Puppy chow. And a few other little things…

This recipe is one of our favorites. Great for kids, picnics, potlucks, and ric rac glass days! Yummy, chocolate-y, and oh-so-simple.

Puppy Chow

4 cups powdered sugar

12 oz. Crispix cereal (off-brand works just as well)

12 oz. milk chocolate chips

1 stick butter (or margarine)

1 1/2 cups creamy peanut butter

Dump your powdered sugar into a trash bag and set aside. Pour cereal into a large mixing bowl. Microwave chocolate chips, peanut butter, and butter for 2 minutes on high. Stir. Microwave again, until melted smooth. Stir; pour mixture over cereal. Mix gently to coat cereal. Pour cereal into bag with powdered sugar. Shake and eat.

We like to put puppy chow into small individual ziploc bags when taking it to a potluck. That keeps all of the little hands out of the bowl. At home, it usually doesn't last long enough to make it into the cabinet… warm puppy chow is hard to beat!

Oh yes– the other little things. First, we want to thank each and every one of you for your amazing response to our happy scrappy quilt giveaway. We couldn't be more surprised! Maybe we should do it more often?

A tutorial to re-make a man's dress shirt is coming soon, Lord willing! We'll try to have it up in the next several days.

New patterns in the works, too! We'll be back soon…

xo~ the Long ladies

the man-shirt makeover

We girls started thinking recently… about men's dress shirts, that is. They come in absolutely every color, lots of different fun prints, and enormous sizes. That means there's a lot of neat fabric there! And if all of that weren't nice enough, men's shirts (often in brand new condition) are a dime a dozen at local thrift stores. So we grabbed our trusty scissors, sewing machine, and tape measure to whip up this fun little number! What do you think?

We cut off the sleeves and hemmed the raw edges to create a kimono-style top. Then we used those sleeves to make the cumberbund. (Oh, did we mention that this shirt was gigantic?) The collar had to go too. Here are some before shots…

Achaia loved this shirt when she saw it… and red looks so nice on her! After we finished fitting the shirt and changing the collar, we cut the hem of the shirt off– longer in the back, to give it some vintage edge.

Ta-da! She loves it.

Hooray! Street fair skirt sewing patterns are here at last!

We are so very happy to finally be able to announce that our first sewing pattern for ladies is now available! You can find them right over here. The street fair skirts pattern comes in two size groups (2-10 or 10-18), with full-sized pattern pieces and fully illustrated instructions (of course!). Special thanks to all of the sweet ladies who've pre-ordered one of these patterns. They'll be in the mail at the beginning of next week, Lord willing!

street fair skirts by marie-madeline studio~

So we're busy folding patterns today. And doing something else that you all will be very interested in. Wouldn't you like to know? Well, you can't yet… you'll just have to wait and find out!

when life gives us lemons

We just make Lemon-blueberry bundt cake, of course!

Wouldn't you like to join us for a slice?

Lemon-Blueberry Bundt Cake
For bread:
    3 cups unbleached bread flour
    1/2 t. baking soda
    1/2 t. salt
    3/4 cup butter, melted
    1 3/4 cups sugar
    2 T. minced lemon zest (you'll need 3-4 lemons for zest & juice)
    3 eggs
    1/4 cup fresh squeezed lemon juice
    3/4 cup plus 2 T. milk
    3/4 cup blueberries
For glaze:
    1/4 cup sugar
    1/4 cup fresh squeezed lemon juice
    2 T. butter, melted

Beat eggs, sugar, butter, lemon zest, and lemon juice. Add flour, soda, and salt; mix thoroughly. Then add milk, stirring well and scraping sides of bowl. Finally, fold in blueberries. Spoon batter into prepared pan (this can either be done in a bundt pan, or in two loaf pans). Bake at 350 degrees until toothpick comes out clean — approximately 55 minutes. Let cool slightly; then drizzle 1/2 of the glaze over bread while still in pan. After cake is inverted, drizzle remaining glaze on top.

