Make a potted herb plant as a quick hostess gift!

Here's an idea. Instead of buying a last minute bottle of wine to take to a party you've been invited to, how about potting a plant for them? I know it sounds time-consuming and daunting, but you can pot a bulk amount of plants and take some as you go! I mean, summer is the time to do it when there is so much going on. I got the idea from my dad a few weeks ago when I was home in Michigan. He bought a flat of different basil varieties (lemon, etc.) from his local nursery and some simple pots from the dollar store. Obviously, you don't have to use them right away. You can care for them yourself until the party day.

Make sure you soak the seedlings in water before planting them so they are quenched and ready to go! He mixed half fertilizer with half potting soil. Don't be scared if the fertilizer bag says "manure" on it; it doesn't smell like manure. You should probably wash your hands after handling it though, to be safe. :P I added images of the mixes my dad used below. He also added mulch to the top for not only a more finished look, but also because it helps hold moisture in the plant. See apartmenttherapy.com's creative ideas for mulch.

I hope you try it!

Love,

Kelly

Who drinks tea anymore?

I have too many tea towels. I don't even drink that much tea. I bought this tea towel in London along with a pair of underpants that say "Mind the Gap." I have displayed this towel in my apartment on my bar cart, but thought it time to give it a home to preserve it. I placed it in an Ikea frame I had leftover from a previous trip. Since the towel was white, you could see through it, so I used a sheet of acrylic paper to make it look more pure.

London Tube map tea towel

Pretty Boy

Thanks for reading and congrats to the new royal baby boy :)

Love and cheers!
Kelly

Fourth of July Shirt

Hey, it's the 4th of July (well almost) let's make a shirt!

So in full disclosure, I did not go in to making this shirt with the intentions of it being a Fourth of July shirt, but it happened that way, so we're going with it.

 

(I apologize in advance for the blueness of all these pics, wasn't paying attention to the fact that the carpet is also blue in the sewing room)

What You Need:

1) A Shirt (One that is a little big on you will work best)

2) Ruler

3) Chalk

4) Scissors/Exacto knife

5) Studs (I actually am using star shaped brads)

 

First, using a ruler draw a straight line with the chalk across the front of the shirt. I made mine right where the V on the neckline exists.

 

Then, also using a ruler, draw vertical lines from the shoulder seam, down to the horizontal line you drew. I made 10 lines. I wanted 8 strips, so 10 lines.

Cut down all of the vertical lines you just drew. DO NOT yet cut the horizontal line. I used an Exacto for this as it is easier, for me personally, to do that than cut in with scissors. But that is up to you. If you do use an Exacto, make sure to have a cutting mat below, and PLEASE BE CAREFUL. I have seen (and experienced) too many Exacto accidents to not stress that.

Use the Brads, or studs, to connect every other strip you just made. Once you can see which strips you will actually be using, cut out the ones you don't. This part is a little hard to explain, but basically in the end you will only keep every other strip.

 

Use as many Brads as you like, and connect the strips in whatever pattern you feel like.

 

Finally cut a slit in the bottom of the shirt along the side. And tie the slit on the side.

 

That's it! I may pair this with a red tank underneath just to make it extra patriotic.

~Jessica