Category Archives: family

4-Patch Coaster Fun

by Dawn Posted on August 8, 2013

Between family birthdays, reunions, and weddings — joyous occasions all — I’ve spent very little time in my sewing room in the last month. My two youngest granddaughters, Bonnie (13) and Beatrice (10), are currently visiting from San Francisco, so the last week has been filled with activities such as picnicking in the Columbia Gorge, attending a professional women’s soccer game, frolicking in the pool at our nearby community center, and shopping for school clothes.

Yesterday we stayed home. Beatrice had a playdate with My Little Neighbor (MLN), who just turned 11. Both girls were in the mood to “make something crafty.” They picked out some fabrics from my stash, and here is what they created:

2013-8, MLN and Bea
My Little Neighbor and Granddaughter Beatrice Display Their Coasters
2013-8, MLN and Beatrice
Their Coasters from the Back

The girls had so much fun they’re going to make a few more coasters tomorrow.

 

 

 

Posted in 4-patch coasters, family, My Little Neighbor, update | 4 Comments

Memorial Day Weekend

by Dawn Posted on May 28, 2013

Did you have a fun holiday weekend? I sure did. I spent it in Idaho with my sister Reigh, my twin sister Diane, and my niece Kristi. Reigh and her husband just moved into their brand new home in Meridian, a suburb of Boise. At 1500 square feet, with two bedrooms and two baths, the house is the perfect size for a retired couple. (Diane and I were so eager to see their new home that we essentially invited ourselves for the weekend.)

Here’s a picture of the pillowcases I made for Reigh as a hostess/housewarming gift:

2013-5, Reigh's pcases

I knew she would love the fabric. Everything but the gold band is from Violet Craft’s Madrona Road line for Michael Miller. The gold fabric is one of the Mini Mikes blenders, also from Michael Miller.

I wasn’t planning to do any sewing over the weekend but there was a problem with the guest room shower curtain, brought from the old house. It was too short, and there wasn’t a good way to add to the length. So off we went to HomeFabrics and Rugs, a home decorating fabric store in Boise where we have found many a piece of fabric for other home dec projects in Reigh’s former home.

HomeFabrics has an amazing selection of fabrics, and the prices are just as amazing. The fabric we found for Reigh’s new shower curtain was a mere $5 a yard, and the trim was $2 a yard. You can’t beat that at JoAnn, even with a 40% off coupon. Here’s a picture of the new shower curtain in situ:

2013-5, Reigh's shower curtain

The photo above doesn’t do justice to the fabric. Here’s a closer look:

2013-5, closeup of shower curtain fabric

The solid green fabric used in the inset has a sheen to it and a crinkly texture that looks good against the smooth finish of the cotton print. Notice how well the fabrics go with the tile trim on the half-wall just to the right of the sink?

All of the windows in Reigh’s new home feature beautiful wood millwork so she opted for plantation shutters to show it off. That means that the panels I made in several rooms in Reigh’s old house couldn’t be used. One pair is going home with Diane, to be “repurposed” into valances when I visit her at Thanksgiving. Half of another pair came home with me, to be refashioned into a valance for Reigh’s master bath. I certainly have enough quilt and home dec projects to keep me going for a while!

 

 

 

Posted in family, shower curtain, update | 2 Comments

Happy Birthday, House!

by Dawn Posted on March 16, 2013

Our house was built in 1913, which means it turns 100 years old this year. Happy Birthday, House!

Portland White House
The Portland (OR) White House

 

We’ve done a lot to the house over the 32 years we’ve lived here — remodeled the kitchen (twice), remodeled the upstairs bathroom, remodeled the main floor bathroom (twice), finished the basement, rebuilt the garage, and rebuilt the back patio (twice).

Now we are embarking on a second remodel of the upstairs bathroom. When we moved into our house in 1981, the upstairs bathroom had a tub but no shower. We replaced the tub with a larger Jacuzzi-style tub but didn’t add a shower because we had chosen to relocate the tub under a picture window. It’s time to add that shower now.

We’re going to replace the jetted tub with a clawfoot tub, add a custom shower on the opposite wall, and replace all the other fixtures in the bathroom. We’re not doing the work ourselves, I hasten to add. My husband and I are not do-it-yourselfers when it comes to these kinds of home improvement projects.

Although my website/blog was created to chronicle my sewing and quilting life, I’ve decided to include the transformation of our upstairs bathroom. Demolition starts next week!

 

 

 

Posted in bathroom remodel, family, update | 12 Comments

Mad about the Mini

by Dawn Posted on January 29, 2013

It would be fair to say that the Dear Husband and I are slow to embrace new technology. Not that we’re averse to it. It’s just that we get along with what we have and don’t recognize a need for something until it’s been on the market a rather long time. We were probably the last family in the western world to buy a microwave (which we use primarily to reheat coffee) and we still don’t own a flat screen TV.

