Summer Blog Challenge for August 6

**Do I have a favorite author?**

This is really a loaded question for someone who works in a library!  I have lots of favorite authors...depending on the genre.  We just had a questionnaire go around for a "staff pick" display at our library. 

Here are some of my favorite books--books that somehow changed my view of the world or, at least, have stuck with me for years and years:

• Lovely Bones by Alice Sebold
• I Know Why the Caged Bird Sings by Maya Angelou
• Masque of the Red Death, The Murders in the Rue Morgue, The Tell-Tale Heart, The Pit and the Pendulum, The Black Cat  by Edgar Allan Poe
• The Scarlet Letter and Rapuccini's Daughter by Nathaniel Hawthorne
• Any of the Post Secret books compiled by Frank Warren
• Garden Spells, The Girl Who Chased the Moon, The Sugar Queen by Sarah Addison Allen

For Children / Teens, these are my recommendations...books I loved as a child:

• Emily of New Moon, Emily Climbs, Emily's Quest by L.M. Montgomery -- This trilogy is by the same author as the Anne of Green Gables.  The Anne series is good, but the Emily series is AWESOME!  I read this three or four times between fourth and seventh grade...they are that good!
• Island of the Blue Dolphins by Scott O'Dell
• The Witch of Blackbird Pond by Elizabeth George Speare
• Charlie's Monument by Blaine M. Yorgason -- This book is out of print, but if you can get it for kindle or maybe find a used copy.  I've read this book seven or eight times.  It is about 100 pages but it teaches so many lessons about overcoming adversity. 

Now for the truth...for my own entertainment I read mostly romance...the smuttier the better.  Here are my favorite romance writers (the higher up on the list they are, the less smutty they are!) 

• Kaki Warner -- good, solid western romance
• Jayne Ann Krentz / Amanda Quick -- same writer who writes under different pen names
• Marianne Stillings
• Linda Howard
• Robyn Carr
• Jennifer Crusie
• Carly Phillips
• Jo Davis
• Kate Angell
• Rachel Gibson
• Susan Donovan
• Stacey Kayne -- She only has about 4 books published, but I sure wish she would write more!!
• Lori Foster
• Jill Shalvis
• Lora Leigh
• Bella Andre
• Shiloh Walker
• Lucy Monroe

See...loaded question for someone who LOVES to read!  Have a wonderful week, and take care of you!

Preserve It!

I love books published by DK publishers...they have great pictures and easy instructions.  The book PRESERVE IT! is another great offering from DK.

This book has sections about natural storage...ever wondered how to properly store onions for the winter?  This book explains it and shows you how!  There are also sections on drying fruits and vegetables (without a fancy dehydrator), freezing fruits and vegetables (including a list of what freezes well), and of course the jams, jellys, chutneys, preserves, and pickles.  There are also instructions for preserving in oil and canning fruit in alcohol.  There is then a section about salting meats and vegies, curing meats, smoking meats, and making sausages (like fresh chorizo.)  Finally there is a small section about brewing and wine-making.

The Fabulous Beekman Boys

Have you seen The Fabulous Beekman Boys on the Science Channel?  If you haven't, it is a show about Brent Ridge and Josh Kilmer-Purcell, two men who bought a beautiful old farm in upstate New York.  They raise goats, other farm animals, and some crops, all the while trying to get along while living a green life.

The book features a notes section with each recipe for you to write anything you want to remember about a recipe or even who liked/disliked each recipe.  There are also pockets in the front of the book with recipe cards for you to add your personal recipes to the book making this a beautiful personalized wedding gift.  What bride and groom wouldn't want handwritten family recipes as they start their new life together?
 
As usual, I found several desserts I was willing to try.  I didn't have as much luck with the main dishes and side dishes...too many 'strange' ingredients like goat cheese and dandelions.  Maybe goat cheese is wonderful?

I made "Buttery Peach Cake."   I put fresh peaches that have been peeled and cut into wedges then covered with a sugar, ginger, cinnamon (it said to use cardamom--but I don't have any of that, and I don't know what it tastes like...so I used a known spice), and melted butter.  Over the top of that I put a cake batter; the only "odd" ingredient that I had to purchase was plain yogurt.  The peaches kind of drift to the top--somewhat--while the cake cooks.  The cake was really quite fabulous!  I thought it would have been over-the-top-awesome served warm with vanilla ice cream.  My husband said that he preferred it without ice cream.  He definitely wants me to make this again.

