From the Earth, Past the Moon

2009-09-07T15:10:00.000-07:00

We kicked off a before school Labor Day with an apple theme. Bracelets and baked apples were made and enjoyed. It is not often that we do organized crafts, so the girls enjoyed this. Especially Flurpee who has a very small wrist. She almost never finds bracelets that do not fall off.

The bracelet idea was from a book or magazine, but now that I'm trying to find it for the reference, I can't remember which it came from. And I have a lot of kid's craft books. The bracelets were made using:

barrel clasps
28 gauge beading wire
crimping beads
green glass beads
green leaf beads
14 mm wooden beads (I used a spray paint to paint them a warmish yellow--a little bit of orange in the color)
some larger beads to prevent the wood beads from sliding over the smaller green beads (I used some opal chip beads I had from a previous project)

I also used a flat pair of non-marking (no teeth) pliers, toothed pliers, and wire cutters.

Using non-marking pliers, I first tightened the loops on the barrel clasps so the the wire wouldn't slip out of the gap. Then I feed the wire into the barrel clasp loop, twist it, then feed on a crimp bead and squished it flat with the pliers. Then we started putting on the green beads (about four depending on the size of the bracelet), the larger bead, the yellow bead, and the leaf. Repeat until the bracelet is the right length. A few extra beads at the end will help if the bracelet is not quite long enough. There will be four or five apples per bracelet. Once the bracelet is the correct length (I checked by putting it around the wrist and comparing it the the end of the clasp), put on a crimp bead. Put the wire through the other crimp bead loop and back through the crimp bead. If you want it to be extra secure, you can wrap the wire end around the wire a few times. Squish the crimp bead and wear.

The baked apples were a delicious and easy treat. I think my older daughter, Hanover, may want her apples this way every time. Although many recipes did not call for it, I peeled the apples to make them more fork- (and kid-) friendly.

6 apples--An apple (or two) per person (we used Jona Gold, but tart apples work well too if you don't want that much sweetness), peeled and with the seeds removed from the center leaving a nice hole
3/4 C. brown sugar
1/2 tsp cinnamon
1/4 tsp nutmeg
raisins
butter
water (for the bottom of the dish while cooking)

The kids added a few shakes of cinnamon and two shakes of nutmeg and stirred. They omitted the raisins in theirs (what a loss). After they filled the centers of the apples with the mixture, they placed a dab of butter on top. Then I added the raisins and filled the rest of the apples.

We followed the recipe and baked them for 30 minutes at 350 degrees. I did not bother basting the apples at all.

Pampering the Laptop with a DIY Homemade Notebook or Laptop Cover/Case/Skin/Wrap

2009-04-06T09:22:00.001-07:00

I've gotten my very first laptop! It is great to be able to work at the table where the girls do schoolwork. Now I can get my own things done while policing them at the same time. Yeah--if I'm not right where I can remind them about homeschool, they wander off like absent-minded little bees. Now I am right where they are completing their schoolwork and I can blog at the same time.

Owning a large, expensive piece of portable electronics, however, is a little nerve wracking. Admittedly, my Pocket PC (kind of like an iTouch or iPhone minus the phone part) cost more than this laptop did, but I wasn't as nervous about that as the laptop. The laptop, however, is considerably more unwieldy as well as much heavier. I have to take it in and out of my 'purse' (a much more girly-type laptop bag--it's enormous) a lot. And it's not the only thing I keep in the bag. Since I have a one-year old, I often carry baby items, not to mention keys, a Day Runner, pens, cell phone, and other items. I was worried about it getting scratched.

I could have bought a laptop case--one of those padded bags with a zipper that you need to pull the laptop out of everytime you want to use it. Nah! I already hated getting it out of the bag it was in. I just wanted to open it and go. Pocket PCs and Palm Pilots have great cases. Just slip the device in and all you need to do is open the front. All of the functions of the device are completely available and it's very rare the you need to remove it from it's case. I liked that.

I decided to make my own, large, version for my laptop. Here is what it looks like finished:

Here is what the top looks like. Isn't it pretty. Way nicer than those industrial-looking cases. Like the fabric? I really loved this pattern from Jennifer Paganelli's Bell Bottom quilting cotton collection. The larger width of the laptop really gave it enough real estate to show it off quite nicely. Laptop skins are very nice, but I wanted something NOW and something that was more 'me.'

The cover wraps around the laptop like those book covers we used to make in high school. I decided to have a different pattern on the bottom of the laptop. If you'll note, I made sure to cut away the fabric from the vents and from the feet (don't want the thing to slip away from me while precariously balanced on some surface). The sides of the laptop are left uncovered so I can access all of the ports and the DVD tray.

Here is how it looks when the laptop is opened. See? The cover stays on nicely. Notice how well the Bell Bottom smaller-scale print looks on the touch pad area. I love seeing that pretty pattern when I use it. I used elastic at the bottom of the screen and along the sides. I thought about using ribbon, but decided I liked the elastice give and fudge-factor instead. And I didn't have 1/4" wide ribbon on hand.

I hardly dare to call this sewing. Except for the bias binding above the touch pad, putting the two different fabrics together, and sewing on the elastic and tabs (used to hold the fabric at the top of the screen and at the bottom of the touch pad, everything else was done with cutting and Fray Check.

It was my first project on my new sewing table. Needed to break in that new, huge, cutting table and mat and make a cover. How fortuitous! And you're right--two large purchases at the same time. Let's just say some husband realized that I didn't get a decent Christmas, birthday, or Valentine's day presents and was very generous as a result.

