Wait for it...

So, just giving y'all a heads up...I'm working on really big things right now. Unfortunately, I can't share any of it with y'all!

It's been a busy few days and there's really no end in sight. My whole family was up here for my sweet cousin's wedding and my sister and I had the honor of being two of her bridesmaids! It was so fun to see everyone and celebrate this new chapter in her life! Congrats, Bridget and Bo! Have fun on the honeymoon!

The happy couple on their
engagement day!

I wish I could take credit for this awesome Groom's cake
but I can't. It was so good though! Carrot cake with
chocolate frosting? I think so. I didn't make Evan push
little girls out of the way to get me a piece or anything...

I thought I was going to have a little time to rest after the wedding weekend hoopla, but joyous occasions seem to be a theme in my life! I've somehow got to fit planning a baby shower, going to LA and San Fransisco to meet my boyfriend's mother and grandmother (eek! super nervous!) and making a cake for another friend's baby shower all into the span of one month. Oh, and then there's this little thing I have called A JOB. Ha. Work, crafts, cleaning, having a life and taking care of my sweet cat...what's a girl to do?!

I'm sure I can get it done, though! Anyway, Rachel, Petty and I are working hard planning a baby shower for...none other than Genesis. (Maybe I should rename my blog "Stuff I do for Genesis." Thoughts?) SO, we're busy little worker bees and everything is coming along swimmingly, but everything is going to be kept under wraps for a while. I love surprises and don't want to ruin this one. I do promise, however, that I'll upload a whole BUNCH of things as soon as the shower is over. Until then, I'll try to come up with some little crafts to keep y'all entertained.

If you get really blog-hungry, I've got a couple you should check out:

• http://whineandwineblogg.blogspot.com/
• http://thecrowdersgetcrowded.blogspot.com/
• http://table4one-lbp.blogspot.com/

 I'm sure Mercedes will miss y'all too. Keep yourself entertained with a few of the thousands of pictures I've taken of my cat. I feel like I MIGHT be on the verge of becoming the crazy cat lady. Eh, I think I'll be fine as long as I don't start putting cat statues up around my house...

Warm laundry...so happy. 

"If I hide in here, will she leave the
clothes here for a whole week?"
(note...I only left them for a day)

Cat in a box.
Why do we buy toys for cats or kids?
They just like the box it comes in. 

Cat with a cold. Pathetic. 

Hasta Luego, y'all. See you as soon as I can! xoxo!

Here's a Tip...Plastic Melts

Hey there! Just wanted to send y'all a tip that I learned tonight. Now, judging from the title, I am sure you're all saying "Yeah, dummy, plastic melts. Everyone knows that." That's not what I want to tell you all. I would like to say that, if you're doing some straightening or cleaning or just sitting at home and maybe have turned on an appliance or two and all of the sudden you smell a very faint burning smell, check the last thing you turned on. Especially if it's the dishwasher.

I smelled a tiny little bit of something burning last night and sniffed around at all the different things I thought it could be. Space heater? No. Washing machine? Nope. Dryer? Uh-uh. Printer? Negatory. Toaster and oven (although neither was on...thought maybe there was a poltergeist situation going on). Nyet.

However, I failed to check the last thing I had turned on: the dishwasher. It wasn't until I went to get a bowl out this evening that I noticed something small and red on the heater coils of my dishwasher...

RIP Red Plastic Measuring Spoons
You served me well these past 3 years.
You will be sorely missed.

However I'm very happy that big spoon and little (ok, well not the littlest spoon but, still, much smaller than big spoon) have finally made that formal commitment to each other and that two have now become one. 

Hey. Do you think I could give this to my cousin as a symbolic piece of art on the sanctity of marriage for her wedding this weekend? Somehow I think she might like it better than the gnome I was planning on...but there's a chance she might want the gnome. 

(ps, hey mom...I'm gonna need some new measuring spoons. I really liked these. Can you find me some more? They match the rest of my kitchen stuff.)

*A memorial service will be held in the spoons' honor this Thursday evening at 8:45 pm. This is the time I believed they left their kitchen-specific useful lives. No flowers, please. Red KitchenAid measuring spoons will be accepted, however. Or donations in the amount of $0.50 or under. They weren't expensive, but they were loyal and loved. 

Mapping it out...

