let's go fly a kite

Bear / Doll Carrier from Little Things to Sew

2012-01-29T19:15:00.002-05:00

ummm or Unicorn carrier….

This month, I joined in with Jessica over at a little gray's Little Things to Sew-along. This carrier has been on my “sewing to-do list” for a long time and was the reason I purchased the book last spring – especially after I saw Holly's post about her completed carrier. The sew-a-long was just what I needed to stop procrastinating further.

I stitched up two carriers - one for Hope and for her little friend who turns four this week.

For the exterior, I used Robert Kaufmann’s Sweet Tooth fabric and for the interior and the straps, cream corduroy. The instructions suggest cotton batting, but I used fusible fleece which worked fine.
Here is Hope sporting her new carrier. She likes to play “family” and loves playing with dolls. I recently found this particular doll at St. Vincent de Paul. It is a Horsman doll (1976). She named her Annika - she names all of her dolls Annika (her favourite Pippi Longstocking character).

It felt good to finally complete this project and I think Hope will enjoy it.
Wishing you a great week,

Lunar New Year Celebrations

2012-01-23T06:23:00.001-05:00

We get a CNY photo each year and I send them out to our relatives using the corresponding Canada Post stamp.

Each year, they wear a different outfit and I have always been able to find an outfit second hand. The outfits above were $1 each at St. Vincent de Paul. Last year, for the year of the Rabbit, they wore pink.

This weekend, I took the girls to see the lion dance at the Brickworks and we also went to a CNY party.

Dumplings

Members of Toronto’s Chinese Symphony Orchestra

China Town

I figured out how to make lucky red envelope fishes {this video is so helpful}

If you are going to a party, it is a nice touch to add a paper fish to some blossoms as a hostess gift. The wealth doll is available free from Canon (it took me nearly an hour to put together!).

For the party, Lily wanted a special hairstyle. One of the student teachers at her school wears chopsticks so she asked that I give that style a try.

Evangeline Hope at the party – she loves parties, noodles, and dumplings.

Gong Xi Fa Cai,

Folding Cloths

2012-01-19T06:28:00.001-05:00

Have you ever heard of "folding cloths"? I hadn’t.
It’s not a new thing, but it is new to me.

My sister recently incorporated a Laundromat dramatic play unit with her kindergarten class and she told me how she incorporated a folding cloth activity which is apparently based on a Montessori activity. She showed me these as an example. I thought I would try to make my own.

Lily has been very interested in having a list of specific defined chores (where my approach was less defined, just help). I think Lily became interested in “chores” from the Little House stories.
One of her “chores” is to help fold the laundered kitchen linens, as well as face cloths. She was having great difficulty, but after trying the folds on these gridded cloths, she improved. The cloths are really easy to make especially if you find some thrifted linen serviettes. Just stitch folding grid lines with contrasting thread.

She tested the activity.

After some mastery, I gave her a basket of laundered tea towels.
She is trying to judge where fold line would be.

It took some time, but the load was folded.

It would have been much faster for me to just do it myself, but I must remind myself to forget about the time and provide the opportunity. I went to a parenting workshop last week. Although I didn’t agree with everything, there were some very good reminders for me - about remembering not rob a child of a learning opportunity, in particular life lessons and these sorts of things.

***

Since Deborah is having a “every day dramatic play” link up this week, I thought I would also share the photos from my sister’s Laundromat dramatic play unit.
Objective: Students are learning through play to match pairs, sort hot and cold types of clothing, master folding techniques, pretend washing and hanging clothes to dry
Suggested Items:
1. Laundromat sign

2. Washer and dryer

3. Suggested Reading: A pair of Socks by Stuart J. Murphy (which emphasizes matching)

4. laundry care signs and laundry soap

5. Mini laundry baskets holding socks and clothes provide useful sorting activities, such as matching socks / lights and darks /hot and cold. Include a clothesline and clothes pins.

6. An ironing board and a folding activity (such as the “folding cloths” mentioned above) are also fun additions
7. Math pattern activity: Students created their own math patterns using blank copies of socks and creating patterns.

The students really enjoyed this dramatic play unit. Who knew doing laundry could be so much fun? This post is linked toHave a lovely day,

Terrarium

2012-01-15T20:57:00.001-05:00

It was so, so frigid this weekend. We spent some time outdoors, but not our usual amount. This is one of our indoor activities.

In the fall, someone on my street was throwing out this beauty.

I quickly and carefully grabbed it. I knew it would be a source of winter amusement. It was.

This weekend, we went to check out the plants and all of their promise ..

Caption: hmmm, I think we need a Money Tree

to set up our terrarium .

Lily takes Ojibwa classes and she wanted to set the terrarium up with tepees, totem poles, and Indians.

We added one of those LED battery operated light strands (I love, love LED light strands), so we can watch the terrarium over dinner.

Have a great week,This post is linked to

Thrifty Project: Album cover art

2012-01-13T06:40:00.001-05:00

I wanted to hang some art in the awkward space above the girls’ doll house. I picked up a few album covers at the Salvation Army thrift shop. Both my daughters love the musical Oliver! They like to run around the house says “More please, Sir” in a British accent.

The Mary Poppins LP (1964) came with a very nice book. The illustrations are fun.

To frame the album covers I used a “scrapbook memories frame” (2$) I found at the dollar store (this is what the packaging looks like) (I did not want to incur the expense of purchasing those special album frames you can buy at Urban Outfitters). The dollar shop frames were dark and I wanted them white, so I also painted them. These frames do not have a glass, but clear plastic.

I did have to trim the covers slightly to make them fit.

This is how the albums look above the doll house.

The cost of the albums and frames worked out to 9$.

By the way, this is our basement. The space used to look like a film set for the Blair Witch project, but it is coming along.

Have a great weekend,

Crafting with my kids: Thumbprint Lanterns

2012-01-09T06:46:00.001-05:00

Happy Monday!

My posting is a little light and I anticipate that it might continue to be that way for the next little while. We have one home computer which my husband needs more than I do right now, he is submitting his doctoral thesis this week (yeah, long road) and needs to tweak the formatting, footnotes, etc. on the 300 page beast.

Lily has been working on a 100 book project over the past couple of months. She has to read 100 books (or someone read to her). We have been using the library more than ever before, checking out 10 books each week. We borrowed two interesting books for Chinese New Year. The first one was Rachel Isadora’s, “Happy Belly, Happy Smile”.

Beautiful illustrations, see the dragon.

The second one is Yu Li Qiong “A New Year’s Reunion” which is a children’s version of a common story in China – when father’s come home for Chinese New Year vacation. {Recently a documentary was made on this common story - migrant workers returning for Chinese New Year, the Last Train Home, I am hoping to see it soon, it is not geared for children though}.

The book also has beautiful illustrations.

I fell in love with those little red lanterns which reappear throughout the book and remind me of the lanterns I see in Chinatown.

On Saturday, Evangeline Hope had one of her friends visit for a visit. As her little friend was going to stay for about 3 hours, I wanted to have a quick crafty activity ready to break up the session. Her friend also celebrates Chinese New Year.

We made these Chinese New Year skylines.

The girls used strips of newspaper to create buildings, glued them to the paper and added red and yellow lanterns with their thumbprints or stamped them with corks.

After the paint dried, I just added a little detail with a sharpie.

It was a fun little activity for small children (age 3.5-6) and the girls enjoyed it.

Happy Crafting,

The doll house

2012-01-03T08:54:00.004-05:00

"A wonderful thing is going to happen!"
- Henrik Ibsen, A Doll's House, Act 2

I thought I would share the photos of the doll house we gave the girls for Christmas.
Back in late August, a gentleman was cleaning out a window display in my office tower concourse. He was taking out a large structure which looked very similar to Land of Nod’s wooden book case/ doll house (but in cardboard!). I asked him if I could take it. He phoned his boss and said I could have it, if I took it right then. So I did. The house stayed in my office until the eve of Christmas eve. My husband tried to pick it up in the car but his efforts were thwarted by a large demonstration which closed the roads in front of my building and kept him stuck for a very long time.
I ended up carrying the house home on the street car. It wouldn’t have fit in the little Jetta anyway. Here is it on the street car.

This is how it looked under the tree. It appears almost as large as our tree.

As part of the gift, we gave the girls some thrifted furniture which I collected over the past couple of months as well as a pad of scrapbook paper so that we could decorate the house together.
Over the holiday week, this is what we put together.

This is the main living room. The floor has faux bois contact paper. The doily rug is a cake decoration from the 50s or 60s. I always pick up plastic cake decorations, they are great for doll houses and pretend play. The fixture hanging from the ceiling is an ornament my youngest daughter made when she was two (yarn, glue, and a balloon technique). The star ornament is from Ikea’s 2011 Christmas collection.

