An Heirloom Baby Gown

 I have had the joy of  making baby day-gowns for several of  my babies. 
They attended their first church service in them, and several services (before growing out of them) thereafter.
It is my intention to make each of my children an heirloom day-gown for their children.
This spring/summer found me stitching away on one for Trevor and Thelma's babys.

 This was my first attempt at drawn thread work on anything so fine. 
The fabric is pima batiste.

 The gown was worked in a pattern of broderie anglaise, which  is synonymous with "eyelet". It is found in a leaflet by  "Belles and Beaus"

entitled "Primer Series Broderie Anglaise" 1985.

 The back is from the same leaflet.   I love working eyelet.  You don't have to count or do any thinking.

 The buttonholes are worked by hand.  Very enjoyable.

Little Isabella was the first to wear this gown.
She appeared at the wedding in it and looked so sweet and babyish. 
As the day wore on, her gown became wrinkled, but she wore them well.
She was as a long-ago babe in a vintage photograph

The Last of the Aprons

Brrrr! It's been cold here! But we are enjoying it! Yesterday, Tristan announced a temperature of 19 degrees! Wouldn't it be wonderful if WE actually got some snow? It would be so exciting because everything thing would close down; the grocery shelves would be stripped bare in anticipation of an extended stay indoors! But I'M prepared! I have enough food here to feed us for a month~ and probably half the neighbors as well!

I wanted to get these final pictures published before the new year. They are the last three aprons I found at the local thrift store. This one is my personal favorite. The print is very pretty.

The contrasting fabric is nice, as is the shaped pocket.



This apron is such a special find. I would guess it may be from the 30's or 40's. It just has that look about it.

The discoloration on the strap is where it was tied together, perhaps to keep them from falling off the shoulders.

Every stitch in the construction of this garment was done by hand! These yo-yo flowers are really neat. You usually see them done in calico fabrics, but I think the application in this design is unique.

This is a close up of the tie. You can see the little hand stitches that hold the edges down ~ just a running stitch.

I'm pretty sure it is made from flour sacks. the skirt panel is not cut; the selvages are intact along the edge. The color really throws me. The apricot pink color is soooo 30ish, but how it was achieved with the flour sacks is a mystery to me.

I hope the old aprons might have "inspired" some apron wearing out there among you, if you don't already wear one.

This is Trevor's truck. He struck a deer on the way home last week, and the deer got the worst of it! We'll see what the "truck fixer guy" says about the damage. You can see old Buck smelling the poor thing. He gets pretty excited over critters.

Saturday, late afternoon found us outside watching the puppies have a scamp about. They are just like little children.

I love the view of the big big sky. We were never able to see much of it for the 23 years we lived in the city, but now it seems so very natural to go out and watch the clouds roll across the sky.

I did want to share a receipt we recently tried (twice ~ it was soooo good!) and thought you might like to serve it for breakfast during this Christmas season.

MAPLE~NUT COFFEE TWIST
from the 1996 Southern Living annual

Use your favorite sweet roll receipt based on 3/4 C water. Mix and knead till smooth and elastic. Let rise till doubled.

Combine:
1/2C sugar
1 tsp. ground cinnamon

1/3C chopped pecans

1 tsp. maple flavoring

Punch dough down, and divide three ways. Roll each portion out on a floured surface to a 12" circle. Place one circle on a greased pizza pan. Brush with 2T melted butter; sprinkle with 1/3 of the sugar mixture. Repeat with the other two circles of dough, stacking them atop one another with the sugar mixture between.
Place a 2" biscuit cutter in the center of the circle (do not cut through dough). Cut dough into 16 wedges, cutting from outside edge of circle just to the edge of the biscuit cutter.Gently lift each wedge, and twist 5 times to form a spiral pattern. Remove cutter. Cover and let rise in a warm place until doubled in bulk.
Bake at 375 for 15-20 minutes or until golden brown. Let cool 10 minutes.