Have a super "hump day," and take care of you!

Farm Recipes

Ian Knauer has worked and does work for all kinds of food related hot spots like Gourmet magazine and the Food Network. He has written a beautiful cook book called The Farm: Rustic Recipes for a Year of Incredible Food. The pictures are just amazing, and the recipes are pretty good, too!

Just one warning…if you are opposed to seeing a pig on a spit…you might want to avoid this book (or at least pages 68-69. However, if you really want to know how to roast a whole pig, this book has instructions for that.

The book has recipes for produce that peaks in each part of the year. However, it is beyond the four seasons. He has sections for early summer produce, midsummer produce, and late summer produce. I really like the organization of this book.

The recipe I decided to try from this book was Cocoa Zucchini Cake with "Whipped Cream" Frosting.  As with most homemade cakes, this is much denser and less sickeningly sweet than those you can buy from your local store or that come from a cake mix.  My husband liked it a lot...even the frosting...which is odd for him because he usually scrapes off the frosting and throws it away because frosting is "too sweet."  My mother-in-law said I could make it for here anytime.

It's the first time I've tried a cooked frosting.  It was called "whipped cream" frosting.  It had granulated sugar, whole milk, flour, and vanilla.  It was different than any frosting I've ever tasted.  The texture was also different.  I still haven't decided if I really liked it or not...guess that means I'll have to make it again sometime this summer.  Heaven knows I will have plenty of zucchini to use up!

I got to use a zucchini from my garden...YummY!

I hope you take the time to check out this book at your local library.  Have a great week, and take care of you!

Harvesting Color

Sometimes it is fun to read about a craft that you really have absolutely NO intention of ever actually trying yourself.  In that vein, at least for me, is this week's book:  HARVESTING COLOR: HOW TO FIND PLANTS AND MAKE NATURAL DYES by Rebecca Burgess.

This book shows how to identify and harvest plants, wild plants aka weeds for the most part, to use in dying homespun yarn.  The book begins with chapters detailing equipment and materials needed in order to make homemade dyes.  She also has a whole chapter of dye recipes that she has used and tested to help you successfully dye your lambs' wool yarn.
 
The remainder of the book is divided by the seasons and show which plants are plentiful by season, where to find the plants (within the U.S.), how to determine when to harvest the plants, and what hue a dye from each plant will produce.  I enjoyed the information on the plants because I am surrounded by prairies full of many of the flowers she shows.  I learned quite a bit about different prairie flowers.  I was often surprised by the hue different plants made.  I would expect a bright red flower to make a bright red dye, but that was rarely the case.  Even though I will (probably) never dye any yarn, it was still a fun book to look through.
 
Have you ever spun your own yarn?  Dyed your own yarn?  Both processes looked super labor intensive to me.  Since yarn crafts are beyond me...I'll stick to just reading about spinning and dying.
 
Have a fun day, and take care of you!

Can It, Bottle It, Smoke It and Other Kitchen Projects

This week's book selection is another book to inspire your home canning adventure.  CAN IT, BOTTLE IT, SMOKE IT by Karen Solomon has chapter recipes for:

• jams,
• cereals,
• pantry stock (like vinegar and Worcestershire sauce),
• pickles,
• breads,
• roasted items (coffee beans and nuts),
• meats (hot dogs and pastrami),
• smoked fruits and cheese,
• salty snacks (fried pork rinds),
• sweet spreads, milks (almond and rice),
• syrups and sodas,
• and freezer treats. 

WOW...that's a lot!

I kind of felt like this was a "sampler" book.  Instead of focusing on a narrow part of food preservation, the book has a few recipes (4-5) for each chapter.  If you are looking for a wide variety of a certain type of recipe, this won't be the book for you. 
 
