cici at home

costume...complete!

Not that it was hard.  Quite simple, really.  I used the beloved Simplicity 4206 - lengthened the sleeves and lowered the hem (quite a bit) - for the main dress. I cut a square of fabric, cut a circle out of the middle and added trim for the shawl.  She's wearing a little head band, too.

The dress is from regular ole' suedecloth purchased form Joanne's. They didn't have "regular ole' suedecloth" in the color of the shawl, so I had to buy it from the costume fabric rack. That was a pain.  It had the little fringe cut out already on one selvedge.  So I had to trim the selvedge off the entire length of fabric and then resew it onto the shawl. It's a good thing I bought enough to make a few "Native American" costumes or I wouldn't have had enough to do that. I suppose I could have just cut it off and then made multiple cuts for the trim - hindsight is twenty-twenty ya know and I have a real knack for making things harder than they are.

Native American costumes.  That's how this all got started. We borrowed the CD version of the The Indian in the Cupboard for the recent trip to the in-laws.  We were totally engrossed in the story the enire way We loved it! Loved.  Naturally, the girl wanted to be an Indian for halloween.  The boy still wants to be Superman (again - he was Supe last year, too) - but there has been a lot of "Little Bear" play going on. So I figure a few dress up items were in order for him, too.

Now to hit the library for some good books to go along with the costumes...

Edited to add: Oh wow! The Indian in the Cupboard is a series! 

what do you do when you have too much to do?

blog about it! of course.

I mean, you wouldn't expect me to actually be working on the work in progresses would you?  Let's see, what on the list?

A purse I started last week.

A halloween costume.

A scrap challenge project that wound up too small and needs to be readjusted.

Oh wait. There's more!

But you don't think I'm going to show you pictures of the dinner dishes that aren't done yet? the laundry to be folded (only one load! i promise!)? I'd love to tell you I'll have all these projects (not the laundry - that's never really ever done) completed by Monday morning. But the only thing I can guarantee will be finished are those dinner dishes...because I'm doing those next.  And the halloween costume, because there's an All Saints Day parade before mass Sunday and this costume is doing double duty. The rest I'm just going to have to try to sneak in. And with that, I'm off...Have a nice weekend!

pyrex, and china, and sheets - oh my!

I had a bit of luck at the thrift store the other day.  More than a bit, really.  I finally, finally found a non-ugly piece of pyrex.  I love this red and orange friendship pattern. Of course, it is fall - so I love pretty much anything red and orange right now. Only on bowl, but I think it will work nicely for the banana bread in dire need of being made this afternoon.

And I found this beautiful Homer Laughlin serving bowl.  I was not terribly close to my great grandmother - but this piece reminds me of her.  It screams "mashed potatoes for Sunday dinner."

So I scrubbed it up and served roasted potatoes and carrots (we had roast chicken for dinner) in it instead.  They tasted so good coming out of that bowl.

The kids are begging for mashed potatoes soon - I may just have to oblige.

are you sick of seeing these yet?

I am. almost.  But the toddler has his very own little fingerless gloves/mittens now.  And he is soo happy to put his little pudgy hands through the openings and wave those fingers back and forth.  Will he keep them on on those chilly mornings in the car? I'm not holding my breath.

And now a pair for me in a grey Alpaca - I never knew yarn could be so soft.

fall nostalgia

Over the weekend, we took a small trip north to the town we used to call home.  Fall is there.  I loved looking at all the leaves - its even esier to enjoy thm knowing they are not in my yard. The romanticism of falling leaves is quickly displaced by reality when you're blowing them, almost daily, out to the front curb. We had nearly 20 old oak trees in our small 1/2 acre plot and together, those trees made piles of leaves at least 3 feet high that would stretch the length and width of our yard (we lived on a corner).

I do miss the leaves, though, a little.  Because this year, my kids won't have those three feet piles to play in.

Fall hasn't quite settled in as completely into our current location.  We have just now only felt the first frost and the leaves have just begun to scatter across our lawn. It's close, though, and I can feel the urge to settle in with it: quilts are being ready for cuddles, pumpkins for carving and cooking, casserole dishes being moved front and center in the cupboard. All getting ready for the slow and easiness of winter.

sometimes its a zoo around here

And if its not, we need to turn it into one.

You can too.  First, spend copiuos amounts of time wandering the large back yard with an oversized basket hanging over your arm searching diligently for just. the. right. size. rocks.

Bring the poster paints outside and commence to paint only the most obscure and specific of animals: Armadillo, male mallard duck, ant eater (you see the duck, don't you? with the green head?).

Convince your mother that the sheet of computer paper is the zoo itself where the animals will live. Convince her, too, that they need to come inside and stay as "decoration" on the coffee table.  She will let you.

Do not be surprised, several days later, to find the zoo moved outside to the back garden.  Animals like it outside.

simplicity 3835

Come on -  you know you love them.

Nothing much to report. I didn't add the elastic in the sleeves.  I didn't have 1/4 elastic and so used 3/8 around the neck.  It seems to fit a little funny but I'm not sure if that's because the elastic is too big for the job or if the shirt just needs to be washed.  I do prewash and dry fabric before I work with it, but I still find that it changes shape just a smidge after one more washing.

The fabric is discounted clearance fabric from Joanne's.  It has a bit of stretch to it. And a little bit of old lady style, too (I think?), but that's okay. I mean, its not like I'm getting any younger.

in which i don't need help now, thanks

So I had a post all typed out asking you to me identify this plant. I've googled adnauseum with no results.

Then while uploading pictures I noticed the leaf pattern.  Hmnnn...a new google search was born. "plant identification, three leaves, red berries, purple flowers" and Voila!

Monday's top priority: remove Bittersweet Night Shade from the front garden, while simultaneously thanking the Good Lord for those angels.

And because I can't help but over-analyze anything that comes my way: this is certainly an argument for cameras on nature walks.  Do you know how many hours I've spent looking at this plant and running back and forth between the computer and my front yard? I don't either, I lost count somewhere around July. But it took me looking at the picture to finally see - really see - the leaf pattern. Fun stuff, this nature study.

a little something she's teaching me

Not how to sew. No, she's doing fine with that on her own. She's doing just fine.

For awhile now, she's had this project mapped out - its from a book we checked out at the library (and have since returned) - and she's been giddy with excitement at the prospect of making her. very. own. purse.  So on a recent trip to the fabric store she selected her fabrics, ribbon, and other notions.

And then the project sat. She wants to use the machine. I want her to show a little proficiency - and a little patience - with a needle and thread the old fashioned way. By hand.

I'm afraid, though, that she has picked up one of her mother's character flaws - a serious lack of patience for the beginning steps of anything new and a huge desire to just jump right in.  And so I let her. Jump right in.

And she did with all enthusiasm.

Her stitching lines are far from straight - in fact they wander a good deal into the project - but she's proud of it. And I'm proud of her. And she's made a lot of progress in just one session at the machine (truth be told she may have made more progress in this first session if it wasn't for the curious little fingers of a certain toddler. brothers!). And she's very excited about moving on to the next step: embellishing it with embroidery. The old fashioned way - with needle and floss, and a fair bit of patience.

more fingerless gloves

and I don't think I'm done yet.  Number Three, though just 19 months, definitely has some opinions of his own.  One of those, apparently, is that he needs a pair of these too.

Once again, Small Fry Fingerless Gloves in Ole Ole yarn by Reynolds (from the stash).

Back to the needles for version three.