THREAD - more bibs.

I made these a while back on my bib making binge. I just couldn't resist making more bibs. You can finish a whole set in under an hour and baby fabric is just so darn cute. Just look at it - dancing monkeys and baby animals. Precious.

Luckily - everyone I know is having a baby. This may sound like an exaggeration but - I have three friends and my favorite hairdresser all due within two weeks of each other. Four friends - two weeks - how crazy is that? Something in the water...

Since none of these babies were actually born when I was making the bibs - I found my own models. Their names are Owen and Fiona and they are random bunny/rat creatures I picked up at my previous job. No - I did not name them - their names are embroidered on their chests. Odd little dollies.

These bibs were super easy to make. Three layers of fabric and a little velcro - done and done.

B.L.E.

duck. duck. goose!!

How amazing is this floor lamp? Beside the obvious (it's a duck!!) it lets off a subtle pale glow and stoically stands guard. When I was a kid - my aunt had this lamp in her hallway. At the time (when I was too cool for life aka 12) I thought it was a bit - shall we say "country clutter."

But now? Now I would give anything to have one of these silly floor lamps of my own. I lust. I covet. It would go perfectly at the top of our stairs. Of course - like everything you mock and then covet - it is unavailable. It seems as though the company that makes the lamp has gone out of business and the lamps have become this crazy niche collector's item. I guess I could get it from ebay - but I have a strange unfounded fear of ebay - so that's out.

If you see one of these little ducks waddling about in an antique store - call me!

Quack.
B.L.E.

FOOD - oreo cookie cake

This year for Christmas - among the many other wonderful presents Adam gave me (including The Penguin) - I received a cake mold and a box of cake mix. As my friend Sarah so accurately put it - Adam gave me "a task" for Christmas.

I know in his heart Adam really believed that this present was for me - I do like to bake. But let's examine the facts here - I'm not much of a cake person and he has been asking me non-stop for weeks when I am going to make the Oreo cake. It doesn't take Angela Landsbury to figure out there was some personal motive behind this Christmas gift. It is endearingly cute to me. It must be love. Swoon.

Since his birthday was fast approaching - I decided that would be the perfect time to unveil the great cake. So - with 25 people headed over to our house in an hour for a birthday BBQ (who throws a BBQ in SF in January??) and with my two year old niece Leila to entertain - I pulled out the goodies and got to work. Luckily - the whole process was relatively simple.

Here are a few pointers -
1. Don't work with a two year old as your assistant. Yes - she was absolutely adorable. No - she was not of any help at all.
2. Perhaps mop the floor after - not before - embarking on making a cake - especially if using a two year old assistant. It is very difficult to get dried egg off of white tile because "somebody" insisted on more whisking.
3. When making a chocolate cake with white frosting - you can't really get away with not washing the mixer bowl and paddle to save time. I figured - it's all going into the same cake - why bother rinsing between the cake and the frosting? The answer to that question is that you rinse to avoid having beige frosting instead of white frosting. Oh well - it was still delicious.
4. Perhaps now that I am an honest to goodness adult - it is time I stock actual birthday candles in my house. This will save us from having Adam hold a pillar candle in his hand instead of blowing candles out on his actual cake.
5. Perhaps now that I am an honest to goodness adult - I could use a real camera to take birthday photos instead of insisting that an iphone can be used in absolutely every situation. Maybe then my photos wont be so damn blurry.

This party was a good indicator of how our lives have changed over the last few years. It hasn't been all that long since Adam's 30th birthday. That event was legendary - imagine maracas and a banana costume and a lot of bar time. Many of the same 30th birthday revelers (the same one that contributed to our debauchery just a few years before) were attending this year's party but this time - things were a little more tame. There were 4 babies, 2 pregnancies and 3 puppies in attendance. Things were clean and organized and well lit and nobody (with the exception of one of the babies) threw up. All in all - it was delightful. Don't worry though - we haven't lost our flair for fun - the banana costume will be coming out again very soon. Promise.


Happy Birthday Adam! Love you lots.

B.L.E.

P.S. - the cake pan and mix and all that is from Williams-Sonoma in case you are in desperate need.

