Decorate

Just because I don't like Christmas doesn't mean I don't like other holidays!

Here's what you need:
1 styrofoam ring
1 strand of garland
3 or 4 floral picks
a few dabs of glue

What to do:
1. Wrap garland around foam ring
2. secure the ends with a few dabs of glue, let dry.
3. arrange the picks, secure with glue.

Tada!

Applique Your Heart Away

Kirigami, folding and cutting paper into decorative designs has always been something I've enjoyed. Snowflakes and paper doll chains are two of the most widely know examples. I decided to step my paper doll chain up a notch, and put it on a t shirt.



Materials:
- a t shirt, mine came from the 50% off clearance rack at Target
- 1/4 yd fabric to make your dolls from, mine is white knit
-about 1/4 yd of Fusi-knit
-a stencil, you can use cardboard, paper, plastic. I don't recommend paper because it's harder to trace.
-washable marker
-thread
-scissors
-pins


Directions:
1. Create your paper doll stencil. Fabric does not stay folded as well as paper does, making it more difficult to fold and cut out. I used a quilters' template to trace my paperdoll chain, then cut it out. The template is gridded, making it a little easier to

2. Iron the fusi-knit onto your "people fabric" The fusi-knit will keep your people from getting distorted while tracing, cutting and stitching them down. small pieces of knit are not always the easiest to work with, this will help tremendously.

3. Trace the pattern onto the fabric. I recommend tracing onto the side with the fusi-knit, but that's because I kind it easier.



4. Cut the people out.





5. Pin the people onto your shirt. It might be easier to accomplish this if you put something between the layers of the shirt. A piece of cardboard works well. You'll want to use plenty of pins.



6. Sew the people onto the shirt. You can be creative and use contrasting thread or keep everything the same colors, that's up to you. When sewing, I do recommend setting your machine to start and end with the needle in the fabric. Also, sew slow!



7. After everything is stitched in place, trim your threads.

Congratulations, you now have a paper doll chain shirt.

Knit on Knit

For Christmas (or Super Greed Day, which ever you prefer) this year I tried to make everyone's gifts. There were some exceptions, like the laundry basket that my grandmother actually needed, and the book my grandfather really wanted, but pretty much everyone else got something I made. (and, yes I do know how to weave a basket, just not one that will withstand a load of laundry)




Sometimes I do the appliques without interfacing, but of you apply some knit-fuse, it makes things so much easier. The shapes were made first and sewn on with a machine. The decorative embroidery was added later.

The clouds are actually silver and sparkle a bit!


One added bonus to this project, it gave me a chance to use some scraps and decorate some shirts, without feeling guilty about how much they cost.

I'm going to put step by step directions up here some day, I swear!

Just have to make stuff....and more stuff...and maybe more stuff.

Sometimes knitting needles get boring, so I made some a little more exciting.

The tops are made with Squinkies and some glue. I removed the tops of the knitting needles with some very old (and hard to use) bolt cutters. Really, I think these turned out pretty cute! And I'm very happy with the results!

As always there are things I'd do differently if I was going to do it again. I'd use plastic needles. Yep, that's it, some silly little change, and it's because I don't like metal needles.

I also made some stitch markers, to dd come class to the next project I make. To make these, You will need head bins, some smooth beads and the circle end of toggle style jewelry closures.

Are you ready for winter?

There's a little history to this project. Every year since about 2007 I've made a new winter-ish coat. Every year since then Amanda Foran has managed to dump an entire glass of beer on said coat. (It's okay, it was an accident, and I never minded smelling like decent beer.) Next semester I'll be teaching a class on pattern making, using a cool software program that integrates both fashion and CAD work. (Finally, those first two years of college are paying off!)

The program uses basic formed pieces and alters them for the modifications you chose. It's pretty neat. My second attempt was this coat, it's very fitted, fully lined and pretty girly. If I was going to do it over, I'd make it longer.

The class is also going to make patterns and other garments from scratch, meaning strictly numbers. Can't wait to see the things they come up with!

This is what having a kitchen is all about.

Sometimes you just have to buy a pomegranate, teach your grandma how to peel it and enjoy.

Sometimes you also have to chocolate cover half the seeds. That part didn't get photographed, it was a tad bit too messy to do with a camera in my hands.

yo, k4, yo, k4,...something something, ssk/

My grandmother recently brought to my attention that I knit so many things for other people but seem to neglect making the stuff I want for me. I've been eyeing a sweater from an old issue of Vogue Knitting Magazine that has a medallion in the middle of the back. (My friend's mom made it a few years ago, so I know it's do-able even though she's a far better knitter than I.)

Here's my start, the medallion! The next part is a zillion rows of a 70 stitch pattern that I don't really know if I understand. But that'll be for another day, maybe Thursday.

I've got some mitten orders to fill this week too, geez!

