Sashiko Kit - Mini Tote Bag

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I made this cute little sashiko bag using a kit that my brother and sister-in-law gave me last Christmas. I had never done this kind of embroidery before but it was a pleasant activity. I'd say fun, but come on. The kit comes with thread and pre-printed fabric with dashed lines showing you where to stitch. (I found a kit online here.) You can choose to make either a mini tote or a half-apron. I already have a lot of aprons that I never use so I chose to make the tote. 


The instructions included in the kit are pretty sparse so I did some online research and ended up using this site for guidance. I didn't use a long sashiko needle, just a regular embroidery needle. It probably goes a little faster when using the proper tools.

I was actually surprised by how small the finished size of the tote is and how much of the printed fabric is not actually embroidered. So, because I didn't want to let any fabric go to waste, I ended up cutting my bag a little taller than the measurements. I also used stash fabric for the lining. Now, I have enough left over to make a second bag.
The bag is embroidered on two sides and large enough to hold a couple of small books and a few sundries. After cutting out the material, I zig-zagged the edges of the panels that needed to be embroidered so that I wouldn't have to deal with frayed fabric while stitching. With all the handling of embroidery, I figured fraying would ensue quickly.

It was a pretty easy bag to put together although not quick. The embroidery took a number of hours. Let's not count how many and just say that I watched a lot of tv while making this bag. Putting the bag together took a much less time than the embroidery. I have not washed the fabric yet even though the pre-printed stitching is supposed to wash off. I simply used the pre printed side as the wrong side of the fabric. So now you can't see it.

As I mentioned before, the instructions are minimal. I would not recommend doing the kit if you are new to sewing. Or, at least have an experienced person nearby that can help you out.

I love the look of the white stitching on the navy fabric. It's so simple and beautiful. Eventually, I'll get around to making the second bag but for now I'm going to try my hand at making some new projects. Have you ever done sashiko stitching?

Blue Strips Pillow Cover

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Here's a fun pillow cover that I made from strips of fabric pieced in angles. I purchased the pillow from IKEA. It was really cheap and came with a removable cover. Now the fabric strips is a longer story. Would you believe that this fabric started out as a jumble of long strips?


A number of years ago, I got a stash busting idea to cut all of my blue colored and calico fabric into 1.5 inch strips. I pieced all of the strips together into longer strips and then hung them like a curtain in front of an open closet. It was a fun decoration but for the last 5 to 7 years, they've been sitting, jumbled in a plastic bag in the closet. I pulled apart the strips, ironed them and hung them up on a rack, out of the way and at little risk of wrinkled.


I pieced the strips along the long edges to make a kind of "fabric". Then I cut the "fabric" at a 45 degree angles to make this new design. It was pretty improvisational. I didn't know what I wanted to end up with but I really like how it turned out. The back of the pillow has two overlapping pieces of fabric allowing the cover to be changed out as desired. 
This morning I thought of an idea for a quilt using these strips and large pieces of white fabric. So many ideas. So little time!!

Sewing Fail - Why can't I get eyelets to work?

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Today I was planning to show a cool finished bag with triangle corners and featuring extra large eyelets at the top for the straps to run through. But after lots and lots of hammering, NOTHING happened. I swear I followed the instructions but I just can't get it to work.

Have you had success with applying grommets, eyelets or snaps? Have you ever used a tool like this or this? Do they work better than the little metal post things? I'd love to know if you have any advice. I always find frustration and disappointment when trying to do these.

Meal In Progress – Toasted Cheese Sandwich

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I made this delicious grilled sandwich a little differently than a traditional grilled cheese. I used a "grilling cheese" and pan fried each piece separately. It's not vegan, light or healthy in anyway but it is gluten-free thanks to some delicious gluten-free sandwich bread (my favorite is Udi's). If you eat gluten-free you should definitely check out their products.
The fresh figs are the perfect sweet accompaniment to the salty cheese and butter soaked bread. The sandwich would probably be really good with fig jam on it too.
Toasted "Grilling Cheese" Sandwich
Ingredients:2 slices Gluten-Free Sandwich Bread (I really like Udi's brand)2-3 slices of grilling cheese (I used this one) a.k.a. halloumibutter and/or olive oil3 slices salami or similar sliced meat (I used sopressata)

Instructions:1. In a non-stick pan over medium-high heat, melt a tablespoon or two of olive oil and butter.2. Pan fry 1/4 inch thick slices of cheese. Set Aside.3. In same pan, toast your bread and heat the salami.4. Assemble sandwich and enjoy.

