Handmade vs. Homemade

Yesterday I got a lovely thank you note in the mail thanking me for the "homemade" gift they'd received from me. As I read the note, I couldn't help but cringe when I got to the word "homemade". I feel like "homemade" sounds so cheap. Like all I could afford to give was something I threw together at home when quite the opposite is true. I could have so easily popped in to Target and got her something there, but instead I lovingly picking out something special to make and then spent several hours working on the project just for her. I know she didn't mean to make me cringe, but it just gives me such an unsettling feeling and that dreadful word makes me feel like my efforts weren't really appreciated. I think if someone doesn't sew, they just don't realize how long it takes to make something or the thought and effort that goes into the process. I much prefer the word handmade to homemade, it sounds so much classier. What word do you prefer and have you ever had this happen to you?

Printed fabrics, colors, & sewing with a plan

While exercising this morning my closet door was open and I couldn't help but notice how I have so many items that clearly don't go together. From my observation, I can see I really gravitate to printed fabrics and have lots of things that really only go with jeans (which is fine since I wear jeans 99.9% of the time). Still it seems a little unsettling to me that I have so many things that don't mix and match. Would I go to the store and buy so haphazardly? Probably not, however I don't seem to have a problem sewing in that fashion. I buy fabrics that I like without really thinking about the end result of what I'll make or who will wear it. I think it's really time I sew with a SWAP (sewing with a plan) mentality. I'm wasting my time and energy (as well as money) buying fabrics and sewing things that don't all marry together.

I also have been thinking more about color lately and what colors look good with my skin tone and hair color. Back around Christmas I was chatting with my mom about "my colors" and she gave me my late grandma's copy of Color Me Beautiful by Carole Jackson. My book is copyright 1980 so the pictures are a bit dated in the book, but the information is still valuable on how to choose which "season" you are. After doing some reading, I determined I'm a "winter" (what my mom and late grandma always told me I was and what "season" they are too). The colors that suit me best are cooler colors - ones that are clear, vivid, or icy with blue undertones (my palette also includes black and white). It's really an excellent book to pick up or borrow from the library if you're unsure of what colors look good on you. To reinforce the point to myself, I recently came to realize that just about every time I wear red, I receive a compliment on how great I look in that color. We all have colors that look good us, we just need to find out what those colors are and wear them. Yes, I am completely guilty of wanting to wear colors outside my palette (why do I love brown so much, it looks terrible on me???). Obviously it's not a crime to wear unflattering colors, however, I now understand how "my" colors seem to bring me to life while the ones that aren't in my palette make me look pale and lifeless.

So my "plan" is to try to sew with a plan. I want to create garments that mix and match and that are also in the "winter" color family. What is the sense in wasting my time and money making things that don't look good on me or go with nothing in my closet? I also want to have staples in my closet that help boost my wardrobe. Those "go to" pieces that I can always rely on to be dressed up or down as needed. Just because I'm a SAHM (stay at home mom) doesn't mean I shouldn't have a fab-u-lous wardrobe.

Just a little thinking out loud today.... :-)

P.S. I forgot to mention that I made four shirts over the weekend (no pictures yet). Two from Jalie 2682 (one in a print - imagine that and it's not really a flattering print for me either) and one in red. Then two from the Ottobre 2-2007-04 (gathered front t-shirt without puffed sleeves) - one in a pink print that is actually flattering to me and the other in the remainder of the red jersey.

Life's Recipe

While cleaning out my recipe box today, I found this "recipe". It's definitely words to live by so I thought I'd share it. I think it came from Quick Cooking magazine several years ago.

Life's Recipe

1 cup of good thoughts

1 cup of kind deeds

1 cup of consideration for others

2 cups of sacrifice for others

3 cups of forgiveness

3 cup of well-beaten faults

Mix above ingredients thoroughly. Add tears of joy, sorrow, and sympathy for others. Flavor with little bits of love. Fold in 4 cups of prayer and faith. Pour into daily life and bake well with the heart of human kindness. Serve with a smile.

Happy Valentine's Day

Hope you're surrounded by the people and things you love on this holiday!

10 years later...

okay not really, but that is always what I say to DH when something is taking forever. So sorry it's taken me forever to write reviews and post pictures. It seems as tho one day leads into the next and here we are the middle of February already.