So it came as a surprise to friends and family when we acquired a new gadget earlier this month: an iPad Mini. The iPads have been around for a few years but Apple released the Mini just a few months ago. I had been thinking about buying an iPad for a couple of years but never quite got around to it. By the time I was ready to take the plunge, the Mini was available. In a way, my procrastination paid off.

We’ve had this tiny little computer for only three weeks and have a lot to learn about its capabilities, but so far I love everything about it. I do feel guilty about something, though. I bought it for the DH and me, but I have monopolized it from the get-go. It has my email, my Scrabble, and my music loaded on it. I listen to Pandora Internet radio on it for hours in my sewing room. I even carry it around in my purse!

Of course, one of the first things I did was make a case for it:

 

The case is basically a padded envelope with a flap that covers the entire front. That’s because I wanted to protect the iPad Mini with extra batting. The back side has a layer of batting and a layer of stiff interfacing.

With the flap open, you can see how the iPad Mini is easily tucked into its snug little pocket:

 

Thinking the case might double as a cushion for the iPad Mini while it’s in use, I added four strips of elastic to the back corners:

 

I wasn’t sure of the proper position so each strip of elastic is in a slightly different place. This cover is a first attempt so the fact that the strips of elastic are not in perfect alignment doesn’t bother me (well, not too much).

As it turned out, the two top strips of elastic aren’t deep enough to hold the top of the device but the bottom two work just fine. The bottom strips actually do double duty: they come around to the front and hold the top flap in place, keeping my — er, our — iPad Mini very secure when it’s in my purse:

 

The divided pocket on the front is for earbuds and a stylus. I think the next version might have a zippered pocket on the inside for these items, leaving the front cover open to some creative patchwork.

Isn’t this robot fabric perfect for an iPad Mini case? The fabric is from the Mechanical Genius line by Mo Bedell for Timeless Treasures. You’ll be seeing more of the robot fabric before too long because I’m using it in two baby quilts, currently under construction.

 

 

 

Posted in family, iPad cover, update | 3 Comments

A Table Topper for My Twin

by Dawn Posted on December 21, 2012

I drew my sister Diane’s name in the siblings and spouses Christmas gift exchange. And — she drew mine! That doesn’t happen very often. This is what I am giving her:

2012-12, table topper
It’s a table topper. You may remember seeing the unfinished top in an earlier post. Diane saw that post and fell in love with the fabric (from the Ainsley line for Northcott Fabrics) and the kaleidoscope block. When I drew her name, I decided to finish the table topper for her.

I didn’t want the topper to be poufy so I used flannel for the batting. It’s quilted very simply. First I stitched in all the ditches and then quilted on both sides of the straight lines in the center and outer edges. Then I quilted a triangle in each of the eight wedges of the kaleidoscope. The simplicity of the quilting keeps your eye focused on the flowers and leaves and vines in that gorgeous Jacobean print:

table topper detail
Here’s the back of the topper:

2012-12, table topper from back
I had never before applied binding to a quilt with obtuse angles (greater than 90 degrees but less than 180). Thanks to Heather Mulder Peterson of Anka’s Treasures, who posted a terrific tutorial on her blog, Trends and Traditions, it was a breeze.

Diane’s table topper — #5 in my series of kaleidoscope quilts — measures 22″ across and 22″ top to bottom.

I hope she likes it — and I hope she doesn’t see this post until after she opens her gift!

 

 

 

Posted in family, kaleidoscope quilts, table topper, update | 6 Comments

Pocket Watch

by Dawn Posted on December 19, 2012

Do you have any idea how hard it is to find men’s shirts with two simple patch pockets? It’s the only kind the Dear Husband likes to wear. Most shirts nowadays are made with one pocket — or none at all. On the rare occasions when I spot dress or casual shirts with two pockets, I buy several. It’s been a few years since I’ve found some, and many of the DH’s shirts are wearing out. (If you see any two-pocket shirts during your holiday shopping expeditions, please email me!)

Macy’s was having a big sale on men’s shirts last week so I picked up a few. Alas, none of them came with two pockets. I’ll show you what I did to remedy that (something I’ve been doing for 30-odd years).

This particular shirt had no pockets:

shirt 1, before

First, I cut off the sleeves at elbow length and narrow hemmed them. I cut the lower part of one sleeve apart and pressed it flat:

shirt 2, sleeves off-001

These sleeves were extra long so I was able to fashion two pockets out of one sleeve remnant. Here’s one of the pockets as seen from the front . . .

pocket front 500

. . . and from the back:

pocket back 500
Here are both pockets made and sewn onto the shirt:

shirt 3, after
It’s a little hard to see these pockets because the stripes are matched. Here’s a close-up:

shirt 4, pocket detail-001
Oh, and here’s the best part: the price tag:

shirt 5, price tag-001

 

 

 

 

Posted in family, update | 1 Comment

RIP Elfie

by Dawn Posted on December 7, 2012

I had no idea, when I took this photo in September, that we would be saying goodbye to Elfie so soon. She was 18, and we had her for 16 years, the longest we’ve had any cat. We had her put to sleep last night after a very short illness. At least she didn’t suffer long.

