Creating Structure

This weekend was a busy one, however, rewarding. The first dinner party. We, housemate and I invited my parents and his parents for dinner. I made a new recipe and my mom & dad brought turkey and dressing.. not my plan.. they seem to have an over abundance of turkeys, so they offered to make it and bring it. I made Mashed potato with Proscuitto and green beans. My aunt and uncle brought desert.

It was lovely to see them having a good time visiting. It was also nice to have them see what we have done to the house to make it home. Both had concerns with the size of the house when we moved in.. But, I worked my magic and my housemate did his share of some projects. I managed to get the studio cleaned up downstairs. It is presentable AND ready for working on projects.

studio work table

Saturday, we went to the savers in NE Minneapolis and I found a great treasure to transform. It is on the schedule for this week, along with priming a new basement storm window, priming the end tables from a post long ago.

The old swing canopy

Fabric for the new swing canopy

I just came from downstairs and cutting out the valance for the swing canopy at my parents house. I promised to have it done by the time they return from their winter home. Maybe I can bring the canopy at thanksgiving and get the cushion for finishing.

My plan for the next few months is to work in the studio MWF in the morning and then post about it in the early afternoon.

Trend, Fashion and Style-distinctions

The 'neighbor' kid... watching me through the window

It is friday morning and the sun is shining. We are expected to have a warm day today... 50's , so warm for November.  One of the 'neighbor kids' is in the tree watching me through the living room window as I write this.. They are so funny here... they work with a sense of play...

Bookcases sorted, new clock, painted table and torchiere 

The living room has shaped up nicely. (except the drapery rod has bent from the weight of these draperies, so I have to order the custom cut to measure rod after all) The Bookcase was rearranged yesterday. The books neatly stacked and sorted. They were just thrown up there in the unpacking and it was like walking past a messy closet that had no door. I still haven't found my scallop shell bookends.. they may still be in the garage. There are a lot of accessories, well, not a LOT but some things that express my style are not out. There is just no room and the thought of repacking in a few months is not appealing..

Things have quieted down a bit and a new routine is evolving. It is time to observe and assess what my core style is. Then express it and brand it in a meaningful way. That is my goal to brand myself.

The next few months, I will be assessing my wardrobe, the colors, the shapes, how I use texture.. that is an element that I am looking at with more awareness and discrimination now. I will be looking at the color intensity of what I like to wear and am attracted to and the personal energy levels that I am experiencing at the time. I will also be assessing my fabric stash. You can count on future posts about that.

Now, let's distinguish for the purpose of this post a trend, fashion and style. These are my perceptions and connotations of what the words mean. These are brief and can be whole topics in and of themselves.


Fashion is the arena or industry by which we accessorize ourselves. Since public nudity is frowned upon, we need to wear clothes. Fortunately, that is an area that we can really express ourselves. There is so much out there, from high-end-runway-designer, Ready to Wear, Vintage, Consignment-Thrift, personal creation (make it yourself) and a combination of it all.

Style is how YOU put all of the elements together and MAKE IT YOUR OWN! It is not copying someone else's style. I like to glean things from someone else's style, but I put my own unique spin on it. I used to think I was doing it or making it 'better,  but that is not the case. I am simply integrating what I find appealing in another to enhance my own style, not at the others expense.. but rather as a compliment to their expression.

A Trend is when there is a great following of people who have not yet defined style for themselves and they follow some one else's style. Following a designer, a magazine, a character in a movie, an iconic figure. They all have style. It has been created, this balance of elements. There is a style of decorating, a style of design, a style of dressing, a style of speaking, a style of ... anything.

Trends are fascinating to me and this is a VERY simplified definition that is more about differentiating the context of the three. I will write about this in the future and share the vibrant thread of how it assists me in distinguishing my own style.


Well it is off to the sewing room...

The finished Living Room Draperies!

Voila! They are done with eight months to enjoy! Here are photos...

Cottage Draperies for the Living Room

They finally were finished late last evening.. They have some issues still, but oh, it really cozies up the whole house! I love the fabric selection and overall am quite happy with the results.

Open and not very well dressed... (over the chair!)

They are a little short.. The take up at the top due to the scallops between pleats shortened them up considerably. The solution.. attach a slightly gathered wide chiffon ribbon to the bottom edge of the lining (which I haven't finished yet anyway)

Love the blue lamp and green chairs with fabric!

