Lengthening a Dress with Lace

My husband and I were invited to a wedding recently, so I perused my closet for something to wear.  I found several black dresses and a few dark colored skirt/top combos.  I love happy bright colors, I'm not exactly sure why I don't have a couple of happy bright dresses!

I headed out on my shopping quest.  I don't really enjoy clothes shopping, it usually ends in childish depression about how "nothing fits me".  In addition, I don't like to spend a lot on clothing, so price was my first turn off.  My second turn off was the tiny, short, barely there things they call clothes...sigh.  

Then I scored!  I was excited to find a pretty blue dress at Charlotte Russe on the clearance rack  for a whopping $12.00!!!!!  

Slight issue:  It was a wee bit too big (chest), and a wee bit too short.  I tried it on and realized since it tied at the waist I could make that area fit fine.  However, it needed taking in under the arms as it was "gaping", and it needed to be lengthened ... somehow.

I had to yet to lengthen a dress, so this was new to me.

I brought the dress home and headed to my sewing room.

To take in the underarm area, I tried on the dress and pinched the sides right under my arm.  I looked in the mirror and determined that I needed to take it in about 3/4 of in inch on each side. 

I turned the dress inside out and folded it over at the seam, pinning it in place.  I then determined where the waist was and made sure to make a straight line from my 3/4 in. underarm measurement toward the original seam at the waistline.  I pinned, then sewed in place (reversing my stitch a couple of times at each end to secure).  I did not do any type of fancy edge stitch, and I didn't even trim the seam, I just folded it toward the front and called it done.

Now that the dress fit fine on top, I needed to do something about the length.  It was a couple of inches above my knee and I'm not comfortable with that.  I went through my stash of off white lace and found a scalloped edge lace that complimented the scalloped hem of the dress..score! :)

I made sure I had enough lace by measuring the circumference of the bottom of my dress.  I wasn't sure how many layers of lace I would need to get the length I needed, so I made sure I had enough to do 3 or 4 rows of lace.

I added one row of lace at a time.  Using a zig-zag/stretch stitch, I attached the first piece of lace to the lining of the dress on the backside of the lining.

Since the lining is shorter than the dress, this piece of lace barely made a difference.  I then added a second row of lace, sewing it with a straight stitch.  I place my second row of lace on the backside of the first lace row, lining up the top edge of my lace with the center of the first lace row.  There is no turning involved, so make your lace face outward and stitch it straight onto the back of the first piece of lace.

I then decided I wanted to add a 3rd row of lace.  Following the same pattern, laying the lace right side facing out, on the back side of the second row of lace, I stitched the top edge of the lace to the center of the second row of lace.

Voila!  I now had a longer, well fitting dress to wear to our young friends wedding!  Yay!!

If you have any questions on how to do this, just ask!

Tuesday Toilet Tips!

"She looks well to the ways of her household,

And does not eat the bread of idleness."

Proverbs 31:27

NOTE:  This is a "re-post" from way back...enjoy! :)  

Welcome to my version of "Tuesday Toilet Tips"...now, don't go looking around for a Mr. Linky, and don't start planning your post for next Tuesday.  I know you'll be disappointed to learn that this will not be an ongoing meme on Toilet Tips.  :)

It occurred to me, as I was happily scrubbing down our own gleaming porcelain bowl, that not EVERYONE has had the militant upbringing, um..., opportunity for specialized training that I have had in that area.  If you've been reading my blog for a bit, you may know how I feel about the cleanliness of bathrooms...if you don't know how I feel, but for some odd reason are curious, click Here.

In short I was raised in a Military home, the youngest recruit child of 6, born to an Air Force Dad.  Common phrases in our house were "I want that spic n' span"... "I want to see my reflection in that table"... "I want that floor clean enough to eat off of"....you get the picture? :) 

Weekend family fun often included cleaning every lightswitch in the house, dusting baseboards, and scrubbing all wall corners..."409", Amonia and Bleach were pantry staples.

