Weaving Our Way to Quiet Book Page 9

I don't remember whether our kids liked the weaving page or not but I am assured by daughter-in-law Cheri it is a must.  Checking other quiet book sites, they all agree with Cheri.  Most have included them.  As usual, I looked at several and then took off on my own--- making several variations.

As a result, the weaving page in the 12 books is the only page that will not be the same in each. Because there are several different ones I am going to spread the examples over two Fridays.

Most are very simple ---- a couple not so.

And, once again, I have put something to be discovered when the weaving is "un-weaved."  Just like I did with the snake page.  It is totally unnecessary but it is one of my things.

I will start with the simple.

The first thing I did was "to put whatever I decided to have discovered" on the felt page.

I found it easiest to cut the strips, pin them in place and weave them before sewing them. I cut them longer than needed and trimmed them after the page was finished.  I discovered that if you have the same colors of strips vertically and horizontally  the pattern is different than if you use all different colors.  You will see what I mean when you look at the pictures.

 #1 - Weaving with White

Weaving with vertical colors and white horizontals creates a 
simple checkerboard pattern.

The "discovery" is simply a piece of printed felt
sewn to the base sheet.  I used matching colors for the strips.

#2 - Weaving with mainly matching strips. 

Notice how using mainly the same colors across the top
and sides creates 3-color -block rectangles.

This "discovery" is simply  a section cut from a sheet of scrap-booking paper
 (which was on sale!)
covered in one layer of a plastic sheet protector and stitched in place.

 #3 - Weaving with all different colors

Using all different colors for your strips results in a
simple checkerboard pattern.
The "discovery" in this one is another section of the
scrap-booking paper above.

#4 Weaving using more "boyish" colors

Using only one color, this time vertically, creates a
regular checkerboard look, as in #1 where I used white
strips horizontally.

This "discovery" is a section of flannel I had originally purchased
thinking I would use it to make a match-the-paw print page.
I made the strips from the same colors in the fabric.

#5 - Weaving and. . .hand sewing the strips

With this one I hand-stitched the strips.  Notice each strip is sewn in it's matching color yarn!

I know that sounds like an insane undertaking ---- and it probably is ---- 

but I want to show you a cheap trick on how to accomplish this without needing to buy a bunch of different colors of yarn.

Multi-color skeins!  The length of each color is long enough
to be of use.  I used the muted colors for tails, etc.on  page 4 Mix and Match.
This little trick might come in handy several times over time.

While I really like the look of the matching yarn on the strips  I don't think I am up to doing it 12 times.

I  looked into multi-colored thread (which I hadn't known existed until I read about it on a quiet book blog) and thought that would be fun to use so I took my 40 percent off coupon and headed to JoAnn's.  I figured it would be expensive but hadn't imagined how expensive.  Over $8 per spool. That is when, while I was creative with the yarn, the cheapskate part of me kicked in and I did the others with plain white thread!

If you scroll back up, you'll find white looks okay, and it's a lot easier than changing the thread on the sewing machine.

This "discovery" is another sheet of patterned felt. I tried to
match the strips to all the colors in the pattern.  It may seem like a
lot colors of felt "squares" (they are actually 9x12") to buy but when you are just making one of two
books it only takes an inch or so of one length of the the piece, leaving
a lot of felt to use in the other parts of the book.

When/if you do need to change thread here are a couple of hints 
I use:

This sounds complicated but it is not.  I will use blue as the thread you have been using and red for the next thread you want to use to see if that simplifies the instructions.
1. Leave the sewing machine threaded with the blue thread, and cut that blue thread off near the spool.
2. Remove the blue spool and replace it with the red spool.
3. Using a square knot (granny knots will pull out), tie the ends of the blue and red threads together.
4. Carefully pull the blue thread  through the workings workings and through the needle, until the red thread comes through.  (It does waste some thread but for me, with my declining eyesight and increasingly shaky hands, it saves my sanity.)

For these books, I have not found it necessary to change the color of the bobbin thread when changing the top thread. Another time saver!

And, in hand sewing and  working with several colors, I thread needles in the needed colors before I start. This may not be an issue. This may not be a big issue when making one or two books but it is a big help when making many of the same at the same time --- as in. . .probably the final pages I will post will be the companion center pages of the book.  Those involve 12 approximately 2-inch-high stop lights with red, yellow and green circles hand sewn on each!!!

'til we stitch again....