2013 Coloring Calendar for Kids

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We're getting pretty close to the new school year, so I thought it was just about time to put out our new calendar for 2013 for kids. Although this isn't a "school calendar", thinking about the kids getting ready to go back to school (or head to school for their very first time) made me realize that I hadn't yet finished the kid's calendar for next year.

Although these kid's calendars look pretty simple, they sometimes involve a lot more work than normal calendar templates because of the hand-draw graphics included on them. Many of the graphics are drawn with a brush in photoshop (by me), but some of them are from free photoshop shapes found across the web.  Using those means trying to research where they originally came from to ensure they are okay to use, so as often as I can, I use my own drawings for these.  Trying to create new drawings for each year takes more time than just designing a plain template.

This year, the calendar comes in four parts - three months on four different pages (quarterly). If you have access to a printer that will use a roll of paper instead of individual sheets, you can print all four pages on one long sheet (or have it printed at a print shop). If you don't, you can print each page individually and use a hole punch to punch holes in the bottoms and tops (four holes should hold the parts securely) and tie the four sections together with colored ribbons or carabiners, or any fasteners that your creative mind can come up with.

The pages are designed to print at 17" wide by 11" high, making the calendar pages big enough to be useful as a calendar, and easy enough for even little hands to colour.  The four pages are included in the zip or rar file - make sure you download the correct format for your computer. These are not available as .png templates or .psd files. The four pages are print-ready .jpg files.  The sample file at left shows some of the designs already colored, but the printable download files are just black and white, ready for kids to color. The months are surrounded by a double-line border giving the kids the opportunity or choice to color around the calendars if they like.

DOWNLOAD THE 2013 KIDS COLORING CALENDAR IN .ZIP FILE HERE
DOWNLOAD THE 2013 KIDS COLORING CALENDAR IN .RAR FILE HERE

Here's a small-sized preview of one of the non-colored pages:

Thursday Vintage – Quilts

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My Grandma Louise pieced these two quilts in the 1930s (I think) and then stored the quilt tops in flour sacks. About 10 years ago, my family had them quilted. The one above is known as a Double Wedding Ring quilt. Aren't those fabrics to die for? There are lots more pictures after the jump.






The edge of the quilt is rounded in large scallops.

I don't know the name of this quilt block design but it's gorgeous right? The use of print and solid is perfect, something that I want to remember for future quilting endeavors.
I love that print on the bottom right with dots and black cross hatches.

Friday Faves - September 21

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Today's Friday Font is Magna by Hendrick Rolandez. This tall and thick font is sophisticated with a strong hint of Art Deco flavor. The font is available for free here. Follow #FontFriday on twitter for more font inspiration. You can follow me on twitter here.

It probably comes as no surprise that I'm a sucker for pattern. When shopping for anything, I know that a solid is the sensible way to go but all I really want is pattern, pattern, and more pattern. So, this week I'm sharing some of my favorite quirky fabric patterns from around the web.

1. Madrona Road - Farmstead - Powder Blue from eQuilter
2. Chicopee Fuchsia Heatwave Stripe from Fat Quarter Shop
3. Echino - Fall 2011 - Purple on etsy
4. Stella-69 Play Date - Campgrounds - White from Fabric Depot


So, are you a pattern person or a solid? Do you struggle with finding a balance between the two? Have a great weekend everybody!

Sewing Fail - Why can't I get eyelets to work?

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Today I was planning to show a cool finished bag with triangle corners and featuring extra large eyelets at the top for the straps to run through. But after lots and lots of hammering, NOTHING happened. I swear I followed the instructions but I just can't get it to work.

Have you had success with applying grommets, eyelets or snaps? Have you ever used a tool like this or this? Do they work better than the little metal post things? I'd love to know if you have any advice. I always find frustration and disappointment when trying to do these.

Refashion – Cardigan Scrap Fabric Binding

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I had this nice basic gray cardigan but the binding was starting to fray and come apart. I also had a bin full of vintage scrap fabric from my great aunt. Inspiration struck and I decided to replace the frayed binding with a scrappy pieced one.


What do you think? I think maybe the pieces I used are too long. And I don't want to look too crafty, crafty homemade. However it is the kind of style I could imagine finding at Anthropologie. Don't believe me? Check out these: Floriography Cardigan, Vermeil Streams Cardigan, Piled Stripes Cardigan, and my favorite the Intarsia Bow Cardigan. Maybe it needs more embellishment??

Friday Faves – September 28

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Today's Friday font is 2Peas Platform Shoes a fun, retro style handwritten font available for free on FontSpace. I was playing around with this font this week on some retro style posters and I thought it was so much fun that I just had to share. If you're looking for more font inspiration follow #FontFriday on twitter. And you can follow me on twitter here. What fonts have you been loving lately?