I'll include some information about how I made the cover. First I taped a couple of sheets of paper together to use as a template. I taped it in place to cover the touch pad, and with the laptop closed wrapped it underneath and then to cover the top. I held it in place at the top edge while I opened the laptop to figure out where to cut it so it would fold over the top edge without covering the screen. I cut out the length there and then taped that edge to the top edge of the monitor. I also made a cut out for the touch pad and the microphone and headphone jacks. Then I cut the sides to about the same width as the laptop itself. I left a wing at the bottom (next to the touch pad) and a wing next to the top edge of the monitor. These will be folded under and sewn to the other side of the cover to help secure it in place.

My next concern was to make sure I left holes for ventilation and the feet (I didn't want my laptop to slip). The feet were easy to cut around by feel. The vent were more difficult. Remember leaf rubbings? I rubbed a crayon on the paper over the vents and they showed up for cutting quite well.

With the paper template complete, it was time to cut the fabric. Because I was using two fat quarters, I sewed them together (yay, overlock!). I made sure that the center of each design was aligned and then made the seam.

Since I was concerned about the center of the design, I folded my template in half to find it's center. Notice the tabs on the top and bottom. These are the 'wings' we left on the folded over parts to make a pocket.

I lined up the fold line in the center of the paper template with the center of the pattern I selected. I also made sure that the seam of my two fabrics lined up with hinge of the lap top and had a half-inch between it and the first cut. Using one fabric would eliminate that concern. Then I cut around the template and cut out all of the openings for the electronics.

Once I cut out the openings, I test-fit the fabric. I had some adjustments to make. I just used some sharp embroidery shears to fix the openings. I didn't care how big they were, just that they didn't connect into really large openings.

Then it was Fray Check time. I toyed with putting bias tape around each edge, but quickly gave up on that idea. I was in too much of a hurry and I wasn't sure I wanted to worry about the tabs that get folded around.

Because I had a large opening at the edge of the fabric where my touch pad was, I decided to use a bias tape edge binding that would cover the edge and connect the two sides together. Test fit the bias binding first and mark where the edge should connect with the bias tape. I didn't and I ended up with a 1/4" too much bias tape at the opening and it gaps oddly. Yippee for the bias tape foot.

You can see where the bias tape edging goes in this next picture. You can also see where the bias tape lies oddly because of the mismeasurement (um, nice way of saying 'no measurement at all'). The following photo also shows the two tabs that get tucked around the top and bottom of the laptop and hand-sewed (by me, anyway) into place. It's also a good shot of my elastic placement. I had to use elastic "suspenders" to connect the bottom part of the cover to the bottom. If I went around the side, I would have blocked the DVD tray. The elastic at the bottom of the screen is also visible. As you can guess, after sewing the tabs in place, I put the elastic in place and hand sewed it. The elastic was cut about 1/2" shorter than the required length.

What to do better:

The fabric is a bit stretchy. That's partly due to a looser fit, setting one the fabrics on a crosswise grain, and the holes in the bottom fabric. A tighter fit would be easier to accomplish by shortening the template a little bit. Another idea, that would help with getting the case in and out of the bag, would be to sew ribbon handles all the way around, like a tote bag handle. Additionally, it would be a sturdier case if the fabric was interfaced with a heavy weight fusible interfacing prior to cutting it out. My last brainstorm for increasing the cover's rigidity would be to use a netting fabric sewn inside of the cutouts for the ventilation--it would allow the ventilation and keep some continuity of the fabric.

Isaac Speaks

2009-02-18T18:59:00.001-08:00

After seeing his great new collection for Liz Claiborne, Capital Sew and Sew shares a link to his web-isode. Learn to sew! I'm working on it.

2009-02-15T11:41:00.000-08:00

It seems as though I may get to sew for the ballroom dancing show after all. I've put off doing any of the costumes because of the material and patterns. The material is stretchy--new for me. The patterns are non-existent or hard to find. I did happen to find one, though. To experiment with the material, I decided to try my hand at a circle skirt. How hard can it be?

No pattern required!

I purchased a little of a yard of knit material with a lot of crosswise stretch. I also picked up some coordinating wooly nylon for the serger (yep--got up the guts to switch thread).

I folded the fabric in half, lining up the selvages. Then I folded it again in the other direction until I had a square of fabric with folded edges along one side and the top. Then it was math time! I took my daughters waist measurement and divided it by 6.28 to get the radius of the circle to fit around her waist. I subtracted 3/8 for the waistband seem allowance. Using this number, I made marks from the corner of the folded fabric until the quarter-circle was well marked. This skirt I chose to make 19 inches long, so I then marked out another circle with a radius of the original radius plus another 19 inches. That becomes the bottom of the skirt.

I then cut a rectangle of the same fabric, with the length of the rectangle aligned to the stretchy direction of the fabric, that was 2 3/4" wide and 3/4" larger than the waist measurement long. I serged the two short ends together to make a big circle. I cut 1" elastic to my daughter's waist measurement and then overlapped 1/2" and sewed it well to make a big circle. Then I folded the elastic into the waistband rectangle. The part that over hangs the elastic then gets pinned to the waist of the skirt and serged.

Then I used the roll-hem finish on the bottom and voila! A great twirling skirt that my daughter loves and that will look great while she dances. Bah to $90 ballroom dancing practice skirts. This was tres facile.

Even though my younger daughter doesn't dance, she said she wanted her own skirt! So I found this shiny kimono-like fabric and made her a skirt too. Now this fabric wasn't stretchy, so instead of her waist measurement, I used her hip measurement plus one inch for all of the waist measurement used above, with the exception of the elastic. That I still cut to her waist measurement. And then we get another pull-on circle skirt even without stretchy material, as long as you don't mind some gathers in your waist band.

