Hello Ladies!

I must say I am loving this blog so much and trying my best to keep up with all of the information and posts out there! But now that my 3 year old girl is at pre-school and my 9mo son is asleep (there is a little about me) I thought I would take the time to do my first post. I have been thinking about it for awhile, just getting a second to sit down at the computer is my struggle.

I LOVE all things designy. I love graphic design, interior design even things like cupcake decorating, but unfortunately I have just come to terms with myself that designing things is just not something I have been blessed with.

So that said I have had to improvise. I have found some great "printables" out there so I can indulge myself with these nice looking things without having to create them myself.

Here is my favorite design blog and she features many printable products.

Thank you card

Calling Cards

I actually used those as a little hand out. I opened the file in photoshop, typed my info in and then printed them out. They looked so cute. And a minimal effort on my end.

There are so many more on How About Orange's blog including gift bags, party favors and creatures.

Have fun!!

dreams come true

Well I must admit, this is a completely impersonal beginning for me, but I feel that this is worth sharing at least until I can get myself together and make a real post. I don't know if anyone else is into those fabric headboards (like the ones at anthro) but I LOVE them. Yesterday in my browsing Cookie's Nesting site I found a tutorial site for how to make those yourself. Go here.

I know this is a poor excuse, but I just don't have (or make) the time to do as much "crafting" as I used to before I had Lily. I need to get into a rhythm again and get started. Now that I'm writing this I think I'm making myself accountable to really do it. We'll see.

Chocolate Chip Cookies

Ok, so I feel slightly inadequate to be contributing to this blog. Someone asked a question about fat quarters and I feel like I'm reading Chinese. And then there was the question about jelly rolls and cake layers, and I think they are asking about food. But apparently not. It is fun to read all of the creative things that people do, though, and it reminds me that if YOU people can do it so can I! Haha JK. I will definitely be contributing and I am encouraged to follow Elder Ballard's advice to take time to become more well-balanced. Becky is a good example of that to me.

So my first post is this new recipe I got for chocolate chip cookies. I know everyone has multiple recipes for this and probably one they love the most. However, the other day I wanted to make some and couldn't find the recipe I typically use so I settled for this one. It's very close to mine, but there are a few differences and I thought they were actually better. They turned out GREAT!

1 cup sugar

1 cup brown sugar

2 eggs

1 cup butter

1 tsp vanilla

1/4 tsp salt

1 tsp baking powder

1 1/2 tsp baking soda

Add chocolate chips or whatever you would like, as much as you'd like (I added a whole bag of choc chips and half a bag of butterscotch chips)

3 cups flour (I actually used slightly less flour and added some oatmeal)

- Mix first 5 ingredients together until creamy.

- In separate bowl, mix salt, baking powder, and baking soda. Add to creamy mixture.

- Add chocolate chips, or whatever you fancy

- Add flour

350°F 8-10 minutes, until golden

ENJOY!

Cornish Pasties

Somehow I managed to marry a man who does not get excited about food. It is a constant wonder to me. For some reason I still ask "what do you want for dinner?" knowing that I'll hear the usual "I don't care" in reply. There is, however, one food that does induce a little excitement in my food-indifferent mate: pasties.

Pasties (pronounced PASS-tees) are an English food. It's basically a pocket of meat; like a pot pie but you can hold it in your hand and it's less liquidy. Jonny lived in London for awhile and discovered this tasty treat/meal there. I came across a recipe for pasties a couple of years ago and received immediate encouragement from my husband. Oooo, make that! he suggested hopefully. So I did. But...it was weird. The recipe for the crust was strange and it offered no instruction to cool down the meat before packing it into the uncooked crust. The result was a drippy crust that melted apart when I tried to transfer it to the baking sheet. And the end result was disappointingly dry. But, I went with it a couple times until after several attempts I decided it just didn't seem to be working. And I haven't made them since.

Until tonight.

If you've read my personal blog lately, you know that Jonny recently completed a big milestone in his education. Tonight, I wanted to treat him to a good dinner, something that he would get excited about. I decided to try pasties again. But this time I did some research. I spent a better part of the evening reading recipes for pasties and the history of pasties. My final consensus was: just use a pie crust recipe you trust and - and this is the kicker - don't pre-cook the filling! Ah hah!

