elliemoon

LOOKIE HERE

signs of life by the wood pile! this was o's find. he was very excited::

i was so inspired i decided to do a little yard work. ten minutes worth to be precise. but its a start. everyone seems suddenly ready for the change in seasons. that extra hour of light yesterday felt so nice. meanwhile, i finally finished that special order::

my friend liz found this pattern on etsy. you can see it here. it also comes with a box hat pattern. both are really cute. liz ordered two of these, one for a gift and one for her clients. she recently started her own photography business. you can see a sampling of her work on her site, elizabeth king photography. check it out, so many beautiful shots! 

COMING RIGHT UP

i've just started in on another special order::

and this just might be the cutest one i've been asked to do. details coming soon! happy weekend!

TUMBLE DRY

wasn't i just looking for ways to use up balls and balls of yarn? well here's the answer. felted dryer balls. excellent! the best part is that the core does not need to be wool. you can wrap away with anything you have; cotton blends, acrylic, etc. just make sure that the wool you use on the outside forms a nice thick layer around whatever you use for the core (only 100% wool will felt)::

stuff them into some old nylons and tie them. mine were a bit roomy and i think i got a little lazy on the last three balls. you really need to wrap the yarn tight and then weave in the end pretty good. and tie the nylon right next to the ball. but don't fret if your dryer balls come out with a few dreadlocks::

snip, snip, no problem. now just toss three or four or six of them in the dryer with your clothes and forget about ever buying dryer sheets again::

the details:: these were roughly 9-10 inches in circumference prior to felting. and i ran them through the wash cycle in the machine for ten minute intervals for about an hour.....because i wanted to insure felting and because i always over do things anyway. its how i role. did i just say that?

i felted them on their own with a pair of old jeans to assist in agitation (don't forget to add a little soap as well). i wanted to be sure the colors wouldn't run. but if you know they won't, or you're doing a dark load, you can just throw them in with your wash. the warmer the water the faster they will felt. you may want to run them through a couple of loads until they are nice and felted and ready to go. 

YOU COULD BUILD A HOUSE ON THAT

speaking of the shower cake, i have to share with you something i accidently stumbled upon while collecting a few more piping tips at the craft store before the big bake off for the baby shower. (hello, run on sentence!) this is by far the best tool i have invested in. it is a cake leveler. and i was skeptical at first....but it's a miracle worker. unbelievable precision. in short, a perfectionists dream::

this made me realize just how off my eyeballing approach has been. if i hadn't had to transport it, i could have even skipped the few bamboo skewers for stabilizing. i geeked out about this all night as i was cutting, frosting and constructing. big b was right there to make fun of me and suggest post titles for this subject. his best one was something like "on the level". but in the end, and as i told him i would, i went with one of my first exclamations after seeing the perfectly leveled layers come together. and there you have it.

THE CAKE

this accompanied the cookies for the shower. in my head i was picturing white with blue flowers. but after some serious hunting, i found that blue flowers at this time of year are scarce, to say the least. there were none, to say the most. so i took another direction::

there are just a few more weeks before this little guy arrives!! lucky for us, his parents live right next door! i will have to restrain myself from walking over there everyday. i'm hoping to take the role of primary babysitter::

and there's cierra. all belly and cuteness and just about ready to go! let the countdown begin!

 

 

THE COOKIES

this weekend was my sister-in-laws baby shower! my job, as per usual, was to supply the baked goods. and i was more than happy to do so. i have been spending some time recently clicking through some of the amazing food and cooking blogs out there. one in particular that i'm a sold follower of is bridgets, at bake at 350. she makes the most unbelievable cookies. i'm so jealous of her skills. i spotted these and knew i had to give them a try::

turns out i have the piping skills of an untrained chimp. seriously people, this stuff is hard. i had no control over the icing. but i loved this way of cookie decorating. normally i use a simple icing that i can paint on and let dry (really just confectioners sugar, a little lemon extract and enough milk to reach the right consistency). but royal icing is where its at. i've worked with it before but never learned how to outline and flood. which, by the way, bridget teaches you in one of her many 'you tube' tutorials! she has another site (university of cookie) thats devoted to them! at 1am i finally decided to use a toothpick to do the eyes and mouth. here was one of my first attempts at the eyes::

at that time of night it was all i could see. do you see it? c'mon. look at those eyes, now look at this::

see what i mean? at any rate, taken out of context the cookies were a success. luckily no one at the shower had seen bridgets version. phew::

so here's another thing to add to my culinary class wishlist:: piping 101. for now i'll have to keep practicing, i don't think the kids will complain, they ate all of my mistakes......so yes, lots of cookie eating this weekend.

 

ALL WRAPPED UP

it looks like this one won't be going to the dogs after all. made using the 'sisters' pattern in itty bitty toys, this is the other reversible that i wanted to try. thats bella in coral with her long locks and blond streaks, which would make little lu, 'the girl in green'::

o was not impressed with the likeness here. i explained the concept as i was working on the different pieces and when they all came together he assured me that neither of the girls looked anything like either of his sisters. i tried not to be offended and instead reminisced about his reaction to the bird, which was decidedly more enthusiastic. 

hope you all have a happy weekend. i'll be temporarily retiring the needles for some cake pans and cookie cutters. details coming monday.

 

SOUP IT UP

last night i put dinner up to a vote; chicken fajitas, baked tilapia or broccoli soup. much to my surprise, the soup won. in all honesty i was banking on the chicken fajitas. never did i imagine that meat of any kind would be passed over for a pureed vegetable. kids, always good for a surprise::

broccoli soup::

4 TBSP of butter

1 onion

2 stalks of celery

1 or 2 potatoes

4 cups broccoli

6 cups chicken broth

1 handful fresh parsley

couple drops worcestershire sauce

1/2 to 1 cup cream

saute the chopped onion and celery in butter until tender. add the chopped potatoes and toss to coat. add warmed chicken broth and bring to a boil. add broccoli, parsley, salt, pepper and a dash of worcestershire sauce. let simmer until everything is tender and ready to throw in the food processor. let it whirl until you reach your desired consistency and then return to the pot. add the cream, stir and serve::

delicious. and we were overdue for some fresh bread around here. tomorrow, the fajitas! 

YARNING

i've been trying desperately to clean out and organize the many, many stashes of yarn i have in various spots around the house. there is just so much of it. these are the times where i dream of a crafting room to call my own. for now i will have to settle for my crafting cabinets, crafting drawers, and crafting baskets.

so what do you do with balls and balls, and more balls of yarn that haven't seen the light of day for over three years? here's something::

we call it 'yarning'. its fun but sticky. o, bella and i fell into the landscape groove while kai designed his own airplane and then moved on to jewelry::

nicely done. that took care of maybe 20 yards. what to do, what to do?

SEWING FOR NEWBIES

there are babies coming at us from all directions this spring. some will be greatly anticipated siblings, some will be the first of the brood, some are refusing to abandon ship, some have already arrived. and one very special little babe will be the first for my little bro! we have but a handful of weeks to go before we get to meet our new nephew/cousin and the suspense is killing me. but i suppose i could use the extra time, as i have yet to finish his birthday trinkets::

and there is much more to be done for all of the other new arrivals. this is the best kind of crafting. let the labor days begin! 

and happy march!