Also, I kind of had a hard time deciding/choosing a recipe to try for a couple of reasons. 
(1)  Many of the recipes had "strange" ingredients...ingredients that I cannot readily find in my little Nebraska town OR ingredients that I had never heard of, and am therefore, uncertain about spending my funds to obtain.  Some of you may think that ingredients I consider "strange" are common to you...it takes all kinds...
(2)  Some of the recipes that I might consider because they are products I purchase had long time commitments or produced very little for the time commitment required.
 
**  For example  **
Homemade Vinegar takes a "strange" - vinegar starter (Mycoderma aceti) AND takes around 3 months to produce 1 1/2 cups.  Holy Cow!!!  Do you know how much vinegar I use?!?  I buy 2-3 gallons a month!  Obviously, this was not the experiment for me.
 
Worcestershire Sauce also takes "strange" ingredients of tamarind paste, fish paste, and blackstrap molasses.  The recipe calls for 1 Tbsp. of molasses (which I can probably obtain here, but not in that amount.  What am I going to do with the other ton that I had to purchase?)  The time commitment was 2 weeks for 1 1/2 cups.  That's probably about how much Worcestershire Sauce I use in a year...but then I'm left with lots of "extra" "strange" ingredients.  It would definitely not be a cost effective recipe for me.  Maybe you have all of the stuff already, so this would be a great recipe for you.
 
I had Trevor look through the book to see if there was something he thought he'd like me to make.  I didn't want to just make another jam, so I asked him to pick something other than a jam.  He picked Sweet Pepper and Corn Relish.  I asked him for what do you use corn relish?  He didn't know for sure, but he thought it would be good for corn chips...maybe added to sour cream...
 
It was a small batch, so I'm game to try it.  There was nothing strange, and it didn't require much time.  I honestly got out of bed at 8 AM and had the relish out of the water bath before 10 AM.  I wasn't particularly organized that day either.  The only thing I had done prior to that morning to prepare for making the relish was purchase the ingredients.  Two days before I canned the relish, I was debating about buying the red peppers, corn, and red onion.  When we went grocery shopping, I found an unadvertised sale on red peppers for $0.50 each.  That is CHEAP for my part of Nebraska...they are usually at least $1.25 each.  I decided that was my sign that I was supposed to make this stuff!
 
As for most canning recipes, it did make a bit more than the recipe stated.  The time commitment stated was "1 day" -- I think this must be the amount of time the relish should be allowed to cure because it took less than two hours to actually make the relish, the brine, combine the two, and hot water bath can the jars.
 

Later that day, my father-in-law (Howard) came over to see if I had any strawberry preserves left because he wanted waffles for dinner.  I gave him the preserves and offered him a jar of corn relish to try.  He said, "I haven't seen anyone make corn relish since my mom made it when I was a kid."  (Howard's mom died in 1972--before I was born.)  I asked him what they used the relish for...he couldn't remember, but he thought he might remember when he tasted it.  We'll see about that.
 
Even though there are just a few recipes on a wide range of topics, it's still worth a trip to your local library to check it out.  Maybe it has the recipe you've been searching for!
 
Do you know what to use Sweet Pepper Corn Relish for??
 
Have a great day, and take care of you!

An oldie, but a goodie!

THE COMPLETE BOOK OF SMALL-BATCH PRESERVING by Ellie Topp and Margaret Howard is in its third revised/expanded edition.  It was updated last in 2007.  It's one of the few books I purchased after borrowing it from the library.  It has over 300 recipes designed for year-round preserving...it is awesome.

This book gives each recipe in US measurements and metric measurements...always nice for those of you who understand the metric system. 
 
I have made the jalapeno jelly from this book.  I personally think that jalapeno jelly is YUCKY, but my husband and his buddies seem to really enjoy jalapeno jelly over cream cheese on crackers.  Whatever floats their boats.

I wanted to make something new, though.  So...I found super cheap blackberries when I was at the store.  Maybe someone accidentally ordered too many??  Somebody put the wrong price down??  I just grabbed and dashed to the checkout, giddy with my find...

For less than $4, I made a cute little batch of blackberry jam.  I didn't find many blackberry-specific recipes in any book, so I used the raspberry jam recipe from THE COMPLETE BOOK OF SMALL-BATCH PRESERVING.  It worked great.  It was supposed to make 4 cups (or 4 - 1/2 pint jars.)  I put them in 1/4 pint jars, and I got 10 - 1/4 pints (or 5 - 1/2 pint jars.)

