Sewing Room Friday

For Sewing Room Friday this week...

It's photo's of a baby quilt me and my girlfriends are working on for the newest baby amongst us. We each embroidered a square with an image of our choosing...
Everyone really did a great job, you'd never know that some of these are first attempts at embroidery.


Yes, the light is terrible here today...normally I would have scrapped these photo's, but as it called Sewing Room FRIDAY I was left with few options.

Some Tea...

We are all in this odd state of wonky-ness.

You know how a family falls in and out of their rhythm from time to time? We have fallen out a bit over here. Veered away from an easy stride and begun to overshoot in every direction.

The kids are behaving erratically. I am overreacting. Stuff is piling up around the perimeters. The giggles just don't seem to come as easy.

I feel that it is somehow my responsibility to get us back in the flow...although I can never remember how I did it the time before. Is it something I can control or is it just a mix of time and a bit of surrender that corrects everything?
Is it my efforts to control things too much that cause the whole wonky thing to begin in the first place? Either way I end up accepting much of the responsibility. Too much.

My plan this time...more surrender, more tea, less fretting.

I guess, on the upside, this means we will once again find a comfortable balance between all that we try to squeeze into and out of our days....and with that will come the easy smile of realizing we've done it yet again.

A New Everyday Bag...

So, my good friend Rachel asked for an everyday bag for those outings when she has her little guy and needs more than her purse...
but doesn't need her entire diaper bag.

The Everyday Bag is the answer.

It has six internal side pockets large enough to hold diapers, loveys, burp cloths, bottles, and such...
plus a cell phone pocket snuggled up inside the strap where she can actually find it (and reach it).

She chose the fabrics herself from my Hancock's of Paducah catalog.

Do you have one of these?

It is one of my most used tools for creating custom bags. I get an updated one every few months in the mail with a bunch of new fabrics. Then, when a customer needs fabric choice help or inspiration, I pull it out.

H. of P. also sells their fabric is 1/2 yard increments which I LOVE. A few other sites do this, but most don't, and it's really practical for me.

I made one of these for myself a while ago, but ended up literally selling it off my back while was out and about one day.

Adrift in Yarn...

I'm buried in yarn.

I have a couple of hat orders which, together, total 7 Whimsy hats. So, I'll need to knit a hat a day between now and next Monday.

This is great news for the Plumm Shop.

But...

Did I mention I'm hosting two Thanksgiving feasts this year? The first is this Sunday.

I'm going to have to teach the boys to knit.

Finaly Complete...

(That's one of Chris's hand turned Christmas ornaments in his hand there.)

I have been working on this shop apron for Chris since, well, I can't even remember... He's been very patiently waiting while I managed to complete every other project under the sun and his poor half finished apron sat waiting.

Well, no more!

Here it is in all it's woody-ness.

So, since he's a woodworker, this fabric was the obvious choice. Clever, no? Chris chose it himself.
I didn't use a commercial pattern...as usual I just did some sketches, took some measurements, and made my own. Since I am sure this apron will see it's share of heavy use the straps in the back are heavy duty brown nylon with adjustable latches. I used a total of three layers of canvas to make it super heavy duty...Gotta protect from those flying wood bits. The pocket flap is extra big to keep sawdust from finding it's way into the pockets.

Overall, we are both really happy with it. It was fun to intermingle our crafty worlds and collaborate on something not related to home improvement or parenting.

Today's Treasure's

For Chris's birthday his parents offered to watch the kid's this weekend. They had them for two entire days. Entire days. Our kids have stayed over at their Nona and Grandpa's many times before...and they always love it. Nona and Grandpa's house is a very special place.

So, for the first time ever, we planned nothing at all for our kid free days. In the past we've always arranged weekends away, gone out with friends, or had another obligation already in place when the kids had an overnight.

It was amazing!

We thrifted, sat on the couch, leisurely sipped our coffee, spent hours in the bookstore, went to a few art galleries, puttered around our respective studios and just generally, truly relaxed.

When we went to pick up the boys they seemed bigger, cuter, sweeter, smarter and more precious than they had just a couple days before.

We got the two little treasures above at a couple of the Estate sales we made it to over the weekend. A great old sheet, perfect for a tote bag and some curtains...and a vintage Polaroid camera in it's original leather case with manual.

AKA Dr. Laundry

(These two photo's of Luke were taken about 3 years apart....same kid, same hat, same ridiculous amount of cuteness. FYI...that's a treasure map in Photo #2, lest you think it was just some random piece of paper. Like I did. Duh Mom.)

So...I did it. I washed 3 loads of clothes in Dr. Bronner's soap. I used about 2 to 3 tablespoons per full load on warm water wash/cold rinse. I tested it on one load of lights, one of darks, and one with towels/linens. It worked SO well. It not only worked, It was SO much better than the laundry soap I had been using. There were no 'oil' spots as I had read there may be.

Until now I was using a 'green' brand that's biodegradable and free of perfumes and dyes. My clothes were getting pretty clean, but didn't smell so great and were a bit 'scratchy'.

