basket: makeover

we've found several things "junked" in the last few weeks. a tiffany lamp, and this table and basket. I am probably going to sell the lamp and re-do the table (once I can buy some paint and the heat settles down... it's too crazy hot to do anything outside these days).

basket before

But, I did take 5 minutes to spray paint this basket outside. I'd actually been thinking it'd be nice to have a toy basket in the livingroom to round up all of the girl's little people, stuffed animals, and books. Plus, we can start teaching her to put them away in the basket!

So I spray painted it a couple of days ago. (Secret: I actually ran out before the inside was finished, so I decided that a little basket insert would take care of that for now.)

Yesterday I made the liner with some fabric I had. I tried to recycle some elastic I painstakingly removed from a vintage sheet, but just as with the tutu, it kept breaking. Finally I gave up. It is a basket with a liner but no elastic.

basket after

Lesson learned: don't use old elastic. And if you can't buy new, don't use any at all! :-)

the first cherries of summer

high chair cover

I finally made a pattern for the high chair cover i needed to make (to ensure Ladybug didn't slide right out of the chair!) and... I give it a 6 out of 10.

I used some leftover fabric from a vintage Hawaiian dress for the front and a green-and-white polyester for the back. It was my first time to make a pattern, use batting (of any kind) and use bias tape. I feel like bias tape should be easier than it was for me. Do any of you have any tutorials or suggestions for using bias tape? 

oh, and it's also reversible. my favorite part. :-)

July's garden!

my garden has grown since my last update.

tomatoes

can you see the tiny pepper?

turn red baby! and soon!

beans

basil

jalapenos

harvested garlic. want any??

IKEA love

My dear sweet Dad put up with a trip to IKEA on the way to our Minnesota (fishing) vacation. Bless him times a million! Jeremy and I visited one in Portland several years ago, but there is just something about that place that brings back lots of Swiss/German memories. We made a couple of trips to the one in Zurich to find a few things to make our volunteer quarters homey.

I found 6 postcards in Germany 4 years ago and have wanted them in my kitchen ever since! Finally, I found the perfect frames. About time huh?

I also fell in love with this pitcher. I also decided my mom needed one for her kitchen redo (still working on the decor!).

Finally, I got two cheap frames for some interchangeable art for little lady's room and a tiny vase for my envisioned living room shelf. (That's yet to come.)

:-) Yay for IKEA! I could've spent lots more time, but we made it through in an hour and a half. Phew. What fun! Thanks M&D!

Fishing and Skiing (Minnesota fun!)

what we did.

the view

the captain - with his tootsie pop

fisherman #1

turtles

fishing under the dock

successful bass fishing!

kneeboarding

wiped out and submarined!

skiing - my favorite

glassy waters (and glowing legs)

Our first-ever summer vacation!

Last week we took the girl and drove to Minnesota with my parents to spend a week in a cabin, complete with wood paneling, bear couches, mosquitoes and charcoal grills. With the lake in view we spent our days fishing, waterskiing, napping, eating, watching (HG) TV and playing games. Cribbage was the game of the week, to say the least.

We shared a cabin with these folks:

Ryan and Erin

my parents (Dad, you know you love it.)

Our cabin was the nicest one I've ever stayed in. Four bedroom, two bathrooms and 3 flat screen tvs! Air conditioning for the two 90-degree days that we had and cabin decor to boot. Love it.

wood paneling and a flat screen tv!

bears and fishes furniture

kitchen/dining room

Next up ... what we did! :-)

A Ruined American (part 1)

Haiti ruined me.

Ruined my worldview, my perspective, my thoughts, my colored glasses ... my life.

I need to publicly apologize to my husband and my child and any other family and friends. I'm ruined - it makes living (American) life a little more complicated.

I was reading Simpler Living, Compassionate Life the other day and the thought struck me. I make a horrible American. I hardly can throw plastic packaging or the lids of plastic containers in the trash without thinking about it. I mean thinking about it. Thinking about the implications of where it will go, why I have to throw it away (do I?) and how a billion of those little things will add up really quickly. I find myself feeling guilty that I don't live in more sustainable ways, and I can't help but think of the the many faceless, underpaid factory workers who made the clothes in my closet. And having 15 pairs of shoes isn't many by American standards but is beyond excessive for others.

I'm ruined.

I still hold an American passport. I don't believe that war is the best answer, but I absolutely respect the sacrifice that men and women in our Armed Forces have made. I can still sing the national anthem with pride - albeit tempered. But, I am a ruined American.

I'm not sure I would care beyond consuming if I hadn't left for Haiti ten years ago. Going there has played a huge part in the change of my worldview.

