Plastic Surgery

I fixed my doll's eyes.

After:

Before:

She does need a more lively outfit though.

Making Cheese, Of Course

This is not your typical single unmarried, 31 year-old activity, but as we know, I am not your typical 31 year-old.


I read in this month's Food and Wine magazine how easy it is to make your own ricotta. I, of course, had to try it out. I couldn't find the recipe online, so I used a hybrid of my memory of the recipe with this one.

Basically, you take 1 quart whole milk and 3/4 cup half-and-half or cream and bring it to a near-boil (185F). Add some salt (1 pinch to 1/2 teaspoon) and 2 T lemon juice or white vinegar* and stir for 30 seconds. It's gonna get clumpy and start separating into curds and whey. Cover and let sit for about 1 hour (it will get even more clumpy and separated).


Then, pour it into a colander lined with cheesecloth (I used what I had) set over a bowl and let it sit and drain for another hour.


And voila! You have yourself some delicious ricotta cheese!

Turn it into a cheesecake or baked penne or just eat it with some honey drizzled over top (then go for a long walk to burn off them calories). Next time I'll try it with lower fat milk. And anyone know what you can do with the whey? Seemed wasteful to toss it.

* I used lemon juice, but next time I'll use vinegar for a more neutral flavor. If you're going to use it in a lemony dish, it doesn't really matter, but mine tasted a bit too lemony for my liking.

Mas Dia de los Muertos

Yesterday, I finished my little towel set. I almost feel bad using them, they're so cute! (I'll bet "cute" isn't the word they're going for...)


And I may have set up a little shrine in my bathroom too:


Ok, moving along to other crafts... and back to work for the first time in almost 2 weeks. Man, do I ever work??

Traveling Projects - A New Medium (Just What I Need)

I had to make a quick trip to Washington this weekend, and I needed something to keep my hands busy during layovers and whatnot. Thank goodness I just rediscovered embroidery, but not just any embroidery - Sublime Stitching. It's so fun and as they say, "this ain't your gramma's embroidery." I haven't embroidered since I was 6 or 7. I used to embroider a lot and in fact, I think I was better at it at 6 or 7 than I am now (More time? More patience? Smaller hands? Better eyesight? Poor recall?).

Anyhow, here's how I kept myself busy (I will return to the topic of the Twilight Series in another post), just in time for Dia de los Mertos (hi Tracy!), a holiday I happen to love decorating for.


Ooh, wouldn't that be fun to turn the senorita into a nurse instead, replacing the mantilla with a nurse hat and (of course) replacing the margarita glass with something else? A syringe? (ok, fun for me...)

Here are my next projects:

Mas Dia de los Muertos - ay que cute-a!

And Sushi!

Next time, I think I'll get the pattern with the sewing maching and spools of thread. But, oh my gosh, I just found one with vital organs. I must have this one too!! And this one too! Oh, brother...this is a problem.

Changing the subject a little, it should be mentioned that this DDLM post Pink Chalk Studio back in 2006 was the very spark that rekindled my flame for sewing and crafting (and blogging). So, thank you from the bottom of my big ol' maniacally-crafty heart.

I Need...

This shirt:

("Need" is often a loose term with me, but not in this case)

My friends Karen and Scott gave me a gift certificate to threadless.com for my birthday. I've already started browsing, of course. But isn't the s'more tee so perfect for me? Unfortunately, it's currently out of print, but I've requested a reprint and my hopes are high!

This one I should probably own too:


I couldn't exactly pull off the "hottie" or "cutie" tees, but this one, I could certainly rock.

Fingers crossed they decide to reprint!

Bakesale Betty

I am in love with Bakesale Betty.

Sitting at our ironing board table, D and I just shared a fabulous fried chicken sandwich with spicy coleslaw atop. She threw in two fresh-baked chocolate chip cookies for free. Ooooh, so good! And, their ginger cookies are. to. die. for!!

The ironing board tables all lined up.

And I should mention that this place is dangerously close to my work.

Not Exactly a Skirt Day...

But I made one anyway. The weather's crummy today, so I thought it fitting to stay inside and sew a little (oh please, I do not need crappy weather to justify staying in to sew).

I wanted to make my friend (who shall remain unnamed for now) a simple A-line skirt. I had searched for the right pattern, and I found it in Amy Butler's Barcelona Skirts patterns. I kept thinking the frayed layered skirt on the front was the only option (which I didn't like at first, but after looking at some of them on Flickr, I think I may make that one too), but was pleased to find it was not.