Isn't the color beautiful?

If I'm smart and hold onto several jars of different types of jelly, jams, and preserves, these make great gift baskets at Christmas.  An inexpensive basket from a thrift shop, some cute material, an assortment of home-canned goods, and a box of crackers or scones...trust me...that is a gift that is appreciated.  Of course, if you are like me, you've given away anything you didn't eat yourself long before Christmas rolls around.  Oh, well. 

Have a great week, and take care of you!

The Best Little Book of Preserves & Pickles

For the next several weeks I'll be highlighting some newer canning / preserving books.  I decided that I really shouldn't review the book without at least trying one of the recipes...so I'll also be showing you the results of my efforts.

Author Judith Choate has put together an affordable, easy-to-follow book with several recipes for "easy jams & jellies, chutneys & condiments, sauces, spreads & syrups."  She begins with a chapter of basic information about ingredients and a chapter about equipment and techniques.  There are then eight chapters of recipes.  There are a wide range of recipes that, for the most part, had ingredients I had heard of and would actually be able to easily acquire (if I didn't already have the ingredient in my pantry.)  This is awesome because Nebraska does not necessarily have "fancy" ingredients found in some cookbooks...and if I haven't heard of it or I don't know what it is...I'm a little leery of spending my hard-earned pennies on it.  Maybe that's just me...

Also, this book is designed for small batch preserving.  I like small batch preserving because it is easier when you are canning by yourself.  Or, if you bought to much of something, you can preserve the goodness rather than letting food going to waste.

In addition to traditional jams, jellies, chutneys, preserves, conserves, relishes, and pickles, she also has recipes for canning your own:

• sauces and marinades like teriyaki sauce and barbeque sauce
• dessert sauces like white chocolate sauce and red hot apple syrup
• condiments and dressings like fresh horseradish, spicy beer mustard, and hot and sour salad dressing

Anyway...I made "Mom's Special Strawberry Preserves."  I love that each recipe begins with QUANTITY: how much the recipe should make and METHOD and SHELF LIFE.   For example, the strawberry preserves said that the recipe should make 4 - 1/2 pint jars.  With water bath processing, the shelf life is 1 year.  With refrigeration, the shelf life is 6 months.  This is excellent information for beginners and old-hats alike.

The preserves were a three day process, but the time commitment was not bad on any day.  The first day involved cleaning and coring the strawberries and adding the sugar.  Day two was around an hour worth of heating up and boiling the strawberry / sugar mixture.  Day three was the longer time commitment.  Heat the strawberry mixture back up to boiling and water bath for 10 minutes.

The recipe said it would make 4 - 1/2 pint jars.  I actually got 5 - 1/2 pint jars.  I am completely okay with that!

There's only 4 jars in the picture because my brother had already stopped by to take one jar home.

What's your favorite fruit to can?  Have a wonderful and wacky Wednesday, and take care of you!

What to do with all of these scraps?!?

If you sew and/or quilt, you are most likely faced with the dilemma of what to do with fabric scraps.  I have always thrown them in a big basket and then wanted to cry when the basket gets full...what do I do with the fabric when the basket is full?  I had started cutting scrap pieces into 5" or 3" squares which I then gave to my Grandma who would make them into Linus Blankets for children in hospitals.  But I still get lazy and think maybe I'll just throw away scraps...but that's just plain wasteful.

 

In SCRAPTHERAPY:  CUT THE SCRAPS!, Joan Ford has come up with an organized and rational way to deal with scraps.  When I saw the book, I figured this was just another book with quilts that look okay with lots of different hodge-podge material.  That is not what this is...This has seven short chapters that explain Joan's system for cutting, sorting, storing, and using your scraps so that you don't feel wasteful and you get some great new projects from your scraps.  I'm excited to try this system.  It has to be better than having a bunch of scrunched up wads of odd shaped fabric in a basket...right?
 
Have a great day, and take care of you!

Books from blogs

Some of the bloggers I regularly follow have recently released books that are worth checking out.

