Ombre Ruffled Apron

  My second project in my serger class was an ombre, ruffled apron with rolled hems. I wrote down the wrong number of  colors so I only had four ruffles instead of five. I made it work with a bit of math and a drawing to help me visualize. I chose a bunch of shades of pink and got some fun variegated pink and white decorative thread.

It's definitely a learning curve. There are so many more variables and pieces than in my regular sewing machine. it's like learning to drive a stick shift after learning how to drive an automatic transmission. I made my ruffles a bit tights so I had to slide them on the thread tails a bit to get them the right width. I had to play around with the tensions to get the rolled hem right. 

It turned out really cute, even with all the frustrations. I think I can adapt these techniques to make some cute ruffled dresses and skirts for the girls.

Easter Cookies

  For our annual Easter Egg Hunt last weekend, I wanted to make a fun, cute, kid-friendly dessert. Last year, I made cupcakes (which I apparently didn't write about...) and the year before I made Bunny Cake Pops. This year, I was inspired by the King Arthur Flour catalogue and made Easter Cookies.

I used their Sugar Cookie and White Icing mixes with some Wilton cookie cutters. I made the dough one day, rolled them out and baked the next day and decorated on the last day. I wanted to try the "flood icing" technique, but I don't think my royal icing was runny enough and I didn't feel like mixing all my colors twice, so I just went with it. I piped the frosting, spread with a knife and smoothed out any bumps with a wet finger. They turned out really cute, if I do say so myself.

Exposed Zipper Bag

I haven't been sewing much because I bought a serger a few months ago and I've been trying to figure out how it works. I made the mistake of using it for something that was probably more suited to a regular sewing machine and got really frustrated.  It stayed in its plastic covering and I tried to figure out what to do.

A good friend suggested Craftsy. They have lots of online classes, for everything from pattern recreation to cake decorating. I signed up for a beginning serging class, assembled my machine and got ready to learn.

It's awesome. The instructor, Amy Allen, is so friendly and helpful. The projects are useful and all the handouts are clear. I feel much more confident now.

The first project was an exposed zipper bag. I got a couple fat quarters, b/w houndstooth and a blotchy pink, a black zipper and four cones of black thread. It was fairly quick and easy! My zipper seam allowances aren't completely even, but I'm probably the only person who really notices and cares. I'm totally going to get more supplies and make more of these.

Peppermint Marble Loaf Cake

I love the combination of peppermint and chocolate. The York Peppermint Patty creamer makes me very happy in the morning. This easy marble loaf cake is like the creamer in cake form. 

Marble Loaf Cake Recipe from Baking From my Home to Yours by Dorie Greenspan

Ingredients

2 Cups Flour plus 2 Tbsp All-Purpose Flour
1 ¼ tsp Baking Powder
½ tsp Salt
1 ½ Sticks (12 Tbsp) Unsalted Butter, at room temperature
1 Cup Sugar
4 Large Eggs
½ tsp Pure Vanilla Extract
½ Cup Whole Milk
4 oz Bittersweet Chocolate, melted 

4 oz White Chocolate, melted

1/4 tsp Peppermint Extract

Method

Preheat the oven to 325˚F. Butter an 8 ½ x 4 ½ x 2 ½-inch loaf pan, dust the inside with flour and tap out the excess. Place the pan on an insulated baking sheet or 2 regular baking sheets stacked one on top of the other.

Whisk together the flour, baking powder and salt.

Working with a stand mixer with a paddle attachment, or with hand mixer in a large bowl, beat the butter on medium speed until smooth, about 3 minutes. Add the sugar and beat for another 2 to 3 minutes. Add the eggs one at a time, beating well after each addition. Don’t be concerned if the batter curdles and stay curdled-it will be fine. Beat in the vanilla. Reduce the mixer speed to low and alternately add the flour mixture in 3 additions and the milk in 2 (begin with the dry ingredients), mixing only until each addition is incorporated.

Divide the batter in half and stir the melted bittersweet chocolate into one half and the melted white chocolate and peppermint extract into the other. Drop spoonfuls of dark and light batter randomly into the pan, and then plunge a table knife deep into the batter and zigzag the knife through the batter. For maximum peppermint contrast, only zig and zag a few times. 

