Chair makeover

Went thrifting today and got this chair for three dollars. It definately needed a little TLC! I am making a little sewing/craft nook in my bedroom and thought I could re-do this chair to match the sewing cabinet I got at a garage sale.


With five dollars worth of fabric, pipping, and paint, I think it turned out pretty swell!

First Fall Harvest

I harvested our first fall veggies this evening! I have several mustard green plants that have really taken off with all the cool nights we've been having. They were crisp and flavorful and delicious!

This overflowing bowl cooked down to about six small servings. We had them with pan fried pork chops:

Hippie Chick

I found a few yards of vintage fabric and made this GROOVY wrap dress!

Simple book bag

You can make this very simple and versatile bag in about 25-30 minutes! I've made each of the boys one - heck, they could have even made their own! They are great for going to the library, park, beach or just running errands! Best part is that they are totally one of a kind! You're the designer!
Start with a template. Here is mine, it makes the perfect size bag for me and the kids:

Use your template to cut out two pieces each from two contrasting fabrics. With my template, I only need a yard for the outside and a yard for the lining. I get my fabric from the Walmart dollar bin so each bag only costs me two bucks to make!
Take your two pieces from the outer part of the bag and put the right sides of the fabric together. Sew the outer edges of the bag together:

Open up your bag and line up the two seams you just sewed together so that they are in the middle of the bag. Sew a straight line along the bottom of the bag:

Open up your bag again and lay the corners flat. Sew a line about 1 inch from the point and then clip away the extra fabric to about 1/4 inch away from your seam:

Do the same steps above to your lining fabric EXCEPT leave a 2-3 inch hole along the bottom of the bag so that you can turn the whole thing right side out a little later!
Now take your lining fabric and sew a pocket on! Cut out a square piece of fabric and press under your two sides and bottom sections about 1/4 inch. Turn under the top section about 1/4 inch and then fold under again about 3/4 inch and press. Sew a line across the top of your pocket to give the top a clean edge and then place the whole thing onto your lining. Sew down the two sides and bottom of your pocket. This pocket is optional for kids, but a MUST for moms! It's the perfect place to hold your cell phone and car keys!

Next, place your lining inside your bag with the right sides of the fabrics together. Pin carefully in place and sew around all the edges, leaving the handles of the bags open at the ends. Then, make little clips with your scissors around all the curved edges:

Turn your bag right side out using the little hole in your liner. Sew up that hole either by hand or on machine and then press the bag. Take one of your straps and fold the ends under about 1/2 an inch and press. Insert the other handle and sew to connect the two for a finished edge:

Go around the edges of the bag with a top stitch to give a finished look!
My bag is the perfect size for my DayRunner, a diaper and wipes, cell phone, keys and a pack of gum!

Tagged for a meme

I was tagged by Dana on the DCF Ladies Blogring (Under "Reasons why my laundry isn't getting done" on the right------>)

1. Do you attend the Traditional Latin Mass or the Novus Ordo?
We attend the N.O. but have occassionally attended TLM.

2. If you attend the TLM, how far do you drive to get there?
The closest one to us is a little over an hour away.

3. If you had to apply a Catholic label to yourself, what would it be?
"The Cafeteria is CLOSED!"

4. Are you a comment junkie?
Nope.

5. Do you go back to read the comments on the blogs you’ve commented on?
Nope.

6. Have you ever left an anonymous comment on another blog?
Yup.

7. Which blogroll would you most like to be on?
The Winners of the Texas Lottery (is there such a blogroll?)

8. Which blog is the first one you check?
I start with Aussie Coffee Shop and work my way down the roll.

9. Have you met any other bloggers in person?
Yes. April, Dana, Karen, and Chris

10. What are you reading?
Does my daily crossword puzzle count?

Bonus Question! Has your site been banned by Spirit of Vatican II?
I'm hoping that site is a parody, because if it's real.....

Tagging Karen (SA-Mom) if she feels up to it!

Oh yeah, it's Fall!

You know it's Fall when you get that first bite of a warm, gooey caramel apple on a brisk day...

14 years ago today...

A very crafty weekend!

Not much in the way of garage sales this weekend, but I did happen to score a sewing cabinet and two lamps at an estate sale. I decided to refurbish them and here's what I did.
Lamps before:

Lamp after:

I used an awesome faux suede that I just put over the old shade with a little spray adhesive. The trims are attached with hot glue. The lamp itself just needed a good cleaning and a spray of clear coat!
I also went down to the local paint store and got some crackle medium and a couple of buckets of paint. I have to give a product rave to Sherwin Williams Illusions crackle medium. Very easy to work with and it allows you to pick you own colors to match your decor! Here's a close-up, I used "Toasty" as my base coat and "Antique White" as the top coat:

Here is the refurbished sewing cabinet along with my "new" lamp!

I had plenty of paint and medium left over, so I painted my dresser and an old bookcase:

I literally spent ALL afternoon sanding and painting (thank goodness it was such a nice day outside!) When I was done I called Doug out to see my handiwork. He looked at the finish and said, "You painted? Looks like you NEED to paint this stuff!"
UGH! Men!!!

What I was doing six years ago...

Six years ago today, we welcomed John Paul into the world!



