Exciting Announcement!

Guess what?!?!

 

I have something fantabulously exciting to share with you!

Can you tell I'm a little excited?!

 

Remember all the posts I did about Refashion Runway?

Well, a couple weeks back, Beth, over at Renegade Seamstress

announced she was looking for contestants for Season Two,

and...well...I applied.
Then, this morning...when I checked my e-mails,
what did I see waiting for me but a Congratulations acceptance notice!

*Eeee!*
(Literally, I did that when I read it)

I am honored, and a bit nervous-excited, to be among the eight ladies

that were selected for Season of Two of Refashion Runway!

 

 

Check out the ladies I will be sewing along with 
and get all the nitty-gritty details of Refashion Runway: Season Two!

But, in case you are too curious and excited to click on the link,
here are some of the details.

Each week brings a different challenge,
and they are all very open to personal style and interpretation.
Weekly challenges include:

Week One: Plaid

Week Two: Pantone 2013 Color Emerald Green

Week Three: Peplum

Week Four: Leather

Week Five: Halloween

Week Six: Winter White

My brain has been going non-stop since I got the news.
I have already started my first project, but I'm gonna need to hit the
thrift stores in the very near future!


Last season, I could barely wait for each week's challenges to be posted.
I practically drooled over my computer in awe

as each of the competitor's refashions flashed across my screen.
Since I've joined the ranks of competitors,
I guess I had better try to be a little more dignified this time around....

Blessings!

It is Finished! Mash-up Jean Weskit

It is finished!

Remember when I told you about a project I was working on

that involved a mash-up of refashioning and tradition sewing with a pattern?

After several interruptions I have finally have the finished product

and some fun after photos to show you!

 

Using this pattern, on loan to me from Atlanta,

 

 

 

I decided to make the weskit shown on this model

from a couple pairs of old blue jeans!

 

I 'filleted' two pairs of jeans, seem ripping

all the way up both legs so they would lay flat.

 

 

It took a little bit of planning and flipping around to get the pattern

fitted on the blue jeans like I wanted them.
 

 



Here are the two front pieces all cut out and chalked up.
 

 



 

And these are the two back pieces.

The original pattern only used one piece for the back,

but I had to modify it to work with my jean material.

 

You can't really tell from these photos,

but the back pieces are from one pair of jeans,

and the front pieces are from another,

so they have a slight color variation...I don't mind though...

I think it adds a rustic feel.
 



The not-so-lovely button holes.

This was my first time cutting out and stitching around button

holes on a 'raw' project.

I did just a we bit of it with my Medieval refashion, but it wasn't quite the same.

Cutting those holes was a little scary!

There is no going back after that.

 

 



 

 

 Starting to take shape with some darts in place.

 

Annnddd that is all I have for before shots!!

After this point, I just wanted to get it done

and forgot to take any more pictures!

It is ok, I didn't do anything special,

I just followed the directions to finish assembling it.

 

There were definitely some frustrating moments with this project,

and it didn't turn out looking as clean as I was hoping.

My machine was have fits and not stitching right

(an issue my wonderful, mechanically minded little brother fixed for me!).

But all in all, I like the result and I learned a lot!

I would certainly use this pattern again,

although I think I would change how wide the shoulders are...

I don't quite like how broad they make my shoulders look.

 

But, enough talking, here are the after pictures so you can decide for yourselves!

 

 

This is a very contemporary styling, which I have to say I really like!

At first, I was going to use bright, colored buttons,

but upon further consideration decided to use something more subtle and muted

so I could wear this weskit with a variety of colors.

 After searching through out button tin, I found the perfect match...
some lovely smooth, gray buttons.


 



In the cutting process, I purposely lined up the pattern so I would have

seems from the jean legs running down the front...

it gives it that princess-seem look without the work!
 

 

 

I did the same with the back...being very purposeful about where I put the seems

when I cut the pieces out.
 

 





 

 

The darts in this project give the weskit a great fit!

 

Annndd...just for fun, we did another photo shoot,

this time a little more retro feeling.

 

 

 

 

 

Wow! When I saw this picture, I had a flashback to an

old photo of my mom...my face looks so much like her in this shot!

Usually I don't look that much like my mother...hmmm.

 

 

 

 

Brother Anthony- "You are too serious, you look like you are falling asleep!"

 

 

 

 

Much better!

 

 

This is my "yay, it is finished" look!

 

 



 

 

Anthony: "How about you sit down...I don't think there are any stickers..."

 

Right about then....

 

 

 

 

Me: "Errr...I think that is a fire ant..."

 

 

 

 

"Yes...yes, it is..."

 

 

 

Me: "Ummm, there is a fire ant crawling on my skirt..."

 

 



 

 

 Yeah, I'm getting up now...

Little Changes to Note...

While I was sick, (feeling much better now)

I puttered around with my blog and made a few little,
almost-don't-need-to-be-mentioned-

changes that I decided to...well... mention.

First,

I have now added a Bloglovin' Follow Button!

So go ahead and follow me that way if you wish.

Follow my blog with Bloglovin
 

Second,

this one has a little story.

Remember when the Internet first came out and you were never, ever, ever

supposed to use your real name?

Well, I take to changes very slooowly.

Forever, I have gone by LadyD, or some variant of that name,

which carried over into the blogging world as well...until now.

