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Oh I wish it was laundry day and that is all I had to do.  Rather than teleconferences at 6:00am and databases to review. 

I had the laziest weekend ever.  I never once left the house on Saturday.  I barely left the couch and my book, for that matter.  It was a perfect way to spend the day. 

Hopefully things will pick up around here.  Sorry for the dullness and lack of posting.  My schedule is really wacky since I have to meet with people at all hours of the day and evening.  I can't quite carve out a few hours for myself to do anything fun or interesting.

 

And they are done!  All four of them.  And I even managed to paint the bar stools. 

The fourth one is on the other side of the counter.  There is a little niche where a wine fridge will eventually go but for now I tuck the stool under there so when I'm cooking and people are gathered at the counter I can stop and sit and sip a glass of wine with them.

Please excuse the missing bit of baseboard on the wall – our kitchen has a few details that still need finishing.

By the fourth one I had the system of assembling down.  I did lightly pad the tops by sandwiching a light weight cotton batting between two pieces of material.  I did that more for weight/stiffness than for comfort.

While I was working on them yesterday Belle kept hopping up on the counter and laying on everything.  She thought she was helping and wanted to be in the picture too. 

 

Glamour shot of all the action.  I could never ever ever be a pattern maker.  Whooo boy.  My brain quite literally cramped up when I was trying to figure and draw it out. 

And even after three or four attempts and I thought I had it, I didn't.  But the issues I had were easy to fix as I was sewing. 

Here's the boring, bland bar stool.

   

Pretty dull, wouldn't you agree?  I am still planning on painting them. Maybe just the legs though, since you won't see the seat part. 

I had a moment of panic after getting the pattern created, my brain uncramped and the fabric all pressed and cut out.  My sewing machine wouldn't work.  Nothing happened when I pressed the pedal.  Just a whirring noise but no action.   Rick thumped on something and it started working again.  Whew.

And here is the first one – I still think they would be gorgeous done in a tissue weight linen but I'm really pleased with how it turned out.  It's not very often that what I have in my head actually comes to fruition the way I want it to.

 

Happy First Day of Spring!

It's an appropriately gorgeous day here in Northern California.  I should wander out and see how the lilacs are getting along. 

I have big plans to sew all weekend.  Back a month or so I was flipping through a decorating magazine in a waiting room and I saw a picture of a barstool cover that was so sweet and so simple.  My plans are to try to recreate that barstool cover.

When we first moved into this house eight and a half years ago I bought four "temporary" barstools at Bed Bath and Beyond.  I think they cost $14 a piece and are simple four-legged, no back, maple-toned wood.  You probably know exactly what I'm talking about.

Well we never found anything (or could afford to buy) that struck our fancy.  We sit at those stools all the time.  Rick sits on one while I'm making dinner or if friends are over half the time we just eat at the counter on those stools.

I'm going to paint them white (because what doesn't look better painted white?) and make the little covers for them.

The covers will have a double layer of ruffles.  Well not ruffles exactly.  I don't want overly gathered stiff ruffles – I want a gentle suggestion of a ruffle.   The photo I saw had them done up in a lovely flax colored linen.  But I happen to have yards and yards of off-white muslin that I purchased over 25 years ago that I've been storing that I will use instead. 

I'm being frugal.

I found instructions online for doing a circle flounce (it was meant for a sleeve but what the heck, I can improvise) and I'm going to give it a go.  Wish me luck.

 

P.S.  Thank goodness I don't make my living drawing.  I'd be living in a drafty garret for sure.

P.P.S. This dictionary description of garret cracked me up:

gar⋅ret

–noun

an attic, usually a small, wretched one.

 

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The movie Grey Gardens comes out in April and I can hardly wait.  It's based on the documentary of Big Edith Bouvier Beale and her daughter Little Edith Bouvier Beale. 

I admit that I TRIED to watch the documentary and just couldn't get past the first few minutes.  I don't know what it was – they were just so eccentric and out of touch with reality that it felt uncomfortably voyeuristic to me.  I'm hoping the Jessica Lange/Drew Barrymore dramatization doesn't have that effect on me.

I just cannot wait to get a look into that house and the gardens.  And the costumes!  I might just give up my yoga pants and cardigan uniform and adopt a more 30's look.

I may have to start wearing hats.

 

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