ORANGE IS THE HOT NEW COLOR THIS SPRING

 According to all the magazines, orange is the new hot color this season.  What better way to use it than as welting for this white duck cloth slipcover?

 My client is an artist in La Jolla and loves color as much as I do.

 Although the room is large and airy, using the orange as just a contrast does not overwhelm anything else in the room, including her art.

The original pillows were round, but I updated them with rectangular ones.

And this lovely piece of furniture is what's under the new slipcover!  My client's husband's comment when he walked in and saw the 'new' sofa was, "What an improvement!  Now that's something I can live with."

A KITCHEN BANQUETTE

 Talk about HUGE cushions!  

 This seating area in my client's kitchen is 12' long, which means each cushion and bolster is 6' long.  It's not really much different sewing a very long cushion or a short one, it just takes a lot more fabric!

And because they are so long, getting the covers on and off the back cushions was very difficult.  Since the ends do not show, I made the end caps part of the zipper box to alleviate that problem.

This is the 'before.'  Let's just say that it was incredibly ugly before and now it looks way better!

CHAIR PADS AND THROW PILLOWS

 Chair pads

 A lot of wooden chairs are very uncomfortable to sit on.  These stools at my client's kitchen bar were no exception.

 From another job I did for her, we discovered that making double ties makes the cushion more secure.  It also looks kinda cute!

 The leather sofa also got some throw pillows from the same fabric.  I used a red welting to frame the fabric.  That red caused a near-disaster when I washed the fabrics.  Knowing better than to wash the fabrics together, I did it anyway.  When I opened the washing machine, the white areas on the fabric  and the selvage were completely PINK.  Rats!  So I took the red fabric out and filled the machine with water and oxi-clean and let the newly 'pinked' fabric soak for a couple hours.  I then washed it again.  Luckily, the pink came out.  I then soaked the red fabric in vinegar to set the color.  In the end, I was able to avoid having to buy new fabric and you better believe I won't be making that mistake again.  Never a dull moment here!

The 'new' chairs at the bar.

SHEER BED SKIRT

When my client asked me to make a bed skirt for her, I said, "Sure."  When she brought me this sheer fabric, I nearly had a heart attack.  I HATE sewing on sheer fabric.  It is so unstable.  I call it slimy fabric. Did I mention I HATE it?  Well, I do and as this is a very good client that I've done lots of work for and with in the past, I didn't feel like I could actually turn her down, especially after I said I'd do it. 

At first she said she wanted it to be a double layer of the fabric.  This stressed me out beyond belief.  I couldn't figure out how to do it without all the seams showing, not to mention the bed frame.  I finally told her that I didn't think she's really like it if I did it that way and suggested using lining fabric for the back layer.  Basically, she wanted a ballet-ish look to the skirt.  

I know it is very hard to tell from these pictures, but it turned out really nice.  It was still an incredible pain to work with, but the lining fabric at least gave me the stability I needed to counteract the sliminess of the sheer.  It is also hard to tell, but the skirt doesn't go all the way to the floor and the sheer layer is about 3/4" shorter, which gives it kind of a petticoat look.  I was never so happy to finish a job and when I took it to her house and we put it on, she was thrilled!  That, in turn, made me happy.  If I never get asked to do another sheer bed skirt, it will be too soon.

IT'S THAT TIME OF THE YEAR

At least it's the time of year in Southern California that people are thinking their outdoor furniture/cushions need updating.

The patchwork pillow is a favorite of mine.  

My client loved this Tommy Bahama fabric.

The bench cushion and ottoman (not pictured) got a contrast welting so that everything tied together.  And what you cannot see is that all the pillows are reversible, so my client can change the look whenever she wishes.

The 'back' sides of two of the larger pillows.

The way I see it is, by making both sides of the pillows different, you get twice as many pillows for your money.

BRIGHT, NEW SPRING 'CLOTHES'

My client was having a going away party for her son (into the Navy) and wanted some updating and brightening of her patio cushions.

She chose a crisp navy and white stripe and I used red for the welting.

She already had the red bench cushion, but the new pillows pop on it!

We only did the cushion and pillows that you see.  What you do not see are the other seat cushions and pillows that didn't get re-done and how tired and faded they look next to the bright new stuff.  They are next on the to-do list, which often happens when I do a job for someone!

NEW LIFE FOR AN OLD WING CHAIR

 My client just moved into a cottage here in Coronado and decided her old furniture needed a new look.  She ordered this fabric from Ballard Designs, though I don't think you can get it anymore.

She has two Cairn terriers and they love to sit on the furniture.  Luckily, these covers are washable!  

