a mini {DIY} apron for Christmas

Remember when I mentioned a certain little lady needing a little apron? Well, here it is!

Mini apron time!

Since her head is still so big (and the rest of her so small!) I decided against a pull over loop and I didn't want to take the time to make adjustable straps. SO, instead I made a button-hole! Easy on and off and it works like a charm.

Functional little pockets with shabby little bows.

It technically is reversible, but I didn't add a pocket to the backside. I'm kind of kicking myself for that now. Oh well, live and learn.

Here it is - the basic shape and measurements I guessed after measuring Ladybug for widths and lengths. I sewed it all together inside out (with straps inside) and left both side straps open when I sewed to put it right side out. Then I went over it with a top stitch to make it look pretty and to toughen it up - it'll be subject to a 2-yr old you know...

I was going to do a ruffle at the bottom but then just rounded it off. Perfect. The straps are also made with opposite fabrics. (Jeremy helped me choose the floral fabric from the hobby store, the polka dot is vintage from my grandma and the green pockets was hand-me-down polyester that I didn't have to hem - woot!)

My little helper now has a perfectly sized apron to keep her from (*mostly) getting messy. With about 2 hours of work and $3, here is a great little gift!

Merry Christmas.

Hi friends,

I've decided just to say "Merry Christmas" for a few days ... I've seemed to run out of blog steam for the moment.

(Although I did add these shoes to the shop! Aren't they adorable?) 

Don't worry, though, I'll be back soon. You won't even have missed me. Promise.


May your holiday(s) be filled with family and friends, but most of all Hope of things to come.

Lisa

Pomegranate Tea

I found a use for pomegranates that I absolutely love. 

Pomegranate Tea (!) 
from Martha Stewart Living's Annual Recipes 2003

1 large pomegranate's seeds, mostly pulled away from the rind
4 cups cold water
a few tablespoons of honey
a few mint sprigs (optional)

Place pomegranate seeds in a small saucepan and cover with water. Bring to a boil, reduce heat (add mint here if desired), and simmer until very fragrant and colorful, about 15 minutes. Stir in honey; strain tea and serve hot. 

Yum! Isn't it gorgeous? It's just as yummy to drink!

This one also looks amazing... 

Spiced Pomegranate Punch
Serves six; makes about 4 cups
taken from marthastewart.com

5 pomegranates
1 cup apple cider
1/2 cinnamon stick
1 tablespoon thinly sliced fresh ginger
1/4 cup fresh orange juice, plus strips of orange zest for garnish


Cut pomegranates in half. Extract juice from seeds with a citrus juicer or reamer. Strain into a medium saucepan. (You should have about 2 1/2 cups juice.) Add cider, 2 cups water, cinnamon stick, and ginger. Cook over high heat until simmering, 5 to 6 minutes. Reduce heat; gently simmer 15 minutes. Skim any foam that rises to the surface. Remove from heat. Discard cinnamon and ginger. Stir in orange juice. Serve warm, garnished with orange zest.

Santa Lucia Day - Traditional Scandanavian Recipe

 (I've kept this recipe for almost 10 year without tossing it because I was determined that one December 13 I was going to remember and have time to make it. 2012 was the year!)

"As the sun rises on December 13, Scandinavians honor Saint Lucia, the patroness of light, at an early morning feast of cake or buns flavored with saffron, which imparts a golden hue. You can celebrate the day, which marks the start of the Christmas season, with this traditional braided cake with dried fruits."

Recipe found here. 

...and the rest of the holiday decor (plus a DIY Advent calendar!)

Hi friends! It's beginning to look a lot like Christmas around here. Yay! (Now we just need some weather to go with it. We're staying home this year, so why not!?)

Here are a few holiday spots around our home this year...

... a front door wreath (that hangs on the inside because it won't fit between our screen door!)

... handmade stockings all hung on the bannister with care...

... and a gift from a few years ago that I love! I want it to be a coffee table/ottoman setting, but not with curious little fingers this year.

