a quandry solved

Remember how I ordered that one piece of fabric that was way more orange than the piece I'd picked out for the lining? Well, my solutions came last week. I love them both - can't decide which I'm going to use. I have an idea for an apron using the polka dots. I'm looking for an appropriate turquoise-y blue for the trim . . .

My friend Karen picked out these fabrics for the bag I am going to help her with. She was lamenting the bag wanderlust she'd been feeling lately so I offered to help her design her own. She is embarking on a new sewing hobby. I think once she realized how fun it is, she'll be hooked. I know I am. The more fabric I order, the more fabric I think I need to order! So many great things out there!

p.s. Dana, this post is for you. You said you wanted to see my fabric!

things that go bump in the night

The bumper pads are finished! They aren't really fancy - but they are going to look cute with the quilt I made. It's still awaiting that final hand stitching on the binding (the thing I ALWAYS procrastinate). I also need to get the crib out of the scary shed out back and give it a good wipe down. I will post more pictures when it's all put together. I really think Andrew will enjoy sleeping in a real crib and not in the pack n play anymore. Poor kid.

2 things about that last post - 1. I didn't take that picture. It is cool though - I just did a google image search for "road trip". 2. The black widow I found in the pocket of my beach chair was left off the list - it was creepy and huge and I buried it in the sand.

a little getaway

So, my husband has to travel a bit for his job. He went down to Camp Lejeune, N.C. and I thought it would be fun to take the kids on a little road trip to see him. The kids being 2 1/2 and 7 months. Well, I learned that some things are better in theory than in practice. Now, I'm glad we went - it was good to be together and we got to take them to the beach - which is always entertaining. To give you a glimpse of our weekend, I give you:

The Top 10 Things I Learned on a Road Trip with a Toddler and Baby

10. You have to limit fluid intake because public restrooms, with a baby in the bjorn and a toddler with an aversion to public toilets, are not an option.

9. Scheduling a departure post-lunch and just in time for naps is a recipe for a few quiet hours of driving.

8. Cute toddlers can get away with stealing blueberries from the roadside fruit stand.

7. Frazzled, tired, lost mommies can't get away with speeding.

6. Toddlers have an infinite supply of questions.

5. Dido makes great lullaby music.

4. It is possible to carry a baby in the front and a toddler on your back. And survive.

3. A baby with a cold doesn't sleep well in hotels. Therefore, no one sleeps well.

2. Your cherry tomatoes have time to actually ripen before little hands get a hold of them.

1. Memories are made no matter what you are doing, so you might as well enjoy it!


It's amazing how much I feel like I have missed out on while I was gone for just 4 short days. I have a ton of blogs to catch up on! But now, I have to go get some rest. I did get some more fabric in the mail over the weekend - but I'll spare you the minutae of what was in each box and just get the projects done so you can see them!
ttfn - Amy

easy-peasy

I thought I would share how easy it is to make your own baby food. I know, this post has nothing to do with sewing or fabric - but it does have something to do with being resourceful! And I needed a break from the bumper pad ties.

Some people think I am a little nutty or an over-achiever for making my own baby food. Really, I'm just cheap. And I like food that tastes good. And I assume my babies do too. Have you ever tasted baby food green beans? blech. No wonder they don't like them. But whip it up yourself from fresh beans, or even frozen and it's a whole different story.

This morning I did sweet potatoes. I was already in sweet potato mode as I was making this recipe for myself (this is a great blog).
Peel and chop several sweet potatoes, I used 3 large ones today. Steam them until they are bright orange and soft when poked with a fork. About 5-10 minutes. I have a steamer pot - but you can just do it in a regular pot with a little bit of water on the bottom.

Transfer potatoes to the bowl of a food processor or blender. I only have a small one so I have to do it in a few batches. Add some of the cooking water back in to help the blending process. I don't like to add too much because then your final product is too runny.

Puree until smooth. Little hands like to help with this part.

