Random Acts of Blogging - Photos and Stuff

I haven't been feeling very well this week, but I wanted to schedule a post for today, so I'm just giving you some random pictures to enjoy and a few verses that my sister-in-law in Australia posted this week.. :-)

I think this is stork's bill. These grow on our property.

These are blackfoot daisies, so called for the little "foot" that sticks out at the center of each petal. They have bloomed nicely this year around my dad's driveway.

Part of the vegetable garden in 2017. These are sweet potato starts. My dad's strength is much reduced this year so I don't know how much garden we'll have since he is our chief vegetable gardener on the property. The slats of wood and the PVC pipe frame in the background were to help hold up plastic or old tablecloths and blankets to protect the plants from late frosts. We can get them as late April here.

I think this may be spider wort. This photo was probably taken by my husband when we were on a visit to the Lady Bird Johnson Wildflower Center.

And here I am in the apron my mom gave to me for my birthday in April of 2017. It was the last thing that she sewed for me. I have it in my kitchen still. I have used it some, but I knew even then that it was probably the last, so I haven't worn it as much as I would have under different circumstances. It has musical notes and bluebirds on it. My sister-in-law helped her with the project and also made the quilt behind me (which belongs to my dad.) :-) Every piece in that quilt represents something from my dad's life in some way.

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1 Chronicles 29:10-13 ...Blessed be Thou, LORD God of Israel our father, for ever and ever. Thine, O LORD, is the greatness, and the power, and the glory, and the victory, and the majesty: for all that is in the heaven and in the earth is Thine; Thine is the kingdom, O LORD, and Thou art exalted as head above all. Both riches and honour come of Thee, and Thou reignest over all; and in Thine hand is power and might; and in Thine hand it is to make great, and to give strength unto all. Now therefore, our God, we thank Thee, and praise Thy glorious name.

Mug Exchange Reveal

This week is the big "reveal" of the mug and tea cup exchange gifts over at The Enchanting Rose. Stephanie did a fantastic job of hosting this blogland event in March and now we're supposed to share the gifts we received either on our blogs or at her page. You can see the other mug and tea cup reveals here: 10th Tea Cup and Mug Exchange Reveal.

So, here is the gift I received from Angela, the lady who received my name - and very nice gift it is too!

I received a mug with a pretty cardinal on it - my favorite bird. Also there was a journal, two kinds of herb tea, two crocheted hot pads with a matching thing to hang them on, some honey spoons, a rolling pin shaped recipe card holder, and a lovely apron! It was a very nice surprise to have the apron in addition to the mug! So appropriate and thoughtful. :-) There was also a cute card with a letter, which was nice as well.

I would have to say that cardinals are probably my favorite bird. I love their brilliant color, but they also have a number of fond memories connected with various people I knew in the past and know now, including my own dear husband. This mug is pretty large, which is another plus. Great for hot cocoa. I have used it several times already. :-)

The beautiful white apron has both embroidery and Battenberg style lace on it. I doubt that I will use it for cooking, it's too pretty to spoil that way. But, it would look very nice in our dining room on the pantry door where I already have a small collection of special aprons. It also matches the valances in the dining room nicely.

Altogether it was a very nice package. :-) I appreciate Angela's efforts.

Even the cat got something enjoyable out of it! hehe

Here is what I sent to the lady whose name I received (copied from Stephanie's page.)

Sew Happy Friday - Tutorial for A Fat Quarter Apron

Photo property of Stephanie at The Enchanting Rose.


Today I'm sharing a link to a tutorial by my blogging friend Stephanie at The Enchanting Rose.  She shows us how to make this cute and functional half apron - or whatever you call it where you live. :-)

I am not a half apron person because I tend to get stuff on my upper clothes due to splashes and drips. (I'm pretty messy in the kitchen sometimes!)  My Gramma Hoover only wore half aprons, though, since she mostly seemed to use them to wipe her hands.  So, I'm sure some of my readers will find this a useful apron and I do think it's very cute.

The Fat Quarter Reversible Apron

Note: If you don't like the three dimensional aspect of the shabby roses she uses on hers, sew on some wide ribbon or trim of some sort that you like.  You can take care of the raw edges on the ends (on the sides, really) by tucking them under and top stitching them down. 

Australian Memories – Working Together

 

With my sister-in-law.  :-) 

Note: I took my own apron along. 
“Have apron, will travel.”  :-D

My dad and brother making salsa.

Adding liners to the curtains to reduce heat.  It really helped!
The weather was quite hot part of the time we were there.

My nephew helping get breakfast.  :-)

Sew Happy Saturday – More Australian Memories

 

Sewing with Grandma -

Well, not exactly sewing, but cutting out an apron. :-) 

My mom took some fabric and pattern for an apron for my niece.  She wanted to try to sew it with her while we were there, but they only managed to get it cut out.  Still – great memories.

(Mom is going to love me for posting a picture of her with curlers in her hair. hehe)

Meanwhile, my sister-in-law was sewing diligently in the background.

One of our first adventures in Australia was visiting a fabric and craft store called Spotlight.  It is similar to JoAnn in many ways, though they do offer some housewares as well.  The prices there did seem high to us on many things, but the sale prices seemed quite good.  There were some good sales on while we were there, as well as some interesting Australian themed fabrics, and I did come home with a nice pile (mostly) to add to my stash. :-)

The kookaburra in the foreground is actually printed on a handkerchief which I bought at a gift shop.  I hope I still have my mom’s vintage hanky collection somewhere around here, as this would make a nice addition to some project with those.  The yellow fabric with the strawberries was a sweet gift from my sister-in-law. :-)

The fabric wasn’t the only “stash” we brought back, however.

