new years eve

Wishing you all a Happy New Year, and hope you had a great Christmas holiday! Sorry I've been missing in action the last week.. the craziness here hasn't let up and won't for another couple of days. I can't wait until January, one of the easiest and most boring months of the year. I'm going to sew and play video games and that's it. But tonight, I'm going to dress up and be social and watch fireworks from a rooftop.

Have a wonderful night out tonight!

handmade holidays, day four: coffee liqueur

Handmade holiday gift guide, day four - a ridiculously easy recipe for coffee liqueur, made by infusing dark rum with sugar and fresh coffee grounds.

What you need for this project.. 12 fluid ounces of rum (I used dark aged rum), 25 grams of coffee (roughly 4 heaping tablespoons.. the better the coffee, the better the liqueur), and 1/4 cup sugar. Tools you need are a fine mesh strainer, small saucepan, container for steeping liquid, scale for measuring coffee, coffee grinder and some fun glass containers to serve the liqueur in (small mason jars or cool bottles).

To begin, combine rum and sugar in saucepan and bring to a simmer over medium-high heat. Simmer mixture for 2-3 minutes.

Measure out 25 grams of coffee and grind it on a coarse setting. Pour grounds into the container used for steeping.

Remove rum mixture from heat and pour into container with coffee grounds - cover and let steep for 4-6 hours.

Uncover and pour liqueur through a fine mesh strainer into desired containers. And that's it! Use small jars for party favors and personalize with old-fashioned manilla tags.

PS.. this recipe came from Imbibe Magazine. Big thanks to them!

The holidays caught up with me a little too fast this year, which means I'll have to wait and share more handmade projects with you after Christmas festivities (sorry for the delay!).

Wishing you guys the absolute best time with families and friends this year (as I write this, we're watching It's A Wonderful Life and fighting a sugar crash). Merry Christmas!!

gold brocade

Just in time for New Years wear, I've relisted the gold silk brocade holiday dress. It is a custom order and fabric is in short supply so if you'd like one in time for New Years Eve, order now and I can sew it for you asap!

Above is a lovely drawing of the brocade holiday dress and below is one of the limited edition organdy pintuck dress, hand painted by the super talented Allie Smith (thanks, Allie!). She's a graphic designer living in Ohio (although I hope to call her a Nashville friend soon) with an amazing hand at illustration and adorably retro design - and I am the biggest fan of her hand lettering. check out her site, Swap & Meet!

Finishing up the handmade holidays guide with two more tutorials soon. Hope festivity preparations are going well for you all! Man alive, December really is the busiest (but the best) time of the year.

handmade holidays, day three: rosewater marshmallows

Handmade holiday gift guide - day three! I've always wanted to try my hand at marshmallows, and what better time than Christmas?

Homemade marshmallows are not super tough to make, but they're unique enough that they make an excellent gift or party favor - find a square box that will fit four, lay down a bit of parchment paper on the bottom, cover the marshmallows in chocolate and you've got a great gift. And marshmallows can be expensive from confectioneries, so making them yourself is extra rewarding - all of the ingredients are affordable and chances are, you already have them stocked in your cupboards.

What you need for a 13x9 pan of marshmallows (4-9 dozen, depending on size).. 3 packs unflavored gelatin, 1 cup ice cold water - divided in half, 12 ounces granulated sugar, 1 cup light corn syrup, a pinch of kosher salt, 1-2 teaspoons vanilla extract (or whatever flavor you choose - I decided to go with 1 teaspoon vanilla, 2 teaspoons rose flower water), 1/4 cup confectioners (powdered) sugar, 1/4 cup cornstarch, and nonstick spray.

Equipment you'll need - a 13x9 inch metal baking pan, stand mixer with whisk attachment, candy thermometer (I used a meat thermometer, which worked fine but a candy thermometer is best), small saucepan with lid, pizza cutter, and various measuring cups, spoons, and rubber spatulas. Be prepared to make a mess.

The recipe used here is Alton Brown's marshmallow recipe (he's my all time favorite).. all words from now on will be from his recipe, and my added notes will be in italics.

Place the gelatin into the bowl of your stand mixer along with 1/2 cup of the water. Have the whisk attachment standing by.

