It seems like it's been forever since I put together any type of tutorial.  I miss having time to do things that are fun, just for myself.  I gave the time up for a good reason though.  I went back to college at the beginning of the year, and I'm already through my entire semester of credits.  Now, I'm working ahead.  Hence the busy and no time for myself thing.

Last weekend the King and I (not the musical) took the minions out for a day of photographic funtimes.  We had a blast while we were out, but as minions often do, they were starved by the time we got home.  The meal plan for that day called for sushi, so home we went to become master sushi chefs.

I won't lie, I feared the sushi process.  I was sure it was going to be a disaster.  Probably a disaster of epic proportions.  I mean who takes sheets of seaweed and ends up with something good?  Turns out - me!  I'm more than betting it can be you, too!

Things you need:

• Bamboo rolling mat
• Nori
• Sushi rice
• Avocado (or other yummy things to put in your sushi)
• Sushi vinegar
• Sharp knife (wet)
• Sesame seeds (optional)
• Wasabi paste, pickled ginger and soy sauce (all optional)

The first steps are rather boring, so I didn't photo them.
Boil rice until done.
Rinse it lightly and drain.
Add some sushi vinegar (to taste) to your rice and mix it.
I added some black sesame seeds as well.  A healthy shake, maybe two, just for color and interest.
Let the rice cool, and chill it slightly.
Once the rice is cool, you're ready to start.
Lay out the bamboo mat.
Lay down a sheet of nori.
Add  rice to the sheet and gently spread it around.  It doesn't have to be perfect, but you want the rice thin and even.
Make a small valley in your rice to add your veggies or whatever you're adding.

Spread rice to edges on sides, but not top or bottom!

Fill the valley of rice with your veg or other toppings.

Letting the sushi sit a bit before cutting gets the nori damp and pliable.

Cut, cut, wet knife.  Repeat!

Tray of yumminess!

I write about my minions from time to time.  If you've been following along you might recall minion anecdotes from posts such as The One With the Rain, Man! and Half Tutorial, Half Rant, Half Bad at Math, but All Good in Showing You the IEP Process  and that's just some of the craziness we deal with here in Autism land.

Today I'm touching on another silly thing called the PSSA's.  Pennsyltucky uses a standardized testing system for their no child left behind compliance as well as a determinate factor in school funding.  What you may not know is that your child's school has probably spent the last month or more not teaching your child new material because they are reviewing for the PSSA's (or whatever your states testing is).

I'm sure you're all aware at how dismal our education system is in comparison to the rest of the world, so you should be horrified that the school spends a month or more at the beginning of the year reviewing old material and another month or more doing it again.

The school tells you as parents, and also tells your children that they are required to take the tests.  That's not quite true.  You as a parent have the right to use PA Code 4.4 and exempt your child for religious reasons.  I don't know about you, but my God(s) wouldn't think putting my autistic child through a test that would upset and confuse him, give him anxiety, not follow his IEP and generally destroy his week is a good idea.  Would yours?
Your child can also simply refuse to take them.  They cannot be persecuted for it by anyone as per PA Code  Title 22 Chapter 4, section 4.24.  They also can't be told they won't graduate or pass if they don't take it.  As with everything else directly concerning them, they have the right to say no.

I know you as parents may not care about one test that takes up a few days out of the year to take.  I do hope you care about the month to month and a half of learning your child is missing out on because of a nonsense test.

Explore your rights and exercise them!

I started watching Downton on a sick day while browsing Netflix.  I didn't know it would suck the King in too.  Let's just say Violet had him when she was describing Downton "Really. It's like living in a second rate hotel where guests keep arriving and no one seems to leave."  I also didn't know how truly lovely the costumes were going to be, or how much I was going to covet being tall and stick-like to carry those costumes off.  Since I won't be growing or losing my girly figure any time soon, I'll have to improvise.

This Saturday is my mom's tea party/birthday present, so Mom, if you're reading this, stop now, or the surprise you want will be gone.

I'll be wearing a blousy, dolman sleeved, lace number.  Mine is actually a blush color, not black, but one can't fight Polyvore.   For fun, I think I'll even try some Marcel waves in my hair.

