threads and snippets

painting a border print

noreply@blogger.com (Becky) — Wed, 05 Feb 2014 19:15:00 +0000

It's been a snowy messy winter here in the northeast, but I'm determined to make the best of it. The light bouncing off the snow into our little room off the kitchen is just right to do some painting.

I'm an apparel designer by trade and tend to be on the computer a lot drawing in Illustrator & Photoshop. Technical drawings tend to be very sterile when they originate in Illustrator as do prints for fabric. I decided I needed to get back to basics and loosen up my drawing, and the best way to do that is to break out the pencils, brushes, and goache paint.

The other thing I tend to do when snowed in is go a little crazy pinning stuff to my Pinterest boards. I noticed I was pinning things in a certain theme and decided to make a mood board out of them.

Inspired by my mood board, I came up with a rough idea for a border print that would be fun to have printed up on Spoonflower.

Then I worked it out to scale, deciding to make it an 18" repeat along the selvedge. I drew it in dark pen so I can see the design through bristol board using a light box. when I'm ready to paint. I don't like to pencil sketch my paintings because the paint never quite covers the lines. I want it to come out looking clean.

It's been a while since I used my goache paints and some of my tubes were pretty dried out. The great thing about goache is that it is water soluble. I softened them up with a little soak. The other great thing is that you can achieve opacity with them or water them down for a watercolor effect.

I cut my paper into two 9-inch wide pieces for the purpose of perfecting the repeat. I started with the pieces taped together and painted over the seam as if it wasn't there, leaving the far edges blank for about 2 inches along each edge.

Then I reverse the pieces and paint in the missing area along the new seam. This gives a pretty accurate repeat when I scan them in to Photoshop. In Photoshop I make the pink sky blend into solid pink and extend to the opposite selvedge and add some white birds. Then I brighten everything up and make sure the whites are totally white. Even though I painted the seams while butted up to each other, I have to do some fudging with the healing tool to make sure it's perfect for printing. Then off to Spoonflower to be printed onto poplin.

I made some coordinates to go with it too. Those repeats were a lot easier! Gonna make some little sundresses while it's snowing outside.

making a watery blue ombré quilt

noreply@blogger.com (Becky) — Wed, 23 Oct 2013 19:31:00 +0000

It's done!

I finally completed the quilt I've been working on since April for my new nephew, Nate, just in time for his first visit to the east coast last weekend. It's the only quilt I've completed since having my own kids. I tend to get wrapped up in some kind of intricate colorplay that needs 50 fabrics to pull off and that takes time. That was the definitely the case with the ombré effect I was going for with this water scene.

I found some great watery prints from several fabric shops on Etsy. I used the Micheal Miller fish print for the back.

But to get the ombré effect, I needed many more shades of blue than I could find in quilting cottons. I filled in the gaps with my strangely large collection of men's dress shirts. Using them also made the quilt more masculine. I also like the idea of mixing in apparel fabrics because it is the way people used to make quilts before the whole "charm pack" thing came along. My grandmother would use the good parts of worn-out clothes or scraps from making clothes for her quilts.

The quilt top spent a week in pieces on my work table as I planned out the color gradation. The diamond pattern helps the colors "feather" together because there are no straight horizontal lines. The sea creatures were appliquéd on top after I sewed the background together in diagonal strips.

I actually had never hand quilted any of my past quilts until this one. I used to send them out to an Amish lady who would get them done in a flash. This time I decided to do it myself, thinking it was a pretty small size (48" x 36"). Oh boy! You gotta hand it to those Amish ladies! It took me about a month and would have taken even longer except I was stuck on the couch anyway after having foot surgery. I couldn't remember how to do the binding either, so I watched this youtube video which was very helpful.

Oddly, the foot ordeal turned out to be positive creatively. With grocery shopping, errands, and trips to the gym off the schedule, it's amazing how much time frees up to spend on creative pursuits. Back soon with more...

head-clearing and western inspiration

noreply@blogger.com (Becky) — Thu, 05 Sep 2013 03:14:00 +0000

There's nothing more inspiring than a change of scenery. Our summer vacation was to Oregon this year to visit family on both sides and attend a big family reunion. This was a big deal for us since we live completely on the opposite coast in muggy misery in the month of August.

We hung out with cousins in Portland for a couple of days enjoying the cooler, drier air. Then we followed the Columbia River east through a dry hilly landscape. I didn't realize how desert-like and sparsely populated the middle portion of the state is. The family reunion was at a nicely wooded camping area at crystal-clear Wallowa Lake at the base of the Wallowa mountains near Joseph.

Besides seeing family we hadn't seen in years, and some that we'd never even met yet, the highlight was the horseback riding.

I was attracted to the patterns on the horse blankets and the tooled leather of the saddles.

I started having a hankering for fall and wool sweaters and leather boots

and maybe even a poncho. It was chilly, what can I say?

This is Emma riding "Biscuit", a sweet horse who liked to go slow and take many grass-munching breaks. Perfect for her first riding experience.

And here's the family. It was a job to get the whole group in one spot at the same time for this shot. You get a lot of cousins and chaos when your mother has six siblings!

Maybe it was the low humidity, but I came home with such a clear head. Right off the bat, I churned out a few new boys' ideas for my professional portfolio. Now the weather is drying out here too and hinting at Fall. Goodbye summer!

a gardening mothers day

noreply@blogger.com (Becky) — Mon, 06 May 2013 01:18:00 +0000

The last few weekends here in northern Delaware have been spectacular! I've never felt compelled to do so much gardening. Today I had intended to be in my basement studio making a pattern for this bubble romper I've been thinking of, but then I went for a walk. There was no going back inside.

