Sewing for Boys: Little Heartbreaker Pants as Shorts

The last time I made the Little Heartbreaker Pants from the Sewing for Boys Book into shorts, they were a huge hit.  They fit perfectly, and have weathered well (my younger son is in them now).  They are fun but polished.  My only beef is that I need to iron them every 4-5 wearings to keep the top front flat waistband looking flat.  I suppose it was to be expected.

I had a few issues this time, namely, that the rise in the back seems low and that I had to cut a bunch of fabric off the backs to make the hem even, then now the hems seem shorter and angled in back.  

I wonder why I didn't have these issues the first time around?  Maybe making four at a time hinders quality control?  Maybe not.

But the boys chose their fabric (my younger son got the top pair and the others are for my older son), and they love the result.

My younger son actually would love a pair of the sunflower ones. I am going to have to start buying more than a yard of fabric at a time!

One other change this time- as seen in the last photo- is that I finished all the seams.  They are all finished then turned under-- there is great care in the underpinnings of these...

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Sewing For Boys: Bobby's Bathers

I made Bobby's Bathers a while ago - from the Sewing for Boys Book- and those upcycled shorts have slowly become a favorite.  

We were in need of another pair and I chose to make a few of these.  They are a bit long, but really comfortable to wear and my son likes the "treasure pocket."  I made these, knowing the book sizes large and skipping the tabs and pulls in front.

These bottom two pairs are in a larger and smaller size, and the boys have gotten comments every time they have had them on.  I mean, they are iridescent.  The boys love matching, and they love having freedom to move.

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DIY Kids Workbench

Here is our finished product!

No, I didn't choose the colors or do a lot of the painting.

But... we love it! It is sturdy and the boys can pound and screw into it, or on it, or even sit on it.

But how did we make it?

I found some scrap wood and cut sides to be even lengths with my circular saw and screwed them into the top (we did this step ages ago but the finished product wasn't all that sturdy).  

Then we cut scrap 1x4 to be side bracing (you can see the first scraps are darker, pressure treated wood and the 1x4s are lighter wood) and screwed four pieces in.

Then my younger assistant chose the paint and went at it.

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Recipe: Dark Chocolate Covered Almonds with Salt

1 bar baking chocolate

2 T honey

1/4 c coconut oil

3/4 c soaked and dehydrated almonds

2 t sea salt

Melt chocolate in a double boiler.  Add coconut oil and honey.  Stir to combine.

Either dip the almonds in the chocolate and lay them on a parchment paper sheet, or add them to the chocolate and pour it out together.  Sprinkle salt.

Freeze until solid, about an hour.

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DIY Passover Matzoh Bag (for Sedar Table)

 This bag has 3 compartments, one for each ceremonial matzoh, and is used during the Passover Sedar.

It was QUICK, in fact, I made it in the 30 minutes between finishing the gefilte fish and showering before our guests arrived.

To make it, I took a box of matzoh and measured a square of fabric around it.   Then I added a seam allowance.  Then I cut a matching piece for the back.  Then I cut two other pieces for the dividers.  I hemmed all of the pieces for the top.  I did a binding for the edging by using a ribbon.  You could turn it and topstitch, or make binding.  

I loved this addition to our Sedar!  

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Monthly Garden To-Do List: April

April is already the end of Spring.  Some years, it is hot enough to go swimming outside here, and at least to start the water table and sandbox play in the garden.  The Dutch Irises bloom in the background, but the dandelions are in full bloom as well.  The pill bugs are out of hibernation, so go look under a rock and grab one.

Picking wild plums.

What else is going on in the garden in April?

• The California Poppies are blooming!
• Strawberries are here.  We love to pick them in our garden, and go pick them at a big farm just inland.  Mmmm. Harbinger of summer.
• The wild plums are ready, and all over town.  They ripen at different times, depending on the color.  First are the darkest purple ones, then the red ones, then the yellow/ green ones.  All are delicious raw, or we often pit them with a cherry pitter and either make a compote or bake with them.  We've also had luck with wild plum sorbet.
• It's still a good time to ferment cabbage in the kitchen~ making your own sauerkraut is not only delicious, but a nice way to get your hands "dirty."  There is so much variety of recipes from around the world- check out plain sauerkraut, or Latin American Cordito, or Korean Kim Chee- they are all delicious and high in probiotics.
• It's also a good month to feed the birds.  Try making a feeder from a pine cone with unsalted peanut butter slathered on it, then rolled into wild bird seed.  You may get birds ~ or maybe just squirrels.

