Decorating update and new project! We’ve painted a couple of rooms, and after about a week with no window-coverings I started thinking about what to put up in our kitchen/dining area. We’re renting, and the blinds that were in the windows when we moved in are rattan, which is fine, but I just wasn’t feeling it. I contemplated making curtains, but I couldn’t decide on a fabric. Well, the other day, while at one of my favorite thrift stores, Thriftland, I ran across a sheet set that I thought would be great. $7 later the sheets were home with me, where I determined there was just not enough fabric for curtains for all of my windows. No worries – Plan B came to me – I decided to use the fabric to cover one side of the rattan shades.

The process was a little trial and error. I figured initially that it would be a breeze to stitch the fabric onto the shades. The flat sheet was almost the exact size of my largest sheet – a little long, but I figured I could just turn under the cut edge a couple of times at the bottom and no one would be the wiser, as the bottom is usually rolled up, at least a little. The stitching was definitely not a breeze. To get the edge of the sheet as close as possible to the top of the blind was a task. And though the needle slid right through the woven blinds, once I got close to the ends my stitches started slipping right off the horizontal slats, which had no vertical weave on the ends.

The other issue I ran across, which is perpetual for me, is that I was lazy when I started this. I laundered the sheets, but I didn’t iron them. You know how sheets will get kind of wrinkly on the edges? Well, those wrinkles made it a lot harder to eyeball the placement and stitch the sheet straight. After I finished the top edge I realized I had several extra inches of fabric on one side of the blind, and a slight slant to the pattern. I found myself bouncing back and forth – stitching a foot or so on one side of the blind, then a foot or so on the other side, to make things as even as possible. In the end, I had one side of the blinds with the hem of the sheet exactly on the edge of the blinds, and the other side has fabric wrapped around the edge.

The good news is, that particular blind is over a window that is BEHIND my bookcase, so even though you see that it’s there, it’s pretty well hidden and my goofs aren’t too noticeable. Also, I learned from that mistake, and after smacking myself in the head I got out my glue gun to finish the smaller blinds. Not only did it go faster, but as the glue will peel off if I need it to, I was able to reposition when I had my alignment off.

Though my method was definitely flawed (I’m sure someone out there has done/will do a much better job) the end result works well, I think. The foundation of this room is pale gray and white, so I think the blinds work nicely. (We painted the fireplace – doesn’t it look great! So happy our landlords were OK with that!) Don’t worry – I’ll be adding in plenty of color on down the line!

Here are a few photos of our new place, the day before we moved. We’ve got a few boxes and tools stacked on the fireplace, and there are still a couple of things from the previous tenants lingering, but you should be able to get an idea from these.

The first room we are tackling is this long kitchen/dining/living space. We won’t actually be using it as living room, despite the fireplace. My fantastic, bargain-hunting hubby found a great deal on a slightly dinged up dining table that just happens to be HUGE, so it will go across from the fireplace. I also hope to find a good place for a little office space in here.

The living room will get a coat of paint, and we just ordered two new couches, so once they arrive I will finish it with art and accessories. I do need to decide what to do with the old-school 70s divider by the front door, as we can’t take it out.

It’s so exciting to have this blank slate to work with! After moving our stuff in we brought the kitties from our between-homes crash-pad. We hooked up the television, hit the Redbox, and took a break from painting and unpacking to chill out for a while. Things may not be settled yet, but it still felt like home!

2012 is going to be a great year! I have a lot of plans, and tons of fun things to share with you. But for now, I’m completely buried! We’re moving twice in the next few weeks – first to storage, and to a vacation home for a temporary stay, then again in the beginning of February to our new home, after it has a nice, fresh coat of paint. In addition to moving we have not one, not two, but THREE important birthdays coming up for family members aged 8 to 61! It’s also time for Eckman’s Card, Comic and Toy Show, and as usual the hubby will be setting up a booth there, and I’ll be on hand to help. This time we’re planning quite the button-making set-up, so if you’re in San Antonio stop by and make yourself a custom button!