Then at the tender age of 17, I joined the Air Force myself.  In Basic Training I was awarded the prestigious honor of "Latrine Queen"...you've heard of K.P. Duty?  Basically it was my job to make sure that the toilets were "spic n' span" at all times....oh what fun...the memories are too much to bear. :)

So, with all that needless information bouncing around inside your heads...I'll get on with my fantastic Toilet Tips for Tuesday! :)

There is more to cleaning a toilet than just swishing the inside of the bowl.  As a matter of fact, I'll touch on that part lightly...basically, you squirt the cleanser in there and use a toilet brush to scrub it all around (get up under that rim!), then flush.  Easy as pie...right?

Well, if you really want a clean toilet there is a bit more to it...This is where "Green" cleaning goes out the window for me. 

I like these....I like them a lot...

If I wipe a toilet with it, basically, I don't want to use it again.  Enough said. 

Take one of these lovely tossable disinfecting wipes out of the container...

FIRST wipe the seat down real well, never wipe the seat after you've wiped some other part of the toilet....Think about it.


Fold that wipe in half, and wipe off the tank top, sides and HANDLE...think about it! 

Don't forget this area, where the seat meets the bowl... get into the nitty gritty...you can wash your hands later!!! ... or wear gloves! :)

Work around that bowl edge, getting any little bits of dust and such that may have settled.

Get up under that bowl and wipe it clean...you'd be surprised...do you have kids?  Yup, get down there and wipe it...I raised a boy, I know what happens!

Now, let's get all those little nooks and crannies at the base, they are made JUST to hold dust and grime.  Start from the top and work your way down, folding your wipie, or getting a new one as needed.

Yes, even down around these little guys....gunk is just hiding and lurking back there!

Clean that bad boy all the way down to the floor!

Now here's the scary part, because you have to kinda lean into the toilet for this, but you've cleaned it really nicely, so it shouldn't be a problem....right?  Get that little hump in the back of the toilet and scrub him good!

While you're at it....get a fresh wipie and clean the door handles and light switches.  The neighbor kids are always using my bathroom, and personally I just don't know what kind of hygene they have....just sayin'...

Now, don't you feel better?  Don't you just want to sit there and stare at your sparkling potty all day?  No?  Ok, get on to something else...keep your hands busy ladies so that your husbands will praise you saying...

"Many daughters have done nobly,

But you excel them all."

Proverbs 31:29

House Transformation Remodel DIY - Part 3

Part 1
Part 2

When we moved into the house, the existing porch was an aluminum screened porch, not too big, but big enough.

My darling husband poured a small slab and made an outer patio area...he also built these wonderful herb boxes for me.  We then added a simple wood trellis roof with clear plastic roofing.

The dream was for the porch to be bigger...the eventual dream was to add on to the house (happening now!).  Here we have our incredible friends and family helping as we pour a new slab extending out in both length and width.  Down came the aluminum porch...

 Here the slab is formed out to go all the way to the end of the house and out a foot or so toward the yard.

We have a pecan tree in our yard.  Here it is when we moved in... looking at it now (I'll post a more current full pic soon), it is incredible how much it's grown...it's really HUGE.  There was no fence between us and the neighbor (shown in pic).  

We built a fence for privacy and began work on a major swingset/tree fort for our son.  I have to say my husband really went over the top on this, it was such an awesome retreat! 

Come back soon for more updates...I'm basically catching up on all the old stuff before I get current. :)

House Transformation Remodel DIY - Part 2

If you didn't get to read Part 1 - stop in HERE to see pics of our house before we started working on it...

This was the kitchen right after we moved in.  
*The countertops were actually kind of cute, they were white with a little yellow decor in them.  
*The wallpaper?  Um, NO!  It absolutely HAD. TO. GO. period.  
*The Roper stove from 1973 was still in working order and we are all about keeping things till they die... it luckily died soon thereafter. :)  As a matter of fact, there was smoke coming from a wire in the back...not purty.

Just in case you didn't get enough of the horrid wallpaper... wow.... and the floor...let's not forget the floor.

Well, this was still the "90's" people, so bare with me while I show you where we went with the whole kitchen look next...