Here we all are celebrating the day at Chuck E. Cheese (the birthday boy's most favorite place on earth!)

...and what I was doing 27 years ago today...
I was mourning the death of my father due to brain and lung cancer.
I still miss him everyday. I wish he would have known my boys, oh how he would have loved them!
Eternal rest grant unto him, oh Lord, and may Perpetual Light always shine upon him. Amen.
I love you daddy.

Donut Danny

We had a rare treat of donuts this morning for breakfast. Sharing how Danny eats his....he eats his donuts AROUND the hole!
Too cute!

Making an apron from a pillowcase!

Remember the vintage pillowcases I got from the estate sale? Well, I decided to make an apron out of one of them! This is so easy and only took me about 25 minutes to do this project.
First, cut the pillowcase a little over halfway for your apron front. Then cut two smaller strips for the ties. Cut the end seam off and throw away:

Turn your apron front section over and cut up the middle. Fold the edges over twice and press with a hot iron, then stitch to make a clean edge. Run a basting stitch along the top:

Pull one of your basting strings to gather the fabric along the top edge of the apron:

Next, take the two ties and cut off the seams so you can open them up. Sew the ends together to make one long tie. Press the edges towards the middle, then fold the whole thing in half and press.

Place the gathered fabric inside your tie and pin in place. Turn under the ends of your ties and sew your tie closed, enclosing the gather in the tie as you sew:

Press and your done!
New life for an old pillowcase!

Fruit Galette

Need a quick and tasty dessert? Try making this very easy fruit galette! The name alone sounds so fancy, and the look is very rustic, but it couldn't be easier to make!
Wash, peel and cut your selected fruit (peaches, apples, plums or mixed berries) into 1/4 to 1/8 inch slices. Mix in two tablespoons of sugar and flour. Roll out a prepared pie crust onto parchement paper and flatten out just a little bit with a dusted rolling pin. Pour your fruit into the center, leaving a 1-2 inch border:

Fold up and crimp the edges all the way around:

Lightly brush the crust with milk then sprinkle generously with cinnamon and sugar:

Bake at 450 degrees for 20 minutes or until golden and bubbly:

Soooooo goooooood!

More garage sale finds!

This Saturday Ryan and I got out the newspaper, plotted out our plan of attack, and came home with some really great garage sale finds!
We scored this cute little cabinet along with two oil paintings and two silver candy dishes:

Some handmade Christmas placemats and napkins:

Two sets of vintage pillowcases with hand embrodery on them!

Two vintage tablecloths and one quilt:

Another vintage tablecloth with hand stitched daisies:

Two fabulous books! The first one is, "Signs and Symbolism in Christian Art," and the second is, "Family Meals and Hospitality." Both books are great finds! The art alone in the first book is absolutely incredible! It details the religious paintings of the old Masters and will make a great addition to our homeschooling library! The second book was written in 1955 and has tons of great ideas on entertaining and lots of recipes that I can't wait to try out!

This last set is my favorite! I got several vintage lady's hankerchiefs. They are so delicate and feminine!

Ryan got some artwork for his room and some HUGE conch shells to add to his collection. We had the best morning together!

Thrift store score!

I discovered a new thrift store here in town! It's located at the end of town in a strip section of stores. It looked pretty bad from the outside, so I never went in. Well, the other day, my curiosity got the better of me and I decided to give it a look...what a treasure trove! The place is packed floor to ceiling with stuff! And there are two little old ladies, with their dogs, sitting in the midst of it all puffing away on cigarettes like smoke stacks! It may be a good thing that I can't stay in there long (due to the thick haze of cigarette smoke!)otherwise I might have to get a second job!
I think I scored pretty nicely, here's what I got!
A hand stitched tablecloth:

Three vintage city plates for my kitchen walls, a beautifully woven picnic table tablecloth, two vintage hand embelished pillow cases and two vintage orange pillow cases that I'm going to make into an apron, and a set of white linen napkins!

A small set of vintage tableware that goes nicely with my hand made tablecloth!

...and I only spent 15 bucks!

Because I'm cheap...

Check out this great idea I got from Rostitchery (http://rowena.typepad.com)
It's a reuseable Swiffer duster! I purchased some fleece from the fabric remnants at my local Walmart for $1.00. I placed my Swiffer handle (which is actually a Pledge duster handle!) onto the fabric folded four times over and cut out a little over 2 inch border all the way around:

Next, I cut a square that I folded over the prongs.

Make sure that the ends overlap and you allow some "wiggle room" as the fleece will shrink a bit in the wash.

Sew around the edges, leaving the bottom open for insertion of the duster prongs. Sew a zig-zag stitch down the middle:

Cut alternating lines in the layers of fleece. On subsequent dusters, I learned to cut my segments a little thinner. It makes the whole duster fluffier and able to get into smaller spaces.

Insert your duster handle, and VOILA! A totally "green" way to dust! Just throw your duster in the laundry when dirty and it comes out of the dryer fluffy and ready to use again! Here's John Paul with finished product, he spent the entire day dusting around the house! He told me I had to make the next batch out of Spider Man fabric and if it will get him to do my dusting....NO PROBLEM!

I was able to make three dusters from my $1.00 piece of fabric which sure beats $2.95 for a box of four!