I’m thinking once I do a quick design revision of Annie’s Formals, I’m going to offer up the Laura bag as a free download. Yep, indeedy, free! This is my most popular bag (the one I get requests to sew all the time). I think I should share the love! My mom wants one for an upcoming trip she’s taking in early August to Scotland with some friends (you go, Mom!)
So I’ll set a goal to get the site reworked in the next two weeks (I have parents here thru Monday, then in laws, but they are like having two more kids, so I will be busier next weekend than this one, and then my parents come back for a few more days, where I can maybe sneak in some time on the computer).
Now, I’m kid-free tonight. Last night I was on my computer for hours but I had a one year old latched on to at least one side or the other the entire time. Sigh. Tonight since I had to finish painting an outdoor deck project (our bench/railing project), I handed off the babe to his dad, fully topped off, of course, and they are watching Formula 1 racing on the computer. Well I think the formula 1 racing puts the baby to sleep so mainly it’s hubby who’s watching it.
So this kid free thing, it’s 10:23 pm, and I don’t think I should start sewing but I might be able to trace a pattern off, yes? Just one? pretty please? Maybe a baby romper, that’ll take like three minutes.
Anyway, so since I’m on the subject of outdoor living, I am thinking of taking a green and white striped shower curtain we used to have (it’s in excellent shape, but I believe, before it was used as a shower curtain for 15 years, it was to be a twin sheet) and making some accessories for our outdoor living. You know, maybe some throw pillows. They would come inside, of course, but that’s not a big deal. Our outdoor table is a card table. But before you fall over laughing (why is she making throw pillows to spruce up the place, she has a CARD TABLE for a patio table.) I subscribe to the theory that the outdoor table should look like the indoor one. Tablecloth, regular silverware and plates, no plasticky stuff that is ‘outdoor specific’. I read this in a swanky article in the Wall St. Journal weekend edition, and since it dovetailed nicely with the “yeah, I’m just using my inside stuff, that’s it” timing without having a proper patio table, I’m going with it.
So it looks pretty nice out there, my cute Italian plaid tablecloth, we even put the table slightly diagonal like the restaurants do, with proper everyday china and silverware.
I concepted this great idea. We have this small, rectangular deck in an alcove between our doorwall, our back hall (door) and our garage (wall). There’s little if any sun, so we don’t need an umbrella. But we want some sort of outdoor space. Eventually we will patio in some of our back yard with those fancy pavers that make your place look like an Italian villa, but not any time soon. So, I thought, we want one of those couch-and-chair setups, but we also need a table. So I thought a big, wide L-shaped banquette with a cushion and lots of throw pillows (the banquette could hold those pillows when we are not using them) would be excellent. We could then have some sort of folding table there, and some chairs.
I thought we could build it, but the more I think about it, wouldn’t this be one of those big deck box things we could put two together? Hmmm. the mind whirrs. Then we could just get a table and use our existing chairs, and here’s where the sewing part comes in – make slipcovers for those outdoor plastic patio chairs and have everything coordinate! Ah well, not any time soon (at least not the deck boxes or the table).
Next summer I’d like to have a chaise lounger built (I wanted one LAST year but didn’t get it). Maybe if I ask again I’ll get one this year!