LOVE - the doctor and the penguin.

What can I say? I love me some bubbles. If I had the choice all of my beverages would be carbonated. My favorite wine? Sparkling. My favorite water? Seltzer. My favorite midday pick-me-up? The best soda ever invented - Diet Dr. Pepper (DDP to those in the know).

The problem with my love of bubbles is there are a lot of cans and bottles and waste when my thirst is finally quenched. This makes my yuppy, hippy, raised-on-recycling heart ache.

Short of installing a soda fountain in my house (looked into it btw and it's just not practical) I needed to find a solution for my bubble craving habit (sometimes up to 3 liters of water and 2-4 sodas a day). The solution came in the form of a glorious device called The Penguin. It's a carbonizer - a magic machine that turns regular tap water into fantastic bubbly water. It's kinda like how Jesus turns water into wine but more effervescent.

Now I can embrace my bubble water habit. The shame is lifted. I no longer have to take the recycling out at night so the neighbors don't see all my bottles. Honestly - I felt like some sort of closet drinker and I don't even have a boozy habit. I used to slip plastic Calistoga bottles into my bag because the work recycling bin is already full of my DDP cans. The hiding is over. I feel good - free - bubbly even.

Now let's talk Diet Dr. Pepper. My all time favorite form of soda injection is the fountain drink - lots of ice. The doctor is hard to find in fountain form but luckily my favorite Target store has it on tap. Someone up in the sky must have liked me just enough to put one of my favorite things inside one of my favorite places. Perhaps there is hope for me after all?

Located next to this glorious DDP flowing Target is a Costco. Two of my favorite stores - right next to each other!! Seriously - throw a J Crew in there and I could happily live in the parking lot. At Costco - I pick up a 36 pack of Diet Dr. Pepper and carry it around in the trunk of my car. I drive a Mini Cooper. This ridiculously large box of soda takes up half the space in the trunk but it is absolutely worth it to never be without the DDP. I then use this giant box of soda to restock the mini fridge I keep at work. It's the cutest little shiny orange refrigerator - it holds exactly six sodas. Yes - I have a problem but I embrace it and move on.

I think everyone needs some sort of vice. Being too pure it just boring. You will eventually end up with too many cats or become one of those people that pulls their hair out. I don't do drugs, I don't drink much, I run, I eat (relatively) healthy and I don't enjoy adrenaline sports. My vice is bubble water, Diet Dr. Pepper and sour candy. I'm ok with that.

What's your vice?

B.L.E.

Food: Christmas Pigs and wine.

Over the years it became apparant that Christmas was getting excessive with my family. Between the Christmas Eve dinner at my parents with my stepdad's family, to the Christmas brunch the next morning to open presents, followed by the jaunt to Nana's house for more food, more presents, 25 cousins (yes 25! cousins) and the annual snowball fight. Then...back to the parents for the "Christmas hangover" dinner of leftovers and collapse.

Nobody wanted to cut out the activities or the people - it is always wonderful to get together and see everyone but we needed to simmer it down on some of the presents and the big hosted meals. So...the Christmas Eve dinner has become the Christmas Eve wine exchange and Appetizer Extraganza. All the adults bring 1-2 appetizers and a whole lot of wine. Usually 5-10 bottles (from $10-$20 apiece) to exchange. Everyone eats what and when they want to eat - nothing formal, no fancy table, we sometimes even have (gasp! novelty paper plates). The kids open their present while the adults watch (and drink more) and then adults take a number to see where the are in the wine pulling line-up. We all take turns picking bottles until all the wine is gone. Everything is fair. You get to take home as many bottles as you brought and try out a bunch of new wines. Leaving with 6 bottles of great new wines is way way better than leaving with some scented bath salts and expired chocolates.

Now - everyone needs to bring an appetizer. I have tried to vary my offering - bringing a mix of high (goat cheese, pesto, sundried tomato spread) and low brow (onion dip aka onion soup mix, sour cream with a side of potato chips) but there is one thing I am required to make every year - per the request of young and old - the classic pigs in a blanket. I made them the first year and now there is no getting out of it. Luckily they are easy enough to make and can be assembled ahead of time and then baked when we get there.

