skirt and somebody, stop me!

I found this pattern for a little girl's skirt and fell in love with the pleating detail. There's only one problem.

We don't have a little girl.

 Knowing this pattern could produce a really cute skirt, I was on the hunt for cute coordinating fabric, that the little-girl-we-don't-have, would love to look at and feel pretty in.

The green argyle caught my eye and I knew it would be great for the pleat. There was a coordinating turtle fabric, but the little-girl we-don't-have didn't really gravitate towards the turtles...cute, but boring.

Instead, the birdies flew before my eyes and I knew in my heart this was the perfect combination for the skirt.

I came home and made the skirt. It's not perfect, but the first is always tricky...those to come will be much easier.

In case you're curious, this is a size 2T. The sizes run from 12-months to size 10...and there's even a matching doll skirt.

I might just have to make a few more and hopefully, sell them in my Etsy shop.

Inspiration, get thee away from me! Whatever am I going to do with these girlie dresses?!

making dresses.

I don't think it's going to fit. Once I wash it and if it shrinks, I don't know how I'd wear it!

thinking of bridges.

I've always thought of bridges as a means of taking me somewhere...the connector to a destination. I grew up on an island, the same island our Dad and his mother, our grandmother, grew up on. When Grandma was a little girl, they'd have to ride the Ferry across the river when they wanted to take a trip to the big city. I imagine that took planning and some precise time-management to take a trip. Once the bridge was built, the "islanders" were free to leave the island without having to rely on the Ferry, weather and other obstacles.

Today, I started thinking about bridges. Yes, bridges lead us. But they also take us away. Away from what was once a destination and now, to a different place.

I'm not sure what's ahead of me, but I know that a bridge is waiting to lead me to a different place; not necessarily a "better" destination, just a different one. I'm OK with that. And if I'm meant to stay "put," I'm fine with that, too. I have faith, confidence, that when my mission is finished, God will show me a bridge and I'll cross it over to my next destination.

For now, I'll sing my midnight songs.

Commentary on Florida Weather

It’s Hurricane season here in Florida. A proclamation that doesn't bother me much anymore. I’m from Buffalo, NY, afterall, which makes me an old pro at inclement weather. Besides, a hurricane is just a blizzard with rain. Personally, I prefer blizzards over hurricanes.


A hurricane is messy; scattered leaves, branches, live wires, and whole trees. A blizzard; there’s just a lot of snow. Snow is hazardous in blizzard conditions, but inhabitants of snowy-inclement weather know when to stay home and ride out the storm. And if the power should go out, well, you just put on more clothes and snuggle under the blanket with your honey. If your power goes out during a hurricane, you can take off only so many garments, without being called an obscene name, because you’re so incredibly hot and sticky and thirsty. If anyone mistakenly touches you, you just want to scream and lash out, crying “Where is the power, for the love of God?!” Even the pool in the backyard isn’t comfortable anymore, the twigs and bugs that float around in the pool…ick!

In 2004, the year of the endless hurricanes, our tree fell…twice. Early in the storm, half the tree fell across the yard and into the street. Later on, the other half of the tree decided that it was time to join the first half, this time,falling in the opposite direction…across the roof and taking the electrical lines with it. Being drilled in hurricane etiquette, Jonathan ran from his room to the center hallway of the house (the safest place), as the tree fell right over him while he played on his X-Box. Our power was out for a whole week. That was the week of my discontent, where going to K-Mart was a welcome distraction, just to get some good, fresh air-conditioning!

In conclusion, I have no clue why anyone settled in Florida those many, many years ago. It’s just one big swamp. I mean, the mosquitos alone must have been enough to drive those pioneer housewives insane, not to mention the monster “palmetto” bugs (we Yankees refer to them as “roaches”)! Sure, we get maybe two beautiful months of lovely breezes and brilliant skies, but the rest of the year is just endless heat! And those palmetto bugs/roaches are really gross!

Why am I writing about hurricanes vs. blizzards? Because I self-imposed a moratorium on my political views on Facebook an I have to ramble express myself somewhere, somehow. This happens to be my venue.