Pumpkin Style {Fall Porch Decoration Idea}

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I showed you the pumpkin on the back deck the other day, but the one I was most excited about dressing up was the one I have in the front porch.


This little bit of Pumpkin Style is a new way of dressing up my front porch for fall. I actually copied the idea from a house I passed on my way to the north woods of Wisconsin a few weeks ago. I love passing the houses in Clintonville and Antigo on Highway 45. There are some gorgeous vintage homes (and some new) that always seem to embrace the season in style. 


 I wish I would have taken a picture, but I was driving so that was out of the question. Instead, I made sure to take a good look on the way back home and did my best to recreate the fall container idea.
It's very simple.... a large pumpkin surrounded by a tee-pee of cornstalks and accessorized with some fall leaf garland from Michael's. I emptied out some of the dirt and put the pumpkin on top of a small black flowerpot I stuck in the base rather then set it on the dirt hoping the pumpkin would last a bit longer if it wasn't sitting in the moist earth. I used three 6 foot bamboo stakes from Home Depot and pushed them into the base of the pot and used a rubberband to tie them together at the top. I then divided my cornstalk bunch into three piles and used wire to attach each bunch to one of the bamboo stakes. The two leaf garlands were wound around the stalks and wired in place, saving a bit for the back stake and the base of the pot.





I hope it holds up through the season; I figured keeping it on the covered porch might help. I hope you like this idea... passed on from a very cute house in Wisconsin... to me.... to you!

P.S. I had some minor surgery on my foot earlier in the week and made sure I had plenty of pictures in my camera to hold me over for blogging while I am camped out on the couch. I did some nesting before the surgery like stocking the refrigerator, cleaning floors, getting laundry done, etc... But perhaps only the similarly decor and style- obsessed of you will understand that my nesting activities included gathering a few pumpkins and creating a fall decoration on the porch!

Linking to:

Mod Vintage Life
Oregon Cottage

Silver Casserole Repurpose {Fall Decor}

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I have found a great way to use my silver casserole dish for fall. This piece has been one of the most versatile pieces of thrift shop silver I have found.


This is pretty simple. Just add a fat pillar candle in a fall color and add a few silk leaves (or real ones you have preserved in wax) for color. I found the cloche at Hobby Lobby last year as part of a 2 piece set but I don't think I have ever used the bottom of it. The dome fits the casserole, as well as my Longaberger Pie Plates (which I use for quiche, pasta and salads, too) and it is mainly used in those ways.


My favorite part of this silver casserole is the sweet little legs. They are very ornate and give it a little glam!


Fall is when I seem to light a candle every evening. I love the warmth and glow it brings to the room, not to mention the scent. What's your favorite piece of vintage silver?

UPrinting Giveaway Winner: Let's try this again

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This first winner never came forward so we are trying this again!

Thank you everyone who entered!  I hope to have a giveaway at least once a month, so keep checking for the next one.

The winner for the UPrinting Letterhead is....

patricia

I work with kids with special needs. I would use the stationary for notes home to parents

August 21, 2011 10:11 AM

 Congrats Patricia!
Please contact me via email within 24 hours or a new winner will be chosen.

Recipe: Spenser's Sloppy Toms

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This one comes from the Neely's on Food Network, and is a family favorite.  I usually add a little extra spice cos that's the way my family likes it, but it is an excellent recipe just the way it is, so I will give it to you exactly how it is written on Food Network.

This picture is from the Food Network website (all others are mine)

Spenser's Sloppy Joes

Recipe courtesy The Neelys

Prep Time: 10 min

Cook Time: 25 min

Level: Easy

Serves: 4 servings

Ingredients

• 1 tablespoon vegetable oil
• 1 green bell pepper, chopped
• 1 red bell pepper, chopped
• 2 garlic cloves, chopped
• Salt and freshly ground black pepper
• 2 pounds lean ground beef
• 1 (8-ounce) can tomato sauce
• 3 tablespoons tomato paste
• 1 cup barbecue sauce
• 1 tablespoon Worcestershire sauce
• 1 teaspoon hot sauce (recommended: Tabasco)
• 4 hamburger buns, split
• Barbecue sauce, for topping

Directions

Heat oil in a large skillet with straight sides. Add the bell peppers and garlic. Saute until tender, about 3 minutes. Season with salt and pepper.
Add the ground beef to the vegetables. Stir and cook about 8 minutes, until the meat is no longer pink and fully cooked.

Add tomato sauce, tomato paste, barbecue sauce, Worcestershire, and hot sauce into the skillet. Stir. Simmer until thickened, about 10 minutes. Serve on hamburger bun with extra sauce.