Maybe, Maybe Not

The summer I was fourteen, I taught myself to sew.

My mother made all of our clothes, but she would not teach me to sew.

She taught my older sister, who started many things, but never finished anything and she was afraid it would be the same way with me.

While my mother was at work (rare for mothers in my childhood), I went to her sewing cupboard, found a pattern,  chose some fabric and I made a dress - all but the zipper.

When my mother came home she helped me with the zipper and took me to buy more fabric.

I began making all of my clothes and earned spending money in college sewing for others.

When my son was born and I was no longer working I told my sister (who by this time was climbing the corporate ladder) that I wanted to make pillows and sell them.

She discouraged me by pointing out that I might spend money on fabric, but if people did not share my taste, I might lose money and money was tight in those days.

Before teaching, I sewed for a decorator and a bikini shop, but the idea of pillows was always at the back of my mind.

Fast forward to today  - on-line shopping, blogging, Etsy - my idea doesn't seem so far fetched.

In my Giveaway last week, I gave away four custom pillows.

And my goal for today was to make the pillows.

All four of them.

All at once.

I do not have a sewing room like I did in our last home, so today I set up my sewing machine in the garage.

Please don't look too closely - I have been working on fluffing the area and hope to finish over spring break.

Steve loaned me a table from his studio and I was in business.

 I wanted to see how long it would take to make a bunch of pillows.

Altogether I spent about 4 hours, but I was doing laundry, eating lunch, and helping JP fix his bike at the same time.

Four pillows . . . four hours.

Making the pillows is no problem other than time right now.

In 86 days I will no longer have a job so time won't be an issue.

Should I begin selling my pillows?

When I chose to do the Giveaway, selling pillows was not in my mind.

A sweet blogger commented on my Little Beans post that I should make the pillows to sell.

Hmmm?

 I will ask the winners their opinion of the pillows.

Who knows, maybe I will sell them.

Maybe not.

By the way, my sister did finish something she started - top rung of a Fortune 500 company.

She is in Tokyo right now, or maybe it's Paris.

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You can find me partying at

Have a Daily Cup of Mrs Olson

Made in a Day

The Dedicated House

The Answer is Chocolate

Boogieboard Cottage

Under the Table and Dreaming

Housewife How To's

Keep Trying - 'til you get it right . . .

Do you ever walk past a piece of furniture day after day and then one day decide it isn't right?

I bought this chippy cabinet last fall -

great color, fits just right in my hallway yet something is wrong.

I've been thinking that it makes the hallway too dark.

Steve is still recuperating from his surgery and I passed JP's cold on to him so he went to bed early.

I was relaxing after another crazy week at school (just 88 days left) and looking at beautiful blogs.

I don't remember exactly which one got me off the sofa, but I knew that a change was coming.

A quick trip to the garage produced a new can of Annie Sloan Chalk Paint in Old White.

I worked in the living room so I could enjoy a fire while I painted.

ASCP is great because it dries quickly and is easy to clean up - I was able to get a second coat on before going to bed.

After breakfast the cabinet was back in the hallway waiting to be decorated.

With the cabinet white, the painting pops against the yellow wall.

Since Steve's income is from the sale of art, I should want all of his work to sell, but this piece has special meaning. 

On a vacation to New York City, we saw the great door with incredible patina on Bleeker Street.

I insisted we stop to get photographs so Steve could paint me my own door.

I wanted to keep the focus on the painting so I tried several different items on the cabinet.

I began with the same items that had been on the blue/green cabinet.

The whole look is much lighter without the blue/green, but a new color deserves a new arrangement

Next up was my vintage basket of croquet ball - from my childhood croquet game.

Same colors as the door - still not right.

I gathered things from all over the house and came up with this little vignette.

The cabinet is finished, I think I got it right.

And now it is time for garden therapy.

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You can find me partying at

The Ironstone Nest

French Country Cottage

My Romantic Home

Have a Daily Cup of Mrs. Olson

Life on Lakeshore Drive

The Charm of Home

Common Ground

A Delightsome Life

Redoux

A Couch Potato Day

My son doesn't often bring me gifts.

Oh, how I wish he had not brought this one - his cold.

