The Lady Beekeeper

This year for Christmas Will, Julius and I are the only ones who will be at my parents house in RI. We usually do a Secret Santa type thing but we’ve added different twists over the past few years.  Two years ago everyone joked about how we just basically bought exactly what each person asked for and there were no surprises.  Then last year people didn’t want to do it since everyone was remote.  This year I proposed a new twist.

The idea was that we could only purchase second hand gifts or make gifts.  Because thrift stores have a rotating stock of items this meant you were pretty much guaranteed to get a surprise.  My brother (accidentally) dubbed the new gift exchange “Trash Christmas”, which I thought was hilarious.  To prevent anyone from getting actual trash, everyone in the family had to post a public “wish list” with really vague things they enjoy that might be found at a thrift shop. My example was “Corgis, almost anything nerdy, robots, kawaii characters, cook books, crafts of all kinds, flannel, sewing, sci-fi and fantasy novels.  Renaissance or medieval anything.  Party supplies like beautiful serving platters.   A good can’t think of anything gift for me would be to mail me a bunch of fabric from the thrift store.  I’ll find something to do with it.”  Later folks started adding their favorites types of homemade snacks, which I thought was a great addition.

Tonight we are going to have a Google Hangout party to open gifts and play some games.  I made part of my gift, but since I don’t want to reveal anything to the gift giver, I’ll save the post for another day.  Instead I’ll finally show you our Christmas card!

As you know we went as Mario, Peach and Bowser for Halloween.  We had a fabulous local photographer (Shayna Lee Photography) take our photos again this fall and we warned her we were going to want a couple in our costumes.  On the day of the shoot Will and I were so discombobulated that we somehow forgot to pack Will’s Mario costume (though somehow we remembered the hat and mustache).   Luckily Will’s outfit for the shoot had lots of red and blue in it so we deemed the costume “fancy Mario”.  The entire shoot came out fabulous and it was hard to pick our favorites, but this is what we came up with for our Christmas card.

We started with a custom theme on tinyprints and created the front of the card using paint.net.  If you ever want to send out Mario-looking Christmas Cards, I’ve included the template and instructions on how to use it.  Disclaimer: my blog and these blog posts are in no way affiliated with Nintendo and our cosplay and Christmas card are merely paying homage to the original characters through my own original interpretation and parody.  

I wish you all the happiest of holidays!

Super Merry Card

What you’ll need:

• paint.net
• This template
• A high resolution photo of your choice

1. Unzip the template above to reveal the .pdn file.  Open with paint.net
2. Insert photo into the paint.net template on the layer called “Add Photo Here”.
3. Save As->jpeg/png and say “yes” when paint.net asks you if you would like to flatten the image.

Okay I know I said I would show you the play kitchen soon and there is no time like the present.  Here goes…  Let me start by saying Julius LOVES it.  When he first opened it I’d only given him some fake eggs and some old wooden fruit I had along with a bunch of pots and pans, baking sheets and mixing bowls I’d gotten from the thrift store.  All of it cost me around $25, even though one of the pans was $6!  I felt better getting them used rather than buying the Melissa and Doug sets that were manufactured just for play.  Anyway, after I gave him the set I asked him to make me some eggs and he immediately took out a pot, put all the eggs in it, pretended to fill it with water, put it on the stovetop and turned it “on”.  Will looked at me with an impressed look and mouthed “success!”

So I started thinking about the play kitchen this summer.  I know it would have been easier to buy one second hand, but I really wanted to make one.  I’ve seen some pretty great homemade play kitchens on the internet.  One day on the way in to work I saw the perfect solid wood dresser sitting on the side of the road.  I pulled over, took all the drawers out, put them in my car and then realized I couldn’t fit the rest of the dresser with Julius’ car seat in there (and he was in the car seat).  So I took everything out of the car and put it back on the side of the road discouraged.  Later that day, Will was returning from an errand and i asked him to pick up the dresser for me if it was still there.  It was!  This was June 14th.

Dresser soon to be a play kitchen…

Fast forward to September 18th.  I finally was sick of seeing the dresser sitting in our garage, and realized that this project could potentially take me a long time.  I finally dragged the entire thing down to the basement and started disassembling it.

