The Sew Must Go On

     While shopping for dress fabric, I found something cute to display my new love of sewing.  Love this skirt!

Dress

     I decided to try and take on a dress project yesterday.  I bought some cute fabric and liner, then went to town.
     I tried to work off a pattern online and the measurements were terrible.  So, I made my own pattern, and just adjusted as I went.
     I put some pleats in the top to make it fit better and pleated the whole skirt.  Then just attached them to each other.  I'm happy with the outcome.  Week two of sewing is a success.

     This dress would be cute with pockets. 

Upholstery

     I discovered when making an ottoman a few weeks ago, that I really like reupholstering.  Someone saw a picture of what I did on Facebook and asked me to take on some stool cushions.  I accepted, and here are the results.  New career?

From this...

To this...

Having fun over here at the Balko household!

Shirt Snafu

     I found a pattern to make a shirt on my favorite website.  Yup, you guessed it,  Pinterest.  I am definitely a beginner, since starting last week, so I tried to follow the directions exactly.
     It called for 1 yard of fabric.  I picked out 2 cute designs and set to work.  The other part of this shirt process was to use bias edging for the first time.
     I started making the pattern and realized the measurements were all wrong and made no sense, (or I just don't know what I'm doing and read it all wrong).  It said to measure your shirt to be 24" by 26".  Since there are two pieces, a front and back, you really need 48" by 52".  Let's all do some math.  36 is not 48 or 52.  So, the pattern was whack and did not work.
     I then made my own pattern with the help of the bad one, and ended up with a shirt that looked like a glorified scrub top with my belly hanging out.  This was not a good look for me.
     I tried a second time with the second piece of fabric I purchased, and changed the measurements to suit my needs.  Then, I started working with the bias edging.  It really is not that difficult to work with, just a little time consuming your first time.  My only problem was I bought a terrible thread, not realizing there are different kinds, and it kept breaking.
     The project that will next time only take an hour, ended up taking three.  The product is nice, but will be better next time.  When I have the right amount of fabric, the right type of thread, and the correct measurements, I should have a perfect shirt.
     Until then, this one will have to do.  I'm learning lessons everyday on this adventure.

Energy Bites!

     I discovered a great snack last year, energy bites.  They are yummy, healthy, protein packed, little bites of happiness.  Great for before or after a workout, snack time, or just on the go.  I love them.  And, they are super easy to make!

Just mix together…
1 cup oats
1/2 cup peanut butter
1/3 cup honey
1 tsp vanilla
1/2 cup crushed graham crackers
1/2 cup chocolate chips

Put the mixture in the fridge for 2 hours, roll into bite sized balls, then enjoy!

Yum.

Even my dog agrees.  At least I think he does, since he ate half of the last batch I made.

Adventures in Sewing

  I learned a few things while sewing yesterday.  I learned that pinning is really important, and that I am not as big as I think I am.

     Pinning!  Just like my cooking, I like to just wing it with most things crafty and not follow directions.  Sewing is not forgiving and pinning is important.  I'm just a beginner, but I really want to make quality. This for sure involves pinning!

     I also learned that I am not as big as I think I am.  I've always been hard on myself, but when making a skirt I have to be realistic.  I've lost a lot of weight after baby but my shape is all weird.  I measured myself way too large and my skirt turned out ridiculous.  I had to pull out all the stitching and start over.  I read somewhere, "a good seamstress knows how to use a stitch ripper".

     I changed the dimensions and ended up with a pretty cute skirt.  I'm still losing weight and working hard so I hope it doesn't fit for long.  But I guess then, I can just unstitch it and start over.  Or, save it for the next time I'm in the in between phase of baby weight.

Fall Snack

   I encourage people to experiment in the kitchen.  Once you start doing it, you get better and better at it.  I've never been a stickler for measuring, and sometimes thing don't turn out right, but it's fun. Other times you will end up with a better meal than you anticipated.

     Yesterday, I wanted a Fall snack.  I took some crescent rolls, smeared them with cream cheese, cinnamon, sugar, and then stuffed them with apples before baking.  It wasn't overly sweet but it was yummy.  If you wanted it to be sweet, you could always sprinkle with cinnamon and sugar, or drizzle with caramel.

