Sand, Sun, Surf . . . in Nebraska

News flash:  Since our Florida trip last month, I am beach-obsessed.  (Yeah, I know, that's not news.)  In an attempt to bring a little beach to Nebraska, we are creating a "beach bathroom".  Since replacing the vintage green tile isn't an option, we're incorporating it into the scheme and adding shells we picked up on the beach, a lighthouse-style lantern, new rugs, and two craft projects.

While we were in Florida, I visited the House of Refuge at Gilbert's Bar, 

The Houses of Refuge were designated as havens for shipwrecked sailors and travelers along the sparsely populated Atlantic coastline of Florida. Run by the United States Lifesaving Service, the Houses played a critical role in a time when sailing ships dominated the world commerce.

 It is a beautiful and fascinating place.  I'll let you discover the details from the website.  My point for bringing it up is that, while I was there, I purchased a map of shipwrecks along the Florida coast.  I didn't want the standard black, plastic poster frame, so Dave built a custom frame from chair-rail molding.  After several experiments on scrap lumber, I came up with the right painting technique.  Mitch spray-painted it for me - off white - then I rubbed on a "wash" of teal and taupe paint, mixed to the perfect combination of ocean blue and ugly-bathroom-tile green, and a little water.  After it dried, I sanded it down to bring a little of the undercoat through and create a weathered look.  

Not totally professional (my painting that is.  Dave's frame-building rocks).  I love it and Dave says it makes interesting reading for those who spend time "standing" in the bathroom.  And yes, I know, that's some green tile!

Original from Crafts by Amanda

Project #2 is based on a Pinerest find (and therefore counts as Pin #10 for Trish's Pin It/Do It Challenge).  

Amanda has a great tutorial on her site, so won't go into detail. These are surprisingly easy to make, provided you have the right tools - rough wood, sandpaper, craft paint, paint brush or paint pens and, most importantly, a helpful husband.



If you're handy with power tools, you can do this step yourself, but I found it much faster and simpler to get Dave to cut and sand the boards for me.  He even used a Dremel to create some "worn" areas.

Of course, all that work may require some refreshment.

When the boards are ready, just paint . . .

Letter - using Amanda's easy method that even a total non-artist like me can do.  

Tip:  If you decide to use a paint pen rather than brush, 

buy several because one will do approximately 2.36 signs.

Let dry, and sand lightly to fade lettering

 and create the look of years in the sun,wind and ocean breeze.  

Connect your signs with some rope stapled to the back, if you choose - and hang.

Now I just need a brilliant idea for window coverings . . .

  

The Ha-Ha by Dave King

Howard Kapostash has not spoken in thirty years. The small repertory of gestures and simple sounds that he uses to communicate lead most people to assume he is disturbed. No one understands that Howard is still the same man he was before his tragic injury. But when he agrees to help an old girlfriend by opening his home to her nine-year-old son, the presence of this nervous, resourceful boy in his life transforms Howard utterly. He is afforded a rare glimpse of life outside his shell—with all its exuberant joys and crushing sorrows.

I grabbed this audiobook at the library one day when I was in a hurry and just needed something playing in the car on a trip.  I lucked out.  What I got was very different from what I normally read and from what I expected.  

The story covers a very narrow window of time and place - 8 weeks in the limited world of Howard Kapostash - but it covers a wide expanse of emotion and ideas.  Hearing this story from the viewpoint of a man who can not communicate beyond a few basic hand gestures was frustrating - so much so that at times I was tempted to hit eject and move on to something happier.  But it was also intriguing.  Imagine life without ever being able to explain yourself. . . Howard could point to what he wanted on a menu, or tap his watch to indicate he needed to hurry, but he couldn't tell anyone why he was in a hurry.  He couldn't tell anyone how he felt about them, or why he was angry, or what had happened to him in Viet Nam.  When people misjudged him, or used him or assumed they knew what he was thinking, he couldn't correct them.  He couldn't stand up for himself.  

The interview with the author at the end of the audio version added some insight that you wouldn't get from reading the book, so I recommend that, if you chose to read rather than listen, you also read this interview with the author from Book Browse - but not till the end.

This is not an easy read, but it made a subtle change in the way I look at others - What is there in their life that I don't know and they can't tell me?  

February Pin It/Do It - Pin #9: 100 Calorie Snacks

Healthy eating has become routine at our house in the last year.  Now I have been asked to create and run a fitness program at work, so I'm searching for ideas to encourage healthy eating among my co-workers.  That search led me to a Pin of an article called Make Your Own 100-Calorie Snacks on Budget101.com.  