The chairs are wire cage champagne chairs. As you can see from the close up below, the table is made from a balsa wood container (the sort that holds some unripened cheeses) – I added 3 corks as legs, embellished with trim.

I found two helpful tutorials on hanging doll house curtains (here and here).
The pink Christmas tree the girls wanted.

Top floor bedroom with one of the miniature point blankets we created in July.

The sewing / craft studio. Complete with a dress form, chalk board, easel, and a stash of fabric.

I have always wanted a room with a fortuny chandelier {image via }

Notice the yellow parasol. I used ribbon/trim as wainscoting. You will see another 50ish cake decoration on the side table.

The other end of the same room and another cheese table.

This is the bottom floor bedroom. Lily wanted it in pinks and reds. The sunburst mirror is an old CD embellished with trim.

The carpeting is an old needlepoint.

The kitchen still needs some work. It does have a tile floor, a chalk board framed in washi tape, and a mouse hole.

I know very little about the world of miniatures (but now starting to see my world through it). The scale of this house is not continuously accurate and the furniture is a hodge podge of what was collected and donated. The house isn’t a family heirloom, but it is for my girls to enjoy. And they absolutely love it. I think the doll house project will encourage us to create a few miniature sewing projects and perhaps a few beginner sewing projects for Lily.
Little one has now requested that I stop taking photos as I am interrupting her story.

Thanks for stopping by and have a great day,
{this post is linked to

}

Happy New Year & a 2012 Spoonflower Calendar Fabric Giveaway

2012-01-01T08:13:00.002-05:00

Happy New Year! I hope you had a fun New Year Eve. The girls were so excited to spend the evening with their grandparents. My husband and I went out for dinner for the 5 pm (ha!ha!) sitting and then rented a depressing movie which sent me to sleep well before midnight (just keeping it real).
As of today, I kept this little blog up for two years, so I am celebrating.
I purchased fat quarter calendar fabric from Spoonflower to turn into a tea towel for a friend - as well as an extra fat quarter in the same print. The fabric is linen/cotton canvas weight. The print is entitled “2012 will be British” and is designed by French illustrator, Virginie Ozanon. The photo below shows the fabric turned into a tea towel.
~~If you would like to win, just leave a comment on this post by January 8th (you can have the fat quarter in its new state, or I can turn the fat quarter into a tea towel for you).~~ { Congratulations to Kara over at Knitting Lemonade, we have been in touch and she will be receiving a new tea towel soon}.
Calendar tea towels make great gifts, to commemorate a marriage, birth of a baby, new home. This year the summer games take place in London - as well, it is the Diamond Jubilee year. I also turn 40 this year, but I don’t need a tea towel to remember that.Later this week, I will post about the doll house my girls and I have been working on over the Christmas/New Years week. I have been making little doll house blankets and pillows from scraps, practising my serging skills. My good friend loaned me her her serger while she and her family are living overseas. One of my 2012 sewing resolutions is to become competent at using a serger and perhaps invest in one.
I will leave with a few of my favourite crafty memories in 2011.

Thanks for reading this little blog and best wishes for 2012,

Green Christmas: Trip to the Zoo

2011-12-27T21:30:00.001-05:00

We had a splendid Christmas and we are still enjoying it!

We have this family tradition of visiting the zoo around Christmas time. While this year’s Christmas was green, the air was crisp (hovering between 0-4 degrees Celsius). The animals were so alert. It was kind of magical.

Lily named this lion “Aslan” when she was about 3 1/2 years old. She has been read various abridged versions of Narnia and knows the story quite well. Although we have visited this fella at least 4 times a year for the past 3 years, we never connected – until today.

In the summer months we rarely see this cheetah, so even this tiny peak was a treat.

I hope you are enjoying the holidays!

{Joy, hope, peace} ye olde Christmas photo shoot

2011-12-23T18:43:00.001-05:00

Wishing you a happy holiday season with lots of cheer and good memories.

I have entitled the photo below “Joy”: Two sisters that love each other to pieces and don’t know what to do when the other is not around.

Littlest one wasn’t interested in any solo, she’s a chorus gal. This is Miss Lily’s “Clara – the Nutcracker pose” – just waiting for Drosselmeier to pop in with that special wooden nutcracker.

Merry Christmas my blogging friends,

P.S. the first photocard was by Kim Nelson who I found on Etsy. I have used her services for the last couple of years and I have been more than pleased. Thank you Kim.

Christmas Greenery

2011-12-22T21:30:00.001-05:00

I planted an amaryllis on November 11th and it now just about to put on a show. I have been reading an interesting book called Swedish Christmas Traditions. A third of the book is devoted to “Christmas Flowers.” The arrangements are unexpected like this one – mini tulips and kumquats.

I was motivated this year to incorporate more real greenery in my Christmas decorating. Unfortunately, my paper whites did poorly – only two blooms from six bulbs. I did make an attempt at a little yule log centerpiece. The tree lot is a great place to find free stumps from Christmas trees (yeah, free crafting supplies). I just drilled a whole in each stump using a bit large enough to fit my candles. I just added some cedar branches and the beeswax dipped pine cones we made last year. Everything fits on an old silver tray.

Along the same lines as tree stumps, is this neat idea, I have seen it a few places. Saw off a disk from the bottom of your tree trunk and make a year ornament. This is image is from Family Fun. I saved the disc from our tree and plan to try this.

This week, I also had the chance to see the Allan Gardens Christmas Flower show. There are 2500 to 3000 poinsettias on display, as well as other winter blooms.

Today, was our office potluck. My colleague, who I call the Baking Barrister, made the most amazing yule log / buche noel. The recipe is based on this one by Martha. She even made a little marzipan squirrel.

The mushrooms are meringue and very realistic. It was a very special desert and a labour of love.

I hope you are having a great week. I thought I would sign off with this thrifty gem [TI Speak and Spell c. 1978].

Friend {to Lily}: why does your Leapfrog Tablet look different?

Lily: mine is from the olden days.

Dancing Mother Ginger

2011-12-19T07:09:00.001-05:00

This past weekend was Lily’s ballet recital. It is based on the Nutcracker, although some musical theatre numbers were interspersed. Lily and I had the chance to dance together in the Mother Ginger scene.".

This is my costume without the hooping. There were five girls (aged 5 or 6) who were the polichinelles under my skirt. Unfortunately, I do not have a photo I can post with the hooping in place. I also carried an oversized cardboard mirror and a huge powder puff.

The costume was designed and sewn by talented Daniela, inspired by Art Stone’s version. Art Stone has some of the best Nutcracker costumes. If you enjoy theatrical costumes, it is a wonderful source of inspiration.

My makeup was so over the top, so I made this photo sepia.

Not every production of the Nutcracker includes Mother Ginger. When a production does include it, the role is sometimes played by a local celebrity, sometimes even a man such a linebacker (not sure why I was chosen?, hmmm). Both my daughters know the story of the Nutcracker and the music by memory. Mother Ginger is Lily’s favourite scene (followed by the Waltz of the Fairies and the Chinese Tea Dancers). If a version doesn’t include Mother Ginger, Lily usually disapproves.

The girls were excellent and I was so proud of them. Mother Ginger gave each of them a wooden Nutcracker ornament after the show. I found the wooden cutouts on Etsy.

I also made Lily a Nutcracker place setting for breakfast. I recently had some sheet music laminated, so it makes a nice place mat. I covered a Christmas cracker in sheet music as well. {The sheet music is actually Bach, sorry Tchaikovsky}. The plates and napkins were on sale at a ridiculous discount.

It was a wonderful performance that my daughter and I are not going to forget.

Fourth Sunday of Advent – Peace (& Angels)

2011-12-18T22:28:00.001-05:00

We have been involved in and/or enjoyed three Christmas shows since Thursday evening.
Lily had her choir concert on Thursday evening and her Nutcracker ballet on Saturday evening (I will post about the Nutcracker separately).
Today, we went to see The Christmas Story. It is a Nativity Pageant that takes place at Holy Trinity Church, the second oldest church in Toronto which is {perhaps ironically} situated outside Toronto’s downtown shopping centre. The Christmas Story is the oldest continuous running Nativity pageant in the city (it is in its 74th year).

We participated in the Christmas Story in 2008 and since then we have been attending each year. The production is amazing. The account is narrated and the actors – all volunteers - are silent, but magnificent.

There is a professional choir which sings from the back of the church.
The lighting is professional and effective. Here is the star from the East.

Lily had her photo taken with the Angel Gabriel after the show.

It was the perfect evening. We came home to veggi-chili (thank you slow cooker) and then watched the Bells of St. Mary (with Jimmy Stewart and one of my favourite actresses, Ingrid Bergman).
Before I sign off, I thought I would share a very interesting thrifty find. Our local St. Vincent de Paul had a number of these angels from Zurich’s Felix Daetwyler pastry shop.

One of the red angels came home with us.

