Eat - Ham and Cheese Quiche

This is going to be my breakfast for the week (unless I eat it all in one sitting). I used this recipe from Allrecipes.com.

It's so simple! mix butter and hashbrowns and flatten them into a pie pan for the "crust" and bake that for 30 min. Cover that with ham and cheese. Cover that with whipped eggs (I doubled the eggs) and milk (I used my skim lactose free milk instead of suggested heavy cream). Bake it all for 30 more min.

I had to soak up all the bubbling butter with a (hundred) paper towels before it cooled because this just seemed way too greasy for me.

That first bite was delicious. Even though this takes an hour to make I will definitely make it again with some new filling ingredients.

DIY - Maxi Dress

My camera didn't save any of my before and during photos :(

I started out with the New Look pattern 6774. I have made this dress on two other occasions, both with knit fabric, and I LOVE it. This time around I couldn't find any knit fabrics with a print and I really wanted a springy, pink print. I grabbed some 'silky print' from Joann's on sale this week even though it is not AT ALL my style. It has the colors I wanted and is light and doesn't wrinkle.

SO.....3 hours of meticulous sewing later....I realized the other two dresses only fit me because they were knit (even though I always thought they were kind of too large. Long story short, I decided to go through my bag of "Restyle Me" clothes and grabbed a tshirt that I chucked a few weeks ago. I ripped the bodice off of the shirt and attached it to the waist of the tshirt. I think the end design is pretty flattering and fun. I think I'll finish it off with a 3" elastic band at the waist to hold it up better. The tshirt seems a little too flimsy. Maybe I'll get to the store this weekend...

Sharing - Unfinished Projects

(modeling with Wally)

I can't believe how much of a slacker I've been with blogging lately. I made a calendar up to keep me on track and I guess I just can't police myself. Maybe I should open up a position for an assistant to make sure I get these things done in a timely fashion. Please copy/paste resumes to the comments section...Maybe don't post your home phone number though...

So I have about 3 ongoing projects right now. Project 1 is kind of a big deal. I am designing a line of spring/summer vests. These are cropped and flyaway style and very comfy. Here is the first finished one!

This is called the Lizard Vest...you can see the awesomely scaley ruffle down the spine. Love it. There are about 6 other designs and about 10 other fabrics. Here's a few unfinished:

Project number 2 is a line of tribal printed, ruffly tote bags. I just did a prototype of this one and I need to re-work the size. Pictures to come!

Project number 3 is a lightweight summer scarf. Here I am wearing the first version.

(Wally's in this one too, isn't he adorable?)

I'm doing a great job STASHBUSTING by making these cute scarves with all the end scraps. So that's good news....These will all be on sale in my Esty Store if I ver get them finished!

Sharing - China Hutch Book Case

So for 6 months we've had one box that has remains unpacked since our move. For 6 months it has sat in the garage. This box is packed full to the top with BOOKS. We have no bookcase. We have lots and lots of those short 3-shelf units from walmart but they are holding DVDs, printers, textbooks....everything but our huge collection of novels. Last night we spent the evening spring cleaning the garage and we once again pushed this box to the side as I shouted "If only we had a shelf!" Yes, it was that dramatic.

Tonight I don't know what came over me but I thought it would be adorable to have all our books stacked in our bare china hutch my grandmother gave to us. Not wanting it to look too old fashioned in our hip-living-in-sin-pad, I've been searching for ideas to update the hutch.

I stacked the books by genre or series and decorated the stacks with photos or candles or used glasses as bookends. I love it!

!!AND there's plenty of room for more!!

Sharing - But Jessi Where Have You Been?

Sneak Peak: (may or may not be in my PJs)

I have a big project coming up to update my store. Hopefully I'll have some pictures up tomorrow but right now I'm in a sewing frenzy!

Today I did a Tshirt re-fashion inspired by A Pretty Penny's Plain White Tee tutorial.

I didn't take a before photos but I got this tee at Joann's for $3.99. (stock photo form their website)

I HATE crew-necks and I HATE the long sleeves that are always on adult size tees. I didn't take photos of these steps either because I was rushing. Oops! So I cut the neckline to a low scoop and cut 2" off the bottom hem. I used the hem I cut off as the ribbing at the neckline. I also rolled up the sleeves and stitched them down in a permanent cuff.

Now the fun part!
I ripped painters tape in rough strips and taped down a few stripes at the shoulders and at the bust. I planned on wearing this with skirts so I wanted to put the stripes at the top, but I will definitely make another variation with blouse restyle.

I used a hot pink that is sadly closer to the shirt color than I had expected. But in the light (especially the sun) the color pops just enough to make me smile.

DIY - Ribbon Pearl Necklace Tutorial

I did not make you a tutorial for these necklaces...instead I googled you one :P

These are so easy to make! Personally I don't wear pearls so I grabbed a few strands of glass seed beads at Joann's on sale and some really skinny ribbon and killed a couple hours while watching Top Chef reruns.

I did a practice one before buying anything with some large wood beads and black ribbon I had on hand. I love the chunky, earthy feel of this long necklace.

The other two are seed beads with some super thin grosgrain ribbon. The pink one is more loopy than the green as I was experimenting with spacing (definitely not because I wasn't paying attention the first few beads and then was too lazy to undo them). I wear them with everything and will definitely make a few more in other bead/ribbon conbos. OO maybe 2 different color ribbons...

PS - I would totally have made you a tutorial if I hadn't Stumbled across this evil site - Craft Gawker - It has literally hundreds of pages of crafts, tutorials, etsy listings and inspiration. I have wasted a good part of my Sunday evening paging through it. I will also blame this site for me not sewing the tunic or circle skirt I had planned for this weekend...Grrrr...

DIY - Tassel Jewelry Tutorial

I bought a bunch of tassels a few weeks ago at Hobby Lobby (Thank god there isn't one near my house...) with some ideas for accessories and tutorials. Here are some quick steps to tassel earrings and a tassel necklace.

EARRINGS

Materials

1. Using the round nose pliers, ties a knot around them to create a very small loop. I tied 3 knots to make sure it didn't come undone while I was wearing them. Cut the ends as close to the knot as possible. You could also put a dot of clear nail polish or glue on the ends to make sure they don't fray.

2. Attach the earring to the tassel with a jump ring.

3. Done!

(click to enlarge)

NECKLACE

Materials

1. Cut the tassel rope to about 4". You should probably tape the end before you cut or immediately dip end in glue and mine unraveled very quickly! Cut a 3" length of ribbon.

2. Glue the end of the rope to the top of the tassel. This will make wrapping the ribbon easier. Don't glue too high up the rope or you'll need a wider ribbon.

3. Glue the end of the ribbon to the rope and begin wrapping the ribbon tightly around to cover the glued end. Glue the last end of the ribbon down and smooth out. Don't burn your fingers!

4. Thread your chain or necklace through the rope loop. Because the loop is wide you can interchange necklaces!

5. Done!

(click to enlarge)