howto « life with monkey

Blog
contact

pineapple rum, part two

May 11, 2008 at 7:24 pm | In food, howto | Leave a Comment

how to make a kick-ass daiquiri:

2 oz pineapple-infused rum
2/3 oz lime juice
a few dashes of agave nectar

add to a cocktail shaker full of ice and shake the heck out of it.
strain into a glass.
drink.
enjoy.

hell yeah.

olive crafting

February 2, 2008 at 6:46 pm | In crafts, crochet, howto, tutorial | 3 Comments

one sooper-seekrit project: DONE. and since the person for whom this project was created says that he doesn’t read this blog, i can post the results. [though if he IS reading this, he can't blame me for ruining the surprise. hee!]

i saw this knitted olive project at Cut Out + Keep, and decided that would be a nice little vday gift for my husband. instead of knitting, however, i thought i’d crochet, since i don’t crochet as much as i used to anymore. i certainly don’t want my crocheting skills to deteriorate. use it or lose it, right?

since i didn’t have instructions for crocheting these little guys, i winged it and figured it out by trial-and-error. my favorite crochet stitch is half-double, so that’s what i used for the olives. so here’s a (hopefully not too confusing) rundown of the project:

ingredients:
berroco softwist yarn in olive green
a square of red felt
size D crochet hook
a jar with a lid
a label for the jar

directions(-ish):
ch 3, join chain to form a circle
ch 2, then 5 hdc into middle of circle, join round
ch 2, then [2 hdc into one st, 1 hdc]*, repeat* to end of round, join round
ch 2, [hdc, hdc, 2 hdc into one st]*, repeat* to end of round, join round
ch 2, hdc each st to end of round, join round
ch 2, [hdc, then decrease by either skipping a stitch or doing one hdc that uses the next two stitches]*, repeat* to end of round, join round, fasten off
push yarn tails into the completed olive
cut a rectangle of felt about 1″ x 2.5″. starting at a short end, roll the rectangle into a tube and insert this rolled “pimento” into the opening of the olive.
voila! one pimento-stuffed olive done.

YMMV, as far as the stitches go. they don’t have to be exact – goodness knows mine weren’t.

when you have enough to fill your jar, then make a label to complete the project. the knitted project called for a label saying “olive you”, but since my hubby and i say “olive juice” (i saw it in an old Happy Days episode when i was a kid! Fonzie told Richie to muth “olive juice” at some girl at a party or dance or something, i swear), i did that.

the frame is scanned from a Dover copyright-free book, and the rest of the layout was completed in MS Publisher.

my jar isn’t quite full. there are 11 olives in there. i was using a leftover ball o’ yarn and i ran out. whoops!

so you want to sew?

January 24, 2008 at 12:08 pm | In crafts, howto, sewing, tutorial | 2 Comments

Shauna asked me to provide a list of items a beginning sewer might need, so here goes (any additional input would be appreciated!)

sewing machine – if you’re just starting out, you really only need something that has straight stitch and zig-zag, and can handle the fabric that you’ll be working with
needles for the sewing machine – to match the type of fabric you’re sewing. change them often!
scissors – with sharp blades, preferably a set of two: small snippers for clipping threads and a bigger pair for fabric (that will ONLY ever be used on fabric!). optional: pinking shears for quick-and-dirty seam finishing
hand-sewing needles – get the variety pack
thread – i’d say “DUH”, but there are a lot of thread choices, which can make it confusing. i’d pick the “all-purpose” type (cotton-wrapped polyester) to start, a spool of black and a spool of white.
bobbins – make sure you have enough extra bobbins filled with thread so you don’t have to interrupt your sewing flow when the bobbin thread runs out.
seam ripper – because you are going to make mistakes, no matter what your sewing skill level might be
pins (and a pin cushion or a magnetic pin holder) – the basic ball-head type, plus a range of safety pins
marking implements – fade-away or wash-out marker are my top choices, then chalk
measuring tape and a small ruler – measure twice, cut once!
steam iron – because you really do need to press those seams and hems

there are a million other optional items (snap-setting tool, point turner, stiletto, elastic guides – you get the idea), but nothing i can think of that’s absolutely necessary for a beginner. did i leave out anything?

