My Mother in Law, MaMa, is here, and we’ve been having loads of fun. She’s an excellent cook, so we’ve been spending all of our spare time in the kitchen. Of course, that leaves no time for my craft room…but it’s a small price to pay for all of the delicious food she’s teaching me to make! (At this point, she’s over her shyness, and doesn’t even bat an eye when I pull out the camera every time she pulls out pots and pans. Heh.)
Her first night here, we all exchanged Christmas gifts. I wanted her to use her gift from me right away…and was really excited to see what she would think of it.
She liked it. *grin*
Yes, I’m dragging this out. It’s what I do! Here’s the quilt, all quilted, and waiting for my fabulous peeps to come over and help me sew the binding on. (Seriously, quilting bees are just one of the coolest things I can think of right now. I machine sewed the front of the binding on, and then a friend, a sister, and my mom helped me hand sew the back of the binding. Amazing.)
This is a blog for my crafts, right? So…essentially, a space for me to brag on the stuff that I make?
Alright. Good. Just checking.
I made a bookcase. Yes, yes. I know. Please, hold your applause until after the show!
Our home is still very “new” to us…and we are still figuring out how to live and work in this space. One thing that I knew we needed was a bookshelf for Ming Wai’s room. Her old room had a wall of built-ins, and they were full of books, knick knacks, treasures, toys and stuffed animals. Her new room boasts a dresser, which she’s never had before…but no place for her books. Keeping her squirrelly brother in mind, I needed a bookcase that was squat, un-tippable, and preferably could be stood upon. (Because if something is squat and sturdy, a small boy will find a way to stand on it. And possibly jump off.) I decided that what I needed was a bench, with storage underneath.
Enter Ana-White.com. Basically, she’s a housewife in Middle of Nowhere, Alaska, with really great taste in furniture…and absolutely no way to get to a store and buy it. So…she makes it. This particular bench is a dead ringer for this one, from Land of Nod.
(I added 12” to it and really did intend to make a cushion…but Ming Wai’s stuffed animals don’t seem to mind sitting on the hard wood!)
You can get the plans here.
Oh, and did I mention that making furniture yourself gets you out for a fraction of the cost? Yeah, baby! Less than $50 for all the materials. The only thing I needed was…someone who know how to build furniture, because I don’t even own a saw. Luckily, I have a new friend (Hi, Tasha!) who just happens to be awfully handy with tools, and is slowly filling her home with handmade furniture. Yes!!
I dropped the kids off at my sister’s place, showed up at Tasha’s, and we went to work! It took us just one morning to make the bench. She did the cutting, I put things together (with a lot of direction from her!) and it came together pretty easily! Of course, it took me several months to get it sanded, primed, painted and sealed…but, who’s counting, right? The important thing is that now? Ming Wai has a place for her collection of books (with room to spare! *phew*) and a place to sit while staring out the window, dreaming her dreams.
And that just makes me happy.
(Yes, those are Christmas lights around her window. Her Daddy does it every year, just for her, because it makes her happy. Amen.)
Love,
Aunt LoLo, Builder Extraordinaire
PS – Here’s my next project. Wish me luck!
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