First up is an Ottobre Woman t-shirt I made from the 2/2007 issue. I made this right before our cruise and packed it with me. I love it and see many more variations of this in my future. My review can be read on PR.

Next up is another one of my Grandma's aprons. I got this fabric on clearance at Joann's around Christmas and it was in my "to do" pile so I decided to whip up a new one real quick - I need a little bright colors right now anyway with all the dull winter weather that is around.

While I was a Super Bowl widow, I got a chance to make Will a new sweatshirt (per his request). It turned out perfect and is from the current issue of Ottobre (1/2008). He adores it and has wore it countless times already ~ here is my review on PR.

My oldest son needed some new pants (as usual), so last week I experimented with a pattern from the 3/2002 issue of Burda WOF that was a pair of elastic waist pants. I made a wearable muslin first and took the alterations to the pattern (slicing and dicing) and this was my end result. He loves them and particularly loves the Pirate Ship embroidered on the pocket. I used red Jeans Stitch thread for the topstitching and added some knee patches to the front so increase the longevity of wear (hopefully). More info on these pants is in my review.

I have two cousin-in-laws who are pregnant, but are not finding out the gender of their babies. So I've been working on some gender neutral items for the both of them. Here are two baby gowns from Kwik Sew 3090 and hats from New Conceptions Baby Essentials pattern.

A sleep sack from Kwik Sew 3089

And last but not least, a shopping cart seat cover. The pink one below is one I made this past fall for my aunt's granddaughter. I'm posting them so you can see what they look like in the shopping cart. Yesterday I made a gender neutral one for this weekend's shower. I also posted a review of this pattern on PR today. It was a super easy pattern and is only $3 on eBay!

Now for a bit of family fun. DH & I have been talking about taking our kids to visit the Tillamook Cheese Factory in Tillamook, OR for quite some time. We decided to make the 2.5 hour trek this past Saturday and the kids were so excited. Unfortunately they have changed it since we were last there and there wasn't as much to see, plus the packing line is closed on the weekend. It turned out to be a dud of a trip, tho the kids thought it was fun. On the way home, we drove up the coast line, making a loop and seeing different scenery. We stopped in a little town called Seaside and walked around a bit, but Andy was getting tired and onrery, plus the sprinkles were starting to come down, so back in the van we went and traveled home. It was a fun family day even tho the tour of the factory was a bust. Here are a few pictures from our day.

Happy Sewing!!!

Yay Me!!!!

Well today I have the privilege of being a football widow (I'm so sad football is over - wahh!). Since we're in the midst of tax season and I got all the documents in the mail this past week, I first got that chore out of the way. It took me a bit longer than expected, however I always like to be careful and double check my work to make sure I entered everything in the program correctly and it jives with what our return looked like last year. Thankfully I got that all done and efiled (I even got an email a less than 4 hours later that the IRS accepted my return already - woo hoo!). And the best news is we get a little refund back (which means I did the math correctly when figuring out our exemptions for the year on DH's W-4 ~ they didn't get to use our money for free for the year and we didn't have to pay them anything).

So after all my tax stuff was buttoned up, I got busy finishing up some pants I made for my oldest son that I started earlier in the week (from an old Burda WOF) and then I also made my middle son a sweatshirt per his request (from the new 1/2008 Ottobre magazine). I'm keeping my fingers crossed that all fits perfectly and I can post reviews and pictures in the next day or so. Hope your day was as productive as mine was! :-)

Coming up for air...

Ahh, the *Beautiful* Monarch of the Seas (yes they called it beautiful every time they referred to it while we were on board). DH & I had such a wonderful time on our belated anniversary trip. The weather was lovely (tho for me it could have been hotter) and we had a most fabulous time. I wasn't ready to come home, tho I did miss the kids. Three nights just wasn't long enough for me, tho I'm sure my MIL was ready for us to return (bless her heart and my FIL too for watching our precious babies while we had a much deserved time away).

