Experimenting with chenille

I loved working on the hand cut faux chenille baby blanket project from last week so much, that I tried some new tricks like cutting the rows in a modern pattern, or around an animal shape to see if it worked. Although fun, all turned out 'flops' as the chenille does not work unless it is cut exactly on the bias of the fabric, or else it frays too much. Oh well, I had fun anyway!


PS. Don't forget to comment on the Stamp Set giveaway, I will announce the result tomorrow, Wednesday June 1st. Thanks for playing!

Giveaway - Secret Garden Stamp Set

We created this custom stamp set for Borders. It has 8 stamps, and 3 inkpads in a wooden box. Leave a comment if you want to win a set!

Baby Blanket Part 2

I loved making this! I made a few changes though, I got bored quilting in just one direction, so did it in 2 different directions, both against the bias, and left some blank areas as well, and the result is... interesting. I also added a fabric logo label that I had. The muslin turned out super soft and cozy. It's going to make a sweet baby gift!

Baby Blanket

Today I am attempting this amazing project using the fabrics below. Will let you know results and attempt to take pictures along the way.

Thrifted

New treasures - a lovely soft handmade sweater for my daughter, and a new favorite mug for me.

Meet Baby Lulu

I spent the morning with the most adorable baby is St Pete. Baby Lulu is our new wee model. Don't you love those eyes?!! Which is your favorite picture from the photoshoot?

Red Curry Spaghetti

I felt like having my spaghetti sauce a little different this time, so I experimented by adding some thai red curry paste in which I browned the ground meat first. I also added some turmeric (for health) and red chili powder to make sure it was spicy! Then added the jar of spaghetti sauce, and cooked it on low for about 45 minutes. Garnish with cilantro, and serve over spaghetti. Delicious!

Fun jewelry for little ones

We got this little ocarina bird warbler at our local Saturday Market, and when filled with water it whistles with the most beautiful warbling sound. These are I understand common in South American countries - this one was from Equador. My daughter loves wearing it around her neck and going about her day whistling. My son got a little magic flute which requires a little more skill to play, which for his age is appropriate, but the little bird whistles are great for the young ones as they are so easy and provide great results.

On the note of jewelry, check out Irene's new line of Neon Kids Jewelry.

New to me Artist

Today's Print and Pattern post introduced me to an artist I previously didn't know about, Leah Duncan. As you know how partial I am to hand-drawn cute, I was immediately drawn to her work. You can check it out here.

 

Image taken from Leah Duncan's website.

Compartmentalizing

Inspired by this post on Ohdeedoh, I decided to organize my fridge drawer into a snack drawer for the kids. Making use of the yogurt containers I've stashed away to create little compartments made my fridge drawer look cute and made it easy for the kids to choose a yummy snack for themselves.

You're the best!

As Mother's Day arrives, I think of my own journey as a mother, and how it is beyond anything I imagined it would be. In terms of difficulty, responsibility, fulfilment, joy, and plain day to day intensity. I am probably not all that I thought I would be at beginning of my journey, but I realize that doing my best is all that I can be. To celebrate that, I would like to give all you moms (and dads) a set of downloadable coloring cards. Like us on facebook, send me an email at suryasajnani@gmail.com, and I will send you a printable pdf. Wishing you the best Mother's Day!

Vintage Purse Makeover

I bought a little black purse from a thrift shop - beautiful, but one of the sides had a little surface damage. So I added a little leather pocket in front, also cut from a vintage leather bag, and the cutout face area has my contact info in case it's lost. Now it's usable! I am using the same idea to make backpack or luggage tags for my kids. I will post them tomorrow.

Cooking from Memories

I was craving for the tomato chutney that was the staple at our home table in India, and when I found my mother had lost the recipe, I decided to try and make it from my memory of the taste, smell and how it looked. It was an interesting experiment, I first wrote down the visual ingredients - mustard seeds, fenugreek seeds, curry leaves, garlic and of course, tomatoes. Then taste and smell - sourish (vinegar) bitter (fenugreek seeds) and spicy (green chillies). And lastly, every indian dish has turmeric and chilli powder, so I added those. The result was pretty good, though not exact. And the process was fun! Is there any favorite food you've tried to create from memories?

