Sunday Funday: Winding Down

Summer is sadly winding to a close. I am trying to hold on with all my might and wring out the very essence of summer before it slips away. Our time together on the weekends is even more precious as the semester has begun and it is nearly time for school and rehearsals. Our time no longer will be our own.

This weekend we have an almost perfect balance of frenzied activity and restful repose.

Friday evening, we went to a local town fair and soaked

up some ambiance.  The view from the ferris wheel was humbling.

Afterward, we went to a local creamery and sampled some

handmade ice cream. Delightful!

Saturday was a day that summer dreams of being: a morning

at the Community Garden, followed by the Farmer's Market. 

An afternoon of swimming and innertubing at a local waterfall.

A locavore feast on the deck followed by a moonlit stroll. In short, bliss.

Sunday low-key and relaxing: Brunch under the morning sun, 

running through the sprinkler, reading, napping, cleaning up, 

Vietnamese take-out, now to sack out in from of Blue Planet and

rejuvenate for the week ahead.

Good luck to you as you start another adventure!

Sunday Funday: Let the sun shine in!

Today is a grey day, inside and out. The weather is going downhill...it was 90 on Monday and flurries are in the forecast for tonight. Ugh. The up-and-down weather is going hand-in-hand with my mental roller coaster. I am trying to make some life-changing decisions. Scary stuff. Right now, I need a little more sunshine to help me out. 

Luckily, earlier this week, I finished a quick little sun catcher project to keep the sunshine in.

It is nothing super-difficult like stained glass. It is a project that you could easily do with the kids!

My sun catchers add a little something extra
to my studio windows.

First, I traced my designs onto vellum paper. I purchased
mine at a local art supply store but you can
easily find it online.

I cut some tissue paper into squares to decoupage
onto two of the circles. 

They curled as they dried, so I sandwiched them
in plastic wrap and weighted them as they dried.

I painted others with watercolors that I heavily diluted.

These curled as well, so I used coins to weigh
down the edges.

Once the dried, I mounted them on the window with
double-sided tape. If you wanted to hang them, you could create
frames from card stock to mount them in.

You could also use vellum to add a little something extra to cards and invitations.

Stitchy Saturday: Sleeping on Sunshine Pillow

Challenges are...well..challenging to an aspiring uber-crafter. This week, I decided to make a pillow. Not a plain ol' pillow, but a round embroidered pillow. I have embroidered plenty of things, but never anything that was actually going to be used. I have also never made a round pillow, much less a gusseted round pillow. 


Well, challenges were meant to be conquered!

The final product! I will add a little more batting next time.

I made a gusset from a leftover piece from a fat quarter.
I sewed the strips together and then pinned the right sides of that
and the front together.

Ramses wanted to help me pin!

After sewing the gusset to the front, I pinned it to
the backing piece. I had to remember to leave a spot to stuff.

Turned right side out and ready to stuff.

Detail of the gusset and the layers together.

I am very pleased with my first attempt and look forward
to creating more intricate pillows as gifts!

Foodie Friday: Seasonal Feast

One of the best things about warmer weather is the food--lighter, greener, somehow tastier.
A picnic is one of the best ways to celebrate the season. 


Today, I am very pleased to be collaborating with Sara of The Cozy Herbivore on this delicious meal. Sara's recipes are always a delight for all the senses. Her food looks as lovely as it tastes. Fresh and seasonal are the words of the day.


For the main course, I was very happy to have the chance to make a wonderful asparagus tart for Food Network Magazine. Asparagus is one the world' most perfect foods and the spring is the time to indulge. 

Asparagus and Cheese Tart

Ingredients:

• 1 pound asparagus, trimmed
• 1 sheet frozen puff pastry (about 1/2 pound), thawed
• All-purpose flour, for dusting
• 1 cup grated fontina cheese (about 3 ounces)
• 1 cup grated comte or gruyere cheese (about 3 ounces)
• 1 tablespoon minced shallot
• 2 large egg yolks
• 3 tablespoons whole milk
• 1/8 teaspoon freshly grated nutmeg
• Kosher salt and freshly ground pepper
• 2 teaspoons extra-virgin olive oil
• 1/2 teaspoon finely grated lemon zest

Directions:

Fill a large bowl with ice water. Bring about 1 inch of water to a boil in a large skillet. Add the asparagus; cook until bright green and crisp-tender, 2 to 5 minutes, depending on the thickness of the asparagus. Drain and transfer to the ice water to stop the cooking; drain and pat dry. Preheat the oven to 400 degrees F.

