Retro Highchair

This adorable highchair was found at the local antique shop. We have some amazing ones around here and this was a real steal! It needed a little work but I was up for the challenge. Actually, let me back up...my sister-in-law (sweet and over-ambitious Katy) spotted this bute, bought it, took it home, had to explain to hubby why she bought a rusty highchair for the baby, then put it in the storage shed. I arrived and asked about the chair in which she directed me to the backyard. Ugh, I couldn't stand the idea of it not being used because it was adorable! So, I brought it back to Oklahoma, did a little magic and took it back to Albuquerque. yweh!


Ok, metal 101, this highchair had rust. I took a wad of aluminum foil (yes, from the kitchen) and used it like a sponge and scrubbed over the metal legs and arms. It took a little elbow grease but the results were immediate, hence, I kept working. You would not believe how shiny metal can really be!


There's the wad on the floor.

There's the yucky rust.

And now, shiny and new. I painted the tray again to seal it up and make it look nice. I do have to remind you that the "baby" is actually 18 months old and has a plate. just sayin'

Recovered Chair

My mother-in-law was so sweet to pass down this chair full of potential. It doesn't show the comfortability that I know so well but it's there! I'm thrilled to have it and it's definitely a family momento...it's been passed around several of us. The fun part is how to make it even more wonderful! So, here we go! I got some "hot" fabric at our local Hancock's and LOVE IT!

I took some basic measurement and charted it out on a sheet of paper. I think the hardest part of turning measurements into patterns is how to buy the yardage. I struggle with this and often have to ask those information gurus at the fabric store what to do. They are so helpful and make me feel good about what I'm buying. So, laying out the pattern pieces (in my head) we came up with what I needed. I really just followed what was on the original cushion with a small adaptation on the zipper.

Buy good fabric!!! You WILL need to wash it! No matter how careful you are, no one else will be as careful as you! (Case in point?....daughter with dirty feet)

Here's how the back turned out.

The front shot...

It's too cold right now, but picture this on the porch, you reclined effortlessly, with a wonderfully chilled drink on a hot summer afternoon, and sunglasses on so you can take in all the brightness around you!!! It will be here soon.

And, here's the little pillow in case sleepiness happens to follow!

Heritage Project

So, we've been working on so much lately! One thing we've been working on is Kenny's Heritage Project. It's a class project meant to go through your ancestry and talk about the country your family originated from. This stuff is so fun and I loved watching Kenny's eyes light up when grandpa, or great-grandpa, would tell him something about the family that he never know.

We decided to follow my husbands side because they came to America within the last 100 years. I'm Irish and Ken is Irish/Italian/Polish. Grandpa was a New York Italian so he's wonderfully animated when he gets mad. Irish=mad but Italian=expression! Here's the fam!....or I mean...FAMILIA!

...from the boot to America!

And the pride of every parent! Great job, Kenny!!!!

Pom-Poms, Baby!

Pom-pom city, baby! My daughter is working on her project that she got for Christmas. It's a pom-pom scarf, one for her and one for her doll.

It's an American Girl product that I got at our local Hancock Fabrics Store. It's the cutest thing on earth. Super easy, bright colors, wonderful directions.



We got out the instructions and tape measure. Lots of measuring going on to ensure that each pom-pom is the same size (to begin with anyway).


She got a little excited about the scissors and the shaping, so some pom-poms came out a little smaller than usual. I feel her pain, when I trim...there's one piece and then one more piece, etc.



These are the awesome forms that came with the box. The larger one is for girls size pom-poms and the teeny one is for the doll's pom-poms.

I think the challenge here is not how hard it is to make pom-poms (because they are really easy and sort of fun) but it's the amount of pom-poms needed to make these scarves. So along with the lesson of sewing and crafting is the lesson of patience and diligence. We have to be patient to give all 26 pom-poms the same amount of care and we have to be diligent to do ALL 26 pom-poms. I guess there are hidden lessons inside of everything you do and I want to teach her the joy of finishing the project along with the journey to get there.

Super Hero Day!

This week is Spirit Week at the kids school. Today was monumentous with Super Hero Dayyyyy!

