Monday, September 27, 2010

Burp Cloths

So, the other day the DH had a little talk with me about FINISHING my projects instead of getting involved in too many more new ones. I guess I just see things, get ideas and then get excited to start them without finishing the one I'm working on. On my list was to make some "good" burp rags. With Landen I had a few cute ones that were totally impractical at catching his spit-up and then I had cloth diapers. I really wanted something in between for Baby Girl.

I found a few tutorials online and they all seemed pretty basic. I basically followed this one. I did make one that was shaped more traditional, but decided it was easier to just use the rotary cutter instead of cute out all the layers with a pattern.

So, here's a run-down of what I did. I bought 1/2 yard of pink chenille. So the tutorial called for pieces that were 10x16, but I figured that if I did mine 9x15 I could actually get 8 instead of 6. I cut my fabric the same size, and then decided I wanted to round the corners because I hate trying to get good squares.

Then I sewed it together leaving a gap. Turned it, pressed it and top stitched it. After I was done, I realized I wanted just a little more padding, and decided to put a piece of batting between the layers. I had some warm-n-natural laying around, so I just used that because it was nice and thin, but absorbant. So, the other 6 had some padding. I also ran a seam down the middle just to keep it from twisting in the wash, because it will probably be washed plenty!


And there they are! Hopefully they are as useful as they are cute!
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Wednesday, September 22, 2010

Ahhh...

There is just something about getting a quilt put together. You work on all the squares individually and that's nice, but there is something about having the whole thing done (or almost done). A sense of accomplishment and excitement to get it finished!




Isn't it cute? I just couldn't resist the puffy quilt. I think I'm going to find a bright pink or purple minky fabric for the back and to give it a nice thick binding and then tie it with some ribbon?

At first, I was thinking that these squares were a pain, but I think they are totally worth it now. I wouldn't take on a full sized quilt, but a baby quilt was quite practical. Want to make your own? I used the tutorial at honeybearlane.
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Tuesday, September 14, 2010

Monkey Bread

It's funny... When I think of monkey bread, it brings me back to high school with friends at Wendy's and yet it also brings me back to my Grandma's kitchen.

Today, I'm sharing my Grandma's recipe. It's more of a dinner roll recipe and less of a dessert. I was thinking about making her rolls for dinner but didn't want all the work and the great big batch, so I was thinking about another roll recipe that was a little easier. Thumbing through her cookbook I found the recipe for Monkey Bread and knew this was the perfect compliment to our dinner.

Monkey Bread (click here for print-friendly version)
2 cups warm water
1/2 cup sugar
1 TBSP salt
1TBSP yeast
2 eggs slightly beaten
2TBSP oil
1 cube margarine (1/2 cup)
About 5-6 cups flour

Add sugar, salt and yeast to warm water. Let sit about 10 minutes or until nice and bubbly. Stir, add oil, beaten eggs, and 3 cups of flour and mix well. Let sit about 10 minutes. Add rest of flour mixing with spoon, kneading until satiny. Cover and let rise. (about 1 hour)

Roll out dough about 1/4-1/2 inch thick. Cut in 3” circles. Melt margarine and add half to bundt pan. Stand circles in bundt pan like a pinwheel. Pour rest of margarine on top of circle. Let rise to top of pan. ( about 20-30 minutes, I turn the oven on to preheat and set the pan on top of the stove so it's nice and warm and rises faster!)

Bake at 350 for 25-30 minutes

Happy Baking!