Bake the cake for 1 hour and 20 to 30 minutes, or until a thin knife inserted deep into the center comes out clean. If the cake looks as if it’s getting too brown during its bake, cover loosely with a foil tent. Transfer the cake to a cooling rack and let it rest for about 15 minutes before unmolding, then cool the cake to room temperature right side up on the rack.

Fabric Headbands

  A new year needs new hair, right? I decided to chop off my hair into a fun pixie cut a few weeks ago. I really love it. It's so easy to take care of, but I do still have an occasional bad hair day. I decided to make some headbands to hide any crazy poufs or just liven up an outfit.

 I found a pattern at Happy Together for a double-sided fabric headband. I prefer headbands that tie, because the elastic ones scrunch up too much, especially with short hair.  I taped the two pattern pieces together and then extended the end a few more inches. I left a 3-inch opening near the middle for turning. The Dritz turning tools came in very handy here. A little topstitching and I was all done. Two headbands took about 20 minutes and were free since I used scrap fabric.

I figure this wide-headband look will be very popular with the new Great Gatsby movie coming out soon. Who can't use a little 20's glamour in her life?

From Minus Minions

From Minus Minions

Frog Quilt

  Dude, where has the time gone? I got sucked into the holidays, dealt with the girls having massive colds, then found myself with fatigue and a touch of writer's block. However, I finished a few projects, one big and a few small, and I'm ready to write again.

I like frogs. My maternal grandmother collected frog figurines and when she passed away, my mom gave me some of her collection. I've expanded it a bit and have some froggy touches around the house. Naturally, when I saw the "Infrognito" quilt pattern, I had to have it. I decided to go with a different color combination, opting for more greens, blues and purples. I got a bunch of batik fat quarters, grabbed by rotary cutter and went to town.

From Minus Minions

I think this is one of my favorite projects ever. I love the color combinations, the whimsy, and how soft it is. I used a double thickness of a low-loft batting, so my hand-quilting stitches aren't nest and tiny, but the payoff is how cozy and warm the quilt is. It's perfect for curling up on the couch. I stitched in the ditch, so there are fun outlines of frogs on the back.

It went together pretty easily. The shapes are all straight lines, making rotary cutting easy. The big frog and all the eyes are attached with fusible webbing. I drew the eye details, like the pupil, with fabric marker.

From Minus Minions

 I might have to make this again, with other colors. 

Lemon Cutout Cookies

  It's time for Christmas baking again! This year's menu included Chocolate-Dipped Orange Peels, Sables and World Peace Cookies, and, for the first time in a long time, Festive Lemon Cutout Cookies. I would make these with my mom and aunt for our Cookiefests, but since they're labor intensive, I haven't made them on my own. Since the girls are old enough to wield  frosting bags, I decided to make a few batches this year.

From Minus Minions

I really like the hint of lemon in the dough. The cream cheese keeps them somewhat soft, which means they're probably not too stable for shipping. I did have breaking issues with my larger Christmas tree cutter, but it got better once the cookies were well cooled.

Half the cookies were frosted and half I sprinkled with decor before baking. I  didn't make the lemon glaze this time, using instead the Betty Crocker cookie icing. I set out a bunch of fun decorations, out wax paper down for a work surface and we had a great (sugar-fueled) time. 

Festive Lemon Cutout Cookies

1 cup butter, softened

3 oz. cream cheese, softened

2 Tbs. RealLemon lemon juice

1/4 tsp. salt

1cup sugar

1egg yolk

1 tsp. vanilla

2 1/4 cups unsifted flour

Combine all ingredients, except flour, beat with mixer until well blended. Beat in flour.

Divide dough in half, wrap in plastic and chill at least 1 hour.

On a well-floured surface, knead one dough portion into a smooth ball. Roll dough to 1/8" thickness. Cut into shapes. Place 1" apart on an ungreased cookie sheet.

Bake in a preheated 375 degree oven, 7 to 10 minutes or until lightly browned at edges. Cool. Repeat with remaining dough. Decorate with Lemon Glaze. Store tightly covered.

Lemon Glaze

With mixer, best 4 cups unsifted powdered sugar and 1/4 cup RealLemon lemon juice. Divide glaze and tint with food coloring.