     For dinner, I threw together diced eggplant (still trying to like eggplant), zucchini, carrots, summer squash, onion, garlic, andouille sausage, rice, and homemade stewed tomatoes with a lot of juice.  I let it cook down for a while and it was very yummy!  

     I'm not one of those people that won't eat a meal if something is off in it.  I really don't care that much.  So if things don't turn out well, I will usually still eat it.  If you are not like me, then experimenting might be really hard for you.  

     But, when you throw things together and it comes out awesome, you feel awesome!  Try something new!

Vows

     Our two year wedding anniversary was three days ago.  Aw, how cute?  Anyway, in the spirit of that I made something for our bedroom wall.
     When Jay and I got married, we did not go with regular vows.  I chose something that really spoke to me.  The only bad thing about this is, if you asked either of us to tell you what they were, we would not be able to.  I think it is important to remember what we said and the promises we made.  So, above our bed shall hang a reminder of love.  Like I said, "Aw, how cute".

Baby Food

     I'm pretty sure that me making baby food, is as messy as Marshall eating it will be.  But, it is totally worth it that my sons' first meal will have been grown by his daddy in our garden.
     If you asked me a few years ago if I would make my own baby food I would have scoffed at you.  But now, I don't see any reason not too.  Much healthier for my child and not that difficult to do.  So, let's do this!
     We had a pretty small crop of sweet potatoes this year, and a lot of the ones we did harvest were not edible.  I took the half of the good ones, boiled them down, pureed them, and froze them.  I was able to get around 40 ice cube size servings.
     I am excited for Marshall to start eating real food.  I know it is a few months away but times going by quickly.  Around Christmas I will start offering real food instead of good ole mommy.  I had not expected to breastfeed for six months, but I've already made it three months.  Were not having any issues so why not give my little man the best nutrition I can.
     When the time is ready, I will have lots of sweet potatoes for my "little sweet potato".

Shirt Refashion!

     If you have been following along, then you will know I started sewing a few days ago.  So far, I have managed to make a set of curtains and some baby pants.  I thought I would try something a little harder and moved deeper into the depths of Pinterest.
     I found some really neat shirt refashioning on my journey.  This is very helpful to me for a number of reasons.

1.  I have way too many clothes.  This will help me to not buy anything new.  I can just make my own new stuff out of my old stuff!
2.  I have now been blessed with a post-baby body.  A lot of my old clothes do not fit right now, and may never fit again.  This way I can make use of them without having to toss them.
3.  It saves a lot of money!  I love to shop, and now I can spend that time sewing with my baby in sight, rather than shopping with him uncomfortably jammed in his car seat.

     What I ended up with is, inspired by Ruffles and Stuff...

Here's what I did.

Started with an old shirt...

Cut off the sleeves and made them into ruffles...

Finished it with buttons!

     This project took me two days, and was difficult for a beginner.  The fabric was not very helpful.  It would work beautifully with a t-shirt, instead of an old thermal.  

     I am so proud of myself!

     Sewing is really giving me a way to de-everthing.  I have to slow down.  If I don't, then all the work looks like crap, and I have to unstitch everything.  Slowing down my mind is a nice addition to my day.  

     Here's the finished product on me.  Don't judge my post-baby body please.  Ruffles are really a girls best friend.  They hide all kinds of things!

LOVE!!!!

Pumpkin Muffins

     I've had a few people ask me for some of the healthy snack recipes I use.  One of my favorites, especially in fall is a pumpkin muffin.  They are dense and full of fiber so they are pretty filling, and if you don't feel full, they are low cal enough to eat two!
     I love to have one with a hot cup of coffee in the afternoon.
     I usually put a little dab of light cream cheese on them, sometimes a little butter, and when my sweet tooth is freaking out, I'll add a glob of frosting.  You can heat them up in the microwave and enjoy a little bit of fall, without ruining your diet.
     The recipe calls for…
   
1 15oz can of pumpkin
1/2 cup of applesauce
2 eggs
1 tsp vanilla
1/2 cup brown sugar
2 cups flour
1 tsp baking powder
1/2 tsp baking soda
2 1/2 tsp of pumpkin pie spice
1/2 tsp salt


     I didn't have pie spice so I made my own mixture.  Nutmeg, ginger, cloves, cinnamon.  Enough to equal 2 1/2 tsp.

