Jenny Garland

Call It a "Tinkerbell Dress," And My Girl Will Love It!

Drapes.... Check!

I finished my drapes last night for the family room and kitchen. I found the fabric for $6/yd and it's silk! I was lucky that Joann's had just enough for this project. I used lightweight, inexpensive black out lining because I didn't want sheers.

The color of the silk isn't showing up true for some reason. The drapes aren't really gold, they're more of a neutralish brown.

The rods are from Ikea. The short ones were $6.99 and the long ones were $9.99.

If you're been thinking about making panels of your own but have been hesitant, don't be!! Here's a super, foolproof tutorial. I didn't use the twill tape, FYI. Didn't want to spend the extra time sewing it on. The only other thing I did differently was to add small pleats at the top to give the drapes a little more body.

Before:

After:

Still need to do something with that back door but haven't decided exactly what yet. I don't want to block much light and it doesn't need to be functional.

And this is the valence I made for over the kitchen sink:

Thanks for looking!

 

Happy Prints for my Craft Room

I ordered the prints I had been eyeing from KJ at the Dreamy Giraffe:

A sassy craft hero.

 

And this one says "Some girls are extra crafty." I love all her craft supplies, especially the buttons.

KJ has great customer service and even put a sweet personalized note in with my prints. She's having a BOGO (buy one get one free) sale, so drop by if you need some dreamy prints.

Mine are happily at home in my office :) They're housed in dollar store frames I painted.

New Spring/Summer Bag: Amy Butler Birdie Sling

This is the Birdie Sling bag pattern by Amy Butler. I love how roomy it is. Plenty of space for diapers, wipes, a burp cloth, hooter hider, cell phone, wallet, and keys. It would also make an awesome pool/beach bag. I think I'll get lots of use from this baby.

Try My Apricot and Mustard-Glazed Pork Roast - Simple and Delicious!

You've got to try my Apricot and Mustard-Glazed Pork Roast. You can't mess it up. Really. I would know if you could.

Ingredients:
3 garlic cloves, minced
1 tbsp chopped fresh rosemary or 1 tsp dried
3/4 tsp salt
1/4 tsp black pepper
1 (1 1/4 pound) boneless center-cut pork loin roast, trimmed
2 tbsp apricot jam
2 tbsp Dijon mustard

1. Preheat Oven to 400. Spray your roasting pan with Pam.

2. Stir together everything but pork in a small bowl:

Meet my lovely assistant:

3. Rub mixture over pork and place in pan.

4. If you want to roast some potatoes with your pork (you do, trust me), toss one pound of halved potatoes with a little rosemary, salt, pepper, and Pam.

5. Scatter them in the roasting pan with the pork. Cook for about 40 minutes.

Enjoy! :)

If you are looking for other Tasty Tuesday treats, be sure to check out Jen's Parade of Recipes.

Moving Around and Updating Picture Frames

Remember how I re-matted these frames? Well, I decided I would rather have the same mats for each print.  Here's the new toile background ($0.59 a sheet scrapbook paper):

While I was at it, I moved this collage frame from the stairs

to the girls' playroom. I painted the frames black (they were a light tan color before - hard to see in the picture) and re-matted them as well:

And then I decided that the big barn star in the playroom wasn't girly enough, so I painted it pink:

I updated picture frames throughout the house. What a difference!

Here are some of my favorites:

My handsome hubby.

My girls. Can you tell who's who? Sara Paige is on the left.


My sister, Amanda and me.


Kate holding Sara Paige.


A photo of Sara Paige that says "Angels danced the day you were born."


A moment captured right after Sara Paige was born. I think Brad took it. What a multi-tasker, huh?


Kate (about 1 year old) and my Papap.

And this is a picture Brad took of Sara Paige today. I'll have to print it off at Walgreens to frame ASAP.

Oh, and in case you're wondering, here's what I replaced the collage frame with on the steps (a Canton find!):

Thanks for looking :)

PS - I keep tweeting Oprah but no response yet. Maybe she's busy or something. Maybe I'll try Martha.