So, I have this friend. I think you've read about her in my blog (if not, shame on you for not reading the initial posts...do so at your earliest convenience!). Her name is Genesis. She has GREAT creative ideas. And she calls on me to execute them. This project was (SHOCKER) not baby-related! She works at this awesome apartment community and they are doing something pretty cool. They're having a little competition with the other communities in their company. They each get to decorate a wall in one of their models and the best design wins! Genesis enlisted my help with her room, which I've decided to call "Loft in the City." They're creating a chic loft-style space with Atlanta-specific decor. Her community (which I should probably plug here--Mariposa Lofts http://www.livemariposa.com/) is located in the heart of Inman Park in Atlanta. Inman Park is the newest, coolest area in town. And Genesis wanted to convey this cool, hip side of the area in her design. She asked me to create a really big map. Yep. A map. I was just going to paint it on a canvas, but my super-awesome boss had a better idea. She is the epitome of cool, hip and chic and so is all the art in her house. She suggested I print off the map on my laser printer and do a layered collage type deal. So it has dimension and this cool vibe to it. Easier said than done, nanner mom...easier said than done.

What you'll need:

• 48x48 canvas (have fun getting this one home if you don't drive a u-haul truck...I got Gen's husband, Brett to fasten it to the roof of the civic. That was a fun ride home)
• Big old bottle of Mod Podge (the yellow bottle if you want matte or the orange if you want satin finish)
• Two sponge brushes
• A laserjet printer or your choice of images printed off at Kinko's. I use an HP Color LaserJet CP1215. Another awesome gift from my wonderful family! I'm pretty darn lucky! I highly recommend this for all you do-it-at-homers. :)
• Paper cutter
• LaserJet toner...make sure you have enough so you don't have to go back 3 different times...like I did.
• Lifetime Movie Network. There is a plethora of horrible movies on here and I just get sucked in totally! 

Anyway, I had fun doing it...here's what I did:



What is this strange contraption making so much noise?
Can I get inside? Is it a toy?



I created a map on AdobePhotoshop (I know, Illustrator would have been much easier, but my computer has decided to be a bit cantankerous so I made due...) and changed the size to 30x30 and then sectioned it off into 5x5 squares. I next increased the images size to 8x8. Then I printed all 36 of them off and cut off the excess paper.

Then I proceeded to attach them to the canvas (size 48x48) with the Matte finish Mod Podge.

What? I'm quite comfortable on this pile of paper and scrap
fabric and plastic bags. Go away now, please.

 Then I checked on the cat...she was chillin'.

Once I had the first layer done, I went started printing the second layer. I moved the lock guides on my image to make 5x5 squares in different places. I did this so that I could cover some of the seams and imperfections.

I can camouflage myself in the paper scraps...

Next, I cut them out. Pain in the butt, if I do say so.

Then I layered the second set and Mod Podge'd them on.

Do that a couple more times and you're done! Total project time: 2 days, but that was only because I had to get more toner and they were closed on Sunday. But, then again, if you add in the time it took me to CREATE the map on the slowest computer on earth, probably more like 3 days, but not continuous ones. Assembly took approximately 3 Lifetime movies. :)

This is the mess I still have to clean up, but don't feel like doing it right now. I had a lot of scraps left over, so maybe print off as necessary so you don't end up wasting a bunch of paper and toner. I think I'll keep these though and try to do something fun with them later. Any ideas are more than welcomed!

Domestic Bliss

Ok, so today's blog is not so much crafty, but it is creative! Evan (boyfriend) and I were planning on going out to dinner for a much needed date night, but the restaurant I had my heart set on was packed (with people celebration the end of Snowpocalypse Atlanta 2011, no doubt) and had an hour and a half wait...

Listen, I'm sure y'all know what it's like when you're hungry. Some stomachs just will NOT wait for an hour and a half! So we decided to run by Publix, pick up some supplies and play house tonight! :) Ok, so it ended taking longer than the time it would have taken us to wait at the restaurant, but it was WAY cheaper and a really fun bonding experience for us!

So here's what we got:

Our yummy ingredients! And if you're wondering where I got that FABULOUS cutting board,
it was a Christmas gift from my AMAZING Aunt Holly. She got it from Modcloth.com.
When I have an actual home, the kitchen will be based on this piece! Thanks, Holly!!

• 4 small gold potatoes
• Rosemary
• Italian Seasoning
• Garlic (minced)
• Moore's Original Marinade
• 1 lb of top round steak
• Green Beans (sorry, I blanked out on how many we got, but just get enough for your group)
• Olive Oil 
• Salt 
• Pepper

First, preheat the oven to 425 and cut the potatoes into small chunks. Toss them in a big bowl with olive oil, salt, pepper (I added a ton because E loves it!), rosemary and Italian seasoning. Swirl it around until everything is thoroughly coated. Then arrange them on a cookie sheet in a single layer and pop them in the oven for somewhere around an hour. Keep checking on them because I think my oven is a little funky and I don't think it should take quite that long. 