I can't tell from this picture which dog, Princess Fiona or King Riley, is enjoying a chew toy and ignoring one of the new slipcovered chairs, but I was informed that as soon as I left, toys were abandoned and the dogs hopped up to make the new chairs their own.  

Slowly, but slowly the cottage is coming together.  There are still things for me to make and once they are completed and installed, of course I'll be sharing those pictures with you.

I'M BACK AND AS GOOFY AS EVER!!!

 These are my new shoes!!!  I got them yesterday.  Aren't they just adorable? I had some pretty much like these in 1972.  My mother used to call me 'Wilt,' as in Chamberlin.  I didn't care then and I guess I still don't, even though I tend to tower over most people I know.

Yes, the heels are quite high.  The good news is they are comfortable AND only make me 6' tall!  I measured.  With the shoes on, I am now 72" tall.  It seems like I'd be much taller, but, luckily, they add just 2" to my height.

I know it has been almost a month since my last post.  Nothing major going on, just life getting in the way of things I might rather do.  Actually, ever since I hurt my back and spent those 6 days in bed in July, I've been out of my regular routine.  Happily, my back is about a million percent better.  And I am working on getting back to that normal routine.  That has proved to be a VERY slow process.  My new goal is to do a post every 5 days or so.  That seems doable to me.  Thanks to all my followers who still check me out.  I promise to do better. 

I did take pictures on Saturday of work-related stuff and that will be my next post.  Stay tuned!

NOW FOR SOMETHING COMPLETELY DIFFERENT

The name of my blog (and business) is, after all, A Little of This That and the Other and as I have never even come close to posting or talking about cooking before, I think this qualifies as 'Other.'  I made this salad for Thanksgiving at my cousin's house.  I was told to bring something green.  I considered bringing green jell-o, but decided salad might be more appropriate.  I asked a friend for a suggestion since I didn't want to bring the same old salad.  He recommended this salad.  With a little trepidation, I went to get the ingredients.  I had to ask what kale actually was and even broke off a tiny bit to taste.  It was VERY bitter, but as I had been assured that the salad was very good, I got everything I needed and went home to make it.  It was delicious!  The dressing and the cheese somehow take the bitterness away.  I have since made it a couple of times.  It lasts quite a while in the frig, so making the full recipe isn't a problem if it is only for you or one other person.  It is also perfect to take to a pot luck. 

The name of the restaurant this comes from is called

True Food Kitchen.

SPECTACULAR SKY IN SANTA BARBARA

The sky seemed to be on fire!  It was just so beautiful.

The sun sinking into the water.

Me and Dan

 Dan Smith and Matthew Hester

Dan Smith, Don Townsend and Brett Brooks

I was in Santa Barbara this last weekend for a memorial service to celebrate the life of Michael Hester, Dan's step-brother.  We took the Double Dolphin out to put his ashes into the sea.  It was a very emotional and touching tribute to someone who's life ended much too soon.  Although the occasion was sad, it was nice seeing old friends and family.

And for anyone wondering why I've been posting so little of my work lately, it's because a lot of what I've been doing has been either picked up by the designer or delivered by me to the client, but there hasn't been anything to photograph.  A pillow cover without the pillow form inside never looks quite right in a picture. The same goes for valances that aren't on rods.  Hopefully, this will change soon and I can go back to posting pictures of my actual work.

THE EVER POPULAR WHITE LINEN

 I delivered this slipcover yesterday to a client in La Jolla.  There was no need to take a picture of the 'before' as it was also a white linen, but was waaaay past its prime.

 Side view

 Instead of the buttons I normally do, my client requested something different.  This was after I had already cut the slipcover with the intention of doing buttons, so I had to figure out another solution.  They have dogs and were afraid that the dogs may chew the buttons off.  It was too late to do a zipper down the side and in an effort to foil the dogs, I chose to do ties.  

 The ties are hidden so there is nothing for the dogs to munch on!  My client was very happy with the compromise and I now have another option to offer future clients.  

Since I normally do not get sunset shots, I thought yesterday was the perfect opportunity since I was in La Jolla at the right time.  I left my client's house and made my way to La Jolla Shores.  As you can see, I was a little too late and only got the very last sliver of the sun sinking into the ocean.  I may try again today, here in Coronado, as we are having simple beautiful weather and the sunsets have been pretty spectacular.

A WINTER SUNRISE SKY

I couldn't resist taking pictures of the sunrise this morning.  My iPhone takes okay pictures, but as I didn't have my camera with me, it was better than not taking them at all.  I know most of the country is buried in snow.  Luckily, that is not the case here, though it  was kind of cold this morning (53 degrees) and I do realize that it is all relative.  We will warm up to the mid-70s today.  This is my idea of a perfect winter temperature!