A Haven for Vee

Saturday, March 16, 2013

Tying up Some Loose Ends

Saturday and no one is reading anyway so I can toss in anything I want and it won't matter. ☺

For those who do arrive expecting to see a food photography experiment...


Now if that doesn't look like the most unappetizing mess, I don't know what does. The thing is, I took the photo in the first place because it (the food not the photo) was soooo tasty. What is it? Enchiladas made from leftover pork chops and gravy. Hmmmm... it really was good. Just having a little trouble conveying that with my photo. I don't know how all you foodies do it!

Moving right along...

Yesterday I mentioned using a blanket instead of batting. Then I said that I was going to use the little runner section as a mat for ironing. Lorrie suggested in comments that, since it's difficult to find a cotton blanket these days, the synthetic blanket might not hold up well for ironing. Gave me pause. Thanks, Lorrie. So that little blue scrappy thing featured yesterday...you're all so sweet with your comments about color and all...goes in the donate bucket and I made something else to use. You may have seen it all over Pinterest.


My own little ironing board made from a tv tray. As you can see from the top left corner, this stand has seen better days. I did not use any of the techniques discussed in the tutorial on Pinterest. I approached it just as if it were a regular ironing board creating a double mat with an old cotton towel, tossing in another layer of insul-bright (shiny side up) and then fitting an old piece of tablecloth to the tv tray. Next I sewed a seam, ran a bit of twine through it using my bodkin. The twine is only temporary until I can get to Joann's for the proper cording. Finally, I cinched it up tight and it works like a dream. Hopefully, this means a lot less popping up and down to press seams at the ironing board.


Wanted to show you my Dolly Dingle's Cousin picture. My daughter-in-law picked this up at an estate sale where the lady of the house had gathered a number of these paper dolls first published in a now defunct women's magazine called Pictorial Review. They were all beautifully framed. Since it was a Christmas gift, my daughter-in-law selected this one.  There's an entire board dedicated to them *here.* Interestingly, Dolly and company were created by Grace Drayton the artist who created The Campbell Soup Children. I am going to hang this picture in my sewing room where all my sweetest treasures are. I just have to put a hammer and a nail on the stairs to remind myself!

Well I've plagued you long enough so will be off. It's going to be a quiet, haul the trash, bathe the dog, hang out kind of day.


How about yours?


30 comments:

  1. OH! yes I am up and reading this morning, and enjoyed tying up loose ends with you! Happy Saturday!!
    Hugs,
    Sue

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  2. Yes I am just fiddling around the house today. A bit of cleaning, perhaps a bit of sewing....

    Have a wonderful day.

    Deanna

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  3. I am reading too. Your food concoction sounds very tasty. I am guessing that is sour cream on top which I love to put on just about anything edible.
    I hope you have a great day!

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    1. Yes! Sour cream. I don't suppose that too many people know the health benefits of eating sour cream with carbs because it slows down the rush of sugar to the body and allows it to be absorbed over time. That's my excuse anyway.

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  4. I totally love your ironing board idea. That would be perfect to take on a quilt retreat. I'll be just hanging around the house and doing some sewing.

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  5. Who sezzzzzz nobody reads, on Sat.?

    Who sezzzzzz nobody reads, on Sun.?

    I have my morning decaf, at my computer, every morning, and "Do Blogging."

    So there!!!!!!!! Huffffff... Pufffff.... Hufffff...

    Yep, "Auntie" is on the grumpy side, this AM. How lucky you are, to not be in her neck-of-the-woods, hu? >,-)

    "Auntie"

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  6. Love the little ironing board idea! No, I hadn't seen it on Pinterest. I just have a little pad that I lay out on my sewing table to save myself from trouble.

    I see the remembrance to the Campbell Soup kids, LOL! How cute. Perfect for the sewing room.

    I'm still downing muscle relaxers and aspirin. May pull out all the stops and toss back a prescription pain pill tonight. DH invited company for dinner, so I got to figure out how to get through it as best as I can.

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  7. I'm up and reading this morning, too! Been out in the garden to clean out the fountains and feed the birds. I really like the ironing board idea. Great gift from your DIL. I loved the Campbell soup kids and these look so much like them ... too cute and fun! As for your enchiladas -- the messier the better! :D

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  8. Your enchiladas look yummy! I love your idea to make a wee ironing board like that - so creative! I adore Saturdays when I can putter. Today's agenda includes make a large pot of Irish Stew for after church dinner tomorrow. If I get everything done we might even invite someone to join us for dinner - we just don't do enough of that! Have a great weekend my friend!

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  9. Love the ironing board cover idea and what a sweet picture for your sewing room. My sister is making dinner for us today and I don't have to cook! Also, my husband is putting up my new Mac computer this morning and i can't wait to use it!

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  10. This was a fun post for me...it just spoke of a content wife in her home and that thrilled my heart.
    I start teaching 1st grade part time next week...although it will be fun, I will miss doing the things I enjoy around the house as much.
    Pork Chops for enchiladas...that is a first for this Texas girl

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  11. I love reading blogs on Saturday mornings...weekends are "me" time! I have a hard time taking pictures of food, how do magazines do it? But I can see this was really tasty. Sour cream, yum!