We had just a wee time to craft this weekend.
While her little sis was napping, Lily made her sibling gift – peppermint playdough. We have a tennis court around the corner from us, so I always stop by to collect the empty tennis ball containers. They are perfect for homemade playdough. After making the dough, she decorated the container with ribbon and gift wrap.

I also tried out Kim K's walnut bassinet ornaments. So sweet!

i am really looking forward to Christmas!

Sock Monkey Egg Cozies {A sewing tutorial}

2011-12-16T07:56:00.001-05:00

If you are visiting from Gwen’s Haul out the Holly, thanks so much for coming over!

Gwen is one my bloggy-friends. We started our blogs about the same time and I have watched her blog grow, followed her sewing projects carefully, and participated in the Portfolio dress sew-a-long that she and Chris hosted. She is a kind blogger, a talented sewist and loves fabric. I am excited to participate in her 2nd annual Haul out the Holly blogging event, which features 15 tutorials/tips/ideas for one crafty Christmas {you can find this years projects here}.

I like thrift, nostalgia, and tradition - especially around the holidays. This year, I have had sock monkeys on my mind. Sock monkeys kind of scream Christmas and I was excited to get my hands on some yardage of Moda’s Santa Little Helper fabric which is very fun and festive.

I actually bought this particular fabric in the red colourway to sew a skirt {it’s the “change your mind” skirt from 1-2-3 Sew} for my older daughter. Here is the skirt, it is reversible (Hello Kitty Valentine’s Fabric on the other side). It takes her from December to February.

Anyway, an egg cozy is the sort of thing that you do not see very often in North America, so it could be perfect for that person who seems to have everything. In addition, the project uses small pieces of fabric (which by today is probably all you have left in your festive fabric stash).

I have fond childhood memories of my soft boiled eggs served in a “Bunnykins egg cup” (like this one) with a handwritten message on the egg shell.

For Christmas, I wanted to create a couple festive cozies to keep our family’s eggs warm. For me, one of the best parts of the holidays is a lazy breakfast with my family - instead of the morning scramble (e.g. cereal in a ziploc, banana and a danino to go) which has become my family’s routine. So, I have put together a photo tutorial to show you how I made our cozies.

Egg Cozie Instructions

This particular cozy is designed to fit a Maxwell and Williams White Basics Egg Cup. I find these egg cups for 99 cents at my kitchenware shop. The perimeter of the circle is just over 6 inches at its widest point and probably fairly standard in size.

For each egg cozy, you will require an exterior fabric – in this case the sock monkey fabric (2 squares 5 X 5 inches); a lining fabric – in this case I chose polka dot (2 squares 5 X 5 inches); and a cotton batting or insul bright, again 2 squares 5 X 5 inches. Clip your each five inch squares so that the upper corners are curved, see below. Try to cut everything to the same size, otherwise you may run into some troubles when you fit all of the pieces together. Also, use the same seam allowance throughout, about 1/8th.

For the exterior fabric, put right sides together and place about 3.5 inches of folded ribbon in the center top. You will then stitch the perimeter leaving the straight bottom edge open. As shown.

Turn right side out and this is what it should like. You can press now.

Hopefully, at this stage the lining/batting and the exterior fit neatly inside each other.

Now you should and I hope you end up with something that looks like this.

If you want to make your cozy extra festive, you can add a bell or two to the ribbon. Breakfast is served!

I hope that seems clear, let me know if you have any questions.
Thanks for stopping by and Gwen, thanks so much for having me!

Before I sign off and since this is “Haul out the Holly”, I must share one of my recent thrifty purchases – a knitted holly bush tea cozy. I just couldn’t pass it up (a bargain at 50 cents) and well, everything looks better with a cozy, non?

Have a great weekend!
This sewing project is linked to

Krumkake

2011-12-13T06:33:00.002-05:00

Happy St. Lucia day! Today, is a very special day in Scandinavia and Christmas festivities. I thought I would share one of my family’s Norwegian holiday traditions. Krumkake is a traditional Norwegian Christmas pastry and loved by my family.
This year, we received a very special gift. My aunt passed away in 2010 after a courageous battle with ALS. She loved all things Norwegian and had a very special Vitantonio Krumkake electric baker. My uncle gave the baker to my sisters and I. It is a wonderful memory and very precious to us.

This is the recipe we use for the krumkake batter. It makes about 35-40 krumkake cones.
4 eggs
1 cup sugar
1/2 cup margarine (do not use any more than this and don't use oil as a substitute)
2 tbsp corn starch
11/2 cup flour
1/2 tsp vanilla (or 1/2 tsp cardamon)
Beat eggs lightly. Add sugar and beat lightly. Do not overbeat.
add cooled melted margarine and vanilla (or cardamon).
Sift flour and cornstarch and add to egg mixture.

The batter will be sticky enough to be dropped by spoon. Use a dinner spoon and drop it in the center of each rosette.

Close the iron for about 25 seconds

Open the iron and quickly roll the pastry around the cone. It will be hot to the fingertips! This task works much better if you have a helper.

The rolls can be served plain or filled with cream.
We like to use Ikea’s SYLT LINGON jam, fresh raspberries and fresh whipped cream.

If you have a canister icing tool, these work well to fill the krumkake cones.

Happy Santa Lucia Day,

Yummy.

Scandinavian Christmas kicks off over at the Pickled Herring today. I am really looking forward to this series!

Third Sunday of Advent - Longing – Our Typeface Ornaments

2011-12-11T19:55:00.006-05:00

We had a wonderful weekend jammed packed with activities and just a wee time left over for crafting. The highlight of the weekend was seeing real live reindeer at the Distillery Christmas Market. Meet Katie, she is pregnant (expecting in March) and her ancestors hail from Norway.

At the market, I resisted the poutine (a French Canadian delicacy) because I have a physical check-up and didn’t want my family doctor to have any cholesterol concerns..

We also worked on our gingerbread village. Lily says it is the land of sweets and the Mouse King is on guard.

As far as crafting, this weekend’s project was some letter ornaments that were inspired by Anthropologie’s Typeface Letter Ornament

The girls and I went to work. I found the letters at the dollar store and all we needed were some book pages which were given to me from my grandfather - cut up into 1 inch squares and Modge Podge.

After they dried (overnight), they looked like these {I drilled a hole}…

..and added some gold cord and a bell. In hindsight, I think they would look better with a jumbo pompom. Maybe we will change it up next year.

Happy Third Sunday of Advent!
Lily read the third verse (translation via Fresh in Norway). It is an incredible feeling for me to listen to her read. This week the verse was read with out any assistance.

Så tenner vi tre lys i kveld
for lengsel, håp og glede.
De står og skinner for seg selv
og oss som er tilstede.
Så tenner vi tre lys i kveld,
for lengsel, håp og glede.

We light three candles tonight

We light them for longing, hope and happiness

They stand there and light for themselves

and for us who are there

We light three candles tonight

We light them for longing, hope and happiness...

Oh yeah, I made a leg of lamb (the girls’ favourite dish) in honour of my Australian side.
This project is linked to


Tip Junkie's Tip Me Tuesday

Remembering

2011-12-08T21:11:00.001-05:00

Great John Lennon Quotes - Image via

I had one of those days where I was so caught up in other things and life happened. She will be okay. Just a few stitches on the chin which conveniently coincided with the professional photographer's ballet studio photo shoot.

And so this is Christmas

For weak and for strong

For rich and the poor ones

The world is so wrong

And so happy Christmas

For black and for white

For yellow and red ones

Let's stop all the fight

A very merry Christmas

And a happy New Year

Let's hope it's a good one

Without any fear

Even though I was just 8 years old, I remember exactly where I was.

Crafting with kids: Ornament Afternoon

2011-12-07T22:56:00.003-05:00

This past weekend, we had another family over to make ornaments. There were 7 children - aged 0 to 6 years. We planned 3 crafts – some children completed all three, some chose to work on only one. It was a nice opportunity for our families to mix. These are the crafts we worked on.
Scrappy holly wreath
This project comes from the Usborne book “Christmas Things to Stitch and Sew” which is an adorable book with many clever ideas for small pieces of fabric; however, most of the projects are geared to children who are able to sew. The wreath project is one of the few gluing activities suitable for younger children.

Jingle Bell Poinsettia
If you have an abundance of egg cartons, this is a fun recycled craft. The instructions are at the Crafty Crow.

Salt dough garland
My girlfriend baked all of the salt dough ornaments in advance. Prior to baking, she used straws to make holes in the ornaments. The children were then able to string the ornaments on twine.

We strung Lily’s garland on our tree.

I have been so busy at the day job lately, this crafty afternoon was just what I needed to get in the Christmas spirit!
Thanks for stopping by,
This post is linked to

St. Nicholas Day

2011-12-05T21:39:00.001-05:00

Several years ago a family from Switzerland moved to our neighbourhood. I was keen to learn about their Christmas traditions and how St. Nicholas Day is celebrated in Europe. I decided to incorporate the account of St. Nicholas as one of our Advent activities.

