My Style Monday, February 15th, 2010

Well, as you may have noticed, I did not post my go-to make-your-own burrito bar recipe last week.

I also did not blog my Steel Magnolia post for Sips of the South.

I swear I'm going to do both.

I have really, really good excuses for why I didn't do either.

Saturday morning, Pretty Little Bare Feet & I went & bought a gorgeous bouquet of a dozen coral-orangey roses for my mama. My mama was sweet enough to offer to babysit Pretty Little Bare Feet overnight for My Prince & me, while we went to a concert & had a date night. It would have been Pretty Little Bare Feet's first overnight without us. However, due to weather concerns, we decided just to drive back home after the concert, & put off our overnight for a later date, to a grander destination.

But...we went to see the Black Eyed Peas! & how excited were these twenty-somethings (okay, maybe My Prince is thirty, but close enough) to find out that Ludacris was opening for the Black Eyed Peas?! We were really excited!

I've mentioned to you that I am a runner, although I don't find the time for it as often as I should anymore. Hip-hop is, & always has been, my best motivation for a great run. So while I don't find myself fitting in to the hip-hop "culture" or "scene," I genuinely enjoy the music. Anyway, we knew the Black Eyed Peas would be drawing a different kind of crowd than, say, the Wu Tang Clan.

(& we were right...there were even a lot of old farts&biddies there. Way older than us!)

Anyway, AWESOME. Awesome concert. But I'm way off-topic...

...&, well, yesterday was Valentine's Day. & I did not, & do not, spend Valentine's Day blogging. I'm sorry. I thought about it. But I wanted to cuddle&snuggle

My Prince.

& Pretty Little Bare Feet.

& the White Dog.

They won.

My mama let us sleep late, as we were late getting in after our concert date, of course. Then she made us some gingerbread pancakes for breakfast. YUM. After Pretty Little Bare Feet's nap, we took her to Build-a-Bear Workshop for the first time, to make her Be Mine Valentine Dalmatian. We were disappointed to find out that they had sold out of the limited-edition Dalmatian a week ago (who knew?!), but we made a really cute little Valentine panda for her. She actually really enjoyed it all, more than I had figured she would. She was really intensely focused on

the animals,

picking one out of the bin, &

watching the "bearmaker" stuff,

& stitch up,

the bear.

Last night I baked the lemon butter cookies with royal icing & colorful glaze, that are on the cover of this month's Southern Living magazine. We took them to our Valentine playgroup this morning, & they were a hit. I will post the photos&recipe.

So there you have it...my weekend, & my excuses for why two blog posts I meant to do, didn't get done. Oh, well...love my blog, but not going to live in it! ;)

Which brings me back to today...& my return to the blogosphere, as it is with great enthusiasm that I look forward to contributing to the wonderful idea that is My Style Monday with Short Southern Momma.

I love the new button that Short Southern Momma has made for My Style Monday, but she's going to have to give some quick instructions for how to make my own design look that cute.

*wink, wink, nudge, nudge* ;)

Seriously, I'll give it a go soon.

(Uh, update...she is the coolest chick ever - she made the awesome button you see below just for moi!)

This week is the "Homemade Edition." We are discussing things we have made in the past, or things we would like to make in the future.

Well, I'll be honest...I'm going to be laaazy. Because that's how I've been about making&sewing things. I've done quite a few crafty-type things since we moved into our new house (almost a year ago, yikes!), but I haven't done much sewing at all. For that, I am ashamed. Mostly because my mama gifted me with a sewing machine for Christmas 2008, & I've really only used it for making some beanbags for games for a fall festival. & the occasional hemming project.

(My mama is a fabulous seamstress, & my granny was, as well. Both made a lot of their own clothes, & a lot of their children's clothes. I had many, many dresses for my babydolls&Barbies that matched my own dresses. I'd love to be able to do this for Pretty Little Bare Feet. I also love me some Project Runway, & I'm continuously amazed at the speed with which they sew together their inspired creations.)

So what I'm getting at, is that I'm going to lazily use this blog post as inspiration for getting my tail in gear to actually

use that sewing machine,

be more patient with learning to sew from my mama,

& make some cute stuff!

