Joy! A Glitter-Filled Tutorial

Posted by Nat on Nov 15, 2011 | 1 comment

I am so excited about these things!!!!!!

I keep walking by them, sitting on my cluttered table in my guest/craft room and I stop just to look at them sparkle.  I plan on using them for at least two things.   One is obviously decor for the holidays.  The other you’ll have to wait and see.

I never got excited about glitter until I had kids, but seeing things the way they see them- now I like the glitter and such of the holidays.   Now let’s get one thing straight:  Thanksgiving is by far my favorite holiday.  We do not play Christmas music or decorate for Christmas until the weekend after Thanksgiving.  But given what I’m going to use these for, I had to get crackin’.

So, here’s what you need to create your own glitter letters:

• patience
• time
• glitter in desired colors (you’ll see what I used below)
• letters (I got mine at Joann’s, though I don’t really like them pre-glitter- next time I will get some cuter ones like these)
• glue (I used Elmers)
• paint for covering letters before glittering
• paintbrushes- having a few sizes helps
• small paper plates- cheap & thin ones that bend easily
• rulers and other things for tracing patterns
• newspaper for protecting your surface from glitter

Paint your letters.  I painted all but a very small area first; let dry; finish; let dry.  I did two coats, and I used acrylic mainly because I had some.

Once your paint is dry, you can pencil your design on the front.  I knew I wanted each letter to be different.  What’s lovely is that you don’t need to worry if you mess up- the glitter will cover it all- hooray!  So, for example, when I did the “J,” I just used a ruler and traced it at an angle.

The “O” I freehanded, and I just labeled it with which color I wanted the dot to be, R’s for reds, G’s for greens.  I used two different spools of thread to trace the circles.

Now comes the fun part- the glitter!  I decided, since I needed glitter anyway, to try Martha Stewart’s glitter line.  It does not disappoint- it is so fine (as in tiny) and the colors are just beautiful.  These are the three colors I used (white gold, peridot & garnet):

I wasn’t sure if I’d want to buy the entire set that they sell with a bazillion colors.  I’m glad I got the bigger jars, but will be tempted now to get the whole set and glitter my entire house.

For the “J” I painted the glue on with a paint brush and did only one color at a time.  So I did silver first since it was going to be every other stripe.  I’d paint a stripe with glue, sprinkle on the glitter, and then tilt & tap to get the excess off.  At first I used a spoon until I got used to it, but found that after a while the spoon was just an extra step.

See that pile o’ glitter on my newspaper?  If you keep reading you’ll see how I get it back in the bottle and make very little mess (I think).

For the “O” I just used the tip of my glue bottle.  First I outlined the circle, then I filled it in.  I did find that if I was super careful with how smooth the glue was, the glitter adhered better.  Circles like the one on the right did not turn out looking as nice and I had to fill them in.

For the “Y” I did the red center first, then the colors on either side (sorry- for some reason “Y” didn’t get a lot of photo time and is sniveling in the corner.)

I think the most important thing about this is patience- waiting for the glue to dry.  I used a rather thick coat of glue, and didn’t want it to run and mess up my design.  So, for example, for the “J”, I did all of the silver stripes one day, and then the next I did the red and green.  The hardest letter by far, was the “O.”  Filling in all that silver around the dots took a lot of time, and it’s still not “perfect” but it’s cute.

So here’s how to get all that excess glitter back in the bottle/jar.  You’ll see below that after I did some green glitter I had a TON on the newspaper.  And on the right, you’ll see that my green glitter jar is nearly half empty.  This is where those cheap & flimsy paper plates come in.

Take your newspaper and angle it so that the glitter all slides to the center creases in the middle of the paper.  You’ll have to do this a few times from all sides of the paper.  Then carefully lift your paper with it folded in half, and tilt it.  Carefully dump all the glitter onto a paper plate (mine are about 6 inches across).

Now that your glitter is on the plate, it’s much easier to control.

Fold your plate in half, and then carefully aim it into the glitter jar- whoosh!  It all goes in, and if you’re lucky, it doesn’t spill!  Added bonus, you’ll hardly use any glitter- you’ll have a ton left.  None of my jars are even remotely used up, even after making these pretty thangs!

