DIY Kitchen Pegboard

Ah yes, our petite kitchen. What it lacks in size + sensible storage opportunities it makes up for in style. See, we actually have plenty of cabinet space it's just that one set of cabinets doesn't even start until the 7' mark, with the highest shelf in said cabinet measuring at over 8.5' high. So I'll just store my pots + pans up there. Right.

Even my trusty stepstool can't help me there.

Plus also, we don't exactly have any drawers in the kitch. Not a single drawer to hold a single piece of silverware, leading to solutions such as this:

So having unreachable cabinets and no drawers, we opted to create this little pegboard kitchen organizer.

Pegboard and hanging accessories are from Home Depot, all for under $10.

We (he) cut it down to fit our space and spray painted it a lovely Green Apple (Painter's Touch Satin). Now we have a comfy home for our pots + pans, spoons + whisks, spatulas + mashers. Phew.

hazy + haute (couture)

Here's how it goes: last week was HOT HOT HOT. I don't LOVE wearing shorts. In fact, I didn't even have proper-fitting shorts at the beginning of the week. Things got desperate, temperatures soared and I ripped up some old t-shirts. And using Save This Shirt by Hannah Rogge, I whipped up a few rag-a-muffin skirts and set outside to brave the heat.

OK, actually I made the red one months ago. But the black one is new. And I only started wearing the red one this week so I think it's appropriate to mention here.

Save This Shirt is really creative. Makes you want to cut up every t-shirt you own. Most of the projects, however, have a definite.... (searching for a different word for rag-a-muffin, because I'm realizing it's a weird descriptor that may not be as commonly used as I once thought)... well, most of the projects give off a sloppy, boho very DIY vibe. As in, the finished product will always look precisely like you cut up an old t-shirt and restitched it together. Think Arts+Crafts, not Fierce.

But that's OK, completely because you ARE using old nasty t-shirts instead of fancy new fabric, so you basically know what you will get. Which, in my case, meant that I felt free to completely disregard any numbers or measurements given in the directions. Because, kiddos, as I mentioned earlier it was so hot + my 3rd floor apartment was even hotter and my sewing corner was the hottest ("That's hot"). Speed was the name of the game.

Our dear friend Fiona agreed to model these skirts for me I am currently sporting an amazingly blotchy and inconsistent sunburn resulting from a devastatingly haphazard application of sunscreen. You know, because I'm good. So here's Fiona. And yeah, that's the Special Limited Commemorative Golden Knights Edition T-Shirt from the wildly successful Blitz Build of yesteryear.

As I was prepping Fiona for the photo shoot and debating whether or not it was indecent to leave her topless and then post the pictures on the Internets, I started feeling like maybe I was Ryan Gosling's character in Lars and the Real Girl. And Fiona the Dressform was really Bianca the Blow-up Doll. And soon Fiona would get elected to the school board and would start volunteering at various places in town. And then I would get jealous that she had so many friends and was too busy for me and the rest, as they say, would be history.

ANOTHER simplicity 3835 top

Well as the title says, here's another top from the Built by You collection by Wendy Mullin

(Simplicity 3835). It's just a really nice pattern. A few modifications this time. I was inspired by some creative sewers on flickr and made the neckline on this top much looser than the pattern calls for. I probably added 5-6 inches to the recommended elastic length to make it more of a boatneck. More flattering, methinks. I also opted not to use elastic in the sleeves for a crisper look. Per usual, easy little sewing job.

notions organizer, before + after

This past Christmas yielded, among other things, a vintage sewing notions organizer for holding thread, odds + ends, tools, yadda yadda. It was originally upholstered in brown corduroy, which is probably one of my favorite things in this world. But the beloved brown corduroy was quite old and falling apart and fading. Coincidentally, I had just found two coordinating retro repro cotton prints in my stash. I bought a yard each last year, but when moving LAST June I thought I had lost them forever or that a sneaky Fabric Bandit had stolen them. It turns out I just misplaced them. Weird. So anyway, I decided these prints would be PERFECT for a little revamp.

I only took photos of the outside, because the inside still needs some work. When I get around to it, I'll post that part too. To whet your appetite, the inside is lined with the coordinating fabric. AND that coordinating fabric is the exact same print as the inside of those golden flowers on the main fabric. I know, I know-- so hip.

And hey, a shoutout to the freckled one on his birthday. You're getting pretty old.