Maxi Dresses

The other day -- my sister Deb and I BOTH ended up at Deena's house -- wearing our respective MAXI dresses! Apparently -- great minds think alike...

You already know I am OBSESSED with maxi-dresses!! OH MY GOD...this is soooo much fun. My dress is a morph of an orange top and a poorly designed maxi dress. I found the dress at the Salvation Army, with the tags still on it, for $1.25. What was the problem? Well -- why would somebody make a size 2X maxi-dress with spaghetti straps? Really, people....

No problem. The orange t-shirt had an embroidery design that kinda matched the fabric. But it was a size "M". Using the fabric I CUT AWAY from the bodice of the spaghetti strap version -- I made panels for under the arms and the back of the orange shirt. To get some pictures, I wore it to my Tuesday morning breakfast club...


I haven't worn a long skirt out in public since 1969 when I was living in Washington, D.C. Maxi dresses were everywhere then...along with war protesters, hippies, Woodstock, the Beatles and 35 cent gas...ah yes -- the good old days!

Back to my present day...

My next recycled t-shirt maxi-dress project will be for a friend of mine who is living in a Ronald McDonald House situation. I made two dresses for her...

As it turns out -- you can't just make ONE maxi dress!!

100 Year Old Iowa Century Farm

Sue and I have been friends since junior high. This summer, her husband Kim was retiring and she was having a party. In the back yard. With almost 200 guests. Yikes.

I could just post a few pictures of the party and call it a day. But, mostly because Sue NEVER READS THIS BLOG -- I've decided to give you some "behind the scenes".

Sue and Kim got married 40 years ago -- in the backyard of the century-old-farmhouse where she grew up -- under a large white tent. They raised their son and daughter in Clinton, Iowa, near Kim's job. Sue stayed at home with the kids, and at the moment she was thinking about going back to work -- she became the primary caretaker for old people. First, her in-laws -- then her parents. I swear -- her life was all about that for 20 years.

She is VERY GOOD AT TAKING CARE OF PEOPLE -- and we are all lucky to have her.

After her parents died, Sue inherited that 100-year-old house. It was a BIG house for two people and it was in a very sad state. It had long ago been divided into two separate residences -- with a kitchen and dining room in the large upstairs. The many room air conditioners struggled to keep up -- the roof was bad and the heating bills were astronomical.

At the time -- I said -- SAVE YOURSELF -- RUN -- FAR FAR AWAY -- !!

Sue could not be discouraged. She launched herself (and Kim!) into a two-year renovation project. I can't begin to list the work they did. Turning the upstairs apartment back into large, gracious bedrooms...taking down 50 year old wallpaper...new wiring, new heating and air conditioning with zones...painting all the trim...they worked on the inside, they worked on the outside. Sue had a vision and she doggedly kept at it for 60+ hours every week -- always driven by a massive "to do" list. Contractors -- new plumbing, new wiring, new furnaces. Sue did all the sanding, painting, hauling, cleaning...sleeping on the floor in an exhausted heap. She knew exactly how the house should look -- and bringing it back to it's original grandeur became her mission.

I was convinced that committing to this big old house was a huge mistake. But, as it turns out -- restoring this house is one of the proudest accomplishments of her life. She was determined and she always kept her eye on the prize. She wanted a place where her children could bring their children to know who they are and where they came from.

She wanted her grandchildren to go sledding down the big hill in the back of the house, then come inside for homemade cookies and hot chocolate. She wanted to watch them sleep in the little room under the eaves...and wake up to the smell of cinnamon rolls...

She wanted to bring this house back to what it was three generations ago....and she did. She wanted to create happy memories for her family in this house -- and she will. Last week -- for Kim's retirement party -- she invited family and friends to this revitalized place where her parents, and her grandparents and her great-grandparents lived and worked and played.

You were right, Sue. I was wrong. What you've done is remarkable. And only you could have done it. Kim's retirement party was the best celebration Magnolia Crest farm ever hosted.

Good job, you...

If a house could talk, this one would be saying, "thank you"....

Pat's Tomato-Bacon Tart

I am on a "food kick". And just in case you need a main dish to go with yesterday's Pinterest cookie recipe -- here is an excellent vegetarian option. AND, if you're like me, at this time of year -- this is your problem...

