Country Girl Dilly Dill Pickles & Yo Yo Show Ribbon Craft

This Summer I have been spending some of my days making jams.... I decided to take a jam break for an evening of canning some dill pickles. So easy, so good and fun! I bought a bunch of little cucumbers and cut slices and chips from my bushel.

Country Girl Dilly Pickles

Bring to a boil: 3 Cups sugar, 2 Tablespoons salt, 2 Cups pure apple cider vinegar, 2 Cups water.

Place in each pint jar (about 4 pint jars): sliced cucumbers

1 whole garlic clove, 1 fresh dill sprig

Pour liquid into sterile jars. Seal. Process in boiling water about 15 minutes in canner.

Allow the pickles to cure for a month before eating! 

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After canning, cooling and allowing time for them to cure. You can eat or give away as gifts. A nice touch to gift giving is decorating your jar of goodness. I used vintage sugar sack linen fabric for the tops tied with twine and added a homemade vintage fabric yo yo ribbon for a bit of whimsy. A nice little country girl look I might add.

To make these easy yo yo show ribbons. You need two different sized yo yo's in coordinating fabrics, fabric button kit, lace or ribbon in a coordinating color. I used some old vintage yo yo's that I had in my stash. You can make fabric yo yo's yourself by using a yo yo maker found in craft/sewing stores, I found a package of aluminum button/fasteners in a packaged kit to make the center button...So easy just follow directions on package and use your favorite fabric...You will be addicted to these! I cut some fabric lace then sandwiched the fabric lace folded in half on the bottom then big yo yo on top, the smaller yo yo on top of the big yo yo, poking the fastener right through the middle,

 then closing the fastener closed. See pictures below.

So cute it looks like a show ribbon award. 

You can also wear it if you want...Just add a pin backing!

Have fun!!!! Enjoy!!!

Inspired~ DIY Anthropologie Mug

A year or so ago Anthropologie had some adorable, bright and cheery floral mugs...I put it off too long and never ended up buying one. As of now they don't sell them any longer. Freckles ran across a DIY on Pinterest for making your own. We thought it would be fun to make some. I am really happy with how it turned out. 

NOTE* Sharpie markers are used for this project and are NOT food safe. I would not reccomend you really drinking from them if you decide to color inside or on the rim where your mouth would touch the ink. However, if you decorate the mug body of the mug, it would be safe. Also NOTE* that dishwashing will probably wash away all your beautiful work. I suggest washing by hand with a soft cloth making sure your not scrubbing hard. I decided my mug will be used as a decorative pen holder.. Just to be on the safe side. It is quite cute though, you have to admit.

We bought plain white mugs from The Dollar Tree and used Permanent colored Sharpie markers. Once you finish drawing on your design...Let air dry for a couple hours then put in the oven at 400 degrees for 45 minutes. This should cure it. It was very simple and fun.

I'm thinking if I make it into a ceramic painting studio, I may do a mug like this with the proper paints and have it fired so I can actually drink from it. I love the colors and floral designs. Freckles made herself a charming mug too...She simply used a black Sharpie and drew some arrows with

 "Happy Day" written on it. Use the same procedure as stated above.

 Have fun + Be creative...Anything goes!!!!

Retro Inspired Oilcloth Lunch bag

Today I sat down in the sewing room to make Freckles
a retro inspired lunch bag for her home school/ performing arts class on Friday's.
She can use it on park trips & picnics or whenever we are out and about to carry snacks.
I found my inspiration on
 The Long Thread.

I changed a few things.
 #1. I used all vinyl oil cloth #2. I made it 11" wide instead of 10". #3. I finished off the bag differently....I can't even explain what I did....Because I was a rebel and didn't follow her directions. ;)
#4. I was resourceful on the handles by using a bag I had from Joann's Fabric...
{I thought it would look cute on Freckles bag}...
So I cut them off the Joann's bag and used them on the lunch bag.
 So happy with how it turned out.

