French Toast

Sundays are a good day for a hot breakfast (or brunch!). This recipe is easy to execute. Keep in mind that egg quality will make a big difference in the final outcome (and color). This particular day the toast was served with a delicous warmed marion berry jam from local company Mountain Fruit Co. Fruit compotes, thick fruit syrups, or real maple syrup are all great toppers (along with a little pat of salty butter, of course).

French Toast with Jam

French Toast
Yield: 6 slices (serves two people)
Prep time: 5 minutes
Cook time: 5-8 minutes per slice


Ingredients


2 eggs, room temperature
1/2 C cream (or milk)
1 tsp vanilla extract
1/2 tsp cinnamon (optional)
2 TB white sugar
6 slices stale french breadsalted butter for frying
2-3 TB Topping of choice


Instructions

1. In medium dish or bowl, beat eggs, cream, vanilla, cinnamon, and sugar until smooth.
2. Soak bread in batter, at least 30 second each side.
3. In frying pan over low-medium temperature, fry battered bread in butter a few minutes each side until golden brown.
4. Keep warm in low oven while preparing the rest of breakfast.
5. Serve warm with a small pat of butter and a heated topping such as jam, thick fruit syrup, or maple syrup. You can dust with icing sugar if topping is served on the side.

Tip: Fresh french bread that goes stale overnight is the perfect bread for this. Cut slices at an angle for attractive presentation. Slices of bread can be frozen, and toasted lightly before battering for added dryness.

ideas

I just bought this grey corduroy for a men's jacket.

And I've got my eyes on this coral fabric for a top. (Update: I bought this fabric.)

I think my next project will, however, be a blouse!

Vote for Me

Are you a member of yourstylerocks.com? Then you can (and should!) vote for my design "Mid 60s Mod Mini" in their current contest "Mad Women," closing April 30.

YourStyleRocks holds contests where the winning clothing design is rendered into a free downloadable pattern (standard sizing).

I think my dress would be fun to make, so vote for my design!

casual top sequel

Simplicity 1938 in rayon blend jersey

I just completed this casual top.
I may have mentioned I got a stripe jersey in a rayon blend when I was in Oakland. I love rayon jersey. Love it! Many of my (and your) favorite RTW drapey tops, skirts, and PJs are probably made of this wonder fabric. So you'll be glad to hear that this stuff isn't too difficult to sew with.
This is the second stretch garment I've attempted and I'm fairly happy with the results. Perhaps a B for execution but A for wearability.
I reused Simplicity 1938. I left the lower hem raw, shortened the sleeves to the elbow, adding elastic. This jersey behaved pretty differently as you can see comparing the first top to the second. I don't know what else to say about this top other than I'm sure I'll wear it all the time!

First version of Simplicity 1938 in horrendous polyester interlock

Self-drafted Pleated Skirt - Done!

Well it came out a little bit long - which I didn't notice until I saw the pictures. And it's a little loose at the waist (somehow). And I got a run in my tights right before taking these pics. But otherwise I'm pretty happy with the results.

You can see the bend of the knee and how much longer the skirt is!

Here is the zip and vintage glass button. And loose-fitting waist.

Here is my bad posture and a good shot of the shape of the skirt.

Ta da! My first skirt :)

Skirt nearing completion

Spent a lot of time hand sewing today. Slip stitching the inside of the waistband to be exact, then finishing the zipper, and the button loop. Had time to hem but am just over it! Here is a sneak peek.

Print-tastic Skirt

Yesterday I designed the skirt pattern in 1/4 scale and then drafted it onto contractor's paper. I used "Pattern Drafting for Dressmaking" (which I have an e-copy of) and actually chose the first project, "side inverted pleat with dart shaping."

Today I have cut out the three pattern pieces and am trying to construct it. I've never made anything pleated before. When I'm at a loss I cast about for references. There's a little bit in "Complete Guide to Sewing," this picture tutorial, this pdf "Darts, Ease, Gathers, Pleats, Shirring, Tucks" that addresses the problem. What I am unsure about executing the is dart releasing the pleat...

University of Kentucky College of Agriculture Cooperative Extension Service - your PDFs are rad. I haven't found any lists of PDFs and just bump into y'all with google but when I find one, it's golden.

Anyway I should get back to that construction just thought I'd stop by and check in.

Print-tastic

For my birthday my spouse took me to see the ballet in San Francisco. We made it in to a weekend trip so Saturday we went shopping. I got this black and white print fabric in a heavy, smooth polyester at Silk Road in Oakland. I knew when I saw it that it ought to be a skirt - fabric store lady suggested a jacket which is a great idea but not something my wardrobe needs as badly. Here is an example of the skirt shape I'm thinking about. The question now is, do I have time to draft and construct it to be ready by my birthday (on Monday!)?

Quick Casual Top

I wanted to try my hand at making a top. I went to Joanns and nine dollars and three days later I have... Simplicity 1938 view B. This top has a banded V neck, 3/4 length raglan sleeves, and a loose fit.
I wanted to practice with stretch so got a cheap black fabric (literally and figuratively). I think a better choice would have been something silkier or something rayon.
The pattern was fairly easy to execute. There seemed to be some missing information which is unusual. The neckband was a little fiddly so I do recommend hand basting each step of the neck band. However I think it went well - and this is the fastest garment I've ever put together!
I would recommend this top if you like loosely fitted garments with a modest shape... especially if you like prints which would look much better than this solid color. There's a lot of "silky" prints at Joanns, often on sale. You could pair this top with basic trousers, jeans, and slim skirts and it would be work/school appropriate for just about everyone.
I am thinking about remaking this top in a very lightweight cotton for summer. It would be a little more time consuming in a woven due to seam finishing but I think the pattern would need no modifications. Looking at the pictures, however, it may need to have shorter sleeves and something is going on with the back bunching and wrinkling.
Overall though, I'm happy :)

Simplicity 1938 B, front

Simplicity 1938 B, back

Choc Chip Muffins

Today I'm cooking up a second batch of chocolate chip muffins as they were such an epic hit. I don't need to tell you that muffins are great because they're portable. Choc Chip is pretty decadent but with a nice white coffee it will really hit the spot one cold morning! One further great thing about these is they freeze up and microwave really well.
I've taken Felicia's basic muffin recipe and made it choc chippier. This time I've used a blend of milk chocolate and mini bittersweet choc chips but you can use whatever you want, including chunks and jumbo chips.

Standard: 12 muffins / 15 minutes

Jumbo: 6 muffins / 19 minutes

Baking Temperature: 400°F

Ingredients

2 C AP flour

1 TB baking powder

1/2 tsp salt

2 eggs

1 C milk or cream

2/3 C packed brown, or white sugar

8 TB melted butter

1 tsp vanilla

10 oz chocolate chips

Instructions

1. In secondary bowl, whisk together flour, baking powder, and salt.
2. In large bowl, whisk together eggs, milk, sugar, butter and vanilla.
3. Add dry ingredients to wet but do not overmix.
4. Fold in chips reserving an ounce or two for the tops
5. Pour into greased muffin tins (or lined with paper cups)
6. Sprinkle with a few extra chips.
7. Bake at 400°, 15 mins for regular size or 19 minutes for jumbo, until stick comes out clean.

Tips

• You can use white sugar and a dash of molasses together for brown sugar.
• Muffin by Felicia Bock.