With all that said, I’m going to be swamped for a few weeks, and posting here will be light to non-existent. But once I’m back I’ll have all manner of exciting things to share, from recipes to decorating, craft projects to theme parties. In the meantime go visit some other fun sites! I’ll get you started.

I laughed and cried and laughed some more with The Bloggess this week

Beautiful sterling silver jewelry – and a ring I really want from Lisa Hopkis Design on Etsy

A sweet stuffed fox to make from Gingermelon on Etsy

Birthday inspiration for a soon-to-be eight year old I know

Beautiful recipes – makes me wish I could draw!

Test your movie knowledge – found on How About Orange, who always has the best time wasters!

Some of my favorite embroidery patterns – love to spend the winter stitching

And finally, a really bad video (MUST HOLD THE PHONE HORIZONTALLY!) of one of my sweet kitties exploring the top of the empty closet. Right before I took this he was talking up a storm, but as soon as the camera came out he decided to just roll around and look cute. I know the quality is horrible on the video and the picture at the top, but I have a new toy on the way to fix that soon! Like I said, 2012 is going to be great!

I have a love/hate relationship with robes, especially in the winter. I want to be warm when I get out of the shower, but I hate battling swaths of terrycloth. I want something a little girly, but satiny, silky fabrics are worse than useless in my opinion (see “warm”). I decided a lightweight flannel robe would be great, but being very particular and knowing exactly what I wanted, I couldn’t find it anywhere (at least, not with a price tag I was comfortable with). Technically I know how to sew, and I could go buy some flannel and a pattern, cut it out, stitch it up and hope for the best. But honestly, especially after the making extravaganza that was Christmas, I’ve been feeling lazy.

Luckily I came upon the perfect solution. I found a men’s “tall” flannel shirt, and I hacked it to create my perfect robe. I was hoping for a pretty pink flannel (yeah, I know) but no such luck. Instead I found a nice, soft, gray and turquoise super-long shirt on sale for $15. I don’t have step by step photos – as we’re packing up the house I don’t have a good spot to take photos. Instead I’ve done a very bad illustration that I hope helps explain what I did. It is a pretty simple alteration but if you have any questions let me know and I’ll be happy to answer as best I can!

First, I cut off the bottom half of the sleeves. I double-hemmed the sleeves, and this left me with what will be 3/4 length sleeves on me. Next, I cut off the collar, and cut a bit of a “V” in the front of the shirt. I hemmed the raw edge, but didn’t bother with a double hem here. Using part of the sleeves I cut off I made two pockets, one for each side. I hemmed the top edge and then folded under and stitched each pocket to the lower part of each side of the shirt. Finally I attached the center of a ribbon belt to the center back of the shirt. I used the back pleat as a guide and eyeballed this.

I didn’t break out my iron or sewing machine for any of this – it is all hand sewn and roughly folded over. It’s not as neat as machine sewn would have been, but it’s perfectly fine for me! The only thing I still plan to add is belt loops on the side, so the belt doesn’t just flop down the back when it’s off or untied. It took a little longer than an hour to do, and probably would have been faster if I hadn’t been catching up on episodes of Misfits! The end result is just what I wanted, and has been working out perfectly!

Merry Christmas everyone. Just wanted to share an old holiday tradition that you can steal, if you have a santa suit lying around. When I was very little, every year on Christmas day, Santa would knock on my grandparent’s front door, come in and give presents, and stay for photos. As I got older I realized this happened about 15 minutes after Grandpa got grumpy and went to take a nap in the other room. Although we all eventually figured it out Santa kept coming until we were almost all teenagers. I imagine these days he’s sitting up in heaven, dressed in a Santa suit, with Grandma on his lap, and a long line of kids waiting their turn.

December 24th has always been an important day in my family. Of course there is the anticipation of Christmas, and all of the last minute preparations for the holiday extravaganza. Usually there is some sort of celebration already starting, like visiting friends and family, maybe even opening presents. This photo is of my brother, sister and I all dressed up at Grandma Katy’s house, ready to go to Aunt Mary’s. And importantly – it’s my baby brother’s birthday. It’s always felt like a bit of a super-holiday – overfull and overexciting – almost too much, but not quite.