Initially I had gotten the dresser thinking that it would work perfectly to have an oven on the left and a fridge on the right.  Unfortunately I asked Will if he thought it needed a sink (without telling him that would be 300% more work) and he said “definitely).  So I decided to split the dresser into thirds, instead of halves.  This meant I needed to cut down the door on the right hand size and move the partition almost a foot.  I’d also need to somehow divide the now larger left side in half into an oven and sink area.  The top would become cabinets.  Here is the gist of what I needed to do…

I don’t want to bore you with the details of this part, but it took a LONG time.  The dresser was incredibly well made, and didn’t use any screws or anything just clever miters.  I was able to get most of it apart with nothing more than a rubber mallet, but putting it back together was the hard part.  I added braces with scrap wood from portions of the dresser I didn’t need and screwed the refrigerator divider into those to make it stable.  I also extended the oven/sink area top by adding a length of wood from the no longer needed middle shelves and using it as the divider between the two sides and a brace.  I then added the extension of wood on top of this and affixed the other end to the refrigerator divider.  I also cut down and reassembled the bottom-most drawer to make it a shorter width to fit under the oven.  Finally I used more of the scrap wood for the middle shelving and added dividers for drawer-turned-cabinets at the top.  I used lots of wood glue for everything.  This whole part took me 2 weeks working almost every night after work.

Finished cabinet dividers

Finished frame for oven/sink/fridge

Next I assembled all the cabinet faces, refrigerator doors, and oven door.  I was determined to not have to purchase any wood for this project so I made the oven door by cutting the scrap from the refrigerator door in half and gluing it together.  I think it worked out pretty well and you can barely tell.  It was around this time that I decided I needed a router and the whole router and saw incident occurred. I do have a scar from it, but it’s just below another scar that has never healed in grade school, so I doubt it’s noticeable.  I was able to figure out how to use the router and cut a bunch of drawer faces down to size for the upper cabinets, cabinets under the sink and the drawer face from the drawer under the oven.  I also installed the oven bottom (which is a piece of cheap hardboard I actually did end up purchasing).  I installed them using more scrap wood braces.  I also cut the oven top/counter top down to size and rounded the edge using my router (this was a piece of 1/4″ thick wood that I had lying around from some project I don’t remember).

Oven door created from pieces left over from fridge door.

Fridge door cut to size.

Next I cut out a hole for my sink (a cake pan I’d found at the dollar store).  I used a hole saw to drill holes in each corner then used my bandsaw to cut the rest out.  I sealed up the entryline I had to cut with the bandsaw to get into the inside of the piece with sawdust and wood glue.  It worked great.  I also drilled a hole for where the faucet would fit (I bought a real faucet off craigslist for $15).  I cut a hole using a hole saw and then used my dremel to extend the hole to the exact size I needed so the faucet would fit snuggly.  At this point I was also worried that the faucet would be too heavy for my 1/4″ wood countertop, so using scrap wood I built a beefy brace to sit underneath the countertop and surround the faucet.  I then sanded the heck out of everything at this point.

Cutting out the hole for the sink basin.

Brace for the heavy faucet

Faucet snuggly in place.

Here is where I started painting.  I painted the entire countertop/stove top black.  After it dried I divided it in half using painter’s tape and started sponge painting the part over the sink in random patterns (turning the sponge frequently).  I did it using tan, then white, then a grey/purple I mixed myself.  I made sure to also apply paint in the lip above where the sink basin would sit.  I personally think my fake granite came out pretty great.

Using a sponge to dab on fake granite.

Finished fake granite

For the stove, I created a template on my Cricut (you can find it here) and cut it out using stick-on vinyl.  This I stuck to the stove top half of the counter and painted it white.  I touched it up a bit afterwards, but overall this saved me a lot of time and it came out great.  When the entire countertop was dry I sealed all of it using polyurethane.  After the countertop dried I glued the “sink basin” to the counter with E6000.

Using Cricut stencil to paint the stovetop on.

Gluing the sink basin to the countertop.