This site has excellent information about the story of St. Nicholas and the celebration of his feast day around the world.

Tonight, the girls left their boots out next to their St. Nicholas nutcracker.

Maybe they will get up on time tomorrow :)

Hope: Second Sunday of Advent

2011-12-04T19:24:00.001-05:00

It’s been a jam-packed weekend with projects and activities. One of the of big undertakings was to put up a tree. I carried home a 6 foot tree from the tree lot. { I have brought a Christmas tree on the bus before, but it didn’t go over very well – hence, I walk.} It’s now dripping with our favourite things.

Toadstools, yards of pompom trim and Norwegian flag bunting, fortune cookies, birds, bird houses, and butterflies, lots of “hope” ornaments, olive wood Nativities from our holiday in Israel, and handmade ornaments from Christmas past (one exception - for the first time, the girls have their own Christmas tree in their shared bedroom. They have taken possession of every Nutcracker and ballet slipper ornament. If I get an opportunity that coincides with good lighting, I will post some photos.)

I did something different this year and so glad I did. I asked the folks at the tree lot to cut off several branches from the bottom of the tree – not so that there were would be room for more gifts, but so the girls could play under there. They love it.

They have their Schleich Nativity set up under the tree and have played with it for long periods of time. The set doesn’t come with a stable. My husband picked up the stable from a Target dollar bin a few weeks ago when he was in the States.

The tree skirt is new this year. I used Hallmark Damask Ornaments for Free Spirit. An unexpected and fun pop of colour.

For our Sunday supper, I made beef wellington. My husband found a nice cut on sale at the butcher. This is the third time I have made this recipe. It takes some coordination re preparation and timing, but it works out every time and the girls love every morsel.

Before eating, Lily read the second verse of Advent.

Så tenner vi to lys i kveld,
to lys for håp og glede.
De står og skinner for seg selv
og oss som er tilstede.
Så tenner vi to lys i kveld,
to lys for håp og glede.

We light two candles tonight
We light them for hope and happiness
They stand there and light for themselves
and for us who are there
We light two candles tonight
We light them for hope and happiness...

Happy Second Sunday of Advent,

New Skills: Learning to Knit. Baby Steps.

2011-11-28T20:32:00.001-05:00

I had one of those Carolyn Ingalls’ moments and I decided that I wanted to learn to knit dish cloths. ~~My husband wondered can’t we get these sorts of items at the dollar shop…hmm that’s not the point.~~ At our recent workplace charity craft sale one of my colleagues was selling knitting lessons. A group of us have been meeting once week during our Friday lunch break and learning to knit. It was timely because I was also able to follow along with Wee Folk Art’s newbie knitting series and tried out their dishcloth/ washcloth patterns.

So I have been busy and I have become a streetcar knitter - if I am fortunate to get a seat on the streetcar I knit to and from the office.

All of the yarn is 100% cotton by Bernat.

If you are aware of some easy knitting patterns that might be a step up from dish cloths, I would love to hear about them!

Joy & Happiness: First Sunday of Advent

2011-11-27T23:13:00.001-05:00

Last night we attended the tree lighting ceremony at City Hall. I usually avoid crowded events, but the weather was so mild for a November evening and Lily had longed to go all day. The tree did not disappoint. We also enjoyed the Christmas windows at the Hudson Bay, lots of little point blankets.

Our family has an adventsstake which is a traditional Scandinavian four candle holder. This evening, we lit our first advent candle and Lily read the Advent Poem by the Norwegian Poet, Inger Hagerup.

I was so happy to find an English translation of this poem at Fresh in Norway. This is the first verse for week one.

We light a candle tonight
We light it for the happiness
It stands there and lights for itself
and for us who are there
We light a candle tonight
We light it for the happiness...

As Lily read out the poem, it was a good reminder to me that that I should try to incorporate more poetry into our daily routines. Makes everyone happy and it is fun for young readers.

Next Sunday, in the Scandinavian advent tradition, is hope.

Star Wars Birthday Party

2011-11-20T21:39:00.001-05:00

This weekend was my nephew’s 5th birthday. My sister had everything under control, but needed my assistance stitching up ten Jedi robes. We had a marathon sewing session on Friday evening with two machines going non-stop. Simplicity 8874 was modified to create these robes (size 5). The fabric was on clearance and/or thrifted and the pattern was found second hand so each worked out to about $2 (labour not included).

Lily didn’t want to be a Jedi knight. She had her heart set on on being Wicket, an Ewok. I created an Ewok costume by using two chocolate brown towels and this surfer poncho tutorial (by the Funky PolkaDot Giraffe). I added ears to the hood and put together a second terry hood out of some yellow terry. A couple of props (a walking stick and suede bag for treasures) and voila! (It can now be reused as a beach towel).

Lily has a very interesting smile right now. She has lost so many teeth.

I decided to go as Princess Leia (minus the metal bikini). I used the angel costume from Simplicity 9982 and two dollar store hair extensions. I was going for this look. I added a tin foil necklace (great idea over at the Long Thread).

(image via)

Evangeline Hope reluctantly agreed to wear a white gown as well (Made By Rae’s pierrot tunic modified). My nephew, below, bottom right is Obi-Wan. Darth Vader in this photo is a cardboard standup.

The craft was a little snow globe, one of the projects in Bonnie Burton’s Star Wars Craft Book. My middle sister was unable to come due to distance, but she put together all of the graphics for the invites and labels.

A Jedi master played a number of games with the knights and there was some saber training with Darth Vader and pool noodles.

A birthday is not complete without cake. My sister found the R2D2 droid cake (from 1980) on ebay. She had it shipped to Ottawa from New Mexico.

She took the special pan to a local baker who did an amazing job.

My sister also did a great job on the decorations. She found a pair of men’s Star Wars pajama’s at Walmart and used the fabric to create a few buntings. The table cloth was a Star Wars drape found at the Goodwill.

The Darth Vader treat buckets were found on sale after Halloween and make a nice balloon anchor.

It was a very special day to honour a very special little guy in our family.

Have a great week,

Tea Towel Projects

2011-11-17T04:28:00.005-05:00

I have been wanting to post about a few tea towel projects because handmade gifts are on my mind and I think tea towels on their own or transformed are a fun gift which can be easily personalized for the lucky recipient. Recently, I was fortunate to find a 1972 calendar tea towel at Value Village. I have been looking for a 1972 calendar tea towel for a long time (like almost 40 years…) to transform into a pillow. Here is the tea towel.

I didn’t have the courage to cut it up and change the size, so i used the full length, added a zipper, and found a perfect fitting Ikea down insert.

The reverse is Michael Miller (Beatnik) fabric.
I love tea towels. I have a little collection of linen souvenir tea towels from the UK and Ireland which are well used and loved.

I have also been collecting tea towel refashion ideas on my pinterest board.
My pal recently transformed a souvenir Royal Wedding Tea Towel into a stylish apron. Craft Stylish has put together a good tutorial on creating a tea towel apron here. Another tip: If you happen to have the Amy Butler domestic goddess half apron pattern, the waist band and straps from that pattern often fit very well on horizontal souvenir tea towels.

Here is another example of another clever refashion. She took a Glanta Ikea tea towel (a great buy at 2 for $4.99) into another stylish apron.

The Glanta tea towel has a vertical print so you can cut it to the desired length and then add a waist band in a complimentary fabric. The left over fabric from the Glanta (which will now be plain white) can be saved for another project or made into a smaller tea towel like in the photo (this one used Sew 4 Home’s fancy retro border technique).

So I hope you enjoyed these tea towel ideas. If you have any ideas that you have spotted, please let me know so that I can add them to my pinboard. Also, if anyone has an attachment to the year 1979, I would be happy to send you this 1979 calendar tea towel. Just let me know in the comments by November 24th along with your email address or how to find you. The towel is on the smaller size, but perfect condition and now prewashed. {If more than one person expresses interest, I will draw a name }.

Have a great day,

This project is linked to

and the Point of View Link Party.

A little Missoni …

2011-11-12T14:17:00.001-05:00

If you are a fan of Nancy Drew you may recall this cover. It is difficult for me to choose a favourite cover, but this one is up there.

My sister sent a little package. A couple of Missoni-for-Target sweater dresses for the girls. I had a Nancy flashback.

All they need now is a convertible. Have a great weekend,

11.11.11

2011-11-11T12:24:00.002-05:00

This morning, I had the opportunity to attend the Remembrance Day assembly at Lily’s school. It was very moving. The student choir sang five songs. There were student readings, including In Flanders Field. A veteran, who served Canada during the Korean War, addressed the student body. It is a school tradition that each class creates a poppy wreath. Lily was a wreath bearer for her class.