Here are the top 5 reasons to package your own snacks:

#5. It saves money.  Pre-packaged snacks are expensive.  By packing your own, you can take advantage of savings on economy sizes without the risk of products becoming stale because the package didn't get re-closed tightly after each use. Which ties into #4 - 

#4. It cuts down on waste.  If a bag of pretzels is evenly portioned into ten single-serve bags, you never end up with a few left in the bottom that aren't enough for a portion so they just sit there till they're stale and get thrown out. (Which takes us back to #5 - saves money)

#3. You can customize the portion size to your diet or your family.  If you need/want more than 100 calories in each portion - just package it that way.

#2. Convenience - Individual packs are easy for kids to grab after school or, for me, to pack in my lunch.

And the #1 benefit is:  Individual snack packs reduce the chances of over-indulging.  If I'm having a craving for chips and try to eat a "serving" straight from the bag, chances are I'm going to go beyond what I should have.  Even if I put the chips into a bowl, I'm likely to grab a larger portion than I really need to fill the craving.  And it ends "grazing" - standing in front of the refrigerator, snacking on a half a slice of cheese, a couple grapes, a bite of leftover turkey . . . while trying to decide what I really want.  If the snacks are stacked and waiting in pre-approved sizes, it's easy to choose and get no more than I need.

To teach this frugal, healthy habit to my co-workers, I prepackaged 100 snacks (ranging form 80-125 calories) and stocked the break rooms.  The were a hit!  Some people just appreciated free food, but many asked questions and expressed surprise at some of the serving sizes.  I packaged mostly low-fat, low-calorie options, but threw in a few - like Pepperidge Farms S'mores Goldfish - that illustrated an option for curbing a sweet/chocolate craving without blowing the daily calorie bank.  

Some of my 100-calorie Snack Packs:  Pretzels, Honey Wheat Pretzel Twists, Goldfish crackers, sugar-free angel food cake, turkey lunch meat and string cheese, beef jerky, mandarin oranges, apples and peanut butter, chocolate parfaits  . . . get more ideas on Budget101.com

I will admit it was time consuming to count out serving sizes.   When I do it for my own use I will probably count out the first serving of 40 goldfish into a measuring cup, then approximate the rest.  Since I was doing this for work, I wanted them to be exact, so I counted every fish.

I think the benefits of packaging my own snacks make it worth the effort, but a word of warning:  Eating all the broken crackers, chipped vanilla wafers, and crumbs of beef jerky while packaging is counter-productive.

Clothespin Apron Tutorial

A couple days ago, I posted about a clothespin apron I made from instructions I found on Pinterest.  I also intended to use the apron to earn a badge through Farm Girl Sisterhood.  However, when I read the badge requirements more thoroughly (I can hear my fifth grade teacher now "Read ALL of the instructions before you begin.") there was a 2-hour minimum time requirement.  Since I had just bragged about making that apron in less than 10 minutes, it obviously wasn't going to qualify.

My next plan was to make one from my own fabric rather than a pillowcase - and I had the perfect piece waiting in the closet.  (You know, one of those pieces you buy because you know you have to make SOMETHING from it, even if you have no idea what.)  The hitch was that I didn't have enough of the gorgeous black and red fabric, so I found some red fabric with white stars for the back of the apron and inside of the pocket.  

Again, my enthusiasm overwhelmed my preparation.  Once the body of the apron was assembled, I found I didn't have enough of the black OR red fabrics to make the ties.  Another dig through the fabric stash unearthed a second red fabric - this one with small red hearts.  The three fabrics worked beautifully together and I ended up with a "tool belt" style apron that I love.  

You can certainly do this in all one fabric but I'm going to share my method to make the apron with contrasting lining.  

1.  Cut two 20x14 rectangles - one from featured fabric, one from lining fabric.  (We'll call These F1 and L1)
Cut two 20x9 rectangles - one from featured fabric, one from lining fabric. (These are F2 and L2)

2.  Lay F1 and L2 together along the 20" edge - wrong sides together.  Stitch, open seam and press.  If either of your fabrics has a pattern with a definite top/bottom, check the next picture to be sure you have everything facing the right way.  
Do the same with F2 and L1.  You should now have two panels that look like this:

Notice lower half of left panel is upside down.
It will fold up to create the pocket and will then be right-side-up.

3.  Line up the panels, right sides together and sew around three sides, leaving the top open (the edge that will be the top of your apron). Turn right-side-out and press seams.  You should now have a basic pillow case (remember this was originally a pillowcase apron).  