After tiling the entire house with a basic white tile, we decided on some paint.  I went with this bluish/greenish/teal kind of situation.  I am not entirely sure why, but I do remember liking it at the time. :)  And as you can see we "updated" the light fixture...sigh.

 The rest of the house was painted this taupe color, Ceylon Ivory to be exact.  I liked that color, it was nice and neutral and we had it that way for a LONG time.  Yes, we had our computer in the dining room.

 
The kitchen after we removed the big blue flowers... I went with big purple grapes instead...?  No worries there are more updates and transformations ahead for this kitchen...some are done and you will see them soon, some are still to be done...

House Transformation Remodel DIY - Part 1

So, in case you didn't  know, we are transforming our home! Well, we've been transforming it since we moved in, but we did take a long break after doing the major "first stuff", and a few changes of paint here and there.  It's an evolving kind of style I suppose. 

When I say "we", I mean "we".  The Cop and the Housewife at your service! :)  We have had some help friend friends and family when needed, but pretty much everything is done by us.  We really enjoy working together, it's not always easy, but it's worth it. 

The current (and biggest) project we are working on is closing in the back porch.  Essentially, we are adding on one average sized room (my new craft room!) and one large room (aka Florida Room/Family Room/Den).

We will also be opening up part of the wall in our kitchen to allow the view of the backyard to be broader, and allow the A/C to flow more freely through the house.  All this will be coming in later posts...

For now, I'll leave you with some photos of what we have done since the "beginning".

When we moved in...

Front of house, plain jane, but cute.

Dining room and Kitchen (Realtor photo), as well as the existing aluminum framed screened porch.  Don't you love that light fixture?

All the carpet was deep blue...groovy!

Dining area (Realtor photo).  I'm totally diggin the panel wall and macrame... :)

From the  backyard looking toward the screen porch.  Wow, our Pecan tree looks so small there!

What we loved about our house when we bought it was the cute little neighborhood it sits in, the house had good "bones", and didn't "need" any repairs.  We had a lot that we wanted to do, but it was all cosmetic.  So we began... come back soon for some transformation photos. :)

"Foul Language", what's the big deal?

"Let your speech always be with grace, as though seasoned with salt, so that you will know how you should respond to each person."  Colossians 4:6

Many many moons ago, when I was a 19 year old military gal, I regularly cursed like a sailor.  Words came out of my mouth that would make my skin crawl today.  The need to fit in and be accepted among my co-workers was, at that time, stronger than any desire to be kind, gracious or useful.  

I had never been taught not to curse, I certainly knew it would not be acceptable to do in front of my parents, but I was never told it was wrong.  If I knew somewhere deep inside that it was wrong, I didn't know WHY.

For those who know me today, this may be really hard to imagine.  My strongest exclamation these days is "Gracious sakes alive!",  this change has absolutely nothing to do with me, and everything to do with Jesus.  Once I made the choice to surrender myself to Him, He gave me the desire and will to change, but He is the one who changed me.

Two things to consider:

1.  We cannot expect those who do not know Christ to understand what scripture says about foul language. We can pray, to seek how God would use us in their lives, and pray for their hearts to be changed.  We can encourage them to have respect for others and especially to watch their language in the presence of women. 

1 Corinthians 2:14 - "But a natural man does not accept the things of the Spirit of God, for they are foolishness to him; and he cannot understand them, because they are spiritually appraised."

2.  We cannot change other Christians, but we can be examples to them.  Many Christians like to say "God may be convicting YOU about that, but He's not convicting ME about that right now...".  
Do not be mistaken, if they are a Christian, they are convicted, but they are choosing to ignore the nudging of the Holy Spirit.  Pray for your Christian brothers and sisters. 

James 3:10,11 - "...from the same mouth come both blessing and cursing.  My brethren, these things ought not to be this way.  Does a fountain send out from the same opening both fresh and bitter water?"