Our only port of call was Ensenada, Mexico, and I was less than impressed (unfortunately). It was shop after shop of the same things and ladies with their babies begging on the street for money every step you took. It was so sad actually. We were hoping to enjoy a yummy authentic Mexican lunch, but the place we visited (the #1 recommend lunch spot per Royal Caribbean) was a bomb. The food was awful! I've had more authentic Mexican food in my own town. Oh well, it's a vacation and things like that just don't get you down. We enjoyed lots of really fun activities aboard the ship and even took a few naps too! But as they always say, "all good things must come to an end" and an abrupt ending it was (waking up at 6am to get ready for the ship departure isn't my favorite way to end a vacation). Back to reality, oh bleck!

I will admit I've had a hard time getting back into the swing of things. Coming home from a vacation is hard work. We did have a little bit of fun intermixed with getting back to reality in the form of a snow day. We live pretty much at sea level so snow isn't plentiful around here. But forecasters were saying we'd be getting a little snow late Sunday/early Monday and they were right on. We had an inch or two is all and then kids had a blast playing outside in it. And as usual, it was melted by afternoon. :-(




Lastly, my sweet friend Rhonda tagged me for a fun little game! Here are the Rules for this Topic:*Link to the person who tagged you.*Post the rules on your blog.*Share six non-important things/habits/quirks about yourself.*Tag six random people at the end of your post by linking to their blogs.*Let each random person know they have been tagged by leaving a comment on their website.

1) I used to hate tomatoes until I was pregnant with my fourth child.

2) I have to wash my hands the minute I step foot in the house after I grocery shop - all those germs from the carts gross me out.

3) I say "sorry" too much. I always say sorry even to people I don't know in the stores and such. Why do I have to say it all the time, I annoy the heck out of my self every time I catch myself saying it.

4) My favorite dessert is my mom's Huckleberry Delight. I ask for it ever year on my birthday and that is usually the only time it's made each year. I guard the leftovers I get and don't let anyone eat them - it's mine!!! (can you hear my evil laugh?)

5) I used to collect postage stamps as a kid.

Well that sure what harder than I thought. After all that thinking, I don't even know who to tag, so you're all off the hook. Nitey nite! :-)

Bag Making is Painful!

I have wanted a nice travel bag for some time, but now our upcoming weekend jaunt has prompted me to get my rear in gear. My bag of choice was the Amy Butler Weekender bag. I've only made a few bags, but nothing at all like this one (lots of super stiff interfacing to help it keep it's shape and miles of cording). It was a 13 hour workout, but thankfully the end result was worth it (and yes I truly experienced *real* pain - hand sewing 60" of lining to a zipper - I'm a slow hand stitcher). I posted a review on Pattern Review if you'd like all the little details of how the process went ~ bag review.

Next up, a day of rest! I don't know what this afternoon will bring, maybe a little web surfing and relaxing, I think I earned it after yesterday's bag making adventure.

Busy Busy!

Well what's a girl to do when her wonderful hubby takes all four kids to his parents for the entire day to watch football? Sew of course! Last Saturday was a dream day in the making for me. I rarely get much time to myself (heck sometime I can't even go to the bathroom in peace), so having the house completely to myself for a whole day was heaven on Earth (I'm easy to please, huh?). Well knowing a few days ahead of time I was going to have this wonderful day to myself, I lined up a few tops I was wanting to make for an upcoming little getaway DH and I have planned. We're going on a short little cruise down to Ensenada, Mexico and so of course I wanted some new clothes to wear. To make a long story short (and not too painful stirring up bad memories! LOL), I made three McCalls garments (a shrug 5389 and a twin set 5536) all of which were a flop (I know I should review them, but I don't know if I can even muster up the energy to do that) and then a pair of pull on pants from Simplicity 3800 - I actually really liked these, it was just the fabric was horrible (a gross poly knit that I have no clue when it came from - good muslin I guess). So after all the disasterous projects, I decided to trace off something from the 1-2008 Burda WOF. It's a gorgeous wrap top (#116) and I knew after all the flops I had that day, that Burda would come through and save the day. Thankfully the day was saved (well for the most part - the ties are too short, but that is a minor thing that can be fixed next go round). My review for the top is posted here.