Spoon the puree into ice cube trays to freeze into manageable portions. When frozen, transfer to a freezer bag. I put all different kinds in the bag, you can tell which are carrots vs. sweet potatoes vs. squash. This batch made up enough to fill about 2 trays.

When you are ready to feed the baby - just take out one, two, three, depending on how much your baby eats - and thaw. I prefer not to use the microwave. They thaw pretty quickly on their own. You can make a mixed veggie dinner or combine with cereal or just have it plain.

I've used this method with fresh produce as well as frozen and it all tastes better than the pre-packaged stuff. As far as fruit goes - you can pretty much use the same method. Although, I do just buy regular unsweetened applesauce in a jar - it's pretty cheap.

So wow all of your friends and put on your super-mom cape and get to it! All in all, this takes about 20 minutes.

Don't you think sweet potatoes are photogenic?

my breakfast

Because I can't have cow's milk products while I am nursing, I have been searching for ways to fill the void of cheese in my life. I love cheese. I've always loved it and then I lived in Europe and then I found out just how much I really love it!

When I figured out that going without dairy would help my fussy, spit-uppy baby I was shocked at how difficult it was to go without. And really just how much dairy I was consuming. I would never do it for dieting purposes - but for my baby? Anything. (plus, I was tired of all the spitup laundry.)

I discovered goat cheese 2 nights ago. I'd had some bad experiences with it before and hadn't really explored it. My good friend Darci came over and she's off dairy too so she had brought some goat's milk Parmesan and a regular log of goat cheese. I was SHOCKED at how smooth, creamy, mild and NOT disgusting it was! I was in love. It's really great on pizza! (w/ fresh tomatoes and basil, mmmm)

When I was at the grocery store yesterday I spied a jar of fig spread, basically a jam. My Italiano-phile brother had introduced me to the beauty of fig jam with cheese on a baguette (sidenote: red currant jelly and brie is also delicioso!).

Which brings us back to my breakfast: fresh baked demi-baguette, schmear of goat cheese, topped with a layer of fig jam. Oh my. You must try it.

Garden Party Frock GIVEAWAY!!!!

Garden Party Frock GIVEAWAY!!!!


Who wouldn't want this for their little girl? Adorable.

tedium

Oh yes, I thought it would be so much fun AND easy to make some cute bumpers to match the quilt I made for Andrew. Well, really it is pretty easy. But I have to do 24 of these puppies. That's right, 24 - 2 x12" strips pressed with 1/4 seam allowances and then folded in half and pressed again. Ugh, I'm only half-way through and I'm tired of singeing the tips of my fingers! But I can eyeball a 1/4" seam now, NO problem.

I should have invested in some bias tape.

re-purposing

We are a military family, therefore, we rent.

I'm not happy with the house we are in right now. Well, I should say we totally got started off on the wrong foot. And the Realtor wasn't much help. But we were only going to be here a year, so it didn't really matter. Now we are going on 3 and there might be a4th....

The bathrooms are tiny and outdated and needed some freshening up. I've found white shower curtains can really brighten up a dingy room (the owner is unwilling to paint - and there's 15 different shades of white found around the house - not to mention the 70s blue and gold bath tubs. . .). I found this basket/bag at Michael's and it's made out of an Amy Butler fabric. It was labeled as a scrapbook supply tote. Since we have little storage in the bathrooms I have to keep things on the back of the toilet (we have a cd holder from IKEA in our other bathroom). I thought this would look great! And it does! I found some towels that are the right color green, but no rugs yet. Then the whole room will really look better.

I'm not much of a rebel so to use something for other than its intended purpose makes me feel raucous!

The pictures with flash were too washed out. . . so this one isn't too great, but you get the idea.


Here it is in some natural light. Pretty! I love Amy Butler. Have I mentioned that a few times?

another giveaway?!

There are so many generous people in this little blogland!

Jessica at JuicyBits is doing an AMAZING giveway! You have until the 22nd to enter. All you have to do is leave a comment telling her your 3 favorite colors. It's that easy. But if you aren't interested, then don't click on that link. . . I said, don't!! . . . wait! . . . Finish reading and then go click on it!

