Category Archives: Projects

Summer Bubblesuit and Pinafore

19 Thursday Jul 2012

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This easy project is from a vintage Simplicity Pattern, #9395.  The fabric is from Ebay, and I suspect was once a curtain.  (Who remembers that scene from The Sound of Music?  I loved that movie when I was little).  This pattern for toddlers is great because it can be worn three ways and is nice and airy for summer weather.  And, when else can you make your child wear a curtain?

Peanut Butter Maple Syrup Ice Cream

18 Wednesday Jul 2012

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I grew up in New Hampshire and real maple syrup is on my list of things worth living for.  The combination of natural peanut butter and real maple syrup is crazy delicious.  We used only a few ingredients in this recipe, and the quality of each is important.  Use the best you can find for the best results.  (Ada busted me with this cup after I took the shot.  I was pretending to eat soup in the 90 degree heat so I wouldn’t have to share).  I am not proud, but it is hide-from-your-child good.

To make your own Peanut Butter Maple Syrup Ice Cream you will need:

*1 Cup Chunky Natural Peanut Butter (We used a Trader Joe’s PB with Flax Seed for extra crunch)

*1/3 Cup + 1 Tablespoon Real Maple Syrup (Any grade you prefer, but not imitation syrup)

*1 1/2 Cups Whole Milk

*1 1/2 Cups Heavy Cream (We use Ronnybrook Farm for both)

*1 1/2 Teaspoons Vanilla Extract

*4 Strands Saffron (Optional, but really good)

*Pinch of Sea Salt

*Mixer

*Ice Cream Maker

1. Gently heat 1/4 cup of Milk and crush Saffron into it.  Stir, cover and allow Milk to simmer for five minutes.

2. Turn off heat and let Milk and Saffron cool for half an hour before returning to the fridge and chilling for another hour.

3. Mix together Peanut Butter and Maple Syrup until smoothly combined.

4. Add Milk, Saffron Milk,  and Cream and continue to mix until evenly smooth (about 30 seconds).

5. Stir in Vanilla and Salt.

6. Place mixture into Ice Cream Maker and follow manufacturer’s directions.

7. Enjoy!

DIY Paint Chip Game (or How to Learn the Colors)

17 Tuesday Jul 2012

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I made up this game when Ada was learning her colors and just dug it out again for Josie to play.  I am convinced it helped Ada learn her colors quickly and it is a simple and pretty toy to have around.  The felt swatches are beautiful to play with on their own, and my kids seem to find paint chips are endlessly entertaining.  I found the felt swatch ring here on Etsy.  The paint chips are free at almost any hardware store.  Felt + Paint Chips + Double-sided Tape = Awesome.

To make your own Paint Chip Matching Game you will need:

*Felt Sample Ring

*Paint Chips in Variety of Colors (We used Behr because I liked the square shapes)

*Double-Sided Tape

*Scissors

1. Stick the double tape to back of paint chip and place the same color on its back.  This will keep you from having to turn over each chip to see a color.

2. Trim any excess tape with scissors. The closer you tape to edges, the less likely the child will be to pull apart the chips.

3. Here is how we play:  Find a color on the felt ring, say the name of the color and ask the child to find the same color paint chips.  (None of the colors we have are exact matches, so it challenges a child to think about shades and grouping of colors).  Ada also liked to find the same color toys around her room and match them to swatches.  The possibilities are pretty endless…

*Pantone Colors is a beautiful new toddler book about the subtle shades of each color. The book is one of my favorite new baby gift and would make a great companion to this game.

Farmer’s Market Bridal Bouquets

16 Monday Jul 2012

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I got to make the bridal bouquets for our friends’ wedding last week.  We found great seasonal flowers at the Union Square Greenmarket in Manhattan.  (My favorites were sweet pea from Dutchmill Garden out of Newfield, NJ and the globe thistle from The River Garden from Catskill, NY).  It was such a treat walking around the market in the early morning and the bees were as excited about the flowers as I was.  I used to do flowers for weddings and I forgot how much I miss it!  Kristin and Linsey’s weding was a beautiful and rustic affair at the Green Building in Brooklyn.  The farm flowers went right along with the homemade pickles and vintage napkins.  Such a lovely night!

To get the longest life from your market flowers be sure to:

*Cut the stems and place in water as soon as you get them home.  Add packets of flower food if you have it.

*Strip leaves off of stems that will be submerged.  Leaves will turn the water rancid quickly.

*Wire any heavy-headed blooms in a bouquet to keep from drooping.

*Change water frequently, and recut stems every few days.

*Keep blooms out of direct sunlight.  They will last longer in a cooler room.

*If you want flowers to open quickly, place them in warm water.

*Avoid refrigerating flowers with produce.  Gasses from fruit and veggies will make flowers open and wilt quickly.

Enjoy the summer blooms!

Popsicles for Breakfast

11 Wednesday Jul 2012

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It is entirely too hot around here to eat a warm breakfast.  (Or even one that is  room-temperature,  in my opinion).  We came up with these as an alternative.  They include some of our breakfast favorites, which are even better frozen.  Put your favorite smoothie in the freezer!  To make this version you need:

* 2 Very Ripe Bananas

* 1 Cup Milk

* 4 Large Spoonfuls of Yogurt

* 2 Large Spoonfuls of Natural Peanut Butter

* 1 Teaspoon Vanilla Extract

* 1 Teaspoon Honey (Optional, depending on the sweetness of your yogurt).