The invitations that went out specified wearing fancy hats, I chose a fascinator.  Something I didn't own but ran across and decided it would be fun.  The rest of the outfit is Downton inspired, but without wearing an ill-fitting dress for my body type, I wasn't going to go all the way.

I've planned out a tea buffet with teas from a local tea shop called One Good Woman.  The king has been gracious enough to offer a hand and the minions will probably offer up some service as mini garçons.

Smaller scale but same idea

We'll be dining on tea sandwiches like cucumber with dill spread and hummus with sprouts.  I'll be making scones, because you can't have tea without them.  I'm thinking a sweet scone, probably pumpkin with maple icing because it's my favorite, and a savory one like olive and rosemary.  Some lovely little cupcakes (carrot) done up like hats.  Strawberries in a lemon lavender syrup to put something remotely healthy on the table and either french macaroons or cut sugar cookies.

cute cake I did last year

My mother 'gifted' me with my grandmothers china some time ago.  I lovingly refer to it as the ugly china.  We'll be using it for tea.  Yes, it's ugly as sin, but it's my sin.  My sins include way more pieces than I started with as I filled in broken and missing pieces over the years.  I have everything from berry bowls to teapots covered in pink 40's style flowers.

Homer Laughlin Priscilla Eggshell Nautilus

I've been stumped on decorations, I'll admit.  I'm a total black thumb and don't do well with any plant that's alive, or even was alive at one time.  I know I like the big puffball flowers, and I adore the look of this table.  Obviously I'll scale it down as it will be on my coffee table and not at a large scale wedding. But I think I can manage some candles and fake puffball things in a vase.

Puffballs are pretty

No party is complete without something for the guests to take home, so mom and I have been collecting old tea cups and saucers from thrift shops all over the mid-state.  Each guest will be going home with a one of a kind candle in a teacup.  I just have to find a couple more, and soon.  Seriously people, donate more cups!

If you've never had long hair, this post might be a bit foreign to you.  But if you're one of the ladies that do have long hair, you know exactly what I mean when I say, "What should I do with my hair today?"

No, I won't vote for your husband.

Some people change their hairstyle so infrequently I swear their hair is really a helmet.  Or if you see people in two or three styles it's like lego hair, you can just pop it off and put one of the others on.  The amount of hairspray keeps everything, including their smile held in place.  Think politicians wife.

We, the ladies of the long hair don't really have this option, especially if we have fine, straight hair (like me).  We're forced to come up with something to do with our hair each day.  Whether it's up or down, if we're working it has to be professional looking and not look like mommy just finished our hair.  If we're at home with the kids, we want to make sure they can't yank it out of our heads, or eat it when we're multitasking.

Everything's bigger in Texas

Since I can't afford to run to the salon each morning to have someone else do something amazing with my hair, I had to take it into my own hands and find a few go to hairstyles.  My go-tos are easy to manage with my two hands, and can be accomplished without getting confused as I'm looking in the mirror.  I'm also short, so I adjust  my hair to compensate for that as well, without having Texas hair.

For any of you looking for a few new styles that aren't Texas sized, or scream of politicians' wife, check out my Hair Styles board on Pinterest.  I've put a few great tutorials there that don't require me to hold my iphone while doing my own hair.  I can promise you that would only be a disaster in the making.

What are a few of your favorite things to do with your hair?  I'm partial to messy buns myself.

I don't know about the rest of you, but the last week has been a total blur for me.  An office move, making a non-traditional Thanksgiving dinner for 12 and all the things that go with those have kept me busy.
Due to me going vegan and my crazy dietary restrictions I decided to serve Indian food for thanksgiving.  For a family of carnivores that loves their meat, potatoes and gravy it went amazingly well.
The menu was fairly simple.  Crudités with homemade hummus was laid out as guests were arriving.  We chose a simple moscato wine to have, and served it chilled, but not ice cold.  For the starter we had a spicy lentil dahl with papadom and naan.  Then, a buffet style meal of jasmine rice, gobi mutter, chana masala, veggie korma, corn, a simple cole slaw and for the carnivores, chicken biryani and tandoori chicken.

