Autumn at Terrain

I stopped by Terrain at Styer's yesterday. For those of you not familiar with Terrain, it's part of the Anthropologie brand. It's the first store of its kind by the style maven, and it's right here in Chester County Pennsylvania! I feel pretty lucky to have it so close by. For all you Anthro fanatics who live across the country (or across the world) here's a peak into what the shop is looking like now that Autumn is here.

Terrain is made up of a collection of buildings converted from rugged old barns. Or are they greenhouses? Yes, I was definitely in at least one greenhouse. I think. As I'm writing this, I'm realizing, although I've been there numerous times, I don't really know for sure if the greenhouses are actual greenhouse or just more barns with big windows. The place is sort of overwhelming because there is so much to look at and everything is so lovely. Be they barns or greenhouse, they each house a varied collection of plants, garden supplies, housewares, books - even a skin care line. The spaces are bright and airy, and I find myself relaxed and invigorated (with all the ideas I'm inspired by) at the same time.

The first thing that struck me was this grid of metal troughs (funnels? cake decorating tips?). Can't you just imagine flowers cascading over the edge of each one? It would create a spectacular wall of color.  Even without flowers it still looks super cool - creating a modern, edgy effect.

They have a lot of plants and shrubs on sale right now in prep for the changing season (always looking ahead to the next great thing.). I really love this Variegated False Holly. I'm not exactly sure why it's called "False" but assume it has something to do with the fact it's not technically a holly. Whatever the reason, it's lovely to look at. Very striking.

Then I wandered over to the sale corner in one of the green houses where I found this adorable little rabbit planter.

They also had a selection of dried wreaths for sale which made me regret throwing out all those lovely dried cones from my Echinacea a couple weeks ago. Next year I think I'll try to make a wreath with them (along with some other dried flowers and herbs).

I'm a big fan of succulents, so I was really drawn to this planter made out of, what looks like,  concrete with aggregate mixed in.

Eventually, I ended up in the main building that houses all the books, furniture, and decor-related items as well as the skin care line and, if you wander far enough, the cafe. There I found these adorable little velvet pumpkins. The stems are real, but the pumpkins are made out of soft velvet in a host or gorgeous fall colors. They felt like they were stuffed with buckwheat or something similar. Charming, don't you think?

One of my favorite sections of the main building, is this wall of succulents. I could have bought one of each. It's probably one of the largest succulent selections I've seen.

There was an entire section devoted to canning complete with Weck canning jars and several books to guide you on your quest to preserve all that garden bounty.

I also found these colorful strainers that I thought would really come in handy in the kitchen. They come in a pack of three - each color a different size. Perfect for straining loose tea.

I loved these colorful fall napkins - perfect for Thanksgiving.

And or course, I'm also mesmerized by Terrain's unique selection of natural wreaths. Aren't they gorgeous?

If you have a chance, stop by Terrain at Styer's. It's a lovely place to spend an hour or two...in any season!

A Bird For a Skirt: It's Finished!

The skirt is finally finished! Doesn't Barbie look fantastic!?

Here's a quick recap...

Barbie painted me this lovely bird:

And in return, I made here this cute little skirt:

I'd say it worked out pretty well for both of us. You can read more about it here, here, and here.
Anyone else working on any fun projects? Anyone else trade skill for skill?

Back To the Start

I found this video on Daisy Janie's blog this morning...



Thought it was worth sharing.

A Bird For a Skirt: Day 3

I made a TON of progress on the skirt over the weekend. If you missed the first two posts about the skirt, you can view them here and here.

When we last left off, I had just finished the pleats on the skirt front (step 3).

Steps 4 - 6: Pockets!
When you cut out a pattern, your fabric is typically folded in half so you're cutting through two layers of fabric and end up with two of each pattern piece. When I unpinned the pocket facing from the pattern piece, I noticed the fabric must not have been lined up properly because the bottom facing piece looked like this:

so I re-pinned the pattern to some of the leftover fabric...

...and cut out another pocket facing...

then I pinned the pocket facings to the skirt front.

Once the facings were attached, I stitched the pockets to the pocket facings.

You can really see the pockets starting to form here.

Steps 7 - 9: Skirt Back
I stitched the two back sections together, leaving the top section unstitched in preparation for adding the zipper.

You can see in the photo above that I also created the pleats for the back of the skirt.

Steps 10 - 18: Yoke and Zipper
Then I added the yoke, which is basically the waist band and its lining. It consists of one long strip for the front and two smaller pieces, which will be separated by the zipper, for the back. I cut two of each piece for a total of six pieces or two sets of three.

On one set I applied fusible interfacing to the wrong side of the fabric. If you look closely you can see it in the photo above. I cut it about a half an inch smaller than the fabric. 

Fusible interfacing gives fabric some heft, which is perfect for a waste band. It has two sides, a smooth side and a rougher side, which is the side with the "glue" that sticks to the fabric once you iron it. 

You cut out the shape you need, lay it (rough side down) on the wrong side of your fabric, place a damp cloth on top and set an iron over the cloth for about fifteen seconds.  Then move on to the next section until all interfacing is fused to the fabric.

Once the interfacing had been applied, I stitched the two yokes together (fused and unfused). 

Here's the waist band after I attached it to the skirt.

After that I added the zipper. Sorry, I forgot to take pictures. Got a bit distracted by sewing (go figure). After that, all I had to do was add the bottom brown fabric band to the main skirt body. 