Since I only have gardening on the brain right now, I bought this perfect little card for my mother-in-law for Mothers Day on Etsy from redcruiser. If I could buy it for myself, I would. Actually I did buy myself my own gift- kelly green pants that fit like a dream- thanks, honey. But I refuse to buy my own card- kids, get busy!

Also got her these Bahco pruners that are so nice, they are not available at Home Depot. The have different sizes depending on your hand size. Get them here.

Took a detour the other day to Terrain and it looks like full-on summer there. The cafe there would be a lovely spot to bring Mom on Mothers Day, but don't try it without a reservation. Even on a regular weekend you need one now.

As soon as it rains I'll get back in the studio...

color palettes: april in delaware

noreply@blogger.com (Becky) — Tue, 23 Apr 2013 13:39:00 +0000

There's nothing like a long walk to clear the mind and boost creativity. Couldn't resist making some color palettes from pictures I snapped on my stroll along the Delaware Greenway in Wilmington this weekend. I'm thinking this could be a regular thing...

Happy Spring!

facing reality

noreply@blogger.com (Becky) — Tue, 16 Apr 2013 23:57:00 +0000

I don't know anyone who likes tax time, but even though I usually get a refund, I very much hate it. Like many creative types, I have no interest in practical matters like staying on top of the accounting. I pretty much keep my head in the sand all year until it's time to add up all my expenses in order to do the taxes. That's when I find out whether or not I made a profit. After happily running my Etsy store all year and feeling like sales have been good, it's always a rude awakening to face the numbers. It's gotten to the point where it's illogical to continue unless I can make my business into something that generates some income for my family.

So I've been doing some soul searching and some scheming and have decided to give myself one more year to make it work. During this year I have a few concrete measures I plan to take to try to improve my efficiency.

stop wasting time

Time is money, right? So I am becoming acutely aware of when I am wasting it.

I have always made lots of trips to the post office, sometimes with just one measly package, and stood in line FOR-EVER! No more. I can't believe I waited so long to get a postal scale! I love this thing! It saves me gas too, because I buy the postage online and the mailman just takes the packages from my doorstep now.

A little harder to quantify, but keeping the office & studio more clean and organized is another of my measures. I just hate spending time and energy trying to find a certain fabric or trim, even just my scissors, while the clock is ticking. 15 minutes at the end of the night folding and putting away will keep it under control (I hope).

I can't do a full-on assembly line approach to my sewing now that I've decided to stop doing shows (that was last year's hard-learned lesson) and shifted to a mostly made-to-order business. There are a few tasks I can combine, though, to make the assembly process a little quicker. One thing that takes time is constantly changing the threading on the serger for different stitches. So I've started consolidating steps like rolled edging which I use on anything ruffled. When I have one thing to do on that setting, I'll go ahead and prep for future projects that I am reasonably sure I'll get an order for, like ruffle-butt bloomers. This way I'm not committing to stocking entire garments as I can use the pieces on any size, just cut them down accordingly.

keep on top of the accounting

I really should be adding up my receipts and expenses monthly. Duh! So I know if I'm veering off track. Bad me for not doing it sooner!

stop over-buying fabric

Every time my husband comes in my studio, he remarks on how much fuller it seems. How can that be if I'm selling at a decent clip in my Etsy store? Well, because my eyes are bigger than my head when it comes to buying fabric. I overestimate how many items I can physically make in general, and I buy without a always having a specific project in mind. I have been acquiring fabric at a faster rate than my actual sales. This is the year to go the other way and use up what I already have and be more selective about what I do buy.

stock certain supplies

This is counter intuitive to what I just said above, but now that I have a good feel for what I sell a lot of and what I tend to run out of all the time, it made sense for me to stock up on certain supplies like elastic, eyelet trim, and packaging. It's cheaper to buy these things in bulk. It's a time and money waster to have to run out in the middle of a project for more lace and then to pay a premium.

rethink what I sell

This is a hard one because it really is the core of the problem as much as I hate to admit it. I can't compete on price with mass produced children's clothing. I pretty much charge the the maximum amount the market will bear for, say, an appliqued onesie. Yet these onesies take 3 hours or more to complete and if you subtract the cost of materials, I pocket minimum wage at best for my work. People like them and can tell they are better than something from Walmart, but do I want to continue on this trajectory to nowhere?

pursue other creative endeavors

I have a lot more ideas than I can actually execute for my little store, but I don't want them to languish. Knowing what the profitability of my handmade business is, taking more breaks from it to pursue other things doesn't seem so bad. Actually, it's kind of freeing. The world will go on if I take time off to do a little freelance work in the apparel world or try my hand at a book proposal. Maybe I can even go for more walks or work in my garden.

Sigh! The reality-check of tax time!

fabric flower corsage tutorial

noreply@blogger.com (Becky) — Sat, 16 Mar 2013 16:51:00 +0000

The crocuses & daffodils came up this week! Spring begins next week. Easter is around the corner. It's time for flowers! I thought I'd share with you how I make my fabric flower corsages. They are lovely as an embellishment on a dress, hat, or cardigan. Nobody else does it quite like I do...

To make this fabric flower corsage, you will need:

3/4 yard fabric
paper to make pattern
serger
regular sewing machine
Fray Check
needle & thread
Strong glue like Gutterman HT2 textile glue
25mm brooch saftey pin

Begin with drafting this simple pattern.

Cutting on the bias uses more fabric, but gives the flower a wavy effect. It also looks really nice if you use a plaid or check.