Little House in the Suburbs (http://littlehouseinthesuburbs.com/) has released a book with the same title.  Authors Deanna Caswell and Daisy Siskin collected and organized information to help you live in a self-sufficient manner.  Some are activities I readily accept and use...some are not.  That's the great part about books, though.  You can read about people who have backyard chickens and/or goats without actually having chickens and/or goats in YOUR backyard.  : )  There are chapters on gardening, cooking, keeping bees, chickens, and goats, how to make your own home-made cleaning/skincare items, and ideas to help bring your community neighborhood together. 

The Pioneer Woman (http://thepioneerwoman.com/) has released a several books.  Ree Drummond also has a show on Food Network--what a busy lady!  Below are just a few of her books.
 
My favorite  book is a children's picture book called CHARLIE THE RANCH DOG.  The pictures are adorable and the story is funny.  I purchased this for my great nephews for their last birthday, and they liked it too.

In 2009, Ree Drummond released THE PIONEER WOMAN COOKS: RECIPES FROM AN ACCIDENTAL COUNTRY GIRL.  There are so many great pictures in this book. 

Ree Drummond's newest book is THE PIONEER WOMAN COOKS: FOOD FROM MY FRONTIER.  Again, the pictures are great.  She has a skill of showing how food should look as you prepare it.

The last book I'd like to tell you about is SUGAR SNAPS AND STRAWBERRIES: SIMPLE SOLUTIONS FOR CREATING YOUR OWN SMALL SPACE EDIBLE GARDEN from the blog Heavy Petal (http://heavypetal.ca/) 

Authors Andrea Bellamy and Jackie Connelly have lots of simple ideas to add vegetables to your yard, home, garden, or any other small space you might have.

That should give you some inspiration to head to your local library to check out all of the spring gardening and cooking ideas. 

Have a great week, and take care of you!

Terrariums -- Wonderful Little Worlds

Terrariums are everywhere right now, and I am in love!  I have green plants all over my house.  Now I am determined to add a few terrariums because they are just too cool!

 
The book "TERRARIUM CRAFT: CREATE 50 MAGICAL, MINIATURE WORLDS" by Amy Bryant Aiello and Kate Bryant shows all kinds of ideas for plants that work well for terrariums, whimsy to add to terrariums, and the types of glass jars that work well for terrariums.  As an added bonus, the pictures are great!  At the end of the book, they have a long listing of places to find the plants listed in the book if they are not available locally to you.
 
So, if you have wanted to try a terrarium, but you wanted some more information or ideas--this is the book for you.  Check it out at your local library!
 
Have a fun week, and take care of you!

Just in time for Mother's Day...

Do you need a sweet and simple gift to make for your Mama, Sister, Grandma, Aunt, etc.?  Take a look at SWEET & SIMPLE PATCHWORK GIFTS by Hisako Arai and Yoko Sanjo.  This book has 25 projects using classic quilting motifs like hexagons, log cabins, and squares.

My Mama was looking through this book at Easter and she thought the "house basket" was cute.  Thanks for the tip, Mom!  It looks totally doable.  I'll post a picture (if I get it done in time....) Of course, I latched onto the great bags and tote patterns shown.  (My name is Jeanne, and I AM a bag-a-holic!)  There are also wall quilts, pot holders, throw pillows, table toppers, and lots of bags--big and small. 

Even though the projects may not be super original, I love the clear instructions given for each project.  In addition, there is and excellent section that explains how to accomplish each type of motif.  There are pictures from the front of the piece and the back of the piece.  Because of the importance of setting your seams when quilting, these great front/back pictures are an awesome tool for new quilters.  It is also helpful if you are an experienced quilter that maybe is not as comfortable as you would like with log cabin or hexagon quilting.  Also, they show two different ways of accomplishing the hexagon quilt--plain sewing and the English paper piecing method.  It's worth your time to check it out at your local library.

Have an awesome Wednesday, and take care of you!

Mending? Who knew?

***ANNOUNCEMENT***  I finally figured out where the setting was that was preventing many of you from leaving comments...now everyone can leave comments, even if you aren't a 'follower.'  YAY!  Comment Away!!!