I'm inspired to do a giveaway - but it is going to have to wait. For a special occasion. I think for the grand opening of my Etsy shop. I've got some ideas and think I will do multiple prizes. Now that I have my fabric and a head swimming with ideas I'm going to get to work! I'm hoping to open the shop early September. Stay tuned. . .

fabric shipment 2: the sequel

Here's the rest of the story. Or in other words, package #2 arrived today with the rest of my fabric for the quilt + 2 more bag combos! This order was from Hancock's of Paducah. They aren't as fast as fabric.com, but they have an amazing selection and a great catalog where you can see all the collections side by side. As a side note, Hancock's of Paducah is not related to the national chain, Hancock Fabrics. And really, if you've seen their catalog and compared to the stock in a Hancock store - you would probably be able to figure that out. (That last bit was written by my inner fabric snob - of course without the brick and mortar chains we'd all be paying 8.95 on shipping for 1 zipper. . . )

2 more bags - I think I have a thing for pink and red. But I'm not sure I knew that until today....

On the left, selections from Sandi Henderson's Farmer's Market (I love the red and pink one especially - it's gorgeous in person), on the right her Ginger Blossom line.

The-soon-to-be-quilt.

(another plug for mom to come visit me! I'm going to need your help. And I promise I won't slice your finger with the rotary cutter. I've gotten much better since then!)

garden update

I haven't posted about my garden much lately. I got a late start with some of my plants so my cherry tomatoes are just now really ripening up. My larger tomato plant is working hard to get some fruit out and the cukes are doing really well, along with the herbs and jalepenos. My beets were being over shadowed by my dahlias and zinnias so I transplanted them to the new box. They survived pretty well. That's the nice thing about this square foot gardening, since the soil is all the same 'recipe' you can move things around pretty easily without a lot of root shock. My zinnias wilted at first, but my garden mentor Lisa told me to cover the roots/base of the plant to keep them cool and it should be fine. And by the next morning they were.

About my zinnias. Let me first say, I really don't know much about gardening except from what I saw my dad do growing up (predominately tomatoes and squash) and what my friend Mel has taught me from his book.

A few summers ago on our way from CA to VA we stopped in Washington (the state) to visit my brother. My sister-in-law took us to a cutting garden that was the coolest thing I ever saw. This woman had a huge flower garden with rows on rows of flowers. She had a little bench with scissors and supplies for cutting your own bouquet and then you left money in a little ballot box type thing. I wish I'd taken pictures that day. It certainly inspired me to plant flowers.

So back to my zinnias - I just thought they looked pretty on the seed package. I thought maybe they'd grow into a small plant like a gerber daisy. I didn't know what color I would get, it was a multi-colored packet. I planted a lot of seeds just before we had terrible rain all weekend. Most of them washed away, but one took. And boy did it take. It's at least 5 feet tall and is blooming it's gorgeous head off! Here is AK posing for perspective (granted, she's short, 2 ft something). I didn't know she was winking until I downloaded the picture later that night. I laugh every time I see it. I smile every time I look out my back window. Who knew gardening could be so fulfilling!

That's my cherry tomato plant on the right. It's not bad either. Oh and the marigolds - I decided I like them! And that's lavender in front of them - I'm hoping to get some flowers to dry.

my first shipment

These came from Fabric.com on Friday! What a treat! On the left, selections from Amy Butler's Lotus line. And on the right 1/2 the fabric for the quilt I am making from Sandi Henderson's Ginger Blossom line.

Here's a better look at some of the fabrics for the quilt. Most of the rest that are coming are in the green family. I think it's going to be a looker. I mean if it looks anything like this, it will! (note: if you haven't heard, that giveaway is over. so sad.) I bought that stripe on the end for the binding. I think it will look really cute.

Now, here's a bit of a dilemna. The hazard of buying things online is that you don't always see the whole printed pattern.