I Love Washing Walls

2009-01-06T18:12:00.000-08:00

I didn't even know walls could be washed. I thought that if paint was dirty--whether it was dusty woodwork, fingerprints on the wall, or drips--it needed repainting. You can bet that you let a lot of dirt accumulate before you bother dragging out the paint brush. I don't even know what possessed me to try it the first time, but I was hooked. Even if the walls aren't that much cleaner, somehow the whole house seems brighter just because I know I did the work. I still don't do it often, but I love the results.

Making Presents

2008-12-24T00:03:00.000-08:00

And I'm not talking about the kind my filthy little monkey makes for me every day (and, boy, should you be happy about that). I have often toyed with the idea of making my own Christmas presents. It rarely works out due to a number of factors (lack of preplanning and thinking about it soon enough are just the top of the list). This year I started early enough and had a enough quick-and-yet-not-cheesy-looking ideas that I actually made presents for a few friends.

My first idea for a homemade gift was based on a gift I remember receiving as a young child. I believe my grandmother bought it for me from Avon or some other door-to-door affordable beauty supply. It was a lovely smelling solid perfume. Do any of you remember that? It's a perfume that is in a compact that is a little harder than lip balm. It doesn't spill and it's very hard to over-apply it. If you have had any girls discover the spray perfume on your vanity, then you will understand why that is an important bonus. I wanted to buy it, but I could only find it on-line and the cost with shipping and handling was much more than I wanted to spend. I found this recipe and these containers.

Some of the boxes had little coils on the top that seemed incomplete so I made tassels to put on them. I made most of the tassels out of decorative gold thread that I happened to have. The one above is just deep yellow embroidery thread wrapped about 100 times.

Here are some alternate containers (much smaller) for additional gifts. I used standard floral essential oils of rose, lily of the valley, and honeysuckle. So a run down of cost:

$5 of beeswax
$10 jojoba oil
$14 essential oils
$30 for 9 fancy containers
$5 10 tin containers
$5 shipping and handling

This amount made about 15 gifts (counting two tins as one gift since they hold so much less and aren't nearly as cool looking and useful after the contents are exhausted as the jeweled boxes). So about $5 for each gift. The largest amount of time was spent waiting for the beeswax to melt. To use multiple scents, I made different batches for each.

Since I was ordering from this place anyway, I decided to add lip balm to the homemade present list. They had a recipe for lip balm that was recommended but complicated. However, they also sell the lip balm base itself--everything in one container and you add any flavor oils or color you want and decide on the type of container. I happen to like lanolin because it is similar to our natural oils so I ordered the Lip Solutions with lanolin. I also included some castor oil for a bit more slip and shine for the girls' lip balm and included the ultrafine glitter for some shimmer. I used cherry flavor oil. It smelled like cherry but did not taste like much of anything. I'm fine with that. The unadulterated solution had a slight odor, but it was not like Chapstick, so I am glad I masked it. Obviously, from the pictures below, I also added color. It does not really show up on the lips so it is definitely OK for little girls. I wanted to use both types of containers. I like the sticks because they are mess free, but the tins are more fun to label. The tins can hold twice as much as the sticks, but I did not fill them all the way, so they are about the same.

Cost-wise, here's the breakdown:

$8 lip solutions (used about 1/2)
$5 10 tin containers
$4 10 tube containers
$3 cherry flavor oil
$4 castor oil
$4 ruby colorant
$4 ultrafine glitter
$1 8 small transfer pipettes
$1 5 large transfer pipettes
$8 shipping and handling

I have enough of this stuff to make lip balm/gloss forever. Really! I'm sure that I could give lip balm as presents for every occassion for the next two years and may only need to buy more containers. I could make 50 tubes of lip balm for about $1 a tube, including shipping. I will not be making 50 tubes, at least not any time soon, so I probably spent about $2.50 per container for the amount I will be making for gifts. For guys, I would leave out the stronger color, the castor oil, and the glitter, but I would still include the flavor oil. By the way, I also bought vanilla flavor. That absolutely requires sweetness (which can also be bought as a flavor oil). The vanilla flavor oil made the lip balm incredibly bitter. So no vanilla this year.

The next homemade present I decided on was actually something I saw at the checkout line in Borders. They are called book thongs, but ribbon book mark or beaded book mark would probably also be used. They were so cute, that I bought one for our book club secret santa. Along with the ribbon book marks, I also made some cell phone charms and key chains. Hanover decided to make some earrings for her friends, too.

I happened to have some jewelry making tools (small, toothless pliers, round-nose pliers for making circles), so I figured these book marks would not be difficult to make. I wouldn't call them difficult, and I really enjoyed picking out beads, and ribbon, and deciding how best to combine the different shapes, textures, and colors. This was a craft my kids loved to participate in as well--they did the beading of the gifts for their friends. I wanted to use good quality beads, so this homemade project probably cost me more to make than it would have to buy them pre-made. The reason is that when you buy beads, you are buying one style of one type at a single price--so medium sized round beads of jasper or clear crystal cubes. So if you want a variety of beads on one book mark (and who wouldn't?), you need to buy a number of different beads. As you can see from the above picture, I wanted a lot of different colors and styles. Since I gave the cost of the previous projects, I'll bite the bullet and list the costs for the book marks (To make a single type of book mark and assuming you get decent sale prices):

$3 ribbon
$3 end crimps with holes
$3 2" head pins
$3 various sliver-tone spacer beads
$2 seed beads (for starting the head pins to make sure the large beads don't fall off and sometimes for spacing)
$3 bead type 1
$3 bead type 2
$4 bead type 3

The cell phone charm straps ($3 for 6) key chains ($3 for 20) would replace the ribbon and the end crimps. You could probably make 6 or 7 ribbon book marks from the above list at about $4 each, as long as you don't mind that they use the same beads and look very similar. I chose quite a variety and may have made just over 16 altogether. Some of the photos also show book marks made using beading wire (approximately 26 gauge) and crimping beads in place of the head pins (the white ribbon with clear crystal beads, the cell phone charm with three strands of beads are examples). Using the beading wire allowed many more beads. I think the bookmarks are beautiful and I hope that anyone who receives one uses it often!