Watching the ceremony was one of those surreal parenting moments, the sort where you have a lump in your throat. I have such vivid school girl recollections of participating in Remembrance Day assemblies, making wreaths, and reading poems - to have the opportunity to watch my daughter participate in her first assembly was a memory I will not forget.

Wizard of Oz Doorway Puppet Theatre

2011-11-08T09:59:00.003-05:00

Sorry for the long silence, I have been learning to knit and have been distracted by British sewing magazines. My pal has been accumulating them from her friends and family who have been visiting the UK. We are starting a collection. Lots of inspiration.

I was quite thankful for the time change this past weekend. It makes the mornings a little easier. With the extra hour, I decided to sew because I prefer to sew than sleep. The Bend-the-rules-sewing puppet theatre has been on my “to do” list for over a year and I purchased a few prints from Quilting Treasure’s Wizard of Oz fabric ages and ages ago with the project in mind.
I will be giving the puppet theatre to the girls for Christmas. I always have visions of sugarplums and a 100% handmade Christmas, maybe this will be the one – but I will have to you know get Lily on board and come to grips with the fact that a zhuzhu pet is not handmade.

I used some denim from daddy’s pant leg to make the carrier. Still waiting for the perfect button so the closure isn’t complete. I know I have a retro gingham one somewhere in my stash…

Have a great week,

This is linked to

Crafting with my kids: Indian Block printing

2011-10-29T19:35:00.004-04:00

Last week, I had a chance to go to the “Creativ Festival” in downtown Toronto with my pal. We had a chance to meet Jamie Maldon from Colouricious who flew to Toronto all the way from the UK. I am a huge fan of block print so I couldn’t believe my luck and started a new stash. She has so many amazing block prints.

The girls and I worked on a few pieces. You need some cardstock (we used old file folders for the note cards) and newsprint (newsprint works very well for the large blocks to make gift wrap), sponges, and acrylic paint.
Here is a close up of that splendid peacock.

Here is the gift wrap.

Lots of note cards.

They make a lovely stationary gift all wrapped up in twine.
Coincidentally, I found a really special book on printing technique at a local thrift shop. It is from 1961 and by Swedes G. Ahlberg and O. Jarneryd. From the introduction on the “Pleasures of Block Printing”, the authors write:
Our aim, in writing this book is to give directions for printing methods which can be carried out by the school child, the professional man, the housewife-the amateur of any age. Many beginners surprise themselves by the ease with which they learn these methods and by the unmistakeably professional appearance of the prints they make. Many a teen-age girl might enjoy making a tie for her boyfriend and a skirt for herself using a matching pattern.

The intro says it all. We were very pleased with the results on paper and our next project is to try block printing on fabric. So exciting.
I hope you are having a lovely weekend and to all our dear friends celebrating Diwali this weekend, we wish you a joyous celebration.

Crafting with my kids: Pumpkin Activities

2011-10-23T20:02:00.003-04:00

This weekend, my husband took Lily out of town for a couple of days, so I was on my own with the little one which is kind of rare (she isn’t used to being solo). I saw this post on the Fairfield House and I knew I had try something similar with her. She is so into the princess fairy tales right now.

We set it up the “carriage” in a whiskey barrel. She loved it and couldn’t wait to show her big sis.

We were also able to use up our pumpkin seeds for a crafty activity as well. I saw the project idea over a Teach Preschool and found further directions here. It is quite involved as you have to first dry out your pumpkin seeds, dye them and then dry them out again. But in the end the activity was a hit. The girls made some fall trees. The trunk is faux bois contact paper.

P.S. The eyes on the little owl are hole punch reinforcements. My dad was cleaning out his office and passed along his stash from the early 80s!
Have a great week,
{This post is linked to }

Forest Friends Hooded Scarf

2011-10-16T18:50:00.001-04:00

This is my final kids clothes week project {I think, errrr … unless I have the sudden urge to sew at 3 am or something like that}. I have a couple of other wips, but nothing finished or ready to photograph (fingers crossed they won’t become a rip).

About a year ago, I won a yard of Cloud 9’s Organic Forest Friends flannel from a giveaway over at From an Igloo.

Lily doesn’t have any scarves (unlike mum, eesh) - so I stitched her up a hooded scarf. There are tutorials out there, but this one is my own construction - figuring it out on my own. In addition to the flannel, I incorporated chocolate brown minkie left over from the run for the cure t-shirt quilt and blue pompom trim.

The temperature has now officially dropped so this is a useful piece. I think she thinks so too.

It’s been a fun week. The challenge lit a fire under me, it was time to bust through the stash. I didn’t purchase a single item and only used what I had on hand. I feel quite happy about that.

Have a great week,

Kids and Corduroy

2011-10-15T15:21:00.002-04:00

I am behind on my kids clothing week projects. The kids needed me more than they needed clothes - everyone has the typical October night cough (it usually lasts until March in this household).
Anyway, the sewing mojo is back. I have been wanting to post about corduroy for ages. It is probably my favourite fabric for a child’s fall / winter wardrobe.
I stitched up this little corduroy jumper for E. Hope. Brown velvet ric rac , fabric Sandi Henderson for Michael Miller / Meadow Sweet Vintage Paisley on Light Yellow Corduroy .

The pattern is New Look 6854 for Kids (out of print). I added a kangaroo pocket, I was inspired by this post on Probably Actually (pinned by Gwen). It’s kind of wrinkled, but it is well used to store Polly pockets.

After finishing the reversible skirt, I completed the outfit with a little capelet. The pattern is available over at Grosgrain (or Burda here). I just increased the size slightly.

Corduroy is also great for little boys. My pal got on board and she stitched up two pairs of flat front cords for her youngest who is difficult to fit (his waist is the size of 18-24 months but he is actually 3 years). Corduroy can be difficult to photograph due to the wale - as are 3 year old boys. Pattern: Made’s Flat Front Pant. This is the first time she made pants and I think they turned out great.

I am always on the hunt for corduroy garments second hand.
These are a couple of the girls’ favourite dresses, both printed corduroy and I didn’t pay more than $5 each. the first one is Bonnie Jean in apple corduroy and the second one is from the late 1980’s Laura Ashley’s Mother and Child collection, floral cord. I am always on the hunt for items from this particular Laura Ashley collection.

Happy Stitching and have a great weekend,

Reversible Clothing: The Change Your Mind skirt from 1, 2, 3 Sew

2011-10-11T21:05:00.003-04:00

My daughters like to wear skirts, especially the little one. She has developed strong views and refuses to wear pants. I have restricted my kids weeks sewing to garments the girls will wear and that are a simple sew. I absolutely love the Change Your Mind skirt in 1-2-3 Sew book because
1. I am able to destash – a reversible skirt takes up twice as much fabric
2. There are no exposed seams = a professional looking garment
3. You can customize this skirt by using any sort of trim (more destashing, yeah!
4. The skirt is an easy sew – 1-2 hours. I stitched up these skirts after the girls went to bed.
5. You can adapt this skirt for fall and still use up your quilting cottons.
For this version I used corduroy on one side and a quilting cotton (Marie Osmond 2008 for Quilting Treasures) on the other. Trim jumbo ric rac.

I also made this skirt using licensed Angelina Ballerina fabric and eyelet trim.

The reverse is purple and white polka dot.

I am not sure she will ever wear the purple side, she likes Angelina Ballerina too much. I am just happy these skirts are enjoyed.

PS. Modern Kiddo stitched up these skirts for her book review and they look really cute.

Happy stitching,

Heidi & Finn Cowl Neck Jumper Dress

2011-10-10T17:33:00.001-04:00

Thank you for all the kind Thanksgiving wishes. We had a wonderful weekend with lots of good food and beautiful weather. We enjoyed our turkey outside the deck (I think that’s the first time) and went on a fun nature hike. Lily made this little Thanksgiving tree. I gave her some decor type leaves applied with chalkboard paper rectangles and left her alone for some quiet time. She wrote out what she was thankful for – Kolors, Shells, Walnuts, home etc.

So I have decided to take up elsie marley’s kid’s clothing week challenge and I am working a on a few garments for the girls. If the stars are aligned and all that there might be quite a few sewing posts this week …umm…if you don’t enjoy the sewing projects, maybe come back in a couple of weeks :) I made this dress for Lily for Thanksgiving. The pattern is by Heidi & Finn. The knit is very cozy and has lots of neat animals, a pheasant, chipmunk, etc. {I made a poncho out of the same fabric last year}. The belt is just the “wrong side” of the fabric. This is a very simple sew. It actually took more time to turn the belt than complete the entire dress.

Have a great week,

Crafting with my kids: Thanksgiving Tall ship from a cardboard produce basket

2011-10-08T08:44:00.002-04:00

I loved the Pottery Barn-inspired Mayflower ships that I saw in blogland last year( e.g. Pink Peony, Gwenny Penny, Stories of A to Z) and wanted to create one with my girls. We used the last of our cardboard peach baskets.