Next up is a top I finally finished after working on it for several weeks. I'm usually not that slow, but it was over Christmas break and I ran out of hot pink thread during the process too. I have loved this top since I got the issue and am so glad I finally made it. I like that it's a jazzed up sweatshirt, something not so ordinary. I plan to add another one or two to my wardrobe when time allows. I also posted a review for this top ~ it's from 11/2007 #118.

On my "home alone" day, this was another garment I had cut out. Another version of the cowl neck top from 10/2005 Burda WOF - love it! Thankfully Burda helped me get a few things right that day! :-)
And lastly, I completed a UFO for my oldest son. It's from 4/2007 Ottobre #28. I cut this sweatshirt out in September and just the other day got it sewn up for him. The best part is he LOVES it and he has plenty of room so he won't be outgrowing this very soon. The review for this sweatshirt is posted here.

Up next.....I just don't know. I would like a few more new tops for our trip, so I think that is the direction I will go. I'd also like a new bag to take on the plane, so maybe I'll go that way. So many choices, so little time. Happy sewing!

Help me pick a garment steamer

For a while now, I've wanted to buy a steamer for my sewing studio. It got some cash for Christmas, so now is the perfect opportunity to treat myself. I noticed in the recent Hancock Fabrics ad that they had the Homemedics Commercial Steamer on sale for $49.99 - thinking the word "commercial" equals quality, I stopped by and picked one up. Well today I finally took it out of the box and I'm less than impressed. It seems like it should be sturdier than it is, so I started snooping around PR and the net and found some other steamers that are probably a better investment than the one I purchased. I steamed the cuffs of my McCalls puffy sleeve blouse and it worked pretty good, but I have no experience with a steamer, so I don't know if it actually did a good job or not.

So give me your opinion - do you have a steamer? If so, which one? Do you have the one I purchased? If so, do you like it? I am now thinking of returning the steamer (the lady at Hancock's told me I had 60 days to decide if I didn't like it) and buying the Jiffy J-2000 from Costco, but they also have another one on the Costco website too called SteamFast Professional Steamer. They both are close in price so it's not at all about the price, it's about the quality. I want something that I will have for the long haul. I'm not even sure how often I'll use it, but it makes no sense to buy a piece of junk for $50 that I'm going to have to replace.

Looking forward to hearing some opinions on the issue, so please don't be shy!

Happy 2008!!!!

Goodness, how can another year have flown by? That I don't know, but I will say it's happening faster and faster the older I get. And talk about celebrating like old folks, we were in bed by 10pm last night. In our defense tho, my hubby had to work today (he always has to work New Year's Day) and gets up at 4am for work and the kids go back to school tomorrow, so it really was necessary not to ring in the new year with the rest of the Pacific coasters. We did get a notice from our neighbors (albeit a rude notice) that it was indeed the new year by them continuously lighting off boxes (yes whole boxes at a time) of firecrackers and then screaming. Our poor dog - she's an outside German Shepperd, but she slept inside last night because she was so freaked out by all the fireworks that kept going off.

I was hoping to get some sewing done today after I've been a cleaning fool the past few days packing up Christmas decorations and doing some household reorganizing. However instead of blissfully sewing, I'm reorganizing my sewing studio. I am publicly announcing I have too much sewing cr@p and need to get a handle on things. I have WAY too much fabric and patterns and accumulation of stuff stresses me out. So my quest this year is to sew using what I have. I spend way too much time moving piles around and reorganizing and it now occurs to me (yes, *just* now) that if I didn't have so much stuff, it wouldn't be a problem. I wouldn't have to spend so much time organizing if I didn't have all this stuff to content with. I plan to weed out things I don't want so I can get on to doing what I love to do - sewing! And make no mistake, I am not saying I won't buy a single piece of fabric or pattern this whole year, but instead I am going to give it my best to use what stash I have when I'm sewing (both fabric and patterns). There is just no sense in hording fabric, there is no shortage and Lord knows there will always be fabric and pattern sales. I will be keeping my Burda WOF and Ottobre subscriptions tho, those I honestly can't live without. ;-)

Cheers to a healthy & productive 2008!!!!

Merry Christmas!

Wishing you and your loved ones a very Merry Christmas - may you be blessed beyond measure!

Burda WOF does it again...