Ten Reasons I Heart Ikea

I first fell in love with Ikea nine years ago when my freshman roomate at Wake Forest unpacked the cutest duvet cover I had ever seen. My top bunk bed was so sad in comparison. The following year we bought matchy matchy duvet covers for our dorm room. And let me tell you, it looked super cute.

My Iove affair didn't stop there. Oh, no friends. It didn't. Hubby and I have invested in desks, bookshelves, a cubby for the playroom, a rug for the dining room, craft storage boxes, frames, curtain rods, candles, plates, and wine glasses over the last five years. That's a lot of Ikea. We've been impressed with the price:quality relationship. Our desks look new and they have half a decade worth of wear. Especially mine which is used entirely for crafting.

Dear Ikea, here is a list of things I love about you:

1. Your divinely engineered carts that turn on a dime. Why can't my grocery store drink your magic shopping cart juice?

2. $6.99 sleek black curtain rods with finials. I just hung them in my family room and they look great.

3. Cute and cheap $2.99 fabric by the yard.

4. Easiest assembly ever. No words, just pictures. Glorious.

5. Your website. Clean and easy to read.

6. $1 ice cream cones. Mmmm...

7. You live so close to me. I can get to you in 15 minutes.

8. Gargantuan elevators that easily fit strollers, carts, kids, and barrels of Swedish meatballs.

9. The "scan items yourself" checkout aisle. I like to pretend I'm a cashier. Plus the beeping sound is fun.

10. I enjoy how you charge customers for a bag to carry stuff home. Way to encourage people to go green!

Thank you, Ikea. I will love you forever.

So, what do you think? What are some of your favorite things about Ikea?

Want some more shirring?

This is the Pink Fig Olivia top.
 
It turned out sweet and girly and I sure love the fabric. If you're in the mood to shirr, then this is a great pattern. It's simple to follow and only has four pieces.

I have fabric to make Kate a coordinating Evelyn skirt. By the time I'm finished, you'll be able to spot her from a mile away . I love sewing for little ones because it doesn't take much fabric or time.

Anyway, there won't be any crafting for this lady tonight. I am going to go to the grocery store alone so I don't have to bring two little "helpers" with me.

Shirring Makes Me Happy

Last night my beloved Sassy and I took a trip to my girlfriend Kristin's house for some communal sewing.

Here's what I made:

Shirring make me happy. It's just so feminine and sweet. I'll be making more dresses for birthday gifts and for my girls.

This dress is fab because it can be worn alone, with leggings or jeans, or under a t-shirt or turtleneck. Talk about versatile! It's a great wardrobe staple because when the dress gets too short, it instantly becomes a fashionable shirt! I know you moms appreciate getting two plus years of wearage. Mmhmm, "wearage." Yes, I'm well aware it's not a real word. But it should be. It makes sense and is fun to say. Wearage. Wearage. Wearage.

If you want a shirred dress of your own, Kristin is selling these darling dresses for $35-$50. I assure you they are terrific quality! And you'll love her fabric selection. You can contact her at kristinchambers79(at)gmail.com. Happy shopping!

And just because I think she's super adorable and it's her 11 week birthday today, here's Miss Sara Paige:

McKinney Marthas

I'm starting up a craft club that will meet one evening a month at my house. We'll choose a project and complete it together. The first project will be this CUTE glass etched trifle bowl:

You don't have to bring a trifle bowl. You could etch bar glasses, a mirror, a vase, jars, basically anything glass with a smooth surface.

Here's how it will work. You bring the glass piece(s) you want to etch as well as a printout of the design you want etched. I'll provide all other supplies for a $5 per person supply fee.

If you aren't sure where to look for free online designs, let me know and I'll direct you to the right spot!

Email me or leave a comment if you want to come. Spirits welcome! Feel free to invite friends.

The first McKinney Marthas meeting will be Thursday, April 30 at 8:00pm. The whole thing will take less than an hour but you are welcome to stay and hang out a bit :)

* photos courtesy of createstudio.blogspot.com, marthastewart.com, and curbly.com