A festive tablescape complete with birthday flowers and pomegranates. Have any good pomegranate recipes? I got them for a great price!

I've officially completed the crafting part of the season (not that creativity is over - I still have lots of baking to do!) so our house can be merry and bright. I wanted to create a budget-friendly Advent calendar to use in years to come - and after several days of deliberating, here's what I came up with.

I used a second-hand red tablecloth for the background - I actually made a casing for some stabilizer and then top stitched around it.

Then I looped over the top for a dowel (or an unused spring-loaded curtain rod in our case) for stability at the top. A piece of yarn is holding it on the nail.

I really didn't want to spend the time to cut, iron and sew all of the corners of 25 squares for pockets, so I took the easy way out and used sheets of felt. I cut out a pattern piece and then followed it. I ran out of cream for all 25, so I used white and made an "X" pattern in the squares. Can you tell?

My biggest question was how to get the numbers on the calendar. Lots of ideas ran through my head, but I wanted it to be done as simply (and cost effective!) as possible.

I actually wanted to only use things I had, but my number drawing skills are lacking. So I went to the hobby store and grabbed a little stencil for about $2. Using black acrylic paint, I stippled the numbers right to the felt. Perfect.

You can see they are filled with candy this year - "num nums" is something my sweet girl can understand and be excited about! In years to come I hope to more effectively tell The Story through the calendar, but right now, I'm okay with this approach.

My calendar isn't perfect, but I really like it (although I may re-do the yellow star - it looks a little wonky, eh?) and I'm looking forward to counting down to the Christmas season with my family in years to come. And not bad for $2, huh?

Shop updates!

I added a few post-market items to my house.


And to my in-laws house. 


And to my shop. Here are some at schätzli vintage:

Vintage TV trays. How cool are these?!

Triple decker food carrier from the 60s. 

And I've added a few more items to schätzli for the holidays. Check out the shop links for more!

Toys (these blocks sold in less than 24h!):

A few for boys:

 And more for girls:

I love it when everything has been updated and I can sit back and relax. Finally. :-)

INCREDIBLE muffin recipe

I made muffins for my birthday last week and they were a winner! Incredible, like the title suggests. Fresh cranberries can often be too sour, but chopped up in these muffins - perfection!


Cranberry Orange Coffee Cakes

2 c flour
1-1/2 tsp cinnamon
1/2 tsp baking soda
1/2 tsp baking powder
1/3 c butter, softened
1/2 cup of white and brown sugar
1 cup ricotta cheese
1 egg
1T. finely shredded orange peel
1 T orange juice
1/2 tsp vanilla
1 1/2 cups of fresh cranberries, chopped
2 T finely chopped crystallized ginger
1 recipe orange glaze
1/2 c walnuts toasted and chopped, optional

Preheat oven to 350 (makes 15-18 muffins).
Combine dry ingredients and 1/4 tsp salt.
Beat butter and sugars until fluffy. Beat in cheese, egg, OJ, vanilla and peel.
Stir in flour mixture until just combined.
Fold in berries and ginger.
Fill cups 1/2 full and bake 15-20 min until toothpick comes out clean. Cool for 5 min, then spoon on glaze. Sprinkle with nuts and more peel, if desired.

Glaze:1 c pwd sugar, 1T OJ and 1/2 tsp vanilla. Stir in 2 T melted butter and 1/2 tsp shredded peel

Yum yum!

I substituted sour cream for the ricotta, added a little water to the glaze (it was way too thick) and used one medium-large orange for the peel first then the juice in the muffins and glaze. I also left the nuts out and just sprinkled a little ginger in for the candied ginger.

I would highly suggest trying these. My 2-year old scarfed down two in one sitting and even Jeremy is asking for a second batch! :-) If you do, let me know what you think!

Engaged!

My brother got engaged to his amazing girl while we were at the lake this summer.