Evan was my superstar and took care of the steak, so I'm gonna let him take over and let you know how he did it...

Hey there... Evan here. First I marinated the steak for a little over a half hour.  Make sure to poke holes through the steak using a fork so that the marinade penetrates most of the steak. Shake off most of the marinade and then pan fry it with 2 tablespoons of olive oil, a couple grinds of black pepper, and a pinch of  whole rosemary.  The top round steak isn't very thick so it will cook through very quickly. Maybe 3-5 minutes each side at most. Not the most tender steak but very good.

He's too sweet isn't he?! Can you see why we balance each other out? Not a single exclamation point in his whole thing...very cut and dry. HA! 

Anyway, green beans are pretty self-explanatory, so I'm gonna leave y'all pretty much on your own for this one. I just snapped the tips off the beans and boiled them. Pretty simple. 

Our finished creation! YUM!

I think Evan approves!

Overall, this meal was pretty fantastic! I was so pleased to spend so much time in the kitchen with Evan! It is nice to know we can work together in such tight quarters without killing each other! :) Haha! 

Now, Evan is super into brewing and craft beers, and he has been trying his hardest to get me excited about it too. I like wine. But I'm trying. For his sake. Anyway, he brought over some really yummy beer for us to have for "dessert." It's called Tripel Karmeliet and it's by Brouwerij Bosteels. It's a light and fruity Belgian blonde ale. Yum! I love how he knows what I like better than I do!

Of course, Mercedes had to make her presence known.
At least she waited until dinner was over! :) 

Side note: I have to give Evan extra props for, not only sitting through my taste in television, but, also actually adding his own commentary to David Tuttera's "My Fair Wedding." It takes a real man to genuinely comment on the hideous dresses the bride picked out for her bridesmaids. :) 

Jett's Green and Grey Crib Bumper

Phew! I can't believe what I thought would be such a simple task has taken me as long as it has. Crib bumpers, as it turns out, are not as easy to make as I thought!

I had done a lot of research about the size of most crib bumpers before I began so I had some idea how I was going to tackle this. Best of all, Gen and Brett already had a plain white bumper for me to simply recover. I was sure this was going to be the easiest part of Jett's room. I was wrong. Most bumpers are 10" tall by 160" wide. Gen and Brett's bumper was not. No big deal, though. Theirs was actually a little smaller (8" x 140"), so I simply adjusted my measurements. I'll do my best to put both measurements down in case you want to do a standard bumper or you have a special case like mine!

Here's what you'll need for this project:

• The remainder of the fabric you used for the crib quilt (Not sure how much was left. I know. I should have measured but I really wanted to get this project done. I was so excited, I just forgot!)

• Plain cording and fabric to cover it (either 160" or 140") or pre-made cording or bias tape (I recommend this option as it saves you SO MUCH time and hassle)

• Thread (same as used for the quilt)

• Ribbon for the ties or (if you're really ambitious) enough fabric to make ties out of coordinating fabric. If you do this, I would recommend getting a loop turner because it can be very tedious and almost painful if you try to do it with just your fingers (I actually used a pair of tweezers...but it caused some of the fabric to snag so it wasn't ideal. I just didn't have the option of going out to the store at night to get a loop turner. Gotta work with what you've got!)

• Crib bumper insert or plain crib bumper

• Optional: fray check. This has become my best friend since working with some of the more difficult fabrics. If your fabrics don't fray, you don't really have to worry about this. 

• As always, I had to have my big fat cat. Apparently she didn't want her picture taken as much this time, or maybe I took too long, but I have to tell you, my little scamp of a cat was VERY excited about my materials this time...

To start off with, I'll give you boring measurements. For a regulation-sized bumper, you need to cut your fabric into 10.5" x  20.5" pieces. You'll need 4 of each fabric (if you're using 4 different fabrics like I did). In all, you'll need 16 pieces. For my unusually sized bumper, I had to modify the measurements. I made them 8.5" x 12" and used 24 pieces (6 of each). 

Pinning the pieces together

Sew 12 of the pieces together for the front and 12 for the back. Make sure you use a 1/4" seam and that you keep it consistent or else you'll run into problems later. Like I did. But that was my own fault! :) 

You can do one of two things next. You can either make your ribbons or cover the cord. Because they are both slightly tedious, I went back and forth. I'll explain the ribbons first:

Mercedes really enjoyed
the fabric this time
Can you see her under there?

