belly cast complete with pressed ferns and flowers!

Here is a project that's been sitting unfinished in the basement since before little dude was born (he's less than a week from being 9 months old already!). I hope it makes y'all feel better about your own unfinished creative endeavors to read over and over how mine gt started, abandoned, and at last completed at some later date.

I had a whole bunch of ferns and leaves and flowers pressing between layers of cardboard and newspaper and stacks of beautiful art books for many many months on the laundry room floor. Irking me each week as I stepped around them but I had no one to blame but myself!

One Saturday I was helping my daughter give a mod-podge update to an old pencil box and figured I might as well have a go at the belly cast since the supplies were out.

Now while I love love love how the fern looks I am not about to tell you attaching it was easy. The main stem was quite stiff and snapped when I went to lay it across my, uh, lovely curves. I had to hold it down with my fingers while it dried and it is really the glued down leaves that are holding it in place, with a bit of a gap where they meet the stem. So the final result is rather fragile and I must admit I will probably not be able to keep it for my entire life.

The smaller, flatter leaves worked better. Even the smaller ferns or using just the top part of the fern is more flexible and forgiving. I think covering a belly cast with fall leaves for an autumn baby would be gorgeous.

I intend to put some small holes on either side at the top and hang it on a wall with some ribbon but since that step is undone for the moment, you get to see it photographed on the floor!

The one thing I would advise people on doing the belly cast is to have the person laying out the strips do an extra layer along the edges, the outline so to speak. My cast was a little thin in some places along the edge. And really, I would advise doing 2 layers for the whole thing, nice and thick, smoothing out the strips as you go. My friend was very thorough about smoothing them out and the result was quite nice; you could not see the individual pieces anymore. I almost did not want to decorate it after all.

funny smiling pancake!

Now doesn't that make you happy?

spring table runner

I sewed a cheerful spring table runner for my mother-in-law's birthday gift based on the 9-patch technique I used with my own winter table runner a few years ago. After sewing together patches using 9 squares, you cut those patches into quarters and then rearrange them to make a new design. Unfortunately the directions I originally followed are no longer online so I just made measurements from my table runner and went from there.

I was lazy about pinning the 3 layers together and had some serious misfortune with the backing shifting while I was quilting it together. I thought it would not matter much on such a small piece but I was indeed mistaken. I was able to patch the back together – luckily the fabric design was forgiving – but I was quite annoyed with myself. Lesson learned for next time!

For a lovely zero-waste wrapping solution I simply rolled it up and tied it with a scrap of matching fabric!

kitchen windowsill in teal glass

Every now and then I clear off the kitchen windowsill, wipe it down, wash the water specks off the window, and start fresh. I am always amazed at how mood-lifting it can be to just clear out and clean up one little space. Maybe this will inspire you to start small and take a step toward loving the space you live in!

PS Yes, of course I purposely buy blue dish detergent because it matches! How did you know?

marvelous melting!

I took these photos a few weeks ago when the winter melt had just begun. My 3-year-old daughter and I frequently spend afternoons in the sunroom reading (we're on a classic fairytale kick right now) and doing "finding books" (Hidden Pictures thanks to the peeps at Highlights and Grandma). One such sunny afternoon we could actually hear the melt happening as these icicles drip-drip-dropped. We had a good time studying them. Some were melting at a faster rate than others.  Some had a pattern going and others were more sporadic.