Here is what you need -
1 pack Lil Smokies. I usually go with the beef in respect to my Jewish friends. These friends who occassionally show up to my parent's house on Christmas Eve because we are all home for the holidays and hey - eating and drinking at my house is pretty fun - especially compared to watching TV with their parents.
2 cans Pillsbury Crescent rolls. The regular kind, not the giant or the reduced fat or the extra buttery. Stick with the classic.

Directions -
1. Preheat oven to 375 degrees.
2. Cut each of the rolls into 3 triangular pieces.
3. Wrap each little weenie (hee hee I said weenie) in the dough - starting with the thicker side.
4. Arrange the wrapped weenies like soldiers waiting for battle on a baking sheet.
5. Bake for 11-13 mins. I usually keep it on the 11 side so they do not get too crispy.
6. Serve with BBQ sauce and a variety of mustards.

A few things to note -
- The amount listed above will feed around 6-8 people if there are other appetizers. I usually end up making double batches for things like Superbowl parties (people munch for 4 hours) and triple batches for the Christmas Eve festivities (20-25 people).
- Use silpats if you have them. If you don't have silpats - Jesus go buy some already - I have been talking them up for a year already. I swear sometimes you don't listen to me.
- You know they are done when the weenie is oozing just a little bit of delicious meat juice and the roll is just slightly browned on top.
- My friend Sarah had a nacho party for her 30th birthday and requested the piggies. Pigs in a blanket dipped in hot nacho cheese could be one of the most delicious and disgusting things I have ever tried. I had a stomach ache for days. I am not saying it was ALL the pigs fault - it was a nacho themed party after all. I am just saying it was probably what set me over the edge.
- Not matter how well you plan - you will never have an even amount of pigs to blankets. Don't fret - there is always that pesky vegetarian that just wants the roll or my 4 year old cousin that has declared he "likes pigs but doesn't like blankets." Go ahead and throw your leftovers onto the baking sheet. Nothing will go to waste.

Enjoy.

B.L.E.

The newest - cutest - member of the Elasticsandwich household. Meet Biscuit.

One of the 10,000 reasons why we moved (eventually I will write a post about the new house - be patient) is because we were desperate to expand our family. Unfortunately for my mom and my in-laws by "expand our family" I mean purchase a dog not produce a grandchild.

After months and years of waiting and weeks of researching breeders we took a looooong drive out to Manteca to bring home our new love. We spent 2 hours playing with all the puppies but Biscuit was a shoo-in the minute he got all kissy with Adam. Little puppy knew how to turn on the charm.

In the car ride home Biscuit went right to sleep in my arms with his little snoot cuddled up in my elbow. It was heart melting. Then he let out the kind of silent farts you expect from a 21 year old frat boy - this 5 pound beast had paint peeling GAS. It was with those little toots that we knew he would fit right into our lives perfectly.

In case you couldn't tell Biscuit is a french bulldog. All ears - no tail. We knew we wanted a dog that fit our lives and once we were honest about our true lifestyle it was french bulldog or bust. Let's call a spade a spade - the husband and I are not wild adventurers - we don't need a feisty black lab that wants to go camping and hiking and take endless walks on the beach. We wanted a dog that was cool with a casual trot around the neighborhood, a furry child to take to work and someone to talk with while making dinner.

Frenchies don't really need to be exercised. If it's raining - that's cool - he'll get his business done quick - he doesn't want to be outside either. This is the dog that wants to be with you - whatever you are doing - he's game. Close all the time. Honestly - watch your feet when you back up because most likely he is sitting right there. And Biscuit is way more up for a movie marathon on Saturday than a hike through the Marin Headlands. Thank goodness!

Biscuit is great for cuddling (not on the bed - he is crate trained) and good for blaming things on. Rip a fart? It was the dog. Forget to take out the trash or put away the laundry? Oh oh Biscuit really needed to go out. Don't really feel like staying late? Gotta go home and feed the dog. Snore a little too loud? Yup - it was Biscuit all along.

One more plus - he is also super cool with being dressed up in clothes. In fact - he needs them to stay warm. There is nothing I love more than an animal dressed up in people clothes.