TOO MANY TOMATOES!!



Pat Leslie is the best cook I know. Julia Child was a friend of hers!! Well, actually, that's not very remarkable -- because EVERYBODY SHE MEETS becomes Pat's friend. Believe me -- she has COOKED it all -- written columns, had her own radio show -- and she teaches very popular cooking classes (she keeps trying to retire, but they won't let her!). The woman LIVES AND LOVES cooking. If you're getting a lot of tomatoes out of your garden -- this recipe is JUST IN TIME.

YOU WILL NOT BELIEVE HOW DELICIOUS this tart is. Totally wonderful --

this could be the dish you will be famous for!!

Pat’s Tomato Tart

Crust:
1 cup fresh basil leaves
4 garlic cloves
2-1/2 cups flour
½ teaspoon salt
1/2 pound chilled butter, cut into small pieces
8 to 10 tablespoons ice water

In a food processor bowl, chop basil and garlic. Add flour and salt. Mix well. Add butter pieces and pulse just to combine with flour mixture, leaving pea-size pieces of butter. Add water while pulsing until dough clings together. Don’t over-mix. Transfer dough to a lightly floured board. Gently form into a flattened ball, cover with plastic wrap and refrigerate for ½ hour.

Pan-spray a 12 x 16-inch baking pan. Unwrap dough and roll to fit the pan. Prick dough with a fork. Bake in a preheated 450°F. oven for 12 to 15 minutes. Remove from oven before edges are browned and lower heat to 350°F.

Filling:
4 to 6 cups grated cheese, divided*
1 pound chopped bacon, cooked & well-drained
1-1/2 cups mayonnaise
2 tablespoons lemon juice
½ teaspoon salt
½ teaspoon freshly ground black pepper
¼ to ½ teaspoon cayenne pepper
6 or 8 green onions, chopped
6 to 8 thinly sliced tomatoes
Garnish: fresh basil leaves

Sprinkle a generous amount of grated cheese over baked crust. Scatter cooked bacon over cheese.

In a bowl, mix together mayonnaise, lemon juice, salt, pepper, cayenne and green onions. Spread over bacon by spoonfuls. Arrange sliced tomatoes, overlapping in rows, on top. Sprinkle with remaining grated cheese. (Allow tomato slices to show.)

Bake for 30 to 40 minutes at 350°F. until crust is golden and cheese is bubbly. Remove from oven and allow to cool before slicing. Cut into squares or fingers. Makes about 30 appetizers .

*Cheddar, Monterrey Jack, Mozzarella (I used ½ Cheddar and ½ Monterey Jack)
Notes: - Roma tomatoes are best. If using more juicy tomatoes, blot with paper towels
before adding to tart.
- Add chopped basil and garlic powder to mayonnaise mixture if desired.

*********
On the SAME DAY Pat sent me this recipe -- John picked a five gallon bucket of tomatoes. Here it is...the beautiful finished "Tomato Tart". Altho, I must confess -- I started with a refrigerated pie crust. My tomatoes were very ripe, so I sliced them and let them sit between paper towels before assembling the tart, just as Pat recommended...

WONDERFUL, WONDERFUL, WONDERFUL. This is one of those seasonal things that should only be made when you have fresh tomatoes from your garden. It gives you something to look forward to...

THANKS, PAT!!

Pinterest Experiment

We were at Kelcy's house for her birthday dinner. Kelcy is always helping me with the technology part of my life, so I thought it would be fun to do a "Pinterest Experiment" with the kids..

One of the things I "pinned" last week was an "Easiest Cookie Ever" recipe. Three ingredients: Cake mix (any flavor), one egg, one container of Cool Whip. Mix it all up, drop spoonfuls into confectioner's sugar, bake for 12 minutes.

It sounds like magic COOKIES...

You can see that Lilly was delighted to be sharing the baking experiment with cousin Mason...lol...


I'm thinking this makes no sense. It cannot work. Crazy. And it was VERY dry...so we added a second egg...

Mason REALLY ENJOYED the "roll 'em in powdered sugar" part of the task...
And -- HEY -- SHOCKING -- IT WORKED..!!