All of the recipes for the meal can be found on my Thanksgiving Pinterest board, except the cole slaw.  I've included a recipe for it below.

If you live in Central Pennsyltucky and have no idea where to get some of the Indian ingredients or spices, Hampden Grocer carries all of it.  As an added bonus, the owner is friendly and helpful!

Yes, we did still have pie.  Minion #2 helped make an apple pie, and there was pumpkin and my famous pecan pie as well.

Dawn's Simple Cole Slaw
Serves 12

1/2 head of green cabbage, sliced thin
1/2 head of red cabbage, sliced thin
large handful of baby carrots, diced, matchstick, or tossed in a food processor
1 medium cucumber
rice vinegar
olive oil
pepper

Slice your cabbages and carrots and toss them together, mixing them thoroughly.  Add vinegar and oil to taste.  You want to taste the mixture, but not leave a lake of it at the bottom of your bowl.  Add just enough to coat the veggies.  Add a good bit of black pepper. You want to give it just a bit of a bite.  Slice the cucumber in thin rounds and top the slaw with it.

P.S. I did make all the food up a day ahead of time with my wonderful Sister In Law.  She and I cooked for 6 hours straight to get everything ready so I wouldn't have to be on my feet from the crack of Dawn (no pun intended) on Thanksgiving.  I doubt there are words to say how nice it was to have the help, but it was truly wonderful and a lot of fun!

I started this post quite some time ago, and never got back around to it.  Shame on me.  In my defense, it was around the time Minion #1 was having heart surgery.  I'll be claiming temporary mommy insanity on that count.  The next time was last week, and I got sick, had a million things going on...stupid life, doesn't it know I have a blog to write?  So finally I'm getting back to closet editing with style and fashion in mind.

Yesterday, I wrote a bit about style and fashion.  If you read that, I mentioned that style is who you are, and you can see a little about me in my clothes.  They're all fairly classic styles.  Things you can wear for years.  They all have the same basic shapes, that show off my assets (small waist) and camouflage the not to great parts (I have a big butt and I can not lie...).  Not a lot of prints, and most have a vintage flair to them.  

I decided to start with dresses this fall since they are all one piece and not quite as mix and match as some of the other things in my closet. In my closet I had three LBD's.  Which, in all honesty was two too many.
Technically, my LBD could double as the cocktail dress, but thanks to my niece and nephew's recent weddings, I have two.  I couldn't show up in the same outfit to two functions.  I mean, who does that?




T-Shirt dresses are a staple for me.  They can be worn with tights, leggings, even jeans to create a bunch of different looks.  If you put a shirt under it or over it, you have more looks.  Add a sweater and you have another outfit, it's really genius. For now, here are mine.







Graphic print dresses.  Everyone has their own take on them, again, I tend toward neutrals because you already have things going on with the print.  Bright colors with bold prints are just not me.  I had a few print dresses,  two of which I've had since right after minion #2.   I kept two.  Yes, I know, that is animal print, I think of it as cougar, RAWR!  ;)




Vintage and classic dresses.  I have a soft spot for these, faux or the real deal, I always have a few in my closet.  Right now I have a vintage seersucker dress.  My holiday frock by the legendary Mr. T has been edited as has my long Benetton.


That's it.  My dresses are edited down.  I have what I really want in my closet and I'll be selling my vintage things in the etsy shop.


On to colors.  As you are trying things on with your closet edit, you may notice a few pieces wash you out, make you look too pale, or even seem to make your skin take on a yellow or green cast to it.  Not all colors were made for all people.  Here are a few tips for finding the right colors for you:

I've been promising to write this post for a long time, but between bouts of being sick and this silly thing called my real job, it's slipped through the cracks.  This week though, I'm going to get around to at least part of it.

I'm ruthless in my closet editing.  I do it twice a year, in the spring and again during pumpkin spice latte season.  The first few times the King saw me do wardrobe edit he was both fascinated and horrified because it is a bit of a process, but a rewarding one.