One of the common questions I hear regarding harsh language, foul language, curse words, etc... is this:  Who determines what is considered a curse word?  I mean to say, just because the bible says not to let "corrupting talk" come out of our mouths...who is to determine what is meant by "corrupt"?  
-"What if I use words or language and "to me" it's acceptable?"  
-"The Bible doesn't give us specific words, so how can we know?"  
-"I was brought up this way, it's just part of my culture"...

Matthew 12:36-37 - "But I tell you that every careless word that people speak they shall give an accounting for it in the day of judgement.  For by your words you will be justified, and by your words you will be condemned."

Our words reveal the state of our hearts.

I think the questions of "what exactly is foul when it comes to language?", can easily be answered when our hearts are soft and willing to change.  When we surrender ourselves to Christ, the Holy Spirit is our teacher, He guides us, leads us, directs us and ... convicts us...WHEN we are open to Him.  Though it is true, many people will fight tooth and nail, because they still want to please their own flesh and they still want to please the world around them and be "accepted".  

Romans 12:2 - And do not be conformed to this world, but be transformed by the renewing of your mind, so that you may prove what the will of God is, that which is good and acceptable and perfect."

The Bible has plenty to say on curse words and foul language.  After reading through just a few of these scriptures, I think we can all be clear about what words we should not allow to slip from our lips.  Do not count yourself a fool and pretend that you do not know when words taste bitter slipping out of your mouth.  When you are speaking in a group of your friends, are you using the exact same words you would use to speak to your own Mother?  When you pray, do you use these words to speak to the Lord Jesus Christ?  Is your speech obscene, degrading, foolish or dirty?  Is it suggestive or immoral?  Would you use these exact words to gently soothe your child?

Ephesians 5:4 - "...and there must be no filthiness and silly talk, or coarse jesting, which are not fitting, but rather giving of thanks."  

Do your words tear down or lift up?  Are you speaking in such a way that someone will know they can come to you when they hit rock bottom?  Are your words those that fill others with hope and encouragement?  Or are your words just useless filler that serve only to please the world?

Ephesians 4:29 - Let no unwholesome (*foul or rotten) word proceed from your mouth, but only such a word as is good for edification according to the need of the moment, so that it will give grace to those who hear."  

*Foul language of any sort should never pass a Christian's lips, because it is totally out of character with his new life in Christ.

As Christians, we need to be keenly aware of the impression we leave wherever we go.  We are Christ's ambassadors, we are His imprint on the world around us.  Are we leaving a bad impression of our Holy Lord by opening our mouths?

Matthew 15:11 - "It is not what enters into the mouth that defiles the man, but what  proceeds out of the mouth, this defiles the man." (*moral defilement corrupts a persons soul)

2 Timothy 2:16 - "But avoid worldly and empty chatter, for it will lead to further ungodliness"

Furthermore, what do we take in when we sit in front of a TV or go to a movie?  Do you soak in the language of this world?  Or do you avoid it, regardless of what is the "popular" thing to do?  

Do you believe that you can listen to "a few" curse words but not the "really bad" ones?  How are you to determine that, by which measurement do you choose?

Who lives inside of you?  Who are you sitting with on your couch watching that show?  Who are you taking to the movies with you?  If you are a Christian, Jesus is with you.  You are subjecting Him to this language, are you OK with that?

Titus 2:12 - "instructing us to deny ungodliness and  worldly desires and to live sensibly, righteously and godly in the present age,..."

If you are struggling at all in your Christian walk, if you are struggling at all with wanting to change the words you use in your daily life, I would suggest you remove all that language from your "input"...so that it doesn't affect your "output".  What you put into your heart is what will pour out of your heart...

Luke 6:45 - The good man out of the good treasure of his heart brings forth what is good; and the evil man out of the evil treasure brings forth what is evil; for his mouth speaks from that which fills his heart."

Is it difficult to change in this world that surrounds us with so much filth and enticing sin?  Yes, I believe for many, it is.  God is not throwing you out into this world alone, and asking you to change yourselves.  He is asking for you to surrender yourselves to Him, He will do the changing. 

Isaiah 64:8 - But now, O Lord, You are our Father, we are the clay and You our potter; and all of us are the work of Your hand."