Do you remember hearing Grandma talk about 'darning socks' or 'patching jeans'?  Well, author Kristin M. Roach, creator of http://www.craftleftovers.com/ has created a book to remind OR teach all of us how to creatively mend clothing rather than throwing it away or giving it to a thrift store.  That's what "Mend It Better" is all about.

I've seen LOTS of clothes at thrift shops that are perfect except for an issue with a closure (button, snap, or zipper) or a rip in the seam that can be easily fixed.  I usually grab those up (EXCEPT for the zipper problems) and easily fix them for an inexpensive addition to my wardrobe. 

Ms. Roach has chapters dedicated to fixes using patchwork, surface fixes, seam fixes, straight hems, around the waist, darning, fasteners and closures, zippers -- yes a whole chapter, just to name a few.  She even has a checklist to decide 'to mend or not to mend.'  If zippers intimidate you (don't be ashamed...they intimidate me!) then the chapter on zippers is truly helpful.  She has specific instructions for different kinds of zipper problems and how to fix them.  She also has detailed instructions on replacing a zipper in a pair of jeans. 

Another suggestion is resizing favorites.  Her example was a maternity sweater that she just loved...but of course it was way too big after the baby came.  She added binding around the stretched neck line, cut off some of the "extra" in the middle, and added some awesome ties using leather and cotton.  It's worth finding the book at the library just to see what she did with this sweater!  I just wish that my problem was needing to make clothes smaller...instead of bigger...oh, well!

Do you mend any clothing?  If not, what do you do when a favorite piece of clothing has a problem?
Have a great week, and take care of you!

SMALL IS BOUNTIFUL by Liz Dobbs and Anne Halpin

This week's book selection is about container gardening with vegetables.  The chapters are titled "small bites," "bigger servings," "going up," "how to grow," and and extensive part of the book is dedicated to "what to grow."

The pictures are beautiful.  There are specific instructions for different pre-planned pots that are themed around salad, herbs, or a main dish like pesto.  The "what to grow" section gives each vegetable a two page detailed description including what you need to get started, maintaining the crop in a container, and when to harvest.

The book helped me add a couple more plants to my BOLO plant list.  I'm now looking for a trailing or tumbling tomato plant and a yellow squash in the Buckingham, Soleil, or Bush Baby variety...we'll see if I have any luck as spring moves along.

I planted several pots with seeds this last weekend.  I decided to just leave them outside to grow since it has been such an amazingly warm spring here in Nebraska.  If they don't grow, I'll just have to go to plan B--and purchase them from a local greenhouse.

Lola and Booger in front of my mother-in-law's gorgeous tulips

Have a great day, and take care of you!

Advice for the space-crunched gardener

I received the book VERTICAL GARDENING by Derek Fell for Christmas,,,thanks Mom & Dad.  There are tons of ideas on how to get ample production from small space gardening.  Trevor and I are trying some of these this year to see how they work.

The author gives you ideas on how to plant, what to plant, and when to plant.  He suggested plants that I did not even realize existed.  Instead of leaf spinach, he suggests vine spinach that can be grown on a trellis.  That is one thing I am trying this year.  We're still planting some leaf spinach because we eat so much of it in the summer.

Another thing I am trying to convince Trevor to try is to build a screen that sits at an angle to protect leaf lettuce from the afternoon sun.  He says to plant cucumbers so that they grow up the screen and absorb the afternoon sun.  This gives the cukes all the sun and heat they love, but protects the leaf lettuce--the idea being that you can harvest leaf lettuce further into the summer season.  Sounds like a winner to me!

I did get the feeling that the author's idea of "small spaced gardening" was bigger than the entire lot that we own, but that doesn't detract from the good ideas and tips given in the book.  Check it out if you want some growing inspiration!

Have a super week, and take care of you!

Rain Gardens by Lynn Steiner and Robert Domm

I checked out RAIN GARDENS by Lynn Steiner and Robert Domm from the library this week.  There are lots of ideas for gorgeous collections of flowers that come back year after year.  The book also shows how to specifically set up the gardening space in order to take advantage of rain water.  There is also information on rain garden roofs and ponds.