It's getting cold in Michigan

My best friend needed new mittens, so I made him a hat too! This is the second project I've ever made that uses a cable! It's not as hard as I thought.

Since I've gotten these done so early, I guess I should figure out what I'm giving him for his birthday.

butternut bliss

I love squash, especially butternut. I'm not usually patient enough to do more than cook it in the over/microwave, but sometimes I have to try something new.


I love the roadside stands here! Lucy was selling butternut squash for $1/each, and they were worth at least that! I dug out the cookbooks looking for a squash bisque recipe, but found nothing. Instead I went with a butternut squash chili. Of course, I had to alter the ingrediants a bit to make it work with what I had at home.

Instead of using canned tomatoes, I cut my own up (another one of those great things that Lucy had on sale) and again I used Spicy V8 Juice instead of water. (It's just some extra sodium....right?) And of course, with any soup I make, I used this as an opportunity to use up whatever vegetables were on the verge of going bad. Mine has carrots, celery and spinach added in as well. I was thinking of adding some macaroni too, but changed my mind.

My grandparents liked it, I liked it, over all, it's a win!

I have another squash, so I'm thinking some risotto will be in order next week.

and for dinner tonight...

I've been a vegetarian for more than 1/2 my life. This doesn't mean I don't have to buy, handle, prep, cook and serve any animals. For dinner the other night my grandmother wanted shrimp creole, not something I've ever made before. So, here's my experimental "shrimp and cream of tomato soup concoction.

1. thaw the shrimp, take of the tails. (This is the part that grossses me out.)
2. cut up an onion and green pepper, saute in butter or oil.
3. in seperate bowl mix 1 can of tomato soup, 1/2 can of water (I used spicy v8 because I needed to use it up.), a few drops of Tabasco and some ground pepper.
4. cook some rice, I used the microwave becasu I'm lazy.
5. add tomato soup mixture to the onion/pepper mixture. stir and heat until warm.
6. add shrimp (which should be precooked and than thawed) to mixture. cook until hot.
7. serve over rice.

My grandparents must have liked it, they are it all. I know it's not vegan stuffed peppers, but I guess they thought it was wonderful. As they had this little messy masterpiece, I scrubbed the shrimp residue off my hands and had easy mac. Classy, I know.

Next up, Butternut Squash Chili!

I took a vacation and came home with a recipes!

Dang, its been a little while! A bit has happened, some was good some was not so good....but I went on a mini-vacation and it was fantastic! I had the privilege of spending most of the trip with my best friend and his family. While there, his mom made soup and shared the recipe with me. I decided to make it today. So, here's my adventure making Swiss Onion Soup.

First and slightly important to know: get the right kind of cheese and use whole milk or cream, if you don't it's a little thin.

Swiss Onion Soup

3 cups thinly sliced onion
1 garlic clove, minced
3/4 teaspoon dry mustard
1 1/2 teaspoon salt
5 tbsp unsalted butter
2 cup chicken stock, vegetable stock or water
3 tbsp flour
1 1/2 cup milk
1/2 tsp bottled horseradish
1 tbsp dry sherry
1 1/2 cups freshly grated gruyere cheese
1/2 tsp pepper
1/2 tsp soy sauce
3 drops tabasco
1/4 tsp worcestershire (you can get vegan in most stores)

In pot, cook onion and garlic with mustard, salt and 2 tbsp butter over moderate heat, stirring for 10-12 minutes or until onions are softened.

Add stock and simmer, covered, for 20 minutes.

In sausepan, melt remaining butter over moderate heat.
Add flour and cook the roux, whisking for 3 minutes.
Remove pan from heat, whisk in milk, scalded, and simmer mixture, whisking for 7 minutes. Add horseradish, sherry and cheese.

Add the cheese mixture to onion mixture, stir in pepper, tabasco, soy sauce, and worchestershire and simmer soup, stirring for 10 minutes.

yields 4 servings.

This recipe is from:
Leelanau Country Inn
149 East Harbor Highway
Maple City, Michigan

Now that that's all done, here's a little information about grocery shopping in New Jersey
-There are no Meijer or D&W's here. In fact, until recently there were no liquor stores in the county. Certain items are hard to find, good cheese and cheap cooking wines are two of those items. At Thankggiving last year I went to a liquor store to get sherry for cooking, luckily I remembered they sold cheese and chocolate, too.
-Most stores only stock one kind of vegetable stock, it's in a can and tastes like it. I've resorted to bullion cubes or making my own stock. I don't have time to make my own in most cases.
-The grocery stores are expensive. I'm talking Tiffany's/D&W/Bacchus expensive, but you don't necessarily get what you pay for like in the stores here.
-The roadside stands are amazing for fresh fruits & vegetables, unfortunately the weather this year has made some things a little hard to grow.