Growing up Christmas Eve meant some sort of gathering with Dad’s side of the family. There were snacks and sweets, Christmas music, and family. When I was younger this was always at Aunt Mary’s house, and included my grandmother’s siblings, their kids, and their kids kids. Aunt Mary had a little buffet set up in the kitchen, with ham, cocktail bread, cheese balls (I loved the port wine one), and sweets. There were bowls of “chicken feed” (aka Chex mix) around the house. I got in trouble more than once for picking out the cashews! Uncle Jimmy played bartender in the laundry room – always laughing and telling jokes. We always had to dress up, and be on our best behavior,and remember not to bother Aunt Mary’s schnauzer – he did not like children!

As the years went by the big family gathering became a smaller one, at Grandma Katy’s house. There were still cheese balls, chicken feed, cookies, fudge and family. Grandma always had a fire going too, and I loved sitting on the hearth, just as close as I could get without blistering, to listen to the pops and watch the sparks flying up the chimney. We always got to pick one present to open, and I was always terrified I’d open a package of new underwear in front of everyone. I don’t think that ever happened, but it always worried me. The photo at the top is of my brother, sister and I all dressed up at Grandma Katy’s house, ready to go to Aunt Mary’s. The one right above is of my baby sister and my mom a few year’s earlier.

As my brother’s birthday just happens to be December 24th, we celebrated that too, each year. He complained quite a bit, but I never really thought about how annoying that must have been. The rest of us were excited about Christmas, and I know he got a lot of presents that were “for your birthday AND for Christmas.” More than once his birthday cake was a holiday cake from the grocery store and his birthday presents wrapped in Christmas paper. My grandmother, holding my one-week old sister, and my Aunt Beth are singing happy birthday over a Christmas stocking cake in this photo. He and my sister, who’s birthday is just a week before his, always called Christmas “Screwed Out of a Present Day.” Nowadays we try very hard to differentiate birthday cakes, gift wrap and celebrations, but there will always be a bit of blurring on what we’re celebrating.

Now that I’m all grown up I’m faced with finding new Christmas Eve customs. I’m married, so there’s my husband’s family to incorporate, and finding a balance between the two families is a work in progress. We don’t yet have true traditions, but we’re working on it. In some ways it’s stressful. I miss the comfort of tradition – of knowing what will happen, where we’ll be when, who we’ll be with. In other ways its exciting! I get to choose what traditions I want. (OK, we want – gotta include the hubby in there.) I look forward to piecing together a comforting quilt of holiday traditions to snuggle under with the folks I love.

I wish you all a happy, comfortable holiday, with all the love you can stand. And if you need to add a cheeseball to your traditions, Grandma Katy’s recipe is below. (I don’t think they make English Chateau cheese spread any more, but I think it was a cheddar-y kind of spread. Heck, I’m not sure what you can find in the way of cheese spreads, but here it is anyway.) Happy December 24th!

I made these ornaments last year to go with my “woodland” themed goodie baskets (I love a theme!). These were a pretty last-minute project. I think I made them a few days before Christmas, so some of the materials were on sale ridiculously cheap. I got the flatter round ornaments, mostly because I felt the glass was a little thicker than the globe version, but I think they were perfect for these. I bought one package of mixed mosses and an assortment of wild-looking holiday picks (these were 80% off I think – most were under $.20 each!). I used Aleene’s Quick Dry Tacky Glue and a skewer to glue the different elements in.

Before starting, cut up your floral picks into smaller pieces that will fit easily inside your ornament. Start with the moss – apply a decent amount pf glue to the bottom inside of the ornament, being careful not to get it all over the sides of the ornament. Next, roll up a small piece of moss, enough to cover the bottom, and stuff it into the hole in the top of the ornament. I used a clean skewer and a pair of hemostats (scissor looking things with flat, ridged tips that grip together) to guide the moss into place.