Using a serger set to "rolled edge" makes a lovely finish along the edge. You could also do a tiny rolled hem by hand or using a rolled hem foot on a regular sewing machine.

Fold your edged piece in half lengthwise to define the middle.

Next, set your machine to a long stitch length and run two gather stitch lines, one on each side of the fold, about 1/4" apart.

Pull the back side threads to gather the piece to about 11".

Now keeping wrong sides touching, hold in a folded position to begin the coil.

Secure the begining of the coil with a needle and thread. Continue coiling & tacking in a circle, keeping stitching plane flat.

It will start to look like this on the other side.

This is what I mean by "flat". You don't want it to turn into a cone or it will be hard to attach the pin at the end.

You could attach the pin at this point, but for a neater finish, I like to cover the stitching with a self fabric disc. Cut a 1 1/2" diameter circle out and seal the edges with fray check. Once dry, glue it to the back. I use Gutterman Ceativ HT2 textile glue, but others may work too. It's the glue that all the frame purse makers use.

Finally, sew on the brooch pin. These are easily found at JoAnn or on Etsy. I prefer the locking kind to the kind with the safety pin action. The safety pin ones are not safe. In fact, for children, I suggest hand sewing the flower on to the item you are embellishing.

Happy Spring!

goofy valentines to download

noreply@blogger.com (Becky) — Sat, 09 Feb 2013 03:23:00 +0000

Remember when valentines were all about silly puns and not licensed characters? I have fond memories of them from grade school. The sillier the better.

My parents always made them. Dad would think of the pun and Mom would do the art. The last couple of Valentine's days, they've revived the tradition with the help of Photoshop. I'm filled with nostalgia whenever we get them, and the kids think they're pretty funny too. Mom, also known as collage & mixed media artist, Rosemary Luckett, has agreed to let me offer 8 valentines for free downloading here! Just don't go trying to make a million dollars selling them- they are for personal use only, please. They are arranged 4 to a sheet, just print on card stock, and cut them apart with an exacto to make flat cards. Enjoy!

Happy Valentines Day!

printing a fabric design on spoonflower

noreply@blogger.com (Becky) — Sat, 02 Feb 2013 13:43:00 +0000

Can I just say how excited I am to be in possession of my first yard of fabric digitally printed with my very own artwork on Spoonflower? It is such a treat to do a design, send it off, and have it in my hands within a week!

When I work for clothing companies, it takes at least 6 weeks for a traditionally printed approval swatch and then another few months for the final yardage. And here's the kicker- a common minimum for traditionally printed fabric is 3000 yards. On Spoonflower, the minimum is 1 yard or a 5" swatch. As a clothing designer, the freedom that this allows is like a door opening wide. It allows a small company to test a print, make up samples, and show to buyers quickly without having to commit to a large run of yardage. With so little investment at stake, there's nothing stopping a designer from experimenting. If you wind up needing mega yardage, digital is probably not the way to go- printing just one yard takes several minutes and the cost is relatively high- but many times you don't need that much and for that, digital is perfect.

And if the low minimum & convenience is not enough, the Spoonflower process is eco-friendly! Traditional printing results in gallons and gallons of excess toxic dye being dumped into the environment at the end of the run. Spoonflower uses dye that is eco-friendly, and because of the nature of the digital printing process, uses only the amount of dye needed for the yardage being printed. AND this all happens relatively nearby in North Carolina, USA as opposed to China or Japan. No airmail necessary! My tree-hugging side is satisfied!

the nitty gritty
When printing through Spoonflower, you will have to submit artwork that is in repeat so your design is seamless. For the general idea of how to do a repeat, this post on Design Sponge gives a good basic idea. For digital printing, you won't be able to make suitable artwork without Adobe Illustrator and Photoshop or something similar. Taking a course in Illustrator was one of the best things I ever did, so I highly recommend it (then you can get the student price on the software which is a plus!).

I like to start with hand-drawn artwork so it will have some spontaneity to it, then scan it into Illustrator, and finish it there. I'm working in an 8" square and black & white knowing I'll increase the scale later and recolor. I just want it to be a manageable size for scanning. I fill the middle of my square with motifs covering a general diamond shape area that comes close to the edges on the points.

Then I open a new file in Illustrator set up the document to have an 8'x8" artboard. I scan in the rough art, resize as necessary, and use "live trace", then "expand" to convert it to vector art. It's important to have the setting "snap to grid" turned on for the next steps. I ungroup the elements and delete the white. I make a new 8" x 8" white background and "send to back" to simplify things. Now I chop art through the middle vertically using the "divide objects below" function. Then I swap the position of the 2 pieces so the middle part of the art is now touching the edges. For a regular repeat, you would do the same thing again, horizontally, so now your artwork is positioned in the corners. I decided to be fancy, though, and do a half-drop repeat, so I only chopped one side horizontally. My design will line up when offset half a step across the width of the fabric.

Once the edges are set up, you can fill in the middle. I scan in a few more motifs, fill in gaps here and there, and shuffle elements around until I like it. If any other shapes need to overlap the edge, I make sure they line up by positioning a twin on the other side and snapping it to the same position on the grid. Tricky, yes, and time-consuming with a pattern this intricate. Patterns with more ground spacing are definitely easier to put into repeat.

I double check the repeat by copying the artboard, opening a new layer and placing the copies as they would repeat. Sure enough, I see a few spots that need adjusting, so I tweak and repeat the process until the edges line up exactly. For a true preview, you can temporarily expand your artboard to include the repeating parts and print. The paper doesn't lie.

