drawstring bag preview

This here is just a little peek at a drawstring bag

I made yesterday. It's a gift for a friend, and I have

yet to give it -- so the rest of the photo shoot will

come soon. Until then, have a happy weekend!

massaged kale

I didn't think to take a picture of the salad I made for dinner tonight,

so here's what's left of it. Can you believe it?! And it was KALE!!

I've been learning the wonders of kale and other dark, leafy greens

over the past year. But how to incorporate them into my household's

diet and actually get people to eat them? Also, some recipes for kale

require long cooking times. I need something speedy most nights.

I decided to go with a fresh kale salad tonight, but when I pulled it 

out of the bag (thank you, Trader Joe's), the leaves were all dry and

leathery. Enter The Kale Massage. Here's how it works:

1. Cut or tear Kale leaves from the spine (discard spine). Chop to bite size.
2. Add a dash of oil, a splash of lemon juice, and a couple croinks of salt.
3. Squeeze, rub, and otherwise massage the kale leaves for about 2 minutes.
4. The kale will wilt down a bit and turn shiny and tender. Who knew?!?
5. Now, you could leave it like that or add some salad dressing and the like.  

 I did the following (and people loved it... even some of the kids): 

Warm Bacon Dressing --

1. Cook up 5 pieces of bacon. Crumble.
2. In a bowl, mix up 1/3 cup brown sugar and 1 1/2 tsp corn starch.
3. Add 1/8 cup water and 1/4 cup apple cider vinegar. Whisk.
4. Heat the bacon bits in a pan. Gradually add the liquid mixture.
5. Heat to a boil, stirring until thickened (but not too thick!).

Kale Salad with Warm Bacon Dressing --

1. Spoon the bacon bits onto massaged kale and add dressing to taste.
2. Chop half of a granny smith apple into the salad.
3. Sprinkle feta on top. Salt and pepper to taste. Mix.

Okay... so it's not fat free. But it is yummy and vitamin packed! I'll let you know if

future experiments in massaged kale turn up something tasty that's less gratuitous.

dress-up wings

 One of the fun things I had opportunity to make for Christmas

this year was this set of dress-up wings for my youngest niece.

I saw them on this blog and followed the tutorial to make them.

Here they are in action!!

It takes some time to cut out all the layers, but the
actual assembly process is very simple:

I cut lots of different fabrics into varying lengths

of 2" wide strips with my rotary cutter. Then I made

a paper template with 5 scallops (2" wide each) in a 

10"-long strip. Sat down with a cup of tea and started 

scalloping all those strips. I sewed them onto the 

underlying arc of fabric (as seen in the tutorial) with a 

single line of stitching per row, spaced about 1/2" apart.

Added grosgrain w/ velcro attached at the very end for 

cuffs and neckband. Voila!

This may sound complicated, but it would be a good

project for a beginning sewist. Especially if one were 

to follow the tutorial more exactly and just tack the

ribbons on without velcro to be tied in a bow at neck 

& wrists. I just love how this came out with scraps from

all my favorite fabrics! I'm brainstorming what else in my

life might need wings...

eric's garden

3"x5" watercolor

I can't figure out how to get my light greens

(namely the leaves of the top planter) 

to not show up as garish yellows when scanned.

Any thoughts? I've already adjusted for value & color.

super onesie

 This is a little caped onesie I whipped up for my baby nephew

for Christmas. As you can see in the picture, I used twill tape to

reinforce the shoulders where the cape is attached.

 So far, there's nothing I like better on a baby than a white onesie,

but who knows -- a white onesie with a red cape might be the thing!

joy

This here has been the theme of my week. On Monday, I was having

trouble jumping into the stuff of life. When I asked God what He thought,

I heard, "Joy." So I've been singing The Joy of the Lord is My Strength,

a song I learned as a child. I also transcribed it into a minor key, and it

turns out to be quite lovely in mellow tones. Been singin' that, too. It's a 

good reminder that regardless of life's details, joy is available in God.

I went looking for the biblical underpinnings for the song, and lo and 

behold, if it isn't in Nehemiah! Now, I just love the book of Nehemiah.

It's a story of God's people rebuilding their broken & deserted capital

city in the face of hardship and resistance, under the strong leadership 

of a man who cares about them and loves God.

I was also excited to discover the specific context of this quote. Following 

the rebuilding of Jerusalem, the exiles had just returned to this and other 

Judean cities from Babylon, where they had been deported by 

Nebuchadnezzar. The priests read God's law to them, the Scripture which 

defined their identity and their relationship to each other and to God. 

The people spend the whole day weeping and mourning as they listen to it: 

they have been separated from God's word and the teaching and guidance

of the priests all this time. They have forgotten the law and sinned. 

It is into this initial wave of sadness and regret that these words 

are spoken, the first awareness of wrongdoing. At this point, the priests 

tell them to stop grieving and then basically send them out to celebrate 

Thanksgiving -- there will be a time to repent later, but first the people must rejoice.

So they go have a feast, sharing food with each other and marking the 

day of their return to home and to a life governed by God's ways.

This story highlights the reality that joy is not a result of getting things right.

It is a response to God's sustaining love. He sees us in our darkest places

and calls us to joy in the midst of our sorrow, fear, and exposure. Joy 

emerges through the darkness, not apart from it. It is a call toward the light

which is neither childish nor superficial, not based on our own abilities to succeed.

 Here's the bag I've been working on! I think of it as my

birthday bag, since I just turned 38 (woo hoo!). The bag

is patterned somewhat after this one, which I enjoyed so 

much that it plum wore out. As you can see, I repurposed 

the strap from the former bag and re-used it on this one. 

I also enlarged this bag a bit and added the darted pocket 

with lid on the front, for additional storage.  I was also

happy to find a place to sport that strand of velvet ribbon!

 

bag pockets

 Since bags generally go together inside-out and upside-down,

so to speak, the pockets are one of the first things to assemble.
I'm excited about this outside pocket, because it has darted
corners (thanks, Lisa Lam!) which make it three dimensional:
good for holding lots of stuff without looking overcrowded.
There are also a couple of tiny, magnetic snaps under the flap
to keep things sleek. If you can get sleek in fuzzy upholstery.

This is the cute little elasticized-top pocket on the inside of the bag, 

also thanks to Lisa Lam's Bag Making Bible. Hers seems to come 

out more rectangular than mine. I think that's because 

she puts a couple of darts in the bottom of her pocket to square 

things off. I'm not pushing for perfection here, though, so 

the curvy shape suits me just fine. It's kind of whimsical, don't you think? 

The finished bag will be coming soon, so don't be strangers!

new project

I'm itching to do some sewing after weeks of sickness 

and the ensuing recovery process. This is the fabric 

palette for a bag I'm scheming up. I found the green 

and gold upholsteries on clearance last week, and that 

lovely slice of velvet ribbon has been in a basket just

waiting for the right project. I can't wait to use it!

ocotillos and other such things

 Believe it or not, this is the same ocotillo that I posted just two weeks ago 

(see photo below)!! One night last weekend, the leaf-cutter ants stripped it bare. 

I rather wish I had seen them do it, because it was clearly a very efficient job. 

Anyway, I am feeling somewhat like this ocotillo. After recovering 

from last week's illness, I came down with a sinus infection that wiped 

me out for this week. Between all that and the sicknesses of my 

familial peeps, it seems the leaf-cutters have gotten to us. 

But we're still firmly rooted, just waiting for our leaves to grow back in.