I'd really like to thank all the people who made my little trip as wonderful as possible. I'm sorry that I didn't make it back to see everyone, but sometimes I just need to relax and prepare for the next day. Maybe this winter when the holiday shopping rush is over there will be some spare time again.

Everyone needs some excitement occasionally.

This is kind of exciting, I'm the interim teacher at Rowan for Garment Construction! If the original teacher can't return, I've already got my foot in the door for the position. Not that teaching college will make me a millionaire or less stressed out, but at least it's doing something I enjoy!

So much for having a day off, ever.

when you can't find a dress, make one.

In less than 2 weeks i'm going to my friend Amy's wedding! For this huge celebration, I must have an approprite dress! After trying on so many dresses that I lost track, I finally broke down and made one.


I bought this fabric when I worked at the Jo-Ann's in North Kent Mall for just a few dollars a yard, and matched it up with casa crepe. The dress is based off of a few patterns combine together, but happened to work! From the front it looks like a halter, but it's not! For accessories I'm going to add a belt, I think. The pattern calls for a sash, but that just didn't look good. The flash made the fabric a little brighter than it looks in most light.


This dress conquered my fear of three sewing things.
1. sheers (cutting and sewing)
2. french seams
3. top stitching

I don't really enjoy topstitching

Apparently it's never going to stop raining. Thank you hurricanes Irene and Katia. Especially Katia, for making the rain come in from the south, crazy looking sky up there. Since every happy holiday/weekend/hang out plan I've made the last few weeks has involved being outside, I decided to make some water/flood friendly clothes.

Skirt number one, which is not that fantastic on the dress form, is based off of an old Athleta skirt. It was the same concept, with the twirling pieces, but the twirled seams had bungee cord in them to make it adjustable. Let's face it, I'm a little lazy, so I didn't do that part. However, it doesn't really need it! When I walk, this skirt flows so nicely!

I'm going to wear this hiking in a few days, wish me luck that the weathers clears and the paths have not all been washed away.

The next skirt is half way done, just needs a waist band!

Sweet & Sour Stuffed Peppers

The two best cookbooks I own (I don't own the Betty Crocker one, my grandma does) are "Vegan Planet" and "The Accidental Vegan". Don't worry, I didn't go vegan, I like cheese and chocolate too much for that. It's not that I like cooking, either and I do NOT like cleaning. (I think everyone already knew that) However, I do like eating!

My new favorite food to make is stuffed peppers, vegetarian for me, meaty for the grandparents. This is a combination of the stuffed peppers from both the cookbooks.

You will need:
the peppers
4 green peppers, cored and rinsed (you can use any color pepper you want, really)
2 cups of rice
2 cups of chili (homemade, which is what I used or canned)
1 cup shredded vegan cheese

the sauce
1 cup tomato juice
1 tbsp cider vinegar
1tbsp brown sugar or molasses
1 tsp chili powder


the recipe
1. preheat oven to 350
2. parboil the peppers for 5 minutes, rince and set aside
3. in a bowl, combine chili, rice, cheese (I don't use the cheese...especially not vegan, yuck), mix well.
4. fill peppers with with rice/chili mixture. place, upright, in a shallow baking dish.
5. in a separate bowl, combine sauce ingredients and mix together.
6. pour sauce mixture over and around the peppers.
7. bake for 30 minutes (or until hot).

Sometimes I add other things like pineapple chunks or mandarin oranges to jazz them up. the oranges are best added after baking, otherwise they fall apart.

There are some reasons I make these as much as I do. First, my grandpa loves them! He has problems chewing, so the mixture inside is really easy for him to eat. Next, it's a good way to use up the end of the chili. My grandparents don't like to throw food away, but don't always want to eat the leftovers for days on end. Buy putting the chili in the peppers, they don't usually realize it's "that damn chili that seems to multiply in the fridge'. It's also easy, takes just a few minutes to throw together and toss in the over. It seems I usually have all the ingredients at home too, the peppers are usually a bartering item, for either peaches, apples or tree clippings. (I have great neighbors!) And the leftovers are almost always better than the original serving!

I have leftover taco supplies, so I think there will be a "taco stuffed pepper" night soon.

in my next career option, i'll be a short order cook

According to the Betty Crocker Cookbook (published in 1950-something) in the kitchen drawer, apple fritters are dinner food. I'm not big on deep fried foods and I'm not too sure there was anything nutritious about the dinner. Hell, you only live once so upon my grandmother's request (the stuffed mushrooms have been put to the side for a few more days).



Anyway, I made those damn apple fritters last night.

Everyone needs a new dress sometimes

You know, if you've got surplus fabric and time to kill, there's really nothing wrong with this "making myself clothes all the time" thing, right?