For instance, the combo on the left was meant to be the outside and lining of a bag. Now, in the swatch online all I saw was yellow and green, so the stripe would be cute. However, when I opened it up that orange stands out so much it just doesn't look right. Bummer.

And the combo on the right looks okay, but I intended the one on the far right(temple garland) to be the lining, and it's just too pretty to hide on the inside of a bag. I was pleased to see that the stripe looks great with the temple garland print.

Luckily, these two are a perfect match.

Unfortunately, I have 2 orphans. I've ordered tangerine dots to go with the green and I think it will be a really cool contrast. The large blue floral I love. I want to get the blue dots to go on the interior of it, but it's sold out for now. I may just hold onto and make myself something with it - a skirt, pajama pants, aNOTHER bag. . . .

Look for the finished products on etsy soon! Unless someone knows they want one of these combos now. Let me know! We can discuss details on price and dimensions, etc . . .

A Baby Gift

My friend is due to have her baby any minute now and I wanted her to be prepared for breastfeeding. On the left is a nursing cover (like the other ones I made). And on the right, the best burp cloths EVER. Not the best because of the little bit of embellishment I did, but because of the super absorbency of the Gerber 3 ply cloth diaper. When you have excessive spitters like I do, you need a gazillion of these things. Or maybe just one for every day of the week so you can have a clean one on hand without doing laundry every other day.

Someone made me some of the cloths for my first. Her's were super-fancy because she had an embroidery machine and put on some cute Suzy's Zoo characters. However, the embroidery decreased the surface area of absorbent material. So I started making these with just some ribbon and rick rack. This time around I used hem tape to fuse the ribbon to the diaper before I top-stitched it down. This made handling the ribbon much easier. You can get these diapers in a 12 pack - but be sure you get the 3 ply ones, they are the thickest. Pick out matching rick rack and ribbon and you are set. I've found that woven ribbons wash better than ones where the design is printed on. And satin ribbon is harder to sew on, the grosgrain types handle a little easier.

Not much of a tutorial, but it's pretty much a no-brainer. I've seen these made a million different ways, this is just the way I do it.

The New York Times Cookie Article

Perfection? Hint: It’s Warm and Has a Secret

Francesco Tonelli for The New York Times

SUGAR AND THE SEA A sprinkling of sea salt just before baking adds a distinctive dimension to chocolate chip cookies.

Have you heard about this recipe? I've been hearing rumblings about it for several weeks. I have yet to try it, but that picture above from the article makes me salivate just looking at it! I love chocolate chip cookies. I mean really, who doesn't?? The unfortunate thing is that for the past 4 months I have had to cut out all dairy and chocolate for the sake of my nursing boy. He doesn't like it and I don't like cleaning up all the spit up. I wish I didn't see a direct correlation between my intake of milk and his spitting up problem or I would indulge a little more often. Anyway, I haven't had many treats and I'm dying to try these. So if any of you have made them or do make them - let me know what you think. I'm thoroughly intrigued by the idea of sprinkling salt on the dough just before baking. Mmmmmm.

The article is a good read - it reminds me of a lot of the Cook's Illustrated articles - explaining a lot of the science and how the recipe evolved.

In a related story, one of my new favorite cooking blogs, Cakespy, just did a piece on how they made the anti-perfect cookie. It's hilarious! Check out that post here.

And in a sort of related way - there is one, no, two things that I have been able to eat without terrible consequences: Rice Krispie Treats (made with that olive oil butter spread - Smart Balance) and the Pillsbury Funfetti Cake Mix!