You will need a few things to do your closet edit.  Get a bin or bag to designate for things you're going to donate, a bag for anything you're going to toss, and a bin for anything needing tailoring or cleaning.

The first thing you need to do is laundry.  Make sure it's all done and put away before you start this process.  Then, pick a section of your closet to start with and pull all of those clothes out of your closet.  Yes, take them all out of your closet.  Once you have them in a pile on your bed, try each piece on.  Have a bit of a fashion show if you want.  Let your significant other (or bff) weigh in on your items.

It gets to go back in the closet if and only if you can answer yes to all of these questions:

• Do you love it?
• Have you worn it in the last 6 months to a year?
• Does it fit?
• Does the color suit you?
• Is it comfortable?
• Is it in perfect condition? (if it needs tailored or cleaned, do that BEFORE sticking it back in the closet)
• Is it still in style?
• It is the only one (or two) like it you have?

Once you get though all of the clothing in your closet, don't forget your dresser drawers.  Do the same thing with those, take everything out and don't put it back unless it meets all the criteria.

Don't forget to edit your shoes.  I know this can hard, especially when things are getting pretty worn and you don't have something to replace it with yet.  However, there is no point in wearing shoes that don't fit, are uncomfortable, or looking like you've gone through a war with them.

Once you are satisfied with your edit, be sure you donate, toss or repair/clean the clothes that you've set aside.

I've also put together a list for some basics in your wardrobe.  I know everyone is different with their needs for a wardrobe.  What I need in Pennsyltucky is different than what someone in Florida will need, but that's ok.  These are guideline and suggestions, not rules you must follow or the fashion police will show up.

Pants
dark wash jeans
khaki's
cargos
black trouser
dark neutral trouser
tweed trouser
velvet/chiffon/satin pants (something dressy)

cropped pants
linen pants

Blouses
bold blouse
silk blouse
striped oxford shirt
crisp white shirt
black shirt
sparkly top
black tee (short and long sleeve)
white tee(short and long sleeve)
ruffled shirt
tanks and or camis in neutrals

Skirts
black suit with skirt - pants too if you're lucky
wool skirt
cocktail skirt
summery skirt

Jackets
Fitted jacket
pattern jacket
velvet jacket
leather jacket
denim jacket
black jacket (from your suit)
vest

Dresses
LBD
shirt dress
print dress
party dress

Coats
trench coat
wool coat
parka
leather

Shoes
black flats
black heels
neutral flats
neutral heel
sandals
dress sandals
boots for casual and dress
winter boots if you need them for snow
sneakers

Do not forget good bras and undies.  If you can tell you have a bra or underwear on, they're not fitting you properly.  If you've never had a bra fitting, have one done.  Many of the better department stores have specialists on staff to do that.  Don't feel like the 18 yr old at Vickies is your only hope.
They can also recommend foundation garments like spanx if you need them.  Sometimes the industrial strength hose or spanx make all the difference between looking fabulous and looking frumpy so don't rule them out.  Even at a size 2, I own some.

Next week I'll be posting photos of my paired down closet, and how to figure out what what colors are best for your coloring.  I'll also be creating a shopping list of needs of my own as an inspiration for you.  In the mean time, if you'd like a sneak peek of things I want you can check out my pinterest board.

When we left off with part 1 of this tutorial, we had just cut out our materials and were getting ready to sew.  This week, I'll show you how to make the casing for the piping, sew it to the chair pad, make the ties, sew both sides together and stuff the cushion.  I swear it's not as hard as it sounds.

Taking the strip of 2" wide fabric, measure around your cushion and give yourself an extra 2".  This will be our casing for the piping.  Cut a length of piping the same length.  Wrap the piping in the fabric, wrong sides together and pin so that the fabric is tight to the piping.

Keep the edge of your presser foot on the piping to ensure a tight casing.

Once you have the piping done, pin it to one piece of your cushion.  You'll be pinning the casing towards the middle of the cushion and right side up.  I found that using the pins at the sewing line in the casing worked well and kept the fabric taut.  Sew the piping to the cushion on the same seam line as before.  Again, if you keep the left side of your presser foot on the piping, you should be sewing on the same line as before.  Seam allowance here is about 1/2".  