    Love the ironing board idea. When I saw that my DIL got an ironing board at her shower, I was really surprised. I didn't think her generation ironed!

    Have a great day, Vee!

    XO,
    Jane

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  12. Brilliant little ironing board - I am very impressed and am casting my eye about the place as I speak to find something I can use too.... Did I ever tell you about the time I made a beautiful new ironing board cover out of poly cotton? You have no idea what a mess ensued. With the iron on the hottest setting, I managed to wreck it and fuse together the cover and the piece I was ironing. It was a disaster. How I could have been so stupid, I do not know. I mean, I taught textile design, for goodness sake!
    That enchilada looks delicious. I am now hungry! Oh well....

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  13. That is a great idea...making a small ironing board from a TV tray! I know you'll love having such a convenience when you are sewing. Those "small" things really do make us more productive.

    Not sure what you don't like about your enchilada pic...it sure is making me hungry! I'm going to have to go eat lunch!

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  14. That was clever!
    I like this sort of post, especially on a nothing-special sort of Saturday. Like a grab bag - and it's always a treat to come across a little of this and a little of that.

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  15. Who is reading? Just the ones that love you the most, like me! Haha!! I love the Campbell Soup kids, my mother used to tell me I looked like one of them when I was small. Ha again! Food is so hard to photograph, especially when there are a lot of ingredients swirled together. Happy weekend! xo

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  16. I'm reading, too! Just a few because I'm waiting for a student to show up (doctor from El Salvador hoping to get his Canadian medical license so I'm tutoring him in English pronunciation - a challenge!) and then I'm looking forward to puttering about the house all day on this rainy Saturday.

    Why is it that sometimes the best tasting food takes the worst photos? I think it follows some sort of mathematical equation, about which I have no clue.

    I didn't know you'd used a synthetic blanket for your first project. Sorry for being a wet blanket.

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  17. Ah yes, I am reading instead of vacuming, and now I'm hungry. Your enchilada looks good to me!

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  18. That ironing board idea is great! Spent the morning out working in are yard. It is in the low 70's here!!!!! This yard has not been touched in over 2 years so there will be a lot of yard work, spring, summer and fall.
    Hugs,
    Penny

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  19. I'm here!! Clever you on the 'ironing board' ~ that's great!! have a wonderful rest of your weekend ~

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  20. How beautiful your cat is! And what an interesting post. For me the picture of the paper doll was very special since I am trying to make a set of them for each of my granddaughters. Making them on scrapbook paper is working great since it is stronger and should hold up much better. The DD sort of doll is appropriate to their ages of 3 and 5.I made my own as a little girl and their mother thinks they are interested in this, but not sure how to do it.

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  21. Hi Vee. Love the ironing board tutorial. But my fave in this post is the picture of the cat.

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  22. Love that picture of your cat he is ready to go with the moment you leave the computer, is it supper time.
    Merle.......

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  23. What a neat idea for an mini ironing board and cover! Clever gal you are. I was to a ladies spring breakfast at our church this morning. We had a great time of course and good food prepared by a chef from our church. Then we had friends over for supper and a rousing game of Mexican Train dominoes. Sadly the guys beat us. :( But, we did win last time. Have a lovely Sunday Vee!

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  24. I like that ironing board idea! I have a small portable board my daughter used when she went away to college, so I use that for quick fixes, without hauling out the big one. You enchiladas look yummy --I still have to learn how to make Mexican food--it is popular here! Your paper doll print is adorable! I have to look at that Pinterest board (and then I'll be lost on Pinterest for an hour..lol)

    I am always busy in the morning trying to clean, do laundry, and get some exercise and reading done. I walked up the hill of our neighborhood today, panting all the way, with many stops to catch my breath, so I am determined to do that every day until I get into better shape -- if that is possible at this stage of the game...lol

    My time to enjoy blogs is at night, as I am not much of a TV watcher. V is in NYC, so it's been quiet here.

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  25. I am reading at the end of the day! We use our leftovers in all sorts of ways. Yours looks delicious! It feels GOOD to use it UP instead of throwing it OUT! We will be going back to our camper home in the RV park for the very last time tomorrow. Next Sunday we are hauling it HOME home! It's time. I have spent most of 2012 down in Katy and so far we have spent nearly ALL of 2013 there. The good news is 'they' will be moving nearby the very next week! Changes! Changes!!

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  26. i have learned a great deal from pinterest, too.
    mainly, i have learned to waste a great deal of
    time there!!!!

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  27. Well at least 28 have read this and you know so many more silent ones. I also create some delicious meals, usually unplanned, just " built " that don't photograph too well. One of those times when a photo may not be worth a thousand words. That is a great mini ironing board. Clever!

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  28. I'm a day late reading your Saturday post. Leftovers are the best, especially when you can create something new for another meal. I love the idea to make a small ironing board for sewing projects, so smart!

    Happy St. Patrick's Day!

    Smiles,
    Carol

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  29. Love your cat. In my childhood all one had for ironing was a blanket covered with a sheet.

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