The other problem is the hem extension and the facings, in the satin print... well, this is polyester! I couldn't press it or it would melt... and it has a mind of its' own.. not to mention stat-icky!
For our purposes they will be fine... We can at least watch tv at night without the bus stop people watching with us...

Well, I am off to clean up my sewing room and go vote. Thanks for your patience in waiting for these... I have been talking about them for months.. and without the blog.. I may not have ever gotten them done... so thanks for reading!

Abundance and Bountiful projects in the Imaginary Queue

A Bounty of veggies- and vibrant solids!

Yesterday afternoon after fabulous success (in my opinion- the client hasn't seen it yet) with tile selections for a basement update, I went to my own basement and started sorting the totes of fabric.
There are a great deal of them and about 3-4 have UFO's in them. I couldn't bring myself to go through those.

Instead, I gathered fabric groupings that I know are for projects. Currently  there are two totes full of project materials and another UFO, project bin to go through (included in the 3-4 UFO totes).

The fabric is inspiring as the day I acquired it. Here are some photos of quilt projects that are waiting to be made.

Design TBD- the fish batik is my FAVORITE!!!

Fairy Tale Patchwork

... not large quilts... I know me, it would take several lifetimes to complete large quilts and all of the other sewing I would like to get done... Oh, so much to do... and the Living room draperies are cut out.. Maybe by the end of the weekend, I will have Living room Draperies! And then on to who knows what? .......

There is another apron that would be a quick rewarding project, then I must sort through the UFO's and get them into the line-up!

Oh, and the garments.. I have several patterns and fabrics selected for some fabulous wardrobe pieces! That is another post... I get ahead of myself! 

Grommets and eyelets. One Finished Project!

I did it! I finished ONE project here! I incorporated mind mapping and determined all of the materials I would need to complete the project.

Yesterday as I was clearing the table. I just gathered everything on my mind map and amazingly, I didn't have to HUNT for anything! Nothing is put away yet, but as I find tools and such, I write them on my mind map, so I can see what I have for various types of activities and how much space it will take to store them. This weekend, the garage and the downstairs studio, get organized. I look forward to it!

Here is what I got done yesterday!

Grommets and eyelets

Black Rat tail

Cutting out the sheer

Entry door privacy panel

The Entry way

Inspired into Action!

Yes, I know, its thursday and I wasn't going to post until friday and then, only a brief one... BUT I happened upon this book. It is one of the most inspiring books to me that I have seen in a very long time! I was perusing at B& N last evening and after putting away the books I was looking at.. this one just said, check me out. I walked past it and there were others in another location. Again, it said, you have to at least look at this!

A New book of INSPIRATION!

 So, upon opening the cover, I knew I was in for a treat!

If you can't judge a book by its cover, you can often tell a lot by its signature page!

 Here is a sampling of what I found between signature pages.... lovely, yummy, colorful pictures!

I had to capture the photo of the toilet... no just kidding! I love LOVE LOVE the wall painting!

Here, the warm golds and cool turquoise are so dreamy together

 I was delighted to find photos of her studio! I love studio photos. I find it intriguing and inspiring to see the spaces that people create in. Of course, these are staged for photos, but to see the colors, textures and available lighting people work in, as well as how the space is laid out.. very inspiring. It makes me want to go downstairs to the studio and get everything UNPACKED! (which is what my plan for the day has changed to) My morning appointment has been postponed until next week.

Studio photo # 1 featured in the book- same 'roll carts' as mine, only mine are black and have nice scratches on the top from moving! 

Studio photo#2 My dream studio!

I love that her studio has beautiful LARGE open shelves for the yards of fabric.. Very neatly folded and displayed... like a nicely organized toolbox. The other thing is a bed.. for designing bedding ensembles! Brilliant! And it could most likely serve as a guest bedroom space... hmmmm..
A dress form for apron design and a sofa for relaxing and inspiration, as well as photos!

After looking through this book last evening I am inspired to paint, to draw, to sew and to dive into my stash. I am soo glad that I have opted to keep the entire stash here and not send out to storage those things that I think I will not be sewing.. some of those pieces, I finally have an idea what to do with them!

I hope you have enjoyed the surprise post today, look through the book, you won't be disappointed! It is bursting with colorful photos and features 20 projects and an original stencil. The Painted Home by Dena I just want to add, the photography is gorgeous in this book! The photographer John Ellis has done a fabulous job of capturing the beauty of these rooms!