I also made some candy this year. I tried, ultimately unsuccessfully after three attempts, to make fudge from scratch (now I know why the recipe on the back of the fluff container advertises itself as 'no fail'). I also botched my first two caramel batches--the butter seperated out of the first and the second was filling-removing hard). The last batch of caramel worked out just fine. The English toffee was crazy easy to make and absolutely delicious. After allowing it to cool, I cut it into bite-sized pieces and drizzled chocolate on some and coated others like mini candy bars. Hanover single-handedly made the rum balls (how funny that she could make the one treat that she wouldn't be allowed to eat). Hanover and Flurpee both were instrumental in the peanut butter ball success. They were about twice as productive as I was in terms of measurable final product. I also made some cookie press cookies. They were very cute, but two batches were lost to an ill-rinsed baking sheet (soap flavored cookies, anyone?). The kids used a green colored egg wash to paint the Christmas trees green before they were baked and used star-shaped decorations and green sugar.

Sorry, no pictures of the toffee or caramels. After the 150 or so little pieces were individually wrapped in hand-cut wax paper squares, I just couldn't stand to spend any more time with them. They were really delicious though. I had to send them out soon after making them, or there wouldn't have been enough!

On eBay

2008-08-07T06:20:00.001-07:00

I've done some serious pattern shopping on eBay! Over the last month I bought three lots of vintage children's patterns plus a few individual patterns.

I don't know if I'll be able to sew any of them. My daughters aren't nearly as into the patterns as I am and then there's the time factor. But I do enjoy shopping for them and they are just a great piece of the past that I enjoy having and sharing with my kids to see what would have been different if they had been born 40 to 20 years earlier.

Sewing is Fun by Edith Paul

2008-07-22T17:20:00.000-07:00

I found this cute, old book at a local book sale. It's an introductory book for kids who want to learn how to sew. It has a few easy projects, like the pin cushion pictured below. It also has a 'how to use a sewing machine' section. I'll let you know if it's any good for my kids. If I can bring myself to share my one and only decent machine.

All You Can Sew for Children Books

2008-07-19T18:22:00.000-07:00

Here are the books "All You Can Sew for Children." They include a number of patterns, all of which are quite vintage in look and feel (which you would expect from books published in 1971). They show the pattern pieces on a grid where each square represents 1 inch. The patterns vary in the sizes provided. Some patterns are strictly for toddlers while others are in the tweens range, no little baby patterns, though some size 1 or 2. Some pieces are understood--they talk about the armhole facing and you need to know that you have to make your own piece for that from the armhole of the top pattern. There are many dresses, an overcoat in each, a bathing suit for preschoolers in the first book, and some outfits for boys. Just cute. I'm going to try a cute little sun outfit for my older daughter. If I have time and clean up the area a bit first!

Sharpie Tie-Dye Redefined (Easiest Tie-Dye You'll Ever Do)

2008-07-14T11:21:00.001-07:00

I saw this great craft for Sharpie tie-dye from The Crafty Crow. I happened to have everything needed (well, except for the eye dropper). I had the Sharpies, the rubbing alcohol, and some fabric to try it out. If you check out the link and look at the instructions, it says to draw on your fabric with some Sharpie colors. Then center the drawings in the middle of a cup and rubberband around the top of the cup. This keeps the fabric from moving and any dripping alcohol ends up in the cup. Great! Except I wasn't really satisfied with just doing little circles. So I tried something different. This is my result:

I think it looks pretty cool. It's much more like real tie-dye. All I did was place random splotches of Sharpie color in random places all around the fabric. Then I poured enough alcohol on it to saturate the whole thing (really wet with alcohol as you can see from the pic below). Then I scrunched it up and squeezed it a bit. The more you squeeze it the more the color transfers to other areas. I didn't squeeze mine very much because I was OK with the white and didn't want everything to turn brown. That alcohol is strong smelling and I recommend doing it outside. I didn't and I'm still here to tell the tale, but that's just me. I did move it outside to let it dry.

It's a really easy craft. I don't even think the Sharpie color stained my hands.

Yum Yum! Banana Bread

2008-07-11T19:36:00.000-07:00

I'm not a baker, but when I get in the mood--I'll spend a whole day destroying the kitchen. This day was the same day we made butter. Homemade butter on fresh banana bread! Recommended. I made 2 loaves (four over-ripe bananas were starting to look really bad in my fruit dish) and then a batch of blueberry muffins. That stuff disappeared!

Making Butter!

2008-07-08T07:19:00.000-07:00

I know everyone else has already done this--but it was a first for me. From 3 Ring Binder, I found out about this video from a weekly science experiment. He shows all you need to know.

I used some baby food jars and heavy cream (I only left it out 4 hours--I got impatient). I filled the jars about half full.

The shaking! Took a few minutes.

This is when we knew we had butter.

Drain out the butter milk (note to self: save for pancakes).

Then we put the butter in a dish, mixed it with a bit of salt, and ate it on pancakes!

The kids enjoyed making it (once).

