One

My baby is one, y'all.  ONE.   I really can't believe it.

Sugar crash happens quick.  We went from this...

...to this in no time at all.

We said we weren't going to have a big birthday bash.  We said we were just going to do a cupcake or two and have some family over.  We weren't going to be those parents that went crazy for a birthday party that the recipient will never remember.  Um, yeah.  We partied our tails off this weekend.  I'm exhausted.

I had some really grand plans for the birthday party considering we weren't going to do anything big.  It just sort of snowballed.  I didn't get to do everything I wanted to, but I sure did have fun decorating for the party.  I made some garland by sewing card stock circles together, one after the other.  A friend made a bunch of those tissue paper poufs.  I bought a few things at Hobby Lobby.  I had a table for dyeing Easter eggs and a huge spread for all the party guests.  Aaaand, I didn't think to take a single picture of the set up until the party was long over.  It was Pinterest-worthy, I promise ;)  You'll just have to trust me.  This is just the aftermath.

I did want to share the banner I made with pictures from baby Jane's first year.  I was pretty proud of it when it was finished.  I had a photo from each month, including a few half-month pics.  I mounted each photo on a piece of card stock and then cut some triangles from scrap booking paper to look like bunting.  I have to say that it was pretty cute.  I think I may just have to keep it up for a while.  I may have enjoyed it more than any of the party guests.

Between birthday and Easter this weekend, baby Jane may just expect cake every night.  Hope you all had a happy Easter!

St. John

 

Sandy Cay, BVI's.  The colors in this photo have not been edited at all.  That is actually the color of the water in the Virgin Islands!

This is a gratuitous vacation post, just in case you're only interested in the sewing posts.  Though there were lots of handmade things worn in St. John.  I went in to a sewing frenzy before we left.  I think I sewed a grand total of six different items for our trip in the last two weeks before we left.  To tell you the truth, I was a little drained by the time I was done.  I was frantically finishing a dress late at night before the morning we left at four a.m.  Anyway, I'll post about the things I made later on.  This is just a summary of what we did, what we saw...  mostly for me to look back on more than anything else.

And yes, maybe to be a little bratty, too ;)  It sure was a beautiful place.

 

After snorkeling around Waterlemon.

The shorts came in handy!  I wore both pairs multiple times.  They were great for all the beach going and hiking around we did.   We did so much walking, swimming and snorkeling everyday that we were worn out at night.  I think we went to bed around nine every night.  

 One more time, Waterlemon.  The water here was absolutely insane. Again, not edited.

We rented snorkel gear the first day we were there and took it everywhere we went.   You could just walk in to the water, put on your mask and go.  The snorkeling was amazing.  I've never seen anything like it.  The first day we were there, we went to Maho Bay.  J was in the water for five minutes and popped up screaming, "Turtle!"  I'm sure we didn't look dorky at all.  We followed about five or six sea turtles as they leisurely munched on the sea floor for the next hour.  It was pretty amazing.

 

And he wore the shirt!  He's a good husband :)

 

Hawksnest Beach

All the beaches on St. John are public.  We rented a Jeep for the week and traveled around the island going to a different beach or two everyday.  They were all beautiful.  I'd have to say they are some of the most beautiful beaches in the world.  We went to Maho, Waterlemon, Salt Pond, Hawksnest, Trunk Bay, and Jumbie.  I'm absolutely spoiled rotten now.

 

The last day we were there, we chartered a boat and trolled around the British Virgin Islands.  We stopped for lunch at Willy T's.  It's a boat in the middle of the ocean that serves as a bar/restaurant.  And the food was really good!  So were the drinks.

 

In addition to Willy T's, we snorkeled at the caves at Norman, stopped at Sandy Cay and swam up to The Soggy Dollar Bar on Jost Van Dyke.

 

My best pirate impersonation.  And I made that cover up-- to be blogged soon.

The boat trip was probably my favorite part of the trip.  Actually, I don't know if I can pick just one favorite part.  It was all pretty awesome.  If you ever have a chance to make it to St. John, do it.  It was absolutely unreal.  We had such a great time.

 

Until next time, St. John!  

Amateur Upholstery Hour: Introduction

 

Can someone please stop me from buying fabric?

Please.  My husband begs you.

  I have been completely incapable of finishing anything this past week and a half, even though I have several projects in progress.  This weekend I set out to sew early in the day Saturday and Sunday and was thwarted each time. 

Sidetracked, really. 

What did I do instead?  I organized my fabric.  I know I should be ashamed at how much I've accumulated, but it secretly makes me happy when I walk by.  I cleaned out my closet and did a major cull.  I feel good about that.  Oh yeah, and I bought this couch from the Salvation Army.

 

With the grand intention to reupholster it.....  ack!

Sorry I trailed off there. I'm a little embarrassed that I'm even proposing this.

Now I know you are probably thinking about my last two and half month adventure with upholstery that involved tears, but let me explain: 

 

J and I stopped by the Salvation Army after lunch on Saturday.  We fell in love with this couch but had no real desire to purchase it.  Luckily, J and I have similar taste in furniture and home decor.  We both like antiques and artsy, quirky things.  While we were looking at it, an employee glanced over and said we could have her for half price.  Half price made it a whopping twenty seven dollars.

We couldn't not buy it, right?

 

We think it's from the late 50's/early 60's.  We're calling it mid-century Asian modern, though I'm not sure that label exists.  It's definitely mid-century and it has an Asian flair.  The old fabric is a brocade of some sort.  It weighs about three tons.  I wasn't expecting that when I helped carry it out of the store. But I'm glad because that means it's solidly constructed (solid piece of wood, too).   It's also eight feet long.   The only reason it was so cheap is because it's in pretty rough shape.  There's some damage to the wooden frame.  The white cushion covers look pretty good in these photos, but trust me when I tell you they are not in real life. (Why would anyone want a white couch anyway?)

J used to work doing faux finishes in homes and on furniture.  He can paint just about anything impeccably.  He's excited about repairing the damage to the frame.

As for the upholstery... 

I think I can, I think I can, I think I can...

I should also mention that school's out for summer after this week.  Hands down the best thing about being a teacher ;)  So, this becomes a major summer project.

Destruction of the old upholstery begins this coming weekend.

The only reason I'm even writing about this now is because blogging will keep me honest about it, whether I succeed or fail.

My weekend in a nutshell.  Instead of finishing that simple cotton a-line skirt I've started, I hatched a plan to upholster a couch.  

How was your weekend?

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 All the photos in this post were taken with my brand spankin' new iPhone.  I've had it for a week and I'm not sure how I ever lived without it.  This one below is just for fun.  Instagram.

 

Hope everyone has a great week!