And one final look.  Please do tell, by the way- do you like glitter?  Hate it?  Like to have glittered things but don’t know about DIY?  I wasn’t sure about this and am so glad I did it!

Real Simple Easy Dinners: Week 3

Posted by Nat on Nov 10, 2011 | Comments Off on Real Simple Easy Dinners: Week 3

If you’re new to this series, you can start here, then go here, and here.  Now you’re caught up!

Sorry for the slacking off here…

So this week we did Week #3 and it was a crazy one for our family.  This week is the same, so we’re taking a break from this right now and will do the final week…next week.  But I digress…I slacked on the pictures with a couple, and the two I forgot to take pics of were actually some of my favorites this week.

One thing we tried was cutting the recipes in half since Michael and I are really the only ones eating.  We’ve had a hard time keeping up with the leftovers, so this week we tried cutting everything by half.  This, however, didn’t work so well either- we found ourselves hungry after a few meals.  On to the reviews:

Monday:  Pork Loin with Sauteed Caulifower and Capers

One takeaway I had from this week is that I don’t like it very much when a recipe calls for a very specific ingredient.  Monday’s recipe called for “pickled sweet red cherry peppers, such as Peppadews.”  Perhaps I’m biased because, in the first place, I don’t like peppers in general.  So to traipse all over the grocery store hunting for something I don’t realllly want to eat- no fun. Then, when I did finally find a jar, this is what it looked like:

You betcha- I made sure I dug through that jar and pulled out that one red pepper.  But I still didn’t like it.  I also messed this recipe up big time, though.  Firstly, I used way too much mustard on the pork- it was nearly inedible.  I would also say, though, that the amount given in the recipe is big- I’d probably dilute it with some mayo or something.  My other mess up, though, was that I didn’t pay attention and I tossed all the cauliflower with cilantro, not parsley.  I didn’t realize until later, which was funny because neither Michael nor I cared for the cauliflower and now we know why- cilantro!

Tuesday :  Chickpea-Spinach Curry with Cucumber Yogurt Sauce

No pic for this one- which bums me out because it was DELICIOUS!  I would make more of it, and I would also use it as a side dish- it’s very versatile.  I would maybe add some more veggies or something, but it was very easy and very quick to whip up.  Yum!

Wednesday:  Lamb Chops with Roasted Broccoli and Feta

This was excellent.  I was very surprised with how much I liked broccoli with feta- and lemon!  It’s very refreshing yet hearty at the same time.  A keeper, this one!

Thursday:  Lemony Tuna and Olive Oil Pasta

Again, no pic- boo!  This was soooo good, too.  I love how they have you reserve pasta water and use it in the sauce- it kept the noodles from sticking- it was like eating something from a restaurant.  This is one that we will cook full-size next time- no cutting in half!

Friday:  Roasted Chicken with Mole Sauce and Citrus Salad

This was really good!  If I had known how easy it was to make mole sauce I would have done it a long time ago.  It was fun to tell the kids we were eating “chocolate chicken”- they thought it was weird.  I was also very proud of my citrus salad- I cut up the oranges quite well, if I do say so myself.  Yum!

Peanut Butter Sandwich: A Whole New World

Posted by Nat on Nov 4, 2011 | 2 comments

I can only make it once in a while, but when I do, oh my goodness.

I didn’t want to make a turkey sandwich.  I didn’t want the usual PB&J.  So to shake up the lunch routine…

…and the piece de resistance…

(just a bit- don’t get too crazy!)

Holy LORD it was good.  Try it.  You will love it.  Happy weekend!

p.s.  I am not a food photographer.  My camera is not super fancy.  I am asking for one for Christmas and/or my birthday.  Fingers crossed!

