family

My parents came to visit from the big city last week.  I really enjoyed having them here.  We took a trip to Decatur to visit with some of Dads brothers and sisters.  It was great to see them all.  I was struck again by how many different family traits run through each of us.  Many of us are hard headed, stubborn, chatty and inpaitient.  We are all devoted to our families, loving, caring, wickedly funny and what the midwest calls good people.  Most are dedicated Christians and the creative tallent we collectively have is amazing.  If you have an awsome family, tell them you love them and enjoy every miniute together.  My pics of a couple of pepole didn't come out, nothing personal just a bad photographer.

BLT pasta

Just a quick note before I give you the recipe.  We are having major technical difficulties with our Internet service.  If there is not a new post on here M-F then the net is down and i can't publish.  Ain't technology grand?

This pasta reminds me in some ways of spaghetti carbonara.  Everyone who ate it last week loved it.
16oz penne or ziti cooked aldente and drained
1# bacon cooked very crisp and crumbled
1 leek cleaned and chopped fine.  Ok I didn't have any leek either, so I used an onion
3 cloves minced garlic or 11/2 tsp garlic powder if you don't have fresh
2C chicken broth
1 can diced tomatoes
4oz cream cheese cubed
1 1/2C chopped fresh tomatoes
1 1/2C fresh parmesan grated
Salt, pepper and red pepper flakes to taste
Leave about 1T of bacon dripping in the pan and cook leek or onion and garlic until soft.  Add chicken broth and caned tomatoes and bring to a simmer.  Add the cream chees and stir until meted.  Add seasonig, pasta(I didn't use all the cooked pasta but about 3/4 of it), bacon and fresh tomatoes and heat through.  Serve with lots of grated parm.

new headboard

I have had these french doors for a couple of years.  I bought them at the end of a rummage sale for $10 thinking they would replace our swinging doors into our guest bedroom.  Helpful hint: take measurements with you when you're out shopping.  They didn't fit so it took a while to come up with a new use.  This is what I came up with, a headboard for the guest room.  To make them we first cut 6" from the bottom.  Priming and 3 coats of paint came next.  When we got them into the house we attached mending plates to the back in the center, top and bottom.  A piece of decorative trim and a shelf finished to project.  I do think I'll add a piece of quarter round on the shelf just to keep anything I might prop up there from falling off.  My parents are the next scheduled people to sleep there and I wouldn't want them to get clunked in the head.  The granddaughters helped make the bed in a very creative out of the box way.

chicken potato salad

When it's hot out who wants to cook heavy hot meals.  Not me, so we eat things that can be grilled, fixed ahead or served cold.  This is one of those salads you can put just about anything you want into and it would be great.
Cooked chicken buy a roast chicken from the store and you're ahead of the game.
4-5 potatoes cooked and peeled
1 can green beans or use fresh
2 large tomatoes
1 onion sliced thin
1 can black olives drained
1 lemon juiced
1/2C olive oil
2 cloves garlic minced
salt and pepper to taste
Lay meat and vegies out on a platter.  Mix the juice, oil and seasoning together and pour over the salad.  Serve with garlic bread and cookies for dessert and even a picky eater can find dinner happiness.

camera case

I take my camera with me all the time.  I usually just drop it into my purse, but decided to make a simple little case to give it a little more protection.  Get a mens tie, mine came from a thrift shop but you could always steal one of your husbads ugly ties.  Cut off the wide end of the tie long enough to fit your camera and flod over the point.  mIne is about 8".  Turn the tie inside out and sew across the bottom end.  Mine had a piece of pelon in it that I took out.  Turn right side out and press.  Fold the point over so it overlaps the body of the pouch.  I added velcro but you could also add a snap to hold it closed.  Add a little bling like a button or crystal and your done.

little visitors

I spent the last week hanging out with my two youngest granddaughters.  We had lots of fun but they sure did wear me out.  It was non-stop activity the whole time they were here.  They wanted to learn to sew so we made aprons out of shirts.  I just bought women's size small and made them exactly the same way except we did a zig-zag stitch around all the edges so they would wash better.  They were so proud to model their new aprons.  Now they want to cook even more.

down time

I'm taking a few days off to enjoy my two youngest grandaughters while they are here.  It will tke twice as long to recover from theirr visit than time they are visiting.  I'll be back soon.

potato bar

One of the easiest meals you can have for company is a baked potato bar.  You bake the potatoes and put all the goodies out for every one to make their favorite.  YUM!  This one has bacon, cheese, peas, caramelized onions and butter.  Not real healthy, but very good.  Other topping ideas include  marinara sauce, gravy,any vegetable you like and any leftover meat you might have.  You could do this once a week and call it refrigerator lotto.

new cake plate

AH knocked over a hurricane candle holder and of course the glass broke in a zillion pieces.  Instead of pitching it I decided to make it into a display stand/cake plate.




candle stick base + orphan plate and a little E6000  that's it just let it dry and only hand wash

 


 I liked it so well I made a few more for display stands

metal tags

I wanted some metal tags for a project I'm working on.  Of course I couldn't find any in my stash and the local hardware store didn't have a thing I could use.  I started looking on the internet and fould something I could go off of and went for it.  They were easy and quick, just be careful the metal is SHARP!!



draw simple shapes and cut them out




draw the shapes on the print side of a soda can you have cut off the top and bottom of just use regular kitchen scissors




cutr out shapes, crumple them up in your hand  little if you want them to have an old look and add some antiquing stain to the edges




this stamping set came from Harbor Freight and were really cheap, you could probably find them at any big box store



my first attempt not perfect but not too bad, I also poked a hole with a small nial at the top and bottom

Now my tags are ready to use in crafting or used as gift tags.  Next time I think I would lightly draw some guide lines for the stamps, but slightly off center says me.