With another fabulous pattern (#101 from the 9/2007 issue). I'd seen this top reviewed on Pattern Review several times and then LoriV made her version recently and I just knew I needed one too. It was pretty quick going, tho WOF does often have weird directions (they would be doing themselves a favor by hiring a better translator). I muddled through and viola, I have a new top to wear to Christmas dinner at my parent's house tomorrow. I actually think it looks cuter in person, but the picture is a fairly good representation of it. I tried belting it up too with a cute belt I have worn over the top and I like that look too. It's just a nice twist on the usual t-shirt ~ a little more dressy, tho the unfitted look will take some getting used to for me. For all the details, check out my review. :-)

Come for a ride on the Gingerbread Train!

It's finished! To be honest, I was actually kicking myself that I suggested to the kids we make a Gingerbread Train (I usually buy a kit at Costco for the house which is WAY easier since everything is ready to go). I saw the idea in Family Fun Magazine last Christmas and clipped the article out. I promised we'd make it once school let out for Christmas vacation and holding true to my promise I made the dough Tuesday night so we could make the train Wednesday. We got off to a rocky start with my rolling pin handle breaking so we waited for Grandma to come over and bring her rolling pin so we could get the dough all cut and baked. Then this morning I assembled the train and the kids went hog wild decorating it. I turned out to me much more fun than I anticpated and I'd really like to have the Gingerbread Train become a tradition we do every year. And keeping my post "sewing" related, I covered a cardboard bolt from the fabric store with tin foil for the base for the train. :-) Click on the above link if you'd like the instructions on how to make your own train, it really is easy, just more time consuming than buying a kit at the store.

P.S. Okay I'm really a huge dork - I just see now that online they have templates you can print out for the train and here I had my ruler out drawing all the pieces yesterday - well that makes it WAY easier! LOL

Pants for me

I finally got my pants finished today - talk about s-l-o-w progress, but nonetheless, they are finished and I even wore them to my daughter's Christmas concert this afternoon. I'm pleased with how they turned out (tho they could be a tad longer, but I used every square inch of fabric so this is the best I could do). The pattern required some tweaking to get them to fit my tush, but pants are not the easiest thing for me to fit so I wasn't at all surprised. I even made two muslins (something that is rare for me)! The final pants were still a little off in the waist and I think that is due to the stretch of the fabric (it's a stretch woven with some lycra in it). So I ended up pinching out some in the back waist to get a better fit which resulted in scooping out a little more of the crotch so I didn't have a wedgie. All in all, I'm very pleased with how they turned out and I feel like the style flatters my figure. I really do need to get myself a TNT pants pattern that I can have as my master pattern and then change up the design elements to create different pant styles. If you have a swayback, you know what a pain pants fitting really is. Anyway, here is my review on PR if you'd like to know more.

Of course I just had to make my daughter a new dress for her Christmas program at school. I bought some panne velvet at Joann's a few weeks ago to make myself a dress for hubby's work Christmas party, but decided that fabric might not be the most flattering for me so I didn't make the dress. DD fell in love with the fabric and kept wrapping herself in it and begging for me to make her something so I decided to make her an Olivia hoodie dress (it's a European pattern brand called Farbenmix). It's such an easy and cute dress and she has several more in her closet that she loves so I knew it would be a hit. Well it was definitely a hit and she hardly wants to take it off!

Last, but definitely not least (and the reason why I didn't finish my pants sooner) was because I was making the kids their Christmas pj's. I started a tradition a few years ago of making the kids pj's for Christmas that they get to open on Christmas Eve right before bed. The above picture is obviously DD's pair (the top is a basic t-shirt from Ottobre and the pants are McCall's 4708 ~ I made these for her last year too and she really liked them. For the boys I used Simplicity 8493 for the pants (also made of flannel - a race car print) and the shirt pattern from my favorite KS knit pj patterns. Sorry no picture of the boys pj's - I must be sneaky so they don't see.

