#sewing: easy-sew curtains

the story of these curtains:

having a new skill-set like sewing has been amazing. whenever i see something that i would like to purchase, i look at it through the lens of "how can i make that" and it's a wonderful thing! a trip to Fabricland et voila i have the fabrics in hand to tackle these amazing projects.

last week we ventured to Fabricland with the goal of purchasing fabrics to make curtains. pretty sure the ones that were in our kitchen and bathroom are from the 70's and original owners, so it was time to be replaced. this month we are replacing the windows in our bedroom, spare room and bathroom & afterwards doing some painting and hanging new curtains elsewhere. since i had splurged on full-length curtains for the other two rooms, i thought i would try sewing ones for our smaller windows.

my last few trips to Fabricland have been for simple fabrics to make infinity scarves or travel wallets or makeup bags, so i have stuck to one particular area of the store. on this night i went to the "home decor" and "drapery" section of fabrics and fell in love. there were so many fantastic bright colours (reminded me of Vera Bradley patterns), Paris themes (which i most definitely bought) and great textures. i went in with the intent to purchase fabric only for curtains, and came out with three new fabrics to make oversized travel cases (like make-up bags we saw at the One of a Kind Show) - stay tuned.

so i started yesterday with the curtains for our kitchen and bathroom, and i am in love with them. whenever i walk into the kitchen i sigh out of love.

Materials Needed:
* drapery/home decor fabric (for my windows - 4" L x 3" W - i purchased 1.5m of fabric for each and had leftovers)
* thread
* sewing machine
* pins
* rotary cutter/mat

#step 1: prepare the fabric
measure the length and width of your window
you will want to leave excess fabric to accommodate the top fold (for the curtain rod) and the edges which you will have about 1" fold to create a nice trim. so add about an extra 12" to your measurement
cut your fabric to the desired sizes (using a rotary cutter makes it so easy and gives you clean cuts)
iron the fabric if there are big creases

#step 2: the trim
start with one side (length-wise) and fold the edge of the fabric in about 1", pin into place
sew two seams (an outside closer to the cut edge, and inner seam closer to the fold) to secure the trim into place
repeat on the other side length-wise

#step 3: the curtain rod fold
i took my curtain and held it up to the window again, but this time created the curtain rod fold to ensure that the curtains were not going to be too short. for my bathroom curtain i must have forgotten to add the extra 12" because they were a bit too short. but it all worked out since my curtain rod was tinsy-tiny so the fold did not have to be too big.

for the size of my curtain rod, the folds ended up being 1.5" wide (on bathroom curtains) and 2" wide (on kitchen curtains)

fold over, pin into place (be sure to measure as you pin to ensure your fold is still the same size), sew along the cut fabric edge leaving space for your curtain rod to slide through

#step 4: bottom edge trim
finish up your curtain panel with a trim along the bottom edge of your curtain. the width of this fold can be as big or small as you wish. Again would be a good idea to hang your curtains as is up on the window to make sure you do not leave them too short before you sew the bottom edge trim.

#step 5: repeat for second panel (if desired) and hang to admire 

The Kitchen (fabric from Fabricland (Canada)

The Bathroom (fabric from Fabricland (Canada)

happy sewing!

<3 awaLL

#baking: Easter Cupcakes

Cupcakes for Easter Dinner

#bakingwithawaLL: Easter Cupcakes for family dinner

These were a hit!
i am normally very critical of my vanilla cakes/cupcakes because most of the recipes i have tried will dry out quickly, and vanilla cake should be moist and flavourful for a long time!

so i'm going to share the AWESOME recipe i found with y'all (from add a pinch)

happy baking
<3 awaLL

Cake/Cupcake Ingredients:
* 1 cup (2 sticks) butter, softened
* 1/2 cup vegetable shortening
* 3 cups granulated sugar
* 5 eggs, room temperature
* 3 cups all-purpose flour
* 2 tsp baking powder
* 1/4 tsp salt
* 1/2 cup whole milk, room temperature
* 1/2 cup buttermilk, room temperature
* 2 tsp vanilla extract

(*note: I could not find buttermilk anywhere at my grocery store leading up to Easter... so instead I used 1/2 cup of 2% milk and 1/2 cup of skim milk and it still turned out just fine)

#step 1: prep the pans
preheat oven to 350 degrees F.
prepare three 9-inch round cake pans with nonstick baking spray or coated well with shortening or butter and floured, taking care to remove all excess flour.
if you are making cupcakes, this recipe will make 24 big cupcakes, or 36 small cupcakes.