 

It is insulated with soft quilt batting and I added a pocket
inside the bag to store her red gingham napkin.
And...It was a hit with Freckles...
She loves it.
Yay

S'mores...Italian Style

one of our favorite pastimes is making s'mores over an open fire while camping, at the beach or just because. it's a hot, sticky and sometimes, burned mess. yet, that doesn't detour us from enjoying the yummy, ooey gooey goodness of marshmallow, chocolate and graham cracker. okay, so i'm not a huge fan of burning, smokey smoke from a fire...so what to do if you don't like the smoke, or perhaps you don't have a fire pit, but you love making s'mores...or maybe you don't like molting hot marshmallow scorching your tongue?

we have a wonderful idea...which we found ingredients for at World Market.  a lovely package of  Italian Pizzelle cookies, a jar of Italian Nutella and a jar of marshmallow fluff....oh my.... it's easy to make...a little messy, but easy. just spread the fluff and Nutella on one side of
each Pizzelle and sandwich together. then enjoy...

 

 

 

 

Mama Mia....they are delizioso...
Enjoy......
this is also the last installment for our Summertime vintage 1940's posts. but,
will be doing more posts and projects for the 1940's this Fall. Stay tuned.

Fun fact:

              IN THE 1940s

After World War II, America was on the go. More and more families bought cars and began taking family vacations to campgrounds and national parks. Making S'mores over campfires became increasingly popular during this decade.

Hello

HELLO.....
I finally pulled out the sewing machine this week...I made a few pillows. Which is a good jump start to my lost creative spark. I made this sweet, happy pillow for my little writer....Freckles has been writing some short story book series all on her vintage typewriter she got for her birthday last year. She loves it so much, I thought....The pillow would be perfect for her... Unfortunately she has been really under the weather this week with yet another flu...She was supposed to spend a nice get away week with her bestie, when suddenly, everyone got sick...We had to pick her up only a couple days into her visit...Now we are thinking she might have strep throat too...so we are going to the doctors to get it checked out. Since she has been home she has been very lethargic, sleeping a lot and plain ole miserable...Hopefully she will soon be on the mend and back to writing/typing away. 

 

Well anyway, the pillow did cheer her up a bit....And it looks darling on her bed....Rory, her owl agrees. I decided to offer this pillow as a special order for anyone who is interested. I will also be listing it on Etsy as a made to order pillow for $25.00 & $5.00 shipping. Fabric colors and prints will vary or you may give me a color pallet request. Anyone interested,
please e-mail me at garboodles@gmail.com.

I also made two wool pillows with red wool hearts and a funky house pillow....These will be listed on Etsy this weekend. Now hopefully I will get some of my mojo back and create some more goodies....Here's to a good weekend. Cheers.

Start Creating Already....

This week I finally got out my craft/fabric boxes from my parents garage, hoping I would find some inspiration in my stash.... thinking, what I want to create. I have several things in my head all at once and now I don't even know where to begin. Now the weekend is upon us and I still haven't started sewing the couple things I had laid out....I am hoping over the weekend I will find some umphhh within to just do it and start creating already.

Freckles will be staying with our friends for the next week as well, which I hope to take full advantage of and work on some of these projects brewing in my head...While she is having the time of her life with her friends. She so deserves this time away...Since she hasn't seen her friends in weeks and she's been cooped up here, with not a whole lot to do. Then I won't feel as guilty if I am devoting time away sewing...I can sew to my little hearts content. Now, it's just a matter of actually doing it, especially after being in such a funk lately.

 
I just got to let it all out and "Start Creating Already"...No more procrastinating.
Let's see what I can come up with and hopefully
 I will even have something to share with you all.
 Have a wonderful weekend.

Camera Bag...

hello everyone I'm still here...Just got over the flu, my daughter got over the stomach flu and our son is home. It has been a long, challenging week full of trials...More on that later. Before we went to Canada I realized, heck I don't have a camera bag to keep my camera safe while traveling and walking around. Next best thing was to create my own camera bag with scraps I had on hand. We are on a very tight, frugal budget...so I couldn't go out and buy one...
 I knew it had to be colorful of course.

I designed it on paper first, then made a pattern, sewed up a bunch of different fabrics, sewed it together and made a cardboard covered bottom for sturdiness and four plump little pillows for the inside which will keep my camera safe from bumps...a strap and Velcro closure were added and a big woolen heart.

 
It worked out great, not to mention it was original and cute with a bit of funky...It kept my camera dry and safe while walking around Toronto in the rain and it was snug as a bug while traveling. I love it...Next I will make myself a camera strap...I didn't have enough time before the trip...
Hope you have a sweet weekend.