James 1:5-8 - But if any of you lacks wisdom, let him ask God, who gives to all generously and without reproach, and it will be given to him.  But he must ask in faith without any doubting, for the one who doubts is like the surf of the sea, driven and tossed by the wind.  For that man ought not expect that he will receive anything from the Lord, being a double minded man, unstable in all his ways."

In closing, I leave you with this scripture.  I am sure you are aware of all the words that we are speaking about, you can know them without me speaking them.  This name, Jesus, Lord, God, the name of our Almighty Creator, Maker of heaven and earth.... this name is used as a curse word.  

This is the most heartbreaking of all...

Exodus 20:7 - "You shall not take the name of the Lord your God in vain, for the Lord will not leave him unpunished who takes His name in vain." 

Please take the time to pray about the words that leave your mouth.  Pray about what is in your heart and ask God to change you from the inside out.  Ask Him to help you use your words to lift up others, and to show love and joy in a world that is in such need of a kind word.

Have a beautiful day!

Kathy C.

*statements marked with an asterisk are taken from the NASB The MacArthur Study Bible

Stay-Home-Wife in an “Empty Nest”…why I am still home?

(Today I'm linking up with the Courtney at Women Living Well) 

I get asked the “question” all the time, don’t we all get asked the “question”? Isn't it the common question that helps us to get to know a new acquaintance? Isn't it the “thing” that defines who you are? That defines what your purpose is? Isn't it the answer to that “question” that allows the new acquaintance to determine how to approach you, and where they fit in in terms of commonality, friendship, communication? This answer, they are hoping, will give them some insight into your intelligence level and way of dealing with the world.

The question…“What do you do?”

There are a hundred answers that would result in a wide eyed gasping expression, a gushing of compliments on how wonderful your job is, how needed you are in our society, what a great job you do, how hard you must work, how amazing you are.  Doctor, nurse, teacher, ....

Sadly, the answer I give often results in just the wide eyes. Often times people have no idea how to respond.  

Often the conversation goes like this:

“What do you do?” ….

“I stay home”, I say with a genuinely joyful smile, “I take care of my home and my husband,… you know, cook, clean, garden, all that stuff.”

Wide eyed stare. Crickets chirping. Slight hint at a smile.  “Oh, that’s nice”. “I wish I could do that but I would get so bored with just nothing to do all day”….

When I was younger, I would feel hurt inside, damaged, offended, questioning... but I have grown to understand that I don't find my value in what others say.  I find my value in doing what I believe pleases God, and builds up my husband and my marriage.

My life is quite the opposite of that.  I don't find myself bored, I don't find myself lacking in things to do.  I have a purpose, a great purpose. When I had a child at home, I homeschooled and was Momma 24/7 as well as wife, cook, gardener, and household organizer. That child is now a man, he is grown and married, but that purpose has not gone away, it has only changed. I am still Momma. I am also Momma-in-law. There are still needs to be fulfilled in my role as Momma, and I am thankful, oh so thankful that I have the time available to fulfill them.  

More, and most, importantly, let us not forget that I actually married my husband.  Sounds silly, huh?  Of course I married my husband!  What I mean to emphasize here is that I did not MARRY my child, I married my husband.  I chose to be his wife.

I am still wife,… even more so now. I do not have an empty nest. My nest if full, full of life and love because the man I married is still here. I love taking care of him and I take my job here at home very seriously. I'm aware that I am very blessed to be able to stay home, and I'm thankful that I have a husband who wants that for me as well. What a struggle it would be to have that desire, that longing in my heart and have a husband that wanted me to be out there “contributing” financially. My heart is here, at home, and he blesses me by honoring that.

My being a housewife "without kids" is not a reflection on my lack of qualities or motivation to do something with myself.  My husband often turns to me for help and advice, after all I am his help meet.  The beauty of it is that I am available to help him, and that is a joy.  It's not an easy task to "make" a home.  Anyone can live in a house, but it does take a bit of work to make it a refuge.  I enjoy that work, I enjoy that task.