Drizzle:

1 1/2 C sifted powdered sugar
1/4 tsp. maple flavoring
2-3 T milk

Did you know that you do not have to allow your sweet rolls to rise and then bake right away? As soon as you get them formed, spray the tops with cooking spray then cover with plastic wrap. Put them in the refrigerator over night and they will rise and be ready to bake ~ first thing in the morning!!!!!!

You can also put them in the freezer (be sure to wrap well) and remove them later to thaw, then allow time to rise. Bake as usual.

I do this all the time will dinner rolls as well. Make up a great big batch, form, freeze on sheets just till they are hard enough to remove from the sheet. Then put all of them into zip-lock bags to store in the freezer. It will take about four hours for them to thaw and rise if you put them into a warm oven.

I hope all of you my friends have a Christ~filled Christmas. My desire is that each of us will become more aware of our need for Him. If we miss Him during this season, then we have simple jumped through hoops that have temporary purpose.
My husband and I, along with our little man, will be travelling North the day after Christmas. We will visit with some of his family, and also bring his Mother back south to spend some time with our family. So I hope you have a very good Christmas!

What Are Little Boys Made Of?

For over twenty-two years now, I've had little boys at some stage of development, growing into manhood. Any mother of boys will tell you that they are full of fun and adventure. There is never a dull moment. There have been times when I yearned for a dull moment~or two!

Sawyer is dressed in the new jammies I made for him!

I've always enjoyed making pajamas for them. Jammies are so easy and fun to make! And the little guys sure enjoy them!

Today I would like to give you a little tour of Sawyer's room. I decided it would be best to give him his own room instead of sending him upstairs to "Man land" with his four other brothers.

His room is actually open; it is part of a hallway. We originally used it as a music room, but I've fixed it up for him~ for now. I haven't painted yet~just decorated with things I already had.
This is where we do most of our reading together.


I picked these little matching doilies up at the local antique mall in Donalds. I love the simple little dogs.

Here is his dresser. Dave refinished this piece shortly after we were first married. All our babies have used it.

This is one of the lampshades I recovered this summer.

I keep his "special" tiny books in this little make-do shelf. It is an old fruit box turned on it's side.
I found this set of guest towels at the antique mall as well. The sail and boat are hand appliqued with pin stitches. I love the '30s look in these towels.

Sweetie's bed is all ready for him. Mrs. Paula made the lovely pillow; I'm sure she never thought Sawyer would have confiscated it! It's just his size! Thank you Paula! I think of you every time I see it.

These "little boy" years will fly so quickly.

I made the shades this summer. When the top sash of the window is open, the ribbons are so pretty blowing in the breeze.
You can see my East Garden through his window.

Each shade is simply a double thickness of fabric ( I used one layer of sun blocking drapery lining on the back) with a casing on both short ends. The top casing contains a wooden dowel, for rigidity, and it lays in three cup hooks projecting from the top of the window opening. The bottom casing has a PVC pipe in it that is a nice size to roll up.

When the ribbon is not tied up, it just hangs down. It just lays over the top of the wooden dowel.


So, what are little boys made of? They are made of dirt, hugs, bent nails, rocks, soft warm skin, uncombed hair, trucks, The Lone Ranger, dirty feet, pop-guns, green teddy bears, western six-shooters, Andy and Barney, and camouflage.

Stitching Projects Complete

This past summer, I was able to do several rather large projects. It has been hard for me to get my bearings after our move two years ago, as there have been many decisions that involve just how to live in our new home.
It takes me a while to live in a place, before I'm really comfortable making decisions about about domestic arrangements and decorating. I think I like to get the "feel" of a house ~ the way the sun comes through the windows accompanied by the heart's response to it; the view from the windows, and the thoughts that are evoked as you gaze out of them; the way your family life flows through the house.