Let’s Talk About the Word “Skinny”

Posted by Nat on Nov 3, 2011 | 2 comments

I mentioned a few weeks ago that I’m starting to work out again after having our 3rd and final baby.  Some things I may not have mentioned before on this blog…

• I’m a fairly average person in terms of build/body-type; at times I think I’m curvy, but others I’m not so sure- my rear end is rather flat (at least from what I can see of it).
• I’m not necessarily an athletic person, but I’m choosing to pursue getting fit for the benefit of myself and my family; I want to set the example for my kids that it’s important to be healthy and fit.
• I think it will be a challenge for me, given my DNA, to ever be what one might consider svelte or thin;  I’m okay with that.  I did once strive to be thin and I did the South Beach diet.  It made me cranky.  I did lose 40 pounds, but man, I was starving and cranky.
• I love food and am sort of in a place right now where I’d rather eat (and drink wine, of course) and enjoy myself than suffer or deprive myself and hope it helps me lose some weight.  If I develop health issues related to my diet, I’ll change.  For now I’m eating happily but not crazily.
• I want to raise my kids, especially my two daughters, with the belief that if they are healthy and taking care of themselves then they are doing the right thing.

Those things being said, I’m seeing this thing fly all over Pinterest, and it’s starting to…

Piss. Me. Off.

I started to see it pinned here and there as I clicked through Pinterest hunting for new things for my own boards.  The more I saw it, the more it got me to thinking.  I did some digging and found out that Kate Moss said this was her “motto” in 2009.  Interestingly enough, she followed with, “You try and remember, but it never works.”  But you never hear or see that last little part added.  (See here for article link.)  I was shocked to read in this article that there are also “pro-anorexia” websites.  Good God.

Have you Googled the word “skinny”?  I did.  I also Goolged images using the same search word.  It’s scary.  I couldn’t look for long.

Then I went to Pinterest and searched “skinny.”  Also disheartening.  But then I got more creative (it is Pinterest, after all.)

I searched the phrase in the photo above, and it floored me.  Currently there are 65,100 Pinterest boards with the same title.  Look at that number again.

65,100

What is WRONG with people?  Now, I browsed some of the boards, and many of these women share the same goals that I have- they want to get in shape.  They want to lose weight.  They want to get strong.  Could someone please explain to me how the word skinny fits into any of those goals?

Here and there you’ll even see people have pinned a pillow with the same phrase on it.  It’s done in needlepoint, as if it’s something cute to say, or heaven forbid, you could make one for yourself!  Or for a friend as a gift!   Throw it on your couch to inspire your fat friends!  I don’t even want to know how much people would pay for it.

Some other board titles centered around this theme that freaked me out:  “Thinspiration” and “Thincentive.”  It was at this point that I threw my hands in the air and took my flat ass to the couch to write this post.

Where does this fascination with being thin or skinny come from?  WHY is it considered desirable by so many people to be “skinny”?  I have many friends who could possibly fit into this term in a natural way- they are, by their genetic makeup, long and lean people.  I have heard through conversations that the word skinny is not their favorite either.  I have one friend who told me that often, when people call her skinny, usually there is also a reference to her being malnourished or unhealthy in some way.  That ain’t cool either.

What makes me the most angry, though, is that people who pin this stuff are not thinking about young girls and women who are on Pinterest and other places who see this image, and they don’t have a role model in their life to tell them “skinny” is NOT something to work towards or aspire to.  Or they have an eating disorder that they are trying to get under control, and then they see this and lose it.  Or they have flashbacks to people calling them fat in high school or junior high.  Skinny is a negative word in so many ways.

Let’s get it together, people.  Skinny is not a goal. 

Healthy is.

Fit is.

Exercise is. 

Strength is. 

Active is.

Skinny can kiss my ass.

So I’m starting my own little movement.  Maybe it will stay small.  Maybe it won’t.  I don’t really care.  But I can’t just sit and not say anything.  I made this graphic on Picnik and am throwing it up on my “Don’t You Know” board.  If you are with me, please pin it, too.  Not on Pinterest?  Maybe you could link on Facebook or just leave a comment and give me a “holla holla!”

 And either way, I’d love to hear your thoughts on this stuff, too- am I the only one?  Are you tired of any other words?  Do any words get under your skin the same way “skinny” gets under mine?  I’d love to hear about it. 🙂

Real Simple Easy Dinners: Week 2

Posted by Nat on Nov 1, 2011 | 1 comment

If you’re new to this series, click here for the intro and here for Week 1.

Whew!  This week was tougher.  For some reason my body is rebelling against fall and my allergies were full-force all week.  I thought I was fighting a cold, but it was really just my body acclimating to a new season, I think.  We made it through week 2, just not in order.  Allergies combined with an issue with carpet-cleaning led me to postpone Thursday until last night, but we still made every recipe, so I think we’re still pretty rad.  Here’s the scoop!

My big take-away this week:  leave the meat alone.   I always feel like I have to do something to the meat- put a rub on it, marinate it- something.  But I don’t.  It’s enough to just put some good ol’ S&P on it and call it done.

Monday:  Chicken with Wild Rice and Grapes

This one surprised me- it was really, really yummy.  I wasn’t sure about having warm grapes in anything- they are such a “cold food” to me.  But it was really quite nice.  We didn’t get thighs with the skin on, but it was still really tasty.  We had lots of leftovers of this one, and it made for excellent sandwiches at lunch, too.  Definitely making it again.

Tuesday:  Steak with Cognac Sauce and Salad

O.M.G.!!! This is definitely a favorite!  The cognac sauce was so delicious, and I was surprised that the steak was nice given the cut we bought.  I usually don’t like skirt steak, but it was really nice.  This was “one of those evenings” for us as a family- Michael was held up at work, and when it was time to eat I also needed to feed Em, so I had to scarf this down, but it was so yummy it was not a problem.  When Michael ate his he was quite impressed- and it was super easy, too.  Loved it!  The only changes I made:  I detest blue cheese, so I subbed in goat cheese for my salad.  I also made a vinaigrette because the recipe called for just red wine vinegar and oil, and I like a nice, tasty dressing.  Vinegar & oil is too plain for me. 🙂

Wednesday:  Roasted Vegetable and Quinoa Salad with Pistachios

I have never had Quinoa before- I like it!  Wasn’t too sure at first, but the more I ate it, the more I liked it.  It’s very straight-forward for a grain- you cook it just like rice, but it doesn’t take as long as rice.  I would add more different veggies to this one- it was really just carrots and shrooms, but they were yummy.

Thursday:  Shrimp Tacos with Black Beans

This is the one we made on Sunday night.  It was really good, but didn’t come together the way we wanted.  Our avocado wasn’t ripe yet,  and we LOVE avocado. But the shrimp was lovely with the cornmeal breading.  Michael also brought home tortillas from Trader Joe’s that are made with corn and wheat, so they were like the ultimate combo of corn & flour tortillas- they are YUMMY.  This was also dish-intensive- lots of clean up.  But yummy.

Friday:  Pasta with Sausage and Tomatoes

(I totally forgot to take a picture- we were so hungry and….) YUM.  This was so simple, and again RS has you putting your oven to work for you.  You roast the tomatoes and sausage in the oven and all you have to do while they are roasting is cook the pasta.  Then you toss it all together and serve- so easy, and so good.  We used hot sausage and it was too hot for my sensitive tongue, so next time we’ll just use plain sausage, but this recipe is a keeper because it really is easy & delish.  NOM NOM.

Our favorite meal of the week:  Steak with Cognac Sauce and Salad, hands down.  But every meal was really tasty- we’ll make all of them again!

Anna’s Coat

Posted by Nat on Oct 31, 2011 | 3 comments

*sidebar:  Alternate post titles that were considered:

Respect the Coat

Go Big or Don’t Sew

I Fully Admit I Have No Idea What I’m Doing (my former tag line)

What Was I Thinking? (already taken- see here and here)

Coats are Magic

Irons Are Hot and Dangerous

*end sidebar, other than to say that this post will be LONG.  It’s therapy people- almost like giving birth.  Feel free to just scroll and look at pictures, but I will type out my thoughts, too, though it may be a bit wonky….  Here goes…

A while ago I introduced you to Anna’s Bear, and how I was incorporating him into part of her Halloween costume.  I finally finished!  Here are some photos of Anna in her coat:

The coat by itself:

(some of these photos make the corduroy look really wrinkly, but it’s been pressed, I promise!)

And here are some specific photos in the book that led to my choice of fabric, pattern selection, etc.

Lastly, I couldn’t resist a side-by-side comparison- isn’t she a cutie?

And the backstory:  Anna decided that she wanted to be the little girl from Corduroy, which surprised me given her affinity for ballerinas, princesses and other typical 4-year-old-girl stuff.  One night, as we were reading Corduroy, I mentioned, “Hey, that would be a fun costume for Halloween! We could use Bear as Corduroy, and I could make him some green overalls just like in the book.”  I didn’t think it would stick, but it did.  I asked her randomly for several weeks if she wanted to be a princess, like Rapunzel or Snow White?  Nope.  The Girl from Corduroy (her name is Lisa, but she doesn’t seem to remember that).  Izzy from Jake and the Neverland Pirates?  Nope.  The Girl from Corduroy.   A butterfly?  Nope.  The Girl from Corduroy.  All righty then.

I was on a mission.  After sewing the overalls for Bear I started looking for pink coats (this was also an issue- she said it was pink, I thought it looked more red, but we all know that if I made her a red coat when she wanted pink….).  At the time of my search there were no dark pink anything online- lots of powder pink.  So I searched the books at Joann’s and found it.  Burda #9596 (this link is to a Flickr stream- I cannot find a link to it for purchase online!).  I figured that I could sew it for her in a bit larger size and then we’d have more than just a costume- we’d have a coat for a while, too.  Here is where things got hilarious.

Have I ever sewn a pattern before?  No.

Have I ever sewn an article of clothing for a human to wear before?  No.  (Unless you count some horrendous shirt I sewed in my sewing class that I think I took when I was 8 or 9.)

Have I taken any kind of sewing lessons as an adult?  No.

Hmm.  Well, that makes it perfectly logical to think that I could just whip up a coat, right?  Heh.

I actually bought the pattern and the fabric and other necessities when I bought the stuff for Bear’s overalls, but then we got busy.  My parents were here, my wonderful friend from college was here, and it was a great excuse to mentally prepare.

Some skills that I learned in this process:

• I learned what facings are.  I can’t really tell you what they are in a text book way, but if you take a coat and look just inside it, you’ll probably see the same fabric that’s on the outside of the coat run around the edges and the collar.  Then the lining of the coat will be sewn to it.  Those are facings.
• I learned how to sew pockets into things.
• I learned why, when you buy certain garments, the pockets are sewn shut (actually, they are basted shut).
• I learned why it’s so important to press open seam allowances.
• I learned how to not burn myself when pressing open seam allowances.
• I learned about interfacing.
• I learned how to read a pattern, though there are still parts I don’t quite get.
• I learned that I should probably take a sewing class or two, but am not sure when that will happen.

There are several imperfections on the coat.  One of them is that I somehow missed the part where I was supposed to sew the top and bottom facings together.  I looked back over the instructions and it was not clear at all.  So I made little patches to go over the exposed hems that were a result of my newbie status and called it a day.

The pocket openings are two different sizes, but Anna has yet to notice- she’s just happy to have pockets.  This particular pattern was definitely assuming that one knew what one was doing (ha) so I had to look up a lot of things online.  There was also a lot of lingo that made no sense, so I had to literally stare at the pattern diagram, stare at the coat.  Stare at the pattern diagram, stare at the coat.  And then after about 20 minutes of that something in my brain would click and all of a sudden it would make sense.  I also couldn’t figure out how to sew the lining to the inside of the cuffs at the end of the sleeves, but no one will see that unless I show it to them, and I may have a friend who can help with that.

Overall I am uber-happy with how it turned out.  If I could go back, I would buy a more sturdy, higher-quality corduroy for the coat.  But lesson learned- hopefully it will hold up…

So there you have it- Anna’s coat.  And someday, Emily’s coat, I hope.  I’d also like to take this opportunity to thank my mother.  Some day I will post pictures of the plethora of dance costumes she made for my sister and I.  They were almost always made of satin, lined, and lots of tulle was involved as well.  Props to you, Mom- after one coat, much respect!

Happy Halloween everyone!

I’m linking up to Mady by You Mondays on Skip to My Lou