Sew the casing to the cushion, tucking one end inside the other casing for a neat edge.

Next we're going to double check the shape and size of our cushion on the seat we'll be putting it on.  Don't worry if it seems just a bit big right now, that's a good thing.

Yes, my butt shall look good on you!

While you're admiring your handy work, plug your iron in and wait for it to heat up.  We're going to create the ties for our cushion next.  Take the lengths for your ties and fold them like below, then iron them.

How cute, my nails match my ironing board pad!

Fold your tie in half and iron it again.  Use pins to hold the ties together.

I pinned the edges due to my fabric being so thick.

Either tuck the ends in and sew those closed, or zig zag the ends.

If you want, baste the ties to the casing.

Take your time pinning and sewing this, if you don't the piping will look messy.

Start sewing just before the first set of ties  end just after the second set.

As I was sewing my cushion together I met up with Murphy, from his law.  He explained to me that since I was nearly finished with this project and my cushions were looking FABULOUS, he should give me a hand.  As a side note, always make sure you're using the right type of needle for your fabric.  Usually it will prevent things like this from happening.

Clipped edges at the corners.

A while back I decided I wanted to get some nice cushions for the chairs we have the kitchen table.  But when I looked at something I was willing to own I decided the cost was a bit out of my budget.  I'm capable of sewing and have made nice cushions before, so I figured I'd upcycle something.  I ran into a nice matelasse bedspread at the Salvation Army and picked it up for $6, figuring it would make a lovely cover for the cushions.

$39.99/cushion @ Overstock.com.  Cute but pricy!

After bringing anything home second hand (or new for that matter), wash it well.  If you're using new fabric, it's imperative that you wash it to get the sizing out.  New fabric does change its size once washed, so never use unwashed fabric for sewing projects, wash and dry it first!  Once your fabric is washed, iron it and lay it out flat.

Washed, mostly ironed and flat on the floor.

You're going to need some sort of pattern for your chair pads.  If you have square seats you have it easy, just measure the sides.  If they're butt shaped, as mine are, making a pattern is a better idea.  I used some old cardboard cut down to something close to size.  I laid it over the seat and using a sharpie, traced the edge of the seat from the bottom as one of my minions sat on the cardboard.  Minions are useful for so many things.

Butt-shaped template

I looked at the pattern on the bedspread and figured out where the best place to make the cushions was.  I settled on the top edge as there was no big pattern to capture or avoid.



Fold over the top edge of the bedspread far enough to put your cardboard pattern and trace it.  Since we need a top and a bottom for the cushions, we do need two pieces.  If you're using a full or queen size you should have enough room across the top for 4 cushions.

Trace with less wiggly lines than I photo-shopped in - badly.

Pin in the middle of your traced areas for each cushion, then cut them out.  Be sure you're using sharp scissors as the material is thick.  The sharper your scissors, the less likely you'll be to injure yourself, unless you cut your fingers.  Not that I've ever done that...

Once you have them cut out, you're going to need to cut a strip of fabric that is about 2" wide and have about 6-7 yards of it depending on the size of your cushions.(Measure around the edge of your pattern and multiply by 4 or however many chairs you're making for)  These strips are going to be the casing for the piping that will be at the seams making them look all pro.  Also you'll need some piping, which unless you have some thin cotton clothesline handy, you'll need to purchase.  It can be found at nearly anyplace that sells sewing supplies.  I got mine at Jo-Ann's for about 60 cents a yard.  While you're cutting, we're going to need some ties to keep these suckers on the chairs.  My kitties would have them knocked off and dragged in front of the french doors to laze about all day if I didn't.  So cut 9"X1.5" lengths.  You'll want four per chair pad.

Next week, we'll work on the sewing, stuffing and finishing these chair pads.  In the mean time, go forth and shop for the materials and get caught up!  If you want to stay with the upcycling theme, round up some old bed pillows you have, or any other pillows to stuff these with.  And decide if you want to add buttons to the chair pads for decoration, pick those out of your stash of goodies we all have.

See you next Thursday for the thrilling conclusion of the cushions.