Steps 19 - 22 Finishing (A.K.A. Add band of brown fabric)

Barbie had requested that I add some red rick rack between the skirt and the bottom band, so I stitched that onto the skirt first and then added the brown band.

Stay tuned for the big reveal tomorrow!

At Home: Living Room update

I think it's probably about time to update everyone on the living room progress. Earlier this summer, I decided the room needed a major change, so I went to Home Depot with a sample of my rug and found a color I thought would be perfect. From what I can determine, most people spend a lot of time deciding on paint colors for their home. They go to the store, get paint samples, bring them home, tape them to the wall, think about the options for a while and eventually select a color. I am not one of those people. Once I decide to do something with my home (and actually start the process), I'm rather impatient, so I tend I go with my gut instinct. I definitely spend a bit of time looking at my options, but once I figure out what I like, I just go with it. Such was the case with the new living room paint color.

Before we get much further, here's a couple before shots, so you can see how heavy and dark everything was.

Pretty bad huh? Don't worry, it gets better.

Our rug is a blue/grey color so I wanted to select a paint that picked up on the rug but in a much lighter shade. I ended up going with "Limelight" by Behr. It doesn't exactly sound like a good match based on the name, but I find paint names to often be grossly misleading. I decided to get the paint and primer in one because the sales associate recommended it and because my new paint was MUCH lighter than my old paint.

Once I started painting the walls, things began to feel much more modern. The new color really brightened things up and I started to think maybe I should paint the built-in bookcase too (in a glossy white). I talked about it and pondered the idea for a while. I knew it was going to be a HUGE project. The built-in is pine which is full of knots that are notorious for bleeding through paint. I definitely needed to prime that sucker first. In order to save a bit of time I again sprung for the paint and primer in one by Behr. It's a bit pricier, but that stuff is pretty thick and although I still had to apply three coats, I think it would have taken even more had I gone the traditional route of separate primer and paint. In the end, I think the living room turned out really nicely. Quite a change from the old version.

At Home: Simple Things

So often, I find the things that make me the happiest are often the simplest. Like this little corner of my kitchen that houses a collection of tea bag holders and mini salt and pepper shakers from my grandmother, a framed print from a friend, and an Ikea silverware holder repurposed as a planter (with rabbit, of course!).

Adventures in Bookbinding

Earlier this summer, I made a set of three journals in a box as a birthday gift for my dear friend Julie. I had grandiose plans (as usual) of making a bunch of linocuts and printing up cards for her too, but that never happened. Finally, I decided I just needed to mail the book to her before she was another year older. So I bit the bullet, wrapped it up and sent it off. Now that she's received it, I can blog about it!

Years ago, I purchased a book by Sue Dogget titled, Bookworks. Every so often, I'll pull it down off the shelf and swoon over all the exquisitely detailed book designs featured between the covers of this inspirational book. Over the years, I've experimented with some of the simpler projects like pamphlet folding and the basic sewing it involves. I've also made some basic hardcover journals with mixed success, but I could never find a glue that didn't cause the cover paper to wrinkle up like an old lady. And on the rare occasion the paper did remain flat, it didn't stick. I gave my cousin one of these disasterous books for her birthday one year, and as she pulled it from its wrapping the decorative cover paper started to flap free from the cover board. EEEKK!! Not good! With all that trouble, you can probably understand why I've never made any of the more involved hard-cover projects.

This glue issue was really bummin' me out, so I finally decided it was time to solve it once-and-for-all. I set about trying every type of glue and tape I could find. And believe me, I've tried lots of 'em. Lots. Take a look at my collection of glue:

And tape:

The double-sided tapes work great, but they're not cost-effective for big projects like this (nor are they recommended by the pros). They're also not reversible, meaning once they're stuck, they're stuck. You can't use water to reverse the glue and remove the paper. Yes, you can get repositionable versions that can be lifted up and repositioned, but they never become permanent, which is no good for a book cover.

Recently, I read a review online about YES brand paste and decided to give it a try. It's a little pricey at $11 to $15 per pint (especially for this thrifty girl), but I decided to give it a try. Let me just say, this stuff is AMAZING! You don't need much, just a thin layer, and it dries nice and flat. Perfecto!

Once I was armed with the power of YES paste, nothing could stop me (Okay, maybe that's a bit of an exaggeration, but I reserve the right to hyperbolize). Alright, I'll stop blathering and show you the book I made. I followed the Four Books In a Box tutorial featured on page 108 of Bookworks and here's what I ended up with:

I made a few adjustments, mainly I decided to make a set of three, instead of four, journals, and I made mine much thicker. Each little journal was made out of a selection of new and recycled papers held together with a traditional Japanese stab stitch binding using the Yotsume Toji stitch.

The wraparound box is covered in a rich red mulberry paper, which is very strong, almost cloth-like.

The darker red edge of the cover (check out the first photo of the book above for a better view of the edge.) was created by layering a second strip of mulberry paper on top of the first. I wet the edge and pulled bits of the paper from it to create a featured look so it would blend with the paper below.

The three little books are tucked neatly inside the wraparound box and are secured by two flaps that hold them in place.

I'm really happy with how it turned out and it's given me new motivation to continue trying more difficult projects. Anyone else struggle with a particular craft supply until finally finding the perfect solution?