Author: Kayla Garces

Furniture Revamp: Antique Black DIY

Furniture Revamp: Antique Black DIY

I found a great head board via craigslist that would fit perfectly in our room.  The only issue, was that it was a little dated and needed a face lift.  I of course got a little Pinterest crazy and have been really into the farm 

Edible Roses for Your Loved One

Edible Roses for Your Loved One

Rose Apple Tartlets With Valentines Day quickly approaching.  It may be a good idea to for prep your special night.  A beautiful make ahead dessert that will taste just as good as it looks.  I originally made these little rose apple tartlets for girlfriends wedding; 

Fuzzy Faux-Fur for Winter Cuddles

Fuzzy Faux-Fur for Winter Cuddles

Cuddle your tiny-tot up this winter with a satin ruffle edged faux-fur blanket.

One of the hottest trends that I have been seeing in baby décor and blankets has been faux fur.  I wanted something soft and cuddle worthy.  There are a lot of synthetic faux furs out there, but I wanted something the texture of a minky fabric that we have seen on numerous baby blankets before.  These blankets often cost a fortune at baby boutiques and they seem so simple to make.

I hope you enjoy this adorable blanket just as much as I do.  It was made as a gift for a girlfriend’s new bundle of joy.  The total cost of this project was around $30-45 dollars (depending on your fabric choice).

 

Supplies and Materials you will need:

1 ¼ yds of faux fur minky fabric

1 ¼ yds of cotton or a polycotton blended fabric

2 satin baby blanket bindings (you can make these on your own, but I cheated and didn’t have time, so I bought the pre-pressed ones)

Matching thread

Sewing Machine

Pins

Fabric Scissors or Rotary Cutter

 

Trim your fabric to a perfect rectangle.  When you get your fabric from the store or online often there will be an uneven cut.  Please even out your rectangle so your faux-fur and top cotton blend fabric match.

I wanted the blanket to have rounded corners.  If you wish to have the same effect and don’t have a corner cutter quilting ruler, you can do what I did.

Choose a dinner or salad plate that has the desired curve or shape you wish your blanket to have.  The larger the plate the more gradual the curved corner will be.  Fold your two pieces of fabric in half and repeat again so you have all the corners lined up in the same area.  Lay your fabric rectangle on a flat surface and place your plate on the corners you need to cut.  Line them up so that the plate edge matches with the edges of the fabric on both sides.  Trace a line our the outer rim of the plate with a fabric pencil or any marking tool.  Cut along your desired line using fabric scissors or a rotary cutter.

Once you have your fabric cut and set set it aside and it is time to make the satin ruffle.  An easy way to make your ruffle a lot quicker than cutting fabric and pressing everything is to use pre-made satin baby blanket binding.  stitch your two sets of binding together to create one long strip of binding.  Once you have done this you need to change the setting on your sewing machine to a large stitch length (4-5) and loosen the tension.

Stitch two parallel rows of basting stitches at the open/unfinished edge of the blanket binding about 1/4 inch away from the edge.  Make sure you leave long pieces of thread at the start and ending of each basting stitch.  Once you have your double row of basting stitches in place. You are going to take one end of your binding and take the bobbin side of the thread and pull to create a ruffle.  Make sure you are pulling the two bobbin end threads at the same time to crease even ruffles.  Work your way through your entire satin binding and even out the ruffles.

Once your ruffle is made you can stitch down your ruffle after changing your sewing machine settings back to normal.

You are now going to sandwich your ruffle between your two pieces of fabric.  Make sure the two pieces of fabric are facing each other right side up and that your raw ruffle edge is lined up so you can see the raw edges in the middle of your sandwich.  Once your have your ruffle fabric sandwich pinned, you will stitch around most of the blanket, but leave an opening about 1 foot long so you are able to invert your blanket.

Once your have turned your blanket right side up you need to pin your opening together and top stitch around your baby blanket to make sure the edge doesn’t pucker or warp with washing by rolling the edge in your fingers till it is smooth before sending it through the sewing machine one final time.

Cut your threads and your baby blanket will be ready to go.

Outdoor Whimsy!

Outdoor Whimsy!

Air Plant Dream Catcher I got married a little over a year ago and while planning my wedding I just had to come up with a few do it yourself projects.  I was in love with giant dream catchers and air plants at the time; 

YOU WANT ME TO DO WHAT? A WEDDING CAKE

YOU WANT ME TO DO WHAT? A WEDDING CAKE

Baking has always been a love ever since I was in high school.  Of course back then, my parents wouldn’t let me make much from scratch, because well it was a little expensive and I never had much time between school and extra curricular activities. 

Lemony Fresh

Lemony Fresh

Tangy! Sweet! Lemony! Goodness

 

Who doesn’t like hot summer days and a refreshing glass of lemonade.  That sweet and sour deliciousness.  Well, I love baking and have always loved fruity desserts, one of my favorites has to be lemon bars.  Although, I am a little picky and well lets just say spoiled when it comes to a good lemon bar.  My aunt, has the best lemon bars I have ever tasted.  Delicious shortbread crust with ooey-gooey lemony goodness baked right on top.  I hope you enjoy this recipe as much as I do.

Crust

Preheat your oven to 350 degrees Fahrenheit.

Take one cup of cold butter, two cups of flour and one-half cups of powdered sugar.  Place them all in a bowl.  Using a pastry blender or two knifes cut the cold butter into the flour and powdered sugar.  Don’t worry if the crust doesn’t quite come together all the way, it should still remain a little crumbly.

Gently press the dough into a prepared pan.  (To prepare your pan coat in butter and flour) Usually this recipe calls for you to use a 9×13 inch pan, but you can also use a 8×8 if you wish to have a thicker lemon bar.

Bake in an oven at 350 degrees Fahrenheit for about 30 min or till firm and pale.

While your crust is baking in the oven its time to make your lemon filling.  Take your lemon bar filling ingredients and place them in a bowl.  4 eggs, 6 tablespoons of lemon juice, 1 1/2 cups of sugar, 1 teaspoon baking powder and 5 tablespoons of flour.

Once your curst is finished baking take your crust out of the oven and decrease the oven temperature to 300 degrees Fahrenheit.

Pour the filling over the par-baked crust and set it in the oven to bake for approximately another 30 mins.

Let cool to room temperature and then sprinkle with powdered sugar.  If you sprinkle the powder sugar before the lemon bars cool it will melt.

I actually think these lemon bars taste better the next day or even straight out of the refrigerator.  But they are just as good right out of the oven.

Lemon Bar variations:

You can easily change out the lemon juice in this recipe for any other citrus.  I am sure it will taste just as delicious.  I have yet to try it, but here in Hawaii we have an abundance of passion fruit or lilikoi.  As lilikoi is a local favorite, I’m sure substituting the lemon juice for lilikoi juice will taste just as great.  I will let you know how it turns out once I get a chance to make them.