When we moved into our little house, our yard contained many of the flowers suggested in this book--phlox, ferns, lily of the valley, wild onion, and columbine.  While beautiful, we ended up removing these plants due to my extreme phobia of snakes.
 
I wish I could overcome this phobia because I feel that the rain garden type of yard is better for the environment and is beautiful.  However, the many near heart attacks I had when we were infested with snakes made Trevor decide that I should only have flowers in pots.  He usually does most of the weeding and harvesting in the garden as well.  I help until I see a snake; then I run (screaming) inside and lock the doors.  Real mature--I know.
 
I know the garter snakes around here are great for the environment and pose no danger to me.  However, rational thought has no place in a phobic mind.
 
Have you ever overcome a phobia?  How did you do it?
 
Have a super day, and take care of you!!

Happy Spring!!!

It has been absolutely BEAUTIFUL in Nebraska this week!  Yesterday I was finally able to ride my bike even though it was windy.  Today is supposed to have very low wind, so Booger and I are going for a ride this afternoon.  YAY!

I've been contemplating my blog, and I have decided that I will only be putting out one or two projects each month.  I want the projects to be well developed.  When I try to do a project every week, sometimes I feel like I'm just throwing something out there without very good directions / pictures / thoughts.  I hope you will all understand.  Plus...I still have to do things like laundry, exercise, laundry, etc.

With that said, I've been looking a book called HANDPRINTING FROM NATURE by Laura Bethmann.


I love the prints and projects in this book; they are beautiful!  She uses fruit, vegetables, starfish, leaves, and other items from nature to print on clothing, furniture, walls, curtains, and other items for the home.  I don't have all of the materials listed in this book, but I may have to see what the investment would be since I really like the projects.  One of my favorite projects was a pillow made from an old men's button-up shirt.  She cut a head of cabbage in half and printed the flat side of the cabbage in a pattern...the cabbage print looks like big flowers.
 
Check it out at your local library!  Have a wonderful week, and take care of you!

Craftcycle

I really need to just buy the book CRAFTCYCLE by Heidi Boyd. 

I've checked it out from our local library 5 or 6 times.  The book is divided into seasons--so there are projects using recycled materials that are appropriate for Spring, Summer, Fall, and Winter.  This book has a wonderful pattern for a potting bench;  I have asked Trev to build one for me.  If he won't build it this spring, I may have to dig in and try building it myself.  Trevor usually doesn't want me to do anything that involves 'saws' (or any other sharp object) because I have a tendency to hurt myself.  I am a classic KLUTZ!

Anyway...some of my other favorite projects in the book are:
*  Record Bowl -- how to make a bowl from an old record
*  Fused plastic tote bag -- iron plastic bags together to make a sturdy, reusable shopping bag
*  Colored Pencil Watch -- use old colored pencils put together to make a watch band
*  Window Sash Cold Frame -- a miniature greenhouse for seedlings

In addition to the 100+ projects shown, she also includes tips for living green in each season and recipes for each season.  The book is currently less than $10 on amazon.com (which is cheaper than the Kindle version...go figure!)

Have a great day, and take care of you!

Mixed-up Monday

Switch-a-roo--book today and project on Wednesday

Plastic grocery bags are horrible.  I feel that everyone should take the time and make the effort to take reusable bags with them when they shop.  I'm not saying that I always remember, but I do make a conscious effort to do so.

There are TONS of books, patterns, and tutorials on the web on how to make bags of every size, shape, and style.  One that I've been leafing through is called BAGS: THE MODERN CLASSICS by Sue Kim.


http://www.amazon.com/Bags---Modern-Classics-Clutches-Satchels/dp/1607053888/ref=sr_1_1?s=books&ie=UTF8&qid=1329752021&sr=1-1#_

 The book has directions three general types of bags: Small Bags, Clutches, and Large Bags.  The book also has each project rated by difficulty; this is always nice if you aren't super confident about your sewing abilities.  The front says "19 projects & 75+ bags" meaning that each bag is shown in a variety of materials. 
I really like that in addition to written instructions, there are pictures of each step of the sewing.  It is always nice to have that extra clarification.

