Sunday, September 26, 2010

Love Garland

 Jill

I broke down and finally unraveled a collection of brown fat quarters I bought in Lancaster a few years ago. 

 Fairwell Fat Quarter Bundle

I needed a few of these fabrics to become backgrounds for name garland: my genius idea to decorate an empty window frame hanging in my living room.  MrBeans and I hung the old window pane over our couch a few weeks ago.  He really likes the reflection it produces, but it was a little bare.

Old window hanging in my living room.

I love making the name garland in Winsome Baby by Art to HeartSince I’ve never has the opportunity to make any person’s name with this garland, I’ve found other opportunities to have fun with this pattern.  I teetered between the words “love” and “home,” but the greatest of these is love, so it won.  I spent about an hour cutting and sewing together this quick project this afternoon.  Very sweet!

Name Garland from Winsome Baby

Saturday, September 25, 2010

Junk Drawer No More

Jill

With summer over, Indian Summer wanes on, and I spent most of September fully well knowing where my rotary cutter has been: in the drawer unused.  Today, I’m back faithful bleaders!  (Short for “blog readers.”  I’m halfway through Julie & Julia and couldn’t resist the reference.)  I just finished another project from One-Yard Wonders and it’s already been put to good use!

Junky Junk Drawer Organized Junk Drawer

My kitchen drawer this morning.

My kitchen drawer now!

Yet another project I started *mumble mumble* months ago, I am more proud that I’m finished and organized then I am annoyed at the pattern. 

Step 1: Prepare the Interfacing

The first step in the Origami Organizer pattern requires a lot of measuring and marking on a 30”x30” square of interfacing.  Unable to purchase a wide enough piece, I opted to overlap two pieces and pin them together.  So this afternoon, I sprawled out on my living room floor and measured and marked a piece of interfacing that was resistant to being measuring and marked.  I originally abandoned the project on this step, but determination to organize my junk drawer prevailed.

Step 4: Precrease the Grid Lines

Once I got past the initial disgust of the interfacing, my first fabric origami project started to take shape.

Step 5: Fold the BoxThe too quick folding and sewing steps were fun and gratifying, but soon, a slower paced hand stitch lead me to a grumpy finish.  The bottom piece, described in the book as “slightly smaller than the box,” was (big surprise) not quite big enough.  For the benefit of my junk drawer, I stitched it on anyway.  I suppose this project wouldn’t have made the book if you needed a “yard of fabric plus and inch.” 

 

Finished Origami Organizer in Hope Valley Diamond Dandy by Denyse Schmidt Designs

In the end, it may not fit this perfectionist’s high standards, but boy does it organize junk!

Monday, September 13, 2010

Monday, Monday

 You can't have this much fun shopping on Amazon.

Some Mondays live up to their name, and it’s possible that today, I did have “a case of the Mondays.”  To cheer me up, this evening I made sure to take the opportunity to do a little sewing.  I made three onesies this evening, and one of them has a springtime color theme.  I honestly prefer my standard blue/pink/green color scheme; however, I was genuinely happy with the way this one turned out.  Not a bad way to end a Monday.

custom onesies

Sunday, September 12, 2010

Lavender Fields Forever

 Jill at the Lavender Farm

A Saturday away from my sewing room, good things happen to those who stop waiting and just got for it.  Yesterday, instead of driving past Peace Valley Lavender Farm, I finally stopped there to check it out.   I’m so glad, because I did something new and fun!

At the farm, a quintessential Pennsylvania barn backs a hill of lavender.  The aroma of lavender pulls you into a little shop in the barn, where you can purchase many lavender products and infused goods, and if you lucky enough to get there during the flowering season, you can even pick your own lavender bunches.

Tools for picking lavender.

At a dollar an ounce, it’s a fun little activity for anyone!

Harvesting lavender.

After picking some lavender, a quick trip up the street landed me at Tabor Farm and Orchard, another gem right around my corner that I never knew about.  I indulged in an waffle cone with two huge scoops of homemade lavender ice cream, and now I can’t wait to go back and pick apples this fall and get more yummy baked goods!

Fresh Lavender

Monday, September 6, 2010

Back to School…and Work

 Jill, with a windmill behind her head.

For many, the end of the Labor Day weekend means back to school.  For me, it just means I have to go to work four days this week instead of five.  (It also means College Football starts!  Yay!)  Though, sometimes work isn’t in an office, but waiting for me online…

 Custom Embridered Onesie

After spending the weekend camping in the mountains, I came home and made this onesie.  It’s a surprise from Jeff and Joni to Joni’s parents.  Can you figure out what the surprise is??

Thursday, September 2, 2010

Happy Labor Day!

Waiting for a tasty milkshake. 

I just finished up a couple onesies before the holiday weekend!  I hope you have a great weekend!

Custom Onesies

I especially love this one:

I <3 My Auntie

Wednesday, September 1, 2010

Tomato Cobbler

Jill and Polly

Wondering what to do with all those garden tomatoes crowding up your countertop?  Well, me too…

Tomato wedges tossed with basil, salt and pepper.

An experiment for the oven, tonight I made “Tomato Cobbler” from Mark Bitman’s How to Cook Everything Vegetarian.    And you and I both thought cobbler was for fruit and berries, right?  Never afraid to veer from the black and white print, I added some fresh basil from my garden to spice up the tomatoes and cheese from my grocer’s refrigerator to, well, cheese up the topping.

Tomato Cobbler

Dinner turned out quite tasty!  Tomatoes are now acceptable with the word “cobbler” in my house; (though, prefixes like “apple,” “peach,”and “blueberry” may still be preferred.)  This dish reminded me a lot of tomato pie, a pizza without cheese found in the Philly area.

I spent the rest of the evening updating some of the photos in my shop, and now it’s past time for bed!  Happy September!