It's a busy design, so I like it best with just 2 colors on a white ground. To recolor, switch the color mode from black & white to RGB and go to town. If color matching is important you can use Spoonflower's color map which you can have mailed to you on actual fabric. I was too impatient, so I didn't bother, but I think I will get it for the future.

To finalize the artwork, copy the contents of the artboard and "paste pixels" into a new document in Photoshop. Here is where you will determine the final size of your print. Spoonflower prints at 150 dpi, so I input that under image>size and go from there. I decided to resample my image to be 14" square. Since this is sharp 3-color artwork, I save as a .png file. Jpegs work too.

Now to decide which fabric to print on...When they first opened, Spoonflower only offered basic cotton. Now they have 10 choices including silk crepe de chine ($38) and wallpaper too. The basic cotton is the cheapest at $17. I chose linen/cotton canvas ($27) because I thought it would be nice for an apron, tote bag, or pillow. The prompts are pretty easy to follow on the Spoonflower site...and voilà!

The fabric got here so quickly, I never fully decided what to do with it. What should I make?

winter clover market 2013

noreply@blogger.com (Becky) — Mon, 28 Jan 2013 03:05:00 +0000

One of my favorite indie craft shows in the Philadelphia area has added a new indoor venue to it's seasonal schedule. You can now shop the Clover Market in January! It was today at the 23rd Street Armory in Philadelphia, so if you missed it you'll have to settle for putting the Ardmore spring shows on your calendar (April 14, May 19, & June9). In the meantime you can visit the vendors' online stores. And to whet your appetite, here's some eye candy from the day...

Jay McCarroll

Brush with fame! If you follow project Runway, this face is probably familiar to you. It's Jay McCarroll, the winner of PR's first season. He had a booth full of items made from printed fabrics from his line by Free Spirit. He gamely posed with gushing fans non-stop while my friends and I perused his wares.

wristlets by Janet McCarroll

His sister, Janet, stitched up these modern little wristlet purses.

Jay McCarrol printed skirts

The offbeat, cheerful point of view we got to know on the show 8 years ago is still evident in Jay's colorful work today. Nice guy.

{me}longings

One of my Etsy faves was there to day, too: {me}longings studio. Chanee Vijay designs and hand block prints her modern patterns using water-based inks on sustainably grown fibers.

{me}longings

The effect of the metallic printing is so beautiful in person. Earthy. Modern. Elegant.

Picked Vintage

The Picked Vintage booth was full of midcentury goodness. I love this vignette with the rope chair and the 1970's telephones. The owner, Jen, has such good taste, you should stop by their website for her latest finds.

French Vanilla

French Vanilla doesn't have a web store, but they can be found at shows like Brooklyn Flea as well as the Clover Market. Lots of cool accessories with patina.

French Vanilla

I fell in love with these kitchy oil portrait painting that proprietor Peg VanDyne bought at the estate sale of an art teacher. They remind me so much of the ones on the walls at Fishs Eddy in NYC, but those aren't for sale- these are. Contact her at fv.antiques@yahoo.com if you're interested. I tried to convince her to at least get a Facebook page going to show off her finds...I hope she'll take my advice!

from Hook Lady

Is this not the most adorable doorknocker for your cottage in the woods? It's a vintage reproduction by Judy Spivak of Hook Lady. She carries a nice mix of vintage & vintage reproduction hooks, brackets, doorknobs, etc.

Bee Vintage Redux

Bee Vinage Redux had the sweetest jewelry recycled from vintage pieces. I'm loving the dogwood motif.

Bee Vintage Redux

Charming tote bags appliqued with vintage handkerchiefts. Lovely!

Yumtown

The food trucks did not disappoint. Why does it feel cooler to buy food from a truck? I don't know, but Yumtown had a menu featuring locally sourced, fresh ingredients. That's pretty cool.

A visit to the Clover Market is never complete without some cupcakes. There's my friend Karen, the cupcake connoiseur, splurging on a dozen from Sweet Box. She bravely included the bacon-maple flavor in the mix which is just a tad out of my comfort zone, but supposedly it's good!

Well that's it for my round-up. Keep shopping small!

healthy coconut shrimp recipe

noreply@blogger.com (Becky) — Tue, 08 Jan 2013 01:20:00 +0000

Feeling overstuffed after the holidays and tired of winter already, I am consumed by two urges:
1- to start eating healthy again
2- to go on a tropical vacation
But who am I kidding? The vacation isn't happening, but we can pretend. Coconut shrimp should do the trick! I always order this if I see in on a restaurant menu, so I've had it prepared by many chefs, but it is always deep-fried. I've experimented at home and have had trouble with the deep frying method. The coconut tends to fall off and it just feels oily. I like more crunch and I don't like to see those paper towels saturated with oil. I invented a healthier version that is baked, very crunchy, and totally satisfying. I've tested this on my family and it just gets scarfed up in no time.

crunchy baked coconut shrimp

by Rebecca Harkin

Start by oven-toasting the coconut & panko crumbs separately, spread evenly on 2 cookie sheets at 350° for 5 minutes or until they turn golden brown. Stirring part way through might be necessary if browning is uneven. Mix toasted crumbs and coconut in a medium bowl with red pepper flakes. In another bowl, beat 2 eggs. In a third bowl, mix flour, salt, & pepper. Dredge the shrimp in flour mixture first, dip in the egg until coated, then roll in the coconut/breadcrumb mixture. Really cake it on. Place the shrimp on a cooling rack coated with cooking spray on top of a cookie sheet. Bake this way at 350° for 15 minutes, or until shrimp are opaque. Serve with mango chutney or cocktail sauce for dipping. Great at an entree with Caribbean rice & beans.

serves 2-4 as an entree, more as an appetizer

The shrimp don't need very long to cook, so pre-toasting the breading essential, otherwise the shrimp will look undercooked.

