You might be a Senior Citizen

If you get up every morning and head to your closest fast food restaurant for coffee,
   You might be a senior citizen.

If you know that a senior coffee at McDonald's in Pinson is 64 cents, Center Point 54 cents, and Trussville 66 cents,
    You might be a senior citizen.

 If the trash can in your garage is filled with empty coffee containers from fast food restaurants,
   You might be a senior citizen.

If you like your coffee with 7 to 9 creams, know that you're lactose intolerant and keep Lactaid or similar  lactose products in the console of your car,
   You might be a senior citizen.

 If you know the names of the employees at the food establishment, they automatically know what you want without asking you, and proceed to pour it up,
    You might be a senior citizen.

Then again it could mean  something completely different.

That's It ***

All Hallows Eve

Riding Around I saw a few places with decor. Some find it offensive and some don't. There's always something that offends someone. You can't please everybody and you can go crazy trying.
Just a few pictures taken from the car.

See, nothing really scary.

COLLARD GREEN COOK OFF

This was my first time attending the collard green cook off. This is its eighth year of having this community event. 

"Urban Ministry is the inner city ministry of the United Methodist Church in Birmingham, Alabama. Our mission is to serve poor and low-income persons in the Birmingham area with programs of compassion and wholeness."

Getting the preliminaries out of the way. House rules, restroom, registering, local neighborhood president.

It was an enjoyable event with vendors, AARP, children's activities, and a blues band that was fabulous.

Some of the vendors tents

Sassy Brown Band

I was under the impression that we would be voting on greens cooked by various cooks. Instead we were treated to a meal of cornbread, collards, a navy bean type soup, baked sweet potato, marinated cucumbers and fruit drink.  I only had greens and cucumbers and both were good. I could taste the freshness in both.

The weather cooperated with intermittent sweeps of sun and breezes.
THAT'S IT***

More Adult Coloring

Weather changes always do something to/for my psyche. After two weeks of decaf, I splurged and had a cup of Mickey D's coffee. I suppose the vacay from caffeine gave me a boost when I reentered it into my body. 

I took care of some errands and made my way back to the library in time for Adult Coloring which is one of the new stress relievers. They have a Keuring coffee machine along with snacks for participants. Two people were there when I arrived. One left, leaving just two of us. It was pleasant and of course I did avail myself of another cup of coffee. It would have been impolite not to accept. The remaining person said that she floats from library to library participating in the crafts that each has to offer. I may look into doing something like that during those weeks I have fewer plans.

Shortly after I began.

The end product.

That's It *  *  *

Seasonal decorative hanging pillows

I've done the decorative hanging  pillows before. I once had them in my now defunct Etsy shop.They can be hung on a knob, bed post, anywhere.

 

Having an inspirational or humorous reminder here and there can sometimes get me through the day.

I'm doing these for a charity that asked its volunteers to donate handmade items to go in their booth at the Christmas Village exhibit held here each year.

This also gives me the chance to use the fabric remnants I have that are to large to discard yet too small for larger projects.  Each of these pillows is about 8" x 8" (inches)

Off white broadcloth, gloves, water foam brush,  laser printed graphics mirror image, Mod Podge transfer medium. NOTE: The images must be mirrored and laser printed. Otherwise your text will be backwards. Non laser print and the colors will bleed.

I applied the transfer medium to the laser printed graphic, then turned it face down on the fabric and smoothed out any lumps. Though the medium  washes off with soap and water, I prefer not to have to scrub so I wear gloves. The hard part is waiting 24 hours for the process to dry and cure. If you remove it before that time your colors won't be as vivid.

These are the fabrics I plan to use. The back of each pillow will have a fabric that coordinates with the front. Not shown is the fiberfill used to stuff the pillows.

I used warm water in a spray bottle, spraying the square and wiping the paper from middle to edges. That's the discarded paper you see on the sides. NOTE:  I have found that it is better to use a clean soft cloth to wipe away the paper, using a clean section of cloth each time you go to a different area. Otherwise when you piece is dry it'll still look as if it needs to be wiped more.

The finished product
I did eight in all , two of each. No two are exactly alike.               

 

"I'll be as naughty as I want. I have my own credit cards."

 

"Peace on earth will come to stay, when we live Christmas every day."

"Many people look forward to the New Year to renew old habits."

Making charms for pillows.

"Many people look forward to the New Year to renew old habits."

"Love the giver more than the gift."

That's It ***

 

Burlap On Stage

Burlap is back.

I got my inspiration from

Poppy Kosh

Manila Extract

and                           here

 I printed my own burlap coffee bag look by pulling up a graphic on the computer and printing it onto burlap. It's important to make sure all of the edges are taped down to avoid the ravels from the burlap yucking up the printer.

When was the last time you saw thread for 59cents? I took a chance using it.  By the way, it was a new spool that had never been opened. I thought it might be rotten after having it for so long but  it worked out fine.

I ironed interfacing to the backs of all pieces
to give it some body.

I fused lace onto the two pockets so that they'd be easily seen inside the purse. I sewed one pocket on the front and back inside.

 

This is the part I was reluctant about.  I've only set grommets once and it was so long ago, I needed a refresher so I contacted YouTube. I don't know what I'd do without it. As stated before, no fabric stores so I got the grommets from Harbor Freight.     

                                                                                            

Decided to make a purse charm

Also, I made a slide to go on the bag closing.

Ta Da ! All done.

Overall, This project was more trouble than it was worth. But, it was also a great learning experience.
THAT'S IT***

Dyeing PantyHose With Kool-Aid

At some time during your youth  I'm sure you've been chided by an elder saying;

" So if Sally jumps off of a roof, you'll jump off too?"

Just another way of saying, "Don't do everything you see someone else doing."

Some of us listen and some of us...tread carefully.
I got the idea of dyeing pantyhose from If You Give A Girl A Needle.  Her instructions were great and I did not follow them to the letter. 

• She urged getting pantyhose that don't have a lot of different fibers. Hers had nylon.

• Slowly stir the mixture  (hose and  Kool Aid) the entire time.

Another site encouraged wetting the hose thoroughly before putting into the color bath so that the color would be evenly distributed. I decided to take that advice.

Here's a brand new pair of unopened pantyhose. I have no idea of what the fiber content is.I wanted purple hose so I bought one packet of grape Kool Aid.

It was difficult to see the purple liquid due to the steam rising.

Red + blue= purple. I see blue.

Something is amiss.

Close up of the results. Do you see purple? I don't. Splotches of red and some unknown color.

There you have it. The results of dyeing pantyhose with Kool Aid.
 Let's Review
1.One good thing about this is that I used an old pair of pantyhose. The package you saw at the top was not opened, harmed or maimed in any way.
2. I used only one packet of Kool Aid . Two or three might have helped making it more concentrated.
3.I did not stir continuously as instructed in If You Give A Girl A Needle's (IYGAGAN) instructions. I sat down and watched The Price Is Right. Then I remembered the panty hose, went back to the stove and began to stir.
4. I saturated the pantyhose before putting them in the grape bath. This was not a part of IYGAGAN instructions.

Though this was a FAIL, I will be trying this again.

THAT'S IT***