure to check back then!

Travel well, nap well, live well!
-Abbey & Basil

Happy Earth Day!

Thanks mother earth for giving us a fabulous place to live and producing tasty things to eat! Yummy leaves!Basil loves sticks!Look at that happy face? Sticks and leaves and dirt for the win!

Happy Wednesday!

Travel well, nap well, live well!
-Abbey & Basil

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Basil Presents Dog Friendly Destinations – Portland, Oregon

Its another Travel Tuesday and today we’re featuring a west coast city, Portland, Oregon! We have spend a lot of time in Portland and seriously love it! Great dog friendly city! Check it out!Dog Friendly Destinations - Portland, OR In a couple of months we will be back on the west coast and can’t wait to visit Portland again. What do you love about Portland? Let me know in the comments!

Hope everyone is having a good week!

Travel well, nap well, live well!
-Abbey & Basil

Wordless Wednesday – Basil loves Spring!

Check out this photo from last years Bark in the Park dog festival in Huntersville, NC. We are getting ready for another awesome event in a couple of weeks and we are hoping for amazing weather like last year!
A sunny spring day!Travel well, nap well, live well!
-Abbey & Basil

BP_Wordless_wed_Hop_Logo_2014 (more…)

Basil Presents Dog Friendly Destinations – Asheville, NC!

Travel Poster Dog Friendly AshevilleAsheville, NC is one of our favorite places to go and visit. There are so many great places to check out and this is only a fraction of them. Have you been to this amazing city? Where to do you like to take your four legged friend? Let me know! Also, tell me what city we should do for next weeks Travel Tuesday!

Travel well, live well, nap well!
-Abbey & Basil

Lab Puppy vs. Boston Terrier 

Basil makes new friend wherever we go and it is safe to say that he loves them all. But puppies are the best! They usually have the same energy level and all either of them want to do is play!

This last weekend we hit up Sycamore Brewing Company for some beer, friends, sun, and music. We all had a good time and Nate & I even got our first sun burns of the season!

While we were there Basil met a beautiful 11 week old chocolate lab puppy. They were fast friends and it was so hard to pull them apart when play time was over. It really made me want another dog! Maybe sometime soon… Hope you are having a great Monday!! Don’t forget tomorrow is Travel Tuesday! Our featured city this week is Asheville, NC! Check back tomorrow to see our favorite places in this beautiful, mountain, dog-haven city!

Travel well, nap well, live well!
-Abbey & Basil

Philadelphia… The city of puppy love!

Hello! This last weekend was spent in beautiful Philadelphia, Pennsylvania! Basil, Nate, and I had an amazing time and really can’t say enough good things about this historic city. It was extremely dog friendly and there was so much to see and do. If you are looking for dog friendly destinations in Philly check out our Basil Presents.. Philadelphia here!

We loved it so much Basil thinks they should change their motto from The city of brotherly love to The city of puppy love! 

Check out our photos and see just how much fun we really had!Vacation Dog in Philadelphia View from Rittenhouse Square Basil at Federal Donuts Philadelphia City Hall History dog Ivy covered home Philly Street Art "I'll get you Moriarty!" The view from the 16th floor of Hotel Palomar, Philadelphia, PA The Liberty Bell Homes in PhiladelphiaIndependence HallFamily at Independence HallChurch DoorNate & Basil walking Philly Old door Philadelphia Catholic ChurchI can’t wait for our next Philadelphia trip, it can’t come soon enough! Where do you think we should go next?

Travel well, nap well, live well!
-Abbey & Basil

Ps. My birthday is tomorrow! Yay!

Basil Presents Dog Friendly Destinations — Philadelphia, PA!

Travel Poster Dog Friendly PhiladelphiaIts another #TravelTuesday! This time our featured city is Philadelphia, PA. Beautiful, history filled city with a lot to offer. Highly recommend every location on this list. If you are looking for a family friendly, dog friendly, east coast vacation destination think Philadelphia; you will not be sorry!

Tomorrow I’ll post more pictures from our last Philadelphia trip so make sure to check back! Hope everyone is having a great week so far!

Travel well, nap well, live well!
-Abbey & Basil

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