For the last minute additions before I painted everything I installed the fridge shelves by gluing braces for where the division between fridge and freezer, and fridge shelf would sit.  I cut the shelves from the bottom of the drawers that I wasn’t using.  For the division between where fridge and freezer would sit I used one of the nice mitered pieces from one of the drawer faces and cut it down so it would look a bit fancier.  Since I had this in place I finally cut the fridge door to form the freezer door and fridge door.   I also installed all the braces for the countertop, and cut a piece of hardboard for the backsplash.  And here is when I finally installed the oven side.

Installing shelves for fridge and division for freezer.

Installing oven side

At this point I painted EVERYYTHING.  The inside of the fridge I painted white, and the inside of the stove I painted black.  The stove door and fridge doors I painted with this stainless steel spray paint Roger had given to me long ago (he couldn’t remember why he had it when I told him this).  I spray painted the cabinet knobs silver (ugly white porcelain things that were the first thing I swapped out in my kitchen when we moved in) and the cabinet knobs I used for the oven I spray painted black.  Everything else I painted in this grey cabinet paint which was far more expensive than I should have paid ($25 for a quart!)  I was sort of testing the paint for my kitchen though.  The coverage is amazing – so it may be worth it someday.

Spray painting knobs

Painting cabinet faces

Painted kitchen

After everything dried I installed the countertop/stove top and put in a backsplash using this super cool sticky backsplash material.  (Also probably not worth paying for this, but looks pretty neat).  I then installed all the cabinets using hinges I bought (and 2 that I had from the project already).  Next I installed magnetic catches for the oven and fridge doors so they’d stay shut nicely.  Then I drilled holes for the knobs and installed those.  I installed the faucet and an oven rack I’d made from a cookie rack I got at Dollar Tree.  The finishing touch was to add a puck light I’d gotten from the Dollar Tree over the countertop.

Countertop and backsplash installed.

Finished Kitchen

Finished Kitchen!

View with under countertop lighting

Inside view of top cabinets

Julius cooking

Checking under the sink for pans.

Under the sink

Fridge

Under the counter light…

Oven inside

Cooktop

Final Parts Breakdown

• dresser (free!)
• cabinet knobs (free!)
• assorted spray paints (free!)
• Assorted screws (free!)
• hardboard ($4)
• 14 hinges ($2.78 a pair)
• magnetic clasps ($1.25 a piece)
• faucet ($15)
• sink basin/cake pan ($1)
• paint ($25)
• backsplash ($15)
• puck light ($1)

Total = ~$85.  Overall it was pretty expensive, given that you can buy a new plastic play kitchen for that price.  If I hadn’t bought the darn paint it would have been more reasonable.  But this thing is all solid wood and metal!  No plastic parts on this kitchen!  If you compare it to some of the models at Pottery Barn it was a complete steal!  Plus, I’m damn proud of it.

I’m roasting some pumpkin right now so the muffin man and I can make some pumpkin muffins tomorrow.  I mentioned pumpkin muffins to him last Monday night, but forgot to roast pumpkin that night.  The next morning he asked “I make pumpkin muffins?”  And I had to tell him that Mama forgot to roast the pumpkin, and that we could make another kind instead.  He asked for apple muffins instead which was perfect because I had plenty of apples.  Tonight he asked me again “I make pumpkin muffins?” so I figure I have to actually deliver this time.

Julius’ memory has become incredibly good.  You’d think a toddler would have a memory of about 5 minutes prior, but Julius has a mind like a steel trap!  The other day Will and Julius were heading on a grocery store adventure and I told Julius as he was leaving, “remind Dada to get avocados”.  (They were the only reason I needed him to go to the grocery store.)  He didn’t acknowledge me.  Will said that first they stopped at the gas station, and then eventually pulled into the grocery store parking lot and Julius shouted “ABOCADOS”.  Color me impressed.

Julius also remembers what I dressed up as for Halloween, which I consider very impressive.  If you read my blog post last week, you may also remember that I was Princess Peach, my favorite female Mario character.  Aside from the wig and a couple accessories, my entire costume was thrifted and upcycled.  I found the perfect size and color prom dress at my local thrift store for $9.99. The only problem was it was covered in embroidered flowers and beading.  I also found a perfect dark pink sheet to compliment the dress for $5.99 in the linen section.  Finally I found some cute earrings that look similar to Peach’s for $1.99.  (I have worn these about half a dozen times outside of the costume so I consider these a complete win!)