Happy 4th of July!--Kid's Make-Your-Own Pinwheel Craft

2008-07-04T11:05:00.001-07:00

The kids and I actually followed through on a craft! Thanks to Allsorts for the pinwheel craft. We went to the craft store and the girls decided on their fancy scrap paper (8 1/2 x 11). Tie-dye was the most popular. Both girls made a 4 petal and 5 petal pin-wheel.

This is how ours turned out:

Do You Have a 'Color' Personality?

2008-06-13T08:00:00.000-07:00

This might help you find out. Just answer the questions of the quiz and they'll give you a palette you might want to use as inspiration for painting your house.

From How About Orange.

Make a Mosaic

2008-06-12T08:00:00.000-07:00

From Creative Little Daisy, she recommended this fun meme. Here's mine.

And the originals: 1. Kim Fowley - off his trolley, 2. Bread Spread, 3. the jackets of jersey, 4. Orange as any orange on a tree, 5. Cary Grant, 6. Ice Under Water, 7. A DESERTED IRISH COTTAGE, IRELAND., 8. Miniature Cakes, 9. Our knowledgable Ahmed, 10. My Life, 11. liberated libros, 12. Kimberly Mackoy

Vintage Sewing Pattern for Girls' Dress

2008-06-11T08:00:00.000-07:00

Check out those sleeves. Look familiar? They should! The lower, puffy sleeve is really popular right now. I don't understand it. I think it has something to do with watching Popeye as a kid.

Vintage Sewing Pattern for Girls' Romper

2008-06-10T08:00:00.000-07:00

I used the word romper. The pattern envelope calls this a pantdress or pantjumper. Also on the back of the pattern they use the word 'chubbies' where we would use 'plus-size'. It reminds me of using the word husky, too.

Vintage Sewing Pattern for Boys' and Girls' Shirt, Pants, and Shorts

2008-06-09T08:00:00.000-07:00

These really look like pajamas to me. They easily could be pajamas, just as there are some of my kids pajamas that can be worn as regular clothes. I can tell you that my kids would never have such nice, neat creases in their pants.

Vintage Sewing Pattern for Girls Coat and Hat

2008-06-08T08:00:00.000-07:00

The coat is in two lengths and the hat looks warm.

Vintage Sewing Pattern for Girls' Jumper, Pants, and Blouse

2008-06-07T08:00:00.000-07:00

These pants also have suspenders. Apparently it is a big concern that pants might just fall off. I wonder if it's the old elastics that were the problem.

Vintage Sewing Pattern for Girls and Boys: Jodphurs

2008-06-06T08:00:00.000-07:00

No--seriously. Jodphurs. Was there a time in fashion when jodphurs were worn when you weren't actually on a horse or going to be on a horse? If my little boy ever takes horse-back riding lessons, I'll be to whip him up a pair of these and try not to be too upset when he refuses to wear them. Note that they come with optional suspenders!

Vintage Sewing Pattern for Boys

2008-06-05T08:00:00.000-07:00

It's the Super-70s Formal Overall Suit! First of all, check out the width of the legs of those pants. Second of all, I think the white long-sleeved shirt shown here--with the ruffles--is either gender confused (I had to double check that the pattern was just for boys) or a little kids version of the super-ruffly tuxedo shirts that my aunt has in her wedding photo (rainbow pastels even). One of the suggested fabrics is velveteen. So just imagine your little cutie boy in a white ruffled shirt, blue velveteen wide-legged overalls with a matching jacket with chains and I'm transported back in time!

Vintage Sewing Pattern for Boys' Robe

2008-06-04T08:00:00.000-07:00

I think robe patterns are really too complicated. I hate putting all of that effort into clothing that is almost never seen. Though I do buy robes every year! The kids really do enjoy wearing them after showers. And there is one that looks like a beach cover-up.

Vintage Sewing Pattern for Girl and Boy Toddlers

2008-06-03T08:00:00.000-07:00

Finally something I can use with my current little baby boy. He's 5 months now and wears a 12 month outfit, so I figure he'll be able to use this next summer.

Vintage Sewing Pattern for Toddlers Coat, Dress and Panties

2008-06-02T08:00:00.000-07:00

How short do they make these dresses that they need matching panties? Of course, once you've seen little kids playing you know you see their bottoms all the time. May as well make them as cute as possible.

Vintage Toddler Jumper with Attached Apron and Blouse

2008-06-01T08:00:00.000-07:00

How cute. Too bad both my girls are actually too big for this pattern. It looks very folksy.

Vintage Hankies

2008-05-31T08:13:00.000-07:00

Look at those great colors! In the days before Kleenex everyone had to carry their own hankies. My grandmother said that you could tuck it into the cuff of your shirt. If you watch old movies, occasionally you'll see a lady removing one from her sleeve. These, like gloves and hats, have dropped out of use.

Vintage Embroidery Transfer

2008-05-30T13:09:00.000-07:00

We've left the chicken coop for further fields. Cute kitties, puppies, and various other illustrations exhort us that all is sweetness and light! Though we couldn't leave the chickens completely.

Vintage Embroidery Transfer

2008-05-29T13:03:00.000-07:00

From Barnyard Romance to Barnyard Happenings. Those barnyards are REALLY busy! Now we know that Monday is Laundry Day, Tuesday is Elvis Recreation Day, Wednesday is either Read to the Kids Day or Potty Day (hard to tell), Thursday is Errands Day, Friday is Cleaning Day, Saturday is Gardening Day, and Sunday is Date Day. I find that Days of the Week themes for dishtowels are repressing. Sometimes my dishtowels are clean enough to use for more than one day and what a schlub I would look like if I had a Tuesday dishtowel in my kitchen on Wednesday. Would people think I didn't own a calendar? (I recognize that I'm not particularly funny, but please do try to read the above with a little sense of humor!)