Remove the wooden handle and get the little hands painting the basket brown.

After the cardboard dries, cut out a semi-circle on each side of the basket to make it look more like a boat. I fitted the bottom of the boat with a piece of styrofoam covered with landscape burlap.

I created the masts from scrap drapery lining (they are sewn). They measure finished about 6 X 9 inches. There are casings on the top and bottom for wooden skewers and they are supported upright by large wooden skewers. The masts are then hot glued to the upright skewers.

This was such a fun project and we continued our discussion about exploration that started back in July.
We are celebrating Thanksgiving in Canada this weekend. It looks like it will be 24 degrees Celsius. We may be able to enjoy our Turkey outdoors!

Crafting with my kids: Our Indian Corn Chairbackers

2011-10-02T20:35:00.003-04:00

Canadian Thanksgiving is celebrated next weekend. We have been creating a few decorations for our table – all inspired by the pretty colours in Indian corn.
There are a number of variations on painting Indian corn cobs {bubblewrap over at No Time for Flashcards and fingerprints at All Kids}. We used thumprints and cork stamping.

Cut up your masterpiece into cobs and add a few embellishments like ribbon and burlap.
We hung the cobs on our chairs with a little raffia.
Before I had kids, I don’t think I ever heard of a “chairbacker”, but I have actually found that the girls get excited about these sorts of chair decorations and even want to sit down to enjoy a meal.

P.S. Our tablecloth was an interesting thrifty find. I like the fall colours. Linen for about 2$.

Happy Crafting,
This post is linked to Friday Favorites at Deep Space Sparkle

The Annual Blessing of the Animals

2011-10-01T19:07:00.001-04:00

The feast of St. Francis is celebrated on October 4th this year. Today, my girls and I brought Ramsey to be blessed at the annual blessing of the animals at St. James Cathedral in downtown Toronto. The Cathedral is a historic and architectural treasure and a place of worship since 1797. Today’s service took place inside the cathedral. Pets were permitted inside the Cathedral for the hymns and scripture readings. After the service, the blessing took place outdoors.

Dragoon - an 8 year old magnificent Toronto Police Horse - was blessed first.

There were numerous cats and dogs, but this was the only bird.

The girls really enjoyed this outing. Lily insisted on wearing her special rubber boots. She also wore socks with horses and a shirt with a deer on it.

Several years ago, I picked up this book by Robert F. Kennedy Jr. on the life of St. Francis. It was a birthday gift for my husband. It has been a wonderful addition to our family library. Denis Nolan’s illustrations are beautiful.

I hope you are having a wonderful weekend,

Family treasures: Old Star Wars Toys

2011-09-28T07:52:00.001-04:00

Do you recall these toys?

My 36 year old cousin cleaned out his closet and found these old Star Wars toys. He played with them in 1983 or so.

A Millennium Falcon

I think this is a landing craft

Imperial Army AT-AT Walker

I was never a fan of Star Wars and haven’t seen any of the films in their entirety, it was just not my thing (as a kid I gravitated to stories which took place on earth, Nancy Drew and the like); however, the Star Wars stories were very influential and enjoyed by many people close to me.

Lily will never forget the hot summer day when our car broke down and she watched Star Wars with her grandfather. Lily is very interested in the Star Wars story and trivia. She also enjoys illustrating pictures from her Lego Star Wars Visual Dictionary.

After some deliberation, we decided not to keep these toys at our home and send them up to my nephew and said that she could play with them when she visited his house. I thought Lily would be upset, but she was completely fine with that decision. She wrapped the toys and decorated the boxes with ewoks and everything was okay.

Have a great day!

PS If you like crafty Star Wars projects, I have a pinterest board called “One Crafty Star Wars”.

Fall Traditions: Planting Bulbs with my Girls

2011-09-26T07:26:00.001-04:00

One of our traditions is to plant at least 50 bulbs every autumn. Bulb planting is something I did with my dad as a young child and it is a tradition I carried on with my daughters. We usually plant in two stages on in early fall and one later. It’s always interesting to see which planting does better. Tulips are usually saved for a later planting (less time for the squirrels to get them). Yesterday, we planted crocus and narcissus.

Hard working little hands.

In May, when the bulbs are putting on their show, I like to take a annual photo of the girls around Mother’s Day. This photo was taken in May 2009. The daffodils were particularly vibrant that year.

Have a lovely week,

PS If you enjoy forcing bulbs for winter, Stephanie Lynn posted about a pretty paper white project. There is also an informative article in the September issue of MSL (page 31-37) has an excellent article (summarized here) on using multiplier bulbs for mass plantings that were used on Martha’s bed (which involved planting 115,000 bulbs).

Guest Sewing Project: Allergy Awareness Backpack Tag

2011-09-21T19:36:00.001-04:00

I wanted to post about this project in case you or anyone you know has a child with a food allergy. Blue Bear Aware is a Canadian company which sells allergy alert badges and wristbands. My pal incorporated one of their badges into a luggage tag for her son’s backpack.

On the reverse of the tag is a vinyl slot to slip in contact information and what to do in an emergency, use of epi-pen, health information, family physician etc.

{Sewing Notes: The construction of the tag is not overly complicated, just a little fussy to execute. This particular tag has a button hole to thread recycled leather fastener through, but you could also use a grommet / eyelet. Bias tape is used to sandwich all of the pieces together as the denim and vinyl made it too thick to turn inside out. Finished size is approximately 4 X 4 inches.}

I think this is a very useful tag. When I work backstage at Lily’s ballet recitals there are a number of dancers with serious food allergies. Although there is a nut free policy, I still get concerned. This sort of tag would make the dancers’ with allergies’ backpack standout should I ever have to administer their epi-pen.

For more information on food allergies, I found this site and this site particularly informative.

{Neither my pal nor my blog have any affiliation with these sites or Blue Bear and this post is not sponsored in any way}.

Thanks for reading,

Handmade Gifts: Tea Bag Wallets

2011-09-18T19:32:00.002-04:00

I am always amazed at the generosity of sewing bloggers who take the time and effort to create and post tutorials on their blogs for free. Whenever I attempt a freebie, I like to give a shout out. This tutorial is by Christy over at Is it Naptime Yet? If you have a tea drinker on your gift list, it is a perfect and super easy handmade gift that takes very little fabric.

My husband only drinks herbal fruit teas, so I made one of these wallets to hold his tea stash when he’s on the road.

Open up them up and find a rainbow inside.

These wallets were made with two fabrics (denim and quilting cotton - Bistro by Deb Strain for Moda.) I used covered buttons and instead of a fabric loop, I used lingerie elastic (I really love that type of elastic for fasteners).

As a twist, I appliquéd one of my cross-stitch samplers (I think the kit was from Black Sheep Wools).

Have a lovely week,
This project is linked to

Crafting with my kids: Recreating Jackson Pollock’s Autumn Rhythm

2011-09-15T06:52:00.001-04:00

Hey folks, my friend Carol is one of the four mothers behind a collective blog, 4 mothers. Carol recently had a baby (her third!!) and extended an invitation to guest post while she and her new baby get acquainted.

I have a little post about something that has been in the “Lily & KJ craft head” for at least three years and we’re kind of proud of it.

If you like making messes with your child or even if you prefer to watch other people make messes with their kids, it would thrill me if you would click over here so we can discuss this (and I am not talking about the Furby).

Thanks for reading and your support - you are the best!

Recreating a Dinosaur Dig at home

2011-09-12T20:16:00.003-04:00

I am totally not into spooky Halloween decorations, but I wanted to post about this project because this is the time of year you can easily find bones. My little one absolutely loves the dinosaur dig at the Royal Ontario Museum so I wanted to recreate a version for our home sandbox.

I found some bones in the Halloween section of the Dollar Store. We also used goggles, plastic dinosaurs, and a paintbrush {to gently dust off sand}.

I wanted my older daughter to enjoy this well, so I turned the bones into flashcards with the names of the eras and names of dinosaurs on the reverse.

Everything was buried.

And the fun began.

This dig kept my little palaeontologist occupied for a very long time!
This post is linked to

Apple Picking, Slow cooker Dulce de Leche, and Harvest Moons

2011-09-11T19:13:00.002-04:00

This past weekend we had a chance to go apple picking.

Apple orchards are such fun places to take photographs.

Our family likes this particular orchard because the trees are short and children can {quickly} fill a basket without any grown-up assistance. There were four varieties ready for picking (Gingergold, Royal gala, McIntosh, and Empire). We also enjoyed a tractor ride and 3.8 acre corn maze. We were lost for about 30 minutes. Someone decided to dress themselves (did you know that princesses only wear buttons in the back?)