There's the crazy consumerism end.

And then the zero-waste people.

I'd like to fall somewhere in between the extremes. But, I really would like the continuum to lean to the latter.

Yeah. I know, my husband is snorting and raising his eyebrows right now. "You would like to what?!"

(to be continued... )

First world problems.

I was bored the other day. I even hate saying that I was bored, because you might say, "Well, what's your problem?! Use your time wisely. Make the most of what you have, for heaven's sake!"

And I'd say, "Well, it was a bored/restless feeling." I was stressed out about the job situation (lack thereof), feeling a little down, needing a pick-me-up or something. There were still several hours before Jeremy would make it home (in fact, I think he'd just left) and I needed to get the girl and myself out of the house.

So. I went shopping.

Before I even left the house, I knew going shopping wouldn't make me happy. I knew it wouldn't make me feel better. I knew it wouldn't satisfy me. But, knowing all of this, I still charged right through - ignoring my feelings - for some retail therapy. Knowing I really should sit with it and relax and maybe go for a walk, I went ahead, hopped in the car, and drove away to look at furniture, rugs and vases.

It didn't help.

Funny, how I did it anyway. Funny how I shop instead of think. Shop instead of feel. This is so ... "consumeristic" of me. So typically female. So American.

I normally avoid this, but I fell right back into the easy way and old habits die hard.

I ask myself, "Is this the example I want to be setting for my child?" (No.) "Is this what I want her to turn to when she's feeling down?" (No.) "Is stuff really going to make anything better?" (No.)

Is this how I want to live my life?

No.

******

Hop on over to Rage Against the Minivan and read this funny and insightful post about raising kids in the first world. It's something I think about quite often and have no idea how I am going to accomplish raising my children in our world of stuff and more and more stuff, but I'm going to try. More on this to come.

Progress reports (3): more antiques

The grandparents have sweetly let us borrow their antique highchair for her to use. (I wanted one just like this to use and they had one already). However, it is very slippery and she is a tiny bit short for it yet. We are using a borrowed Bumbo chair to feed her for now and when I get a little cushion made for the seat, we'll be able to sit her in it without her sliding too far. I need to make a pattern for the cushion. Any suggestions how to go about pattern making?

here's a little antique school chair, graciously given to me from the teens at church (it didn't sell at their garage sale fundraiser) via an older couple whose grandchildren used to play with it. isn't it cute? until Ladybug can use it, i'm thinking of fun and practical ways to put it to use!

finally, this one is from Jeremy. his grandma used to have a black rotary phone just like this and he was even excited to pick this up from an antique store going out-of-business sale. the cord may need to be replaced, but we might even get a landline and use it! can you still use these old guys? hope so!

that's all for now, folks. come back soon for more antique/vintage love!

Progress reports (2): garden!

(click here to compare: my first garden post of 2011)

the pole beans are growing beautifully!
one pepper plant has died (still needs to be replaced).
the garlic finally flowered. 
my flowers are slightly wilty from this heat (hope to revive them with more frequent watering and a little love)
and I can't wait to harvest something. so excited!

pole beans

slightly wilty flowers

beans and tomatoes! so yummy!

Progress reports (1): record player

this week is the week for PROGRESS REPORTS! so, I've been out of school for 5 years and now that it's summer I'm getting my progress reports in.

*****

remember my 25 cent gem?  i have been slowly chipping away at it (literally) and finally drug it outside to see how it would sand down.

my Google detective husband tracked down that it's from 1946 and some of these Bendix record players are collectibles. ours may be too water damaged to be worth much but we connected a wire, plugged it in, and it spins! (it also gives off an electrical fence-like shock when you touch the metal parts and gets really hot and smelly. so we quickly turned it off and unplugged it.)

but, we both think there is hope for our little record player.

here's the progress. definitely has some work still, but it's coming along!

took the door off for sanding.

looking better!

trim: not sanded vs. sanded

I'm still considering paint colors but leaning towards a golden yellow. Bright shiny red did go through my head, but I think it might hang around our living room for awhile and red wouldn't match... what do you think?

What I've been sewing...

Isn't this little skirt fun??

And I've wanted to make a bow-tie ever since I came across THIS tutorial. Ohmygoodness! So cute. Makes me want a little boy ... Well, only-in-a-million-years type of wish after last year's pregnancy trials. I'll keep my little girl sewing going and just make things like this for sweet little boys (to come)!

This one's on its way to Korea. :-)

What you get when you run a lawn mower over it.

Don't forget your leash in the yard while the mowers are mowing.

Otherwise you'll go from this:

Image credit

to this: