Holiday Crafting

All the blogs I've been looking at have some great holiday craft ideas, but this tutorial for felt ornaments from MADE is one of the only ones I've had time to try yet. It's simple, quick, and cheap. All the things we need in our life right now!

Here are the ornaments I've made so far.

K for my friend Katie and M for her cute pooch Mason.

All you need for the project is felt, embroidery floss, hot glue gun, thin ribbon, and some batting. -Cut two circles out of the felt.
-Cut out your letter and glue onto one circle.
-Sew a loop of ribbon onto the other circle of felt so that you can hang the ornament.
-Start sewing both circles together. Sew around 3/4 of the way, stuff the ornament and finish sewing the circle closed.

Easy as pie!

Julia

Fall

The leaves have just started changing color over the past two weeks here in the south. I always forget how pretty they are against a blue sky. The red leaves on this tree were amazingly bright and vibrant.

{taken with hipstamatic}

Thanksgiving Dinner

Oh man, I am still full from Thanksgiving dinner! Cooking for everyone wasn't as hard as I thought it would be. Things ran pretty smoothly...nothing was burned, the food was hot, and it was all super tasty!

The table set with my regular dishes and some really cool, vintage glasses from my great grandfathers general store.

Fresh cranberries cooking down with sugar and the juice from two, fresh squeezed oranges. So simple and tasty and way better than anything canned. The fresh, tart taste was a great compliment to the heavy flavors of all the other dishes. And...while the cranberries were cooking down I could hear them pop open in the pot. :)

Caramelized onions for the stuffing. Mixed with chunks of Italian bread, fresh chives, and thyme. I forgot to take pictures of the other main dishes, but take my word that they were tasty. My 10 year old brother-cousin ate a few brussel sprouts, scarfed down turkey, stuffing, and rice, tried the sweet potato casserole {which he loved}, and then proclaimed that it was the best Thanksgiving ever {yay!} ... and he said all that before dessert!

Speaking of dessert...flourless, chocolate cake...mmmmmm. So tasty with a scoop of homemade whip cream, but soooo not good for you at all. I won't tell you how many sticks of butter are in the whole cake. Trust me, you don't want to know {but if you insist, here is the recipe}.

I hope you all had a lovely dinner with your friends and family. My day was quite relaxing and calm, even with all the cooking. I enjoyed spending the day with part of my family, missed the rest, but am thankful that I have them in my life.

Julia

Happy Thanksgiving!

I've got a lot of cooking to do today and tomorrow! I'm staying in town this year and having my dad, stepmom, stepmom's mom, cousin-brother, and baby brothers over for Thanksgiving dinner. It's my first time cooking the whole meal by myself, but I'm super excited about it! Here's the menu...which had to encompass vegetarians, meat eaters, and gluten free diets. That's a lot to think about for one meal!

Tofurky - no, it does not taste like turkey, but it does taste good in a fake meat way...
carmelized onion and herb stuffing {find it here}
roasted brussel sprouts
sweet potato casserole with gluten free cornflake and pecan topping
wild rice
cranberry relish
flourless chocolate cake {find it here}
cherry pie
vanilla ice cream with cranberry compote {find it here}

Happy Thanksgiving to everyone! Enjoy your day with family and friends!

Julia

ICE - Indie Craft Experience

The Indie Craft Experience happens this weekend! I've missed it the past few years because of the craziness of work around the holidays, but this year I'm determined to make it. I can't wait to check out all the great handmade art, jewelry, hair accessories, clothes, paper goods, etc, etc.... Some of my favorite local artists will be there:

{Talulah B.} {Glak Love} {Mama Bath + Body} {June Shin} {Blue Eyed Freckle}

The Indie Craft Experience is happening this Saturday and Sunday from 11am to 6pm at Ambient Plus Studio. $5 admission at the door. I'm also looking forward to trying out King of Pops. Haven't made it out to their popsicle cart on N. Highland/North Ave. yet, but definitely looking forward to trying out one of their tasty flavors...

Enjoy the week!
Julia

4 years!

And Even More... Freezer Paper Stenciling

I had to get a little crafty this weekend and make my little brothers some outfits! Simple freezer paper stenciling to make Halloween onesies:

And some monogrammed onesies since they have names now:

Freezer paper stenciling is soooo easy. I've used it on a couple different projects and need to start doing more with it. You can draw your own shapes or print out images to trace. After that, all you need is an iron and permanent fabric paint. Look here for full instructions.

Toodles,
Julia

Happy Halloween!!

{creepy, wart-covered pumpkins}

{pumpkin patch}

{pumpkin carving parties}

{my first pumpkin...that rotted in the GA humidity}

{second pumpkin with a little mustache}


So glad that the fall weather is finally here.
Hopefully it stays so that my pumpkins don't rot!

Julia

Halloween

Here's my Morton Salt Girl costume! The yellow t-shirt is from Target and it happened to perfectly match the inner layer of a skirt I had on my donation pile, so out came the scissors. After cutting the outer layer off I sewed in some elastic and was set to go.
The yellow shoes were spray painted...and I have to tell you that I picked the WRONG shoes to try and spray paint. I don't know why I though fabric flats with little sequins on them would be easy to paint over. After about 7 coats of paint {that just kept seeping into the fabric} I just left them splotchy. Luckily you couldn't tell unless you got really close...

All in all a successful Halloween costume.

Hope you all have a good weekend!
Julia

My little cousin/brother turned 10 years old on 10/10/2010....how cool is that?! For his birthday party my roomie and I made him a baseball themed birthday cake in the shape of a 10. We're pretty sure he loved it. :)


Toodles,
Julia

Halloween Costume

My Halloween costumes have gotten a lot more inventive over the past years, but I took the lazy way out last year and was a cowgirl...boring! So, this year I'm putting last years idea into action...Morton Salt Girl here I come!

I've got the blond hair and the umbrella, so all I need are the yellow shoes and dress. For the shoes I'm going to spray paint these cheap, Target flats below. Spray painting shoes? Oh yes, it's nowhere near as scary as you may think. I did it two years ago when I needed gold boots for my She-Ra costume and it turned out really well! I found a good tutorial on MADE that explains how to paint your shoes.

As far as the dress goes...I'm trying to figure out the best/cheapest/easiest way to do it...so if you see and cute little yellow dresses out there, let me know! I'll probably see what I can find at the thrift store and merge a skirt and shirt together...can't wait to see how it turns out! I post pictures along the way.

Toodles,
Julia

Etsy Love

I wanted to get my sister a little something to remind her of home while she's in Paris. I opted out of the "I Heart ATL" t-shirt because while she's over there she should probably pretend she's Canadian. What I found instead is something much more subtle, pretty, and doesn't scream "I'm American!".

Here it is:

Awww, it's the state of GA! I found the necklace on Etsy in a shop called tru.che. She does most of the states, as well as a bunch of countries, and can place the heart in various spots of the state/country. It's made from fine silver and handmade/hand-cut when you order it. Since I ordered a couple at once it was neat to see the slight variations in both necklaces. Here are some of the other states/countries:

{image here}

{image here}

Aren't they sweet! Perfect for a going away present.

Yay for the Etsy!

Julia

In the Kitchen

Now that the weather here in GA is finally starting to cool off I've been inspired to do some baking and cooking with "fall ingredients". First up on today's agenda are Pumpkin Chocolate Chip muffins. I found a recipe on Epicurious and plan on altering it just a bit - no raisins or pumpkin seeds and adding chocolate chips and walnuts. Why keep the healthy stuff when you can add chocolate to the recipe?!



I'm also really excited about this book: Canning For a New Generation, by Liana Krissoff. We had her in the store the other night to do a book signing and tasting with some of her homemade goodies and oh my gosh they were good! She is also super sweet and has the cutest little girl. I've already decided that my first canning attempt will be her recipe for Spiced Apple Butter. I'll also be making homemade biscuits to put the Apple Butter on.

Have a lovely afternoon,
Julia

Oh Orla, I love your work.

{image here}

Can I please have this bus?? Why don't we have them in the US? Oh London and Orla Kiely...how I love you...

Speaking of, her fall line of bags is spectacular! I have a few of them on my wish list for sure. Maybe I'll win the lottery...but that means I would have to start playing and I don't really know how to pick numbers on lottery tickets. So maybe they'll just stay on my wish list.

This would be my weekend bag.
{get it here}

This would fit my laptop just perfectly.
{get it here}

This could would be a great fall handbag.
{get it here}

A girl can dream.

Goodnight.

Julia

Pop's 'stache

Check it out!! How hilariously awesome is this product?!? It's a mustache that fits on your bottle of pop. {as a southerner it feels so weird to say pop! it's coke...} Anyways, I can see these being a great conversation starter at a party and oh the hilarity that would ensue when you bring out a camera. Check out the story behind the Pop's 'stache at flatlab design.

The scuba diver? Yes, please! Which one would you pick?

Julia

Au Revoir Sister

My sister leaves for Paris tomorrow! {Sad face}

{photo from the last time we were both in Paris}

I'm going to miss my little sister soooo much! It's amazing how much more you start to like your siblings as you get older. There were times when we were younger when I thought we'd never get along. I used to jump out from behind doors and scare her {over, and over, and over again}. She used to pick at me while I was reading, just for the fun of "pushing my buttons". I used to be so annoyed that she like the same music as me. She used to get so frustrated that I wouldn't listen to her, but most of the time it was because I was reading and didn't realize she was talking to me. We really used to get on each others nerves...but then one day I went to college...and then we became friends. Our relationship has only gotten better since then and she has been a great support system for me - especially this summer.

This summer has come at me with panic attacks and anxiety, a breakup, and the death of a great boss - all in a the course of a month and a half. She's been there through it all {along with so many other great friends/family members}, so while I'm so excited for her, it's hard to think that one of my greatest support systems will now be 9 hours and a really expensive plane ride away. I'm sure I'll make it through because I know I can't rely solely on her, but I sure have appreciated the wise words and hugs she's given me this summer.

I love you sister!

-Julia

The weekend begins

Late night swim with some friends. Rooftop pool in downtown Atlanta. Nice cool breeze, warm water. Good stories and good company. Good way to start the weekend. Julia

From Tank to Table

We know about the whole farm-to-table idea that everyone is jumping on, but this might just be the next big idea. Why head down to the farmer's market for some fish for dinner when you can pop out your back door? How much fun would your kids have going out in the backyard to "fish" for dinner?!?! Check out the article here.

{Brian Barth "fishing" out of the fish tank in his backyard.}
{Photo from here.}

I'll probably skip this bandwagon since I don't eat fish...but those of you who do should give it a try!

Julia

Cute Babies

This little man is the cutest baby I know right now. I got to babysit the other morning while his momma was at an school function with his big sister. We played some and then he took a nap in my arms while I watched Regis and Kelly.

So, so sweet.

So easy going.

Beautiful smile.

He's going to have some competition soon - my baby brothers are on their way in the next few days and I'm soooo excited. Yay for babies!

Julia

National Sewing Month

Guess what?! It's National Sewing Month...who knew?

In honor of National Sewing Month...I'm going to try and sew a lot. We'll see what I actually get done though because life is CRAZY right now, and I mean crazier than I could have imagined a few months ago...

The past week I've been sewing pillowcases for the ConKerr Cancer project. The idea is to make pillowcases for sick children in hospitals across the U.S. with the hope that a colorful pillowcase for their bed will brighten their day...and night. :)

Here's what I've made so far and here is where to get directions and dimensions if you want to make your own pillowcases.


They are sooo easy to make and it's a really good way to use up any extra fabric you have lying around. I highly recommend sewing up some pillowcases if you have the time. :)

I'm also inspired to make some pillow cases for myself now too....

Happy Sewing!
Julia

Here Comes the Bride

Did you have a good labor day? I did! Two of my good friends from high school got married this weekend. Here they are:

These are the friends that I've been making wedding stuff for: garter's, "Mrs. To-Be" tank tops, and sewing some table runners {see picture below}. Their wedding was so beautiful and so much fun! They held it at the Trolley Barn in Inman Park. The weather was great, the setting was gorgeous, the food was tasty, and the band was soo good!


I got to see my doublemint twin, Laura {apparently we looked alike in high school}, and her fiancee Charlie along with some other good friends from back in the day.


And of course I have to give a shout out to my hot date for the wedding. Always fun to have a sidekick to save you on the dance floor and take trips to the bathroom with. ;)

Love you Schmane!

Hope everyone had a great Labor Day weekend.
Julia

Just sewing away...

I found some navy canvas in my stash the other day {forgot that I had it}, so I figured I'd make some more little pouches from it. I love pouches of any sort and this canvas worked really well because it's so sturdy.




For the last pouch I got to experiment with some of the "fancy" stitches on my machine. It has about 40 different ones, but I've only used a few so far.

Hope you had a good weekend. Back to the daily grind tomorrow.

Julia

Fab Friday

Wedding Bells

Two of my good friends from high school are getting married over Labor Day weekend. Yay! I've been helping with the "crafty" side of their wedding...making silly bachelorette weekend crafts, sewing table runners, and making a garter {my first ever}!

Here is attempt #1:

I was pleased, but I have to say that while the construction of the garter wasn't hard, the sizing was a little tricky because the bride-to-be is in DC...and I am not. So, on to attempt #2 today. Only a few changes to the design to bring in something blue and increase the optimal shooting distance for the groom. :)

Toodles,
Julia

Keep Calm and Rock On

{In memory of my boss Marc}