4.  Lay the pillowcase out, the F1/L2 side facing up - the top of this side will be the main panel of your apron, so make sure the correct fabric is on top.  Fold the bottom (sewn) edge up along the seam line to create the pocket.  Pin and stitch sides three edges (sides and bottom).   Find center of pocket and stitch a vertical line from top to bottom - creating two pockets.

5.  Turn 1/2 " of top edge to the inside and press.You have now completed the body of your apron.  It just needs ties.  

6.  Cut two strips 3"x45" (or width of fabric).  Pin, right sides together along short end, stitch and press seam open - creating a strip 3"x90".  Fold in half length-wise and sew along long edge.  Turn right-side-out and press.  

7.  Pin tie along top edge of apron body, matching center seam of tie with center of apron.  Top stitch along top and bottom edges of tie, stitching body of apron closed at the same time.  Try the apron on and cut ties to the length you need.  Turn ends of tie to the inside, press and top stitch closed.

Press, fill with clothespins and head to the clothesline.

February Pin It/Do It - Pins #6-8

Pin #6 - Rolled Paper Cross

When our son, Mitch, and his fiance visited earlier this month, Mackenzie and I found ourselves with a day with just the two of us home and weather that made us decide to hole up at home.  So we began searching for craft projects that we could do with the supplies on hand.  Mackenzie found several pins for these rolled paper crosses:

Saved by Love Creations                (uncredited pin)     

We set out to create our own version from old book pages.  The problem with this plan was that the pages tended to be brittle, so it cracked and broke when rolled.  But with much perseverance and a bit of mumbled cussing, we each created a reasonable facsimile of the projects we saw on-line. 

 Mackenzies' was larger and more ornate than mine - she's got more patience - but I forgot to take a picture before she left.  We agreed that they need a spritz of the clear glitter paint I used on paper Christmas stars - just to give them a little pizzazz. With the correct paper, this would be a quick, easy project.

Pin #7 - Coffee Cup Pincushion

I had admired several pincushions made from tea cups but didn't really plan to make one . . . until I was pondering a use for a pink flowered cup given to me by a dear friend who passed away in 2004.  The mug has developed a small crack so I'm afraid to drink from it for fear of losing one of only two gifts I have from her.  If someone on Pinterest can make a pincushion from a tea cup, surely I could make one from a mug.  Sure enough.  A Pinterest search showed dozens of examples. I'm not crediting one specific pin because they are all similar and mine is based on several sources.  I'm thrilled to have a way to safeguard this mug, yet still keep it visible and useful.  

Pin #8 - Another Pincushion

I do cross-stitch and other hand sewing from my favorite chair in the living room.  I have a bad habit of sticking needles into the arm of the chair while changing thread colors, then forgetting they're there and stabbing my hand - or worse yet, someone else's hand.  
Hopefully, this adorable armchair pincushion from Riley Blake Designs will end that problem - as well as keeping my scissors handy, and maybe even a pen and sticky notes for reading - a dual-hobby project.  


If you've seen any of my other craft posts, you know that I have issues with following a pattern - I have to tweek it here and there.  I found beautiful vintage-looking fabrics at Hobby Lobby and couldn't bear to cut them into squares for patchwork and lose the gorgeous designs.  So I made mine with a solid piece of fabric on top and used quilt batting rather than polyfill. 

On the inside, I anchored it to the chair with a couple straight pins. 

I love the way it turned out - beautiful and functional!

 I have one more pin completed, one nearly there, plus two recipes and two crafts left on my Pin It/Do It board . . . and only 10 days left.  I better get moving.

I'm Dreaming of a . . .

No, I'm not dreaming of a White Christmas, though it is snowing here.  I'm dreaming of a green garden, fresh vegetables and beautiful flowers.  My mother used to tell me "Your eyes are bigger than your stomach" when I took a larger portion than I could eat.  When the seed catalogs arrive, my eyes are bigger than our garden.  So, we're making a bigger garden.  The idea is to move the vining crops - melons, squash and cucumbers -  across the fence, staking off a corner of the pasture where we can expand as far as we want/need, and let the rest spread out in the established spot.  

Dave does a little weeding, while Gabby and the girls look on (2012)

This is only our third year of gardening.  The first year was modestly successful, in that we actually got a few things to grow - not bad for beginners.  We learned some lessons and last summer was much more productive.  The second garden taught us additional lessons:  Rabbits will eat your entire pea crop unless you build a fence.  The pepper varieties we planted (twice) and that never showed so much as a sprout, are obviously not suitable for our climate/soil.  Okra grows profusely, but it's all still in the freezer because we only like it deep fried and we've given up most fried foods.  And 36 tomato plants is excessive for two people - one of whom doesn't care for tomatoes.       