He was 8 weeks old and weighed 5 pounds when we got him and is currently 4 months old and 8 pounds. When he is full grown he will be 20-25 pounds. Oh and yes - Martha Stewart does have two french bulldogs - and they have a blog. That tens of thousands of people read. Biscuit is not at all jealous. He does not need a life of fame and wealth to be happy.


B.L.E.

ps - All these photos were taken with my iphone - not bad eh? They were also taken in or around our new house - just to give you a little glimpse of where we are living now.

the day of the bubbles - Adam turns on the dishwasher

Once upon a time there was a young(ish) couple who moved into a new house with a nice big white kitchen with a dishwasher. Week after week the wife would load and start the fancy dish washing machine. It was a simple enough process - put dirty dishes in - load one magic grapefruit scented pellet in the special bowly thing - close door - turn handle - push start. Voila! About 30 minutes lately the dishes were fantastically clean.

The husband was a bit slow on the loading part but the wife was patient - he was at least getting the dishes to the sink and it had been years and years since they had a dishwasher that was not a human being.

Early last week there was an issue - out of forks. No forks - full dishwasher - people coming over the next day for book club. The wife (me) asked the husband (Adam) to start the dishwasher. Easy breezy - neither of us was worried. Adam started it up - pranced upstairs all proud of himself and looking for recognition for this most basic of housework tasks (yawn - head pat - smiles).

A few minutes later a bit of doubt crept into my mind. It dawned on me that Adam cannot find anything ever and will not look for anything EVER. He will simply ask me constant questions such as all of these from just today "where is the measuring cup?" (drawer next to the oven) "where do we keep the cheese?" (ummm the refrigerator??) - "where are my razor refills?" (medicine cabinet - yes - he did ask while standing in the bathroom). Anyhoo - I realized he did not ask me where the dish washing soap was and this means only one thing...he did not use it.

That's right my friends - he used liquid dish washing soap in the dishwasher. The rest of the evening was a scene out of a bad 1980s sitcom. In fact - I am almost positive this happened on My Three Dads or perhaps on Full House when Uncle Jesse was in charge for the weekend. Think bubbles - lots and lots of bubbles just churning out of the bottom and edges of the dishwasher. Envision a kitchen floor covered in beach towels and sheets and more bubbles.

The one bright side? No need to mop the kitchen :-)

FYI - if you do not already use the Method Smarty Dish dishwasher pellets you need to get yourself to Target. They are amazing - no measuring, smell divine and wash like a gang of OCD angels took over your dishwasher.

Happy fall.

B.L.E.

guilty pleasure - sour candy

Everyone has their thing - their kryponite - their comfort, go to stressed out food. Mine is sour gummy candy. Put any sort of artificially fruit flavored sour deliciousness in front of me and I go weak in the knees. Odder than that - just looking at it makes the back of my mouth pucker as if I am actually eating something sour. Even writing this now is putting my mouth into a bit of a pout.

The best sour candy of all is made by Haribo - it's called fruity pasta and it is amaaaaaaaaaaaaazing. Mind you - it neither looks or tastes like pasta but it does have a weird Italianesque chef on the package (I think he is winking at me) and that should count for something.

If you have not already had the pleasure of eating this delight - you need to try it. It's not available everywhere - good luck getting it at your corner store - but it is consistently available at Walgreens.

Go ahead - buy a bag and if you do not like it - just send the rest over to me. I'll eat it until I worry about burning holes in my mouth with sour dust.

Tra!

B.L.E.

things i want to make part 1 of 10,000

I have the longest list in the world of things I want to make. I see something gorgeous and I bookmark the webpage or add some sort of fancy post-it to the book and then...it sits. The list grows longer - either waiting for me to find some time, develop some unobtainable crafting skill, buy the 1,100 necessary supplies or some combination of the above.

Here is a project I both have the supplies for and **gasp** have started! These are big steps people - I expect a gold star on my chart from each of you after you read this.