For Wednesday's post, I will show you how to assemble a no-sew bag.  I will also give links to several free patterns on the web.  The best thing about these reusable bags is, of course, that fewer plastic bags go into landfills.  I also love that the bags don't have to be fancy...just functional.  You can use WHATEVER works...they don't have to be expensive or purchased from the store.  You probably have material in your house at this very moment that would make an excellent bag.

TIPS FOR USING REUSABLE BAGS
1)  If you have multiple vehicles, put a few in each vehicle so they are always there if you make a surprise trip to the store.
2)  I bike a lot, so I put a few in my purse...just in case.
3)  I have a lot of them!  That way I always seem to have them around. 
4)  If you make your own bags, don't make them too big.  It seems that stores will only put 2-3 items in a plastic bag, but they will try to stuff a whole cart in a reusable bag!  Also, don't be afraid to "help" the folks pack the bags by telling them when to stop stuffing the bag.
5)  Don't be embarrassed!  Some stores in our area give a $0.05 discount for each bag used, so I've heard people say that they don't want to be "cheap."  It isn't about the discount!  It's about the environment!
6)  I prefer to make my own bags out of materials that can be easily washed (denim, bed sheets, cotton) because the bags will get dirty.  I've found that purchased bags tend to shrink or fall apart when washed.  I don't know about you, but I prefer to put my groceries in clean bags...just sayin'!
7)  If you make your own bags, take the time to put a little loop on one of the edges of the bag.  Cashiers really appreciate that little loop that will hold the bag for them on the stand for the plastic bags.  Bags without the little loop don't stay open for loading.  It's just a little "kindness" to help the make the cashier's job easier.


Have a super Presidents' Day, and take care of you!

Creativity, Saving the World, and a Totally Off-Topic Question...

I checked out the book Hoopla: the Art of Unexpected Embroidery by Leanne Prain from my local library this week.  If you want to see some truly strange things that people embroider, needlework, or cross-stitch...this is the book for you!  It's interesting, but it makes me think I am pretty boring!  I would never think of embroidering elaborate tattoos on dolls or embroidering anatomical graphics.  If you want to expand your way of looking at textile art, this is a good place to start.

http://rcm.amazon.com/e/cm?lt1=_blank&bc1=000000&IS2=1&bg1=FFFFFF&fc1=000000&lc1=0000FF&t=sewreclov-20&o=1&p=8&l=as4&m=amazon&f=ifr&ref=ss_til&asins=1551524066

Another book that may challenge your ideas of how important and great crafting can be is Craft Activism: People, Ideas, and Projects from the New Community of Handmade and How You Can Join In by Joan Tapper.  This book highlights different artists and regular people who use art to bring awareness to local and world problems or even take steps to solve problems about which they feel passionate. 

http://rcm.amazon.com/e/cm?lt1=_blank&bc1=000000&IS2=1&bg1=FFFFFF&fc1=000000&lc1=0000FF&t=sewreclov-20&o=1&p=8&l=as4&m=amazon&f=ifr&ref=ss_til&asins=0307586626

I was most inspired by a woman in France who began Morsbags.com in 2002 after a dead whale washed up on a Nomandy Beach.  The whale died because it had eaten so many plastic grocery bags.  Her idea?  Make inexpensive, reusable grocery bags from whatever material is readily available and give the bags away at grocery stores.  Her hope was and is that this act of kindness will encourage people to bring reusable bags with them when they shop.  There are now "pods" registered around the world that create 'morsbags' to give away locally; the website has free instructions for a simple shopping bag and labels to add to the bags in hopes that the good keeps on going...pay it forward style.  This woman is truly living the motto: "Think Globally, Act Locally."  For more information on morsbags, go to http://www.morsbags.com/

Now for the Totally Off-Topic Question:  What is the best hand-made baby gift?  I have a good friend who is due to have her second child in about 2 months.  I made a baby quilt for the birth of her first child, so I wanted to make something different for this little bundle of joy.  Since I don't have any children myself, I don't know what is most appreciated and/or used by new parents...any thoughts?  She's having another boy if that helps.  Thanks in advance for any advice you are willing to throw my way!

Have a wonderful day, and take care of you!