8.31.2013

Love Quilt


http://qisforquilter.com/2009/02/emilys-heart-quilt/

I saw  this adorable quilted heart on Pinterest the other day. Now I'm not a quilter and I've only done one other quilt but I decided to give it a try. 25 solid squares and 10 half-square blocks. 

I need some more practice but I'm happy with the result. Unfortunately my sewing machine broke in the middle of binding it so I had to hand sew it-  I've since found some better tutorials on binding :). 

8.26.2013

School clothes for a pre-schooler

Butterick 5912

I made a couple of things for this little
doll to wear to pre-school. I used to make
many of the clothes my kiddos wore
so this was fun for me!

8.25.2013

Mini Ballet Bag




My munchkin starts dance classes this next week, I am so excited!  I'm really not trying to live vicariously or anything - I promise!  Anyway we bought her new ballet shoes and in effort to keep them nice I whipped up this little toddler messenger bag.  Now she can carry them to and from class with her. It was a really fast project so I ended up making four...now what to do with the extra ones?






8.14.2013

Birthday boxes

I'm working on two birthday boxes for my nephews. What's a birthday box? I've just put all the ingredients (decor) together in a box for they're birthday dinners. Here are a couple of the elements that I thought were cute and wanted to share. 

Dinosaur themed party hats:



Star Wars themed cups and utensils:


8.08.2013

Playing Nurse... or Doctor

For my niece's birthday, the one that wants to be an OB when she grows up, I sewed up this little medical kit:

I made the apron and face mask. I found the nurse's hat at the party store and a play set of medical equipment. These awesome  printables are from Miss Poppins. It includes an exam sheet, eye chart and prescription pad!  So cute. I had them laminated so she can fill them out with a washable marker and reuse them. 
Just to make it a little more fun for the future examined I made this cast out of a sock:

I hope she has a great birthday!

8.06.2013

As American as


I am so proud of myself that I have to show off!  I made my first pie! An apple pie to be exact.

 I used the crust recipe tips from Design Mom.  I took her suggestion (in the comments of her post), and I used the Land-o-lakes blue-ribbon-apple-pie recipe for the filling. 

The pie turned out soooo yummy.  I think I'll be able to contribute home made pies to our Holidays this year.  I think my grandma would be proud!

8.02.2013

CSH: Housekeeping Schedule



"The right kind of schedule is merely a guide to getting things done without crowding too much into any one day.  The daily jobs of meal preparation, getting children off to school and a general straightening up of the house are governed by the routine of the family and cannot be altered.  It is the  time-consuming work such as through cleaning of living room, bathroom, etc., and washing and ironing, which must be spread out over the week and fitted into a plan" (Good Housekeeping, pp. 242).

According to the National Association of Home Builders in 1950s the average size house was 983 sq ft., and according to the U.S. census bureau the average size of a new home peaked at 2,521 square feet in 2007.   That's a huge difference of area to clean - no wonder I can keep up!  Well no more excuses - I've created a schedule based off of my three housekeeping books.  According to them having a plan makes sure all the household tasks get done each day, week or month.  It also helps to avoid a huge back-up of work when unexpected events come up because a plan allows the homemaker to determine what tasks need to be done on priority and which can wait.  

Household Engineering says that "the order of work is by far the most important, and the thing that must be determined first.  The reason for so much "nerves" and useless effort is solely to be found in the lack of order in the work-plan" (pp. 66).  So first is to determine the order of the work, the daily, weekly, monthly and seasonal tasks - phew, I'm tired already.  Let's start with the daily and weekly tasks for now.

Daily Tasks:
Make the bed - right when you get up, kids too.
Manage clutter -as you leave a room pick up the things that don't belong and put it where it does.
Clean as you cook/ dishes
Wipe up spills as they occur
Sweep the kitchen floor - I'll do this as I make dinner

Weekly Tasks:
Laundry
Through cleaning of each room - dusting, vacuuming, mopping etc.
Meal planning and grocery shopping



According to my housekeeping books it was once traditional to do laundry on Monday, however both my 1920 and my 1947 books say to bag this tradition and move laundry day to Tuesday and Thursday. Martha Stewart says that because I'm on a septic system I will want to do a little bit of laundry each day so as not to overload my tank with 10 loads worth of water in one day.  So I plan on assigning each bedroom a laundry day and then one for bedding and towels together, that way as the kids are able to do their own laundry they will be used to having an assigned day.

 Because I have to drive my kids into school and pick them up (at 4 different times) I like to do my main cleaning in the afternoons, it just works out best that way. Household Engineering says that I should try one plan and then continue to modify it until I find the most efficient method in execution.  Truly an experiment I guess.  Here is experiment A - my first schedule in CSH.


Monday - Put the household back in order from the week-end break.  Plan mealsgrocery shop, clean vegetables and fruits and put them away for the week use. This is also the day to clean the kitchen thoroughly.

Tuesday-  Master Bedroom Laundry day.  Dust, clean windows, vacuum and mop the main floor.

Wednesday - Thorough cleaning of bathroomsC and R's laundry day.

Thursday - Dust, clean windows, and vacuum the basement.  Office day, pay bills etc. A's Laundry day.

Friday - Bedding and Towels laundry day.  Thorough cleaning of Bedrooms.  Vacuum and dust the upstairs.

Saturday - Thorough cleaning of Bathrooms.  Any special preparations for Sunday, church clothes, baking, dinner prep, or if there is something needed for family get togethers etc. 

As I  do each day's cleaning I will share how the history books recommend I do it. I'll give this schedule a week and then start adding in the monthly and seasonal tasks too.  Everything starts Monday- wish me luck, I think I'll need it.



8.01.2013

CSH: Reference List

These are the books, articles etc. that I've used in my research.  I will add new references as I find them and use them. I've added links to ebook versions to view for free when available or hardcopy versions to purchase.

Housekeeping Books

Frederick, Christine. Household Engineering, Scientific Management in the Home. Chicago: American School of Home Economics, 1920.

The Good Housekeeping Housekeeping Book. New York: Hearst Magazine, 1947.

Stewart, Martha. Homekeeping Handbook. New York: Clarkson Potter, 2006


Articles

Taylorism, Scientific Management. Wikipedia. 

Smellie, Alice. "No wonder they were so slim in the Fifties! Forget jogging and the gym... Alice Smellie discovers the fastest way to burn 2,600 calories: Live like it's 1952!" Dailly Mail Online, 21 July, 2012.


Videos

The House the 50s Built.  British TV show on Channel 4


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