Sewing Challenge. (Make a skirt out of old jeans)

Here we go again!
Remember about a month ago when I decided to try making a whole quilt in a day?
Well, today I'm trying another sewing challenge.
This may not seem like a major deal to some... But keep in mind...
I am not much of a seamstress. (that's putting it very VERY lightly!)
I am trying to learn.... Come learn with me!

See these Jeans and this skirt?

there is nothing wrong with either of them.

But I want something different.

I'm gonna combine them to make a new skirt!

First cut the in-seam of the jeans.

Starting at the cuff of one leg up through the crotch and down the other leg.

Be sure to cut very close to the seam-line already in your jeans.

So far.. not hard at all.

Here they are with the seam all cut.
Not scary yet huh?

After your in-seams are all cut, you want to cut up the front seam.
I cut mine almost all the way up to the zipper.
(Note- don't cut quite that far! leave yourself an inch or so under the zipper.)

Next I pinned the two front edges together.
You'll have to over-lap your fabric on the top so the leg pieces will meet all the way down.
Just play with it... and pin it all flat.
(so far, so good!)

That looks Good doesn't it?
Now to recap, you have what looks like a skirt in front, but you still have a big upside down V cut out of the back. (don't worry, we'll get to that soon)

At this point I tried it on (Careful of the pins!! OUCH!!). It is wonderful! But. It is rather form-fitting. and I decided that I am too Plump, Fat, Bumpy, Fluffy, curvaceous, for a straight-line skirt. So Now I'm working on a fuller, Plan B.

Stay tuned for plan B. It's on it's way!!!

UPDATE

Plan B

Ok, I decided I have a little too much "me" to pull off a straight form fitting skirt.
So I did NOT join the two legs together to make a solid jeans skirt in the front.
What I did instead was make the front the way I was planning on making the back of the skirt.

I cut my pretty floral skirt in half and used one half to fill in the opening in the front of the skirt.
(the big Up-side down V)
I gathered the floral fabric so it would be flowie (is that a word?) then just stitched the whole thing up.
Here it is all sewn
(well the front of it at least.)

I have only broken 2 needles so far.
Denim is tough on those needles.!
So far, I think it's going GREAT!!
I'll be back soon with an update as I work on the back of the skirt.
Wish me luck!

UPDATE

I almost didn't come back to post this update.
It's not that I don't like the way the skirt turned out.
I do... I really do! I think it's cute!
As a matter of fact, my neighbor came over when I was trying it on and she loved it!
She even wants me to make one for her!

I sewed the back just like I did the front. I pleated it
(ok it's SO not a pleat, pleats are formal, pleats are what a seamstress would make! Its bunched up.. ok?? I bunched it up) so it would flow pretty. Then I stitched it right on up.
It's better to run a double row of stitching so it's more stable.

Then I tried it on....
It felt good (like my favorite jeans)...
So I asked worker #3 to snap a picture of the back so you could see how it went together.

ummmm There is a reason you have not seen pictures of my backside...
ever...
never....
(I cried a little bit when I saw it.)
The thrill of my new cute skirt was crushed.
All I saw was
W I D E L O A D

I plan to snip any raw edges and let them fray a little bit.
And I need to cut it to the right length.
I'll post finished pics.
On a HANGER!! not my big ole butt..
no-one needs to see that again!

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How'd YOU get here? (POLL)

If you have the time, please scroll down to the bottom of this page....
there is a New Poll.
How Did You Find My Blog?

Let me know!
It'll help calm my inner nosey-wants-to-know-everything curiosity for today.
Thanks!

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I Just Saved a Bunch of Money....

By Switching To.....

Oh Never-mind...

Make note....
ANOTHER Spring Sighting!
And another goofy post by yours truly.

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oooh oooh Oooh another new Spring-Time Friend!!

I was walking out by the pond and lookie who I met.

Her name is Wanda.

She couldn't talk too long because she was very tired,

you see, she has just flown in from Mexico and just stopped by to rest her weary wings.

Ain't she purdy?
(I do think her mascara was a tad over-done)

She let me in on a little secret...

SPRING IS HERE!!!!!

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Another Confession......

I told you before about my status as Kitchen Gadget Queen.
Well.... it doesn't stop with gadgets.
I have another little quirk.
I love "special" cups, mugs, etc...
I have a few that I use to drink out of every single day.