Once it was where I wanted it I used the blunt end of the skewer to tamp it down into the glue so it would set. Next I chose the leaves and fronds I wanted to make up my mini landscape. Most ornaments had three pieces (odd numbers look best, right?). Again I applied a gob of glue first with a skewer, then I used the hemostats to shove the floral bits into the ornament, and get that bottom end right into the glue. These dried overnight, then the cap went back on, and a bit of ribbon was attached to the top for hanging.

I also did a few tiny ornaments with just some moss inside. They were all a huge hit, if I do say so myself! My sister has hers on her “Alice in Wonderland” themed Christmas tree this year! You can see more photos of her tree on her website, lucidbee.com.

My holiday baking and candymaking extravaganza has begun! We’re not showing our house right now (holidays and pending contract!) so I’ve started on the craziness that happens every year usually in early December. Last night I was up late making the first few batches of pistachio brittle! Last year was the first year I made this brittle, and it was a HUGE hit. It was also a HUGE trial! The idea came from one of the Martha Stewart issues I was looking at last fall/winter, but the recipe in the magazine was a disaster! I believe the ratio of sugar to water was 2 cups sugar to 1/4 cup water. It just did not work. After two tries I took out my trusty Party Nuts cookbook, which saved the day – as usual. If you don’t have it, go get it. And while you’re at it check out author Sally Sampson’s cooking magazine ChopChop.

My recipe here is the same basic, simple brittle recipe you can find in Party Nuts (I’ve doubled the amounts – I know, it’s a no-no, but it worked). I’ve chopped up my pistachios and cut the brittle, which I took from the Martha Stewart Living magazine. The end result is sweet, salty, crunchy and yummy!

Ingredients:

2 cups granulated sugar
1 cup water
3 1/2 cups coarsely chopped salted pistachios

Before each session of candymaking I test my candy thermometer by boiling a pot of water, and making sure the thermometer reads 212 degrees farenheit. If you’re going to rely on your thermometer it needs to be accurate!

Before you get started prep your pan with enough foil to have a hang-over on each side, and spray the foil very well with spray-oil.

Butter a spoonula (or a spoon and a spatula) to stir and spread the brittle, and butter a large knife for cutting up the brittle. Have a large cutting board standing by, ready for the brittle. Finally, chop your pistachios (in the food processor if you can – save your energy!) and measure out the amount you’ll need – have it standing by!

Now that you’re prepared, put the sugar and water in a pan over high heat and boil. (I admit, I’m a bit lazy here – I just plop the thermometer in at the start, and I don’t wash down the sides of my pan with a wet pastry brush. Every time I’ve tried to do that I’ve ruined my candy, so I skip it now.)

Boil at high heat for about five minutes, or until all of the sugar is dissolved and the liquid is clear. Reduce the heat to medium-ish and continue to boil until it reaches about 305 degrees. Pay very close attention once it hits 260 or so, as the temperature will rise very quickly. Every recipe I’ve seen indicates 300 degrees, and some say a few extra work well to counteract humid conditions. I like a little more of the burnt sugar taste of caramel in my brittle, so I actually cooked this to almost 320. You have to watch it VERY VERY close, and take it off the heat as soon as you start to smell that “burnt sugar” smell. It should just be starting to turn cinnamon colored. If in doubt, take it off, because if it goes too far you’re stuck with nothing but a mass of burnt sugar.

Immediately after you take it off the heat, stir in the pistachios, quickly! You’ll notice there are no photos of this step. Dump your candy onto the prepared foil and spread it as quickly as you can into a relatively even thickness. Let the brittle sit for about two minutes, then pick it up using the foil overhang and plop it over onto the cutting board.

Working quickly cut the brittle into square-ish pieces. If it gets too cool it will start breaking rather than cutting. You can stick it in a low oven for a few minutes to soften it back up, or you can just go with the flow and break it up (my choice). Let the brittle cool for another 10 or 15 minutes and you’ll have a lovely treat everyone will be happy to eat!

