Ever wanted your own Radio Station...

From Pandora, a Music Genome Project:

Can you help me discover more music that I'll like?

Those questions often evolved into great conversations. Each friend told us their favorite artists and songs, explored the music we suggested, gave us feedback, and we in turn made new suggestions. Everybody started joking that we were now their personal DJs.

We created Pandora so that we can have that same kind of conversation with you.

Free* streaming music based on your personal tastes.

Try it out!

What are you waiting for?!

Check out my first Pandora station on my sidebar.


* Supported by advertising, of course!

Loveseat Update:

I found two place online where someone actually photo documented their sofa reupholstering project, here and here. I was amazed that in this current DIY culture that reupholstering instructions were not easier to find and believe me, I tried!

Before:


After:


I did finally sew the adjustments I pinned into my store bought slipcover way back when I started this blog. I altered the arms and it makes a HUGE difference that they now fit. I was able to keep the piping in place so it looks as if it was originally made to fit. I have a small loveseat and I bought a slipcover for a slightly larger one so it still has too much length from arm to arm and the elastic they put in back for adjustments just bunches up. I will have to take it off again, turn it inside out, and pin some more adjustments for those changes. However, with just this small change, it fits better and doesn't slide around as much when in use.



I also seriously looked into prices on foam for the one-piece bench cushion I want. I entered the dimensions (44" x 26" x 4") into the appropriate forms on FoamOrder.com and FoamSource.com. They each offer different grades of foam in three densities. Since this is going to be a temporary solution I selected the lowest grade and a medium density foam.

Foam Order's quote came to $68.85.
Foam Source's quote came to $63.24.

Very doable.

Love Love Lanetz Living!

Due to my voracious web surfing I find cool sites, products, ideas, and advice all the time from all over the world. Today I want to tell my fellow sewing friends about one of them.

I read A Dress A Day daily which is literally what it sounds like. A discussion or presentation of some great dress (usually vintage) found online and why it appeals to the writer.

Well, sometimes she uses vintage patterns as examples, because since she can sew, it is possible for her to recreate some of these dresses that she presents. She mentioned one source of vintage patterns about a month ago; Lanetz Living, and how they were offering a discount to her readers.

I started stalking the site looking for gems. She has so many patterns and most of them have never been used. Maybe the cover isn't as pretty as it once was, but the pattern pieces are like new. One Sunday morning, I ordered three patterns online using my discount. I also received free shipping because I had ordered three or more items.

Wednesday afternoon, I came home for lunch and there they were. In a tiny Manila envelope, each in its own ziploc baggie with a sheet of stationary notepaper ready to jot down all the pertinent details of each project.

Yes, they are very simple and I could definitely sew more advanced garments.

However, these are so classic in style and with the right fabric they could be spectacular! Most of my clothes are in solid colors, but with these simple shapes I am going to take advantage of the great patterned fabrics out there now. Hello Fabric.com, Cia's Palette or Reprodepot!

Check out Lanetz Living, their selection is great and the customer service is the best I've encountered on the Web to date.

Finding Inspiration

When you are about to tackle a HUGE project it is best to be inspired for success.

1st Inspiration:



While searching for sofa reupholstering information, I found the above sofa image. See the similarity between that and mine...the rolled arms? I prefer rectangular block arms so I needed to find a rolled armed sofa that I liked for inspiration purposes. I like the way this sofa looks without all the cushions, which in my case are lumpy cushions.

2nd Inspiration:

A great redo of a traditional sofa showed up in the pages of the fall/winter 06 issue of Real+Life Decorating, unfortunately, they don't have pictures available on the Web so I had to scan it in. They not only covered a camelback sofa in an incredible chili-red velvet color but they also gloss painted the wood legs to match. Then they added a great patterned gold/red/brown bolster to lay across the back.



I am thinking that if I take my loveseat above and...

• Strip and recover the base of the loveseat in a great solid color,
• make one bench cushion for the seat; eliminating the sliding around that the two cushions do now, and
• remove the lumpy back cushions and replace them with one fabulous funky bolster across the back...I just might be able to fall in love with my loveseat.
  

What do you think?

Peaches and cheese?

I scooped this easy recipe from the blog Something to Say. I must try this. It's a weird combination but my mouth is already watering.

Cut some peaches in half and grill them or cook them in a cast iron skillet until heated throughout. Immediately fill the hollows with 3 tablespoons of gorgonzola or blue cheese and some walnuts. If desired, you can drizzle them with honey too.