DIY Shaped Cakes without Special Pans

I realize this is only Thursday.  My regular post will appear tomorrow as usual.

This past week I received a request on my Teddy Bear Cake post of February 8, 2012.
Since she included her e-mail address I responded personally, but then decided I wanted to share what I found with all of you.

Here is the Teddy Bear Cake site---I love this little guy!

http://thecreativecheapskate.blogspot.com/2012/02/simple-teddy-bear-cake-wo-special-pan.html


Her request:

Hi, I used to have a book to make all kinds of cutout cakes, somehow I have lost it and would like more patterns for our grand children. Can you help? I am making the rocking horse for our Grandson's 1st Birthday, just as I did for my son.  Norma

Here is the Rocking Horse site--Heidi's first birthday cake (and first taste of anything sweet!) 49 years ago. 

http://thecreativecheapskate.blogspot.com/2012/02/simple-rocking-horse-cake-to-make.html

along with comments received when the post  first appeared.

Thanks for posting this image online. Back in March of 1981, my mother made this cake for my father's birthday. Right now I am in the middle of recreating a photographs from that day, in which the cake has a role. My mother lost the book that the pattern came from so we were going to have to try and make it from memory. I did an image check through Google and came up with your black and white image of the cake and your patterns.  We are going to make the cake tomorrow. I am excited, but probably not as much as my mom. I'll document the process and blog it a bit later.

Thanks! My daughter is turning FORTY-SIX and has asked for this cake every year for a long time. I lost the old Pillsbury pattern and this is a lifesaver for her birthday this week!

It was great to be able to help them  recreate their  memories.

To help Norma I did some internet searching myself.  Here is what I found. Hopefully it will be of help to
you.

Hi Norma,

I, to, used to have that great little book.  And have missed it many times. I remember it had a sailboat which was easy to make, starting with a square cake; and a butterfly, and a giraffe.  Hopefully just mentioning them will recall them to your memory. 

I did a little internet searching and found many on heart shapes, which use one round and one square cake but also found  the following. Hope they will be of some help

to you.  

Open book cake

http://cakecentral.com/t/742277/open-book-cake-without-wilton-pan

Giant cupcake
http://atsecondstreet.blogspot.com/2010/03/giant-cupcake-cake.html

How to make your own cake pans
http://voices.yahoo.com/make-cake-pans-unique-cakes-27963.html?cat=46

Numbers made from cake
http://veenaartofcakes.blogspot.com/2012/01/number-cakes-one-two-or-twelve-12-or-12.html

Elmo cake
http://diythirdtimesacharm.blogspot.com/2012/06/elmo-cake.html

Star cake

http://clumbsycookie.blogspot.com/2009/02/when-you-wish-upon-star.html

Princess Castle cake (with photos off to the side showing other types of castles
http://www.bettycrocker.com/recipes/pink-castle-cake/30644b1f-8ec2-4c23-b8d8-cce1d9566df4

47 years ago I made a clown cake for our 3 year old twin relatives.  It was time-consuming but a hit.  I have a photo but I am not sure how to copy it to here. I will try.

I can't remember the details but here is the gist of it. I think the body was a rectangle. The head a round pan. The hat was half a round with graham crackers frosted and standing "up" for the brim.  The clown had "shoes" placed at an angle against one end of the rectangle so the soles would be up. They  were also graham crackers frosted together like a sandwich, allowed to soften a while so one end could be gently carved into the round shape at the front of the sole. Square sandwiched crackers were placed at the other end for the heels of the sole.  

A few years later I made Heidi a doll cake using a Barbie-type doll and a cake baked in a bowl.  They were very popular back then;  they might be novel now.

Thanks for writing. 

Happy creating ,

Simply, Gail

Ouiet Book Page 8---Braid Her Hair

I debated a long time over including a braiding page in the quiet book.  One of the main reasons for the debate --- I am not good at creating faces---especially eyes! It finally came to me that I am the one who cares about details, not the little kids who are going to be playing with it.

Before I show you what I did, I want to tell you why I did it and how it can be done differently.

1.  My face parts are simply basic (and somewhat rough) shapes from a single layer of felt.  They "stick" well enough to the face, without any extra stick-um stuff.  Yours could be as elaborate as you feel like, and have the ability, to make them.

