Boo hoo...

No, this is not a Halloween post. I am in mourning.

Here is my baby on Saturday morning.

And here's my baby on Saturday afternoon...see what's happening here?!?

I'm just smiling here to keep from glaring at the woman cutting off my baby's crazy curls. I have to say that she was kind of amazing at cutting kid hair. She managed not to cut him while also NOT cutting off pieces of her own hands. After seeing this process, I was validated in my decision not to attempt P's first haircut myself. Now, I am convinced not to attempt it until he's old enough to bribe or threaten into absolute stillness. He was really good though, even when she brought out the clippers and hairdryer.

He looks so big without the wild locks sticking out around his ears.

He's still a baby.

It's Fall

It's turning a little cooler here so we can get outside and enjoy ourselves! Baby P is getting big enough to really enjoy playgrounds. We started on the swings, it's always more fun with Papa!

This was P's first time on a slide! How cute is that, this might be one of my favorite pictures!

I also wanted to make a little something "fallish" for our front door. I stretched some rough muslin on an embroidery hoop and hand stitched the pumpkins, simple border and FALL with embroidery floss.  

I decided at the end that it needed a little something. I pulled out the scrap bag and snipped out some leaf shapes, placed them sort of randomly then stitched some stems and veins to keep them on. I liked the crinkly look and I pulled up some of the leaves that are on the bottom so that they would have a little more dimension.

This is allright on the door, but I think it would be cute propped in a kitchen window. I love the idea of stitching pumpkins and leaves to a table runner for a fun Thanksgiving tablescape.

Great Christmas Gift Idea

I recently discovered the cute blog "Noodlehead." The author, Anna, has lots of great tutorials that are super clear and really well photographed. I recently discovered THIS ONE in my search for Christmas gift ideas, in hopes that this year I'm going to be really organized and NOT sew like a mad woman the last few weeks of December. We shall see.

Anyway, here's my first attempt. I used Anna's tutorial for a zipper makeup pouch (still need to add the zipper pull and my sewing label to the inside) and also used some embroidery (inspired by Doodle Stitching).

I think it turned out well and I'm going to make a few more!

I used inexpensive, rough muslin for the outside, some of my favorite scrap fabric from the scrap bag for the middle section (it always delights me to pull out little pieces of a print that I loved), and a bright orange zipper to close the top. Anna's tutorial calls for quilt batting, but I used fusible fleece. There is a surprise pop of polka dots in the lining--there's something fun about an unexpected bag lining. I love the way these pouches stand up on their own, the little boxed corners make that magic happen.

I might fill these with some candy or homemade goodies or make-up/perfume samples or a handmade pair of earrings...the possibilities are endless (as long as said possibilities are smaller than a bread basket i.e. the pouch). I think they will make sweet gifts!

Impromptu Fall Mantel Makeover

So Baby P and I are visiting Grammy and we took a little trip down to the lake over the weekend. It was so much fun and we had nice weather. Can you believe husband W wants to cut off that sweet baby hair? I love how wild and wavy it is and it makes me sad to think of losing it!

While at the lake, I noticed that the mantel looked like this...

Everything else looks super cute, my Mom is good at rounding up cozy, interesting things for the cabin. But this mantel was just so EMPTY! So I started gathering some things from around the house. Books, lamps, placemats, fake ducks (actually there were maybe 5 to choose from), and some goldenrod from outside. There is tons of it blooming right now (Goldenrod is the state flower of KY, BTW).

The things I tried to consider were the many textures already existing (stone chimney and wood mantel) and the high ceilings (meaning lots of exposed chimney). The fish was not optional. Ideally it would be hung a little higher, but I needed help, a drill and a ladder so I left it alone for now.



I really like the chunky, unfinished wood mantel.

This is a neat textured basket that I found, filled with pinecones and walnuts.

The vase is just a plain, clear glass florist's vase. I wrapped a plaid placemat around it and tied it with a little piece of raffia. The chubby, little pumpkins were swiped from my Mom's dining table arrangement.

On the left is an old-fashioned oil lamp converted to an electric light. I put it on a stack of books to try to get some height. I found an old checkerboard that I stood up against the chimney, it helped the lamp and wooden duck stand out a little against the texture of the stone and added some visual interest. There's a small mason jar full of checkers behind the piece of goldenrod. On the right is a big basket of pine cones and walnuts with the vase of goldenrod and little pumpkins. Also on the right are two small, fake oars. I found them floating around the house and I think they were from a canoe shaped coffee table my parents had years and years ago. Again, I was thinking "Height."

 

This is not an elaborate change and it was definately not time consuming. I think it suits the rustic feel of the cabin and it's not overly symmetrical. There are some things I would change or do differently given unlimited supplies and resources, but it's nice to know that you can do a cheap, easy upgrade with what you can find around the house and outdoors. Puts me in the mood for fall and Thanksgiving!