You'll need 10 long ribbons and 4 short ones. I think they ended up being 12" long for the long ones and 6" for the short ones. I wanted to make things a bit easier on myself, so I cut my fabric into a rectangle 50" x 10" wide and folded it in half. I sewed 6 seams down the length of it. Then I cut the fabric in between the 2nd and 3rd seams and the 4th and 5th seams. Next I cut each strip into 4 equal parts and sewed one end shut. On one strip, you're going to have to cut 2 of your 4 strips in half to make the 4 short ones. Now comes the fun part! Note: if your fabric frays easily, use the fray check to stop it from coming apart before you try to turn them. Time to whip out that loop turner (or tweezers) and turn all of your strips right-side out. Have fun! When you're finished, tuck the open end in and hand stitch it closed. Cat Note: Mercedes was moving too fast for me to catch this on camera, but she absolutely LOVED the ribbon strips and decided they were her prey. Multiple times, I went to grab one and either got attacked by her or found that they were all gone. She had taken them and made a little pile under the bed. I found her with one in her mouth like a dead snake. (if you know me, you'll understand how much this freaked me out...)

For the cording, refer to the instructions on my previous post. You'll have to use either 296" of cording or 340", depending on your bumper measurement. 

Cording and fabric to cover it with

Pinning the Cording into the fabric

Now we assemble everything! It's much like the quilt except you won't have the bumper filling to deal with yet. It's more like stuffing a pillow. Also, you have to figure out where you want the ties to go. I folded them in half and pinned them where I wanted them, with the exception of the short ones. They were pinned on each corner. (Make sure that the ties are not hanging out when you're sewing or else they'll end up on the inside of your bumper...no good)

Right sides of bumper
pinned together

Sew it all together (back side, cording, ties, front side, all right sides facing each other) leaving a section wide enough for open so that you can turn it right-side out. Once you've turned it, it's time to stuff it! Once you've got the bumper inside the cover, you can stitch up the hole and you can be done! (unless you want to tack the cover to the bumper, but I don't think I'm going to do that)

Turned right side out...I think the ties ended up pretty cool! 

Sounds easy, right?! :) Hopefully it won't take you as long as it did me! 

This took me about the same amount of time as the quilt, actually, but work got in the way (why can't the kids nanny themselves? oooh, right, they can't drive...darn!) and I didn't have the same amount of uninterrupted time. I have to admit, I'm pretty happy with the way it turned out! I'll be sure to upload pics when everything is in the room! 

Jett's Green and Grey Quilt

I love babies and I can't believe how blessed I am to have so many little bundles in my life right now...

Most of all, I'm super excited that my best friend and her awesome hubby are pregnant with their first baby and I feel so blessed that they've asked me to make the crib bedding for little Jett's room! Genesis and Brett are such hip, cool people (go check them out at www.thecrowdersgetcrowded.blogspot.com) and I absolutely LOVE their color scheme for Jett's room! A lot of people are all into this bright green and brown for nurseries right now...that's great, but Brett and Gen take great and turn it into AWESOME. They decided to pair that bright green with grey and I'm in love with it! Although, I have to admit, finding fabric for this project was more than difficult...it was damn near impossible. But after a full day of searching multiple fabric stores (shout out to Forsyth Fabrics and Lewis and Sheron Fabrics...y'all rock!), we found the four fabrics Gen wanted to use for the patchwork quilt and crib bumper I have the honor of making.

I've made a couple of quilts/bedspreads before, but nothing was quite as challenging as this (thanks, Gen...keep me on my toes. 'Preesh). Just for reference, it took me the equivalent of 3 lifetime movies, one "My Fair Wedding" and one "Rich Bride, Poor Bride" to get to a satisfying stopping point. That's 8 hours. Note to all those ambitious crafters out there: do NOT start this project after 4 pm. You'll end up staying up way too late. Especially on a work night.

If you would like to re-create my absolute awesomeness (which I totally hope you do), here's what you need (Warning: if you don't want to re-create this project but you want to see the final result, skip all this boring stuff):

• 2 yards each of 4 different fabrics at least 45" wide* (choose complimentary colors and patterns...or whatever you think will look good but definitely play with different textures as it makes a really cool end result)

• An awesome sewing machine (I recommend the Brother ES-2000. My wonderful mom did a great job a few years ago with this Christmas present! Thanks, mom!)

• At least 6 yards of plain cording.**

• Thread (duh.) -- I used Coats and Clark Dual Duty Hand Quilting thread in slate. I know I should have used machine quilting thread but I wasn't really paying attention. It actually worked out better than other threads have on my sewing machine lately.