Vintage Embroidery Transfer

2008-05-28T12:57:00.000-07:00

Did they really run out of 'ick' rhyming words? And I know they probably wouldn't put 'ick' itself on dishtowels! Dick wouldn't be good either, I imagine. And you wouldn't have all these dishtowels out at once, so the theme is pretty inconsequential. Once you discount the theme, what in the world does 'slick' mean with regard to chickens?

Vintage Sewing Pattern for Toddlers

2008-05-27T12:53:00.000-07:00

Boy, do I miss having little girls and rumba panties! Now that I have an older girl actually dancing the rumba, I wonder if she would mind huge amounts of ruffles on her butt? You only get one guess (and if you choose 'no', try again).

Vintage Sewing Pattern for Girls' Dress

2008-05-26T18:23:00.000-07:00

Great dress for kids. The button placket in the front I haven't seen in modern patterns for kids outside of a polo shirt.

Vintage Sewing Pattern for Girls' Dress

2008-05-26T18:21:00.000-07:00

This is just completely adorable. Love the details and the line of the dress. I wonder how hard it would be to update this for my oldest daughter who is about a size 10.

Vintage Sewing Pattern for Girls

2008-05-26T18:00:00.000-07:00

Cute. They don't show it on the front, but the pants have suspenders too. Quite a Christmassy color scheme going on. Do you think the mom had to strap girl #2 down to get her hair into the french twist? I definitely would need to use some robe to get my girls to have any of those hairstyles. My one daughter actually asked for a chin-length bob and then wouldn't talk to me after we did it and proceeded to call herself ugly until her hair was back down below her shoulders. Which is just so untrue! If you've ever seen a little girl with a bob, then you know they are just adorable!

Good Hostess vs. White Rugs

2008-05-26T16:46:00.001-07:00

I have a pet peeve. It's actually a rather large peeve. I believe that people who ask me to take off my shoes before entering their house are rude. Not everyone is prepared to remove their shoes (holes in socks, complicated fastenings, foot odor, ugly shoes, ugly feet, orthotics).

Hosting is about making your guests feel comfortable. Comfort does not include asking guests to partially disrobe. Maybe you don't think shoes count, but you put them on in the morning not expecting to have to take them off later. If your house is so precious that you're afraid of dirt or your cultural heritage differs then don't invite people over or at least warn them that you expect them to remove their shoes when they are invited.

I also think that people who refuse to shake hands because they're worried about germs are being ridiculous as well. If you're that concerned, don't touch your face until you wash your hands. Though I will state I believe that what doesn't kill you makes you stronger when it comes to viruses. If you are really, really likely to become violently ill from a normal virus that would just give someone else the sniffles, then perhaps you ought to gear up like Michael Jackson in the surgical gloves and face mask.

Pom Pom Fringe

2008-05-26T12:50:00.001-07:00

I hit the yard sale lottery!

Ball Room Dance Show

2008-05-12T16:08:00.000-07:00

My daughter has been taking ball room dancing lessons for over a year now. Here she is with her new partner performing at a nursing home. With a future of competitions ahead of us (if everything works out the way she'd like), I'll definitely need to learn how to sew leotard material and lots and lots of filmy materials. And beads--lets not forget beads.

Dresses for the Summer and Spring

2008-05-11T19:42:00.001-07:00

The Daily Mail of England has some dress styles to check out!

Happy Mother's Day!

2008-05-11T14:28:00.000-07:00

I hope you had a fun-filled day! I went garnet mining.

Poor, Neglected Blog

2008-05-06T19:48:00.001-07:00

Unless you count setting up for a birthday party, I've done nothing crafty or interesting in the least! I have a favorite shirt, though, that has seen better days. I think it's time to experiment with making a copy. My mom did this for me when I was a kid with a skirt I really liked. It's especially wierd now. The baby's almost 5 months old now and I just don't feel like I've bounced back in any way. Makes sewing a hassle because it's a lot of work for a shape that is far different from the one I've had for a few years (which is FAR different than the one I had before my first child).

No time now!

2008-04-27T18:20:00.001-07:00

That is...I have no time! Between visiting relatives, birthday party planning, and a dance show, I've had little to no time to craft. I think after the birthday party things will calm down. I hope--I just figured out the style of bag I want to try to make and the Bell Bottom fabric will look great!

Purses

2008-04-20T21:30:00.000-07:00

I want to experiment with making a purse. I have some lovely fabric that would suit a beach tote and another that is just wonderful--can't decide what yet. I finally found a purse shape that I'm going to attempt--someday, when I have time. I don't have a pattern to follow, so it will also be my first time in trying to make a pattern. Should be an adventure.

Fresh Bread and Freshly-Squeezed OJ for Breakfast

2008-04-16T08:50:00.000-07:00

I've seen other blogs with beautiful pictures of food! This is not one of them, though I'm hoping to get better. This was our breakfast over the weekend:

Little Hook

2008-04-14T10:56:00.000-07:00

This is just a little latch hook, just like used for a latch-hook rug. When I got it at a yard sale (with a bunch of other sewing things), I thought it was used for bringing snags in sweaters to the inside. I was able to use it when the elastic in the material from the previous post started to unravel. I wish I knew what it was called.