Enjoy!

xo~ the Long ladies

more of these pretties…

Are up in the shop. Our lovely Nana is just one happy camper!

for everyone who loves a good bag….

…introducing a "packie" tutorial! Our version of the wonderful messenger-style bag is here! We have to give Abigail the credit for this one. She wanted a new bag for an upcoming event, drew up what she had in mind, cut it out, sewed it together, and Voila! A great go-anywhere messenger bag perfect for anything and everything. So, grab some fabric and get sewing. Enjoy!

P.S. Just a nice, little warning— these are terribly cute!!

Messenger-Style Bag complements of Abigail (aka the "packie" queen)

NOTE: All seams are 1/4" unless otherwise noted!

Step 1~ Find some brown wrapping paper, tissue or freezer paper to make your own pattern pieces. Trace with a ruler, and cut out the following shapes (all of these will be cut on the fold, except the main bag piece!):

side pocket from lining fabric- 4" wide ::mark as fold:: x 6" long (you'll need 2 of these)

main pocket from lining fabric- 8 1/2" wide ::mark as fold:: x 9" long (X 2)

flap from main fabric- 8 1/2" wide ::mark as fold:: x 11" long (X 2)

side & bottom band from main fabric (X 1) & lining fabric (X 1)- 4 1/2" wide ::mark as fold:: x the entire length of your fabric*

handle from main fabric- 4 1/2" wide ::mark as fold:: x 18 1/2" long (X 2)

main body from main fabric (X 2) & lining fabric (X 2)- 15 1/8" wide x 14" long

*This should be approximately 44"/45"

Step 2~ With right sides together, sew handle pieces together up both long sides. Turn right side out and press. Topstitch at 1/4".

Step 3~ Sew band around one main body piece (main fabric), right sides together. Trim off any band excess. Repeat with other main body piece and the other side of the band. Carefully trim inside corners. Turn right side out.

Step 4~ Fold flap piece in half, right sides together. Sew up three sides. Clip corners and turn right side out. Carefully push out corners and press. Topstitch at 1/4".

Step 5~ Pin flap on to outside of main bag. Stitch.

Step 6~ Pin finished handle to band on both sides. Make sure your handle isn't twisted! Stitch.

Step 7~ Make lining. Repeat Step 3 with your lining fabric, except adding your pockets, and leaving a 5" gap in the bottom of your bag for turning! To make pockets:

Fold fabric rectangle in half, right sides together. Stitch along each short end, leaving the long edge open. Clip corners. Turn right side out, careful of corners, and press. Stitch open edge together at 1/4" along raw edge (this is the bottom of the pocket). Machine neaten raw edge using a small zigzag stitch, trimming off extra materials. With outside of pocket to right side of bag lining, raw edge facing UP towards top of bag, stitch onto lining approximately 1/4" inside previous stitching. Press pocket upwards. All stitching should be enclosed in pocket. Pin and stitch down each short edge to form pocket, a scant 1/8" from the edge on each side. Repeat with other pockets. You should end up with two larger pockets, and two small pockets on both sides (attached to the side band).

Step 8~ Turn lining wrong side out. Drop main bag, right side out, into lining. Make sure handle and flap are laying down inside bag to prevent catching them. Stitch around mouth of

bag. Stitch around a second time at 5/8". Pull main bag out through gap in the bottom of the lining. Stitch gap closed with a straight machine stitch. Push lining to inside of bag, and press around the top of your bag. Topstitch around top of bag at 1/4".

Oh, and we got our fabric here. Naturally.

Now here’s an equation for you.

2 girls with vivid imaginations + an extremely limited knowledge of crochet + lots of colorful yarn + a little bit of spare time =

What would you call these?

Another Long lady!

After much discussion, we Long ladies decided to invite someone else to join our little sewing circle. She doesn't talk much, but she sure is pretty to look at! We've had fun dressing her up today. (That is, after a ric rac glass episode…) So without further ado, meet our newest member!

