My Mama Made It

Take a look at what Alexis of My Mama Made It threw together recently. This woman can sew! I am impressed with the creative use to hide a stain on a perfectly good tee shirt. I'm inspired to create a few of these for myself. A few new Old Navy tees and some cute fabric in my stash from Les Fabriques, and a few hours and voila! I see a few extra sassy tees in my new chest of drawers. They'll be perfect in the fall with jeans, a cardigan and my faux Frye's.

Napkin Decorating

Budget decorating is a little different than the decorating I was doing at my internship in Richmond, VA. Oh how I miss unlimited funds to redesign bedrooms, bathrooms, and beach cottages. I was exposed to so many beautiful lines of textiles, home accessories, and other products. The knowledge of these products makes it tricky to be satisfied with Target's home decorating section. Even Pottery Barn seems like a let down (not that I have the budget for that stuff anyways!). I want, want, want Oly Studio, Aidan Gray, Designers Guild, O&L, Brunschwig & Fils, etc. Once I went to pick up a few things from Niermann Weeks at the Washington Design Center. I nearly fell head over heels, the place is loaded with the most fashionable design. Its like a shopping mall for Interior Designers. They say knowledge is power, but in this case, design product knowledge is enough to break the bank!

All of that is besides the point though. This recession/ reality check for me as a designer is making me become more savvy with my design and decorating choices for my home. I was at World Market on Monday and saw some beautiful table linens. I thought about how the textile would compliment our living room furniture choices. I picked up 2 cloth napkins from that line for the low low price of $3.oo each and have plans to make them into pillow covers. I need to rummage through my fabric scraps/ samples and find enough for the back of the pillows. That shouldn't be too hard. I made pillows like this in the Spring, but think that the space could use some Autumnal inspiration. So in the next week or so I should be assembling new pillow covers. I found directions here for all you sewing bloggers. I usually add a zipper and always use a down pillow insert (Ikea sells a good inexpensive one) to create a cleaner and more professional look for the pillows, but the envelope method on the above link will work as well. After all is said and done, both pillow covers will cost less than $20. I think its an affordable solution to custom pillows. I'll be sure to photograph the final results.


For now, you will have to settle with the temporary solution... its pretty cheesy, but atleast you get an idea of the print and colors. (I will just be covering the pillows covered with the green fabric; the purple pillow will stay). Does anyone have any affordable trim ideas in mind for these pillows? Also, I found a few from Crate and Barrel that could be accents on the sofa. Here they are:

Homemade Granola

I think I might be a granola addict. Call me crazy, but I eat the same recipe of granola, Monday - Friday. A bowl of nonfat plain yogurt (add a little Purvia and a dash of vanilla extract) topped with granola and fresh fruit is a true delicacy.

The recipe I use is from the Barefoot Contessa Cookbook. I make it in large quanities, so it lasts a month or two. My Mom and I first tried the recipe about a year ago and have been making it ever since. I received the cookbook as a birthday gift last year, so when I moved, the granola recipe went with me. Ever since then I've been making the same recipe and my poor Mom (or so I thought...) has had to guess the original ingredients and proportions.

I didn't think anything of this until I went home for a beach trip and tried her version of the Barefoot Contessa granola recipe. Its delicious. Absolutely positively the best granola I have ever tasted (move over Barefoot Contessa). Granola goodness is what it should be called. It was so good, I really considered sneaking a container full of her granola to take home with me. She wouldn't have noticed, right???

Well, I didn't take the granola, but I did ask what she put in it that was so different than the original recipe. Turns out she just "threw in" some maple syrup, brown sugar, cinnamon, extra coconut, pecans, and a few seeds. Oh, and she decreased the cooking oil. No measurements or anything like that. Its pretty typical of her. Only one problem, as a novice chef, I need measurements.

So this weekend I noticed my supply of Granola (yes, I have a tall jar from World Market filled with granola) was nearly depleted and I was due for a new batch. It was also the perfect opportunity to make my Mom's recipe. So here it goes... I've tried to make it easy by adding whole bags/containers of ingredients into the recipe. Please don't do what I did and waste clean bowls just to take photos. Its not what I normally do, but I wanted the photos to look nice.