Next up is.....I haven't a clue! I seriously have this huge long list of things I want to do, but I need to be realistic. We leave for our cruise in a month so I should be thinking ahead to that. Problem is I haven't a clue what the weather will be. We're going from LA to northern Mexico and according to the average temperatures it will only be mid 60's (brrr!). So I guess it will be more like a summer Alaskan cruise! LOL I honestly haven't a clue what to take. I doubt I'll be lounging poolside in my bikini. When we're a week out I can see the forecast better, but until then I guess I'll have to think warmer things, tho mid 60's may feel like a heatwave to me in a month! ;-)

Tomorrow I think the kids and I are making a Gingerbread Train so no sewing will probably be happening. Hopefully we can get the train made with minimal mess - go ahead and laugh, impossible with four kids!

Christmas Questionnaire (I've been tagged!)

I've been tagged by my friend Rhonda of Rhoto's Rag to answer this Christmas Questionnaire, so without further ado, here ya go ~

1) Wrapping paper or gift bags? Wrapping paper, tho I occasionally use a gift bag. Wrapping paper provides no peeking, so it's better in my house!

2) Real tree or artificial? I honestly would love to have a real tree, but we have an artificial one and have since we got married.

3) When do you put up your tree? Right after Thanksgiving - well within a week or so.

4) When do you take the tree down? Usually a few days after Christmas. By then I'm sick of it and am ready for things to get back to "normal".

5) Do you like eggnog? Yes, but rarely have a glass.

6) Favorite gift received as a child? I think the year I got my first Cabbage Patch Kid! I was elated and my dad well threw a lot to get them for my sister and me (no beating up people, but visiting Toys R Us daily until he got them, thankfully it was close by his business).

7) Do you have a Nativity scene? Yes ~ a pretty one I bought at Costco right after I got married.

8) The hardest person to buy for? Usually my step-dad, not sure why.

9) The easiest person to buy for? I think my daughter. She's such a girly girl and I'm a girly girl too so it is easier and getting more fun each Christmas!

10) The worst Christmas gift you ever received? I don't know actually, must have not been too awful because I can't think of one!

11) Mail or e-mail Christmas cards? Mail, and usually I have them ready to go by Dec 1st.

12) Favorite Christmas movie? A Christmas Story

13) When do you start shopping for Christmas? There is no definite time, just when I see something that is perfect for someone on my list - it could be February, but serious shopping by the beginning of November. I don't like to deal with all the crazy people out unless it's on my terms, not because I'm in dire need to find a gift.

14) Have you ever recycled a Christmas present? Yes, but in my defense it's been for our family gift exchange and it's like a white elephant thing.

15) Favorite things to eat at Christmas? Just about any kind of sweets.

16) Clear lights or colored on the tree? Our tree is prelit with both clear and colored, but I prefer clear lights.

17) Favorite Christmas song? We have a Frank Sinatra CD and I love his version of "Go Tell It on the Mountain" - there is just something about it. I don't really consider it a Christmas song, but it must be since it's on the CD

18) Travel at Christmas or stay home? We stay in our local area, but travel to our parents' homes for holiday festivities (they both live about 20 minutes away).

19) Can you name all Santa's reindeer? Dasher, Dancer, Prancer, Vixen, Comet, Cupid, Donner, Blitzen, & Rudolph (not sure if I spelled them all correct tho!).

20) Angel on the tree top or a star? We actually have Mickey Mouse on our tree (we bought it for our first tree and plan to use it every Christmas - this is #12 he's topped our tree!).

21) Open the presents Christmas Eve or morning? Christmas morning, tho the kids do get to open one gift on Christmas Eve (pj's I make for them).

22) Most annoying thing about this time of year? The commercialism that has come to ruin the holiday. It actually makes me ill when I think about it. It has just gotten so out of hand.

23) What is the "corniest" family tradition you do or miss doing? I'm not sure it's really corny, but we love to drive around and look at the lights together with Christmas Carols playing on the radio in the car. I also love to bake and decorate cookies with the kids - oh and gingerbread houses if we have time.

24) Ugliest Christmas decorations ever invented? Anything that has only all blue lights - there is something about all blue lights that just don't jazz me (sorry if I offend you - to each his or her own, right?).

25) Which looks the best...theme trees or homey trees? I actually love both. We have a homey tree with all the ornaments the kids have made at school, from places we've visited, and other "milestones" like first Christmas, etc.

26) What does Christmas mean to you? To me, Christmas is about celebrating with my family and friends and remembering the birth of Jesus. After all, he's the reason for the season.