My being a homemaker allows me to wake up a few minutes before he gets out of bed and make his breakfast, pack his lunch and see him out the door each morning with a kiss and a hug, telling him that I love him.  I am also able to be here when he arrives home each day, greet him at his car and help him wind down from his day.  I'm flexible with my time so that we can do things together on his days off (shift work is not very normal) and I'm free to meet him for lunch, run errands when he can't, and make phone calls for him (if I remember too, sigh).

To some of you, that may sound very "1950's", and if it does, I don't really mind at all. :)

I was having lunch with a precious friend not too long ago, and we were talking about our lives... we are both stay home "empty" nesters.  She said something that stood out to me... "It is about trust.  A woman trusting that her husband will take care of her and not leave her hanging.  A man trusting that his wife will do her job diligently and not run off with their life savings".  I loved that.  I believe there are a lot of working women who would rather be home, but work for the fear of not trusting that their husbands can take care of them.  Trust your man.

On the other hand, I was speaking with another dear friend the other day, whom has always worked and never stayed home.  While explaining to her the joy I have in staying home and that being a wife is my "primary" job, she tried to (kindly) correct me.  She wanted me to change my answer in regards to the fact that I have an Etsy shop.  I think me putting my housewife status above anything that makes money makes her feel uncomfortable.  She had such a hard time understanding how I would put being a wife above something that could be considered a "job".  I, lovingly, corrected her and explained that anything that I do that brings in extra income is still just a hobby to me, because my primary role, my job that I love doing with all my heart is being a homemaker.

"...so that they may encourage the young women to love their husbands, to love their children, to be sensible, pure, workers at home, kind, being subject to  their own husbands, so that the word of God will not be dishonored."  Titus 2:4-5

"She looks well to the ways of her household, And does not eat the bread of idleness."  Proverbs 31:27

On the Swing with Lady Grey and Stormie...

Today is one of those days…


It’s overcast and breezy.

It’s quiet outside but for the gentle sounds of birds here and there, rustling leaves and distant car rumblings.

Yesterday I worked hard all day. Hard work feels good. The kind of work where you are actually on your hands and knees scrubbing something, or scouring grime from some hidden piece of equipment. Wiping those often forgotten cabinet trim pieces that collect the dirt of daily kitchen work. I worked hard, but I enjoyed my work, it is such a pleasure to care for my home.

Today, I rested, and it felt good. I made a cup of tea, Lady Grey is my favorite, headed outside to sit on my swing under our big beautiful Pecan Tree. Stormie looked up from her comfy sleeping spot and followed me outside.

I invited her up on the swing and cuddled her like a little baby. The older she gets, the more she seems to enjoy sleepy days. I sipped my tea and closed my eyes, leaning my head back. I listened…listened to the sounds around me; the breeze, the birds, the rustle of leaves as lizards scurried about. The word that came to mind was Selah.

Selah.

You may think that odd, since Selah is often used in Psalms as a musical terms. How does that fit in to me hanging out on my swing with my dog?

Selah has a few biblical meanings, one of them is this: “to measure and reflect on what has been said or sung”.

As I sat there gently swaying on the swing cuddling that furry little pup and hearing her soft snorkly breathing sounds as she began to fall asleep. I ran that word through my mind again… Selah.

I measured and reflected on what I had just heard, the song that is being sung in all of God’s creation. Everything big or small, the simplest sound of a twig falling to the ground, the soft snoring of my furry friend, is a song sung by God creation.

Today was a day of resting, measuring and reflecting on the sweet, tender creation of God…He is so great and immense. So wondrous are His works…

”O Lord, how many are Your works! In wisdom You have made them all; The earth is full of Your possessions.”

Psalm 104:24

Quick Breakfast Pastries

These little beauties are not only super quick to pull together (20 minutes from start to finish), but they are full of fresh, healthy ingredients, not a bunch of junky stuff.

As these bake, the pastry fluffs up just slightly and the juice from the berries blends with the cream cheese.  Oh so delicious!

For my easy smeasy printable recipe…
go here ---->  PRINT ME!

Go brew some coffee and have a beautiful day!