I plan to dive into some fun stuff today, so maybe a sneak peak tomorrow as to what I have been up to and then MORE DRAPERY MATH on monday!

Another Day: Setting up the Sewing Studio & Gathering Projects

It is Wednesday, wow the weeks just fly by. As I mentioned earlier in the week, I found the fabrics for the window treatments. Living Room and Front Bedroom respectively, more on that later in the post.

There has also been some activity downstairs. Two heavy duty shelving units were purchased to hold bins. I have been putting my fabric in clear totes with clip on lids. I found some clearance ones at Target. I still have to sort through what is in each of the bins and consolidate. Some are very organized... some are NOT! OOOOWWWHHH.... WHHHAT A MESSSSS! Chaos to be more precise, as if chaos had any precision at all!

The new shelving area. No more stacking totes and having to move the entire pile to get to one at the bottom!

There was also a large spider casualty downstairs. As I was moving things to make room for the new shelves, a very, VERY LARGE spider down there. Clearly, there was NOT going to be enough room for me, my creative wares, my activity and THAT LARGE SPIDER! So, I had to dispose of it. It was quick.. and I thank him for his message... large amounts of creativity to be experienced in this space! 

On sunday, as I was feeling a bit overwhelmed, undermotivated and downright.. CRABBY, my housemate shared with me that he has noticed how I light up when I create! I haven't been doing any creating all summer, except he said, with the blog! The blog keeps me accountable, it keeps me thinking ahead and I get excited about it. So, thank you readers for sharing in my transitioning from collecting cool stuff to make something with SOMEDAY to actually getting SOMEDAYon the calendar! TODAY is SOMEDAY! and so is TOMORROW...  

But, that is a bit of a tangent. So this morning I spent some time, reorganizing bins, taking my bolts of fabric out of the plastic and putting that on a shelf out of the way, and just moving things around to create a work space. 

In the process of this bin and box opening, I have gathered the fabrics for the draperies. 

The first bit of fabric I found is some scrap of lining with a printed design. I think this will be the hem extension for the Living room drapery. There is also a piece of velvet. The colors are perfect with the vintage fabric and I will use the velvet as some sort of trim. I need to clear an ironing surface to measure what I have and figure out what I can do with it. I also need to figure out what I want to do and determine how much fabric I need. I may need to go back in and find one more.. oh, darn.. It will be good.. 

Hem extension for LR drapery

The velvet for trim, the hem extension 

Then I found the following fabrics for the front bedroom window. The color is great with the wall color and they have a more contemporary feel to them. It also goes with the bedding that my Housemate has in there. 

Fabric combination for front bedroom.

detail of the gingham

detail of  the solid for front bedroom

I think I may find an alternative to the leather shoe lace idea, the color of them may be wrong. I will have to further investigate. Happy creating!

My Vintage Cottage Kitchen and the Farmers Market

Saturday Morning at the Farmers Market

Saturday was a busy day. We started off at the Minneapolis Farmers Market. We hadn't been there much all summer. The reds were abundant this weekend...There were tomatoes and peppers everywhere!

A portion of purchases... Basil, Tomatoes and Red Bell Peppers

A beautiful red pepper and my basil in a mixing bowl

 The basil was a most likely the last of the season, so I purchased a great deal of it and plan to make pesto with it. I have already froze a small batch in a container, I will check to see how that froze up. It may be a great way to have fresh basil for maybe Basil fried rice this fall and winter.

The perfect partnership, basil and heirloom tomato

The heirloom tomatoes were available as well, not as readily as roma and some other varieties, but I LOVE the flavors of an heirloom tomato!

Three tomatoes

 And when we happened upon bunches of concord grapes, I had to have them. They are tricky to find form year to year. Not all get a good harvest. I remember about six or seven years ago, they were everywhere! All of the local co-ops had them.. since then, I have only seen them at the farmers market. I think one year, one of the local co-ops had a small crop in... If you have ever had a fresh concord grape, they taste like NO OTHER! Seeds only slow down consumption so you can revel the taste.

Delicious and Beautiful Concord Grapes... yes there are seeds, but they make you savor the flavor of the grape, smells like grape bubble gum- YUM!

Our Kitchen table... 

After the farmers market, it was on to a local lumber yard showroom to listen to a talk by Sarah Susanka. I had seen her speak before and have several of her books. My House mate, however, has been fascinated by my books and wanted to go as well. I was interested in what her latest was.. so off we went after returning home from the farmers market.

