tres rios sac – it’s in the bag!

31Aug10

the coffee bag

for the past few years, I have been making purses for the CancerLINC’s annual *it’s in the bag* purse auction…this year, I really went out on a limb, inspired by a cecil jeanne purse that I’d seen in Paris last year.

cecile jeanne purse inspiration

I have always made clutches, and well, I know I like to pack things into my purses, and I really loved the C+J purse I got.  I decided to share the love this year by creating a huge honkin’ purse, what I like to call the *tres rios sac*

A lot of the designs I have been creating recently evolve from what I already have on hand.  It’s just smarter that way, and I already have a pretty good selection of fabrics.  I did however, splurge on a coffee bag.  The bag I procured was for tres rios beans from Costa Rica, and I obtained this treasure from Rostov’s.  I had been wanting to experiment with using coffee burlap bags, as I have seen a lot of different uses recently in the design blogs.

my linc purse for the auction

There is something that I found so appealing about the coffee bags…I can’t put a word on it – but I wanted to take something so texturally harsh and soften it a little bit, make it fashionable.  Some would argue burlap has no place in fashion. Some days I feel it’s the new shabby chic fabric du jour [tell me if I''m wrong]…in any case,  I just say, what the hell, let’s give it a go.

detail - back of purse

I just love how the print and text scrunched together on the purse…

detail - front of purse

more details...

Sourcing fabrics I already had on hand, the liningwas originally going to be made into a neck scarf ; the handle fabric is also something that I found at a fabric swap [I think it is amazing how well it really makes the blue letters pop on the bag].  I did invest in the handle cording and the grommets. I think my grommet experimentation turned out lovely, especially with the front and back gathers.  Yes! there is a zipper closure [which was taken from a deconstructed old weekender bag]; and three pockets in the lining.

lining detail

I almost didn’t want to drop off the purse yesterday morning, but I will be at the auction November 18 and might just be tempted to bid on it myself.

It’s all for a wonderful cause and there will be lots of other local artist’s purses up for bids – hope to see you there!


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a tisket, a tasket…

30Aug10

[a nice little picnic basket project.]

coming back from the beach this summer, I spotted some produce baskets, which I promptly yoinked from the roadside stand [after asking the gentleman very nicely, with a huge smile].  I used it to gather garden stuffs this summer, and it can hold quite a bit.

Then I got a hankering for a nice vintage picnic basket which range in expensiveness online, and I don’t have the patience to thrift it out locally. soo…who needs a lid on a picnic basket anyway?  I took an old paper grocery bag and started working on a pattern for a lining…found some old curtains I made for a previous apartment, then cut, sew, add a little grosgrain, and voila!

I’m reallly wanting to use the basket on our weekend camping trip that’s coming up, but feel it’s a bit frivolous and not very campy.  besides I can’t pack our lunches in this and take it on a hike…but it does look pretty!


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notes on: the granola experiment

18Aug10

I am so excited about camping this weekend with old friends!  I am feeling a little anxious, as I will have to be self-sustaining squirrel.  The trusty nut is out of town on business. This means I am going to be setting up camp, making fires, and cooking by myself and with the help of friends…

anywho,  first things first, I had to get something to saw little branches, whittle twigs for marshmallows, and be all around handy…I bought my first pocket knife last night, pretty spiffy, and will help me out immensely!

"Hiker"- photo from swissarmy.com

for sustenance, I figured I had to make some good hippie camp snack foods. like…granola. I took a basic granola recipe from a brunch cookbook mom gave us for christmas one year…

it called for apples and figs...mmm let's change it up, shall we?

I wanted so bad to make a blueberry and cranberry granola with cheerios.  now don’t ask me why, because at 6am the oven was smoking, and let’s just say I have to do a redo.  this can be categorically described as a granola fail.  all was not lost, but I can’t take burnt granola on a camping trip!

it looked so promising!

first things first, although blueberry does have its place in granola, I should not have put them in fresh, they needed to be dried! then the cheerios brown so easy, so I should have mixed them in later.  In rewriting the recipe here for you, I realized my oven temp was a little off [450??? v. the stated 325.  I don't know if I should be professing my intermittent ditziness, but oh well] I am planning on doing another run thru and fingers crossed it turns out better. in the meantime, here’s the recipe from the book – I will share mine once it’s perfected!

2.5 c. rolled oats

2 granny smiths – peeled and diced

1/4 cup dried figs

1/2 c. slivered almonds

2 Tbs honey

1/4 c. cold water

1 tsp ground cinnamon

1 tsp vanilla extract

1 tsp butter melted, to grease pan.

Preheat oven to 325 F.  mix oats, fruits, and nuts together.  Mix honey, cinnamon, water, and vanilla and bring to a boil.  Once boiling remove from heat, then pour over oat mix, and stir well to coat everything.  Pour onto a greased baking sheet, and bake for 40-45 minutes.