So, this evening I set about making my all-butter 9" double crust recipe (but I left out the sugar), cutting the beef into small chunks (1/4 inch), and assembling 4 pasties. I didn't follow a recipe for anything but the crust. I just cut up the meat, sliced some potatoes very thin (1/8 inch thick, 1/2 inch wide), and diced some onion. Then, I divided the dough into quarters and rolled it out. On half of the circle, I layered potatoes, then beef, then onion, leaving almost an inch of space between the filling and the bottom edge of the crust. Salt and pepper and a dab of butter, a bit of water along the inside edge of the crust to make it adhesive, and then I folded the dough over the filling and crimped the edges. I did a milk wash (you could also do egg yolk) over the top of the crust, cut some slits, and then put it in the oven. 350 for about an hour.

I'm not sure I can overstate how good these were. I'll let the pictures do the talking. I will say that we wished that it was a cold winter's night - these seem suited best for winter weather.

WHAT

are charm squares, jelly rolls, layer cakes??

Fat Quarters

Jen asked a great question. I did not, however know the answer myself. So, I googled it and found this great description on Sew, Mama, Sew. I pasted it below. Also, on the same site, there is a bunch of tutorials for projects you can do with fat quarters.

What is a Fat Quarter?

Welcome to Fat Quarter Month! Beth got us off to a great start with our first two Projects of the Day. We’ll continue that every day this month, plus we’ll be bringing you tutorials, interviews, a sew-along, a swap and giveaways. Before we go any further, let’s get down to the basics–what, exactly, is a fat quarter?

Although you often see fat quarters in beautiful stacks, rolled and tied with a ribbon, or folded neatly into stars, the “fat” in fat quarter is not just a matter of presentation–it’s all about the cut.

		Most quilt-weight cotton is 44″ wide. It comes doubled over on the bolt. When we cut a regular quarter yard (.25), we cut 9″, which is 1/4th of 36″ (a yard.)
		Open it up and you have a long, skinny piece that is 9″ x 44″.
		To cut a fat quarter, we first have to cut a half yard (18″) off the bolt.
		We cut along the fold.
		We’re left with two fat quarters–each one 18″ x 22″.

There are several benefits to fat quarters, as opposed to a regular 1/4 yard:

• You can use fat quarters for projects that require pieces larger than 9″ wide.
• The most common charm square for quilting projects is 5″. You can get 12 5″ charms from a fat quarter, but only 8 from a 1/4 yard.
• With large-scale prints you’re more likely to get the entire design in your cut.
• Fat quarters allow you to cut longer strips along the lengthwise grain of the fabric (parallel to the selvage edge), which is preferable to crosswise because it is less stretchy.
• Fat quarters offer you much more flexibility to work with the directionality of the print. (Consider stripes that typically run parallel to the selvage edge.)
• Fat quarters are often pre-cut and sold with coordinating fabric, so they’re easy to pick up and add to your stash.

Of course many of you already know the benefits, as well as the addictive qualities of fat quarters! Some of you may just be learning and we’re definitely here to help. If you’re looking to round out your stash, we have a new fat quarter section in the shop, to which we’re adding beautiful new packs all the time.

Saturday Craft Part 2

I am wanting to make some ornaments for our Christmas tree, and yesterday got started on some ideas. I LOVE this etsy shop and I tried my hand at her style with the little whale (I think he is so cute!). And here is a tutorial for a bird ornament I like. I did not use it for mine, but it is a good source for inspiration. I just drew up each shape, cut out two peices of it from contrasting fabric, sewed, stuffed, and finished it off by hand. For the whale, however, I did some hand embroidery. I just drew it on with pencil and then went to work. In A Minute Ago is a great site that has a dictionary with images of all the hand embroidery techniques. This is how I learned. If you want to try your hand at it, and perhaps haven't done it before (I'm not trying to be patronizing about it, for all I know, you are all pros), buy some batting, I used the craft size. You need to cut it the same size as the piece of fabric you are embroidering on. Place it behind the fabric, and put them in your embroidery hoop and get to work. This keeps all the thread from showing through. After you are done with the hand embroidery, cut out the image (in my case, the whale) place it with the back piece of fabric, and then get to the sewing.