I've always loved Rice Krispie Treats, but I've had a love/hate relationship with cake. I haven't always been a fan of boxed cakes or grocery store bakery cakes. I like rich heavy pound-type cakes, preferably in lemon, usually homemade, from scratch. But my friend Carla (who does some fun crafty things) introduced me to this cake a few months ago. I ate with reckless abandon (it has milk whey in the ingredients list) and it didn't seem to affect him. AND I LOVE IT! I don't know what it is about it, the flavor, the moistness, the frosting (rainbow chip, I think) - it's just good. So good that I've eaten for breakfast every morning since Friday when part of a cake was left at my house. I've never actually made one myself. I'll consider Carla the expert on that.
Maybe she'll comment and remind me what kind of frosting she used. (hint, hint)

After google-ing Funfetti cake, I've found that I am not alone in my love. I should have taken a picture of her cake, because it looked much better than most of the homefrosted versions (although there was a really pretty pink fondant covered one). But I ate it too quickly and most of it by myself. I would have been embarrassed to show you just HOW much I ate. I blame you, Carla. and Cathy for moving.

Funfetti cake lovers of the universe, UNITE!

Paperdoll Frock GIVEAWAY!!!!

Paperdoll Frock GIVEAWAY!!!!

I'm still amazed at the things people are just giving away! It's so fun! It's like a sweepstakes I have a better chance at winning because there aren't a bazillion entries! This little number is especially cute and I would love it for my little Alison.

I received my fabric shipment from Fabric.com yesterday! I can't believe how fast they are!!! Plus, they were having free shipping on orders over 35$, until the 11th. Hancock's of Paducah aren't as fast. Sad. They are sending the other half of my Ginger Blossom prints for THE quilt. I can't wait!

But first, I have to finish some bumper pads and bind a quilt so Andrew can move from the pack and play to a real crib. He's earned it. And I'm tired of bending over to pick him up, basically of the floor.

Oh yes, I almost forgot! Thanks Brigette and Julianne for giving me an excuse to buy more fabric! I'm excited about making your bags!

It's an AWARD! A Major Award!

Thanks to a Christmas Story for the title of my post - but my award is not a leg lamp. It's so much cooler!

I'd like to thank the academy of bloggers (also known as Christina one of my new blogger BFFs), my dental hygienists Mollie and Denise for being my first bag customers, my mom for teaching me how to sew and getting me a job at Minnesota Fabrics (remember them?) when I was in high school (she did it for the discount!), and my kids for patiently watching me sew instead of making dinner (surely I jest, they eat!).

And now, for your consideration, seven more bloggerish
people you surely would enjoy visiting:

Old Red Barn Co. - Dana is one of the nicest people I've met here in blogland. She made a beautiful quilt and gave it away, and then gave me the instructions to make my own, she takes awesome pictures, is creative and is just really nice! Check out her blog - you won't be disappointed. I'm looking forward to the headband tutorial.

Blue Yonder - more awesome photos (of armadillos even)!, muses on life, creative ideas and quite the wordsmith.

house on hill road - great sewing projects, inspiring and fun! And she helped me out with some label advice!

sewtakeahike - great crocheting, sewing and tutorials. Again she helped me with some label advice!

Looking In - She shares a penchant for Amy Butler fabrics. We are kindred spirits, I just know it.

creative little daisy - She did and impressive extreme makeover on an old glider. She used Amy Butler - I knew I'd like her! She's also done some great tutorials for Sew, Mama, Sew (another site worthy of an award!)

Vanessa Contessa - A friend of mine obsessed with all things cupcakes and Twilight. In fact she's developed 3 new cupcakes: the Edward, the Jacob and the Bella. She's also an amazing photographer. And she makes me laugh and plays a mean game of Word Twist!

I didn't know any of these people (with the exception of Vanessa) until a couple of weeks ago when my addiction to reading/discovering crafty blogs began. I was pleasantly surprised to receive personal emails or comments from each of them. They answered my questions or just said hi, thanks for stopping by. I had no idea bloggers were so friendly and helpful! So thanks to all of you for making my days a little more interesting and inspiring me to create, be productive and take risks trying new things!

The rules for this are below, but really, do what you want - I won't be hurt if you don't post the award or tag 7 others - just know I think you guys are great! (As are the other 20 or so blogs I've come across recently.)