Toast them separately, though, and keep a close eye on it. It's easy to burn them.

The breading step is pretty standard.

Baking the shrimp on a cooling rack on top of a cookie sheet allows the heat to get around all sides for even cooking.

Turn on the reggae and serve as an appetizer with mango chuntey (and/or cocktail sauce) or make it an entree with Caribbean beans & rice and a salad.

photo by Dana Harkin

Have a lovely vacation!

memory pillow project

noreply@blogger.com (Becky) — Sun, 30 Dec 2012 16:37:00 +0000

A dear friend asked me to help her out with some pillows she wanted to make for her nephews for Christmas. Their grandfather had passed away and she wanted to use some of his old clothes to make mementos for them. She and I went to RISD together, so we are on the same wave-length aesthetically. She said she wanted pillows pieced in the"Gee's Bend" style.

"Blocks and Strips" by Mary Lee Bendolph (photo Tinwood Media)

If you're not familiar with Gee's Bend, the name refers to the rural town in Alabama, a mostly black community with a history of economic struggles, but a strong sense of community. The tradition of quilting carried on there through the civil war, various economic upheavals including the Great Depression, floods of the Alabama River, and on to the present day.

"Housetop" by Lillie Mae Pettway (photo by Tinwood Media)

The quilts were made with available scraps of worn-out clothes with the freedom and innocence of "outsider art" although they were created for strictly practical purposes much like Amish quilts were. A collector discovered them in the late '90's, bought up hundreds of them and began exhibiting them. When viewed out of context in museums like the Whitney, they are bold, striking modern art. The book about them is wonderful. Auburn University has a wealth of information on them as well as a nice catalog.

The pile of items my friend sent looked random at first glance, but that's what you want if you're emulating the Gee's Bend style.

Many of the Gee's Bend Quilts are variations on the "Log Cabin" quilt pattern. I find this pattern lends itself to creating a spontaneous effect, as long as you don't measure anything, that is. Starting with a squarish shape, strips can be added on the outside edges, working in succession around it until you have the size you're after. True things as you go, or not. It's better if there is some unevenness to it.

I decided to keep the shirt pockets intact, because I think boys find them fun and it is more of a reminder that this was Grandpa's shirt. I also added a few of my own scraps of chambray to help make everything hang together more. But what you definitely don't want is to get matchy-matchy with it.

I also keep the button plackets intact for the backs for the perfect way to get the insert in & out for washing.

I tried not to be as anal as I usually am and just go with it. It actually goes very quickly when you're not trying to be precise. At the end, I trued it all up to the dimension of the pillow.

I hope they like them!

a swedish christmas

noreply@blogger.com (Becky) — Fri, 07 Dec 2012 22:10:00 +0000

I'm not Swedish, I've never been to Sweden, but I love the idea of a Swedish Christmas. I imagine clean, bright colors + rustic straw ornaments all popping off of a whitewashed background filled with a mix of chippy Gustavian antiques and IKEA furniture. I imagine modest but well-designed handmade gifts, simply wrapped and the smell of gingerbread in the air. I imagine clomping around in some red clogs, wearing a ragg wool sweater. I have no idea if I am accurate in my fantasy, but I found a few things on the internets that fit my vision...

vintage red & white wallpaper-from smilemercantile
illustration of Stockholm- by annasee
traditional pepparkakor cookie recipe (thinner, crispier version of gingersnaps)- by The Wandering Cook
dala horse pillow- by LittleputtStudio
dala horse appliqué onesie-by chirp & bloom
Swedish clogs by Troentorp- from shoebuy
traditional Swedish straw ornament- similar on ebay
vintage dala horse- similar on Etsy

I find the dala horse especially charming, so I made up an appliquéd onesie for the shop. I always like an excuse to use my floral ribbons.

God Jul!

antiquing in chadds ford, pa

noreply@blogger.com (Becky) — Fri, 07 Sep 2012 02:38:00 +0000

Fall is coming and for me that means prime antiquing time! I don't know why, but I'm only in the mood for it in the fall.

click to enlarge

Being in Wilmington, we're lucky enough to be near some great antique stores. There's the whole Amish area in and around Lancaster, PA, but even closer is a string of stores along Rt1(Baltimore Pike) in Chadd's Ford, PA. You could spend all day in the area between Rt 202 & Rt 52 (closer to 52).
A Brandywine River antiques (aka "The White Barn")
B Pennsbury Chadds Ford Antique Mall
C Springhouse Antiques
D Brandywine View Antiques

Brandywine View Antiques

This coming weekend, September 8 & 9, is a great time to go because Brandywine View is having it's annual "Massive Barn Market". You've gotta be tempted!


The big chair at Brandywine View

As you're zooming along Rt 1, you might miss the sign, but you'll notice the humongous chair on the front porch. My friend Maria humored me by climbing into it when we were there a while back.

chairs at Brandywine View

They also have regular-size chairs.

salvage at Brandywine View

And a good deal of architectural salvage.

Brandywine View

Inside is 5000 square feet of furniture & accessories.

Proprieter Lisa keeps the inventory turning over constantly. You can often find her with a truckful at the Clover Market in Ardmore, PA.

All these pictures are from Brandywine View because I was just there, but believe me, the other stores nearby are each really good. The White Barn is the biggest- it just goes on and on...