Hand knit washcloths - hold your questions as to why any right minded person would feel the need to knit their own washcloths. These are so soft - and pretty - and are relatively fast - and make great gifts. Don't judge - this very well could be your next birthday present and wouldn't you rather wash your bum with something made with love?
I have completed 2 out of a set of 3 - knitting them out of a soft off white organic cotton yarn. All I need to do is finish the last 1/2 of the 3rd washcloth and attempt to block them - which will be a new knitting skill for me.
I found the pattern and this photo (mine are not quite ready for their close-up) on the purl bee website. If you are ever in need of inspiration of any sort - the purl bee is your place. Everything comes with great tutorials and there is not a thing on there that is not drool worthy in some way.

B.L.E.

Oh for the love of etsy!

Oh how I love Etsy! If you don't shop Etsy - stop reading my silly blog and get on Etsy.com right now. Etsy's self description is "Your place to buy and sell all things handmade." Absolutely everything on the site is amaaaaaaazing. The quality and the breadth of what people can make is outstanding. So much good gorgeous stuff. Truly I could spend hours upon hours browsing through all the different shops. Sometimes I search for something random - like blue gnomes - just to see what magical things will appear. Then maybe I will sort by region so I only get local artists - I have to see what my SF neighbors are up to, you know? It makes me happy to think that just around the corner from me there is someone else tinkering away on their passion projects too (with obviously much better results).

Last week I succumbed to my addiction and supported some fellow crafters by buying a few things. Here are two of my recent Etsy purchases.

1. patchwork stroller quilt from raggedyowl. This is obviously a woman after my own heart. The simple - super soft small quilt is made with fabric showing gnomes and goldfish and dots and stripes - the photo above does not do it justice. It is so bright and cute and I can't help but smile when I look at it. And...big virtual hugs - the quilter included a handwritten card thanking me for my purchase. It makes me feel good inside to support someone else doing something they love.

2. hand printed cards from papermichelle. How could I resist a gnome jumping out of a mushroom cake?? OMG it's like this person is my gnome soul mate. I did buy 6 other cards as well - they were too perfect to not stock up on.

This is the just the tip of the Etsy iceberg.

Happy shopping my friends.

B.L.E.

I've missed you all.

So...let's start with the obvious - it's been awhile. My deepest apologies to the 4 people who read this blogging masterpiece. While I have been delinquent - I do have a good reason - I'm back in the working world.

It must be said - working has really put a damper on my life of leisure. Everything I do now is just so much more rushed - no more mid-morning trips to the gym - no more pouring over cookbooks, picking out recipes then a nice stroll to Whole Foods for the ingredients. Alas.

Since it has been nearly four months - here is a quick recap of life in the Elastic Sandwich world -
1. we bought a new car (I have to commute for this new job) - her name is Maude and she is f-ing adorable. I have never named a car but Maude needed a proper title - she is a lady after all.

2. All my friends are having babies! I could not be more excited. One is hatched and the other 3 are coming early next year - all within 2 weeks of each other. Some moons must have been aligned 4 months ago when everyone got knocked up all at the same time.

3. I ran the San Francisco Half Marathon. If I had to sum up running a half marathon in one word - it would be LOOOOOOOOONG. Incredibly painful and it felt so damn good to do it. At the end - when I could hardly walk - I was ready to sign up for another one. Glutton for punishment I guess. Here's a photo - I'm the nerd with her arms in the air.

4. Took a few little trips - New York for work and friends. LA for a trade show. Eureka to visit the grandparents. Portland to visit the brother. Scottsdale for a bachelorette girls weekend. Upcoming...Washington DC (never been) for Labor Day and Tahoe the weekend after then back to New York for a week in October for wedding and work. Phew - lots of fantastic adventures this year.

It's my late mid-year resolution to get back in the swing of blogging and crafting and cooking. Expect to hear from me a little more often. Come back soon.

Cheers -
B.L.E.

LOVE - life changing product - dry shampoo

Washing your hair everyday is neither good for the environment or good for your hair. What is the point of getting fancy blond highlights if I am just going to dull my hair with over washing? That said - I have a lot of hair - it is both long and thick - and it is sometimes also just a pain to wash and blow dry. Honestly - I would not mind a bit of a shake-up - maybe cutting it just to my shoulders a la Heidi Klum's new cut?? I mean - I have had the same hair cut for at least the last 5 years...