This is an old sofa we brought from our former home, (literally ~ it was in the house when we moved there) and it is constructed with a wooden frame, but the "wicker" is really paper-wrapped wire. It is pretty old, but still useful.
Each seat cushion is an individual frame, consisting of old-fashioned hand-tied box springs,
with a thick layer of cotton batting covering them. I simply made removable covers, which are semi-fitted, and drawn up with a casing underneath the cushion frame.

Here is it's matching rocker. I keep this in the kitchen next to the fireplace and the window.
I can turn it around to be part of the conversation circle in the kitchen-at-large, or turn it into the kitchen work area. This is my favorite chair to have my devotions in the morning as I can see the men folk off as their times of departure vary.

The back cushions are large and comfortable.

Another project was a personal one. I had purchased a long length of 100% cotton crinkled fabric a couple of years ago, thinking it would make lovely, cool summer slips. So this is what I came up with.
I drafted a full length pattern using my sloper. I've never cared much for the adjustable ribbon-type straps, as they always fall down, so this pattern has "real" straps.

Here is a close-up of the hand embroidery. I used a bias strip of polyester crepe de chine for an elegant binding.


I hope you had a thoughtful Thanksgiving. We can all appreciate the freedom we still enjoy to worship God ~ which is the very reason the Pilgrims came to these shores nearly 300 years ago.

It only seems reasonable that we should use that freedom. Freedom is lost simply because it is no longer valued and used, but I must confess how easy it is for me to "hide my light" when in the company of those who don't seem to possess much light, as if I were ashamed to talk about God "as if He were real". I must remember that the people around me will never take spiritual matters seriously, if I am reluctant to be the "new creature" He has made me.

I hope you may be able to take time during the last few weeks of this year to finish up some of those unfinished projects you may have on your mental list. While you are working on them, and if need be, challenge yourself to "be lit" by His Light (The Word), so that you may be a light to others.

"We Make Every Thing At Least Once"

This afternoon, Ashley and I had the pleasure of meeting another of our neighbor ladies. She is the sister-in-law of our other neighbor who has the charming chickens. Mrs. Ashley whisked us down the road to meet Mrs. Ashley, and we had a wonderful time seeing the amazing quilt she made, as well as other of her handy work (and yard-sale finds!)

Betty gave me permission to share pictures with you that I think will inspire you, no matter how old or young you may be, to be the queen of the domain God has given you.

This is her beautiful quilt! "Cathedral Windows" is it's name and it is amazing! It is made unlike any quilt pattern I have ever seen, and Betty's is even more unusual because each of her little "windows" has a piece of batting sewn behind it, giving it a three dimensional effect.

You may click on the picture to see it enlarged.

She stitched it entirely by hand and I must say, her work is very lovely. Perfect. Would you believe this is her first and only quilt?

Here is a piece that has "chicken~scratching" embroidery. I think it charming!

More chicken~scratching in the "Red Room". The theme of the afternoon was this: we enjoy learning a new skill and then using it at least once! Not every one will be proficient or fast enoughto use a skill very often, but the idea is to always have minds and hearts that are eager to learn new things and put them to practical use.

This pillowcase was cross~stitched. Isn't it pretty?

She also had some lovely open drawn-work pieces which she learned from an elderly lady in Donald's some years back. Unfortunately my pictures didn't turn out. I'm so sorry you are not able to see them.

Outside the house, Betty's finger prints were every where. She leaves her creative touches all around the home she shares with her husband. I loved her cobalt "bottle~tree". Needless to say, I am now in search of Milk of Magnesia bottles!


This is just tooo cute! Don't you love the way the "hens" are growing out of the toes? My son, Tristan, was taken aback at dinner when the two lively females in the house simultaneously laid claim to his old work boots as soon as he wears them out! (the poor boy has long suffered our teasing about his stinky feet!)

I would like to thank Betty for opening her home to us. We had a wonderful visit with her. I hope to be as good a neighbor as these ladies have been to us. May the Lord bless your weekend!