I also think it'll make for a prettier blog post than

going through my old photos,

& posting my little crafty candles & things,

which I may blog about at another time.

What I Want to Make:

This is a "what I want to make," not a "what I'm capable of making," post, right? I hope so, because I don't want to lead you to think I have an amazing ability to sew.

Once upon a time, My Prince & I were able to attend a lot of University of Alabama football games. Like pretty much all of the home games & a few away games of our choosing. Since having Pretty Little Bare Feet, we don't make it to them like we used to. But we do want to get back in the habit of going, & at least tailgating.

In case you're not familiar with Southern college football culture, I'll let you know that classy ladies do not attend gameday activities in

a jersey,

or tee shirt,

& jeans.

Classy ladies (whether in a sorority or not - although, of course, I always stop by my sorority's house, & pick up a lettered sticker for game day) wear dresses; both to the tailgates, & to the football game.

I'm excited that houndstooth has become easier to find in the last few years, as it is a classic tradition on the University of Alabama campus, being associated with Coach Paul W. "Bear" Bryant's famous hat & all.

So how classy&fabulous would this little number be for a college gameday?! I LOVE it!

Laura Ashley Dress Pattern M5972 from McCall's Patterns

Some other fabulous things I'd love to be able to make for football season:

Reversible Pocket Tablecloth from Tables Gone Wild

How cute would a handmade tablecloth be on the tailgate table? Obviously nothing that I'd care to get dirty or destroyed, but it'd certainly pretty things up! & I probably wouldn't use that exact fabric, but I'd obviously need to stay pretty close to team colors.

Houndstooth Headband from Little Bit Designs

I love headbands. Supposedly they are easy to make...I'd love to make a few for football season, in houndstooth & in team colors. I'd also love to make some in

my favorite green&pink combination,

Lilly Pulitzer prints,

& some polka-dots.

Houndstooth Monogrammed Tote Basket from Elaine's Elegant Embroidery

& how fun would it be to learn to make these adorable monogrammed tote baskets, for the essential tailgate beverages&snacks? I love it! & it would coordinate perfectly with my houndstooth monogrammed koozie.

Ohmygoodness, did you know that Cynthia Rowley has a line of sewing patterns available for Simplicity?! Me neither! I looove Cynthia Rowley. I think she is just adorable

on HGTV Design Star,

any time she's guested on Project Runway,

& any time I've seen her interviewed.

I also have some great eyeglasses from her eyewear line (which I love, although I'm now obsessed with the tortoise&lime Lilly Pulitzer eyeglass frames I got last year).

& I loved the perfect green&pink dishes she did for Target a while back...

(Which, being unbreakable, are currently Pretty Little Bare Feet's play dishes, in her cabinet in the kitchen...but even Pretty Little Bare Feet's play dishes fit with my preppy green&pink kitchen scheme. ;))

I love these Cynthia Rowley patterns from Simplicity, & would love to make them...

I also found some wonderful vintage patterns on Etsy, one of my favorite addictions. Some of these look easy-peasy enough that I bet I could make them, especially if my mama was around to oversee my work. & so many are classic styles that would easily look great today, with the right fabric&tailoring!

1968 McCall's Mod Pleated Dress & Cardigan Jacket Pattern 9589 from Gremly Girl

Sixties Simplicity Mini Pleated Preppy Skirt Pattern 8397 from MySweetiePiePie

1945 McCall's Soft&Curvy Gathered Dress Pattern 6230 from the Pattern Peddler

(Doesn't that last one just look so Mad Men?)

I am always so astonished by the

adorable,

elaborate

handmade creations

I see for little girls. There is a treasure trove of talented seamstresses on Etsy that do the same (or often better) quality of work as what you see in local children's boutiques. & their prices are so much more reasonable! Some of my favorites that I'd love to be able to make myself:

Avery Peasant Dress from Red Wagon Kids

I Love Lilly Pink Shift from Candy Stick Lane

Lucy Corduroy Peasant Dress in Tiffany Blue from Dogwood Lane Clothes

(Sorry this post turned into an "Etsy-a-thon." But it is the "place to buy...all things handmade.")