* Blender

* Popsicle Molds

1. Blend together until smooth.

2. Pour into ice pop molds and freeze for 1-2 hours.

*Makes enough for six standard popsicle molds*

Fresh Pea Egg-Drop Soup

10 Tuesday Jul 2012

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Our CSA brought a pile of green pea pods and parsley last week.  I like looking up new recipes once the ingredients arrive.  This one is a variation on Martha Stewart’s Pea, Lemon, and Egg-Drop Soup.  To make the lemony, summery soup you will need:

*1 1/2 pounds fresh peas in pods

*5 cups stock (We make ours using Better Than Bullion.  The mushroom and veggie flavors are vegetarian and really yummy)

*2 large eggs, lightly beaten with fork

*1 bunch of parsley

*zest + juice from one lemon

*freshly ground pepper

1. Shell peas and place pods, parsley and stock in medium saucepan.

2. Bring to a boil, then reduce heat and partially cover.  Simmer for 30 minutes.

3. Strain pods and parsley and return stock to pot.

4. Bring stock to a boil and add peas.  Simmer 3 – 4 minutes until they turn bright green.

5. Turn off heat and slowly pour in stream of eggs and stir with a fork to make strands.

6. Stir in lemon juice and zest.  Grind in pepper to taste and serve immediately.

DIY Ikea Fabric Teepee Tent

09 Monday Jul 2012

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I made this teepee for Ada when she was little,  (although I think technically Santa gets the credit).  She and Josie have been using it to play at camping in their room together lately.  Our teepee is based loosely off of this pattern by Sew Mama Sew.  Ikea has lots of inexpensive upholstery fabric in bold patterns and the stiffness of the fabric is perfect for keeping tent sides straight.  To make a tent similar to ours, you will need:

*3 Yards of Stiff Fabric.  (We used this Ikea version)

*5 Wooden Broom Handles

*5 Rubber Chair Stoppers

*Leather Lacing or Strong Twine

*7-9 Large Wooden Beads (Ours are 3/4″)

*Scissors

*Drill

*2 Large Buttons Optional (We used these at the top of our tent to button fabric around poles)

*Sewing Machine Optional (We hemmed our edges, but the above pattern is all done with grommets)

1. Follow pattern and cut as shown here at Sew Mama Sew.  Adjust length – longer if you plan to hem fabric as we did, or shorter for shorter poles.

2. I added two button holes and ties at the top of our teepee to tie around the poles.  (Sew Mama Sew uses smaller bamboo poles and plastic rings to attach fabric to poles).  Ties made from our fabric scraps are stitched inside our tent secure the fabric to poles.  We can adjust our ties to have the tent stay open or closed.  I like having ties rather than fixing fabric permanently to the poles for ease of washing.

3. Drill 1/4″ holes 4″ down from the top through each broom handle.  Attach rubber stoppers to the bottom of each pole.

4. Thread lacing through bead, pole, bead, pole until all poles are used.  There should be one bead between each pole as shown.  These will help keep poles in place when the tent is set up.  Pull the the lacing to pick up slack and tie knot.  We added beads at the bottom of each tie for decoration.

5. Spread the tent poles out, fanning out with even space between each one.

6. Drape fabric over poles, secure ties and buttons if you have them.

7. Break out the s’mores!

*Acorn Toys in Brooklyn has a beautiful version here if you prefer buy to DIY*

Put a Word on It (or How to Learn to Read)

05 Thursday Jul 2012

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This idea came from Ada’s three (brilliant, loving and fun!) teachers.  They suggested we try this as a way to help her start making connections between words and objects over the summer.  Ada would have us read to her 24 hours a day if she could, so we have encouraged her to learn more about the letters as she shows interest.  We are so excited for her to explore books on her own when she is ready.  She will devour them!  We used markers and card stock to make big labels around our house.  Painter’s tape looped on the back makes them easy to remove from the walls.  It feels a bit like an ESL classroom around here, but she seems to love it.

Clementine’s Party

03 Tuesday Jul 2012

Posted by in Party!, Projects

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I grew up in a family full of summer birthdays.  Summer always meant ice cream cake and swimming and parties and I assumed it did for everyone else as well.  My mom was great at whipping up a party for very little money.  We would make pinatas from paper grocery bags, use dress-up clothes for relay competitions and hand-crank homemade ice cream.  We are thrilled to have two summer birthdays (and a third on the way!) amongst the sisters and cousins in the family now.  I love a summer party!  This is Clementine’s first birthday, with orange and yellows as color inspiration of course:

*Tissue Pom-Poms, Martha Stewart has great directions here.

*Kid Snacks in fancy cups.  These paper snack cups from Shop Sweet Lulu make even healthy snacks seem like party food.

*Giant Balloon from Bargain Balloons.

*Rainbow Veggies and Hummus.

*Paper Flags.  We made these by folding tissue from Nashville Wraps in half and cutting a triangle shape with point away from fold.  Unfold into a diamond, put a bit of glue stick along the fold, reposition and fold over some twine.  Easy!

*Rubber Frog Pool Toy employed to hold down the napkins.

*Sunflowers.

*Under the umbrellas.

*Homemade Lemonade with Mint.

*Guest in Orange.

*Flags on the Fence.

*Ice Cream Cake from Cliff’s.  Ice Cream Cake = Party Essential!

*Dusk.

Happy Birthday Clementine!

DIY Knitted Ice Cream

02 Monday Jul 2012

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Knitted cones from a free pattern at I Like Lemons.  I made these for my niece last year and used scrap yarns and seed beads.  They take only a couple of hours each, or less if you aren’t having to rewind skeins from toddler hands.  I always get the urge to knit during the hottest months, but luckily this project inspired some taste-testing to get the colors right.  I Like Lemons seems to have ended her posts, but there are more cute free patterns in the archives.  Her Olive and Ball projects are pretty amazing.  Etsy has a variety of knitted foods here if you would prefer to buy instead of knit.