Anyhoo - back to the no washing thing - I find that my hair looks and feels a ton better when I wash it every other day instead of every day. That being said - 2nd day hair lacks a bit of bounce and by the end of the 2nd day - there could be a case of what is technically known as "stink hair."

Fear not my friends - you no longer have to chose between healthy hair and fresh pretty smelling hair! Thanks to the glory of dry shampoo you can have both. I have tried many brands and forms of application and here are my three faves. Note photos to each shampoo are from top to bottom.

1. Oscar Blandi Pronto Dry Shampoo Powder -
pros - fantastic, smells like lemons - no, even better than lemons, smells like a lemon drop - citrusy and sweet and delicious. It also is the easiest to wash out of your hair because it blends so easily into your scalp and roots.

cons - it is messy - it is just a fine white powder that you smush into your roots and rustle around. But the powder is inconsistant and if you squeeze the bottle too hard you can poof a big burst of powder that takes forever to mush into your hair. You can put a little into your palms and add it gradually - but if there is one thing you have learned about me so far in this blog - I do not like to take the extra time to do things right if the fast way might work.

2. Oscar Blandi Pronto Dry Shampoo Spray -
pros - exactly the same cons as the powder but in a spray - so waaaay less chance of mess. Just spray and go. The smell is a little stronger on the spray too so it works especially well on extra stinky hair.

cons - The bottle mysteriously empties itself. this is a BIG con. You can use it just once or twice and then go back and find the can empty. Obviously this is the work of ghosts with 2nd day hair. Also - when you do get to the end of the can - the spray can be tacky and you can spray sticky powder onto your head - like old hairspray almost.

3. Klorane - Gentle Dry Shampoo -
Pros - It smells like almost nothing - light and fresh and yet does a fantastic job eliminating whatever it is that makes 2nd day hair not so lovely. The bottle is magically both a spray and not a spray - you squeeze it and a light mist of powder waves itself into your hair. It rarely junks up your head or leaves too much powder.
Cons - It just doesn't smell like lemon drops. Alas!

Best wishes for the best of hair days my friends.

B.L.E.

Cookied to Perfection

We got married at the San Francisco Zoo and served these delightful little whimsical cookies (always my fave growing up) as part of the dessert. There was a hole in my heart when they were no longer available. We stockpiled and filled the freezer with all the bags we could find. And now? And now they are back and all is good again in the world.

Cookied to Perfection

an outfit with a cardigan is like a unicorn without a horn - the magic is missing.

Everyone has their "thing" - their signature look and mine apparently is the cardigan. After receiving an additional two cardigans in the mail from J Crew this week (so cute - one white lightweight one and a black cashmere v-neck that was on sale) I came to the realization that I have at least 20 cardigans and that is not counting some questionable cardigan-like wrap sweaters.

So - I had an idea for the blog - this May is going to be "cardigan-a-day-month" for me. Every workday I will wear a different cardigan. I will document these outfits daily for the month on this here blog. Now - anyone who knows me realizes that these outfits will be virtually the same v-neck t-shirt, jeans, flats and cardi combo so don't be expecting groundbreaking style a la Mary Kate or Kate Moss.

Let's face it - we all have plenty of stuff and tend to wear just a few favorite things. In this painfully stagnant economy and with a sense of using whatcha got - I think this little experiment is going to be a lot of fun.

A few things to note -
If you also have a cardigan-like obsession of your own feel free to turn May into your own outfit experimentation. I would love to document someone else's journey as well. Join in - it's gonna be crazy fun!!

I am only doing this on workdays - I have a clear uniform for the weekends that involves just 2-3 key wardrobe players and I feel no need to mess with perfection.

Don't anyone fret that the weather may be too warm for daily cardigan wear - I have a few short sleeve and lightweight options in the rotations.

Depending on how wild I feel - there could even be a whole week devoted just to black cardigans. One could at this point assume I have a problem - but shush shush let's not go there now.

Did you know that if you type "stack of sweaters photo" into google you get thousands of images? Bizarre world we live in.

Please don't expect a daily update of outfits - I can assume that I will still only be posting 1-2 times a week. I do promise all outfits will be photographed and posted.