I have now changed over to using my real name, Desarae,
as my sing in name on Blogger/Google.

It just feels right.

People who follow my blog know me by that name,

so it felt strange to me when I left a comment on their blog,
or a reply on my own, under the name LadyD.

So anyway.

All fixed!



Sick

So...

I'm sick.

 

Yuck.

 

A nasty little cold and soar throat has been systematically working its way

through my entire family over the course of this past week.

And I finally got it.

 

It doesn't seem to be lasting over 3 days, so I hope to be back up to par

and putting up posts about several finished projects by the end of the week.

I finally finished my the mash-up sewing project that I hinted at here,

and I'm excited to show it to you!

 

First, I need to get better and take pictures.

 

So if it is quiet around here this week,

well, its because I'm taking a nap and marinating in Vicks.

Have a great week!

Asparagus Quiche

Hello all!

Today, I have a wonderful recipe that I would love to share with you.

Would you believe it if I told you I actually didn't get this recipe from Pinterest?!

That's right, I got it the old fashioned way...from a friend!

Well, actually it was a stranger to me, but a friend of my Nana's.

 

To make a short story long,

a couple months back I was staying with Nana while she was going through the worst stages of recovering from a bad car accident.

Her loving and supportive church family was fast and furiously filling her fridge and freezer with meals while she was out of commission.

One of those yummy dishes was a heavenly quiche...I exaggerate not!

Nana and I swooned over it as if it were a delectable three layer cream-cheese, chocolate chip cookie dough, peanut butter pie (which, if you actually have a recipe for...I'd love...)!

It was wonderful.

 

Through a series of phone calls and asking around,

we finally got our hands on the recipe!

And made it immediately.

 

I have since made it twice...and to be honest, it doesn't taste as outstanding as that first gift quiche did, but it is wonderful none the less!

I can promise you one thing though, I intend to make this as many times as necessary until I attain perfection...and then I'll make it even more.

 

So without further ado, I give you...

 

Asparagus Quiche

 

 

 

*9 eggs

1 1/4 cup half and half

1 tsp. seasoning salt

1 c. sharp cheddar cheese, grated

1/2 c. Parmesan cheese, grated

1/2 c. Monterey Jack cheese, grated

2 green onions, chopped finely

*1/2 to 1 c. chopped meat (turkey ham, bacon, ham etc.)

1 can asparagus, large spears

2 9-inch deep dish pie crusts

paprika, optional

parsley, optional

salt and pepper to taste

 

 

Beat eggs.

Whisk in half and half and seasoning salt. Salt and pepper to taste.

Stir in cheeses, green onions, and meat of your choice.

Drain and chop asparagus, fold into egg mixture.

Pour into frozen, unbaked pie crusts.

If desired, sprinkle lightly with paprika and parsley.

Cover crust edges with tin foil to avoid over cooking.

Bake at 375 degrees for 45 minutes.

 

Yields 2 9-inch pie quiches

 

My Notes:

*The original recipe called for 6 eggs- but it didn't fill the crusts, so I used 9 the next time and it turned out great.

** The original recipe called for chopped ham- the original cook said she used Hormel's Virginia Ham lunch meat and chopped it into bits. However, we have a ham allergy in my family, so we used turkey ham the first time and turkey bacon the second. Both tasted great!

Also- the first time I sprinkled paprika and parsley on top, but the second time I omitted it.

Just play around with what you want.

 

 

I hope you enjoy this recipe as much as I did!

Looking Back: August

Can you believe the last official month of summer is over?!

Next month will be the start of fall!

At least that is what is they teach you in school...here in Texas the months don't

exactly follow the typical seasonal changes.

 

At any rate, we are starting a new month, and in my experience,

these last few months of the year go by faster than all the rest...

kind of like the last quarter of gas in your car goes faster than the first.

 

August was full and eventful for myself and my family,

but sadly we don't have many pictures to show for it! :)

What I do have are some cute pictures of a couple Horny Toads, or Horned Lizards,  we happened upon in our outdoor wanderings.
We have been seeing a lot more of them as of late.

For the last couple of weeks, I have been helping Dad with another big job
and we have been working on a ranch way out in the rugged boonies.
That is where we came across this little guy! 

 

 



It's a baby Horny Toad!
 So tiny!
I have never seen one this small before!
His body, not including the protruding legs and head,
was probably the size of a 25 cent piece!

Here he is in my little brother's hand.
If you stroke their soft underbellies and neck, they will fall right to sleep.
This little guy however didn't like getting his belly rubbed...but he did like getting his head pat.

 

 

Isn't he cute?!

He calmed right down after being stroked and petted a bit... just sit there and fall asleep.

 

Now here are some pictures of what a full grown Horny Toad looks like!

See how bit this fella is?
And he is even in Dad's hands this time!

The big ones look a little more intimidating,
not quite so cute and cuddly,
and their spikes are more firm.
But they aren't really sharp or dangerous.

Their underbellies are soft, just like a toad's.
This one was really fat!
When upset, they puff up...so obviously, he must have been a bit upset.

 

 

Horny Toads are endangered, so it is illegal to keep them as pets.

So after their brief, glimmering moment of fame,

we put both our spiky friends back where we found them.

Though I have to admit, I was really tempted to keep Baby!

 

I hope you all had a wonderful August!