A few months later ... his fiancee asked me to take some engagement shots of them for a "Save the Date". I said yes, of course! Not that I consider myself a super great photographer, but I can try. (And this I told her...)

We tried before the weather got cold on Thanksgiving weekend but the wind was blowing 90 miles per hour! (Okay, 40.) That kind of wind isn't good for a girl's hair.

Anyway, this was the best shot from that day, but she wasn't a fan of the sun placement, so we decided to try again another day.

...another COLD day. It was 20 some degrees! But we braved it and got some great shots. (A certain cheeser was more cooperative based on the fact that once we got a good shot he could go back inside! Hehe.)

I liked this one.

But this one was the winner.

Should I set up my own photography business?! My first engagement shoot!

Just kidding...

We are SO psyched for Aunt Erin to join our family in June. Wedding in Kansas - woot! If you run across any completely adorable 24 month dress in shades of green, let me know! :-)

Christmas gifts *handmade*

Several gifts were given over Thanksgiving weekend ... one day was Thanksgiving and the next, Christmas! :-)

I made a vignette for my sister and BIL's kitchen.

A distressed walnut hanger.

Chalkboard in barnwood frame (yikes! I didn't notice all of the fingerprints)...

And my first painting! A large (24"x36") abstract painting reminiscent of the seasons - spring to summer to fall to winter. Also parallels of life and its seasons. 

I painted a "Gone Fishin'" sign for my dad - distressed walnut with a green casual font - for those many more fishing trips he's going to take. :-)

Finally, I changed up my mom's kitchen vignette to reflect more of a wintry scape. 

A recycled antique book wreath and maple twigs.

Such fun. Can you see the influence the Market had on my gifts this year?

Thanksgiving fun!

We spent the Thanksgiving holiday in Iowa with Mimi, Papa and all her aunts and uncles on my side! We feasted and played and saw the moon ("moom" in Ladybug-speak) and tried to keep 2 year old fingers off things lots of interesting non-toys.

We also saw baby Asa! The girl was quite the helper. We got to feed him, change him, rock him to sleep ... all the joys of a 3 month old baby. :-)

:-) 

Now onto Christmastime...

a record player update (finally!)

(Breaking out some (new) old posts here.)

Sorry for the wait on the record player! I know you've been sitting at the edge of your seat for months now. Haha. Actually, I'm sure you've forgotten but I haven't! The record player, unfortunately, does not have a home upstairs in the natural light because 1) we don't have a good space for it yet and 2) Ladybug has pulled the glass tubes out and we don't want them breaking! That has made it difficult to photograph - it's pretty dark in the basement!

Here is my last post about it. (Really? Over a year ago?)

Anyway. I had to pull off and sand a bunch of glued on veneer. The point has never been to refurbish the wood (as this would be too pricey and over my head) but rather, because of the water damage and 25 cent price tag) to paint it whatever color I wanted.

I sanded the whole thing down and then glued my own veneer pieces to the sides. This brought the sides flush with the corner pieces (unlike the original) but I was okay with that.

Make sure you have enough clamps! I'd already glued it and then had to run (literally!) to the store before the glue set to buy more clamps.

Disaster averted.

Here is the BEFORE:

And the AFTER!

We brought it up to enjoy some old music with friends and family on the girl's birthday.

After it was glued and the holes filled with wood filler, I painted it in a flat Clark and Kensington "Yarrow Point" then aged it a bit with Annie Sloan's Dark Wax.  Then we took an old door pull from this project and screwed it in with a new screw.

I kept the inside its beautiful dark wood and the record player mechanism looks like it did 60 years ago!

It's far from perfect - I would love to replace the speaker fabric under the face (but that would require disassembly, perhaps with a crowbar!) and the floor of the cupboard is damaged beyond sanding and painting - but it's ours and it's lovely.

Now if there was only a perfect home for it upstairs. Maybe someday!

Here's a little taste of its sound.


record player from Lisa Shunk on Vimeo.

Cheers!

(Can you believe Thanksgiving is in a week!? November has flown by...)