One for my Diet Coke.
One for water.
A special mug for my coffee.
and a few other special ones.
well.. more than a few....
I have so many coffee cups that my children have threatened to move out if I dont get rid of some.

well.. today I got a new favorite cup!!

Look at THIS!!!

It's the Alice Cup from Max Brenner.

(Alice, from Alice in Wonderland)

Here it is filled with my Chi Tea.

I love the simple lines.
I love the stainless steel straw.
Whats not to love about this cup??

Want a sip?

I have a new recipe for a Frozen Hot Chocolate that looks to DIE FOR!!
That's what this cup is for....
I'll try it out then post it here.

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World's Best Maple Snickerdoodle Cookies

These cookies are simply the best you'll find anywhere.

They are chewy mapley good!

You must use REAL maple syrup to get the best cookie.

Enjoy!

INGREDIENTS

2 cups all-purpose flour
1 1/2 teaspoons baking powder
1/4 teaspoon baking soda
1 1/2 teaspoons ground cinnamon
1/2 cup margarine, softened
1 cup white sugar
3 tablespoons real maple syrup
1 egg
1/2 cup white sugar
1/4 cup maple sugar

DIRECTIONS

Preheat oven to 350 degrees F

Stir together the flour, baking powder, baking soda, and cinnamon. Set aside.

In a large bowl, cream together the margarine and 1 cup of white sugar until light and fluffy. Beat in the egg and maple syrup. Gradually blend in the dry ingredients until just mixed. In a small dish, mix together the remaining 1/2 cup white sugar and the maple sugar. Roll dough into 1 inch balls, and roll the balls in the sugar mixture. Place cookies 2 inches apart on ungreased cookie sheets.

Bake 8 to 10 minutes in the preheated oven. Cookies will be crackly on top and look wet in the middle. Remove from cookie sheets to cool on wire racks.

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Well Isn't THAT great!

I love the Little-Foreman-in-Pink dearly...
I have spent countless hours of her life teaching her to walk, talk , etc...

I was cooking dinner....
She comes up beside me to "help".
She reached up and grabbed my upper arm and said...

"Cool Mommy! Your arm is squishy!"

Will someone please remind me why I wanted her to talk?!?
**sigh**

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Oooooh! I'm gonna be on the Radio!!

OK... it's not a HUGE station.
But my hometown radio station has a daily show they call the "Party Line" and guess what??

They invited Lil Ole me to be their guest next week!
Tuesday April 1st (April Fools Day how appropriate!) from 8:30 - 9:00 am central time. (9:30-10:00 am Eastern)
I'll be on the radio.

Not sure what we will be talking about...
Wife Swap maybe.....
Building a web page/blog?...
Bad Mothers Anonymous?...
Maybe some of each!

If your totally bored... and have nothing to do you can listen to it live via their web page.
KSHN Radio <---click there.
There is a link at the top/left to listen live.....

I just hope I remember how to talk! Nah... they'll probably have trouble getting me to Shut Up!!!

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Once upon a time.....

there was a Homesteading Housewife named Dana.
She loved to play in the dirt and make things grow.
Her favorite thing in the world to grow was home grown heirloom tomatoes.

She would start her seedlings early each year in hopes she would get her juicy tomatoes at the earliest possible moment.
She would water them
She would feed them
She made sure they got the right amount of sunlight each day
and then she would place them out into her garden with great anticipation to let them grow grow grow.
They were doing wonderful outside in her garden.
Dana was very pleased.

This woman also loved her farm critters.
One day she looked into her rabbit pens and realized she has a lot of beautiful bunnies who were rather tame.
She had visions of cute furry bunnies hopping around her yard among her children.
It was a beautiful thought.
So, one day she let several of the cute furry critters loose to roam freely around her yard.

The rabbits were so happy to be free.
They scampered around the yard.
They would frolic with her cats.
They would follow her children wherever they went.

Dana loved to walk out of her door or pull into her driveway and see her beautiful bunnies grazing on the green grass.
People who came to her homestead were amazed to see tame bunnies wandering around freely.
They brought great joy to Dana's heart and she was pleased.

Until....
she realized what a truly horrible idea it was.