In a small saucepan combine the remaining 1/2 cup water, granulated sugar, corn syrup and salt. Place over medium high heat, cover and allow to cook for 3 to 4 minutes. Uncover, clip a candy thermometer onto the side of the pan and continue to cook until the mixture reaches 240 degrees F, approximately 7 to 8 minutes. That's why a candy thermometer works best - its temp range reaches 400 degrees F, whereas a meat thermometer stops at 220 F. I had to guess when 240 was reached on my meat thermometer. Once the mixture reaches this temperature, immediately remove from heat.

Turn the mixer on low speed and, while running, slowly pour the sugar syrup down the side of the bowl into the gelatin mixture. Once you have added all of the syrup, increase the speed to high. Continue to whip until the mixture becomes very thick and is lukewarm, approximately 12 to 15 minutes. 13 minutes for a soft marshmallow, 15 for a stiff marshmallow. Add the vanilla and any additional flavors, like rose water during the last minute of whipping. While the mixture is whipping, prepare the pan as follows.

Combine the confectioners' sugar and cornstarch in a small bowl. Lightly spray a 13x9 inch metal pan with nonstick cooking spray. Add the sugar and cornstarch mixture and move around to completely coat the bottom and sides of the pan - Alton does this by covering the pan with aluminum foil and shaking the pan, which covers the sides well. Return the remaining mixture to the bowl for later use.

When ready, pour the mixture into the prepared pan, using a lightly oiled spatula for spreading evenly into the pan. Super messy. Dust the top with enough of the remaining sugar and cornstarch mixture to lightly cover. Reserve the rest for later. Allow the marshmallows to sit uncovered for at least 4 hours and up to overnight. I allowed mine to rest overnight, and if you're patient enough, I recommend it.

Turn the marshmallows out onto a cutting board and cut into 1-inch squares using a pizza wheel dusted with confectioners' sugar mixture. Once cut, lightly dust all sides of each marshmallow with the remaining mixture, using additional if necessary. Store in an airtight container for up to 3 weeks.

And done.

We served these at a party we threw last night for my coworkers, and I'm making another batch for my family at Christmas. There are so many great ways to serve them that would be fun to try.. indoor s'mores? Put out graham crackers and chocolate squares and set a creme brulee torch on the table to let people roast them the way they like it. You can dress these up in a lot of ways - throw cocoa or even coffee grounds into the recipe for great taste and color, add cinnamon and chile to the mix for spiced marshmallows perfect with hot chocolate, top them with sea salt or coconut and lightly toast them before serving. What would your favorite marshmallow look like?

Neil had a great idea to grind freeze-dried cranberries into a powder and use them as a natural food coloring, which would make the marshmallows slightly pink and maybe a little tart. Next time, I'm adding more rose water and dipping them in dark chocolate.

Happy Monday!

handmade holidays, day two: velvet bow sweater

Day two of handmade holidays is a DIY embellished bow sweater, a quick and inexpensive way to make a thrifted sweater your own - for you or a friend. This project is inspired by Stella McCartney's latest Resort collection, which featured an amazing white maxi dress with black bow embellishments and a matching belt. I thought I'd make an easy-to-wear, winterized version in the form of a cream knit sweater with velvet bows, something you can pair with high waisted jeans for everyday activities or with a sequin skirt for holiday wear.

Things you need.. one lightweight knit sweater, a spool of washable velvet ribbon in any color (or any embellishment of your choice - mismatched lace, trim, etc), fabric glue, and pinking shears. You'll also be using safety pins and a sewing machine with thread that matches your ribbon.

The ribbon I purchased is washable black velvet ribbon 5/8 inch wide, in a 3 yard spool. 3 yards allowed me 9 two-inch ribbons.

To begin, make the velvet bows. Start by cutting a four-inch strip, which will serve as the bow loop. Fold the strip length-wise so the ends overlap in the center back. Cut a two-inch strip and place the edge of it inside the center of the loop, wrong side facing the two loop ends, and glue together, forming a T shape. Then, form a V with a 3-4 inch strip by folding at an angle in the center, and glue in place. Right side down, you'll then match the center of the V to the center of the loop, glueing in place, then wrapping the leg of the T around to the V center and glue over to finish. Pinking shears come in handy for trimming the bow tails, as they prevent fraying.