Thanks for letting me share.

new Spa in town...

GREEN DOG Spa.

It's green and it's pretty. And it doesn't smell "doggie" inside. It smells clean and fresh!

It's a charming place, not your typical dog grooming place.

(They also groom cats, but shhhhhh...BB doesn't know this).

 Where have you ever seen a cutting station with a distressed dresser and lovely wall mirror?

There are all kinds of goodies for your special pooch.

 And cookies. A bucket full of them!

Here's my sweetie...she looks so clean and trimmed, and her hair fur, so soft!

She even managed to get a blueberry facial.

A facial. I've never had a facial!

I wonder if they groom humans...???

If you live in Jacksonville and need a great groomer who uses all organic products, give these gals a try:

Green Dog Spa
11048 Baymeadows @ 9A
904.683.5301

There's a coupon for $10 off any service salon.

Tell them BB sent you.

making movies, of the G-Rated sort.

Today was the day I graduated from Lawn Mower 101 ...

I can now cut the grass...which is a good thing, for those weeks when Jason is working extraordinarily long hours.

The heat-index is 162-degrees. OK, maybe not that high, but it sure feels like it!

Enjoy my first produced movie!

Birthday Cake Banner!

Birthday Banners...they're fun to make and the recipient will look forward to hanging it year after year!

I've never written a tutorial before, but this will give you some ideas of how to put a banner together.

There's not much sewing...I  turned under the raw edges of the cotton canvas and made a 2-inch pocket for a dowel or decorative rod to be inserted, so that the banner can be hung. I also sewed a zig-zag stitch around the cake and cake stand, before embellishing the cake.

 Heat 'n Bond is used for adhering the fabric to the canvas.

 Gathered tulle looks lovely on a little girl's banner. Add some crystals to make it sparkly!

A strand of white plastic pearls create a lovely-looking icing effect.

 Use your printer to make the lettering. Simply choose your font, enlarge and choose the outline option. Adhere your Heat 'n Bond to the wrong side of all your fabric and you're half-way to being finished! After applying the Heat 'n Bond, place your letters BACKWARDS on the paper side of your fabric. This way, once you outline your letters and cut them out, flip the letters over to the right side of your fabric and you have "Happy Birthday!"

I designed my own cake stand. You can see the white Heat 'n Bond peeking out from under the purple fabric. These are the tiers of the cake, also with Heat 'n Bond ironed on the wrong side of the fabric. After you have your lettering placed and ironed at the top of your canvas, decide where to place your cake and cake stand. Remember to leave enough room for the candles to be placed at the top and the name of the birthday boy/girl at the bottom of the canvas.

I used a strand of black plastic beads to use as the legs of the stand. I've also used fabric paint in previous banners, to use as the feet of the stand and to simulate icing on the cake. On my first banner, I painted the lettering on the canvas. It is a little more labor intensive, but still cute.

 Here is the lettering, outlined backwards on the fabric. It's really very easy.

I hand-rolled the fabric flowers, using crystals and beads for the middles. There are loads of fabric flower tutorials...check here, here, and here.

This was the first time I used Fun Foam for the candles and I have to say, they were easy to make and very cute! I make a bag of candles, so that a candle can be added each year. Just take a piece of tape and stick it to the banner for the big day!

A banner can be used for multiple siblings. You might make theme banners that can be used for both boys and girls. Your imagination is your limit...just cut-out the names of your children and instead of permanently adhering the names, just tape them on with Scotch tape.

You might decide that a cupcake is more your style. Go ahead, that would be super cute! I desperately wanted to make this banner as a cupcake, but my friend wanted a birthday cake... :(  

Pirates would make a cute banner...a Jolly-Roger flag with swords, eye patch, etc...

Dinosaurs, ballerina, tanks, mermaids, Army, gymnastics...all would be very cute themes. You could attach little toys to the banner.

If you'd like more information on the dimensions of the banner, leave a comment and I'll answer your question.

Thanks and Happy Banner!