The next chapter to the story.... Dana Learns to container garden.
(in containers too tall for bunnies to reach!)

grrrrrrrrr

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We are under attack!!!!

We live in Texas.
For those of you who do Not live in Texas, I feel the need to educate you about some things you may not have in your area.

Texas is a wonderful place.
But, those of us who are lucky enough to call it home also have to pay our dues by dealing with some things that are a tad less than idealistic.

Today we'll start with the Numero Uno, Evil, Nasty, pest.

FIRE ANTS!!

See this little green bucket?

My children play with this bucket near the sandbox.

So when you walk by it and see it up-side-down with sand spilling out of it, you may be temped to think.. It is full of sand from the sand box.

Oh no,.....

Don't be so sure....

I kicked it over first.....

You see, what looks like a harmless mound of sand (or in this case a harmless bucket of sand)

is really a fire ant colony!!!

Their sole purpose in life is to sting the Fire out of you!! And produce MORE fire ants!

That little green bucket literally held THOUSANDS & THOUSANDS of Fire ants!!

Fire ants are evil!

Fire ants will find you!

You can't sit anywhere in the yard because of fire ants.

You can't work in the garden without gloves because of fire ants.

Newly hatched chicks are killed by fire ants.

I lost a litter of kittens to fire ants.

Fire ants are pure evil!!

and nope... I have found NO cure for the evil buggers that doesn't involve the use of some really nasty chemicals.

There..... Now you know our little secret. you can feel better about not living in Texas. ;)

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Happy Easter! Happy Spring!

I just love Springtime!
I took a walk around this morning before church.
Look at all the signs of spring!

Some are simple, yet beautiful.

Some just look so happy!

some are very colorful.

And some are so teeny-tiny that you almost miss em all together!

Is there any time better than Spring-time? All the signs of new life (kinda like Easter huh?) Color comes back and it's the of the end to the gray yucky cold!

Well.... Wait a minute... Nap-time..
Yes.. Nap-time is better than Spring-time... But NOT by much!

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Ever Have The Feeling...

Like your being watched??
I went out this morning to feed the critters and just couldn't shake the feeling that I was indeed being watched.
I looked to the left.. nothing.
I looked to the right... Nope.. no-one there.

Then I looked Up...

There they were....
Buzzards!
Watching my every move.

Buzzards are freakishly ugly aren't they?

But.. But.. don't buzzards stalk DEAD things?

Aren't buzzards supposed to be some kind of bad omen?

Not that I'm superstitious or anything....

But it kinda freaked me out man....

See the piercing eyes?

Kinda freaky, dont'cha think?

Then they saw me looking at them and tried to move to a better hiding place...
I said they were freakishly ugly...

I never said they were smart.
I haven't dropped dead yet.. so the poor ugly un-smart things have to wait another day for this meal.

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an hour of my life.

First Worker #1 gets his learners permit to drive.... Oooh Scary!

Now today, THIS KID got his!!!

They are both very happy.
They are both very excited.
They are both feeling very grown-up.
They are both driving me nuts asking to drive.

Come into my world......
Just for a minute or two....

(we get into the car... Worker #1 gets behind the wheel)
The next 30 minutes go something like this.....

"You can go a little faster if you want."
"turn on your blinker"
"Honey, the speed limit is 35... 15 is just a tad too slow."
"Stop looking at the speedometer... Look at the road."
"Stay on the road! There is enough room for the other car to pass you."
"Get off the white line or you'll end up in the ditch."
"You can go a little faster anytime you feel like it."
"Ignore that guy honking behind you, he's in a hurry."
"Stay in your lane!"
"Stop looking at the speedometer! I'll tell you if you even get close to the limit!"
"Off the white line!"
"If we go into the ditch I'm gonna kill you, you know!"
"MOVE OVER TO THE LEFT!!!!"
"Good job.. Get OUT!!!"

worker #2 gets in the drivers seat....
the next 30 min sound something like this....

"Do not use your left foot for the brake."
"Slow down a little bit.. the speed limit is 30 NOT 35."
"No you can not turn on the radio."
"You are a little too close to the yellow line, move over to the right a tad please."
"Watch your speed... look at the speedometer."
"Get your left foot away from the brake."
"Please stay in your own lane.. the other cars need room too ya know."
"Slow down."
"I really don't care how fast they are driving.. you need to slow down."
"Left Foot Back N O W!"
"Please look at the speedometer."
"Stay in your own lane."
"brake... Brake.. BRAKE!!!!!!"
"NOT THE LEFT FOOT!!!!"
"Good Job.. GET OUT!!!!!!"

