Things of Happiness

We've been too busy lately to be cooking nightly so no new recipes to post until next week. For our birthday party, we're making an America's Test Kitchen cake, which I am super excited for. In lieu of new food posts, here are a few things that are bringing me happiness this week. 

The Husband's Mexican Martini in Durham, NC.

Birthday lilies with the most gorgeous colors. 

Bargain Find! Best of the Best (volume 11). A compilation of the best recipes from the 25 best cookbooks of the year from the editors of Food and Wine magazine. I found this for $2! 

Have a great Thursday! 

Grocery Bag Dispenser

One of my biggest pet peeves is having a cabinet stuffed with assorted grocery bags. Every time I open that specific cabinet all of the bags come tumbling out on to the kitchen floor and I have to spend time stuffing them back in. So for weeks I've been thinking about how I can create a grocery bag dispenser with the leftover green fabric from my other DIY project. 

I've been wanting to try some stenciling, as inspired by many of the DesignSponge DIY projects. So here was my first attempt. 

Sewing the dispenser was actually quite easy. It was the stenciling that was more difficult given the ridges on this canvas fabric. I used the tip of my scissors to smooth out the edges of the stencil. I think it worked out just fine. 

No more messy cabinets for me! 

E's Butterscotch Floral Scarf

With all the leftover yellow yarn, I decided to practice some more crocheting by making a scarf, which will not be worn until next winter. I made this up as I crocheted except for the florals, which I learned here. 

Begin with a long chain, which will determine how wide the cowl-style scarf is around your neck. Then double crochet a bajillion times until your scarf is at the thickness that you want. The Husband called it a "mobius scarf" because it is perpetually twisted like a Möbius strip (for all you nerds out there). 

I love the texture of the florals and how the petals grow based on the number of stitches. Although it is already spring (feels like summer!) and hardly scarf weather, this mustard yellow scarf will make any drab winter day POP.

The Scrap Exchange

To add to my growing list of things that I love about Durham, 2 weekends ago The Husband and I rifled through the piles and piles of fabric at the semi-annual Scrap Exchange fabric sale. It was in the warehouse next to the main shop. The clientele ranged from grandmothers to young hipsters out to find their next DIY project... 

What I love about The Scrap Exchange is that it is filled with unexpected surprises and items that have been broken down to their component parts (i.e., tubs of buttons from jeans, zippers separated from jackets) which then allows your imagination to run wild to make something useful out of something recycled and reused. 

In my opinion, the spoils were aplenty, but several of the veteran riflers suggested becoming a Scrap Exchange member to get early access to the goods for the next sale in October. I am seriously considering it, however, I think I have enough fabric to last me all year for projects. 

In my excitement, I went home and promptly started and finished my first project. We found a roll of this durable blue canvas material (for $1!) and I instantly thought of making The Husband an apron for our summer grilling adventures (to prevent any more oil stains on perfectly-good shirts). I didn't have a pattern and actually drew a childlike sketch before starting, but I think it turned out decently. 

My favorite part is the large pocket that you may or may not be able to see. I thought sewing pockets would be super hard, but it turned out alright. 

If you live in Durham, you must check out The Scrap Exchange even if it's just to walk around in fascination with all the random objects that one can collect in one store.

Have a good week! 

Salvaged, Now Loved

I found this shirt in a store closing that was sadly ripped in the sleeve. However, I had been looking for navy striped tank for a while and decided to try to salvage this poor shirt.

Notice that there are cute little cloth and button tabs that hold up the sleeves, which I transplanted to the top of the tank.



Not a bad for a little elbow grease and needle and thread! I'm always for a little hand sewing if it means a chance to be creative and thrifty!