Anyway, I used to be really fat (as opposed to just a little fat) and most things I wanted to wear didn't fit properly, patterns didn't come in my size and things just looked bad. I love to sew, obviously, so I taught myslef how to alter patterns. This was done through studying garments that I had no reason to ever own and reading tons of books. (the working at a fabric store helped too, just because it gave me an opportunity to see what people were making and how they were making things.

There are a few things I've learned along the way:
1. Pleats are not usually flattering.
2. I hate buttonholes
3. Read all the directions, then assemble the item the way you think it should be done.
4. zippers are not as hard as they sound. (actually, they are very easy!)
5. Invisible zippers are overrated. If you can't put a regular zipper in properly, then there's no reason to try an invisible one....and there's really no reason to use them anyway.
6. Interfacing is not always (or hardly ever) needed. There are exceptions to this, but not many. If you want your garment to lay naturally on your body, use sheer weight or none at all.
7. Sulky wash away interfacing is amazing. (see #6, sometimes it's needed to assemble the project, but not to make it useable)
8. tailors' chalk is my favorite marking item. You can get it in colors from the quilting department in most arts and craft stores.
9. Kitty cats love pattern paper
10. having a dress form makes all the difference.

Here's the fun brown denim dress! It still needs buttons, but it's 1:30am and there aren't 24 hour stores around here for my shopping convenience. Also notice there are pleats, which are actually flattering. Oh, and there's a tiny bit of gathering in the shoulders for "ease". ("Ease would have been about 1/2 the amount I had, but whatever) The heavier fabric makes it a little bit easier for me to wear, it doesn't stick/cling to me as much as some other fabrics.

$5 tshirt

I had a shirt that was way too big, so I made it into something useful.

After chopping 8" off the bottom, cuttung a plunging v neck, making it cross over and making a waist band I thought I was done, but the sleeves needed some help.

I turned the shirt inside out, pinned where the armpit and sleeves "should" meet up and tacked them in place. I really wanted to be done, so I kinda winged it. I'm surprised it worked!

Anyway, it needs a tank underneath to make it work appropriate, but now I've got a new work shirt.

I think I'm going to add a little pocket on the hip for a box cutter though. :)

Cooking for others, parts 1

There are two important things to know about my living situation right now.
1. I'm one of those vegetarians that doesn't like to eat tofu. Call me crazy, but you can get the same effect with eggplant, various beans and grains.
2. My Grandmother's version of cooking is to open a stouffer's box and put it in the microwave.


Needless to say, I do a lot of cooking (and cleaning). I made some sweet and sour stuffed peppers last week, YUM! Half were vegan, half were meat filled. I'd never parboiled anything before, so the peppers were my grandmother's task, and I made the filling. The vegan ones were filled with homemade vegan chili, rice and homemade sweet and sour sauce. They turned out wonderful! The meat one had rice, various vegetables (carrots, pepper, whatever I had in the fridge), ground beef and the same home made sweet and sour sauce.

Dinner was served, I found out that my Grandpa liked the vegan ones better than the meat ones because of the flavor. Now, I did add come chili type seasoning to the meat ones, trying to make them comparable. The sweet and sour sauce was the same and white rice is white rice no matter what you mix it with. It was the chili! Ha ha! I made a dinner he'd eat! Oh, I threw some pineapple on top to make it look pretty too!

I wish there had been a picture.

a little green is always a good thing :)

Once again I've finished one of those dresses I never thought I'd be able to wear (or had the patience to make) The secret to the recent success of these things that I've never thought I could finish: Tailor's Chalk. Not kidding! I have making darts, I hate spending the time to map the stupid things out. I HATE watching a garment and finding out the marking pen didn't wash out all the way (or discolored the fabric) So, now I use tailor's chalk.

Oh, awesome thing about the skirt, other than how full it is, it has pockets!

I just might love Cynthia Rowley

This is next!

You have to finish it to wear it.

I finally got that shirt done, and decided that snaps were a better option than buttons. The snaps weren't as hard to put on as i remember, but they weren't easy. Stupid slippery fabric.

just a few fears to conquor.

Now that I have some spare time, well an afternoon, I've taken some time to conquor a few of my sewing fears.

1. I do not like working on sheer fabrics, especially making semi-structured garments.
2. Tailoring. It's annoying. I did it for a living for a bit, not my favorite thing.
3. Buttons holes, specifically on fabrics that have little structure to them.

So, I'm making a shirt (with the help of a pattern) out of some fabric I purchased a few years ago. It seems to have turned out pretty well, just need buttons! I'm thinking of maybe using snaps because it'll suite the garment better.

Mission Accomplished!

I got an ice cream maker for less than $3

When you get an ice cream maker for less than the cost of ice cream, it's perfectly fine to experiment, right? So, this is my first time making ice cream since about 3rd grade, and it turned out great!

It's blackberry vanilla ice cream, and turned out awesome. (okay the extra vanilla was kinda a fluke, i got carried away when I added it)