Roll out the puff pastry into a 10-by-16-inch rectangle on a floured surface. Transfer to a parchment-lined baking sheet and prick all over with a fork. Bake until light golden brown, about 12 minutes. Let cool slightly on the baking sheet.

Meanwhile, mix the fontina, comte, shallot, egg yolks, milk, nutmeg and a pinch each of salt and pepper in a bowl until combined. Spread the cheese mixture evenly over the puff pastry, leaving a 1-inch border on all sides. Toss the asparagus with the olive oil, 1/4 teaspoon salt, and pepper to taste. Arrange the asparagus on the tart and bake until the cheese mixture is slightly puffy, 15 to 20 minutes. Sprinkle with the lemon zest. Serve warm or at room temperature.

To accompany this yummy tart, I really recommend The Cozy Herbivore's Arugula Salad with Stinging Nettle Dressing and Quick-Pickled Radishes.

Sara says, "The peppery arugula pairs nicely with the mild green taste of the stinging nettle dressing and the sour crunch of the radishes. Please take care in handling fresh stinging needles-- always wear heavy gloves and use tongs to transfer fresh nettles to cooking water. I have included directions for blanching the nettles to remove the stinging silica hairs that contain formic acid, which is an incredible skin irritant. Makes: enough for 2 salads, with dressing leftover for tomorrow's lunch!" 

Ingredients:

for the pickles:

~2 small or 1 large cherry radish, washed thoroughly and thinly sliced into rounds

~1/4 cup champagne vinegar

~1 tablespoon rice wine or mirin

~pinch of sea salt & freshly cracked pepper

for the dressing:

~1 1/2 cup loosely packed blanched stinging nettles (see instructions below)

~1/2 cup raw apple cider vinegar

~2 tablespoons mellow miso paste

~2 tablespoons agave nectar

~pinch of sea salt & freshly cracked pepper

~about 1/4 cup extra virgin olive oil

to put it all together:

~2 handfuls fresh arugula

~2 tablespoons crumbled goat cheese, divided

~2 teaspoons sunflower seeds or pepitas, divided

Directions:

1. Make the pickles: in a shallow bowl, combine champagne vinegar, mirin, sea salt & pepper. Place sliced radishes in bowl and set aside.

2. Assemble dressing. To blanch the nettles: bring a large stockpot of salted water to a rapid bowl. Place a bowl of ice water next to the stove. Using tongs, carefully submerge fresh stinging nettles in the boiling water for 2 minutes. Remove nettles from boiling water with tongs and immediately submerge in ice bath. Remove nettles from ice bath and place on a clean kitchen towel. Roll nettles up in kitchen towel and squeeze all excess moisture out. (The blanching water can be drunk as a tincture-- stinging nettle tea is a diuretic and is said to reduce inflammation)

3. Place blanched nettles, apple cider vinegar, miso paste, agave nectar, salt & pepper in a stand blender. With the blender running, carefully stream in olive oil until a smooth consistency is reached. Taste and adjust seasonings.

4. Assemble salad: remove radishes from vinegar and discard vinegar. Toss fresh arugula in a couple tablespoons dressing. Garnish with crumbled goat cheese, pickled radishes and sunflower seeds. Soak up that sunshine!

I can't wait for Sara to share more recipes with us. Follow her blog and/or on Facebook. You won't be sorry!

A refreshing way to wash it all down is Spiced Sun Tea. I love it and drink it all the time.

Ingredients:

8-10 tea bags (to make it even spicier I use Sunset Spice tea bags!)

1 3/4-inch piece peeled ginger, sliced thin (also, include any juice that oozes out while you slice it)

2 3-inch pieces of cinnamon stick 

10 whole cloves 

2 whole allspice 

7 cups water

Directions:

Place tea bags, cinnamon sticks, cloves, ginger and allspice into a clear container. I put my spices into a a muslin sachet so I don't have to strain it, but so what you prefer!