                            

We also have plans for other areas of the yard:

photos from Gurneys.com

Raspberries will be planted along the pasture fence, Fragrant Cloud honeysuckle will adorn the trellis on the north end of the house, and a Nugget hops vine will make it's way up the side of the old chicken coop.  The hops is mostly for looks and curiosity, but Dave might even try a home brew.  

The flower beds will have the usual marigolds, petunias and geraniums, as well as some new wildflowers, a replanting of the hollyhocks killed by drought last year (thank heaven I saved some seed), and the most exciting new addition - Strawberry Blonde and Chianti sunflowers.

Images from Burpee. com

We buy most of our garden seed and bedding plants locally, so it remains to be seen if we lose control when we get there and try something new, but that's the plan for now.   What's in your garden dreams?

February Pin It/Do It - Pins 1-5

I took the plunge on Trish's newest Pin It/Do It Challenge - but it's already Feb. 15 and I haven't posted any pins accomplished.  But I did finally get a couple things done - so it's catch-up time.

Pin #1 - Pillowcase Apron

Pinned from Betz White

This is a double-duty project.  I needed to make a half-apron for a Farmgirl Sisterhood badge, but I don't wear them.  I use the bib-style when baking, but a half-apron just doesn't cut it for flour-flingers like me.  But Betz' pillowcase apron is just what I need for clothespins.  I have tried those bags that hang from the clothesline to hold pins, but when the prairie winds begin to blow, the pins go flying.  Besides,the bag never seemed to be where I needed it when I needed it.  So I took to just leaving the pins on the line - but then they are weathered and dotted with bird-poop.  This is the perfect solution . . . an apron with a large pocket to hold pins.  I'll keep it in a laundry basket so it's handy to put on when I'm headed to the line, and easy to drop back in the basket when I'm done.

This project really did take 10 minutes, as advertised in the original pin, and cost $1.64 (plus tax).  I found pillowcases for $1 at Wal-Mart.  In my excitement over being frugal, I didn't read the fine print, which said "polyester" pillowcase.  In other words, its a slick little rascal and hard to sew.  For the ribbon ties, I chose the heaviest grosgrain ribbon I could find that coordinated with my pillow case.  Again, it's a bit too slippery and lightweight to make a good bow, but it was only 32 cents/yard.  If I were to do it again - and I might - I would be certain I had a COTTON pillowcase and would probably take the time to make a fabric tie or purchase heavier cotton braid.  Overall, a successful and useful project.

Pinned from PopSugar

Pin #2 - Iced Green Tea Lime Cooler

A simple recipe - just green tree, lime juice, sweetener and ice - but so refreshing.  I added a splash of club soda because I like the fizz.  A great alternative to soda - plus the metabolism boosting effects of green tea.

Pinned from King Arthur Flour

#3 - Baked Zucchini Sticks
Another simple recipe, but oh so delicious.  Though these are pretty low calorie to start with, I cut out a couple more by using only egg whites rather than whole eggs.  I also omitted the dip - they are so yummy on their own that dip really isn't necessary - but it would be easy to make using low-fat mayo or sour cream.

#4 - Gift Tags

Pinned from Milomade

This is not a new idea - we cut pictures out of used Christmas cards to use as tags when I was a child.  But we cut basic squares or followed the outline of the designs on the card.  I fell in love with these little jewels because of the shape and the variety of ways you could center (or not) pictures on them.  In the pin, they were cut with a die cut, which means they were basically no work at all.  Not having a die cut available, I purchased a package of similar-shaped cardstock tags at Hobby Lobby, intending to use one as a pattern and save the others for a future project.  It was harder than I anticipated to cut that shape with standard scissors and make it look precise.  I experimented with using a corner punch to make the shape on top, but it's not quite large enough.  In the end, I made a few which I will use next Christmas, but I think it would be more fun to just decorate the plain ones I bought.

Pin #5 - Georgia Peach

Pinned from Martini Recipe

1 part Peach Schnapps
1 part Coconut Rum
1 part vodka
2 parts Ginger Ale

Next time I'll leave out (or ask my friendly neighborhood bartender, Kari, to leave out) the shot of vodka.  It adds nothing but more calories and "kick' - don't need either.

Now all I need are a beach and an umbrella.

Check back for more Pin It/Do It fun - including a rolled-paper cross, more recipes, a gift card keepsake book, some "beachy" decorating and other projects made from these supplies:

Update:

Note to self:  Always read the fine print.  There is a minimum requirement of 2 hrs. work in order for the half-apron to count toward the Farmgirl Sisterhood badge.  Back to the drawing board - or Pinterest.