Add comments please!! I know people are reading (unless you all are just lying to me to make me feel better) so please please please just throw a sentence at me occasionally so I can not feel so cyber lonely.

Happy May

B.L.E.

THREAD - comfy cozy sewing machine cover

Even I have to admit that I am getting a bit too 1950's out of control housewifey when looking at this project from afar - but there really is a purpose behind a sewing machine cozy. Really. When I signed up for my spinster quilt class I knew I would be carting my machine back and forth and there were risks involved - dirtiness and damage and such. I looked around for covers/carrying cases for my particular machine and there were two main problems - they were not all that cheap ($29.95) and they were ugly and orthopedic looking.

Thus - I had to take matters into my own hands. With a little help from online tutorials - one from Spool and another from one of my fave blogs Lavender and Limes. I kinda smushed the two tutorials together to make the easiest possible solution. And since I have a fabric buying addiction - I had plenty fabric on hand to stitch up a cover.

Just 30 minutes later and I had this functional masterpiece. It is absurd - I fully admit it - but it's cute huh?

B.L.E.

THREAD - irish linen homemade dish towels

In a very bourgeois effort to go green - I have been slowly trying to wean us off of our paper towel dependence. It seems that we were going through a roll a week - using them for just about everything - as napkins to dish drying to counter cleaning. Mr. Clean Magic Erasers (life changing) have solved many of the issues of cleaning but not the dish drying.

Using super soft Irish linen fabric (1 yard) I bought as a remnant a while back and some scrap woven ribbon I was able to make four fantastic simple kitchen towels in just a few hours. While creating these really requires no pattern (in fact - you could just make a larger version of the napkins I made a few months ago) I got the idea from a great new book Weekend Sewing by Heather Ross. The pattern is called good-guests-do-the-dishes dish towels. This book is full of great fast fun projects - I am especially excited to try the smocked sundress for my baby niece Leila as well as the hold everything tote.

A few things to note about making the towels:

Pick a fabric that is soft so it wont scratch glassware.

Chose a fabric that is also absorbent. Basic quilting/sewing cotton will not work because it just wont absorb enough water to actually dry the dishes.

Linen, soft thick cotton, jersey or lightweight terrycloth would work best.

When using a loosely woven linen like I did you have a little leeway with edges and hems - there is a very nice organic look when the hems are a little off - sort of a pretty softness.

Scrap fabric in an alternating color would work really well for the loop - adding an extra pop of color. I used the woven ribbon because it matched and it was just hanging about the apartment (recycle, reduce, reuse).


These pretty towels should make drying the dishes a little more exciting for at least a day or two.

Happy cleaning.

B.L.E.

p.s. - don't you love my pot rack (it's from Crate and Barrel)? The thing is amazing - showing off our pretty cookware and clearing up key cabinet space for important - less pretty things - like the croc pot.

THREAD - BIGGEST project to date!

I've accomplished the biggest project so far as a housewife. First off - no I am not pregnant - I'm talking crafts here - not procreation. It is a quilt and I made the whole thing myself. Even took a class. The class was me and a bunch of old single ladies - I do say - I fit in well with the spinsters.

The final product measures ~4.5 feet of pure sweat and tears beauty. I honestly shed blood over this quilt. Somehow - every time I moved my arm when hand quilting (so about 10,0000 times) I would scrape it across a row of pins. It looked like I got in a fight with a cat and lost - huge red scratches up and down my forearms.

I have no idea who this is for or what I am going to do with it but I find these projects are the best - there is a lot of pressure when making something for someone else - it is fantastic to just play around and be surprised by the final product.

things I learned and key accomplishments -
how to use a ruler - a fancy quilting ruler
how to cut a straight line (measure twice - cut once!)
needles are sharp
I cannot sit still for 3 hours (I pretended I had to go to bathroom just to shake my sillies out during my class)
pins are sharp
how to make bias strips and attach binding
hand quilting does make for a nicer/cleaner finish but it sure is a looooooooooooooong (pain in the ass) process
working with stripes is dangerous - you cannot hide any errors with them - they blow your cover with their straightness and symmetry - bastards

Like a mom with an ugly kid - I will always treasure this slightly wonky quilt as my first BIG project. Lots of time and effort went into it and I learned so much about sewing and determination and I now have a huge respect for people who undertake these sorts of projects. It was also a real lesson in patience for me too - I have lots of fantastic fabric and books and a big list of projects (nice, fast, cute, easy projects) that I was aching to get started on but I really stuck to my guns and would not start anything new until I conquered the beast. The green floral and pink polka dot beast.


