My History of Sewing

I only share this with you because I think you can handle it.  And because you went through the '80s too.

My mom was a fantastic seamstress.  Her seam allowances were even, her buttons exact, her hems perfection.

When I was 10 she taught me to sew: pick a pattern and follow the guide; let me know if you have any questions.

So I picked my pattern and fabric.  This was the result:

I know, right?

This was the beginning of my love of sewing clothing.  I don't enjoy making items for my home much.  But I do love clothes and costumes.

I appreciate her "baptism by fire" method because it taught me to follow instructions, and to learn all the details of a pattern guide.

I appreciate my mom so much for opening the world of creation to me. She made so many things for me & my sister over the years, from swimsuits to formals.  She is truly amazing. 

And yes, I cut out patterns on the floor or any other impractical and uncomfortable surface I can find.  

We can't all have a dedicated sewing room.

Happy sewing!

The Whole Wheat Bread Recipe that will make you Queen

Nothing screams clever woman like hot homemade bread.  You are instantly a domestic goddess who has also made everyone in her immediate vicinity very very happy.  A serious chunk of the love I contain in my soul is for bread.  I am not to be trusted in it's presence.  Especially if it's nutty, wheaty, & rustic.  Mmmmmmmmmm.

I was never very good at bread making, and my husband, knowing this, gave me the Christmas gift of a bread-making class at the local university through their continuing education program.  He knows the way to my heart, and also how to up the quality of my labors.

I went one evening a week to a local Great Harvest and learned through practice and most importantly WATCHING someone make dough to the right consistency, knead it to the right elasticity, and proof it to perfection.

It changed my life.  But I was only half way there.

The second thing that changed my bread making was a stand mixer.  I inherited a Kitchen Aid from my grandmother.  The dough hook...pure kneading genius.  Thank you, whoever invented that gem.  I now use a Bosch.  Equally amazing, but with even more bowl space.

It is so much better that hand kneading.  Granted it's at the sacrifice of sculpted arms, but I'd rather have awesome bread, to be honest.

Because really good bread must be kneaded beyond most human abilities.  It is the key to activating gluten and getting it good and elastic.

The next most important think about bread is a good recipe.  One with the right balance of flours, especially if you're making wheat bread.  This is where you need to focus...

I ran across the MAGIC WHOLE WHEAT BREAD RECIPE OF ALL TIME.  It is the holy grail of wheat bread.  It takes about two hours from start to delicious finish.  It is unfailingly moist, nutty, and rustic.  Every time I serve it people ask for the recipe, only after they've demolished the entire batch.  And it's huge.

This Christmas I decided to give loaves as our neighbor gifts.  I cranked out 60 loaves in 4 hours.  Not too shabby!

I found it on the Two Healthy Sisters blog, which I think has run it's course, and I couldn't actually find the link, but I printed it, so I can share it with you.  Put this in a safe place.  You're going to want to hang on to it.

Happy baking!  You'll need someone on crowd control with this one!

Boo! The Most Creative Time of My Year

Halloween is my favorite time of year.  No gift-giving stress, lots of candy, & plenty of creativity and sewing.  Something about this time of year really gets my inventive juices flowing, and I have the overwhelming urge to get out the sewing machine.

The Clever Man & I aren't much for dressing up.  He, because there's no costume short of movie-set quality that he would willingly don.  Me, because by the time I get to me, there's nothing left.  You know how it is.

It started when we had our first daughter.  She was four months old at Halloween, and we'd just had the 2000 Sydney Summer Olympics.  So I bought some white lycra, dyed it with RIT, and made her a track suit.  It never is easy.

Do you remember? Cathy Freeman and her hooded speed suit.  

We even got her number right.  Is she not the most darling!?  It was the beginning of my quest for costume perfection.    I know that it's not an exact replica, but I don't think anyone who watched the Olympics that year would mistake who she was.

With the addition of sisters the world of themes was open to us!  Themes are the icing on the cake, making costumes cohesive, also taking some of the guess work out of what everyone is going to be.

 Over the years I realized that costume excellence is in the details.  It matters what they're holding, what's on their head, and how their makeup looks. And there's no substitute for costume details.  The internet makes that part easy.  It's important to me that when you look at them it looks cohesive, planned, and that you can tell immediately who they are.  If you watch obscure fantasy shows, that is...

Clever Man has mad skills when it comes to technical details.  The Evil Fairy Wings out of wire with black nylons on top.  Most notably the Ahsoka headdress from Star Wars: The Clone Wars cartoon, fully covered in cement paste and air brushed.  We've enjoyed Avatar: The Last Airbender & Dead Ballerinas too.  As you can see once they got older, the ante got raised.  Now it's a game of escalation, and everyone who knows us fans the flame.  Pressure's getting heavy around here.

I will do a later post about The Minions Year and The Disney Villains Year.  They were major productions, and I really want to share details about how it was done.  Sometimes clever only happens once you've see how something is done.  The light goes on and you get it.  Learning by example is what makes women clever.

Only 8 more months until Halloween 2015.  Put on your thinking cap!

Darling Flower Headbands - for girls & their dolls!

What 10-year-old doesn't want to have a matching headband with their doll?  Am I right?

Last week, the girls put their craft skills to good use, gathered some friends, and made these cute accessories.  This proves that crafts don't have to be hard, complicated, time consuming, or expensive.  The supplies came from the site Pick-Your-Plum, link here.  You have to stay on your toes to catch a deal here!  Or on Amazon here.

 They used some colorful elastic-by-the-foot, some small hair accessory clips, and a selection of pre-made accent flowers.

They measured the elastic around their dolls' heads, and their own, cut and then glued the elastic into a circle.  After that they attached flowers either by gluing them straight to the elastic, over the joined ends, or to a clip.  That way they can clip the flower to the headbands & swap colors, or clip it directly into their hair.  Genius!  And so easy!

Do you not just love their budding photography skills?

Encourage your inner crafter, your child's budding skills, or make some super cheap and fun gifts!

Don't forget to be clever today!

Books for Teens

Okay, so to me finding a good book is IMPOSSIBLE. I've read a lot. I don't consider reading to be my regular hobby but once in a while I like to snuggle down with a good book. Some of the books I've read are; Harry Potter series (twice), Hunger Games series, Great Expectations, Tale of Two Cities, Jane Eyre, Book Thief, The Giver, Turtle in Paradise, and many many others. Some of these I read in two or three days. For my Honors English class every term we are given a list of books and we have to pick one to read that term. I read them and I enjoy them. The last one I read was Jane Eyre, which I absolutely ADORE, but I still want to find more books to read. Being in Junior High makes it even harder to find books. We have to have a certain number of book points to get an "A", but we can only read books off the ninth grade book list. So of course wanting an "A" I read what I have to. I just recently finished The Book Thief and let me tell you it was AMAZING!I read it in two days and I cried sooooo much! This book had the right combination of sadness and joy to make it incredible. Although finding books seems IMPOSSIBLE there are really good books out there. The books I have read have become my favorite. To find good books you have to ask for recommendations and you don't have to read garbage, don't be afraid to stop reading when needed. When you find a great book it becomes  a GEM. 

Happy Reading!!!