And now the rules according to someone important:

1.The winner can put the logo on their blog.
2. Link to the person you received your award from.
3. Nominate at least 7 other blogs.
4. Put links of those blogs on yours.
5. Leave a message on the blogs you've nominated.
6. Write an acceptance speech in the style of the Academy Awards, thanking every body's mother, father, sister, brother, aunties and uncles and the kitchen staff at your favorite restaurant!

MORE fabric?!

I have a serious problem. I love fabric. Especially of the Amy Butler variety. I just got my Hancock's of Paducah catalog, which started this whole thing in the first place.

Look at a sample of her new line, Daisy Chain. I got these images from Hancock's of Paducah web site. You can order some, just leave some for me!! I think I may buy the charm pack and make a little blanket - because really, I NEED more blankets! Or an excuse. Does anyone want a bag!? Please, someone! Give me a reason to buy this fabric. And LOTS of it!

I would be ordering some already - except I'm expecting a nice little package tomorrow filled with deliciousness! Yes, there is some Amy Butler on it's way. And some Sandi Henderson. Oh the JOY!!

This is why I can't get to sleep at night!

Uh oh!

I did it. I just did it. I ordered an absurd amount of fabric online. Enough for 5 new bags and a quilt. So not only am I committing myself to making some more bags in an attempt to sell them, I'm also committed to make Dana's so perfect quilt! Wish me luck.

I have a shop at etsy now, although it is empty. I decided on a name: Paisley Garden. Look for it on Oprah's favorite things next year. Hahaha! I wouldn't be able to keep up with the demand. But I will have some things in there shortly.

I will take pictures when the orders arrive. Can't wait! This is worse than Christmas. Now that I've finally taken the plunge, maybe now I can get to sleep at night!

By the way, if you live locally and are interested, just email me and we won't have to go through my online shop.

my new friend Dana

Do you remember this QUILT giveaway? Well, I was so overcome with the NEED for this quilt that I was really bummed I didn't get picked to win it. Even with my positive affirmations, "I'm a good person, I'm going to win this quilt", I didn't. So I commented on Dana's blog - Old Red Barn Co. - and asked her if she was going to post a pattern/instructions for the quilt. Well, to my delight, she emailed me personally and told me how she made it!! How nice is that!? She is so talented and fun and makes some really great stuff! I love reading her blog and getting inspired. Check out her shop for some great handmade bath products!

One of her last posts was about a stool she recovered and reminded me of a sewing box I recovered last year for Alison's room, we keep her shoes in it. My little box didn't have any fancy-ness to it, just some cute fabric. Then after seeing her stool I remembered that I had just bought some pink pompom fringe! I got my staple gun out and fancied it up! I really wish I had a before picture, because this thing was BAD. It was covered in some dirty old green calico with some sort of lace hem tape around it. Blech. But I can't really complain, I got it for free through Freecycle. And now look - she's like Cinderella after her visit from the fairy godmother!

It's amazing what a little fringe and some staple gun action can do. I was going to title this post Staple Gun Love, but maybe I'll save that for another time. Let me just saw how happy I was the day I went and bought my own staple gun. It's not the cool old red Swingline of my youth, but it's come in very handy! (mom, do you still have that old gun?)

?????'s Bag

So this may be my favorite bag, yet. Wait, I think I keep saying that about every bag I make! I really do enjoy working with different fabrics to see how they turn out, and then each one becomes my favorite, and then I want to keep them all! This is an Alexander Henry print that I actually found at JoAnn's. I love the colors and the whimsical oval take on polka dots.

The ???? in the title of the post are because I made this for someone dear to me, but they don't know it and I haven't shipped it yet. So hopefully she'll like it!

I had to say good bye to my the first 2 bags I made for other people yesterday. It was sad to say goodbye. But I sent them to good homes and I have 2 new friends now! I think that's a pretty good trade.

I've been having a lot of fun the last few weeks meeting people through their blogs - I'm going to continue posting about some of my new finds/blogfriends. Stay tuned . . .