You'll surely be hungry after all that antiquing and you won't be too far from Terrain at Styers, the garden store that has a cafe inside. Closer to the actual stores is the Chadd's Ford Winery tasting room in case you get thirsty;)

Let me know if you go...

what to do with peaches

noreply@blogger.com (Becky) — Thu, 09 Aug 2012 15:25:00 +0000

It's peach (and mango) season! The orchard up the road has beautiful juicy peaches right now. I don't bother with the mealy ones you can get at the supermarket. I could eat them for dessert every day.

I've already made cobbler and pie about a dozen times, so I thought I'd consult the cookbook a friend gave me, Mary Angela's Best of Everything, for something different. It's written by her talented-in-the-kitchen mother-in-law, Mary Angela Morgan.

She self-published the book which is very impressive because it looks like it's off the shelves of Barnes and Noble. Even has section tabs like my trusty Betty Crocker cookbook. I've actually been looking into what it takes to have a book published through traditional channels and basically, you have to be at least semi-famous already to get a book deal, especially for a cookbook.

Here's the recipe I made:

Mangoes & Peaches in Port Wine Syrup

by Mary Angela Morgan

The combination of the lemon zest and the Port wine make this recipe. The flavor is bright and sophisticated at the same time. Port wine has not been on my radar since I caught my grandmother taking a surreptitious swig of it in the pantry once. She loved her Port... perhaps a bit too much. I've started sneaking it into my cobbler now too (just a Tablespoon) for that extra little "je ne sais quois".

In a medium sauce pan stir sugar, water, and Port wine over medium heat until sugar dissolves. Add lemon zest (don't use that dry stuff!); bring to a boil. Lower heat and simmer uncovered 8 t0 10 minutes or until reduced to a medium thick syrup.

Add peach and mango slices. Mangoes can be tricky to cut up because of the big seed inside. There is a video of how to do it here.

Mangoes can be tricky to cut up because of the big seed inside. There is a video of how to do it here.

Simmer 1 minute. Transfer to a serving bowl to cool. Cover and chill for several hours. Serve in clear dessert bowls.

I served this to my own mother-in-law and got the thumbs-up. Enjoy!

salvaged denim headboard

noreply@blogger.com (Becky) — Sat, 04 Aug 2012 17:33:00 +0000

I finished this headboard for my little boy last week! I don't often make things that are NOT for my Etsy store these days, so it took a while. The idea was percolating on my back burner for over a year. At first I thought of making a quilt, but the little guy liked the idea of the padded headboard we made for the guest room, so the idea morphed into a headbaord. I decided to make it fancier than the guest room one by boxing out the sides and adding a back so the cover is removable for washing.

I've built up quite a hoard of denim cast-offs from family & from thrifting. What's the point of hoarding if you're never going to make anything out of it, right?

To make this project I used:

If you were doing a single fabric stapled on, this would basically be your only step besides adding the hangers to the back. Layer the muslin, batting, foam and plywood to form the headboard base. Be sure to cut about 12" extra in height & with of the muslin & batting, so there is enough to wrap around the edges for stapling. You can always trim off the extra later.

To make the cover, I tried different layouts before cutting. I wanted light & dark to alternate. I debated whether to mix in some pocket-free squares and decided only to do that on the bottom row where the mattress and pillow would cover it anyway.

Since my headboard is 40" x 30", I made my pieces 10" x 10" squares (with the exception on the bottom four pieces)- just perfect for keeping pockets & details intact. The actual pieces including seam allowances measure 11" x 11" before sewing. Don't forget seam allowances! For the bottom four pieces, I added on 2" or so in height, so there would be extra to wrap underneath and meet up with the back to close the bottom. A separate band gets sewn on later to box out the top & sides.

One thing I learned is denim is THICK! Be sure you are using a heavy duty needle meant for denim. Also, most finished edges are not square. To make sewing easier and keep my pieces as close to square as possible, I fudged new edges in some places. By lapping on a trim piece that would become the seam allowance I avoided having to sew though all those extra bulky layers of a waistband with belt loops..

With the layout finalized, it's ready to sew together. At the thickest points, I found myself turning the wheel of the machine by hand rather than pressing the pedal, just to be safe. An industrial machine could plow through this, no problem, but I'm limited to my trusty Babylock.

Oh, and just to be hard on myself, I decided to pipe around the edges of the headboard. I made bias strips out of the same denim I was using for the sides and back and made my own piping. Use a zipper foot to get your stitches close to the bulge of the cord. You could certainly opt to skip this step.

I basted before sewing just to keep all this heavy fabric from slipping around. Then I sewed on the sides (a strip, 4" wide to accomodate the 3" foam + seam allowances) and back (same dimensions as the front out of denim yardage) leaving excess at the bottom to safety pin shut. If I were to do this again, I'd make reduce the width of the side piece by 1/4" since it came out a bit loose. Denim has a good deal of give. I contemplated a velco closure, but I was so worn out by the piping, that I took the easy way out. and just pinned it

Even easier would be omitting the piping and back, making a deep enough side panel to wrap around to the back for stapling.

Before slipping the cover on, I had my husband attach the flush mount hangers to the plywood back and to the wall. A level and accurate measuring come in handy for this. Then I slipped on the cover and cut holes in the back to expose the hangers.

Now my boy has a place to store his flashlights and other doodads in easy reach at night!

springtime at the union square greenmarket, nyc

noreply@blogger.com (Becky) — Sun, 20 May 2012 14:11:00 +0000

cherry blossom

I know it's almost summer, but Happy Spring!!!

I love a good farmers market, so when I was up in New York city last, I went to the Union Square Greenmarket with my friend Maria. She goes every Saturday, but it's open Mondays, Wednesdays & Fridays also.

forsythia

pussy willows

wheatgrass

A new Yorker's substitute for a lawn.

