Life Lately

March 25, 2019 by mymateriallife

I’ve been playing with Barbie dolls again. And as you might have guessed, the toilet paper roll knitter. The beanie (about 12 rows of knitting with a crewel wool on a six-stick loom) and the scarf (knit with sock weight wool on just two sticks of the same loom) were props for an in-patient broadcast I did at a hospital where I volunteer. We supplied kits for the kids so they could follow along and knit when I wasn’t making […]

Categories: Kid Stuff, Knitting • Tags: barbie knits, french knitting, glass markers, pet knits, toilet paper roll knitting

Favorite Recipe Links: Turkey Meatloaf, Drop Biscuits, Taco Shell Seasoning

January 30, 2019 by mymateriallife

I’ve been meaning to tell you about this turkey meatloaf recipe, the only one I may need from here on out because it’s loved not just by me, but by every human in my house. It’s got all of the flavoring you really want in a meatloaf (onion, garlic, Worcestershire, ketchup) and nothing extraneous like vegetables (that seem to me should be served outside of your loaf). When I make this I cut the recipe amounts in half because we […]

Categories: Savories • Tags: best drop biscuit, recipes, seasoned taco shells, turkey meatloaf

Bereft, Bothered & Bewildered

January 16, 2019 by mymateriallife

Dear Stumpy, It’s been one week and two days since we said goodbye. When I think back on it now I wonder how we were ever able to say it was OK to begin with the first injection. I remember telling a couple of people that we could tell you were ready, but now I’m thinking you weren’t ready at all. You just wanted to keep doing your favorite things: going out to sit on your seat wall and drinking […]

Categories: Cats • Tags: cats, grief, mourning, pets

Good Night Sweet Prince

January 7, 2019 by mymateriallife

And flights of angels sing thee to thy rest! Stumpy, 2000 – 2019  

Categories: Cats

Oh Pasta Tree, Oh Pasta Tree

December 22, 2018 by mymateriallife

I’ve been dreaming of a trio of white pasta trees ever since I came across the trees shown here at Deborah Greene’s Mod + Mint blog a few years ago. After a disappointing paint job with a can of gloss white Rust-Oleum that was not white, but grey, I’m finally satisfied with their final Krylon satin white finish coat. And that’s a wonderful thing because I’ve been wanting to get these right for the last three years. My first attempt […]

Categories: Christmas • Tags: christmas decor, pasta trees

A Ballerina Snow Globe for Andrea

December 21, 2018 by mymateriallife

Soon after I learned that my ballet teacher Andrea and her husband set up two separate Christmas trees (one is devoted entirely to Andrea’s ballet performance memorabilia), I saw a golden gnome snow globe in a catalog and knew immediately what I wanted to give Andrea for Christmas. I was excited; I missed snow globe making and I’d been wanting to do something new with the plastic ballerina cake toppers I bought from a local cake decorating shop years ago. […]

Categories: Christmas • Tags: ballet, plastic ballerina cake topper, snow globe

A Few of My Favorite Things (Early December Edition with an Alphabetical Twist)

December 5, 2018 by mymateriallife

“A” is for Advent. This is a German Advent calendar called Baumfrevel that I ordered from My Growing Traditions. I’m so glad I discovered MGT last year. I’d already gotten Samantha one of those tea bag calendars for this year, but when I decided to take a look at their site last week and I found this naughty doggie I just had to buy it too. We’re also enjoying Jacquie Lawson’s Online Edinburgh Advent calendar. Oh my goodness, the music, […]

Categories: Christmas, Savories • Tags: advent calendars, bells, christmas, favorite things, latkes, lebkuchen, polenta

The Easiest Kind of Cake to Mix Up and Bake

November 2, 2018 by mymateriallife

That’s a pretty little piece of cake, isn’t it? This is one of those “wacky” cakes that you can mix up right in your cake pan. Have you ever heard of those? I only learned about them earlier this year and that surprised me considering how old I am and how old these cakes are (Depression-era or WW ll depending on who you believe). Not only can you mix up the cake right in your pan (meaning no mixing bowls […]

Categories: Sweets • Tags: crazy cake, easy cake, wacky cake

A Spectral Ball Gown for the Lawn

October 27, 2018 by mymateriallife

Hello again. Are you still out there? Well I’m still here! And I’ve always wanted to make one of these chicken wire ball gowns to add to my growing menagerie of Halloween lawn spooks. The other day I found myself at loose ends or set adrift, whatever you like to call it. You see I’d been dumped from my service as a juror. Well that’s what happens when you’re just an alternate. One minute you’re in – using your juror […]

Categories: Halloween • Tags: ball gown, chicken wire, ghost, halloween, poultry netting