NO KIDDING. These cookies were delicious. I love the idea that you can use any flavor of cake mix, too. I'm going to STOCK UP ON CAKE MIXES...

Honestly -- I cannot remember what I did before Pinterest...

Reluctant Model

I started working on these dresses weeks ago. Emily's dress started with a great orange top that had a built-in bra. I was going to add some colorful panels to make it a maxi -- but she liked it short. Lilly's little version WAS long -- but she hated it and refused to model...

The second Mommy & Me set is actually a dress for Lilly and a top for Mommy...I loved the colors...again, Lilly was not a fan...


On yet another dress -- Lilly did try it on. I wanted to get the length right before I cut the t-shirt fabric into fringes...

But can you see the look of enthusiasm? She is covering her mouth because I told her it was rude to say, over and over again, "I don't like it"...

FINE...if I really need a picture -- I'll find a different model. WHERE IS MEMPHIS?? Hey -- at Aunt Amy's house.....BINGO...
Good job, girls. You both look adorable. Great Mommy & Me dresses, eh?

I'm telling you, Amy -- YOU NEED A GIRL!!

Kelcy & Myla's Maxi Dresses

My new addiction: Recycled t-shirt Maxi Dresses. OMG.

I don't know when I've had more fun sewing. Really. There are sooo many enjoyable elements to this addiction.

FIRST OF ALL -- it gives me a great excuse to GO THRIFT STORE shopping...you'll be reading more about that in the coming weeks...

Secondly -- it gives me the PERFECT EXCUSE to use those funny words on t-shirts that have, for so many years, made me laugh out loud...

Third great thing -- I love, love, love the idea of "Mommy & Me" dresses. Probably because I had two boys.

For Kelcy's birthday, I was inspired by these words...which set a black and white tone for the dresses...

I took the dress to breakfast club on Tuesday morning for "Sew & Tell" and Sandy held it up so I could take the picture...

For Kelcy's actual birthday -- Myla tried on her little version of the one-sleeve black and white striped dress with t-shirt fringe...HAVE YOU EVER SEEN ANYTHING CUTER?? Oh My...
AND, yes, her Mommy looks stunning in the maxi version...(maxi just won't work for a one year old baby)...


MY TWO BEAUTIFUL MODELS...they ROCKED the dresses, don't you think?
Oh, yes, this is going to be fun. Although, clearly, I MUST QUIT SHOPPING.

I have purchased so many twenty-five cent t-shirts (Tuesday is "quarter" day at the Bettendorf Goodwill store).... if I made ten dresses every week, I'd be 160 years old before I ran out of t-shirts...

T-shirt FRINGE

The world is a different place because Thomas Edison invented the lightbulb and Elias Howe invented the sewing machine. Just like Al Gore invented the internet -- I like to think I invented "T-shirt fringe". You've seen it on everything in my life -- my own clothes, dresses, jackets, wraps -- shower curtains, porch furniture -- my last project shown here -- the curtains in Lillian's room...

It is SO EASY TO DO. You simply insert a piece of t-shirt fabric into a seam. The curtain fringe started as a 4" strip of pink fabric.... AFTER all the sewing is done, cut the "fringes"...

For Kelcy's birthday, I wanted to make "Mommy & Me" dresses. And when I looked at Kelcy's Pinterest pages -- I could see she liked one-shoulder outfits. That would be adorable...My initial idea was to start with this baby onesie...

However -- that didn't work out. YET. I got distracted last week when I was making some Maxi-dresses for a friend of mine. She's temporarily living at a Ronald McDonald house -- and there's nothing better than a few long t-shirt dresses. She can walk to the kitchen, check her email, visit the library, etc. -- and she won't be wearing pajamas!

I'll post those pictures later on. Here's a maxi dress I made for my niece Amy. I gave it to her the night they were leaving on a two week camper vacation to South Dakota. Although I love the t-shirt fringe in this dress, because one of the t-shirts said, "Save the planet -- it's the only one with beer" -- I call it her "drinking dress". She has three boys inside that camper. She may need the beer...
Yes, I know. My pictures suck. But for Kelcy's "Mommy & Me" dresses -- I was obsessed with black and white. STRIPES. Oh, yeah...this is gonna be fun...