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ready for fall

13Aug10

This morning was fabulously crisp.  It made me yearn for the fall weather that just can’t arrive in Richmond quick enough.  I am a layering kind of gal, and that just doesn’t fly in the face of 100 plus degree weather.  I can’t wait to pull my cowboy boots out and kick it around town; I want to be able to wrap up in my fall sweaters, wear leggings again, and scarves!…and I want to sip a tea out on the patio without an onslaught of mosquitoes and the sun beating down on me.

Last night’s rainstorm was absolutely crazy providing much needed water to our dying garden, and provided us with a tease of cool weather this morning.  I also can’t wait for fall, because that means it’s apple harvesting season.  I tried making an apple crisp a couple of weeks ago, and no one wanted it because “it’s a fall dish.”  Well, it was delicious, and just what my sweet tooth was demanding…

I’m not usually on an apple kick, but after the crisp I had the urge to buy some fijis and attempt some apple scrapple bread that friends had brought down with them from Great Harvest.  This turnedo ut deliciously and it didn’t matter that it was sweltering hot out…There is no picture, because as soon as it was made, it was gone.  Seriously.  here’s the recipe though:

Streusel Topping:

1/4 cup Butter, softened

1/4 brown sugar

1/4 cup all-purpose flour

1/2 teaspoon cinnamon

Bread:

2 cups self rising flour

1/2 cup Butter, room temperature

1 cup sugar

2 eggs

1/2 teaspoon vanilla

1/2 cup buttermilk

1 1/4 cups chopped apples

a handful or two of dried cranberries

1/2 cup chopped macadamia

Preheat oven to 350°F.

Streusel Topping: Stir together brown sugar, cinnamon and flour. Add butter; blend with a fork until the mixture resembles coarse crumbs. Set aside.

Bread: Cream butter; gradually add sugar and beat until light and fluffy. Beat in eggs and vanilla. Add the flour to the butter mix, alternating with buttermilk and mix just until smooth. Fold in apples and nuts. Pour batter into a greased, large loaf pan. Top with streusel mixture. Bake 50 minutes ish.

*****************************************************************************

I am very much looking forward to the arrival of Fall, and am already planning a camping excursion to Charlottesville to pick some apples at Carter Mountain, visit Monticello, and take in some wine tastings.  With fall and apples, no one can deny all the apple crisps, apple scrapple and apple butter that I’ll be churning out! Yay!


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an age that has no significance at all

09Aug10

As I have gotten older, I have wanted to celebrate my birthday less.  after 21, there really aren’t any spectacular milestones [as far as this 27 year old knows].  The last time we had a huge milestone shindig to celebrate my quarter century and my mom’s half century…

Luckily, I am surrounded by good friends, and fabulous family that have been ridiculously kind in helping me celebrate this annual event…and pointing out the obvious with a birthday card from someecards that reassures me “I have reached an age that has no significance at all”  That company has a knack for tactfully being blatantly honest.

Yesterday in particular I received a very, very special gift, very fitting for me – La Belle France, a recipe book organized by province, accompanied by regional photos of farmers, harvests, and historical stories of the region and recipes particular to that region.  The book came from a local bookstore, one of my favorites –  Black Swan Books.  I’ve already marked the pages with the yummy recipes that need to be tried.  Each region has it’s own trademark sauce, meats, veggies, desserts, etc and I am so excited to explore all the recipes in this book!  I looove collecting any recipe books or any books about France in general, so this book was a double treat…And the photos of the countryside and the people are so beautifully done, it would make a great coffee table book, too.


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dragon boat races

04Aug10

voila, just a few of my favorite photos from last weekend’s dragon boat racing, which took place at rockett’s landing…enjoy!


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[re] fashion math

27Jul10

an old dress

[plus]

a thrifted skirt

[plus]

some leftover grey silk chiffon from the rehearsal dinner dress

(the grey is the lining!)

[equals]

a pretty nifty new dress.

I bought the green dress maybe five years ago for a summer wedding.  A $20 score from the dept store…I wore it a few times after – I love the top because it accentuates what I’ve got; the rest of the dress I just drown in pleats.  Executive decision number one – get rid of pleats.

The skirt was a find from a thrift store – it’s just your run of the mill lace pencil skirt.  I got rid of the zipper, the sating binding at the waist, and then I basted the green top to the black lace skirt.

There was a bit of a gap between the top & bottom part, so I made a quick pattern & cut out a couple of layers of the silk chiffon I had left over from a rehearsal dress I made last year….

I sewed it all up, and voila, a beautiful new dress!  how’s that for a fashion equation?! Now where to wear it to?


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garden pic of the week

26Jul10

this garden pic of the week comes from the back corner of the garden, where watermelons, which we had not planted, sprouted up.

The funny thing about home gardening is that the produce never seem to get as big as in the stores [like the watermelon, the green peppers, corn, and other melons] but they are so juicy and delicious when you bite into ‘em.  Well, I was tired of looking at this watermelon and not seeing any growth, so I thumped it to make sure that it was ready and then I plucked it from the garden.  Sure enough, it packed a punch for it’s size.  When I cut the melon in half, the ruby pink fruit was incredibly bright in contrast to the ever so light minty green rind.  It had been a while since I had eaten watermelon, esp. watermelon with seeds…it was just the right kind of summer treat with all this hundred+ weather we’ve been having.


