Rainbow "Belly Dancing" Bra

Greetings, friends!
Pardon the long absence -- but life has been busy in the best kinds of ways, and I am happy to come back to my blog with a special little something to show off ;)

This little "beauty" took two (rainy) days to make and did not even require a pattern! It's just your ol' trusty dusty garter stitch (knitting every row in two straight needles) with decreasing where necessary, with my first ever i-cord to do the borders and straps!

The shells were picked up on the beach back in April when we visited Dash's father in Florida. He drilled a little hole at the top, painted the rainbow pattern on them, and then I affixed them to the bra with thread.

I suppose the rainy, dreary weather was really getting to us -- especially considering that it's mid-July for crying out loud -- hence this summery colorful piece.
But the root of its inspiration was at the Farmer's Market and Oregon Country Fair last weekend.

At the Farmer's Market, there was a demonstration put on by the Corvallis Belly Dancing Performance Guild that Ella (and Douzen!) were simply mesmerized by. That planted the seed...


And the abundance of belly dancing bras for sale at the fair only catapulted  Ella's interest to obsession. While we were drooling over some of the more creative bras, I could sense that Ella was thinking along the lines of "waaaaant", but just when I was about to say "Oh, Ella I don't think we need one of these..." Ella turned to me and proposed: "Maybe we can make one."


@_@


And so you have...well...the prototype for a belly dancing bra. At least it looks like a "bra", right?

Now to knit a pair of panties for it...if only would only agree to put something like that on! Let's just say she's taking after her Mama's nudist tendencies...

Well!
That's all for now, and happy knitting/belly dancing to you all!!

The Mantel - Spring Ver.

My, this is a belated post indeed!
In keeping with our Mantel Tradition, we've been decking it out in springtime icons -- mainly in the form of birthday cards!

That's right, Daddy's Mama's and Ella's birthdays all fall within a month of each other.
Daddy - March 28
Ella Rose - April 1
Mama - April 25

Not to mention the Easter greeting cards, thank-you notes, and baby announcements :)

All in all, a very paper-filled mantel.
When I had been looking forward to the Spring Mantel, I was envisioning more flowers and whatnot, but they would wilt so quickly...and there was barely any room for them anyway~~ {: )

June 21st, the Summer Solstice, is coming right up, at which point we'll start to furnish the Mantel for summertime. I wonder what it will look like. Probably more flowers, kept in water-filled vases this time, and hopefully some good old-fashioned handcrafted works. Strings of knit yarn and such. ;)

Well! Until then, Happy (late) Spring~!!

Two new sewing projects!

That's right, you heard it here first.
I'm actually sewing now! @_@
Sure, I've mended things in the past, and there were those bread bags back in January. But those were sloppy hand-stitched items.
Say hello to my sewing machine aided creations!!

(1) Knitting Needle Case


Using fabrics and ribbon I had hanging around, I finally got around to organizing my knitting needle collection (recently augmented by the stash inherited from my abuela) in a somewhat pretty, but definitely functional, knitting needle case :)


Don't get me wrong. I didn't come up with this pretty little thing all by myself.
I used the most wonderful tutorial from Made By Loulabelle.
If you want to make one of these yourself, I highly recommend following her tutorial with clear instructions and pretty photos to boot ;)


And before we say good-bye, to the Knitting Needle Case, here's oooone more photo:



Okay! Onto project #2...

(2) Dog Bed


Okay, so it doesn't look like much, but let me show you what's going on here:


First, that is one happy Tak'e.
But I kid. Really, look close, you'll see that this bed is comprised of three simple things:


- 2 old towels
- batting (scored for free at a garage sale!)
- and yarn scraps


Again, not my own idea, but totally right up my alley in terms of (1) frugality (2) repurposing and (3) functionality. I have the amazing Martha Stewart to thank for this one. That's right.

To recreate this in your own home, simply sew two towels to each other along 3 of their 4 sides. Then fill the pocket you've created with batting, sew shut, and then thread yarn through random areas of the bed to keep the batting in place. DONE.

