clean!

 Wondering where I've been? Well, now I can show you the fruits of my labor....

my craft room reinstated.

Until recently, it has been a minefield of exploding boxes and bags, mountains of abandoned projects, and islands of stash and dash disasters.

I've shown you this prize before...my authentic pharmacy cabinet in blue. I scored this masterpiece on ebay years ago...for only $500. It was once in a pharmacy in nearby Leesburg. Just below the counter are drawers that pull out for additional surfaces, in glass and marble. They still carry the scent of sulfur and other chemicals that were once mixed there.

The best thing about this cabinet is being able to see all my supplies...and this time I sorted every bead, button, and tiny thing by color to make the best jars of happiness ever.

I can't tell you how lovely it is to have everything in order. I feel like a new person, really. The weight of that disorder is lifted and I am free. It's a beautiful feeling.

I bought three new pieces of furniture, all from Ikea. The piece above is a sideboard (Liatorp), now housing my fabric and assorted tools. The top provides a great place to display all the tiny things I love.

These two pieces are from the Hemnes collection at Ikea. Don't they look swell together? I especially love the glass cabinet...everything looks better behind glass.

And in jars...

The tiny jars in my blue cabinet hold pins, needles, and other small things that I often need in crafting. I know where to find them easily...and most importantly, where to return them.

I could look at these jars of pretty all day...

Here's the assortment of stuff behind the glass doors in that cabinet...I may need to rethink how I use this space better but for now this is how it looks.

I've had this ribbon holder for years, most of which it has gone unused. It dawned on me to use the big wooden spools and they work great!

There's still a little more sorting and organizing to do...but I couldn't wait to show you. Want to come over and play?

a week at the lake...

We're just back from our week at the lake, the best family vacation yet...

Adorable Shelby.

Fun in the lake.

Seth getting ready to race the gang. (Can you believe he's 10? Already?)

I love this picture of my sister Jennifer and Maggie sharing a laugh.

The walk to Swallow Falls just about did my folks in...but they were troopers.

On Wednesdays there's a fabulous farmer's market in Oakland. After shopping the market, we hitched a ride on this horse drawn bus.

Here's the whole gang of us, enjoying the firepit.

Darling Alfredo said it was the best week of his life.

Now it's back to reality as I'm digging out of my craft room. Thank goodness the hoarder police television people aren't in the neighborhood.

summer fort

I was inspired by this a-frame tent, found via pinterest, to make a little summer fort/nook for Alfredo. I am also really inspired by all the pvc-pipe frame projects out there...we are seriously going to make that water sprinkler that you ride your bike through!

Okay, but back to the tent...

I had the idea that I wanted to make a patchwork "quilt" using fabric I had on hand, including some special fabric that I've been saving.

I'm not really so good with the sewing machine (it kind of hates me) so I only worked on it about an hour a day for about a week. I cut squares/strips of varying widths and then sewed them together to make a "quilt" that was about 5' x 8'. You could save yourself a lot of time by just using an old sheet. 

But isn't it bright and colorful?

I used a big needle threaded with baker's twine to make loops to attach the quilt to the pvc framework. For the framework, I used 1/2" pipe. The length of the framework is made with 3 pipes cut to 4'. The A part of the frame is made with 4 pipes cut to 3' (2 pipes each side). I used elbow connectors (4 total) to attach the base to those pipes. And I used 2 3-way elbow connectors to attach the top brace. Does that make sense? It was a lot easier than I'm making it sound. Oh, and best part of all...get yourself a handy pvc pipe cutting tool and you don't even need to fire up the saw. Easy peesy lemon squeezy.

I've been saving this lion fabric (above) and this Eric Carle fabric (below) for something for Alfredo. I think this is the perfect project. (And you should just hear him in there singing "Brown bear, brown bear, what do you see?")

I'm thinking we might take it with us to the lake...it'll make the perfect shady play tent for outside too!