For the Love of Books

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Hatchet

I am sure most of you read this in school, but I wasn't lucky enough to have the chance. This is a story of surviving in the wild. A young man learns to fend for himself after the unthinkable happens and he is left alone in an unknown place. I enjoyed this book, but it helped that it was short. There were little lessons to be learned hidden within this book... that self pity gets you no where, and it is encouraging to work hard. I was surprised to find out that there is actually sequel and an entire Hatchet series. I think I might read them since I am curious as to what becomes of Brian!

Call of the Wild

I read this book when I was in school, and when I saw it at the library I felt like I should re-read it. This is a timeless classic that breaks my heart every time. I have a huge soft spot for animals and this book makes me cry like a baby. I have now made a promise to myself to never read it again! Twice is enough times to have to hear all the sad things that happen to Buck. Did you cry when reading this book? Please tell me I am not alone.

The Colorado Kid

After liking The Gingerbread Girl I thought I would give this book a chance. I truly enjoyed the way it was told from the perspective of two small city reporters. It is a great mystery and will keep you wondering until the end. It is super short and I highly recommend you give it a try if you like murder mysteries. 

What have you been reading lately? I am ready for fun and easy beach-type reads... have any recommendations?

~Charlie

Tips For Restyling a Thrifted Secretary Dress

I love this dress. I love the bow patterned fabric and I love the little tie. The only issue with it was that it swallowed me whole when I put it on... time to restyle it! Sorry, when I make a restyle really fit me I can't get it back on the dress form, but I promise a picture of me wearing soon! I honestly can't wait to wear this dress out!

Here is the process I used to restyle this dress. I am not a professional seamstress! This is just a hobby, and I am sure I am not doing things the proper way, but I have found that for a beginner like me this has been what works. Maybe it will help you to restyle something too!

1. Work with your dress inside out.

2. Remove the shoulder pads using your seam ripper (and get comfortable with your seam ripper).  I know it will be tempting at times to just cut things, but I promise... that shortcut could cost you in the end.

3. Remove your sleeves. Again, with your seam ripper!

4. Now that the sleeves are removed, put your dress on inside out and see how much you need to take it in on the sides. From the armpit down through the waist, pin or mark how much you need to take in on each side.

5. After you make sure both sides are equal, you are ready to sew the sides of the dress. It really does help to have the appropriate needle for the fabric. Since a lot of these dresses are made from a slippery polyester, I opt to use a ballpoint needle to help ensure the fabric does not pucker.

6. Once you have the sides sewn, put the dress on one more time (the right way this time) and make sure everything looks correct. If it does, turn it back inside out and cut off the excess. If you want, you can use pinking sheers, but you can also serge the seam.

7. Once the excess is cut, it is time to finish the sleeves.  Simply take the extra fabric you have and roll it in twice, pin and sew.

8. Lastly, I often need to hem my dresses. For this I just cut it and use my rolled hem foot to finish it.

I hope this is clear, but if not please let me know! I am thinking that in the future I will share more tips on the different ways I tackle my restyles... what do you think? You can see restyles from the past here, check it out!

~Charlie

Thrifted: Shorts

Yep, I am going to attempt elastic waist shorts. Laugh if you must, but they're really comfy and I am thinking that if you pair them with a cute blouse you won't even be able to tell. To be honest, I didn't know the yellow tennis skirt was a pair of shorts until I was attempting to put it on the dress form and it wouldn't go... yea, I am really observant! Either way, I like it... a nice bright color for the summer.

I have had the blue khaki shorts for a while. Enjoying them is what made me more confident in thrifting other pairs of shorts. In general, I have a horrible time with shorts... they were always too short, too tight, or had improper rip placements (I would really rather you didn't see my underwear). As you can see, none of these shorts have any of those issues.... they may be a bit dorky, but that is one issue I'm totally okay with!

~Charlie

Treasured

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I hope you guys don't get sick of seeing these because I love sharing them!
~Charlie

Hello!

We took a long weekend to enjoy the Tulip Festival in Holland, MI... we had a lovely time! I am attempting to get back into the swing of things today, and so I leave you with a lovely picture of tulips I took on the trip.

~Charlie

Shop Update!

These pretties are in the shop! Plus, for being such awesome readers you can get 15% off of your purchase by using coupon code: MAYFLOWERS15. This offer will expire May 5th... go take a look!

~Charlie

May Goals

April, where did you go? Last month seriously flew by for me... geez! On to May goals!
1. Catch up on my reading.
2. Make a new spring/summer wreath.
3. Go on a bike ride.
4. Try a new grilling recipe.

April recap:
1. Add new flowers to the shop. Fail - but realizing I failed lit a fire under my butt, and there are 6 flowers ready to go in the shop.... even took pictures!
2. Try 2 new recipes. Done - I now have a deep love for asparagus and roasted potatoes.
3. Launch the blog redesign. Done - and I am really liking it. Still need to add a few photos, but I hate taking pictures of myself.
4. Pin something and do it! Done - Made a fun light for my craft room, see it here.