House Update 3: Dorm Room

We have a dorm room. Yes, and fits 3-4 adults or a family. Over the last six months we've hosted seven or eight individuals or couples (with a typical stay of one to three nights) through AirBnb, a great internet service that connects travelers to hosts. For more photos and descriptions of our dorm room, please check out our listing!

It's been great. We have been able to make a bit of extra money to use on groceries or baby supplies and our guests get a private room with an arsty & international feel, a simple breakfast (usually museli and yogurt or milk and some sort of fruit), and quick access to downtown Nashville or East Nashville's 5-points. Both 5-points and downtown Nashville are about a mile (in slightly different directions) from our house.

Also - check out this article from the New York Times' travel section which covers Airbnb and other sites like it.

House Update 2: 9ft x 16ft

This long & narrow room is a "cut through" room between the hall & our
bedroom. We are currently using it as a den/babyroom. The only
problem is that we don't use the crib yet (though often our brunch or
dinner guests do) and I have only once actually rocked cg in the
rocking chair.

Um, I do use the futon & the yoga ball, though. And I do sew in here
A LOT. I have neglected to include a messy sewing shot so you'll just
have to imagine the table pulled up in front of the futon with a
sewing machine on it and fabric & thread thrown everywhere.

Question: does anyone have any suggestions on what creative/cool
thing to do with the white blank wall?! We are also considering
repainting the whole room and going montesorri style with no crib &
instead just having a mattress on the floor as cg learns to crawl/
walk. But then where would guests put their sleeping babies? And
wouldn't that mean not leaving anything not kid-proof in the room
during nap time. hmm... Thoughts? Ideas? Help? Please?

House Update

"So, how's the house?" is a question we hear regularly. While there
is still MUCH to do, we don't exactly have many projects going at the
moment - with the exception of the occasional rearrange of furniture
or trim laying.

The downstairs is in need of the most work (because it is gutted &
completely unlivable). In the meantime, we are very much enjoying
our quite livable (for us, anyway) upstairs.

I will do a separate post for the other rooms, but these pictures give you an idea of the main living space.

Baby Doll

I've been thinking lately about how Chanhassen needs a simple fabric doll.

I've got two American Girl dolls (Samantha and Kirsten; both of whom are no longer in production), but I plan to give them to her to play with when she's old enough to read and understand their stories and imagine and play along side of them. Between now and then a simple, handmade, fabric doll - for mothering, diapering and loving on - is ideal. I looked on Etsy, but the dolls I saw were not exactly what I was looking for. So I decided to just make one.

I didn't have a pattern or anything so I just cut a circle for a head, 4 thin rectangle for arms and legs and a wide rectangle for the torso. Sewed & stuffed and added a homemade cloth diaper:



Then I clothed her with a dress that was dress that my Grandmother had given my mom for me when I was born (and Chanhassen no longer fits in:



I'm still trying to figure out if I want to add a face or hair. And if so, how. I am also thinking about waiting until Chanhassen is older and let her either decide to keep the doll as is or what the hair & eye color should be. I would also let her pick out the shade of pink or red for the lips. I could see that being a really fun project when Chanhassen is two or three.

Also - I'm thinking about making a pattern and tutorial for this type of doll. If you are interested in seeing a tutorial or downloading a free pattern for something like this, please post a comment so I know if there is any interest.

Kimono: How it turned out

The kimono turned out great (for the most part)! I made a fee
mistakes, but learned a lot and know way more about sewing from a
pattern than I did before (this was my first experienxe following a
pattern).

Meet Denyse Schmidt. Meet Amy Butler.

The first time (I've been three times now) I picked out fabric during Textile's 50% off sale I had no idea what I was buying. Since then, I've seen one the fabrics on several other blogs and even a friend saw some of the fabric in my bag and asked if it was [enter name of designer here]'s fabric. Yes, it was. Enter: Denyse Schmidt. Apparently a well known fabric designer. If I ever need additional Hope Valley fabrics I can go here. Or that if I'm feeling Flea Market Fancy, I can go here. And I can direct others to it. W-o-n-d-e-r-f-u-l:




Two yards each of two beautiful and complementing fabrics. What to do? Well, so far I have completed a draw string bag, a napkin set for a dear friend for her birthday, and a dress for Chanhasssen. I am working on another dress and a nursing cover.

But the most exciting project of all is one I just wrapped up (for the most part). It was a different & exciting stretch for me: the Kimono for Baby from the cover of Amy Butler's book: Little Stitches for Little Ones. (which, by the way, is currently a shockingly low $9.98 with free shipping and no tax on AMAZON!) L-o-v-e-l-y:



I will do a follow up post on how the Kimono turned out and am totally open to suggestions on ways to use the remaining fabric! You really can do A LOT with 4 yards.

India Dress pt 2

Ok - more shots from our mini photo session!

India Dress

Last Thursday, our MOMS club had it's end of year banquet and I spent
much of the week making an outfit for Chanhassen to wear given its
India or "Bollywood" theme. Then unexpectedly, I was able to leave
Chanhassen with Josh for the evening when his Thursday meeting was
cancelled. Thus, it has not been worn except in dressing up for a
photo session. Maybe there could be another event she could wear it
to before she outgrows it?!

Our CSA

Today we are delighted with our CSA share! Potatoes, cabbage, squash,
zuchinni, cucumber, beans, mint, and BLUEBERRIES!! Yum!

Fun with paint