This Week in My Haven: No. 17
This week in my haven we did settle back into our school and work schedule. The world around me might still be a topsy-turvy mess, but I was able to find a little more steadiness this week within my home. I was very productive in my sewing studio despite being without my sewing machine a couple days while I had a little issue with the needle position fixed. All the new listings in the shop are evidence of all this productivity. What’s your favorite new thing in the shop? I’d love to know!
Shop announcements: More new items are being added every week!
I’ve named my new table linens collection “Morning Sun” because all the colors remind me of watching the sun come up in the morning. There are placemats, cloth napkins, totes, and aprons available now with more items coming soon!
My second collection of new items is called “Color Your Haven” and is all about getting creative and making something one-of-a-kind by coloring your own mask or placemat. These make a great gift for kids!
What I’m thinking about: Waiting. When you were a kid did you ever think things like, “I can’t wait until I’m a grown up so I can eat ice cream for dinner?” My thoughts have been running along similar lines lately, but it sounds more like this: I can’t wait until we have our coronavirus vaccines so we can throw a dinner party. And this: I can’t wait until it’s safe to attend events like craft fairs and classes. I know those days are coming and they will be just as good as eating a hot fudge sundae with extra whipped cream for dinner, but until then I need to exercise patience.
What I’m making: I received a gift card for my birthday to Quilter’s Quest, the local shop where I bought my new Bernette 05 Academy sewing machine last month. While I was there having my machine looked at, I picked out a pair of prints to use for some new cloth napkins for us and another pair for making myself a new purse. The napkins are all done and in use, but I still need to find a few purse making supplies.
What I’m cooking: I mentioned last week that I received Six Seasons: A New Way with Vegetables by Joshua McFadden and I tried one of the easiest recipes from it last week. I made a flavored butter and we used it as a seasoning for ribeye steaks and turnips. It might not sound too exciting, but it was delicious! I highly recommend trying out making your own flavored butters to try on both proteins and vegetables. We also were feeling like we needed to scale back to a normal level on the sweets after all the holiday and birthday goodies, so Joanna and I made peanut butter, banana, honey & oat cookies with m&ms. These cookies are just lightly sweet and so soft, with a nice texture from the oats. They are also dairy-free and gluten-free, so they are versatile for many diets. I will definitely make these again and again, possibly changing up the mix-ins.
What I’m reading: I got a new Kindle Paperwhite for my birthday so I have been enjoying reading before I fall asleep almost every night. I used the Libby app to check out a couple new books from the library on it this week. I picked one serious read and one light read so that I can choose what to read based on my mood. My serious read is So you want to talk about race by Ijeoma Oluo. I am already getting so much out of this book even though I’m only a couple chapters into it. Even though race is a heavy, difficult topic, her tone makes the book very approachable. I’ll let you know more of what I think as I read further. My light read is Kopp Sisters on the March by Amy Stewart. This is the fifth installment in this series and I have enjoyed all of them as I’ve read them over the past couple years. In addition to having interesting plots and endearing characters, I also appreciate how the books tackle the role of women in society in the early 1900s.
We have a three day weekend ahead of us with no plans as such, but I am hoping we find a way to observe MLK day by doing an act of service or kindness. I hope your weekend is filled with kindness too.
(Disclosure: I do not receive any compensation for the recommendations or reviews I post here. All opinions are my own.)
