sewtakeahike

Third time's a charm!!

Here it is, the finished project.   This was the initial post for the skirt.  After sewing this together 3 times, I am very happy with the outcome. 

(sorry for the poor photos)

Details of zipper area:

The first time I sewed it together, the side seams needed to be narrowed as it did not fit at all like the photo, it was more of an A-line skirt and there was a severe "bubble" right down the back seam.  So, I took the zip out and seam ripped the skirt back to pieces and altered the side seams and back seam.  I then sewed the whole thing back together and the first picture is what I was left with.  I was not happy at all with the "flounce".  So, I took it off, cut out new pieces 2 inches longer and used hem lace to do the hem (to make it less bulky) and finally, I am pretty happy with the outcome.  The material seems to be a little stiff to give a good flounce, but I wore it last night and was very comfortable and did get 2 compliments!  Most of all, I am so excited that I persevered through this and came up with something I like as opposed to putting it in a pile to take to the goodwill!  Yeah for me!

~Penny

Zucchini Magic

From this:

To this:

Lickety split!

UPDATE:  I have had several people ask for this recipe, so here you go!

Kitchen Scrubbie Tutorial

This is a great kitchen scrubber. It won't scratch non-stick, and is very effective!

Here is what you will need:

1. Crochet hook size G or H (I used size I for the sake of the tutorial to make the pictures more readable, however, you may want to use a smaller gauge like a G or H to make the scrubbie tighter)
2. 1/2 yard tulle, cut into 2 inch strips (9 strips total)  **Edited:  I have used tulle and netting for this scrubbie and they both work great.  The netting scrubbie is a bit bigger than the tulle scrubbie when finished.

Tie all the strips of tulle together to form a long length of tulle.  To ensure the knot is not a weak spot for the tulle to come apart, tie them together by aligning the ends of two strands together:

and then tie:

This is called a "sewer's knot".

Once all the strands are tied together:

1. Chain 3, slip stitch together to form a ring. Chain one.

Single crochet twice in each single crochet in one continuous round until the "scrubbie" is the diameter you desire (mine are about 2.5 inches).  If the scrubbie starts to get wavy edges as you crochet, single crochet once in each single crochet instead of twice for a round to straighten it back out. 

As you crochet, keep all the knots and tails of tulle on the back side, as these will eventually be inside the scrubbie.

Once you have it the diameter you desire, start to single crochet in every other single crochet and the scrubbie will start to look like this:

Once the hole on the top gets small enough, *slip stitch through last single crochet and tie off. 

*An option at this point would be to cut off extra tulle and stuff inside of scrubbie (making sure to leave enough to finish scrubbie off).

Let me know if there are any questions or if you need clarification!

~Penny

Care package for Jeannie's kitchen

You remember my friend Jeannie from several posts ago?  Well, she is in town and I had the privilege of meeting her for breakfast this morning with a mutual friend of ours, Tina. 

Tina and Jeannie

In celebration of Jeannie's visit and her new kitchen in her home that is being built, I made new outfits for Jeannie's kitchen that is "on the way", all in her favorite colors! 

So, lets see......

one crocheted scrubber for those caked on messes (tutorial to follow later this week), one crocheted dishrag for everyday messes (possible tutorial if anyone is interested, leave a comment),

two hot pads made out of scrap material and "quilted" with my fabulous bsr foot,

and one hand towel to tie in her favorite place. 

Yep, got it, everything a new kitchen should need!

~Penny

Lyons Gulch with Becky

I cannot believe I have had the awesome blessing of going hiking twice in one week!  Yay!  Yesterday, I went with a friend, Becky, and we hiked up Lyon's Gulch on the Homestead Trail between Estes Park and Lyons.  The trail meanders up a gulch alongside the creek passing back and forth over the creek several times.  It had rained the night before, so everything was fresh and the smells were incredible.

                                  

Here's Becky by the creek, isn't she cute?

   

I'm not sure how it got there, but on the way up the gulch, we spotted an old car shell

      

Once we got to the homestead sites, there were remnants of cabins, corrals, and stoves.  Can you guess what this is?

~Penny