2. My hair is yellow because I was lucky enough to          

find pre-cut fleece strips in a bag at a thrift shop.
There were three packages in the bag for $1.99 ---
quite a bargain.  Unfortunately they only had yellow.
You could use yarn, ribbon, or even clean mop strings!
When our granddaughter Siera saw this page she told me
that her mom taught her to braid using three different colors.
I think that's a great idea!

3. Since the fleece is very soft and pliable I was able to make bangs that"fold down" over the forehead.  I left the top of the head open so it could be used as a holder (of something)

4. Again, when I was in the doubting stage of this page, I was uncertain as to what to put on the page along with the face and hair. There were many possibilities.

I decided a simple piece of clothing. It could have been made of fabric or felt or any number of things but since I am making
12 of them I wanted something that would come together quickly ---- plus, as I have said before, I like to add texture when I can.  Is smooth a texture?

I cut a rectangular piece of printed scrapbook paper as a simple dress shape, cut a collar from a contrasting piece, and an under-collar from white with edges cut with scalloped paper scissors. I fastened them together with bits of 2-sided tape and slipped it into a "pocket" cut from a page protector sheet, using the sealed edge of the page as the top. I zig-zag stitched around the page leaving the top of the "dress" open to make a second pocket.

I am pretty sure I have mentioned page protectors before. I am using them in several ways on various pages.

Oh and, just because (and because I had them), I threaded an narrow piece of ribbon through a button, and taped the ends of the ribbon under the collar before I put it in the plastic sleeve.

The pockets  hold the  face pieces and, according to the age of the recipient and your caution level, ribbons, barrettes, etc.

The two flowers at the bottom of the page are felt die-cuts with a small piece of Velcro on the back so they will fasten in her hair.

I decided there needed to be more face parts to play with so I made another mouth, another pair of eyes,
two noses and  a pair of glasses.  I considered making ears but Dave pointed out that since the braids would cover them so they weren't necessary.  Before you see the next picture I have to warn you that as I turned the face over to scan it some parts got kinda catawampus (showing my age, that's an old term for askew or awry) but it is easier to acknowledge the catawampus-ness than it is to re-scan it.

Again, they can be very, very simple, they can be moderate, or you can get "carried away."  I am Simply, Gail, but sometimes I get carried away.  I can promise you the ones I made for our kids when they were young fell in the very simple category.

More of the Way Things Were 'Back Then'

A continuation of  Slow Food with the author's 

MEMORIES from a friend : 

My Dad is cleaning out my grandmother's house (she died in December) and he brought me an old Royal Crown Cola bottle. In the bottle top was a stopper with a bunch of holes in it.. I knew immediately what it was, but my daughter had no idea. She thought they had tried to make it a salt shaker or something. 

Do you recognize what the glass soda pop bottle had been "re-purposed" as? 

Note from Gail: Because I too am old, I knew immediately what it was --- the bottle that sat on the end of the ironing board to 'sprinkle' clothes with because we didn't have steam irons.

Irons? you ask! 

Since I am younger than the author, by the
time I was watching my mother iron, we had 
pre-made sprinkling tops for our pop bottles        
I was watching my mother iron, we had pre-made 
sprinkling tops for our pop bottles. 

Ahh, such progress. 

How Old Are You?

The author continues with the question, "How many of the following do you remember?"

• Head lights dimmer switches on the floor. 
• Ignition switches on the dashboard. 
• Heaters mounted on the inside of the fire wall. 
• Real ice boxes. 
• Pant leg clips for bicycles without chain guards. 
• Soldering irons you heat on a gas burner.
• Curling irons you heated on a gas burner. 
• Using hand signals for cars without turn signals. 

And then offers an Older Than Dirt Quiz, followed by scores : 

Are you game to take it?

Count all the ones that YOU personally  remember ---- not the ones you were told about. 

1. Blackjack chewing gum

2. Wax Coke-shaped bottles with colored sugar water 

3. Candy cigarettes

4. Soda pop machines that dispensed glass bottles 

5. Coffee shops or diners with table-side juke boxes 

6. Home milk delivery in glass bottles with cardboard stoppers 

7. Party lines on the telephone

8 Newsreels before the movie 

9. P.F. Flyers

10. Butch wax 

11.. TV test patterns that came on at night after the last show and were there until TV shows started again in the morning. (there were only 3 channels... [if you were fortunate]) 

12. Peashooters 

13. Howdy Doody 

14. 45 RPM records 

15. S& H green stamps 

16. Hi-fi's

17. Metal ice trays with lever 

18. Mimeograph paper

19. Blue flashbulbs

20. Packards

21. Roller skate keys

22. Cork popguns 

23. Drive-ins

24. Studebaker  (note from Gail: my parents gave me a 1951 model in 1960.)

25. Wash tub wringers 

If you remembered 0-5 = You're still young

If you remembered 6-10 = You are getting older 

If you remembered 11-15 = Don't tell your age,

If you remembered 16-25 = You' re older than dirt! 