Healthy stuff!

Hmmm... did not know this.

Not so heathy stuff.

Ok, the bread gives it away- we were there on St. Patrick's Day, so I'm a tad late with posting these.

I'm in the mood now to go explore an Amish market a little closer to home... stay tuned!

store crush: purl soho

noreply@blogger.com (Becky) — Sat, 24 Mar 2012 20:55:00 +0000

On my window shopping trip to SoHo last weekend, a friend reminded me about the Purl SOHO store at 459 Broome Street.

I was already familiar with them from their blog, the Purl bee. Finally a chance to go there!

I used to be a sweater designer & knitter, but I got burned out on it after doing it too long. For the first time in a long while I was tempted to knit something...

They are not just a knitting store. They also have a nice selection of modern craft supplies like the good kind of felt: wool.

And the best quilting cottons from the Denyse Shmidt, Kokka, Moda, and the like.

Embroidery hoops: what a cute way to show off their fabric selection in the entryway.

Oh, and there are the Liberty prints too. I just drooled over the selection. Liberty cottons are not cheap, though- something like $37/yard. But at least they are 54" wide, not 44" like most. We know we're not here for bargains, anyway. Just the best.

Purl is fully stocked in all things embroidery too, from floss to needlepoint wool, to books galore. Books on everything and only the best, most enticingly designed ones.

Definitely worth the detour!

window shopping in soho

noreply@blogger.com (Becky) — Mon, 19 Mar 2012 17:08:00 +0000

Spring has sprung in SoHo!

L'Occitane

On my recent fabric shopping trip to NYC, I took a detour to SoHo for some window shopping. It's a cool high rent area famous for it's lofts and industrial past. The former factory buildings and warehouses look like tall wedding cakes to me. The don't make 'em like that anymore!

SoHo is short for "south of Houston" (pronounced How-ston- don't give yourself away if you're a tourist). It is bordered on the South by Canal Street where Chinatown starts.

click to enlarge the map

There didn't used to be so many chain stores, but all the shops make an effort with their window displays down here. I managed to snap a few with my suitcase full of fabric in tow (not recommended).

BCBG

BCBG at 120 Wooster: full-on spring with bright color and scarf pattern prints.

Lucky Brand

Lucky Brand at 38 Greene Street: Bright fuchsia balanced with neutrals and cheetah print thrown in. Love the macrame bag!

JNBY

JNBY at 75 Greene Street: I guess tutus are here to stay. The bright yellow + khaki + white is unexpected. I like it.

Tibi

Tibi at 120 Wooster: pastels made sophisticated by tempering with tan & black.

Kate Spade

Kate Spade at 454 Broome Street: as always, crisp, bright, & fun. It's hard to see, but the mannequins have tennis raquets in their hair ;)

Giggle

Giggle, the baby store for überyuppies at 120 Wooster: irresistibly cute & modern baby stuff.

Giggle

Giggle carries Jonathan Adler's baby bags, Dwell bedding, Tea company clothes, and the latest in high end strollers and gear.

Wink

Wink at 129 Prince: embracing the bright accessories!

Crew Cuts

Crew Cuts in the J.Crew store at 99 Prince Street: the kids collection can seemingly do no wrong. They are so good at their styling and modernizing preppy.

Club Monaco

Club Monaco at 520 Broadway: soft transitional colors that are perfect for right now, but I'll never do the sock + sandals thing.

Liberty print at APC at 131 Mercer. That one's a classic.

Ralph Lauren

And finally, Ralph Lauren at 379 West Broadway, doing navy & white for early spring... again... but he can get away with it I guess. Still want to be her.

My next posting will be all about my new store crush in SoHo...

making sewn valentine's day cards

noreply@blogger.com (Becky) — Sat, 11 Feb 2012 00:35:00 +0000

We are officially ready for Valentine's Day. For once I got a jump on a holiday and had the kids make cards a little bit in advance. We tried something different this year: sewn cards. You can sew perfectly fine through card stock, so that's what we did this year. I found these scalloped flat cards at Staples (sorry, couldn't find the cards on their website). They come in maybe 8 colors with mix & match envelopes.

I am nothing if not well stocked with fabric scraps, so the kids went to town picking fabrics to cut into heart shapes. I tried not to interfere with their choices. The more naive, the better with these cards.

I had them cut out hearts freehand, some with pinking sheers and some with standard scissors.

Both of my kids like to use the sewing machine. There is nothing special to sewing on the paper and any crookedness makes them better, I think.

I'm not a scrapbookin' type, but I recently got this set of vintage-style alphabet rubber stamps from Etsy. Lots of supply shops carry them, but set your search to "shop local" (ie. USA) if you don't want to deal with overseas shipping. They are perfect for finishing off the cards and, well, scrapbooking too ;)

Happy Valentine's Day!

test driving iron-on vinyl

noreply@blogger.com (Becky) — Wed, 25 Jan 2012 03:43:00 +0000

January is my month for decluttering and sprucing things up around the house. I've been working like a dog on everyplace but my office and studio, but at least the kids' art room is looking good. It's not really a room, more of a breakfast nook that got taken over by the rascals and is furnished with the last remnants of my husband's college furniture. Since the furniture isn't precious it's ok that paint gets on it, but it's January and I'm feeling anal. I can't stand the sight of these dirty seat covers another minute. And I'm over that floral. The original cane seats are long gone, replaced with plywood topped with 1" foam and they've been recovered over and over with the help of my trusty staple gun.