Given that we have nearly 40$ worth of apples (yikes) I thought it would be fun to make some caramel apples. I tried making some dulce de leche in the slow cooker. You just need to submerge an unopened can of sweetened condensed milk in the slow cooker for 8 hours (on low). Make sure the can is submerged. Buttercream Barbie provides the specifics here. This recipe is so easy and the result is fantastic.

The girls dipped their apples in the dulce de leche and added some leaf sprinkles. After dipping, we let the apples solidify a bit in the fridge. It was a hit.

Have a lovely week and be sure to look up at the Harvest moon tomorrow (this shot was from Saturday evening).

Tomorrow, marks the beginning of the Moon Festival. In our neck of the woods, the supermarkets are full of moon cakes.
Some of the cakes come with interesting knick knacks.

Thanks for stopping by,

Back to school

2011-09-06T22:02:00.002-04:00

Lily is only in grade one. She doesn’t have a clue about the whole “back to school” shopping thing and I am very happy about that. She picked out her own outfit. A thrifted dress. The label is Zara, but I scored the dress at Value Village for $5, never worn.
She wanted a belt for the dress, so I stitched up an obi-style belt with a Japanese fat quarter from my stash (a little owl print – the fabric is from Kalisti Quilts, but no longer available). {As for the hair, she insisted on wearing a plastic poinsettia cake decoration from our Christmas yule log}.

She had a great first day, so I am happy about that too. I hope your “first day back” went well !

Crafting with my Kids: Cork and Walnut Boats

2011-09-05T19:45:00.002-04:00

Ever since I saw Jonah Lisa’s cork boat tutorial, it has been on our summer bucket list. Eager to fit in one last summerish project, we spent the morning making these little boats and brought them down to our neighbourhood beach for a test run. We live about 3 km from the water so it’s an easy outing.

I was hoping they would float (they did).

We repurposed a couple of plastic produce baskets to carry the boats. I always find it intriguing how children enjoy a “carrying case”.

We also made a flotilla of walnut boats. Made by Joel posted a tutorial here and the washi tape idea is inspired by Hip Hip Hooray’s take here. Really easy, but lit candles are involved. Lily loves eating walnuts so she was especially interested in this project.

School starts tomorrow and new routines to implement (sigh). Wishing you a great week,

Monarchs and Cicadas

2011-09-03T15:58:00.002-04:00

I didn’t plan to be away from these parts for so long. {I recently created a pinterest account (my boards are here) which has used up most of my computer time, it’s rather addictive and can leave you feeling a little saturated by all the visual inspiration. }
We have been spending these last few days of summer swimming at our local pool (it closes tomorrow, sigh) and looking for butterflies.
It’s the annual migration and the monarchs have been putting on such a show for us.

Not sure of this variety.

We have also been hunting for falling cicadas and found this little guy. The cicada song fills our backyard throughout the summer. That song will end as soon as the weather turns cool.

Enjoy the long weekend,

Holly Hobbie & Vintage Toy Sewing Machines

2011-08-24T20:31:00.004-04:00

First, thank you for the kind anniversary wishes. Second, to set the record straight, I was over twenty (well just…21)!
While we are on the topic of ancient history, I thought I would post about this little Holly Hobbie project.
My youngest sister knows what I like, e.g. my prairie revival tendencies. She always keeps an eye out for me on her thrifty adventures. Recently, she scored this lovely embroidery piece for about a buck at the Salvation Army Thrift Shop. The embroidery pattern is from 1973: Simplicity 6005. I have seen this particular pattern on Etsy here.

The piece needed to be washed (carefully), but I was able to turn it into a little pillow with cream corduroy and mini pompom trim.

On the reverse, there is a little pocket to hold my girls’ Holly (modern day Holly, sigh…).

Here’s a little more ancient history:
1. My first (toy) sewing machine was a Holly Hobbie Sewing Machine, much like this one available on Etsy, only blue. Coincidentally, my sister recently spotted a bunch of “vintage” toy sewing machines at a thrift shop, including my first “machine” (bottom left).

3. More ancient history: a few more toy machines in case you are interested in this sort of nostalgia (Sew Mate & Jenny)

A toy PFAFF

A Kittie?

3. I found a photo of my middle sister and I from 1978 sporting our Holly Hobbie purses: notice the very similar design to the embroidery. The photograph was taken in Australia, but it is my recollection that my father brought back those purses for us from Boston.

Thanks for stopping by and sharing my almost 4 decade old love for Holly,

This post is linked to Share the Love Wednesday

{eighteen}

2011-08-22T07:03:00.001-04:00

Celebrating a little anniversary today.

Eighteen years ago today, two poor students sealed the deal at a sleepy sailing club around the corner from my childhood home.

Last night, for our family movie night, we watched the Little House on the Prairie episode where Adam and Mary get married. The girls are very interested in weddings and I dug out our wedding scrapbook and photo album to share with them.

I thought I would share some of the details in this space as well. It was a thrifty wedding with many friends, family, and strangers making it possible. The sailing club had never had a wedding. No professional photographer, just a few friends who enjoyed photography had a 35mm camera that they remembered to bring. A childhood friend was our bagpiper. My father-in-law performed the ceremony.

in the week before the big day, me at the sewing machine in my dad’s dining room. My dress and all of the bridesmaid dresses were handmade. In the bottom corner is my dress half done on a dress form. It probably cost less than $40 to make.

The inspiration for the veil is in the photo above, bottom left corner. I found a veil at the Goodwill for a few dollars. I refashioned it and added satin bias tape. I look a little serious in this photo. I also made the hairpiece out of a grapevine and flowers, the veil was attached to the back of the grapevine so it could flip over. I held daisies and ivy.

My BFF was my maid of honour. She made her own dress, dupioni silk. The bridesmaid dresses were the same pattern.

My oldest nephew {then 4} was the ring bearer and stole the show :) I made black velvet vests for him and my oldest niece. The kilts were rented.

After the reception, the Mister and I sailed away. We had put up a notice at the sailing club and very kind strangers offered to be our “limo”. They would not accept anything in return.

The boat was named the Figment II.

fig·ment (fgmnt)

n.

Something invented, made up, or fabricated

I always thought that was funny.

Wishing you a great week,

Crafting with my kids: Scrappy Princess and the Pea

2011-08-17T20:11:00.004-04:00

We have been using the library quite a bit this summer. Two of the biggest hits have been Tillie the terrible Swede : how one woman, a sewing needle, and a bicycle changed history and Lauren Child’s the Princess and the Pea.
The girls and I worked on a little craft for the Princess and the Pea story.
Back in June, on his last day of school, my nephew brought home an adorable Princess and the Pea craft using fabric and scrapbook paper for the mattress and a dried pea.

I thought we would try it with fabric scraps from my stash, but you could use different scraps of a paper too.
(Materials: scraps, cardboard for background, single dried legume, glue, and either a cut out of a princess or better yet draw one yourself!)

Here is what Lily put together. Her illustrations have a very Lauren Child quality. She is a huge fan of Lauren’s Pippi book as well as the Charlie and Lola series.

See the dried kidney bean second mattress from the bottom?

It was a fun project incorporating fabric scraps and the girls were really engaged the entire time. I highly recommend Lauren Child’s version if you haven’t enjoyed it already.
Thanks for stopping by! This post is linked to

Baby Shower: Red headed duckies

2011-08-16T07:31:00.001-04:00

One of my colleagues is becoming a dad at the end of the month. The office is quite good about celebrating these special moments in a person’s life. The theme of the baby shower was nautical (ducks, boats, and fish).

My friend the Baking Barrister made these amazing cookies and I thought I would share them. Our colleague has red hair so she included a patch a red hair on some of the ducks. I thought that was such a sweet and thoughtful touch and I thought I would share a few photos from the event here.

She also made a sailboat cake. The recipe is Martha Stewart. Blue seven minute frosting over chocolate cake.

So yummy!

My pal made some streamers using Made’s Ruffled Streamer Tutorial. All rolled up.

There was also a little rubber duckie corsage for mum-to-be

and of course a little fish bowl centrepiece.

and goldfish crackers, the fifth food group.

It was a sweet event for an excited couple. I enjoy posting about collaborative projects like this and how they come together.

Have a great day,

Apricot Freezer Jam

2011-08-14T19:36:00.001-04:00

My oldest daughter loves apricots and apricot jam. When we were at the 1812 re-enactment she tried an apricot jam tart, apparently from an 19th c. recipe. Given her interest, and only three ingredients are required, I thought it would be a nice project to try at home.

Apricots at the farmer’s market. Needed 3 litres.

I used the wisdom of this recipe on the Homesick Texan and this post on David Lebovitz. Cooked the apricots for about an hour. Until they started to look like this.

A couple of hours in the fridge. Voila, weekend brunch.

I used the Ball freezer jam jars. We have a tiny freezer so these containers are more practical.