Finally, the author concluded with "I might be older than dirt but those memories are some of the best parts of my life".

I am Simply, Gail, and I recognized ALL of them! And, I am thankful that I can. Life was simpler than and these two post were a great memory trip for me, also.

Count your blessings and have a great day!

Remembering When Food Was Slow . . .

and More

I had just finished writing my last post when I opened my e-mail and found the following from my sister-in-law Diane. It seemed totally appropriate to follow the serious with the hilarious --- especially when the ages matched! Many thanks to the original author.

 A young person recently asked me  "What was your favorite fast food when you were growing up?"

"We didn't have fast food when I was growing up," I informed him and continued

"All the food was slow."

"C'mon, seriously. Where did you eat?"

"It was a place called 'at home,'" I explained.

"Mom cooked every day and when Dad got home from work, we sat down together at the dining room table, and if I didn't like what she put on my plate I was allowed to sit there until I did like it."

Note from Gail: When our kids were growing up we had a chalkboard prominently and permanently on display. It read

By this time, the kid was laughing so hard I was afraid he was going to suffer serious internal damage, so I didn't tell him the part about how I had to have permission to leave the table.

Here are some other things I would have told him about my childhood if I figured his system could have handled it : 

• Some parents NEVER owned their own house, never wore Levis, never set foot on a golf course, never traveled out of the country or had a credit card.
• In their later years they had something called a revolving charge card. The card was good only at Sears Roebuck. Or maybe it was Sears & Roebuck. Either way, there is no Roebuck anymore. Maybe he died. 
• My parents never drove me to soccer practice. This was mostly because we never had heard of soccer. 
• I had a bicycle that weighed probably 50 pounds, and only had one speed, (slow) 
• We didn't have a television in our house until I was 19. It was, of course, black and white, and the station went off the air at midnight, after playing the national anthem and a poem about God; it came back on the air at about 6 a.m. and there was usually a locally produced news and farm show on, featuring local people. 
• I was 21 before I tasted my first pizza, it was called 'pizza pie.' When I bit into it, I burned the roof of my mouth and the cheese slid off, swung down, plastered itself against my chin and burned that, too. It's still the best pizza I ever had!
• Pizzas were not delivered to our home But milk was. 
• I never had a telephone in my room. The only phone in the house was in the living room, attached to the wall,  and it was on a party line. Before you could dial, you had to listen and make sure some people you didn't know weren't already using the line. 
• All newspapers were delivered by boys and all boys delivered newspapers-- my brother delivered a newspaper, six days a week. It cost 7 cents a paper, of which he got to keep 2 cents. He had to get up at 6 AM every morning. On Saturdays, he had to collect the 42 cents from his customers. His favorite customers were the ones who gave him 50 cents and told him to keep the change. His least favorite customers were the ones who seemed to never be home on collection day. 
• Movie stars kissed with their mouths shut. At least, they did in the movies. There were no movie ratings because all movies were responsibly produced for everyone to enjoy viewing, without profanity or violence or most anything offensive. 

Have things changed? "Tune in" next week, same time, same station, to learn more about the author's Memories from a Friend and . . . a short quiz on same.

Phases and Symptoms of Alzheimer's Disease --- part two of previous post

My previous post, October 18, provided comforting information regarding the difference between normal forgetfulness and dementia, provided by the Alzheimer's Association many years ago. This post continues with  the phases and symptoms of Alzheimer's Disease, once again presented in the font as it was originally published.

ALZHEIMER'S DISEASE -- PHASES AND SYMPTOMS

First Phase:  
  
Often this phase is deceitful, and no one is sure anything is wrong.

• Less spontaneous, less sparkle
• Slower, less energy, less drive, less initiative
• Less discriminating
• Loss of words
• Slower to learn, slower to react
• Readily made angry
• Seeks and prefers the family, shuns the unfamiliar

Second Phase:

The patient will still be functioning in many ways, but may require help in some activities such as balancing a check book.