If you’ve been to a craft store around the holidays I’m sure you’ve seen towering stacks of these glass ornaments in a variety of shapes and sizes. Every couple of years I pick some up and make something out of them – usually to attach to packages full of sweet treats. I’m making ornaments again this year, so I thought I’d share what I’m making, as well as some other ideas you might be able to use to make your own nifty (and cheap!) ornaments for your own tree, or for gifts!

I wait until these glass balls go on sale at my local Hobby Lobby before I buy them. It seems that every other week during November and December they’re 40% or 50% off, and it’s worth the wait to me. Other supplies you’ll need depend on how you want to use your ornaments. I’m going to make some for my tree that are very similar to the candles I made earlier this week – using micro beads and double-sided tape and adhesive dots. I won’t walk through that again here – just click over to my earlier post to see the process – it’s exactly the same!

Over the weekend I dug through my mom’s ornaments for a few to use around the house (since mine are all packed away and buried right now). I came across this ornament that I made for my first Christmas in my own place. That year my roommate and I made bunches of ornaments, but this is the only one I can find now. It’s a simple process – white glue drawn on the glass in a design, then sprinkled with glitter. I thought I’d make a few more this year to tie on to packages. I used a small paintbrush and a toothpick alternately to draw on my design on the ornament above, but I got lazy and just squirted the glue right out of the bottle onto the glass today.

I worked in sections, and let the first part dry completely before turning it over and working on the next.  It took about four turns to get the whole thing done, using the container the ornaments originally came in to hold them while they dry. I think last time I rigged a skewer that I could hang them on while they dried – I just wasn’t that organized this time!

I took this picture at World Market – I’m not going to make these this year, but I thought it was a great idea. A square glass ornament has a picture decoupaged on the back (facing forward) and glitter was used on the sides to “frame” the picture. I think this would be a great way to repurpose old holiday cards – I can’t seem to make myself get rid of them! If any of you decide to make these I’d love to see how they turn out!

I have another glass ornament project I’ll be sharing with you later on in the week, when I can dig everything out to photograph it. I’m going to squeeze in as much crafty fun as I can before Christmas! Happy crafting everyone!

I’ve had big plans to share lots of crafty Christmas decorations with you guys here, but I’ve found myself super busy (as always) with a myriad of holiday doings of late, and I think my plans must be altered a bit. Later this week I will have some ideas for using those glass ball ornaments you find at craft stores everywhere, and next week I’ll have an easy and inexpensive modeling dough recipe and some basic ornaments you can make from the dough. I might even be able to squeeze in a felt ornament tutorial and free pattern – I’m hopeful, but noncommittal.

In the meantime, I thought I’d share a few links to other bloggers with great tutorials and crafty creations. I hope you find something fun to make!

How About Orange is one of my daily online stops. I love her aesthetics and all of the practical goodies (and time wasters!) that can be found on her blog. Right now on the left sidebar you can find links to several years worth of paper ornament posts with directions. I think my favorite right now is the Lacy Snowflake above, but they are all cute, easy and so inexpensive to make!

Angry Chicken is another favorite of mine, and a good place to stop by for inspiration. There is an easy Advent Calendar project up right now. I’ve always loved the idea of an advent calendar, but never have attempted one myself. I think this would be a great way to do it if you have kids. And if you do give stickers (in an advent calendar or otherwise) I recently learned that wax paper is a great accompaniment. Kids can play with the stickers, move them around, and reuse them if they use wax paper.

Young House Love is a great general DIY site – lots of home stuff, which you know I love. They have some great ornament projects, and I particularly love the little animal ornaments. What a fun addition to a tree! I probably love these even more because they remind me of a couple of wreaths I’ve made by spray painting plastic toys. Maybe next year when I have access to my Christmas stuff I’ll pull ours out and take some pics to share here.

One last favorite – Martha Stewart, of course. There are probably millions of ideas on marthastewart.com, but I’m loving these button ornaments, myself. I’m not making them this year, but I have a feeling they’ll show up at some point in the future!