Saturday Craft Part 1

This Saturday I got to work on some projects that I have been wanting to do for a while. I made the blue apron above using this free tutorial for a childs apron and then embroidered the tiger and name with my machine. Bubba loves tigers and blue so I think this will be right up his alley. The apron is intended for children ages 3-6 and to help them be independent. The strap around the neck was supposed to be elastic, but I ran out of material. And the strap around the waist is velcro, so the little one can use their new found independence with this apron. I only spent $1.30 on material and the velcro and thread I aldready had, so it was a really cheap, quick, fun project. For Olivia, his sister, I found this really cute/cheap apron and put her name on it.

Great Fabric Site

So I finally found this really great fabric shop online. I always hear of people buying fabric online but I could never find a site that had cheap prices and cool prints that would make it worth it. That is until I found Sew, Mama, Sew! I was in heaven! I have this huge crush on Alexander Henry fabric right now, as well as far, far away. They carry a great selection of both, with the best prices you can find online. Their Sale and their Clearance selections are great. I bought I ton in both. It might only be worth it if you are buying a lot because shipping can be kind of expensive. I have this really bad habit of just browsing through the different prints over and over, drooling all the while. Many of you know my obsession with unicorns, right? Well, I wiped out their supply of that fancy little unicorn pattern above! I think I might make some pajama pants out of it, and a Christmas ornament or two.

About us

Alright ladies...I think we need a little ice-breaker, here. I know only 2 and a half of you (Stacy, Rebecca, and sort of Candace because we've met a few times). But let's all get cozy, shall we? I propose (and am totally open to suggestions on this) that we start a little post here where we can each go in and add information about ourselves. That way, we can link to it on the sidebar for any future newcomers and in the meantime those of us authors can know our immediate audience a little better. What say you?

I'll wait for your comments of enthusiasm or disgust before I proceed to post details about myself...

I've got class

Last Friday, my mom and I stumbled on a wonderful quilt shop. We spent 3 hours there last week, just browsing fabric and patterns and feeling like we could solve all the world's problems if we could just get to our sewing machines fast enough.

But the funny thing is, we're novices. In fact, my mom's sewing machine has only come out of the box because I used it one time. And I can't seem to finish any sewing project I start because I get stuck on some how-to detail.

Lucky for us, this quilt shop was going to be having an open house this weekend to kick-off their next round of classes. So, mom and I went back today to sign up (and to try, once again, to hold ourselves back from buying one of everything). I signed up for a 6-week beginners patchwork and quilting course, beginning rotary cutting, intro to machine quilting, intro to hand quilting (what can I say...I want it all), a class for making a Christmas tree skirt, and there are a few other courses I circled that I might just sign up for once I see how for I can get with these few. It's probably a lot to start with. But, I'm excited. For those of you who may not be familiar with this kind of thing (I certainly wasn't), every course mentioned, aside from the 6-week course, is just one evening or block of time on a Saturday. And, a few of these my mom and I will do together. Sweet.

So, stay tuned! I'm going to be learning lots of new skillz and I will dazzle you all with the fun things I learn. I'm hoping that at the very least, these classes give me more confidence with sewing, not just quilting, and that I learn skills that will allow me to be a more fly-by-the-seat-of-her-pants crafter...because for right now, I'm pretty much tied to patterns and step-by-step, could-you-please-show-me-a-picture-of-what-you-mean instructions.

Oh, and, for those of you who might be in Utah (ARE any of you in Utah?!?) the quilt shop is called Quilt, Etc and is on 8700-ish South State St. You should go there. After 5 minutes browsing there, I swore off Joanne's as my fabric resource. Hallelujah. And, if any of you ARE in Utah and are interested in taking a course - sign up! Maybe I'll see you there!