All right, hope you made it through the list - I'm tagging Stacy of Stacy Sews since I know she's doing anything to avoid packing so she can move into her new home! :-)

Merry Christmas to everyone, may you have a peaceful and joyous holiday season!

Lady in Red

Last night was hubby's work Christmas party. I had decided since it was so cold out I'd wear the black trousers I was working on along with my McCall's blouse. After mentioning it to him, he comment how he thought a dress was more appropriate for the party, so I dashed in my sewing room like a crazy lady and made up this red dress! I didn't even have the pattern cut out when I went in there and my father-in-law was due to arrive in about 2.5 hours, so it was truly a race against the clock. I even had a few challenges along the way (all my own fault), but I got the dress done just in the nick of time! The only bad thing is I didn't even end up taking my coat off at the party because the room it was in was so stinkin' cold. Oh well, I have a pretty red dress that I will be able to take on our upcoming cruise in January. Of course I posted a review on PR with more details if you're so inclined. Oh and the boots are probably a big "no-no" with the dress, but I had no black dress pumps in my closet, just black sandals ~ talk about unprepared!

On Friday we went to a party at my friend's house. She was making pizza and requested the guests bring something sweet. While I love to bake cakes, pies, and other desserts for the holidays, I decided that a finger food would be a better choice since it can just be nibbled on. Last week I got a catalog from Dale & Thomas Popcorn in the mail, but after I finished drooling all over the pictures, I saw the pricetag - ouch, that is some spendy stuff. While I am sure it's yummy, I am pretty good with baking, so I decided to make my own version. I googled around the net and found a super easy carmel corn recipe and kicked it up a bit. Below is the result (and it was a huge hit at the party and with my family!).

The recipe is super easy and is all done in the microwave even using microwave popcorn, tho I have a Stir Crazy Popcorn popper and opted to use that. I honestly was a bit skeptical becuase the recipe has you put the popped popcorn in a paper bag and then into the microwave with the carmel on top. Amazingly enough, it works like a charm! The recipe calls for nuts, but since I didn't have any on hand, I added a few handfuls of pretzels instead. Honestly you could add whatever you like and dress it up to suit your tastes. I melted both chocolate chips and white almond bark for my version ~ really the possibilites are endless. Here is recipe if you'd like to try it. I know I'll be making this a few more times before Christmas!

Lastly, here is a picture of hubby & the kids before he drug the tree all the way over the edge. It's much easier to see the magnitude of how big that tree was when my 6'4" hubby is standing in front of it.

With any luck, I'll have my pants done tomorrow. I just need to finish sewing the waistband down on the inside (hand sewing), add the buttons, and hem them. I think they are going to be great pants and can't wait to get them all finished.

A little sewing and more

Yes, finally I got some sewing accomplished. Just minor sewing, but still it's sewing and I am proud! Last weekend I worked on a raglan tee for my oldest son - it's from the 1/2003 issue, # 31. I made a little patch using my embroidery machine on the arm that matched the design in the print so that was fun. I have another top cut out and ready to be sewn up for him, I think he's entering another growth spurt (he eats like there is no tomorrow and is always hungry!). I did post a review on PR if you'd like to read more ~ review for 1-2003-31.

Then I made two more pairs of pj's for my youngest. I used up small pieces of knits which felt good too. They are made using the retired Kwik Sew 2315. It's been a workhorse pattern for me, I have made countless pairs of pj's using it.

A while ago, I also made my oldest son a hoodie shirt using Ottobre 4-2005-34. It turned out really cute and finally posted a review about it too ~ review for hoodie.

Also in the sewing department, I'm working on a pair of trousers for myself. They are Simplicity 3686 (view B). I made two muslins the other day and had just a few minor fitting issues with these. I'm keeping my fingers crossed I'll like the end result.

Now for a more "Susie Homemaker-ish" thing, my middle boy had to bring a snack to school on Monday, so I made a fun cupcake tree for the class. He was really excited about how it looked and I'm sure the other Kindergarteners enjoyed it too. It was really easy (obviously) and the idea came from my Cupcakes: From The Cake Mix Doctor book. The book is really neat, tho I don't like it as much as the two original cake mix doctor books because there are not pictures of each cupcake. I need visuals to be inspired in cooking and this book just doesn't have that. The other book has little thumb nails in the front and I wish they would have done that in this book. It's not as effective as a full color picture next to the recipe, but it's better than nothing.