Final words of wisdom - quilting is like a home renovation - assume it will take twice as long and twice as much money to complete as you originally planned.

Cheers!

B.L.E.

a girl can dream

Sometimes I have this fantastical dream where I wake up and magically there is a new room in my apartment - a room where you can bring dirty clothes - put them in a shiny machine and they come out clean and smelling of fresh april showers.

Then I wake up for reals and notice that my floor is strewn with clothes - clothes both clean but never put away - as well as dirty and falling out of the closet. I shamefully admit that I am 29 years old and very often take my laundry to my mom's house.

It's either the parental laundry walk of shame or spending an afternoon at the illustrious Big Bubble. The Big Bubble is neither big nor particularly bubbly. It is run by an Asian woman with a mustache who is fond of wearing overalls over a sweatshirt. For a good 3 months I thought she was a man. She also has a huge crush on Adam - refuses to acknowledge that I am his wife - refers to me as his "friend" - and once called me fat. All this in a place where homeless people bath themselves in the sinks occasionally.

Since both the trip home and the afternoon at the Big Bubble are painful in their own special way - I need to continue my fantastical dreams of one day having an entire room devoted just to doing laundry. One day, one day soon. A girl can dream....

B.L.E.


photo from marthastewart.com

four glorious years

Hard to believe it has been only four years since Adam and I went on that first fateful date (he called BS on a story and made me call my mom!) but here we are - four years older, wiser, fatter, happier and married. To celebrate this significant occasion we made plans to go to dinner at one of our favorite restaurants - El Dorado Kitchen (below) - in Sonoma - located right on the historic square.

When we woke up on Saturday morning the weather was beautiful - warm and sunny and gorgeous so we made the impromptu decision before leaving SF to try to stay overnight and enjoy Sonoma a little longer. Feeling like Mary and Joseph we started calling all the inns in the village trying to get last minute reservations for one night during high season while a film festival (umm Bruce Willis was being honored??) was going on.

After striking out at many places - including our usual favorite - The El Dorado Hotel - we finally found a room right across the street at The Sonoma Hotel. The hotel was adorable - very classic Sonoma County B & B. Unfortunately - we did get the bastard room nestled nicely between the lobby and the street - obviously this was our penance for not planning ahead.

The food at the El Dorado was fantastic as usual - steamed mussels with frites, potato leek soup, steak, halibut (which was life changing), dessert(s) and wine...phew!! From the first bite to the last every morsel was just superb - and we were truly glutenous. All in all - just the perfect impromptu weekend - good weather, great food, incredible service - all with the man of my dreams. What more could a girl ask for?

B.L.E.

rollin' rollin' rollin'

All this running lately has given me quite the tight ass. Unfortunately - I'm not giving myself compliments here - my ass is not yet modelesque high and tight. Instead my backside is just painfully sore and in need of a good massage - preferably the Thai or Swedish variety - no American style Sharper Image massage chair BS is gonna work on these knots.

Until I hit it big selling my strange birds and sock creature creations - I am going to have to find another solution to my backside problem that does not involve have a foreigner with hands of gold on my constant payroll.

Thus comes in the elegant blue foam roller. Six inches wide, 36 inches long, bright blue solid hard foam - simple, concise, ugly and somewhat unruly (stupid thing rolls around the whole apartment) but gets the job done. Just 5-10 minutes of sometimes painful rolling and stretching has made a huge difference - especially if I am well behaved and roll out my legs and butt right after my run and not later in the week when I am also trying to read the new US Weekly sideways. The bonus is that you can use the thing for tons of other exercises - including abs - since you are unbalanced on it you engage your core muscles more - very pilates.

So if you are having some stiffness in the leg and bottom area - get rollin' - it will change your life.

B.L.E.