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fashion, consumerism + waste

22Jul10

Currently I am reading a historical account of fashion and seamstresses at the height of Old Regime France. The book, Fabricating Women, by Clare Crowston details the fashions of the times and how the art of sewing went from purposeful production to frivolous trends which changed with the seasons. This all through the help of a couple of magazines – one the first dedicated solely to fashion, the other dedicated to accounting court life and fashions; a queen + her entourage; and fashion merchants who would decide on color and pattern trends each season.

I do want to say that despite the ever-changing nature of fashions, the seamstresses of the time were very conscious of the instability of the trends and would thus recycle, mend, and re-decorate women’s dresses as fashions changed.  I would hope so, as 25 yards were sometimes used for one ensemble!

Throughout a careful introspection of my wardrobe and young adult consumer tendencies [eek.], I have tried to whittle down the closet, keep the essential, sustainable and classic fashions; and stop accumulating the bull.  And recycle what I can when I can in fashion.

I can’t remember the last time I went to the mall, or bought clothes from target even. Actually, it was probably sometime last summer. Point being, I am trying to wabi sabi my life [ie. simplicity, modesty, intimacy, and natural processes]. The line between needs and wants has been far-blurred, to the point where one has to snap out of it and realize what is really needed, and what someone [ie. media] has told you you need. You follow?

So anyway, this idea of fashion/trends/consumerism/waste is all very interesting to me right now. This morning, in my Craft daily email, I came across the artist, Jarod Charzewski. One of his latest works, Scarp, is a research into fashion, consumerism, and its effects on the earth. Scarp “encapsulates North America’s consumer culture which leads to overcapacity landfill sites.”

investigative research/legend for Jarod’s Scarp project

I found myself reflecting on the amazing truth his landscapes revealed: That the largest bulk of his landscape is trends – here today, tossed tomorrow; the actual clothes that people hold near and dear, wear day in, day out are the smallest part of the landscape; that planned obsolescence, impulse buying and market pressure are the next largest parts of the landscape.

“Everything needs space. My work reflects nature’s response to man, and mankind’s impact on landscapes. The result is a lens through which to see our world.” ~ Jarod Charzewski

Just think on that…what are your reactions to his piece?

all photos courtesy of Jarod Charzewski


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garden pic of the week

18Jul10

tomato, in *pablo red*.

pablo red is the kind of red tomato my mother waits for.  it is a deep, rich red characterizing the ripest of tomatoes. prime pickins for a tomato sandwich.  she defines her pablo red tomato as “red and ripe and plump with a thin skin….so when I cut into it with the knife, it slices so easy and the juices just run down my arm.”  my mother just must have been a poet in her past life…

with all this heat, the tomato plants have been producing like crazy!  I have been saving a few of the larger slicing tomatoes, letting them turn pablo red. as for the rest…

they get picked and then rinsed, boiled, skinned, seeded and frozen…come fall, we’re gonna have us a pasta sauce makin’ party…complete with red wine, cheeses, and of course pasta sauce!

I snagged the idea from a real simple magazine a while ago, and despite the crazy amounts of tomatoes we keep harvesting, there isn’t enough in one picking for a great big sauce party…so I’m doing the hard part of skinning and seeding and savin’ ‘em up. I think we’ll call the party *get sauced and make sauce*…just kidding! but maybe not. it’s kind of catchy…

anywho, since the tomatoes and basil are looking so beautiful this week, I figured I’d share a few shots of them from the garden…

cherry tomatoes. mmm.

tomatoes. it’s like where’s waldo.

basil. lots and lots of basil.

below is the recipe, straight from the real simple shindig planner:

Makes 6 servings, plus enough for guests to take home 1 quart each
Ingredients:

  • 30 tomatoes (about 60 medium)
  • 4 onions
  • 2 heads garlic
  • 1/2 cup olive oil
  • kosher salt and pepper
  • 1 6-ounce can tomato paste
  • 1 bunch fresh basil
Directions:
  1. Peel the tomatoes. Bring a large pot of water to a boil. Meanwhile, fill a large bowl with ice water. Using a paring knife, core each tomato and score a small X in the bottom. In batches, carefully add the tomatoes to the boiling water and leave in just until the skins begin to split, 15 to 30 seconds, then transfer to the ice bath. Peel the tomatoes and discard the skins.
  2. Chop the tomatoes. Cut the tomatoes in half and squeeze out and discard the seeds. Coarsely chop.
  3. Prep the onions and garlic. Peel and chop the onions, and peel and slice the garlic.
  4. Cook the sauce. Heat the oil in 2 large pots (at least 9 quarts each) over medium heat. Divide the onions, garlic, 3 tablespoons salt, and 1 teaspoon pepper between the pots and cook, stirring occasionally, until the onions are tender, 10 to 12 minutes. Add the tomato paste and tomatoes and cook, stirring occasionally, until the sauce has thickened, about 1 hour. Remove the basil leaves from the stems and stir into the sauce. Use the sauce immediately or freeze it for up to 3 months.

bon appetit!


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