We got Elfie at the Oregon Humane Society when she was about two. She came with the name Monkey, which we promptly changed. All our cats are named after royalty — this is what happens when your husband is a retired history professor — so she was renamed Queen Elfgifu, Elfie for short. (In case you’re not up on your 10th century English history, Queen Elfgifu was married to King Eadwig — and yes, we once had a cat named Eadwig.)

Elfie wasn’t allowed on my quilts because she was a kneader. I was refolding quilts one day in September and when I turned around, there she was stretched out on the quilt pictured above, looking very content. I grabbed my camera and took a couple of photos before ushering her off the quilt.

She was the sweetest cat ever. The Portland White House won’t be the same without her.

 

 

Posted in family, update | 4 Comments

Guest Room Glamour

by Dawn Posted on November 29, 2012

When I visit my twin sister Diane in Atlanta, there’s usually a home decorating project in the works. During my current two-week Thanksgiving stay (nearing its end, alas), I made a new bedskirt and window treatment for her downstairs guest room.

When Diane and her husband Ed moved into their present home 10 years ago, I made simple tab curtains for the windows:

The ruffled bedskirt, which I had made several years before, was a carryover from their old house:

This time around Diane wanted a tailored bedskirt and some kind of window treatment that could be raised and lowered. She wasn’t happy with the idea of Roman shades or any variations on that theme, so she came up with her own design: a simple pointed panel in the “down” position that folds and buttons into a valance in the “up” position.

She made a sketch of what she had in mind:

Here is Diane’s vision, transformed into reality:

She had the bright idea of adding tassels on the sides of the panels to disguise the brackets holding the curtain rods. Clever sister!

In the “down” position, the panels just cover the tops of the plantation shutters on the bottom half of the windows, completely blocking outside light:

In the “up” position, natural light floods the room:

The panels measure 34½” wide and 36½” long and are lined with blackout fabric. Five inches from the top of each panel are five self-fabric loops enclosed in a seam. About 21” down from the top are five ¾” buttons covered in the same fabric. The loops and buttons blend into the background so well you barely see them. A deep pleat is formed when the buttons are raised to meet the loops.

Here is a close-up of button and loop:

The fabric is a screen print by Mill Creek Fabrics that Diane found at Frugal Fabrics in Norcross, Georgia. The new pleated bedskirt is made from the same fabric:

The reward for my labors? I’m going home with the castoffs! I’ll probably be able to use the old tab curtains in my own home, and I’ll cut the bedskirt apart and add the ruffle fabric to my stash.

Here are a couple before-and-after shots. First the windows:

And now the bedskirt:

Let’s finish with a view from across the room:

Another successful collaboration with my twin!

 

 

 

Posted in bedskirt, family, update, valance | 7 Comments

Tiles in Style: A New Scrabble Bag

by Dawn Posted on November 24, 2012

Scrabble is on the daily agenda at my sister Diane’s house in Atlanta where my husband and I are visiting. During our two-week visit over Thanksgiving this year, we will probably play at least 20 games. The three of us are pretty evenly matched in skill and extremely competitive — unless one of us has the possibility of a seven-letter word, in which case the other two jump in to help.

The bag that holds Diane’s Scrabble tiles was in pretty sad shape so I decided to make her a new one. I found some soft sueded fabric at JoAnn’s the other day when Diane and I were picking up notions for the home dec projects I’m working on while here (subject of a future post).

It took a mere half hour to make the Scrabble bag. Instead of making a casing at the top for a drawstring, I sewed Velcro strips.

We went from this:

to this:

Quite an improvement, wouldn’t you say?

 

 

 

Posted in family, Scrabble, update | 2 Comments

An Apron for the DH

by Dawn Posted on November 4, 2012

If my Dear Husband were reading this post, he would look perplexed and say, “An apron for the Designated Hitter?” No, dear. Not even close.

I made him an apron today because his old one was pretty worn out. Here’s what his new apron looks like:

Carrots and Onions and Peppers, Oh My!

 

It’s a basic cobbler’s apron made from a Simplicity pattern dating back to the 1980s. I’ve probably made him a dozen aprons over the last 30 years using that same pattern. He wears one in the morning when he makes breakfast and in the evening when he cleans up the kitchen after I’ve made dinner. (You can see why I’m happy to keep making aprons for him.)

My DH is the gardener of the family so the veggie fabric, Metro Market by Pickens Design Studio for Robert Kaufman, was the perfect choice for him. I found it at cool cottons in SE Portland. It was the selvage that sold me. Look how the colors are printed on the selvage:

A Peck of Pickled Peppers?

 

Speaking of veggies, we had a bountiful crop of tomatoes this year, including some that continued to ripen during our unusually warm and dry October. My husband harvested all of the remaining green ones and decided to preserve them. He started with five alternating layers of sliced green tomatoes and onions . . .

Tomatoes and Onions, Sliced

. . . and ended with six pints of green tomato pickles and six of green tomato relish:

We Relish Green Tomatoes

 

 

 

Posted in aprons, family, update | 1 Comment