The clothes and my laundry room now have a great clean smell (I used the peppermint scent...almond or lavender would be nice too). The laundry is also much softer than it was with the detergent I had been using. This was a huge (and unexpected) bonus as I had stopped using fabric softener/dryer sheets quite a while ago when I found out that they contained some of the most dangerous chemicals in my home!

From the EPA:

Principal chemicals found in Fabric Softeners/Dryer Sheets are:

Symptoms of exposure are taken from industry-generated Material Safety Data Sheets (MSDS)

ALPHA-TERPINEOL

Causes CNS (central nervous system) disorders... "highly irritating to mucous membranes" ..."Aspiration into the lungs can produce pneumonitis or even fatal edema." Can also cause "excitement, ataxia (loss of muscular coordination), hypothermia, CNS and respiratory depression, and headache." "Prevent repeated or prolonged skin contact."

BENZYL ACETATE

Carconigenic (linked to pancreatic cancer). "From vapors: irritating to eyes and respiratory passages, exciting cough." "In mice: hyperanemia of the lungs." "Can be absorbed through the skin causing systemic effects." "Do not flush to sewer."

BENZYL ALCOHOL

Causes CNS disorders ..."irritating to the upper respiratory tract" ..."headache, nausea, vomiting, dizziness, drop in blood pressure, CNS depression, and death in severe cases due to respiratory failure."

CAMPHOR

Causes CNS disorders. On EPA's Hazardous Waste list. Symptoms: "local irritant and CNS stimulant" ..."readily absorbed through body tissues" ..."irritation of eyes, nose, and throat" ..."dizziness, confusion, nausea, twitching muscles and convulsions". "Avoid inhalation of vapors."

CHLOROFORM

Neurotoxic. Anesthetic. Carcinogenic. on EPA's Hazardous Waste list. "Avoid contact with eyes, skin, clothing. Do not breathe vapors ...Inhalation of vapors may cause headache, nausea, vomiting, dizziness, drowsiness, irritation of respiratory tract and loss of consciousness." "Inhalation can be fatal." "Chronic effects of overexposure may include kidney and/or liver damage." "Medical conditions generally aggravated by exposure: kidney disorders, liver disorders, heart disorders, skin disorders." "Conditions to avoid: Heat..." Listed on California's Proposition 65.

ETHYL ACETATE

Narcotic. On EPA's Hazardous Waste list. "...Irritating to the eyes and respiratory tract" ..."may cause headache and narcosis (stupor)" ..."may cause anemia with leukocytosis and damage to liver and kidneys". "Wash thoroughly after handling."

LIMONENE

Carcinogenic. "Prevent its contact with skin or eyes because it is an irritant and sensitizer." "Always wash thoroughly after using this material and before eating, drinking ...applying cosmetics. Do not inhale limonene vapor."

LINALOOL

Narcotic. Causes CNS disorders. ..."respiratory disturbances" ..."Attracts bees." "In animal tests: ataxic gait, reduced spontaneous motor activity and depression ...depressed heart activity ...development of respiratory disturbances leading to death."

PENTANE

"Danger - Harmful if inhaled ...Avoid breathing vapor." "Inhalation of vapors may cause headache, nausea, vomiting, dizziness, drowsiness, irritation of respiratory tract and loss of consciousness. Repeated inhalation of vapors may cause CNS depression. Contact can cause eye irritation. Prolonged exposure may cause dermatitis (skin rash)."

So, to get a better than expected result from a product that I not only feel safe using, but that I actually feel good about using, made my day!

This is definitely going to help me meet my goal over at the Great Plastic Challenge.

The Good Doctor...

We've been using the fabulous Dr. Bronner's soap for a while now...and it's just occurred to me to try it in yet another capacity. Laundry! So far it's our dish soap, general cleanser for counters and floors, shower and tile cleaner, bathing soap, face soap, and carpet freshener. If vinegar and baking soda won't do , we grab the Dr. B's.

Why not laundry? I read around on the internet and found mainly good reviews of the peppermint soap as a laundry soap...a few folks mentioned oil like stains on their clothes. I am thinking if I dilute it in the laundry water before adding the clothes I may be able to avoid this. I'll report back.

Dr.B's also sells a 'Sal Suds' which is meant more for this use, but I really don't want to have any more cleaning products in my home than Absolutely necessary. The thought of only needing ONE for everything sounds Amazing!

If you've not heard of Dr. Bronner's...It's a counterculture Classic.

It's a castille soap which is vegan, biodegradable, organic, packaged in 100% post consumer recycled plastic bottles, scented with essential oils, and not tested on animals. The crazy labels are printed with organic hemp seed ink.

There is even a documentary about the man himself and the story of how the soap came to be..called Dr. Bronner's Magic Soapbox. The proprietor, Dr Bronner, apparently created the soap after escaping from a mental institution and seemed to care more about the soap than his own family.

Interesting stuff.

Anyone have an interesting use for Dr Bronner's...or a soap/detergent/chemical alternative for use around the house?