I didn't want to dive right into the gift skirt, so I made myself a rough draft to see how the sizing went and to dry-run the zipper. I had this Denyse Schmidt fabric sitting in my stash begging to be used (I think I paid like $3/yard - score!). After ripping the zipper and first seam out about 15 or 16 times (literally), I got it. Next time should be better. Good thing I tried it out first. The rest of it came together fairly easily.

And here is the finished product, shortened by about 3 inches - boot- or flip-flop worthy (was so excited I was finished, I didn't even press it):

My fear was that it wouldn't lie flat at the belly, but it did.

Sneak peak of the next one - should be nice and Autumnal, but also appropriate for Spring/Summer:

Good times.

Macho Gazpacho

I'm addicted to gazpacho these days. I know, a little late in the season... Thank goodness tomatoes are still abundant and cheap here in CA.

It's so easy and refreshing. Here's my dad's Andalucian gazpacho recipe.

Start by soaking a chunk of day-old bread in some ice water (no ice is fine too).

In a blender, fill your blender about 3/4 full with peeled tomatoes (however many that takes)
Add 1 small onion (or 1/2 med to large)
1-2 small cloves of garlic (trust me on this one, a little goes a LONG way)
about 2 T olive oil
1-2 T red wine vinegar
and your soggy chunk of bread

Blend it up, taste it, add salt and pepper to your liking.

My dad likes to put his through a food mill to get rid of all the seeds. I don't mind them (I actually don't even have a food mill, plus I'm a little bit lazy). And if you do decide to put it through a mill, you don't need to remove skins at the beginning.

Ta-da! Serve chilled or at room temperature.

In Sevilla, they have gazpacho bars where you can add hard-boiled egg, onion, cucumbers, and other toppings. I like it with egg, cucumber, and a drizzle of olive oil. De-lish!

Quilted Scrappy Heating Pad

Inspired by Denyse Schmidt's heating pad cover, I slapped together this one:


I tried to just be whimsical about the whole thing, grabbing scraps I had at the top of my pile, not thinking too much. It came together rather quickly (that means 2 hours, I'm slow). It's backed with a yummy, cozy fine-ribbed corduroy in lime.

This is my favorite part.


And this was an "oopsie," but now it's my other favorite part. Next time, I might go for a more neutral quilting thread color. Oh well, I guess that means I have to make another one...


Now I just gotta wait for a backache or "sweatah weathah."

I've Got Problems

The problem is this blog...again. Too many fun and easy ideas that I have to try (I have no choice!).

Today I made this little storage cube:

What? You can't be sick of this fabric yet! I still have TONS of it, but slowly dwindling (thank goodness). At least it matches my room.

Maybe I'll use it for storing sewing supplies.


Or maybe I'll use it to hold my popcorn...since I cut up the box to stabilize my cube.


I may need to make 30 or 40 more of these...because what I need is more containers to hold more crap.

Little Dolly

Lookie what I made! Isn't she so cute?

Her name is Kit by Wee Wonderfuls. She likes science and is good at karate and stuff....you know, just like me.

She's wearing a little corduroy jumper.

I broke the (my) mold a little bit. I like it. But maybe I'll set her eyes a bit wider next time.

I Heart Biscotti

In between quilt squares, I made a little batch of biscotti. Man, I love biscotti. Today I made maple walnut, in honor of autumn.


And this book rules, especially the triple ginger lovers biscotti. The ones I made today are not exactly in the book - I just swapped one kind of nut for another and added some things (I tend to do this).

If you do get this book, let me make one recommendation. After the second "bake", leave them in the oven at about 250F for another 20-30 minutes. That way, they get nice and dry and crunchy. I like my biscotti break-your-teeth hard.

Serious Progress

Remember this post 100 years ago? D's 2007 Christmas present? Well, embarrassing, but that was the last time I touched it. Until today!!


I thought I could bust out all the rectangles today but, alas, I only assembled 16 of the 28. Humbling. At least that's over half way, right?

And yes, of course, there are polka dots....silly. Teeny, tiny ones.


The mere cutting out of the pieces was daunting to the point of paralysis. But now that it's actually underway, I'm excited and motivated (yeah, we'll believe it when we see it). Stay tuned!

Couldn't You Just Eat Them Up?

This past weekend, I went to San Luis to spend some time with la familia. Here are some of my favorite people in the whole wide world.

Makaio, 3
Offering me his cupcake - delicious!