After I got my booty home (I mean the goods, but I guess also my butt), I got to work on the dress.  What to do about those flowers and beads?  At home I had discovered that the inside of the bodice was lined with exactly the same material as the outside.  Win!  That almost never happens.  Usually they use cheap, lighter material.  This meant I could just disassemble the bodice and flip it inside out.  I removed all the beads and sequins to make this possible.

Before view of the dress – note the sequins and shiny overdress but please ignore the potty and pile of thrift booty

Next I seam ripped the bodice off the skirt of the dress.  This meant stitch ripping down the sideseams where the pleated waist belt was, then along the waist seam where the bodice attached to the skirt.  To completely flip the bodice inside out I also had to completely remove the zipper.  The advantage of removing the bodice from the dress was I could also now completely remove the shiny overskirt.

detaching the bodice from the skirt.

Next, I reassembled the bodice in reverse.  I turned the whole thing inside out then re-stitched the side seams. Then I turned the whole thing right side out again and pinned the bodice to the skirt, with the lining now facing out.

Reattaching the boning on the inner side seams after flipping the bodice.

Before I stitched the skirt to the bodice, I stuck the whole thing back on my mannequin and draped Peach’s pleated peplums using the sheet I’d purchased.  The sheet was a queen sized and 90″x108″.  From the top of the sheet, where the 3″ thick hem was I cut a 24″ strip.  I then cut that in half to form two 20″x45″ rectangles.

Cutting two 20″x45″ rectangles for the peplums

Next I finished the unfinished end of each rectangle, opposite the 3″ thick hem, with a 1/2″ rolled hem.  I then draped the fabric on each side in a sort of  “u” shape with the 3″ thick hem on the outside.  I next made 3 large pleats on each side of the “u” and adjusted it until it sat just right.  When I was satisfied with the result I took it off the mannequin and stay stitched it to the waist of the skirt by hand.  Finally I reattached the bodice to the skirt, sandwiching the pleating inside.

Hemming long side of the peplums

Draping the peplums

Draping the peplums

Draping the peplums

Peplums and bodice reattached to skirt.

Next I reattached the zipper.

I had great plans to add puffy sleeves to the dress, but I was running short on fabric, so first I decided to tackle the bottom hem.  Peach has a strip of dark pink fabric on the bottom of her dress, so I was going to use the rest of the sheet for that.  The dress was way too long for me, and I wanted a 5″ bottom hem of pink so I cut about 10″ off the dress.  The hem of the dress had something I had never seen before.  It had a 1″ strip of plastic horsehair type material, that kept the hem perfectly puffed out and stiff.  I had been worried about how the sheet material would look as the hem of the dress since it wasn’t as rigid of a material as the thick satin of the dress.  This pretty much solved my problem!  Unfortunately this meant removing the plastic horsehair braid from between 2 layers of stitching.  This took a solid hour.

When I finally got the horsehair braid free, I then cut 3 6.5″ wide strips from my pink sheet.  I determined the length of each by measuring the length along the hem of each of the 3 segments of fabric making up the skirt then adding 1″ to each for .5″ seam allowance.  I stitched the 3 pieces together to form a big loop.  Next I hemmed all along the bottom of the loop in a .5″ rolled hem.  I rolled the hem up one more time, then placed the horsehair braid in between.  I did one final stitch to hold it all in place.  Finally I matched up the seams of the loop to the seams of the skirt and stitch the skirt to the pink hem (right sides together).

Attaching the 3 portions of the pink lower hem together forming a loop.

At this point I had a bunch of extra fabric that I was planning to make into puffy sleeves and a high neckline.  I even drafted it out of scrap material.  Eventually I decided the dress looked really great already so I ran out of steam.  The next day I found the perfect turquoise pendant from Michael’s, but it was $13, which was the same price I paid for the entire dress!  Luckily I had a 50% off coupon, so I decided to bite the bullet and get it.  I stitched it on and called it done.

Peach’s still got it!

Overall, it would have taken me far less time to make the dress from raw materials from my favorite fabric store, but it would not have been nearly as puzzle-y, and certainly less environmentally friendly!