Reusable Produce Bags

I made the switch to canvas shopping bags a while back, but was still using plastic produce bags for all my fruits and vegetables. At a recent trip to the grocery store, I looked into my cart and realized I had about 15 plastic produce bags. It occurred to me, when filling my canvas bags full of plastic ones, that I wasn't accomplishing much in the way of environmental friendliness. That's when I decided to make reusable mesh produce bags. They're easy to make, and because they're lightweight they won't add any more cost to your produce than the regular plastic bags. Each of our moms got a set for Mother's Day, along with a little broccoli.

Cinco De Mayo

Thanks to all my family and friends for all the warm birthday wishes you sent my way! Here's a little run down of my day...

My coworkers took me to Mandola's Italian Market for lunch, where I had a caprese sandwich (tomatoes, mozzarela, and basil). On my way home from work, I stopped by the farmer's market and bought a dozen fresh eggs from Smith and Smith Farms.

When I got home, Zach was there to greet me. As usual, he did a great job picking out my gift. He got me a lovely bouquet of flowers and a gift card to the Sewing Station! I'm sure it won't last long!

Then he handed me a large wrapped box, which he said was from my mom. I assumed he'd picked something up for her since she wouldn't be here, but it turns out she brought it with her the last time she came to visit, and Zach managed to hide it from me until my birthday. Before I reveal what was inside, it requires a bit of a back story...way back...back before I was born. My parents received a set of glass stemware as a wedding gift, and I ended up with it when I went to college. A few months ago during a visit to Houston, my mom and I were browsing a local antique shop and came across a set of the same glassware, except in a larger size. Zach was studying in the car (yes, zach would rather study that go into an antique store) and I drug him inside to see my amazing find and try to convince him that we needed the larger set of glasses to go with the small set we already had. Zach, always the voice of reason, reminded me that we already had a ton of glassware and didn't need any more. So we left the store empty handed.

I'm sure by now you've guessed what was in the box...

After I opened my gifts, we went to Cafe Bleu out on Lake Travis for dinner. It was a nice birthday.

100

I just reached 100 favorites for my Etsy shop! I've been keeping an eye on my favorites over the last couple of days, thinking how neat it would be to have 100 by my birthday (which is tomorrow). Thanks to all my loyal customers for this great birthday gift!

Nursing Cover

I made my first nursing cover with the help of this tutorial. I was surprised by how simple it was, all you need is a yard of fabric, a bit of boning, and two D rings. I went one step further and mitered the corners of the cover. Here are two resources that will help you sew a nice mitered corner:

Clever Corners

The Scientific Seamstress Folding Templates

I used the straight folding template to press the fold lines into my fabric. Keep your fold lines nice and even and you'll have a perfect corner every time! This cover's going to my friend Kenzi, who's expecting a little girl this summer.

Photo Booth

Our friend Andrew got married this past weekend and had a photobooth at the reception...

Congratulations Andrew and Carrie!

A Garden Gift

I made a set of garden markers for my friend Heather's birthday. I packaged the markers in a terracotta pot, finished off with one of the broccoli tags from my last post.

Happy birthday Heather!

Nothing says happy birthday like broccoli

I just finished a set of gift tags...

I've got a couple uses in mind for these little guys. I'll be sharing those projects with you over the next few weeks.