And, because you haven't seen her on the blog in a while, here's little miss Ella Rose attesting to the awesomeness that is that new dog bed:


Can you feel the enthusiasm?
...

Well, that about wraps up my latest endeavor so to bid you all a good night, is Tak'e on his dog bed. :)



Take care and happy sewing!!

Happy Mother's Day -- to Kae!!

Happy Mother's Day~
To all the lovely ladies who give their lives to their families to give them the best of everything, physically and emotionally!

And to one mother I know who is the epitome of a mother who really gives her whole self to her beautiful family. My incredible friend, Kae. ♡
Between engaging darling Douzen all the time to make him one of the brightest children I know, to taking care of the household in all its realms to make it as clean and comfortable for her family, she still finds time to bake the most incredible dishes I've ever seen.
Like this beauty:


How sweet (pun!) of her to bake this masterpiece for my birthday -- patiently waiting until we were back from our trip East and settled down, and then giving it to me on Mother's Day to top it all off! :) It really made my day, to say the least. What a sweetheart! (more puns!!)

Not ten minutes after she left, I had to have a taste and look what's inside too!:


Strawberries on top and inside?! She is too good to us, I swear!

Much love to you, Kae, and many many thank-you's for the Soule Mama book too!!
Hopefully, I will be able to make something for you from the book very soon ;)

Until then, Happy Mother's Day once again and take care to all~!

Family Cloth~

Ahoooy!
I'm back from a very long absence from my blog.
And with no real good reason for it either! Hmph!

Well, maybe it all started that first week of January when Daddy had to fly back East to help his ailing father. He is better now and on the mend, but it did jar our lives a bit as sudden lapses in health and the ensuing trips tend to do.
Maybe it was my 生理's fault, but as tends to happen with those things, I found myself in a creative streak a mile wide! Here are some things I've been up to:

(1) hand-sewed some bread bags to store our homemade bread
The results? 3 adorable little bags...that don't keep our bread from staling at all! ;_;
Still, we use them in the fridge as the second layer to the plastic bags we've always used.
So at least our bread is veeery pretty now~~

(2) rigged up an outdoor drying rack
The results! A fantastic collapsible system that cost just around $6.
Will have to blog on that later...

(3) Family Cloth
For those of you who don't know what family cloth it, it is pretty much "reusable toilet paper". But before you run away disgusted, please let me explain.

Family Cloth is the use of reusable cloth sheets in place of toilet paper that are not flushed down the toilet, but rather kept in a laundry basket of sorts to be laundered and then reused again and again. Some use it for both #1 and #2, with obvious considerations to be made when using for the latter, but just using it for #1 saves considerably on all the paper bought and consequently thrown down the toilet over the days, weeks, months, and beyond.

In a household like ours, where my husband and I work from home we are home a lot of the time, and consequently can go through a lot of toilet paper rather quickly. But with the majority of those bathroom trips being mainly for #1, that means a lot of TP is being used just to dab at what is really not that big a mess anyway. And none for the man of the house anyway, since the ol' "shake your winkle after you tinkle" is enough for him.

To cut down on TP consumption, we have switched to Family Cloth for our #1 needs.
Instead of reaching for the TP roll, Ella Rose and I simply use little cotton squares (cut from the least popular baby blanket she inherited) and dispose of them in a little receptacle where they are held for a week (or however long it takes to fill up). This is what it looks like in a convenient basket on the back of our toilet.



The over set-up looks like this (that silver bin is where we keep them after use):


Some of you might be wondering how this is supposed to be "greener" if a whole laundry load has to be devoted to washing these little cloths. But I'm happy to say I found a way around the issue of all the water and electricity that has to run a washer and dryer, by using a hand-powered portable washing machine. It's called the "Wonder Wash" and you can learn more about it here. I'd highly recommend looking into one as they can do your regular laundry too, and would work if the power/water ever got cut off (think disaster preparation).
After the wash, I simply hang them out to dry (on that laundry line I mentioned earlier!) where they are nicely warmed, whitened, and disinfected by the sun.
Add to that the fact that the laundry detergent is handmade, and the whole system is a win-win all around I do believe.