You can also use pre-made bows found in craft stores. They're generally found in the wedding section and can save you some time and cost just a bit more than ribbon. The satin ones would look kind of cool, I think.

Pin the bows to the sweater with safety pins, getting an idea of how you want the layout to look. I had five bows in the front and two on each sleeve, but I could have used a couple more. Once they're pinned in their proper places, it's time to sew! Remove the safety pin carefully and sew two short rows of stitches along the center of the bow, on the loops but close enough to the center that the loops are free. Two short seams, about the length of the width of the ribbon, will keep the bows secure.

If you're anti-fabric glue, you can always use a glue gun and hot glue the bows together - but keep in mind, hot glue is not machine washable, which means you will have to safety pin the bows onto the sweater, rather than sewing them in place, so you can remove them when it's time for a wash.

And finished!

Thrift store sweater = 1.00 + velvet ribbon spool = 4.00 makes the project total 5.00 USD, not including supplies like fabric glue (which will run you about 5.00), safety pins, and thread. A cheap present - although this one, I think I'm keeping for myself.

More photos here!

Tomorrow, I'm posting a DIY that has nothing to do with bows, fabric, or sewing - I'm sharing homemade marshmallows! See you soon.

handmade holidays, day one: circle scarf

And it begins! Five days of handmade gift ideas that are super affordable and pretty simple. Day one.. how to sew a circle scarf.

Circle scarves (infinity scarves, loop scarves, whatever you call them) are one of the easiest things to make, an awesome way to get into sewing and have something practical and professional to show for it. In stores, circle scarves are a bit expensive but with the right fabric, you can seriously make it look like the exact same product for less than half the cost.

What you'll need for this project.. 1 1/4 to 2 yards (depending on the desired length and scarf layers) of stretch knit fabric and matching thread. I used 1 1/4. You're going to leave the cut edges raw, so be sure to pick out a fabric with some stretch and very little fraying (you can tell by looking at the cut edges at the fabric store and see how bad they're fraying already, but also, stretch knits are good at not fraying so anything jersey or rayon-ish should be good). I chose a charcoal colored stretch knit with a lightweight purl knit texture.

One other thing - while this is a great project for beginners, I would highly suggest using a serger to finish the one seam you're going to sew. Because it's a stretchy scarf, it's important to have the seam reinforced - and the best way is to use a serger (although there are other methods, which I'll get into later). If you don't have one, find a sewing friend and borrow theirs - or steal one (just kidding).

First step - fold the fabric with cut edges together, right sides in, and pin the selvage together. Check out this handy guide for illustrating the difference between cut edges and selvage edges, in case you're wondering.

In order to make a circle scarf, we're going to sew the selvage edges together, using the two cut edges as the outer edges of the scarf (thus, pretty much sewing a giant tube of fabric).

Therefore.. next step - sew! Sew the selvage edges together, right sides together, using a standard 5/8 inch seam allowance. Once the seam is sewn, trim the edges - if you're using a serger, trim the allowance to about 1/2 inch.

Now, pull out that super awesome serger and finish the edges of the seam. You want to leave two inch thread tails intact at each edge, because this will prevent the seam from coming undone. To keep the tails discreet, I simply sewed them onto the finished serged edge with a straight stitch, but I got away with it because the fabric and thread match and are both so dark you can't see the thread tails - if you're less lazy than I am, I suggest using this handy guide and weave the thread tail into the edges.

Now, for the alternative. The reason I suggest using a serger is it's quick, easy, and gives the scarf a professional finish without a bunch of work. There are several ways to finish a seam without them, however - check out this guide to seam finishes.. the author makes a great case for non-overlock finishing (although keep in mind, you're working with stretch fabric so certain rules vary - but a safe bet when it comes to stretch knits is the handy zig zag stitch).

And that is it! You've got a circle scarf to wrap around however you'd like - as a hooded scarf, loose fitting long scarf, or bundled up tight around your neck. The beauty of this scarf is that the raw, unfinished edges really add to the look.

I've started a Flickr set for handmade holiday gift ideas, so check it out for more photos. Tomorrow, I'm making an embellished sweater using fabric glue, velvet ribbon, and a thrifted wool sweater.. more soon! And if you have handmade gift ideas of your own, please share them (I loved LisaMarie's suggestions last post)! Happy Wednesday, all.