     I mixed it all together, poured into my greased muffin cups, and baked at 350 for 25 minutes.

     I froze half of the batch, and it took me a week to eat the other half.  So, altogether I had muffins for two weeks.

Welcome to Fall!!!!!

Stay tuned for some Energy Bites that are great to snack on!

Vinegar!

     I've been living in the dark.  I feel like my eyes have suddenly been opened and the sunlight is pouring in.  The sun is shining and the birds are chirping.  All because of vinegar.
     I've heard a million times that you can use vinegar to clean with and I've never really believed it.  Leave it to the nut eatin', tree huggin', granola people, to find a gross way to clean your house.  WRONG!  Here's my vinegar testimony.
     My washing machine is disgusting.  I'm admitting this and letting you all in on something I am ashamed and embarrassed by.  Not that people show up to my house asking to see in my washer to check the cleanliness of my house; but now I want them too.  Just to prove that I'm not lazy and gross.
     My washer has had a layer of hard detergent buildup for years.  I have bleached it, used all the over the counter additives, scraped to my heart's content, to no avail.  Nothing I have done has ever made a dent in the gross stuff.  It has just continued to grow and laugh at me every time I have opened the the lid to throw another load in.
     Today while surfing Pinterest (my dirty, dirty habit), I discovered a blog about cleaning with vinegar.  "Fine, I'll give it a try.  It can't be any worse than scraping with a putty knife for an hour with no results".
     I filled the drum with hot water and added a cup of vinegar.  I made sure to splash the top of the drum and the buildup with it so it could soak, and left it for 2 hours.
     When I came back, I grabbed a washcloth and lightly rubbed the grimy detergent.  It came off.  ALL of it.  It just came off!!!  No elbow grease.  Here comes the sun, do an do do.
     I am beyond amazed.  I have it set to do a second rinse and I can't wait to see the finished result.  I am now a believer!  Praise vinegar and it's amazing yuck melting properties.
   

Rainy day

     Rainy days make the best days to catch up on stuff.  I've been busy with some crafts lately, but have not had a minute to get them finished.  Well, rain, rain, get it done.
 

     I really love skeleton keys.  I painted an old frame, lined it with chicken wire, and hung them all up. There's no point in having things like old keys if you can't display them.  

     I also have some old doorknobs that I have had hanging on the wall for a while now.  I thought I would spice them up with some mason jars.  The twiggy-jewel things are from my wedding.  

Then, I hung up this old frame that I found and painted.  It was a yucky gold color before and now it has an antique/county chic feel.  It is also reflecting a laundry sign I made a little while back out of tiny clothes pins.  Two for one!

     To top the night off I made some spaghetti squash.  Fresh from the garden!  I'm going to have to find a lot of new recipes for squash since I have a crate of them sitting in my garage now.  Last, but not least, the hubby spent the morning closing out the garden, moving firewood, and hanging corn stalks for fall.  Once the rain hit, he was able to spend a little time on a project he had planned. 

     He even went shooting to have the bullets to spell "Home Brew".  Just another weekend at the Balko household.  Relaxed but getting a lot done.  

Muffins NO GUILT!

     I'm always looking for ways to take the edge off a chocolate fix with minimal calories.  I'm also always looking for ways to use what I have lying around my kitchen.  I'm getting pretty good at substituting ingredients and faking recipes.  I'll admit, sometimes I make stuff I wouldn't feed my worst enemy, but a lot of the time it turns out great.  

     I was looking for a recipe that I could use greek yogurt, peanut butter, and chocolate to make a muffin with decreased calorie content.  The recipe I found looked pretty good but I changed some ingredients and used some things I had lying around to make a decent muffin.  It's not super sweet, but it's also a muffin and not a cupcake.  So there.  

The recipe is 

1/4 tsp baking powder

1/2 tsp baking soda

1/4 cup cocoa

2 tbsp oat flour

1/4 tsp salt

1 tsp vanilla

2 tbsp brown sugar

1/2 cup greek yogurt 

1 egg

2 tbsp honey

1/2 cup peanut butter

I combined the dry ingredients, but I had no idea what oat flour was.  Apparently, you just take oatmeal and grind it up.  This actually gives the muffins an oatmeal taste and is pretty good.  Then in a separate bowl I combined the wet ingredients.  I didn't have plain greek yogurt, so instead I used what I had.  Caramel Macchiato greek yogurt!  Yum!  Mix the two bowls together and add chocolate chips!