If you are interested in learning more about Family Cloth, I highly recommend the following articles, and maybe you, too, will be inspired to try it out ;)

The Family Cloth Vs. Toilet Paper
Reusable Toilet Paper on The Penniless Parent

'Til next time, take care and Happy Family Cloth-ing!

Gifts for Ella...

Dear Family and Friends (who should happen to read this blog ;) ),

Greetings from up in the Northwest! We hope you and your families are well and looking forward to the coming Spring season.

Our family is doing well, enjoying much indoors activity as we await the warmth and growth the springtime promises here in Oregon. That includes Ella Rose's big second birthday!

We appreciate how much you love our daughter and we're sure that many of you will want to express your affection for Ella Rose through the buying of gifts for her birthday.

We took the liberty of putting together a quick clear gift registry of gifts we’d really appreciate:


"Dashiell Family Wishlist" on amazon.com


If you’d like to go a different route, however, here are some additional gift ideas!:

- Spend time together when you are in the area. And the activities don’t need to be exotic. A trip to the park, a performance, or the local swimming pool with you would be special.

- A box of scarves (from a secondhand store is best!) or mini photo album of your family would be great. These are surprisingly satisfying to children.

- Choose a toy you remember from your childhood--such as a hula hoop, wooden airplane, or red wagon. A story about you as a child using that toy would be a great thrill.

- Give something living! Plants would be a great gift to not only lighten up Ella’s playroom but also give her something to check on and watch its progress as it grows! We also appreciate seeds all year 'round.

We feel that it is our responsibility as parents to do what we can to ensure that Ella Rose has a brighter, cleaner, healthier world to live in. So, in the hopes of raising her in a way that is true to our environmental concerns and values, we are ever working toward a more zero-waste lifestyle. That means consuming less material possessions in general and seeking the good things in life in a way that has less of a damaging impact on this world we all share. Less (stuff) is definitely more (time), especially in the life of a child, that not only saves the environment but money too ;)

In general, our "no thanks" list is as follows:
No plastic
No battery-powered toys
No trademarked characters
No toys/clothes made through child/slave labor (China)
No stuffed animals

If you've already purchased something as a present for Ella Rose that falls under this category, don't worry about it! I know that Ella will love whatever you have thoughtfully picked out for her. This letter is just to let you know what our preferences are as her parents.

Thank you so much for taking the time to read this letter and for making this occasion a celebration of what really matters to our family.
Take care and many happy wishes,

The Dashiells

Dried-Apricot Oatcakes

Long time no recipe, but I just did this one from a book my friend lent me, and it is very much worth posting about. :)

Taken from "Cooking for Baby: Wholesome, homemade, delicious foods for 6 to 18 months" by Lisa Barnes, I adapted the recipe as follows:

Dried-Apricot Oatcakes (makes 12 patties)

2 C old-fashioned rolled oats

1/2 tsp ground cinnamon

1/2 tsp salt

2 Tbsp melted unsalted butter

1 Tbsp honey

3 Tbsp finely chopped dried apricots

2 Tbsp finely shredded unsweetened coconut

1) Preheat oven to 400 F and grease cupcake sheet

2) Combine oats, cinnamon, baking soda, and salt in mixing bowl

3) Make a well in the center and add the butter and honey.

4) Combine until all oats are coated

5) Mix in apricots and coconut

6) Heat 1 C of water to just short of boiling and add to oat mixture 2 Tbsp at a time until all is wet and sticky

7) Press into cupcake sheet compartments

8) Bake for 15 minutes or oatcakes look nice and golden brown.

9) Let cool as is, only removing once really down to room temperature

10)Store in airtight container at room temperature for 3 days :)