Arabella~

Now, isn't she sweet?

Nana’s dishcloths!

We are so very blessed to have two of our great-grandmothers still with us. Grandma Conwell (Mom's grandmother) is 93 years old. Her name is June Madeline– we named our business after her! She's a beautiful lady with snow-white hair… and as the Lord would have it, we inherited our creativity and artistic ability from her (and her daughter– our grandmother Nanny, of course).

And Nana, well, she's quite a lady too. She's a fiesty little thing at 94 years! She says that you're only as old as you feel… and she feels about 35. Lately, Nana's had to keep to her chair a little bit more, but that hasn't stopped her from getting a lot done. When she isn't reading or talking on the phone, we've started her on crochet. Nana crocheted when she was younger, so it all came back quickly. Then she got this great idea. Why couldn't she help us with our business? And why couldn't she make beautiful things for other people, while she sits at home?

So. Would you like to make Nana's day by purchasing some of her lovely dishcloths? They come in groupings of three cloths, in a wide assortment of colors– Nana likes to make them bright. Or, you can choose a dishcloth and potholder set! All of the profits go to Nana (for more yarn, you see), and we'll ship them to you for free. Get 'em while they last!

(Just so you know, these dishcloths are the best. They're the only things we ever use. Nana says she uses them for everything from wiping baby faces to scrubbing floors. They're that good.)

100% cotton handmade dishcloths by Nana~ $8

1. Fiesta SOLD 2. Spring SOLD

3. Vintage SOLD 4. Sunset SOLD

5. Sea SOLD 6. Lilacs

7. Earth SOLD

100% cotton handmade dishcloth & potholder set by Nana~ $6

1. Lemonade SOLD 2. Christmas

3. Birthday (2 in stock!) 4. Candy

Buy them for yourself. Get some for a friend. Add them to your hopechest. They make great gifts! And, they make Nana happy.

Send us an email with your order!

xo~ the Long ladies

Nana and the girls, spring 2009~

Summer

This is what summer looks like around here. What does it look like in your neck of the woods?

make a Southern meal…

Hello everyone! We hope all of you are having a wonderful Wednesday. Do you have a free day? How about making a yummy-purely-Southern-meal (plus a refreshing dessert)? We made this for Father's Day and it's always a huge hit! We really want to be back again soon! xo~ the Long ladies

Chicken Fried Steak

Make a mix of 2 eggs, 1 c. milk, salt & pepper (you may have to add more later, depending on how many pieces of steak your making)

Make a mix of flour, salt & pepper.

Wash and drain on paper towels tenderized pork (or beef) cutlets. Dip tenderized cutlets in flour mixture, then egg mixture, then flour mixture again. Put in skillet with hot oil (we use coconut oil). Cook on both sides till meat raises in pan and is slightly golden. Transfer to cookie sheet and bake at 275 degrees for 15-20 minutes. *note: We usually cook ours until we have all of the sides ready. The extra time doesn't hurt it a bit!

Serve with rice, gravy, green beans, and biscuits.

Mint Cake

1 pkg yellow cake mix

2 1/2 tsp mint extract (divided)

3 c. cold milk

2 sm. packages instant chocolate pudding

1 8-10 oz. Cool Whip- thawed

green or blue food coloring (sometimes others in the family use odd colors. Ahem.)

Prepare cake mix according to directions, adding 1 1/2 tsp. mint extract to batter. Beat well. Pour into greased 9 x 13 cake pan. Bake at 350 degrees for 25-30 mintues or until toothpick inserted comes out clean. Cool completely. In bowl, whisk milk and pudding for 2 minutes or until soft set. Use end of wooden spoon and poke lots of holes in cake top. Spread pudding evenly over cake. Combine Cool Whip, food coloring, and 1 tsp mint extract. Spread over pudding. Cover and refrigerate for at least 2 hours.