Before and After Drum Table

Here is a before and after of a drum table I found at the thrift store.

I painted it with Amy Howard chalk pain in Kembel, sanded the edges, rubbed it with stain and rubbed it with Annie Sloan furniture wax.  I painted a little gold in the grooves, too, but it's hard to see in the morning light.

Love it!

Baby Rag Strip Quilt

 I recently made this rag strip quilt for my niece.  It is flannel and soft and I love how it turned out.

 The embroidered label was an afterthought, so I stitched it on top, but in hindsight I would have pieced it into the quilt.  The handwriting on the label is my daughter's.  How much more special does that make the label?!

 This is the flat side of the quilt:

I had never done a quilt-as-you-go quilt or a rag quilt, and it was very easy.  I used the tutorial for this quilt at Do It Yourself Divas:

I used the Missouri Star Quilt Company tutorial for machine binding a quilt.  They have great tutorials and quilting fabric.

Crafting Baby Shower

I recently went to a baby shower for a baby boy.  Instead of playing games, we crafted.  I couldn't finish in time, so I took mine home to finish up.  

We each made a scrapbook page and painted a onesie.  Here is the scrapbook page I did.  It has the Bible verse "Every good gift and every perfect gift is from above, and cometh down from the Creator of the sun, moon and stars, who does not change like their shifting shadows." James 1:17

I used Paper Studio's Woodland Retreat paper, and I stuck the page in my sewing machine and sewed a border around the page and the frame.

 Then I drew this little hedgehog from the paper, and embroidered the design on the onesie (Because I don't paint!!).

I had to add a bow tie on the little guy.  I'm pretty happy with how it turned out.

I Sewed an Apron

 I made this apron as a thank you gift for a friend.  She made a delicious meal for me after I had surgery.  I used this tutorial from the blog Stitches in Play (thank you!).

 I used some Heather Bailey floral fabric.  It was pretty easy, and I think it turned out great.

Also, the farm chair is a trash item that I painted with Annie Sloan Chalk Paint.

Tiny Cherry Pies

Tonight I made these tiny cherry pies.

I used 1 pie crust recipe (see below). I rolled out the crust and cut 12 - 4.5" circles using a Tupperware lid. I pressed the circles into a muffin tin and filled them with cherry pie filling (I used one can for all 12 pies).  For the top crust I cut 2.75" circles with a cookie cutter, and cut little hearts out of the center with a miniature cookie cutter.  I didn't press the edges together and learned the hard way why the edges should be pressed together: so all the filling doesn't bubble out the sides.  Oh well.

Top with a scoop of ice cream if you like.

Pie Crust 

1.  Mix 2 1/2 cups all-purpose flower and 1 teaspoon each salt and sugar.  Cut 2 sticks chilled unsalted butter into pieces.  With a pastry blender, cut in butter, working until mixture is similar to course meal.

2.  Add 4 tablespoons ice water; work with hands until dough comes together.  If dough is still crumbly, add more ice water a tablespoon at a time (up to 4 more).  Do not overwork.

3.  Divide dough in half, and flatten halves into disks.  Wrap disks separately in plastic; refrigerate at least 1 hour.

4.  Roll dough out onto a floured surface.

My Other Favorite Breakfast

This is my other favorite breakfast (to see the first one, click here):

2 Scrambled eggs
1/4 cup red bell pepper
1/2 cup chopped spinach
Fry in a little bit of coconut oil and sprinkle with Turmeric, 2 TB salsa, 1/8 c. shredded cheese, salt and pepper.
Top with 1/4 avocado, sliced

Turmeric is a spice that is extremely healthy.  Here is the one I use Simply Organic Turmeric. There is a long list of health benefits, which includes lowering inflammation, promoting healing, fighting alzheimer's disease and cancer, and it's good for your skin.  I also take these Turmeric Supplements.

Have a blessed day!

My Favorite Breakfast

This is my favorite breakfast:

Cold quinoa

Sugar Free Vanilla Coconut Milk

Raw Almonds

Sliced strawberries (or other fruit such as blackberries or raspberries)

I have never been a big fan of almond milk, because it just seems thicker and not as refreshing as milk.  I love coconut milk and find it to be a great substitute for milk.