The open pantry door... not much counter top space

 Returning from the showroom event, it was quickly load up the car with items to bring back out to mom and dad's. I haven't the room for it and needed to peel off the attachment. Things to get by with.. and return dad's totes.. he wants to get ready for fall hunting and realized, he had no totes.. he lent them all to me for moving..

The cooking and clean up section of the kitchen

 Sunday was the day to go through final boxes of kitchen items and get things put away. The pesto hasn't been made yet, however, we were able to actually eat dinner at our kitchen table. It is cozy, but nice.
Today I make the pesto and other goodies for stocking my pantry.. I think I am going to dehydrate the peppers with olive oil and smoked sea salt for flavor, they will be great in pita sandwiches... and whatever else I dream up.

Depending on how it goes, I may work on the basement again... at least an hour. I wonder what I can get done in an hour?  I want to get those draperies sewn.. this week.. the cutting mat has been retrieved along with my plants and my boxes of photos... Oddly, we brought out a carload of stuff to mom and dad's and returned with another carload!

Catching up from friday's post

Happy Saturday! The sun is shining and wow, do the squirrels play around here! There is a large tree outside of our front window and I think a family of squirrels live there. The little one was sitting there, fascinated with me as I sat on the sofa. I didn't notice him at first, then his mom or dad.. came by and then they ran back and forth along the branch...
As if I don't have enough to do in a day... I could watch them for hours.. they are busy around here. They climb down the side of the house like little Dracu-squirrels!

Yesterday was a client filled day. So, no unpacking/set-up got done. But oooh, the inspiration!

The morning client-- a detail of the valance for the dining room. This is the swag, the pleats and returns are separate. This will be a stunning design and filled with interesting details, yet not over done... by my standards anyway. Some may look at it... minimalists for example, yet great care was taken in making sure that each of the elements chosen balance and work well together.

Detail of the draperies that the valance goes over, there is box pleating on the lead edge, that  is turned under in this photo.

A portion of the muslin we draped to achieve our pattern. These are TRULY CUSTOM window treatments!  

I will be back with a report on monday, as to what actually got accomplished over the weekend. Let the weekend begin! (well, continue at least... )

Final update for the day....

Here are a few last minute pics of the basement progress. It doesn't look like by these that I got anything done... but I DID!

the bookcases, which, I have found out DO NOT hold 3 ring binders! The shelves are not deep enough... sigh.. very heavy sigh.. Rethink where binders go... 

The bright pink file cabinets and an old desk top that I covered in black polka dot on white oil cloth.. works for a little admin space... I am thinking... 

The clearest area... I have unpacked maybe 15 boxes today? I will break them down in the morning to be stored in the attic for the commencement of packing in the spring...early summer at the latest. I will not be rushed like the last time!

Documentation of the Basement Project

The final thing I did to get the basement prepared to my standards for working in that space... is paint the steps. It is amazing what a bit of paint can do... Crisp edges, clean risers and treads. I like to paint the treads a different color than the risers, from the lower vantage point, it is a more interesting look..like a ladder. Usually I paint the risers a lighter color, however, I can imagine in some scenarios, a darker riser would be more aesthetic. For my purposes here, bring as much light into the space as possible.

The finished steps, dark purple-gray with the same floor paint on the risers

Before painting the treads. The risers were the same color as the treads. The paint was old and looked very dirty and worn. 

Painting the final wall and the floor. The lighter color on the floor, helps to reflect up any light coming in from the windows and the down bare bulb lighting. (also creatures will be seen very quickly from the corner of the eye to ward off any surprise visitors checking out what I am working on) The deeper wall, is actually a bit brighter than in the picture and is a fairly mid to light gray, with a hint of violet.  This will assist with a neutral background for color matching and the work that I do with color. 

The sewing area from the back... this is where most of the activity will take place, also the most even part of the floor. 

The fabric totes. I counted 30... ok so it is a lot!

As the basement is starting to fill up, immediately after finishing painting the floors.

The back corner of the basement opposite the steps. This is where the floor is the most uneven. 

This back corner is where I think we are going to set up computer stuff, printer etc. as well as, hopefully get a sofa down those narrow stairs. It will be a nice area to sit comfortably while reading a bit of research material, taking a break from the work stations, or a place for visiting creatives to hang out..  now, I have some sorting to do... maybe post progress through the day... or not... we will see how it goes...