Narrow Hem

2008-04-12T07:27:00.000-07:00

I used my 1/4" narrow hem foot to hem that dress. It was my first experience using specialty sewing feet. My goal is to sew fast and with a minimum of hassle. I think the narrow hem foot helped with that goal. I followed the tutorial here and here. It was not super easy to use, but it was certainly easier than what I would have done previously. I needed to restart a number of times as the fabric was fed into the foot the wrong way. I also went over the seam by hand. Here are some of the bad spots. In addition to too much and too little fabric feeding into the foot, the other thing I found was that sometimes the fabric would go under the foot instead of being rounded into the fold. Over all I found it pretty quick and certainly worth the not-perfect results. Practice will help too.

Super Quick Dress

2008-04-12T07:05:00.000-07:00

So I used some of the pre-elaticized fabric being sold now. I bought mine at JoAnn's with a 40% off coupon. All I did was buy a cut of fabric 1" smaller than my daughter's chest measurement (it's sold by the inch), trim it more neatly at home, measure for the length (17" below the last elastic line for a 9 year-old), sew the back seam and hem (using a narrow hem foot--that will be the next post). I think it took me a total of 1 1/2 hours. I spent some extra time fixing where some the elastic came undone and then reinforced the seam over the elastic with a really short stitch length so that I didn't have to worry about the elastic coming undone again. This dress could have been even quicker if I hadn't bought such a long fabric. I had to hem it.

But the fabric is really cute, isn't it? My girl has discovered that she loves paisley.

On a down note, after her first day of wearing it, the elastic irritated her skin so I'll need to add a liner of some stretchy t-shirt material to the front of the elastic part.

Too Pretty to Cut

2008-04-09T19:10:00.000-07:00

Ever had a fabric that you just fell in love with? I found a number of fabrics that I just thought were great and bought a few yards of each. The only problem now is that I think they must just be too pretty to use. Every time I think I'd like to turn one into something (skirts for the girls, purse for myself, apron, cover for my mixer, tea cozy), I keep wondering if I won't find a better project for it. That's one of the reasons I haven't yet started anything with the Sis Boom fabrics I won. They're all just so pretty and I want to make the best use of them. I've definitely decided it's going to be something I can look at and enjoy. So kid's clothes are not on the list.

Clothes for You: Chapter 1

2008-04-07T10:51:00.000-07:00

This chapter advocates taking a good, hard, honest look at yourself. Recognize the attractive qualities and the peculiarities. Appreciate your individuality. Don't be a copy cat, but also don't be deliberately eccentric. In order to appear your best, you must know what you've got to work with. It takes real courage to come face to face with your faults.

It is hard to recognize bad points, but they, as well as the good ones, should be recorded. This gives a baseline from which to work and to compare to in the future. It's a good idea to use pictures: in the clothes you currently wear, and a front and side view of your face and head. Age, health, figure traits like posture, weight, proportions, face shape and profile, length of neck, facial features, skin, hair, coloring are all qualities that should be observed. Take into account your likes and dislikes. Good personal grooming is the key to a smart look. People can't be statues, so in moving make sure you avoid irritating mannerisms like an annoying voice, fingernail biting, tapping, swinging feet, fiddling, adjusting undergarments, and biting lips that might mar your appearance. Once these are recorded, you can begin a plan of attack. It will be quite satisfying to know that you're going to improve.

This chapter ends with the following recommended projects:

Make a chart for your plan that includes the noted characteristics
Full-length picture in a tight bathing suit
Picture in an outfit you consider attractive
Record an analysis of yourself on your chart
List your like and dislikes that influence your appearance
Have someone prepare a list of mannerisms and facial expressions that mar your appearance (I would definitely not ask a spouse)
Listen to a recording of your voice and determine qualities to change
Make a score card to score your grooming

Here's an example of a woman after undergoing a thorough personal revamp.

Here's an example of how physical mannerisms car mar your appearance.

Crochet Necklace

2008-04-06T08:02:00.000-07:00

This gorgeous necklace doesn't look too hard (I only know very basic stuff and just doing a chain can be really time consuming for me). Pattern here and found via Craft Magazine blog.

ADDED: Since the author doesn't give any pattern for the flower, I would guess that you'd crochet a circle a multiple of four(?), and then single, double, treble, double, single into each chain.

For When Your Domestic Diva Comes Out to Play

2008-04-05T17:26:00.000-07:00

I, being the post-feminist that I am (or that I at least think I am, as if I even knew what that meant), really did not think aprons were worthy of attention...until I tried one. Not only did it keep food off my clothes when cooking (which I didn't start worrying about until I realized I couldn't afford to just throw them away when they got stained), it's like having a dish towel whenever and wherever you need one. It is also a great way to do a quick dusting when you realize your housekeeping has been slacking (and mine always is).

But do you want to look like this?

I think not!

But thanks to this site, I realize an apron can look like these:

Or like this:

OK--fun and hot! What's not to like? That, and your clothes will stay nice and your hands clean and your countertops and tables are less likely to be dusty.

Sewing Machine Purchases

2008-04-03T12:49:00.001-07:00

There are two things I really hate when I'm sewing: hems and bias binding.

Hems drive me nuts because I take them very seriously. I mark them using a removable marking pencil at 1/4", fold that down and iron it, then mark them again, fold them down, iron them, pin them like crazy, and then sew it all together. Doesn't that sound like too much work? I ordered a narrow hemming foot from AllBrands. I'm hoping it actually works. I just got it today so I'm going to start experimenting!

Bitty Booties

2008-04-02T07:50:00.001-07:00

I made this free pattern from Heather Bailey of Hello, My Name is Heather and Fresh Cuts fabric fame. Her fabric (as well as Sis Boom) was featured in the Do It Yourself magazine from Better Homes and Gardens.