Ingredients:

• One (1) 18oz container of Quaker Old Fashioned Oats

• One (1) 6oz bag of Pecan Pieces

• One (1) 6oz bag of Sliced Almonds

• One (1) 7oz bag of Sweetened Coconut

• 1/2 Cup Vegetable Oil
• 1/2 Cup Honey
• 1/8 Cup Grade A Dark Maple Syrup
• 1/2 Cup Brown Sugar
• 1 Tsp Salt
• 1/2 Tsp Cinnamon
• 2 Tsp Vanilla Extract

1. Preheat the oven to 300 degrees Fahrenheit.

2. In a mixing bowl, add the following ingredients and stir together:

• One (1) 18oz container of Quaker Old Fashioned Oats

• One (1) 6oz bag of Pecan Pieces

• One (1) 6oz bag of Sliced Almonds

• One (1) 7oz bag of Sweetened Coconut

3. I also added 1/4 of a cup of Roasted Sesame Seeds, however this is optional, and really depends on what flavors you like in your granola. You could also try sunflower or pumpkin seeds. Avoid any salted nuts or seeds, as this will add too much salt to the flavor of the granola.

4. In a small saucepan, mix together the following ingredients over medium heat:

• 1/2 Cup Vegetable Oil
• 1/2 Cup Honey
• 1/8 Cup Grade A Dark Maple Syrup
• 1/2 Cup Brown Sugar
• 1 Tsp Salt
• 1/2 Tsp Cinnamon
• 2 Tsp Vanilla Extract

5. Bring the liquid ingredients to a low boil and then take off the heat. Pour half of the sauce into a large mixing bowl. Add half of the dry ingredients. Stir together and then pour on a rectangular cookie sheet (with edges).

6. Repeat step 5 with the remaining sauce, Old Fashioned Oats, Almonds, Pecans, and Sesame Seeds. You will end up with a big mound of uncooked granola.
   

7. Place the cookie sheet in the oven at 300 degrees Fahrenheit and stir every 15 minutes. The granola should be done in about 1 hour and 15 minutes, or when it is light golden brown.
   

8. Take out of the oven and let cool. Keep stored in a closed, dry environment, such as a glass jar or plastic container.

Deck the Halls

Please turn on your favorite Christmas songs for the duration of this post and get ready for some holiday craftiness...

Not to skip past Fall, but here's a little project for you crafty friends, perfect for the upcoming holiday season. I saw this kit in the KnitPicks catalog that randomly came to my house a few weeks ago. I think these would make adorable ornaments for you tree or gifts for friends. Oh my, the little sweaters are darling! And the string of holiday lights... amazingly detailed! Sugar plums and popcorn chains were not forgotten in this kit either. These remind me of the cute ornaments that Anthropologie always sells during the holiday season. As long as your knitting skills are up to the level of this project, I think its a more affordable option than buying them at Anthropologie. And imagine the color variations you could do once you get the hang of the patterns! C-U-T-E!




I think I might buy the kit and attempt the project. I know how to knit, but I don't know that I'm capable of this. We'll see though. Worst case scenario - I'll pass the project along to my Mom and her sister. They have many years of knitting experience and could probably complete these in no time. Mom and Allie, if you all are reading this, I hope you know whats in your knitting future...

Okay, now no more talk about Christmas until December. I PROMISE!

On My Bulletin Board

This tearsheet sits on my bulletin board and always brings a smile to my face. The page originally came from one of my old Kate Spade planners. Throughout the year, I tend to develop an attachment to one or two of the month's cover pages; at the end of the year, I tear the planner apart, saving all the good cover pages for my bulletin board. For 2006's planner, March's cover page brought an extra smile to my face. She looks quite happy and is dressed to the nines in the cutest outfit. The top she is wearing reminds me of Liberty prints, which I love! Those jonquils are sure to brighten up any desk. Oh, and I can only imagine that inside that Starbucks to-go cup is a skinny hazelnut latte. To me, its just a little extra inspiration at my desk.

Dear Letterpress Lovers

Dear Budget Conscious Letterpress Lovers,

Please take a look at this, the L Product Line, from Lifestyle crafts. I found this link while searching for handmade letterpress techniques for wedding invites. I don't have access to letterpress machine, or the budget to have someone else make it for me, so I was looking for a good homemade letterpress technique. I've never seen any results from this machine (as it has not been released in stores yet) however I'm tempted to buy it and give it a try. Now I know its not "real" letterpress, but it kind of has that "look."

What do you all think? Is it worth purchasing and trying, or should I give up on my wish for letterpress invitations and save the dates?

Love,

L.Alden

8/30/09 Update: Here's another link I found for the L Product Line Letterpress kit. Its a video of the product being used at a trade exhibit. Pretty cool!

Green and Blue Bedroom

Bedroom by lalden on Polyvore.com

Green/White/Blue Bedroom by lalden on Polyvore.com

Green and Blue Bedroom