I then attempted to recreate the 1812 tarts using *premade frozen* mini pastry shells. They were devoured so I had a brief supermum moment.

Have a lovely week and thanks for stopping by,

Dog’s getting old

2011-08-12T07:40:00.001-04:00

Ramsey turned 8 this week.

I love it how children can find any reason to celebrate. The cow’s knuckle came out.

Have a lovely weekend,

Farmer’s Market Rainbow

2011-08-10T22:24:00.001-04:00

From late May to the first week of October, I usually purchase my produce at the Wednesday Farmer’s Market at Nathan Phillips Square in downtown Toronto. There are many other markets scattered throughout the city, but I enjoy this particular market because I have been going to it for the past 12 summers and I am a creature of habit. {Prior to that I was usually found at the Saturday market at St. Lawrence (I financed part of my law school debt by working for a market vendor selling free range chicken and eggs)}.

After I saw this lovely post, I was inspired to capture the colours of the Wednesday market.

Farmer’s markets in Ontario are especially pretty in August!

Cardboard Rapunzel Photo booth and Ribbon Wands

2011-08-08T22:45:00.002-04:00

now we are six

My oldest turned six today. We took her to an amusement park (Canada’s Wonderland) on the weekend and she loved it. Today, her actual birthday, we had a celebration at her daycamp.

We made a Rapunzel photo booth from cardboard. { The cardboard is from some flat packed furniture. The photo booth came together much easier than the furniture. }

I applied a painter’s tape grid to the flat cardboard. We (the girls helped out!) rolled on a mixture of Decoart silver, black and white.

The painter’s tape was removed just before dry.

I added a turret detail to the top of the cardboard and cut out some windows using a box cutter and added a little silver duck tape embellishment. The bunting is burlap (hot glued).

The rapunzel hair is a repurposed polar fleece scarf. I posted about this project here.

We enjoyed a storytime, craft, cake and a sing-a-long.

For the craft, we made ribbon wands. I had bookmarked this “handmade ribbon stick tutorial” over at the giverslog. I recently made ribbon wands with the girls and Lily wanted to share this project with her friends. For the party, we made ours slightly differently than the giverslog tutorial ( we just used Home Depot’s 4 foot dowel cut in half to two feet and three 13 mm eyelets per dowel and lots of satiny ribbon).

My husband (a talented songwriter and guitarist) hosted a sing-a-long and the children loved using the wands to sing and dance to the songs. He writes a song for Lily on her birthday each year and this year he composed a special song about Rapunzel.

It was a lovely celebration!

PS Thank you for the kind feedback regarding the eyelet flower girl dresses, it made my day.

This post is linked to

Lavender Eyelet Flower Girl Dresses

2011-08-06T22:20:00.004-04:00

Today, my girls had the privilege of being involved in a special wedding. I made three dresses using the Cottage Mama’s Party Dress tutorial.
The bride’s sister-in-law made very sweet baskets full of real and faux flowers.

As the dress was eyelet, I lined the entire garment for modesty. The rhinestone flowers are from fleuriste’s Etsy shop. The addition of the flower gives the garment sort of a “boutique touch.”

I made one dress in size 5, another in size 7 and size 8. Over six yards of eyelet was involved and took up most of this pew.

Lots of covered buttons.
A few bubbles.

Today, was one of those “that’s why I sew days.”
This post is linked to

Crafting with my kids: “Shibori” Tie Dye

2011-08-01T21:37:00.002-04:00

Today was the last day of the staycation. It has been a wonderful week with even a few goals accomplished. Little one is now day and night-trained. We have also been swimming nearly every day at the public pool and things finally clicked for Lily. She has been in formal swim lessons for about 2 years, but has remained in the same level because she can’t meet one requirement – the independent 5 metre swim. On Friday, she did it dog paddle style and today she did it under water. So it was kind of momentous.
As far as crafty projects, my husband’s birthday is coming up and the girls wanted to make him a gift, so we we worked on some tie dye. We used Rit Denim Blue (powder formula).
The girls rolled their shirts on a wooden pole and added elastics. Dad’s was done accordion style between scrap 2X4s. This post is an excellent tutorial on the process. Fortunately, I had saved all of my produce elastics. The wider width is useful.

Stirring the pot.

The reveal to dry on the new clothesline.

The rolled dowel technique is on the left (above). The fabric closest to the dowel (in this case the neckline( is the least dyed). The elastic relief is perpendicular on the shirt. The third shirt (far right) is the accordion 2X4 technique. It is more of a grid. If you are attracted by this look, you might be interested in this post by Eva Forever who used the same tutorial on pink blouse.

It was public holiday today. After we finished our activity, I took the girls to Fort York to see a “re-enactment” of the war of 1812.

Lily wore her new shirt while the little one refused to wear it. Sigh. You can see that the colour loses its intensity once dry.

Have a great week!

Pickling

2011-07-29T07:34:00.001-04:00

We have never tried any sort of pickling or canning, but I have been feeling the urge to branch out. Since April, I have been carrying around a “perfect pickle” recipe which was featured Country Living Magazine (April 2010). It actually comes from Judith Fertig’s recipe book Heartland. I doubled the recipe.

The pickles are garlicky, but also have a sweetness. I broke it down and I figure there is about 1/2 cup of sugar for each 500 jar of pickles!

I used Ontario garlic. It was huge and flavourful.

According to the recipe the pickles can last 1 year in the fridge. We are already on our 3rd jar, so I don’t think there is any chance of holding out that long.

Have you tried pickling? If you have any easy recipes to share, please let me know. I am thinking about trying beets. I really love beets and one my daughters enjoys beet salad.

I hope you have a wonderful weekend. I am seeing the light on the basement project. It has been a good exercise. I did a very bad thing accumulating far too much fabric. I am going to make some resolutions about that. soon.

Today is July 29th. I am reflecting about 30 years ago when all the little girls on our sleepy street were up very very early to watch a certain princess. In my thrifty adventures last week, I found this tin commemorative plate. Perfect for the girls’ tea set.

Blue Mason Jars

2011-07-27T13:50:00.002-04:00

I took the week off the day job and while the girls have been at day camp, I have been working on our basement trying to create a sewing space and small playroom. My husband and I started this project about 7 years ago and lost steam. Tiring work (moving stuff, standing drywall, priming, and finally painting). My body aches. I hope to be finished by Friday.
It’s not all work and no play. There has been alot of fun. Making big bubbles.
Evangeline Hope loves bubbles so much. I made her a little bubble station out of an old plastic bicycle basket zip-tied to the fence. The basket holds her assortment of bubble wands and potions. She loves it.
We also made a water balloon pinata for a dinner party the other evening.
I took a little break from my dust mask to try a DIY that has been on my list for a very long time. I love to give flowers in mason jars. I have never been fortunate to find a blue Ball mason jar. They are certainly not plentiful in Toronto second hand shops. So when I saw this project on Bridal Buzz I had to give it a go. I have worked on five jars so far. It takes a little practice so that your brushstrokes don’t show. It is also tricky to get the right consistency between the blue and the thinner. These photos actually show a little lighter than they really are. I may make my next batch a little more aqua. It is a fine line.

I hope you are having a great week!

Teaching kids to hand-stitch on burlap

2011-07-24T22:07:00.002-04:00

We had an Oprah a-ha moment this weekend. Lily said she wanted to learn to “hand sew”, this has been an ongoing process ( I posted about our warm-up attempts using various means such as lacing cards, lacing fortune cookies, and fruit mesh).
I recalled that my sister taught a class to stitch on burlap. This was a medieval theme. I think the children were about 8 years old. Can you believe they put together these beauties?

For our workshop, I cut up some white burlap, red yarn and large needle with very brief instructions. At first I held the burlap but then she was on her own. She decided she would do a playing card series. She is really interested in play cards (??). She drew the outlines of a club and heart. She’s still working on the spade and diamond.

So proud, she showed the neighbours!

I can’t believe she did this all herself. It has left me giddy!
Have a lovely week! This post is linked to

Crafting with Kids: Vacation Crafts

2011-07-21T20:03:00.001-04:00

My sister is vacationing in Florida. She sent me some photos of a sweet little craft my nephew made at Weather Camp. It is a cardboard tube sandcastle. It is fairly self explanatory. Cut a variety of tubes into turrets, brush on some glue and decorate with sand and shells.

Pretty realistic, non?

While I am on the subject of vacation crafting, there is a delightful chapter on vacation crafts in my 1975 Sunset Crafts for Children (you may recall I posted about this vintage craft book here).

Don’t you love this idea of making souvenir rubbings from monuments you see on vacation?

We tried these painted walking sticks this past weekend. Our dog brings home lots of sticks so the supplies were easy.

Here is a peak at our painted walking stick.

Do you craft on vacation? Have a wonderful weekend!