Pray for me.

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It's Official!!

Spring Has Sprung!!!!!!
Today I got the first sunburn of the season mowing my yard!!
whoo hooooo!

And I took a look around our homestead and lookie what I found!!

The first Yellow Rose of Texas in full bloom!

A pretty pink bud... I don't remember what it's called, So we'll just call it "Purdy"!
My Azalea bushes are COVERED in blooms/buds.
And the Jasmine... Oh the Jasmine... You can smell it from a mile away!!

I just love the smell of Jasmine!

Today the Tomato seedlings go out into the garden. I have always been told my the old-timers NOT to plant them until the pecan trees bud out. and I tell you what! It's true! Today I saw one tiny little bud on the pecan tree!! That's good enough for me!!!

Whoo Hoo!!!!

SPRING!!!!!!!

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She's on a roll...

My 4 year old Little-Foreman-in-Pink is on a roll today...

She went into the kitchen to get a drink out of the fridge...
Of course she knocked the bowl of eggs out onto the floor....

Brooooooke! I yelled Wait for Me to help you!
"It's ok Mommy.... The house saved them! Not the ground!!" she replied.

How can ya be mad after THAT response?

Today was kind-of a blah day.
I miss The-Man-of-My-Dreams,
The Young-Men-Folk got out of school for spring break, so they were excited and bouncing off the walls and driving me crazy,
I hadn't gotten anything out of the freezer for dinner,
My tooth started to hurt ,
I was just not in a very good mood.

I went to tuck her into bed tonight.

She threw her arms around my neck, kissed my cheek and said...
I love you Mommy, Your my Best Friend.
awwwwwwwh I melted.
I'm your best friend?
Yep, You are my best friend and Otis is my best friend.
(Otis is the dog..... Oh well... I melted anyway. I'll take what I can get )

I love that kid!

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My Life With Boys....

My life is full of boys.

So my life is filled with boy things....

Muddy clothes piled just outside the back door.

Some women I know pay big bucks to be covered in mud.

My boys get it for free.

often.... VERY often.

My boys like to collect things. Things like used up shot gun shells from skeet shoots.
Because they are "cool".
There are buckets of shot gun shells.
There are boxes of shot gun shells.
Shotgun shells everywhere you look.

I have no less than 10 pairs of rubber boots on my back porch.

Did you know that you can never have too many pairs of rubber boots?
Some are short, some are tall, some are steel-toed, some are not.
Lots & LOTS of rubber boots!

My boys like to recycle. They like to recycle things like really really old broken down motorcycles they find in the woods.
Again, this is because they are "cool".
My boys turn these into things like a comfortable seat outside.
They are very clever.

My boys like to drive things.

There is not a space in a shed or in the drive that isn't filled with some sort of motorized vehicle.
Boys like speed.

Did I mention the mud?

They really like mud!

Me?
Not so much.

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why?

Ok....
I asked worker #1 to go get a few loads of dirt from the huge dirt mountain in our back pasture to put into the potting shed/ secondary brooder. (It was built in a dip in the yard so it holds water.. I want to raise the floor there so my poor young chickens dont have a mud bath when it rains.)

Worker #1 hooks the small tag-a-long trailer to the 4-wheeler and was off.
After two loads were delivered, I realized I had not heard him come back.

I called him on his cell phone.
"Where are you?" I asked
"Mom, I'm busy trying to get the trailer out of the muddy ditch, don't worry.. it's almost out" he replied.

Grrrrrrrr.
30 min. later after still no sound I called him again......

"What ARE you doing???" I asked
"Mommmm! quit calling me! I almost have it out!" he snapped.

GRRRRRRR

30 min later I finally got in the Suburban and drove out there.
What did I find?

My cute little tow-a-long trailer was now a flat-bed.
He took the whole thing apart to get it out of the mud!!!

why didn't he ask for help?
Is it the testosterone?
Is that the hormone than makes males think they can do everything with no help?
Will it bring a male actual physical pain to ask for help?
Would the sky fall?
Would the Earth stop spinning on its axis?
Didn't he think about the fact that my Suburban could have pulled it out in 2 seconds?!?!?