Inspiring Thought

Something that has inspired me this year is a comment by Elder M. Russell Ballard:

One devastating effect of idling away our time is that it deflects us from focusing on the things that matter most. Too many people are willing to sit back and let life just happened to them. It takes time to develop the attributes that will help you to be a well-balanced person.

The last line is my favorite. These words have helped to encourage and inspire me. I find them exciting because there are so many things that I want to do in life, and I know that if it happens now or later, it is all apart of the process of becoming. It goes along with the belief that "to everything there is a season."
It is also exciting because it means that whoever I am now only matters inasmuch as it helps me in the becoming process. Whatever things I don't like about myself, over time will fall away like the skin off boiled peaches, if I try. I may one day realize that the type of person I admire and oh so wish I was (someone more friendly and ready to believe the best in people rather than be unjustly critical, for starters) I may be.
This is an extension of my career as a crafter as well. About 1 1/2 years ago, after many years of only longing and admiring, I picked up a paint brush and bought a small supply of watercolors. Now, I am pleased to say that I have sold a few (a very few). But it is encouraging to look back and see how I used to know nothing of the art and to now feel that I have left the beginners stage. It wasn't something I was born with. I even started rather late in life. But now, I can with confidence call myself an artist.

I am happy to think that maybe one day I can add to my description: quilter, seamstress, floral designer, and a skilled creator of whatnots. I'm sure that this blog with our community of inspiration coming from so many different sources will be key for me as I strive to always be becoming.

Anyone Interested?

My Martha Stewart Living Magazine subscription is almost up. I can renew it and give a year subscription to someone else for $24. If anyone is interested, we could split it for $12 each. That's the best deal for a year subscription I've seen. If you are interested just comment on this post.

The Top 100 Tutorials of 2008

I found this list with links that The Long Thread made of the best free crafting tutorials of last year. I thought there were a lot of cute ones, and they range in medium and skill level, so there is something for everyone. Check it out. One of my favorites is the buttery fly collage.

A Favorite Book

A wonderful (and incredibly talented and crafty) friend of mine recommended the following book to me when I told her I wanted to teach myself to sew:



I love this book. Do I sound like I'm on Reading Rainbow? Really, though, this book not only has wonderful pictures that will inspire you to get your hands on some fabric and start creating, it also is broken down into chapters based on the amount of time each project takes to complete. Directions are simple and straightforward - easy for a beginner. And one of the best secrets of this book, for me so far, is the little technique she teaches for "quilting" a simple blanket. It is an alternative to doing any major quilting or doing something like tying, which, let's face it, is sometimes (and for me, usually) not the look you want.. I have used the technique on several projects and am so happy with it.

Here's a sampling of a couple of things I have made from this book. Peanut the Elephant and a super-easy baby blanket. These two below were made for my niece, Aspen Kate, before she was born (also, photos were taken with my previous and crappy camera...so they kinda suck). They were 2 of my very first sewing creations. I have since made each one again (and the baby blanket has been made again and again) using different fabrics and wielding a little more confidence than this documented first attempt.




This book has been inspirational for me, as I've started on the path of sewing. What things have inspired you???

Glass Beads & Grosgrain

So, for a while j crew has been selling necklaces like this for a very high price. But, for under $5 you can make your own, thanks to the guidance of Martha Stewart. Here is her tutorial on how to make them The instructions call for jade beads, at $21 for 25. Instead, I bought my beads from Fusion Beads which is where she recommends you buy the beading cord. I bought 2 pkg. of the glass beads in size 8, the largest size they come in (while the tutorial calls for size 16). Adjust the size of cord you need accordingly. Fusion Beads is great because it is always free shipping, and you get a free gift with your first purchase. The total I spent was approxamately $5. Getting nearly constant compliments on it? Priceless!

Sweet Mary Janes

I had my first sewing group last week and these are what we made. Cute, tiny, reversible mary jane shoes for little girls. The photos are of each pair with both options pictured. The first pair took a while, but the more you make the easier they get. There are many free patterns online with different variations. The patten has you make the strap and place a button, like the green/yellow pair. But it saves time and is really cute to use ribbon instead; i love grograin, so thats what I used. Here is a link to the one I bought from My Little Sweet.