hair curler sewing tutorial

September 3, 2007 at 9:42 am | In crafts, howto, sewing, tutorial | 21 Comments

one of my friends asked for directions for the hair curlers i made this weekend, so here goes…

ingredients for one curler:
a scrap of cotton fabric, at least 4″ X 9″ in size
a small amount of stuffing the curler (i use polyester)
a button
some thread

tools:
a sewing machine, preferably with a zipper foot attachment
a hand-sewing needle
scissors

baking time:
around 10 minutes at intermediate skill level

directions:
first, cut a 4″ X 9″ rectangle from a piece of scrap fabric.

fold it in half lengthwise, right sides together. sew 4″ along long edge using 1/4″ seam.

fold the small end together (the end where you started your stitching).

sew across the end. [alternately, you could hand-sew this end instead, using a running stitch and gathering it by pulling up on the thread]

turn right side out and stuff up to the top of that initial 4″ seam.

once it’s stuffed, sew opening closed as close to the 4″ mark as possible.

using the tail-end of the thread, sew a running stitch over the previous stitches and gather. [alternately, this opening could be sewn shut and gathered by hand]

fold the other short edge over 1/4″, then fold a long side over about an inch.

fold the remaining long edge over, turning its edge under 1/4″ as well.

sew over the last edge you turned over, then along the short edge, then back down the other side.

sew a buttonhole on the end. i like a buttonhole going the length of the curler. YMMV.

cut open the buttonhole.

sew a button to the end of the stuffed portion.

voila! a curler!

special bonus – a messy curler-head:

heh.

cupcake teapot cozy

February 19, 2007 at 10:59 am | In crafts, howto, sewing, tutorial | 4 Comments

here are the instructions i put together for my scheduled appearance on the Uncommon Threads Sweet Tooth Teatime episode that aired last week. my bit was cut for time just before taping, but i was still part of the show. i helped do some ironing and made what thought were helpful comments during the other segments. at the end of the show, i got to show off a bunch of the teapot cozies i’d made as samples for my part. as one of this country’s cable-free residents, i still haven’t seen the show, but the folks who have seen it assure me that i did alright. i guess i’ll find out soon enough!

i could’ve sworn my instructions were a little different, but i’m sure they evolved in the back-and-forth between the producer and me. my original super-detailed directions seem to have been lost in translation.

Show Title: Sweet Tooth Tea Time
Group: Felt Club
Name of Project: Cupcake Teapot Cozy

Materials:
Fabric A (icing): 2 pieces 8″ x 16″
Fabric B (baking cup): 2 pieces 8″ x 16″
Fabric C (lining): 2 pieces 16″ x 16″
Batting (or polar fleece): 2 pieces 16″ x 16″
Thread
Pompom
Optional (for decorating the cupcake “icing”): beads, buttons, sequins, ribbons, eyelet trim, embroidery floss

Tools:
Sewing machine
Fabric marker
Pinking shears

Template:

Pin one piece of “icing” fabric (A) to one piece of baking cup fabric (B) along the 16” edge. All seams are ½” unless noted.
Sew pinned pieces of fabric A (icing) & B (baking cup) together.
Use straight stitch, use both hands to keep fabric lined up while stitching.
Press seam open.
Repeat for remaining pieces of Fabrics A and B.
Lay sewn piece face-up and place the teapot cozy template on the fabric.
Trace template on to the right side of each fabric piece using fabric marking pen/chalk/pencil.
Place each marked fabric piece on top of a piece of batting, with wrong side of fabric against the batting.
Pin the fabric to the batting.
Stitch the fabric (B – baking cup) to the batting, using vertical stitches.
[TIP: instead of using sewing machine, hand-quilt.]
Stitch the Fabric A portion, using wavy or swirled lines for your stitches.
(optional) Embellish the Fabric A portion (this is your cupcake “icing”) be sewing on beaded “jimmies”, lace “frosting” or button “candies”, making sure to keep the embellishments inside of the 1/2″ outer seam allowance.
Cut the finished fabric/batting along the traced template line.
Place fabrics right sides together.
Sew along the rounded edge.
Clip curves (or trim seams using pinking shears) and turn the piece right side out.
Trace template on to both pieces of Fabric C.
Cut along the traced line.
Sew the two Fabric C pieces together along the curved edge, leaving an opening along one side of approximately 4″ and clip/trim curves.
Place outer cozy inside of the lining (matching bottom edges and side seams).
Sew along bottom edges.
Reach into the opening in the lining and pull the fabrics right side out.
Hand-sew opening together.
Push the lining up into the outer cozy.
Attach pompom to the top of the outside of the cozy, catching the lining fabric on the inside while stitching.