I made these for a friend of mine who just had a little girl. I picked this pattern because it seemed straightforward. It was a straight forward pattern, but I had a really hard time putting these things together--and I was even able to use a short cut. You'll see that instead of stabilizing the edges of the tops of the shoes with stitching or ribbon, I have a stitched down seam. This is actually because I used a really cute pair of cordoruys that my youngest daughter used to have. They had a decorative seam running down the front of the leg and I centered the top of the pattern on that seam and just opened it up where a split is required.

For reinforcing the open-end of the seam, I used some ribbon folded into a triangle (glued to help hold it together while I sewed it down). I decided to make that a decorative element. I like how the ribs of the ribbon echo the cordoruy wale.

Making these shoes took forever. The seam allowance is so tiny that I ended up hand-stitching a number of holes closed. I will probably just hand-stitch the next pair. I also had a hard time with easing of the toe-box. It turns out that my brilliant idea of using a seamed top peice meant that it was too thick to ease through the front of the toe.

After I was finished with the shoes I was not going to embellish them at all--I just want to be done! But, when I took a few days rest and looked at them with fresh eyes, I decided to add a little something.

This is my first embroidery. I chose something simple--daisy with a french knot center. It's not perfect--next time I will mark a circle before stitching.

I really don't think they hold a candle to what's in the Bitty Booty Flickr group. Those things are just gorgeous.

Vintage Book: Clothes for You by Mildred Graves Ryan and Velma Phillips

2008-04-01T19:18:00.001-07:00

This book seems to be directed to high school level students to teach them how to look their best and be a smart clothes consumer. Highly applicable even today! The book has three parts: 1) What Can You Do to Be More Attractive?, 2) What Factors Influence the Buying of Clothes?, 3) How Can You Make Good-Looking Clothes?

I tried photographing the preface. Let me know if you can read it after clicking on the pictures for an enlarged view.

Of course I won't be posting extensive excerpts from the book (copyright, you know). I may summarize certain sections of interest. If I find any good illustrations, I'll pass them along.

Vintage Books

2008-04-01T19:10:00.000-07:00

I love going to library fundraising sales. I always go and skim the crafts and cooking section. I've gleaned a number (meaning around 10 or 20) of interesting old books related to fashion, homemaking, and needlework from the 60s or earlier. I will tell you that the older cook books are pretty scary.

I thought I'd highlight a few of them here. Maybe someone out there reading this would find them as interesting as I do. Sometimes I feel like an archeologist or anthropologist and other times I'm just wondering if I'll ever get up the guts to wear white gloves and a pillbox hat and leave a calling card at someone's house when visiting. Some of the rules have changed so dramatically that reading them is purely a matter of gaining a historical perspective. Other things I've read have given me a new way to look at my role as a woman and appreciate some of the modern advantages.

Homemade Clothes for My Littlest Girl

2008-03-31T10:45:00.001-07:00

That's my girl. Boy, does she like to pose. She's a natural-born model. This is the skirt and shirt that I mentioned below.

She got to pick the pattern and I chose the fabric. It's a Simplicity pattern that also includes a purse, jacket, and pants.

The shirt is a pull-over style with a square neck (blocked by her hair) and the skirt is a six-gore flared pull-on with a light-pink ribbon trim that matches the lighter pink of the shirt. The daisy on the front of the skirt plays up a tiny daisy pattern on the shirt.
What's up with the sudden interest in sewing? Well, it's not so sudden. It has been an on-again-off-again type of hobby for me since graduating college. I've made clothes for myself in the past and last made clothes for the kids about four years ago so that all three girls could have matching dresses for an Easter picture. Sewing is one of the few crafts that has stood the test of time with me. I happen to like making something that I get to see being used and enjoyed.
During my nursing web reading I've come across a few great blogs that are dedicated to fabric, sewing, and other crafts. I just got inspired by them.

Here are some: Hello My Name is Heather, Anna Maria, Portabello Pixie, the Wooden Spool, angry chicken, Sis Boom Day Dreams and then you click on links to some other great blogs.

Another great thing: Bella Dia just started a blog to track kids on-line crafts, The Crafty Crow!

I am honored to receive this award and would like to thank....

2008-03-31T07:48:00.000-07:00

And now the reason for a new, more specialized blog becomes quite clear. I won some great fabric from Sis Boom as part of a give-away. Sis Boom is run by Jennifer Paganelli (also from Connecticut--yay CT) and she has designed some fabulous fabric that has totally changed my ideas of color matching from monochromatic to multiprismatic (which is a word I thought I made up, but apparently I'm not the only one making things up).

Thank you, Jennifer. Whatever I make from it will be posted at From the Earth, Past the Moon.

How I Spent My Summer Vacation

2008-03-31T07:13:00.000-07:00

Oops--I mean weekend, though this project will probably take me long past summer to complete even after the tens-of-hours spent on it this weekend. Here it is:

A Barbie dollhouse. The bottom four compartments are for storing many bins of Barbie toys. The top of the roof is about 66 inches tall. I'm only 5' 4", so I think we will need to keep a step-stool handy for the girls. I guess eventually it will need a fence to keep out prying toddler fingers. The preliminary wiring for electricity is in place. The dark lines around the bottom of the walls and up onto the ceiling will allow for lamps and an overhead light.

I put up the kitchen wallpaper and a floor in the "living room". Here's a closer shot of the kitchen.

New Blog Because I've Turned Into a Domestic Nightmare

2008-03-31T07:06:00.000-07:00

This is my place for all things sewing, housework, and craft related. The 'domestic nightmare' works on so many levels. I am not good at so much of real domestication, and yet I"m oddly fascinated with it in a way that would put the feminists of the era I grew up in to shame. This will be me embracing it all.