#step 2: mixing the wet ingredients
cream together butter and shortening until light and fluffy with an electric mixer
slowly add sugar one cup at a time, making sure to fully incorporate each cup before adding another
add eggs in one at a time, making sure each egg is fully mixed in before adding another

#step 3: mixing the dry ingredients & milk mixture
in a separate bowl, sift together flour, baking powder and salt
pour the milks and vanilla into a measuring cup and whisk together with a fork
add to the sugar/butter/egg mixture alternately with the dry ingredients (beginning and ending with the dry ingredient mixture)

#step 4: combining all the ingredients well
gently stir all ingredients until well combined - scrape down the sides and bottom of bowl to make sure you have all the ingredients mixed in.

#step 5: pouring the batter
evenly distribute cake batter between the cake pans (or muffin cups) and place in the oven
bake for 25-30 minutes, or until a toothpick inserted into the centre of the cakes comes out clean
remove and allow to cool slightly in pans for about 5 minutes, then cool completely on a wire rack
*it's best not to frost the cake or cupcakes until the cakes have cooled completely to avoid the frosting from melting

Buttercream Frosting Ingredients:
Serves 4.5 cups
* 1 cup butter (2 sticks), softened
* 3-4 cups confectioner's sugar (icing sugar), sifted
* 2 tsp vanilla
* pinch salt
* 2-3 tbsp 2% milk or heavy cream or half-and-half cream (I used 2% milk)

#step 1: preparing the butter mixture
place softened butter into a bowl and mix with an electric mixer (medium setting), creaming the butter until it is smooth and has lightened in colour (about 3 minutes).

#step 2: adding the sugar
add icing sugar, 1/2 cup at a time
after each cup has been incorporated, turn the mixer onto the highest speed setting and beat for about 10 seconds to lighten the frosting.
continue until all of the icing sugar has been mixed in.

#step 3: final touches
add vanilla and a pinch of salt, combine until all mixed in
add milk/cream, until the frosting has reached the preferred consistency
for a firmer frosting, add more icing sugar, a 1/4 cup at a time
for a softer frosting, add more milk/cream, a tbsp at a time

#sewing: zippered poof pouch

I tried a new pattern for the zippered poof pouch tonight since my last attempt at Christmas was a huge flop... turns out this project is just a little tougher for a beginner sewer like me, but i won't give up!

here is the original tutorial from OH SO PRETTY blog which i reference below with some of my own modified notes (including some of the things i learned)

Materials Needed
* 14" zipper
* two pieces of fabric cut into 9" x 12" (outside fabric can be tougher material for the poof to be more sturdy)
* bias tape
* pins
* thread
* sewing machine

#step one: prepare fabric
cut your 9" x 12" pieces, iron the creases out and set aside

#step 2: attaching to the zipper
lay your outside fabric face up on the table
place the zipper on top, lined up with the top edge of the fabric
lay your inside fabric (patterned side facing down) on top, with the top edge lined up with the top of zipper
pin the top edge of everything together
sew along the top edge

#step 3: preparing the pouch
lay both sides of fabric flat out on the table
along the outside layer fabric, sew along the edge of the zipper to avoid getting caught in the zipper
fold the outside layer fabric in half, and line the fabric up with the opposite edge of the zipper
sew along the edge
do the same with the inside layer fabric on the other side (attaching to the same edge of the zipper as above)
sew along the edge again

#step 4: unzip the zipper & creating the pouch
unzip the zipper fully
sew along the edge of the fabric by the zippers edge to create a seam
zip the zipper up and turn the fabric inside out
now fold the sides into itself (like wrapping a present to create the triangle folds at the end of a gift)
pin it down on both ends
cut a 2 inch piece of bias tape and fold in half
slide it into the pouch on top of the zipper into the folded mess. the raw edges of the bias tape should be in line with the edges of the fabric
*repeat on the other side to have to "pull accents" on the poof pouch*

#step 5: putting it all together
sew all the edges together
make sure you unzip the zipper a little bit so that you don't sew it up on the outside of the pouch
trim the edges so they are all even. if you have excess on the end of the zipper, fold over and sew along the edge to conceal the zipper into the inside of the pouch
sew bias tape along the edges to make them look finished (i skipped this step and will likely go back and add it to make the edges cleaner in the inside of the pouch)

turn the pouch inside out and you should have a finished product!

fun fabrics!

my first zippered poof pouch

happy sewing

<3 awaLL