Even better! :-) 

Most of the chocolate was a gift from my brother and his wife for all of us here to enjoy together.  Some was already eaten before this photo was taken.  <grin>

And, of course, I couldn’t leave without taking a photo of this amazing stash!  So much visual happiness!

My sister-in-law has inherited and been given a lot of fabric and has also bought a lot herself.  This is a great blessing from the Lord.  As you may know from previous posts, she has her own Etsy store where she and the children sell handmade items.  She also makes custom orders, which keeps her quite busy.  After seeing this fabric stash I hope my husband won’t pester me too much about mine – at least for awhile. ;-)  It’s a lovely arrangement too, because in that dark closet her fabrics stay well away from the light, but they are easily accessible for choosing what to use next.  Ah!  What to make next!  Sweet thought.

Sew Happy Saturday – Vintage Handwork Recycled Into An Apron

 

Here is a cute little apron that a friend of mine has hanging in her kitchen.

This apron was made using a vintage embroidered dresser scarf/table runner that had been spoiled by at least one stain.  The lady who made this cut the dresser scarf up, pieced it together avoiding or covering the stains, added a few embellishments (crocheted butterflies – which might be covering spots), and added ties.  Isn’t it a cute way to use up an old marred piece?  Really the embroidery on it is too beautiful to throw away, so this was a great way to recycle it.  My friend thought it too pretty to wear, so she made this sweet arrangement including a vintage crocheted potholder, a wooden spoon, and an old family recipe for biscuits. :-)

Do you have a piece of vintage embroidery or handwork that has been marred with a stain?  Maybe you could figure out a way to transform it into something “new”.  It’s a great way to shop your own stuff.  I have an old pillowcase with some lovely embroidery along the edge that I’d like to recycle into another project – a sofa cushion cover, worked into a quilt or garment…something.  If I get it done I’ll try to remember to post about it. :-)

Sew Happy Saturday: Make An Apron – Links

 

This picture of my mom was taken several years ago.
Isn’t she cute in her apron and slip on “tennies”? :-)

Here are some links to help you make your own apron.  Whether you want a video tutorial, a written tutorial, or you want to find a pattern and need tips there should hopefully be something here to help you.  Some even repurpose/reuse old shirts!

Disclaimer on some content of some pages – as usual.

How to Make And Apron – A large collection of varied information here.

Dishtowel Apron written tutorial

Dishtowel Apron video tutorial PART 1 – with Jenny at Missouri Star Quilt Company
Dishtowel Apron video tutorial PART 2

Dress Shirt to Kid’s Apron

Adult Apron from a dress shirt PART 1
Adult Apron from a dress shirt PART 2

Make-do Apron – PDF pattern

Apron Patterns

 

My mom in her old kitchen back in Tennessee.

One of the important services that aprons provide is to protect our clothing.  This is a matter of economy for those of us who do a lot of our own cooking. 

Here are some apron patterns for those who might like to make their own.  When you make an apron think of using heavier cotton fabric, or perhaps lining the apron.  This keeps splatters from soaking through, or at least gives you the time you need to pull the apron off if you get a bad splash.  I don’t know how easy it would be to line some of the aprons linked below.  Some of the fuller skirt patterns may not need it simply because the added fullness acts as an extra barrier.

By the way, watch SewingPatterns.com for sales.  They offer their patterns at significant discounts sometimes.  Sign up for their email to find out when the brand you are looking for is on sale.  Plus, they offer downloads of patterns, which could be really helpful to our overseas readers.  I’ve never used that method myself, but it might be worth a try.

Easy

This pattern looks quite easy and also includes some cute kitchen accessories – a table runner and placemats.

A super simple pattern from the “for Dummies” series – mother/daughter.  This is very similar to the style that most of ours are made in.

These look like fairly easy ones – mother/daughter.

Learning to sew for little girls – skirts, aprons and hot pads.

Cute mother/daughter and dolly aprons.

Also, sew your own kitchen accessories.

Dining room accessories.

Medium to Hard

A variety of easy to medium aprons in slim to full styles.  There’s a garden apron in this one.

More modern looking mother/daughter set.

Quite modern.  The styles are simple, but the detail work pushes them into this category as I think they’d be harder to make.

Modern, detail intensive half aprons.

Both everyday and “costume” styles.

Cute novelty half aprons – mother/daughter.

Playful novelty aprons for kids.

A full artists apron. This one will really cover you up! If you need to wear slacks for something such as gardening, but you still want to be modestly covered around the hips and upper legs, this apron might be a good option.

Vintage style

’60s – ‘70s style? 

Ruffled and full plus interesting details.

Nice assortment of styles here.  I like these.

‘30s style aprons.

This collection may be my favorite so far. 

Gramma In An Apron

Here is one of the few pictures I have of my Gramma Hoover wearing an apron.  This picture was taken before my grandparents were married.  Grandpa is on the far left and Gramma is in the middle holding the toddler.  They were churning ice cream the old fashioned way (for those of you who don’t recognize this) with some family members.
Aprons were an important part of Gramma’s life, as they are in mine.  I remember her wearing them quite often when she was cooking.  Unfortunately she was pretty consistent in remembering to take it off before a picture was taken, or it was under the table where it couldn’t be seen.  She wore mostly half aprons in later years when I was old enough to remember.  I don’t know why for sure, because half aprons don’t really protect the most vulnerable area for cooking.  But, as you can see I came by my love of aprons quite naturally.  The one she was wearing here looks like a pretty floral print – just my style. :-)
February 21 was my Gramma’s birthday.  Gramma is still an important part of my life.  She passed on many sayings, a lot of advice and wisdom, a love of wholesome books, her fashion sense and so much more. She also was (and is) a dear friend, not just my grandmother.  I look forward to being with her again in Heaven!