Now many of you have heard about the terrible storm that traveled through the Pacific NW last weekend and early this week. It went right through our area and was very dramatic. Horrible heavy rains and winds like you wouldn't believe for about 48 hours. Thankfully the only damage we had on our property was our big maple tree falling. It was over 100' tall and held the rope swing my children adored swinging on. It was at the bottom of our driveway close to our house and praise God it fell away from our house and down the bank. I don't even want to think about the damage it would have done to our home (mainly the garage). Here are a few pictures, tho it really is hard to see the magnitude of how big this tree was compare to actually looking at it.

Lastly is a photo (a very sad photo) of a town about an hour north of here where my good friend lives. So much of the town was flooded (some places had 10' of water). In the picture is Kmart (building on the left), a strip mall (in the middle), and Wal-Mart (on the right) and then the road going over the water is actually a freeway over pass (that is I-5 under it). Thankfully the freeway is back open now tho there was damage to the road that is going to take time to repair. And of course there are now lots of displaced residents of the area trying to figure out housing. There were many other hard hit towns all around the area, but particularly on the coast line ~ any still don't have power almost a week later. It's so sad ~ my thoughts and prayers go out to these people. Thankfully my friend's house sustained no damage, but many others definitely weren't that lucky.

Well duty calls. We have a Christmas party to attend tonight and tomorrow night so I need to get ready for the weekend. I have no clue what I'm wearing tomorrow night (the fancier one - DH's work party) so we'll see what the weather and my mood brings. I wanted to sew something new, but it's just been too hectic around here so atlas I'll have to wear something I already own. I thought about my Vogue 8386 , but it might be way too cold. Time will tell.

When it rains it pours....

Seriously, my family must be on a streak of bad things happening - this truly must be it for a while, right????? All went well on Thanksgiving. We had a lovely dinner, but then about 9pm that night Andy threw up all over the floor. At first we thought it was a fluke, that maybe he just had a full tummy and went to burp and instead had a little "accident". Well definitely not an accident. We had a few more episodes and he finally fell asleep about 11pm. So by this point, Chuck & I are panicking a bit because we've been to this movie a time or two. It always starts with Andy and then 2ish days later the whole rest of us have it. Well low and behold, yesterday it started with Will, then on to Jack, and then on to Hattie. Thank the good Lord, Chuck and I don't have it yet, but I'm not sure we're out of the woods. I've been Lysoling everything they touch and washing my hands to death, but either I'm going to get it or I won't. I'm full on in the middle of this so the chances are good I'm next.

I'm not sure how the kids (or rather Andy) acquired this lovely bug, but it was either one of two ways. On Wednesday Hattie was complaining of an ear ache, so I made an appointment to get her in for a check at the pediatric office. She had an ear infection and since we were already there I figured I'd be wise to get them the flu vaccine. So either A) Andy touched something at the doctor's office on Wednesday (but we were one of the first appointments of the day and were in the waiting room for maybe two minutes) and that is where he got this gunk or B) it's a reaction from the vaccine. Now I know they say you don't react like this to the vaccine, but it seems all too weird they'd suddenly come down with this and it makes sense to me that Andy might get it first because he is smaller than the others. It's just my wishful thinking that it's the vaccine so I'll be free and clear from the gunk, but it's probably a bug he picked up there. I just pray that Chuck & I will be spared the misery of puking our guts out in the next day or so.

I surely have paid my dues with bad things happening lately so this really MUST be the last thing right???? And I'm having major withdrawls from not sewing for so long. I'm not sure what I'll get done this week because the kids have early release due to conferences on Tues-Fri and tomorrow they probably won't be going to school at all. I feel like I'm here waiting for a death sentence, I just want to get this over with if it's going to happen - ugg, being sick just plain sucks! :-(

Happy Thanksgiving!

May you all be surrounded by good food and good family and/or friends on this special day. I am so thankful for all the blessings I have in my life and know you are too. Have a wonderful & safe Thanksgiving day! :-)