• Crib Batting. I prefer all natural or 100% cotton batting since it's for a baby. Crib batting should be 45" x 60".

• Finally, you need the cat. Sure, she's not essential, but she makes the pictures so much cuter...

(You don't see me here...I'm not here)

So, let's get started!! :)

Cut each of your 4 fabrics into 11.75" x 15.5" pieces. You should have 8 pieces of each fabric in all. (32 in all...I'm pretty sure. Math + me + late night = disaster...)

Lay the pieces out into the pattern you want and start pinning the first line together. Repeat for the second line. Once you've got 2 completed lines, pin the seams together and sew those lines together. (Sorry I have no illustrations here...I was all caught up in getting this done and I forgot!)

Repeat this until you have 4 rows of 4 pieces sewn together. (in other words, until you have the front done).

(Hey, I think there's something under there...)

Repeat for the back. Pretty monotonous work. Once you get in a rhythm, it goes by pretty quickly.

(Look, mom...I'm almost done. I think)

Now comes the FUN part. Yeah. It's about as fun as getting a root canal. Or so I've heard. I've never even had a cavity (*patting myself on the back*). Note: You can totally avoid this step by picking cording that is pre-made or by using bias tape. Turns out it's a LOT cheaper to do it yourself though, but if your time is worth more than money, go for it. I'll opt for saving the bucks. PLUS, Gen wanted to use the pretty silvery fabric she chose as the cording.

What you do is cut enough strips of fabric (appx 3 inches wide) you need to cover the 6 yards of cording you'll be using for the edges. I needed 4 strips. Then, sew them together so you make one long strip. Pin and sew the fabric around the plain cording. Sounds simple, but it takes a while.

Then you're gonna lay your two sides on top of each other, right sides facing each other. Next, pin the cording in between those two with the "rounded" part inside the quilt sandwich. (pardon the silly expressions, it's late...)

Finally, place the crib batting you want to use on top of this whole mess of stuff. You are probably going to have to trim some of this because for some reason it's never perfect. Pin that on as well (just to clarify, I'm not adding pins on top of pins, I am using the pins I previously used to add the next layer...but y'all are smart enough to figure that out. I hope)

Sew it all together but make sure you leave an area open so you can turn the whole thing right side out.

Once you turn it right side out, you'll be able to stitch up the opening and reinforce where the individual pieces connect with a little x on each corner.

I had to do some small hand stitching in order to make everything look perfect, but it wasn't anything notable. Hopefully you won't have to do this, but if you do, it's not a big deal.

And there you have it! 8 hours, tons of blood, sweat and almost tears and one really great quilt! :) Have to say I'm pretty proud! Here's hoping Gen, Brett and Jett like it too! :)

*if you choose fabrics that are 56" or 60" wide, you really only need 1 3/4 yards of each. This also includes enough fabric for the bumper we'll work on later in the week...please don't ask me to do the math for how much you'll need for JUST the quilt. I have no idea and it's much too late.

**This is just the measurement for the quilt. I do know how much you need for the bumper too...but I'm not telling. (it's a biiiiiit more...)

New Year, New Crafts

I've been told I'm slightly crafty. And I often lose myself in projects (and Michael's/Hobby Lobby/Jo Ann's). Over the past year I've made everything from ruffled shower curtains and wedding shower invitations to Christmas pajamas for kids and a super secret project from Santa (that's right, kids...I've got a direct line to Santa and he commissions projects from me).

I've done so much stuff over the past couple years that I've literally lost track. My friend suggested I start a blog to keep up with all of my crafts and sewing projects and, with some hesitation, I decided it might be a good idea.

As I like to bake, I feel like everything in life works best when you have a recipe to use and my "recipe for success" in the craft corner is just this:

1. A great (and by great, I generally mean AWFUL) Lifetime movie or "My Fair Wedding" with David Tuttera (if anyone knows him...please introduce me. I seriously need to be his friend)

2. A challenging idea (I never do anything the easy way...ha)

3. A lot of time or a lot of wine, although the latter usually makes for some interesting end results

and, finally...

4. My big fat cat to sit on whatever I'm working on. (don't worry, all finished products are de-cat-hairified.)

Meet Mercedes. She likes to get all up in my business.

With all these things in place, I'm ready to sew. Or paint. Or glue. Or whatever!

I'm really excited to share all of this with all of you! I hope everyone enjoys the stuff I'm working on and that you send any great ideas you have my way! I'm always up for a challenge! :)

Come back soon see what I've got in the works for my newest (almost) nephew, Jett Crowder! Can't wait to meet you little man! (but make sure you wait til I've got this stuff finished! haha!)