Add water, cap the bottle or jar, and set in a bright, sunny spot. Allow to steep for a few hours.. Personally, I like to brew it for as long as possible to get the strongest flavors.

Shake, then strain directly into pint glasses over ice. Sweeten with honey, if you'd like. Serve with lime and orange slices.

This is NOT what my Jeweler's Saw Was Made For: DIY Solar Jars

I am a big believer that just because something is functional doesn't mean that it has has to be ugly. I manage to spruce up many of the mundane items in my house just because I have to look at them all the time! I cover storage cans and jars with fancy paper, I stencil adorable animals onto my note paper, I match the curtains to the table legs in my studio. 


It is almost "stay outside as long as possible season" and I am looking forward to hours spent wrist-deep in the dirt and evenings basking in the glow of a hard days work and now, the light coming from my solar jars.


Like most people that I know, I have a batch of utilitarian solar lots from the big chain stores. Handy and functional, but not very attractive. Recently while browsing around pinterest I saw photos of these jars and decided to give them a try. Some aspects were a little trickier than anticipated, but I love the results!

My first finished beauty in the zen garden.

Okay, so this project has 2 decidedly tricky bits:
extracting the light mechanism and finding the right jar.
I tried to cut out the light and the solar panel with snips, scissors, an exacto,
a box cutter, a steak knife, and finally had success with my jeweler's saw.

After FINALLY extracting the lighting bit, it is time to mount it in the jar.
I used a swing top jar from IKEA that I had in the pantry, but think you could
also use an inverted wide mouth mason jar. It would be trickier since the light has to
charge the panel through the glass, but if you jar was wide enough and the light
narrow enough it would work. I hot glued my mechanism to the inside of the lid after making sure it
would close properly.

Many people use glass frosting spray once the have mounted the light, but
I layered a piece of vellum and a strip of brightly colored
tissue paper instead. If you wanted to make these for a party or
wedding you could use coordinating tissue.
In my next round, I may decoupage different colors of tissue
inside the jar for a mosaic look.

I popped into the pantry to see how the
jar would look at night. I am very pleased with
the result. I look forward to completing the set!

WIP Wednesday: Sleeping on Sunshine

Another sunny day here in CNY, another day at the physical therapist., another day without a run. 
I am not going to dwell on it--I am am going to embrace the sunshine. 


Right now, I am working on a fun new throw pillow for my bed that will have me thinking sunny thoughts:

I have embroidered the front of the pillow using several stitches,
including the back stitch, split stitch, whipped back stitch and
french knots. The beams are 4 different shades of yellow on an
orange cotton background.

I will be using the yellow cotton on the back and will be
doing the blanket stitch along the edge for some additional
decorative interest. I MAY attempt to put in a band between the front
and back.

I think it will look great nestled among my other handmade pillows and shams.
Check back Saturday when I hope to post the finished product!!

How Tuesday: Capturing the sun

Last night, I was having doubts about this blog. Readership is low and I was uncertain of its value. Is anyone actually enjoying it? Hmmm...


 Then I went to play rehearsal. What a disaster...doubt about all my creative pursuits abound. 


Then I remembered this week's theme: sunshine. Ralph Waldo Emerson once said, " Most of the shadows of this life are caused by our standing in our own sunshine."


If no one else is reading the blog isn't really the point. The point is to be accountable to my creativity. The point is to live the life I want as an artist. I am glad that today's post is How Tuesday. I need today's activity more than ever--I have captured the sunshine. 


I made several solar prints to hang in the studio to remind me of the outdoors and my connection to nature as I work. Here's how I did it:

I bought photo-sensitive paper at my local science
museum but it is also available online.
I gathered some items from my yard for my prints.
I placed the items in front of the paper inside the frame.
Because the plants were in the thick side, I clamped the frame closed with
a binder clip. 

After a few minutes in a sunny window, I removed the plants.
The longer the paper is in the sun, the greater the contrast.

I decided to make a sewing specific piece for my sewing studio using
buttons, lace and fun trim.

All done and ready for framing!

I added the sewing print to my cutting area. The light is not a good as
I would have liked it for this photo, but it came out very well.

Framed my 3 favorite nature-inspired prints in inexpensive frames 
from the dollar section of my local craft store.


No matter the weather outside or my mood,
 I will always have these prints to remind me of sunny days.