Back From London Part 1

I bet some of you guessed that I was in London, given my absence from here. If you follow me on Instagram, you saw some photos that I was able to post when I had wifi.

It was such a nice trip and of course the best part was seeing Nicole! She moved to London a little over two years ago, and while I chat with her on line with Skype it just isn't the same. Nicole took us all over London, and my feet may never be the same! Ha ha ha. Everyone was a good sport while I spent entirely too much time at Liberty choosing fabric to haul home. That store is seriously gorgeous I must say! I would have to say it is the second highlight of my trip for sure. The photos of the more residential neighborhoods are near where Nicole lives and where we stayed in a lovely B&B called Mountview Guest House. If you ever find yourself in the Crouch End neighborhood and want a cozy retreat, this is the place to go. I will put up more photos in the coming days of our room. Those taps are from the bathroom in our room. I love these English taps. For some reason, when I think of England, these taps come to mind. I think it is because a lot of their fonts on things are very formal back and white like this, and you see it everywhere from signage to labels on their jam. I don't know, it's just something that strikes me every time I go to England.
The last photo is of Nicole's street. The first day we got there, we headed straight to our B&B and quickly unpacked, so we could walk over to Nicole's. She was walking her darling little dog Clementine and we decided to meet half way. What a joy it was to lay eyes on my daughter after all this time! Words can't really express how it felt. Clementine seemed to remember us as well and did her little dance in front of us and wanted us to pet her. It really seemed like she remembered us.
We went to a pub for a drink and caught up a bit before we went off to dinner.

To be continued.

Red Capes and Little Birdie Leaving the Nest

 Well, I got the email that I thought I was going to get from Parent's magazine, about using the little red riding hood cape in the magazine. So I will be cutting out some capes this week and getting them ready for the shop. I'm going to do about 6 of them to start, and then either do made to order, or just make up more as I go. We shall see how it goes. The fabrics above are the lining choices that I have as of now. I'm on the hunt for others, but I think this will be a good start. I'm excited to see how the child looks in the cape. It will be in the October issue, but  will be on newsstands mid September.

In the midst of all of this cape stuff, my littlest birdie has flown the nest! We are officially empty nesters. Bittersweet, but we are choosing to focus on the sweet. She didn't fly too far, so it makes it not so tough on poor old mom. I'm still sad about my other birdie so far away though. Caitlin starts school late August, but is getting settled in the city, and getting to know the area better. So many things I could say and be sad about, but like I said, I don't want to look at it in this way. She is happy, and it is her time now to start the next chapter in her life, and we are excited for her!

Now I will be on more of a schedule for myself and perhaps you might even see more blog posts from me, who knows! I still can't believe sometimes that I have been at this blog now for a little over 5 years. I sure do love looking back at some of the old posts, because they help to remember all the sweetness in life and all the blessings that we have.
On that note, stay tuned for updates on the capes and of course other good stuff.

Baby Bloomers

I just finished making these little bloomers, and they are so soft and sweet. I think bloomers are so versatile for a baby. I'm having fun coming up with some cute outfits for the shop.  I'll be cutting out more tomorrow and working away!
Just thought I'd show you these :)

A Little Bit Of This and A Little Bit Of That

 This past weekend we went to my husband's company party, and it was a lot of fun to see old friends that we hadn't seen in ages. My husband left this company a few years back, but returned last year, so it  is a bit surreal sometimes that he is back there, and even more so when you meet up again with some of the employees that are still around. It was a chance to slip on a cocktail dress and go out for the evening.

 Last night we went to see "Muse." This is one of Caitlin's favorite bands since she was a teen, so we thought it would be nice to take her to see them. I thought it was a really great show, and the lead signer's voice was so beautiful, almost operatic with a nice rock and roll edge. Very fun night. Their show consists of A LOT of laser lights and they were quite spectacular. Their style is certainly unique and very interesting in a good way. You can scroll through this really quick, if you aren't into rock shows ;)

 I went fabric shopping on Sunday, to get some more basics. I also found this really pretty graphic looking print, that I'm excited to make something with, the feel of this fabric is a super soft light weight cotton sateen.

I'm on the tail end of finishing a special order today, and then I will start to cut into the fabrics that I have been showing you. Spring is always such a fun time to sew for I think! Stay tuned.

Lovely September

The light is changing everyday as I peer into my living room, towards the afternoon there is a gentle golden glow.
Colors of September for me are these burnt oranges and purples. In flowers and
fruit. We still have a few more days of summer, according to the calendar, but you can smell the the autumn in the air, and hear the rustling of the leaves starting to fall. I'll miss the long days of summer, but my heart belongs to autumn.
What's this? Nicole sent me the magazine that she was featured in, in the UK. Look at her name right there on the cover! The following photos are her spread, featuring her designs.





Nicole tells me that this beautiful young lady modeling her clothing, will be in the up coming season of "Downton Abbey." It will be fun to look out for her when it finally airs in the US.
Along with the magazine, she sent me something from here :)
Beautiful fabric! Can't wait to make something fun.

One other bit of news, today I am featured over on Etsy Kids. Here is the link if you want to go and check it out

Yummy Lemon Blueberry Bundt Cake

Believe it or not, it is a "Cooking Light" recipe, and it is one of my favorite dessert recipes of theirs. Normally I look at their baked goods with a leery eye, since they usually end up not tasting as good as the picture looks, but this one is so, so yummy. I think I did a post on it ages ago.
Lemon-Blueberry Bundt Cake

Cake:

Cooking spray

2 tablespoons granulated sugar

3cups all-purpose flour

1 1/2 teaspoons baking powder

1/2 teaspoon baking soda

1/4 teaspoon salt

1 3/4 cups granulated sugar

1/4 cup butter, softened

1 tablespoon grated lemon rind

4 large eggs

1/2 teaspoon vanilla extract

1 (16 ounce) carton reduced -fat sour cream

2 cups fresh blueberries

Glaze:

1 cup powdered sugar

2 tablespoons fresh lemon juice

1. Preheat oven to 350

2.To prepare cake, coat a 12-cup Bundt pan with cooking spray; dust with 2 tablespoons sugar.

3. Lightly spoon flour into a dry measuring cups; level with a knife. Combine flour, baking powder, baking soda, and salt, stirring with a whisk.

4. Place 1 3/4 cups granulated sugar, butter, and rind in a large bowl; beat with a mixer at medium speed until well blended. Add eggs, 1 at a time, beating well after each addition. Beat in vanilla and sour cream. Add Flour mixture; beat at medium speed just until combined. Gently fold in blueberries. Spoon batter into prepared pan. Bake at 350 for 1 hour or until a wooden pick inserted in center comes out clean. Cool in pan 15 minutes on a wire rack; remove from pan. Cool completely on wire rack.

5. To prepare glaze, combine powdered sugar and juice, stirring well with a whisk. Drizzle over cake. Yield : 16 servings Calories 299 per slice

* note, I never make the glaze, so that may shave off a bit of calories. I think it tastes just fine without it.
Have a nice cup of tea with it, and enjoy!!
I just got this in the mail from here. I have all sorts of ideas swimming in my head for this :)