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DIY Bamboo (PVC) Flute (Bansuri)

I know this is at an odd angle, but it's a scan from 1998 and it was my instructor in Nepal. Manoj Singh. He is (was?) an amazing player of the classical bamboo flute, which is called the bansuri in Nepali.  

My older son recently went on a field trip to the local middle school and was treated to a band concert.  His takeaway?  It was loud.  And the Tuba was awesome.

So I, of course, had to pull out my bansuri, which I studied with Manoj nearly 20 years ago (yikes).   The boys loved it! And I could still make music on it.

They wanted to touch it.  They wanted to play it.  They wanted to fondle it.  

I had to say no.  Where do you buy a genuine bansuri, after all?

So we made them PVC flutes.  And we made them for two of the neighbor girls, too.

I chose lengths of 1/2" PVC from our scrap pile.  The we took a drill bit and screwed a hole for blowing, then left a big gap, then made 3 holes, then a small gap, then made 3 more holes.  Then we took a cork and narrowed it with a utility knife until it fit into the hole on the mouthpiece end, and stuffed it in, then cut it flat with a kitchen knife.  The the boys took them outside to paint and decorate them.

They work!  For troubleshooting, we made a wider mouth hole. 

They make music!

So cooL!

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20 pounds of Cabbage in my 2 Gallon Crock... mmm... Sauerkraut

Last year, we got our 20 lb box of sauerkraut from our farm box CSA and made different types of sauerkraut in jars.

This year, our process was different.  

Delicious as the flavors were, we streamlined a little.  Everyone loves plain sauerkraut.

So we made plain sauerkraut.  

We all took turns slicing (ok, the older one sliced and the younger one fed scraps to the chickens-- but it's good to have a job and be useful), then I sprinkled the kosher salt (approximately 1 T per head of cabbage).  We all took turns pounding, then we took a break.  Then we pounded.  Then they got bored and I pounded some more.  I left it in the 2 gal crock and 1 gal crock overnight, then consolidated into the 2 gallon crock the next morning and weighted it down.

Now it is waiting to ferment...

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Monthly Garden To-Do List: March

Have you ever tried green garlic? It is garlic, picked early- before the bulb starts to differentiate into cloves.  You cook with it like you do with green onions or leeks, and it is so fresh and mild and delicious, that it is worth scouring the Farmer's Markets for bunches of it in February, March, and April.

Speaking of March, it's SPRING!  Finally!  Hey, time to get naked and plant the veggie boxes.

Don't forget your rain boots.  Just in case.

But really, grab your unpaid labor force, and it's time to add compost to that veggie box, turn it, and plant those seedlings (or seeds- depends on which you prefer).  Personally, we go back and forth depending on the year.  I usually end up not "thinning" enough when I use seeds, so my boxes look better when I use starts.  But gardening is much more expensive that way.  Don't forget to leave the seedlings outside for a day near where they will be planted before transplanting them.  This will reduce shock.

What else is going on in March in the Garden?

• The magnolias are in bloom.  These bright pink blooms adorn the trees before their leaves, and are striking against the skies this time of year.  They are short-lived, so enjoy.
• The spring bulbs are flowering- enjoy those as well.  Your blueberries will also be putting their flowers out, and the figs will sprout leaves, as will the other deciduous trees.
• Sprinkle some wildflower seeds before the last rains.  How about some California Poppies?  They are deer-resistant, drought-tolerant, and beautiful.  They also naturalize.
• You could also plant poppies.  I knew a woman who threw a bunch of poppy seeds into her yard before the last rains, and had a glorious spring garden.

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Magnolia is Early this year

Beautiful!

I actually took this photo a week ago (2/21).

Last year, it was in bloom the second week of March, as was the case the previous year.  That makes this bloom almost a full month early.

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