Maile, 1
Not in love with the camera, but definitely a happy baby.
Wearing a shirt my dad made for my sister when she was a baby
(he went through a batiking phase, you see).


Malia, 7
Doing a little pre-game ironing.
And see what she's ironing? That's my girl.


Scrumptious.

The (Copied) Pattern Worked!

As I was making these, I couldn't decide if I would be entitling this post:

"I Don't Know Why I Thought This Would Work"
and
"I Don't Know Why I Thought This Wouldn't Work"

Well, it worked - phew!

(how do you take a photo of your own pants?)

I took a pair of my scrub pants and shoved one leg into the other. I pinned them down to get the front pieces, and flipped them over, adjusted them, and cut out the back pieces.

I overlocked all the edges, which excites me very much. See my superfast needle? (am I so daring taking an action shot while sewing?)

And voila! Lounging in my lounge pants. They look a little like chef pants, but at least I can go outside in them to move the car or something without embarrassment.


May I make a drawstring recommendation? Take the drawstring that comes through the tunnel from the right and thread it through the left hole. And take the left drawstring and thread it through the right hole. So they will sort of criss-cross inside the tunnel. That's how scrub pants are threaded and it's A) easier to tie, and B) easier on your button holes.

(Really) Wide-Leg Pants

I finally made the wide leg lounge pants from Amy Butler's book. I had been anxiously awaiting this awesome fabric (from the time it arrived, I think it was only about an hour before it was washed, dried, pressed, and on the cutting mat...bee-in-bonnet type thing) to make them with.

(this was the best shot I could get...)

Pattern reading is not my forte, so I decided I would carefully read every word of this pattern.... except the part about sizing that comes before all other instructions. Sweet. Yes, they're a size too big (better than too small!) so I'll be fixing that. Also, they are REALLY wide. I'm talking skirt-like. So, I may be bringing in the leg width as well. But pleased as punch about my button holes! (suppose I shouldn't be that pleased, considering I have a button hole-making foot and a machine that does all the work....)

Next project, make my own pattern from my Urbane Scrubs - those seem to fit pretty perfectly with a decent flare. Thanks for the hint, Laurel, about stuffing one leg into the other.

Check It

There's this problematic website that is giving me too many ideas. As if I don't have enough trouble as it is curbing my creative temptations...

So, what's a girl to do? Give in, of course.

I made this cutest little checkbook:



And then, of course, I cut the pieces too small the first go around (it's a requirement when I craft, just so you know), so I had to make something with my mistake. It's not pressed and the elastic is too loose, but once I fill it with my new camera or a big wad of cash (kidding), it should fit fine. Pardon the fact that it's not pressed.



This is the leftover fabric from my pin board, take 1. So, it's a good little stash-buster too. Cute-a, no?

Birthday Goodness

Well, I'm 31 now. This is the first time I feel different...which is not bad, but feel like I should start acting like an adult. Maybe.

But here is one thing I will not give up despite my age: Rice Krispie Treats. Many of you know this is my all-time favorite food. As in, if I could eat only one thing for the rest of my life, this would be it.

And look at the birthday "cake" D made me, fashioned after the cake Katy made me on THE 9/11.

(not a great shot, sorry)

This is a 3-layer rice krispie treat "cake" separated by peanut butter on the bottom layer and nutella on the top. Can you say HEAVENLY??? I mean, it was heavenly - are you kidding me? It was devoured in 1.5 days, if that.

Thank you, D. You are my best ever.

Rugby Duvet

Guess which of my favorite little ladies is getting a new bed spread? Now Miss Maile can finally hang with the big kids.

Inspired by this quilt (which is so much cooler than what I have created), I made matchy-matchy bedspreads for my "babies."


Malia's is light pink with thin espresso stripes and wide flamingo stripes (all Kona Cottons)
Makaio's is green with thin espresso stripes and wide blue stripes.

Since they all share a room, they needed coordinated, yet personalized bedding, right?

Well, Hello There

I just went away to Lake Tahoe for a few days - and look what was waiting for me when I arrived home.

Yay!

Summer Harvest, I Have Loved You

Figs stuffed with roasted walnuts, topped with blue-cheesy brie, and drizzled with honey. Heavenly!

Plum galette from this cookbook. I recommend mucho (the book and the recipe both).

Can't wait for them pumpkins!

Business in the Front

The tie onesie was a hit! I simply had to make one for little Cade, in town from Oregon. It will go great with his khakis and pocket protector.