Well, I'm recovering them again, but this time might be the last because I'm trying out a new product that I think is gonna be my new favorite: iron-on vinyl! A few years ago, I looked into having fabric laminated for these chairs and it turned out to be something like $20 per yard with a 5 yard minimum, so I didn't pursue it. Then I came across this Therm O Web iron on vinyl at JoAnn's and bought some to play with.

It comes in matte or shiny & I got the matte. It reminds me a lot of the laminating stuff you can get for paper at the office supply store.

It has a waxy paper backing that you peel off to reveal a tacky side.

You place the vinyl tacky side down onto the front of your fabric and then smooth out the bubbles. You can still peel it back up at this point if you notice a wrinkle or a thread stuck in there.

Then you take the backing you just peeled off and use it as your press cloth. The directions say to do the ironing on a firm surface like a table, heat on medium. There's no toxic odor like I was expecting either.

After it cools, peel back the paper and voilà! Vinyl-coated fabric!

And my favorite part: the stapling...

Instant gratification!

ins and outs 2012

noreply@blogger.com (Becky) — Mon, 02 Jan 2012 00:04:00 +0000

floral new year card by thevysherbarium

Out with the old! I grew up in the Washington DC area and always looked forward to the Washington Post's in & out list on January 1. I don't now how long they've been doing it, but it's been a long time if I can remember it from childhood. Here is the famous Post list and a few others just for fun:

The Washington Post (ie. OUT: Pippa's bum/IN: Kate's uterus)
Food Network
WTOP radio
Travel Channel
Mercury News

It's gonna be a good year, I think, even though the Washington Post says Etsy is "out" and Art.sy is now "in". Gonna have to check that one out...

block printed christmas wrap project

noreply@blogger.com (Becky) — Thu, 15 Dec 2011 16:11:00 +0000

This week, I don't know what happened, but I was seized by a fit of craftiness à la Martha Stewart. Maybe it was residual inspiration from my trip to Galbraith & Paul a couple of weeks ago. I corralled the kids and put them to work on making some Christmas wrap. I had a couple of rolls of kraft paper and some other supplies, it was raining, and I just didn't feel like going out to Target for the store bought stuff. The kids wound up having a blast with it, so it was a win-win. And I do think it adds a nice handmade touch to our gifts.

To do this project you will need:
-package of sticky-back foam sheets
-scissors
-pen
-washable kids' paint such as Crayola
-paint brushes
-plastic plates to use as palettes
-small foam rollers (optional)
-wood scraps such as from a 1x4 board
-roll of kraft paper

The foam self-stick sheets we picked up at Michael's were on the thin side, so we doubled them up before cutting our shapes. Thicker is better for clear prints. Simple shapes work best (the bell/toilet plunger shape didn't make the cut). The most complicated shape was the Santa had because it requires 2 colors of paint.

We didn't have any rollers on hand so we used the spread & dunk method. Spread the paint fairly thin with a brush on the plate and dunk the stamp in it.

Coverage should look about like this- not too goopy. If you have rollers, roll on the paint and it will give a similar effect, more even to tell the truth, but we let go of our perfectionist tendencies for this. Or you can use a paintbrush to apply the paint thinly to the stamp.

Then stamp away, reloading between each stamping.

Hours of fun for the kiddos, especially if you have your Charlie Brown Christmas cd playing in the background and Christmasy junk food to nosh on.

in the christmas spirit at terrain

noreply@blogger.com (Becky) — Fri, 09 Dec 2011 01:59:00 +0000

It was a good day to get out of the studio. It was the first sunny day in a while, and a call from a friend to go meet for coffee at the Cafe at Terrain in Glen Mills, PA was all the enticing I needed.

I always liked the old Styers, the nursery that Anthropologie bought to transform into their flagship lifestyle garden store, but it was more of a nuts & bolts kind of place. It didn't have a cafe, much of a gift shop, or quite the panache that Terrain has. I miss the plant selection though.

The seasonal displays here are always so irresistible. (Go here to see fall's displays) This winter's theme: rustic & cozy.

A little tartan.

A little woodland.

Time to start some paperwhites and amaryllis.

Winterberries. Yes it's finally December. All we need now is a picturesque dusting of snow!

hand block printed textiles by galbraith & paul

noreply@blogger.com (Becky) — Mon, 05 Dec 2011 17:51:00 +0000

We couldn't stay away. Beth & I made the trek again into Manayunk, PA for Galbraith and Paul's annual sample sale on Saturday. I swore I'd never come back to Manayunk after getting 2 parking tickets in one day last time, but I was so bummed-out that my camera didn't work then, that I was able to be persuaded. I just am so heartened to see a handmade business thriving right here in the USA and on this scale. People fly in for this sale. The fabric is highly sought-after. I'm sure they've felt the pressure to get the price down by taking production off-shore, but so far the fabrics are all made here.

It was the usual feeding frenzy with the piles of pillows and the "by the pound" scrap table seeing a lot of action. I was tempted to start a new decorating project, but I only just finished the padded headboard using the smokebush printed linen I bought here last year.

Originally, Galbraith & Paul were known for their handmade paper lampshades. Now the lampshades are fabric. Room and Board carries the pillows & lampshades. They have also ventured into rugs and wallpaper.

So mod- so fab!

A complicated pattern like this takes either multiple blocks and/or requires hand painting more than one color on a block. It requires skilled artisans to execute.

These are some of the "blocks".

The ink is applied with these little rollers.

Just like at the paint store!

My friend Beth's new best friend: Liz Galbraith. Mr Paul was working the register. Even Liz's little boys were helping customers.

A glimpse of future designs on the pin-up board in Liz's studio. The loveliness continues...