After a 6 day work week, volleyball season starting up again, and my yearbook deadline, I was looking forward to a "me" day yesterday.

Instead, this was my view as I spent both yesterday and today on the sofa.

I got out a few friends to keep me occupied when I wasn't sleeping.

It is amazing what you can accomplish when you just sit still for hours.

I made bunnies for a "Bunny Swap" I joined.

I still need to decorate the bags for their travel time.

I used a free pattern from Jenny at Allsorts but I obviously did something wrong.

Allsorts

I guess I was supposed to shrink the pattern because her instructions say it will be a 3"  bunny and mine are 5".

Oh, well, I have heard that "bigger is better".

The crochet thread was for a project I started on my field trip to UCLA last Sunday.  

I NEVER go on a field trip with a busload of middle school kids without something to take my mind off their noise and music.

My plan was to copy this little bag I crocheted over 20 years ago.

I no longer have the pattern and when I started it last weekend I couldn't find the little bag.

I worked from memory, but I had to hunt up the bag today to do the edging.

I didn't do too badly although I forgot about the center part with the flower.

Instead, I crocheted a little flower to add to the bag.

If you have ever looked at my blog, you know that my house is not "romantic" or "lacy" so this little bag is going to Kris at Junk Chic Cottage.

Kris does romantic, lacy, and white.

And, she does it all spectacularly.

I already have a little white muslin bag I made to use for the insert.

I just need to find some treats for the bag.

And then, I have to stop being a couch potato.

I'll get up when Steve says, "SOUP'S ON!"

Steve is healing rapidly, back to cooking and is in his kitchen making me homemade chicken soup !

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I am linked up at

DIY by Design - Winter Blues Wednesday

Boogieboard Cottage

Under the Table and Dreaming

French Country Cottage

The Answer is Chocolate

Life on Lakeshore Drive

Be Different Act Normal

Lovely Crafty Home

Seeing Green

Lately, I have been loving green.

I got home from work last night and saw a package waiting for me on the table.

I ordered some numbers on-line from BHLDN and some art supplies from Paper Source so I thought the box was from one of them.

But, I was wrong.

I had forgotten that I had won a Giveaway from Primp and, in the package was this sweet little green heart basket.

With the weekend ahead, I stopped at one of my favorite shops, American Home and Garden, 

for a bit of shopping therapy and some ideas on how to display my sweet little basket.

It seems like months since I have been in the shop.

My friend Kathee of Chateau et Jardin writes on her blog about the many changes in the shop.

Jennifer Grey of The Old Painted Cottage just opened a booth in the shop.

As usual, AH&G was filled with wonderful eye candy and green was everywhere.

I love the green cabinet with the number tags and wish I had a place for the great little green ironing board.

I have a little wooden box that I want to paint and it might just end of with a number painted across it.

The little green desk is so cute, but alas no space.

Nor is there space for the green butcher block or dresser.

A vintage garden chair reminded me of a chair my dad used to sit in out in our garden when I was a child.

One long table made from a door and two sewing machine bases would be wonderful in a creative work space.

Chippy green shutters would be totally fun, but our walls are filled with Steve's art which leaves no place for the shutters.

I love, love, love the cast iron sink filled with ivy.

It would look great hanging on the exterior wall of the house in the garden.

Until Steve's shoulder is out of a sling, no house projects will be happening.

A table which mounts to the wall and  just two legs to hold it up would fit right into my hallway.

There were so many things to look at, but I had two limitations on my shopping -

I only had change for a half hour on the parking meter

and

I was in Steve's little car so I couldn't buy anything big.

I settled on three simple things

The number knobs are for a little box I will paint soon.

The parsley stake will go in the garden tomorrow.

And I have no idea what the green piece is (for flowers? ) nor do I have an idea what I will do with it.

But, I thought my little green basket needed a friend.

As I was finishing my purchase I saw the woman behind me was buying a cloche and remembered that I have been wanting one.

I took one last stroll through the store to see if I could find a small cloche, but no luck.

One of the shopkeepers said she has a small one at home and will bring it in tomorrow.

Do I dare go back tomorrow with all that green calling to me?

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You can find me partying at

Little Red House

No Minimalist Here

My Romantic Home