I baked at 425 for 5 minutes, then changed to 350 for 13 more.  This makes 9 muffins and I added water to the 3 empty muffin cups because this is suppose to help them bake more evenly.  

Turned out great.  Chocolatey, peanut buttery, with an oatmeal finish.  

Baby pants!

     Theres always that one Christmas present you get.  You know the one, that you have the best intentions of using, that sits in the closet for years.  Well, I got a sewing machine a few years back that just came out of the box a few days ago.  Oops.
     It is probably all for the better though, because if I had opened it when I got it and not had time to concentrate fully on projects, I probably would have given up.  Then it would have gone back in the closet for another few years.
     I opened the box and pulled out the daunting machine on Thursday.  I have tried to sew a few times in the past and not threaded the machine right, so I always ended up with crap outcomes.  The machine would then be shoved away never to see the light of day again.
     This time, I read the instructions, watched the included dvd, and worked slowly.  The new machine is all digital and you barely have to do anything.  Amazing!  It threads it's own needle and bobbin with the touch of a button.  Ah!  With this help, I was able to feel confident, and punch out a few curtains in my first sitting.
     The next day, I decided to hit up Joann's and find some fabric to sew baby boy pants.  I picked everything from the bargain/clearance sections.  That way if I screwed up to badly I hadn't put to much money into the situation.
     To my surprise, I sat down, took is slow, and made a pair of baby pants in no time.  The fact that I had to slow down actually helped to clear my mind and de-stress.  I may have found a new hobby/calling.  I'm very proud of the end result!  Especially for my first real project.

   

Coffee!!!!

     One thing I keep seeing on Pinterest that I love, is these amazing coffee bars.  My love for coffee is extreme, so why not make it known to all who enter my home? 

     After a bathroom remodel last winter, I had a leftover cabinet I decided to paint.  With lots of leftover paint from other remodels, I chose a gray color.  We also had a extra piece of counter from another bathroom laying around that I put on top.  The Keurig, coffee, and tea, all fit nicely on the counter and there is plenty of cabinet space for Keurig cups and other coffee accouterments. 

     We had some spare worn out barn wood that my husband built into a shelf for me.  Then I painted a cute little sign, and we it was complete.  A boring little corner of the dining room is now a cute little coffee bar!  It gets used everyday; multiple times.  Love!

Weekend Projects

     Being a stay at home mom has given me way to much time to spend on Pinterest.  Whenever there is a sleeping baby, I find myself searching for ways to enhance the domestic goddess that I just know is in me somewhere.
     Two weekends ago, my husband and I completed a few projects.  I started with painting the inside of our front door.  We have lived in our house for 7 years and I've hated the off white ugliness that I encounter everyday.  So, this happened…

     After a long day on a pontoon boat in the sun, I settled down to a yummy cup of coffee and painting the door.  I chose a color that matched the curtains in my living room.  It adds a pop of charm to the room.  My husband said he wasn't sure about the color, but anything is better than the ugly off white from before.

     Here is the after picture.  

     Our other task for the weekend was to build an ottoman.  I wanted it to match the door and the curtains, so my husband Jay, and I, ventured to Joann's and found a cool paisley fabric matching perfectly.  

     The ottoman needed to be big enough for our dogs (hoping they'll get off the couch), or an extra seat when people visit.  He built me a 3-3 frame with a plywood top.  I then got 4 deck post tops and stained them to use as legs.  We covered it in quilt batting, then foam, then more quilt batting, then fabric.  I am so proud of the finished project! The dogs love it and I end up using it with the baby to play around on instead of the floor.  To buy this ottoman online would cost about $375, and we made it for a lot less.  Yippee! 

Welcome

     Welcome to my world.  This blog is a glimpse into the life of a stay at home, country living, music makin', mama.  I've recently been blessed with an amazing little man in my life, that fuels my betterment daily.  Here you will find some of the things I do.