GGGGRRRRRRRRRR!
Why??

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Spring is in the air!

I just hope it is here to stay!
The sun is shining...
I have my veggie seedlings all ready to go in the ground....

But with all the rain we have had the past several weeks, I can't till the garden because it's soup! grrrr

So I think I'll head on outside with the pruners and clean up the plants that need frost damage cut off of them.

I just love working outside when it's pretty!
But the mud? I could do without the mud.
before and after pictures coming in a little bit.

Oh and I'm putting the finishing touches on "Our Visit With Rita" part 4 tonight and it should be up tomorrow. :)!

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A Spring-Time Friend.

Worker #3 found a little spring-time friend today!

Isn't he cute?

I think I'll name him Philip.
Froggies are Spring-Time critters aren't they?

Please tell me Froggies are Spring-Time Critters!

I really REALLY need spring!!

Till then, I have Philip.

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A Mystery.......

See this Red Bucket?

This is where the mystery starts.

I found it in my laundry room... right inside our back door.

Having a little red bucket in your laundry room isn't THAT mysterious in itself.

But the fact that I have never seen this little red bucket in my life is.

I have asked everyone in the house... they have never seen t his bucket either.

hmmmmm.

Lets take a look inside...

There are eight black thingies in the strange red bucket.

Each of these eight thingies are sprouting...

They look kinda alien-like . Dontcha think?

In truth, I think they may be Walnuts. Even though I don't know anyone who has a walnut tree. But the mystery remains.... How did they get here? I asked all of the short people. They have no clue. So, I called my Over-all wearing father-in-law. Nope, he has no idea. I am thrilled to have Walnuts sprouting here to plant (if that indeed is what they are) But where did they come from?? It had to be someone who was comfortable enough to come into my house when I wasn't home. I have asked every neighbor I can think of.. no-one knows...

So for now, I'll thank the Wall-nut Fairy.

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Isn't this pretty?

Is it part of my herb garden?

do I spend hours weeding and caring for this perky cute little plant?

NO!!!

this plant is BULL NETTLE!!!

You don't know what Bull Nettle is??

Well well well let me fill you in!

Bull Nettle is pure evil! Bull Nettle is Mean! Bull Nettle is lurking in the shadows waiting for me! and my kids... and you ... yes, YOU!!!

It looks cute and harmless... but it stings the Fire out of you!!

There have been 4 attacks by this evil little green thing on my family this week, Me, worker #1, worker #3 & worker #4 have all been it's prey.

When Bull Nettle touches you. no matter how lightly or fleeting that touch may be, it stings! it burns! it itches! it swells! it's awful!

We did case studies this week and let me put some old wives tales to rest about this pesky plant.

Clorox does NOT work! - I tried it!

Urine does not work! - Worker #1 tried it. (don't tell anyone tho.. it'll ruin his rep)

Ice does not work! - Worker #3 tried it.. nope didn't work.

Spit does NOT help! - Worker #4 tried this one.

Cortizone did help.. after like 10 min!

here is what I found online.... gee thanks! a little late!

Anti-itch treatment
If stung by a nettle effective anti-itch drugs are available, usually in the form of creams containing antihistaminics or hydrocortisone. Many folk remedies exist for treating the itching, but most of them are ineffective or provide only a short relief simply by mechanical stimulation similar to scratching or by cooling:
Juice from the crushed leaf of dock which commonly grows in association with nettles, rubbed into the area
Juice from both species of Jewelweed (Impatiens capensis and Impatiens pallida), rubbed into the area
Rubbing the underside of a fern leaf (which contains its spore pods or sori) on the afflicted area.
Immediately rubbing mud on the affected area and allowing it to dry before brushing it clean.
Quickly washing the affected area.
Applying ice can help relieve itchiness.
Moistening the irritated area with saliva.
Smearing the infected area with a paste of Baking Soda and water, then rinsing after a few minutes. This is thought to neutralize the small amounts [4] of formic acid released by the tiny, hollow hairs

uh huh.... most did NOT work for us!

stay away from this evil plant!

ok.. I feel better.. I have done my part to help the human race for today.

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