The kids were so excited to wear costumes to school. I loved that Kenny's hero is his dad so out came the Special Forces Hero costume. My daughter, on the other hand, is like me and always goes for drama! We got out the Little Red Riding Hood costume from Halloween and conformed it to be a makeshift Wonder Woman costume. The only thing missing? The amazing dixie cups wrapped in aluminum foil as bullet armor! Thanks for those great memories, mom.

Lily sewed a "W" on the top and skirt of the costume from recycled Christmas ribbon. (My family totally makes fun of us girls that collect it after every present is opened.) She sewed a wide running stitch through the ribbon to secure it, and can easily be removed after the day's festivities.

When I dropped the kids off at school, they both had that funny look on their faces. I remember that look. They said, "Mom, what if no one else dressed up today?" I giggled a little because I would be thinking the same thing but I assured them that no one could resist Super Hero Day at school. "Go learn and be super!"

Little Miss Matryoshka

Working on tea towels for family members that were so gracious as to accept my late Christmas gift via IOU. That's right, my family is so generously supportive that they actually got excited about an almost finished Christmas present.

I bought the tea towels at the most wonderful and entertaining website, thank you Jenny Hart, at Sublime Stitching. http://www.sublimestitching.com/ She has so many genres of designs that you are surely going to find something up your alley.

Just buy the amazing package of designs that are completely economical and super cute! You can iron the designs up to 10 times for the price of one. How can you go wrong?

This is so much like coloring for adults. I love to color with my daughter but this is just as fun! Well, after I discovered how much I like to embroider, I threw in the crayons anyway. The center of the Matryoshka's dress is colored in with crayon. I colored it in after I put the iron-on transfer on the fabric but before the embroidery so my thread would give it the "finished" look. Pick a complimenting color (Crayola is the best because it has most color to wax ratio) and color in the lines. Then take a hot iron (heat appropriate for type of fabric) with scrap fabric below and above your colored piece so it protects your iron and your ironing board. The heat fuses the color to the fiber and the extra fabric absorbs any excess. It will wash just fine because the water won't get hot enough to bleed out the color. I should mention that I don't usually wash these in hot water but very warm water. It gives such a nice addition to the work and looks very tailored.

Have fun embroidering!!!

I'm Back with Mystery Trip Fun!

Wow, I took a very long break....so sorry about that! I guess I needed a small break that turned into a big break. Refreshing? ...yes, but I sure miss the sharing!





During this break, our family went on an adventure! I called it the "Mystery Trip." The kids had no idea where we were going until we went to the airport. One week before Christmas we went to the most magical Christmas place in the world, New York City! They were thrilled!






We did the whole thing! Skating in Central Park, American Museum of Natural History, Statue of Liberty, FAO Schwartz, Rockettes at Radio City Music Hall, American Girl datenight, Sony, Broadway Show, Rockefeller Center Christmas tree, hot dogs on the street corner, the subway and all it's funk, italian food, and amazing chocolate....yweh! So much fun every minute we were there.
Skating before falling. Salute to NY!


The tree!!!
Little girl taking a picture of Lady Liberty.




Lesson here? We saved, saved, and saved. All the little jobs the kids did, the extra work my husband and I found, craft shows and orders; all that money went into the Mystery Trip Fund. Boy, those little dollars add up quick. Through this process another amazing thing happened, the kids matured a little. Didn't see that coming. They started to see the progress and when we went to the bank to make our weekly deposit, they watched the numbers grow. The lovely ladies at the bank were in on the surprise so they really helped ham it up and give lots of praise (and kept the secret) through this 5 month commitment. Now the kids are a little less fussy about being asked to do chores (and sometimes even do them without being asked) and they realize that work equals money. I love it!





Here's how we did it! We made a plan (without the kids knowing details) and knew where we were with every deposit. We played it off pretty well for a long time. The kids thought we were going to eat peanut butter and jelly sandwiches for the whole trip. Once we reached a certain amount, we told them we had enough for hot dogs....and so the fun continued.

First the airfare, then the lodging....everything else unfolded and as the list grew so did the jobs and deposits. This was such a fun experience for our whole family and I highly recommend doing this with yours!