Earth Day!

As our spring garden starts to take off, I am skeptical. When we moved to Florida the first thing we did was to plant a vegetable garden. We planted tomatoes (which grew effortlessly in our house in California), peppers and broccoli. Everything grew amazingly well, but as soon as the fruit or vegetable popped out, it would immediately be taken by birds, bugs, or squirrels! We didn't get a thing! Seven years later, and a few tricks under my belt (like growing marigolds to keep away bugs, planting seasonal vegetables, and watering the garden with only one shoe on(!!)) I am trying again. I will let you know how we fare.

Bunny Hunt

I created this activity for my daughter who loves Easter Hunts. I have outlined the steps below:

 1. I cut out a little bunny face from an old foam sticker that I had lying around.

 2. I pasted it on the side of an existing stamp block I had from another set.You can paste it on anything - a wooden block, a wine cork, etc.

3. Then I stamped the bunny onto all the pages of an old Magic Cabin toy catalog (any old catalog can be used, a busy one is preferable).

4. My daughter had to find the bunny among the toys on that page. She loved it! And proceeded to create Bunny Hunts for her brother using other catalogs.

Make your own Alphabet Flash Cards

Love this project which shows you how to make your own Alphabet Flash Cards in the latest Small Magazine, by Nonchalant Mom. It would also make such an amazing keepsake. Wish I had this when my kids were a little younger...

Handwriting

I have a recipe book that my mother gave me when I moved away from home. She has hand written all my favorite recipes. Whenever I open that book, I am taken back to my days as a child, and the feeling is so nostalgic and special. I remember my aunt's postcards that used to arrive promptly on every birthday and holiday, and her handwriting was backwards!

Today, I see that kids hardly get to interact with handwritten forms. In school, all projects are done on Microsoft Word, and Power Point. And it doesn't stop at school. My cousin was making a Baby Book for her baby, but I noticed that she had printed out sentences on her printer and pasted them in the book because she said her handwriting was too messy! I tried to convince her to put her own handwriting into the book, and that it didn't matter about how neat or legible it was, because the feeling her child would get from reading her mother's handwriting would not be the same as reading those same sentences in Times New Roman.

So what do you think? A handwritten alphabet, that instead of being legible, encourages appreciating the forms?

I can't believe my babies were once this little...

I made a newborn size dress for my friend's baby girl, and realized, wow. It goes fast! It was a reminder to enjoy every minute...

The Elephant and Owl are flattered!

Imitation is common in the design world, but somehow one is never prepared for it. The shock at seeing someone else openly proclaiming your work as her 'original' designs leaves you speechless. Earlier this week my sister called to let me know someone in Bangalore was selling products with copies of my animals on them. I went to her Facebook page, and saw them displayed - slightly modified versions of the Owl and Elephant printed in black on bright silk cushions. Then I found a video interview which she did for the local press, and that was the icing on the cake.

All our Wee Gallery designs are protected by worldwide copyright, and the law clearly says that if you don't defend your copyright, it is rendered meaningless. Therefore Aditi Banerjea is being served a Legal Cease and Desist letter from our lawyer, fined, and been asked to remove her products using the fake Owl and Elephant from stores.

While she will not get away with this, it is frustrating is that she probably didn't think twice, and just did it on a whim. Wee Gallery is our livelihood and we support our family on it. When one's family and means of living are compromised, one is forced to get agressive to defend it.

The video is here in case you are interested.

Another request - all Bangaloreans reading this are requested to keep an eye out for the fake Owl and Elephant, and if you see them in a store, please report them to the store staff. Thank you!

Going to India

We booked our tickets to go to India this summer so I am thinking of monkeys and mangos...
Wouldn't the paisley mango make a cute kids textile print?