This Week: Clutter and Floor Coverings

Let me say first, we absolutely love our home.... it is, however, what one might euphemistically describe as "petite."  A real-estate agent might call it cozy.  We've sussed out some good space-savers (a fold-away kitchen table, for example) but the single most important thing we've found that keeps "cozy" from feeling claustrophobic is continual de-cluttering.  We de-clutter daily, weekly, and in bigger ways, half-yearly.  Every six months, we comb the house to clear out any unused or unneeded items....often things that were hard to part with during the previous cleanse seem truly extraneous by the next.  So, each spring and fall, we rise early to host our own stall at the local flea-market.  We always share our stall with a friend, which has multiple benefits: splitting the stall-rental fee, better filling our space if we only have a few boxes of stuff to get rid of, and most important, companionship.  Companionship to while away the early hours, to lend moral support when haggling goes awry, and to buy one another a warming cup of coffee or watch the stall during a much-needed break.  Hooray for companionship!

Yesterday, I was lucky enough to be sharing our stall with a wonderful friend and fellow-crafter who just happened to be doing her own massive cleanse of fabrics and scraps.  I had the privilege of scouring her stash first and squirreling away some lovely pieces.  As we were packing to leave, there were still several large bags of scraps unsold, which were destined for the recycling center.    I grabbed them and tucked them away in our backseat.

In order to justify this massive re-gaining of clutter, I explained that I've had a scrap-project in mind for a while - -which is true, I do!  I saw this rag rug project a few years ago and then again in Amanda Soule's book "Handmade Home" and it has been on my massive projects-to-do list for some time - - unfortunately, always destined to stay at the bottom due to it's project-time estimation of "a season."  A season!  Eeep.   Our white (Yes, white. What were we thinking?) living-room rug has been on it's way out for a while, and from time to time, I find worthy replacements but can't justify the cost.  A rag rug is perfect.....I love that it uses up material that already exists (as opposed to buying new) and that it will display so much fabric from this friend, as well as cloth from our old napkins, clothes, tablecloths etc.  A wonderful extension of life for these objects.  Plus, with it's blend of colors and materials, I imagine it might hide our household wear and tear a bit better than, ahem, white.

So, the project begins -- the kids and I have spent the morning sorting our bags and and I've begun cutting and tearing material into strips.  I've been trying to focus on greens, blues, reds, and browns -- for the most part leaving out the pinks and purples.  Both toddler and baby love playing with all of the colors and textures....so this has been a good part of the project to share with them.  Wish me luck with this ambitious endeavour!  I'll let you know how it goes in a season or so......

Hooray! My first Felt showcase!

I'm so happy to have figured out this application...there is so much amazing talent on Felt, and it was a pleasure to browse through the pages to find these gorgeous items.  I'll try to put together a showcase every few weeks; this week features work from mousehouse, julihunter, inmybackyard, coolcrib, apricot, swanwear, relique, boocraft, minu and ihakarawools.

Yellow Abstract Flor...

coolcrib

$28.00

Baby Blanket, Fine M...

ihakarawools

$55.00

Resin Covered Kakapo...

boocraft

$16.00

Goldfinger Antique B...

relique

$40.00

Yellow Pleated Long ...

julihunter

$60.00

Bous In Black

minu

$48.00

'chanina' ... Bathin...

swanwear

$120.00

Black Crochet Cowl N...

apricot

$25.00

Little Bird Fabric Pin

inmybackyard

$10.50

'ink Apples' Extra-l...

mousehouse

$28.00

Our Daily Bread

Once in a while, when an unexpected expense pops up, or just to boost our savings, we drastically trim our budget where we spend the most: groceries.  For us, going down to about a third of what we would normally spend can free up quite a bit of extra cash.  Believe it or not, I've found that we actually eat better during these "lean" weeks.  I spend more time menu-planning and put more thought and effort into preparing meals.  The result is fresh, made-from-scratch foods that I think actually win in both taste and nutrition over our often hastily-cobbled-together meals.  Also, there's an inherent sort of gritty-pioneer satisfaction in making it through the week with only what we have in our pantry and freezer plus the most basic of grocery items  -- which for us includes milk, cheese, eggs, a big bag of flour and a ton of seasonal fruits and vegetables from the farmers' market.

Because our family can easily go through a loaf of bread every day, making our own is an easy way to meet our budgetary goals.  Plus....hot, fresh bread -- what could be better?   We certainly don't feel as though we're depriving ourselves when we serve up a slab of crusty toast with butter, cheese, and salted tomatoes.

I'm a busy mama however, and also one who likes to minimize messes and clean-up.  So, kneading? Not for me.  Not now anyway.  Fortunately, I've found two quick and delicious bread recipes that are completely knead-free and work beautifully with wholemeal flour, which we prefer.  One, which we've used now for a few years requires 10 minutes of work, tops - -the only caveat being that you need to plan about a day ahead because it requires overnight sitting.   It ran in the New York Times a few years ago and can be found here.  It yields a gorgeous loaf -- perfectly crusty on the outside with a moist crumb on the inside.  Great for impressing your friends, to give as a gift, or for eating any time, any day of the week.....