VCB

Friday again, the summer is flying by.  Kathy and I had the opportunity to be on a local TV show this week.  Live TV is very scary.  We had a great time and it was a wonderful exposure for our business.  I think we must have done a good job, they asked us to come back in the fall.  Here's the link in you'd like to take a look: http://illinoishomepage.net/fulltext?nxd=390442

garden scene

Some times all you need are the simplest things to make a charming vignette for your garden.  Here's one I did this week.

An old enamel pan filled with inpatients on a bird bath base and a couple of bunnies near by.  Simple and free.

paper clip bugs

I found 6 of these hand made bug paper clip at a RS and decided they would make better pins.  Pop off the clip part with cutters, blue on a pin back with E6000.  Pin them on your clothes, a hat or bag for a cute touch.  Simple as can be. Crafting doesn't always have to be hard or time consuming.

It's here!

Finally, after months of anticipation the Somerset Life magazine that features the bag I designed is out.  It was a thrill to see it on the news stand.  Of course everyone I know gets treated to a look.  This is not a magazine on regular news stands but can be found at big book stores, Michaels or Joanns.  I couldn't help but show the beautiful photos they took.

happy birthday

People comment to me all the time at how close our family is.  I love it that way.  This last weekend we traveled to the big city to help Ronnie and grand daughter KT celebrate their birthdays.  From the end of June thru September everyone's birthdays occur except my daughter-in-laws and mine.  We can't always be together but do try to celebrate when we can.  It's just a little thing but it keeps us connected.  We talk or email almost daily, help each other out when it's needed and try to see each other often.  It gets harder as the kids get older and lives get busier but you have to put some effort into it.  We are not the typical nuclear family but a mix of step kids, grand kids and adopted but it wouldn't be the same if even one were missing.  We definitly put the fun in disfunctional.  I wouldn't want it any other way.

the birthday boy and girl he has lots more hot air

the whole gang.  These guys have been friends since college.



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Keep the love alive in your family.  The little stuff that bugs you really isn't important, togetherness is.

VCB

If you're in the central Illinois area tune into WCIA channel 3 at 4:00Pm Monday July 9.  The show is CI Living and Kathy and I will be featured on their work from home Monday segment.  We are so excited at the opportunity to show our products and talk about our business to a much wider area.
If you see the magazine Somerset Life, July issue on the news stands take a peek inside.  the article I did on the flour sack towel bag is there.  It's so exciting to see something I've created shown to such a large audience.
Have a great weekend. 

chair bench

I have had several people ask me how I made this little bench.  It's really easy, so I thought I would share.  You will need 2 or 3 wooden chairs.  They do not have to match but they do have to be the same seat height.  Painting the chairs before you put them together is a good idea.  Screw the seats together, using drywall screws, side to side.  Measure the length and depth of the seat of the chairs and buy enough 1X wood to cover.  You will need at least 2 pieces but if you have more and want a slatted look that's OK too.  You will want the sides of the wood to be a little wider than the seats for overhang, so buy your boards about 6" longer than your chairs.  Most lumber stores will cut these to length for a small charge or even free.  Paint these boards and screw them to the chairs from the underside.  touch up your paint and accessorize.



this bench was orriginally black but got the aqau treatment this spring



wino bags

The shirt aprons I shared yesterday had a bonus project that came along with it.  The first step is to cut off the sleeves of the shirt.  Now you know I'm not going to waste such prime crafting materail.  After we were done on the apron we cut down the sleeves( measuring a wine bottle for length would be a good idea, we didn't and had to sew twice) and sewed across the cut end.  That's it, pop in your bottle and tie at the cuff with ribbon, cord or raffia.  These would make cute gift bags for any guy gift, ladies would like them too.  HMM we're planning a guys product line for VCB, these would be perfect.

Shirt apron

My sister saw something like this on Pinterest and wanted one.  While I was visiting my folks we found a few shirts at a thrift store and decided to experiment.  We looked at  a couple of tutorials and got to work.  They were easy and quick.  We put together 4 in about 3 hours.  That time included a couple of long breaks and plenty of chatter.  It's lots more fun to craft with someone else the ideas for how to do it next time kept flowing.  We all thought they turned out great.  I think I'll find some smaller shirts and do this with my grand daughters when they come in a couple of weeks.



Mens long sleeve shirt, size large or extra large




cut off the sleeves and back close to the seams leaving the collar attached




You should have a piece that looks like this.  Keep it buttoned up it's easier to work with.




Cut a diagonal line from the armpit to the collar.  Fold this over press and stich.




Cut bias strips 4" wide from the back of the shirt, piece together.  We used 2 pieces for each tie.  Sew into a tube, turn right sides out and press  Attach and reinforce where you ended your stiching on each side.



We met my sis at the flea market and had to get a picture of us modeling our creations.




Family visit

A friend and I spent the last week in Ft Wayne visiting my parents and sister. Yes it's a long trip but I feel so blessed to still have both of my folks, helathy and mostly in their right minds.  Kathy, who went with me, has lost both of her parents.  she enjoyed being spoiled by my Mom and teased by my Dad.  We had a great time doing a whole lot of nothing.  With temps hovering in the 100's we would make our forays into town during the morning, come back to the house, lunch, maybe nap, crafted and visited.  We hit several thrift shops, craft stores and other favorite haunts.  It was a lazy way to spend a few days.  At home I always have a to-do list that is never ending and I'm always on the go.  It's nice to just chill out and forget that list for a while.  We are all so busy we forget to take the time to really enjoy oursewlves.



Mom and Dad




Diva had a doggie spa day, shapoo,cut and pedicure.  You could see her smile when she got back.




Paula and Bernie




the line-up