• Much slower in speech and understanding
• Great difficulty in making decisions and plans
• Inability to calculate
• Increasingly self-absorbed
• Insensitive to feelings of others
• Avoids situations that may lead to failure
• Loses the thread of a story

Third Phase:

The patient is now obviously disabled.

• Markedly changed behavior
• Uncertain as to how he or she is expected to act
• Directions need to be repeated
• Memory of recent past poor or failing
• Memory of distant past astonishingly clear
• Loses orientation to time and place
• Invents words
• Misidentifies people
• Lethargic
• Little warmth

Fourth Phase:

Help is needed with simple activities of living in this phase.

• Apathetic
• Poor remote or recent memory
• Cannot find the way around at all
• Incontinent
• Perseveration of phrases and syllables
• No recognition of individuals

Progression of mental and physical deterioration may be rapid or may proceed slowly over a number of years. 

Hopefully this information will help you distinguish between normal aging and possible illness. Uncovering this material, given to us long ago, will be of help to Dave and I.  We have just learned that recent medical discovery is recognizing  past traumatic brain injuries can, or seem to, lead to early on-set Alzheimer's. 

Some time ago I posted our experience, 15 years ago, of our youngest son's traumatic brain injury. In it I begged you to wear, and make sure your kids wear, helmets when engaging in activities calling for them. Please read, or reread, it.

http://thecreativecheapskate.blogspot.com/search?q=Traumatic+Brain+Injury

While Brin's recovery was miraculous this new information indicates it may not be lasting.

Helpful (and Comforting) Comparisons Between Dementia and Simple Forgetfulness

As WE get older we find ourselves more and more concerned when we forget where we put our keys or where we parked our car. Or, when names or words escape us!

If YOU are not to the age where you are worrying about yourself there is a good chance you are worrying about your parents or other older loved ones.

Years ago, a  good friend and nurse who deals with the aged, gave me this bit of advice ---- simple, yet comforting.

The problem is not when you realize you are forgetting but rather when you are forgetting and not realizing it.

Fact: We are living much longer
Fact: Often the acceptable cause of death in my grandparent's day was simply "Old Age"
Fact: Dementia and Alzheimer's Disease are more prevalent  with this increased longevity
Fact: There is much greater media focus on the consequences of living longer

and this scares us!!! 

At the same time Carolyn offered the above she also gave me a handout from the Alzheimer's Association. Even though this handout is from the era of typewriters and mimeograph machines, the information is still pertinent --- and comforting --- and I share it with you in the font and format it was originally delivered:

         Dementia vs. Forgetfulness

We forget our keys or where we left a parked car at all ages, but with advancing age, the media focus on Alzheimer's Disease, and watching Alzheimer's destroy someone; forgetting begins to worry us more.

Normal forgetting is most often caused by inattentiveness, distractions or trying to keep too many details in mind at once. We most often forget recent things of little importance (dates, names, numbers, or complicated facts) and we rarely forget remote cherished memories kindled by frequent re-telling.

With normal forgetting, memory aids help. (Written notes, classifying lists, repeating messages or names our loud, or associating names with concrete visual images.)

With advancing age, it takes longer to react to events and to store them in memory. (We accumulate more stored memories with age as well.) But, we continue to learn and remember throughout life. In fact, comprehension and judgment may actually improve with age in the absence of disease.

Since changes in memory occur as part of the normal aging process, it is important that these changes are not mistaken for serious disorders, such as Alzheimer's Disease. Any memory changes that affect a person's ability to function deserve medical attention because of the possibility to reverse or stop the loss of brain function. 

Depression, Grief, Fatigue, Nervousness, Any Illness, Alcohol, Medications, and Overwhelming Responsibilities may all cause temporary memory loss and confusion. Depression and fatigue affect attention and concentration. If you can't concentrate, memories can't be learned or stored for later use. But, depression in persons of any age responds to various treatments.

Vision or hearing loss affects recent memory. If events, faces or conversations are perceived inaccurately, they can't be store in memory.

EXAMPLES OF MEMORY CHANGES THAT OCCUR AS PART OF THE AGING PROCESS

Forgetting appointments unless they are written down.
Forgetting names & faces of old acquaintances, but not close friends.
Difficulty remembering phone numbers
Learning new information more slowly, but still learning and remembering new things.


If you are noticing behaviors outside of the above, more investigation may be needed. 

Next Friday's post will continue with
                              ALZHEIMER'S DISEASE -- PHASES AND SYMPTOMS 
the handout I received at the same time as the above.