Recently, I found another recipe which is similarly low-effort, but more quickly gratifying (also, incredibly easy to double)....

No-Knead Wholemeal Loaf

1.  Stir 1 1/2 tsp yeast, 1 Tbs sugar (or golden syrup, honey etc.) and 2 cups lukewarm water in a large bowl.  Allow to sit in a sink full of warm water for 20 minutes until yeast begins to bubble.
2. With wooden spoon, stir in 2 Tbs of olive oil, followed by 4 cups whole wheat flour and 1 1/2 tsp salt.
3.  Tip into prepared loaf pan (I use silicone, but buttered if a metal or glass dish) allow to rise in a warm sunny spot until doubled (about 30 min.)
4.  Bake in preheated 200 C (about 400 F) oven for 30 minutes.  Turn down to 180 C (350 F) if top is browning well and bake 15 minutes more (45 minutes total.)
5. Tip out to cool.

6. Ta-da!  Bread so easy, I can make it daily.

This Week: Around the Neighborhood

Lately, I've been feeling particularly fortunate to live in such a gorgeous spot.  Because we're not sure just how long we'll be living where we do now, I feel all the more appreciative.....

 ....of the sunrise from our kitchen window....

....of the view from a friend's house....

....of the roads and hills around our town....

....and of the scenes outside the window of our car on a Sunday drive.

These views and so many others (the ocean, the vineyards, the mountains, the valleys, the rivers and the orchards) surround us.  By now, S is used to hearing me exclaim, "Aren't we lucky to live in such a beautiful place!"  No matter how long we end up staying here for, I don't think I'll ever take this country's natural beauty for granted....

Organics!

The above is what my workspace looks like at the moment.  Cup of coffee, check.....forgotten bits of toast, yup.....toddler fiddling with the sewing machine, yes, of course.   It's not a studio, a room, or even a closet, but I love having this small piece of the house to sprawl across. 

This week I found a wonderful source of organic baby-wear.  Local, family-run, perfect.  Because the organic clothing is so incredibly beautiful, I've been thinking and planning quite a bit about what I want to do with it.  So....I've been spending a lot of time here, in my workspace -- in the evenings, mostly (after busy and curious little ones are tucked up in bed.)

 I've been able to work on two designs thus far.  Below is a preview of one (as yet unfinished)....

 And the other (an organic sleeping gown) can be found in my updated shop.

This Week: Projects

This was one of those weeks where sick kids, nap-less babies, and things liked dental appointments (in other words: life) prevailed.  When I finally got one child to bed, the other one inevitably woke.  Thus, work was eeked out in tiny increments -- 10 minutes here, 20 minutes there.  Fortunately, the bibs I began last week are an easy crafting fix.  Bibs, bibs, and more bibs.  How many does one baby need?  Probably not nearly as many as I've made.  However, they'll make great gifts, and I'm sure a few will end up with a new nephew soon enough.

All those bibs have left a lot of leftover fabric scraps.....with winter fast approaching I felt inspired to make my first patchwork quilt-cover for S's new "big kid" bed.   This is my first attempt at anything like this and I was gratified to find that it was a relatively simple, quick project.  Two evenings, max.

For the top, I used large alternating strips of cotton and corduroy, and on the back, a light-weight cotton canvas.  It snaps at the bottom and inside is a large fleece-y folded blanket.  Super warm and cozy.  Winter, do your worst.

This weekend we got around to a few bigger projects; S had his first try at painting a wall, and subsequently asked to do a bit of painting on his own.....

Meanwhile, I've been trying to figure out a creative way to re-use the paint-chip cards we seem to acquire by the handful whenever we undertake a painting project.  This worked well; first, some work with the scissors done by bigger hands:

Followed by some pasting, placing, and multi-media artwork done by little hands:

Beautiful!  As soon as that last coat dries, this will be hung in our newly-painted bathroom.

Morning Tea

Confession:  I'm not much of a recipe-follower.  I'm much more of a recipe-maker-upper.  Sometimes my kitchen creativity yields great success....and sometimes not.  This morning I wanted to make a healthy snack for the kids; this muffin mixture uses heaps of fruits and veggies, whole wheat, and no added sugar.  It turned out pretty well.  S was able to help with the mashing and mixing and subsequently ate about 6.  Give or take.  Not a problem, since they're so healthy.

Preheat oven to 180 Celsius (350 Fahrenheit)

2 bananas (mashed)

1 apple (chopped)

1 med zucchini (grated)

handful of dates (chopped) 

1/3 c canola oil

1 cup milk (soy, rice, or regular)

2 big shakes cinnamon

1 1/2 tsp baking powder

2 cups whole wheat flour

Bake in muffin cups (greased, or I like to use silicone) 25 minutes or until fork comes out clean.

Enjoy!