I'm a curvaceous girl about 5 weeks pregnant with kiddo #4 (yeah, I know, I'm insane). As any bigger mama knows, the maternity selection for bigger women SUCKS - especially if you don't want to wear khaki capris with seersucker "blouses" or novelty "hey look at how huge I am" T's. Has anyone here successfully made/reconned maternity clothes? Are there patterns I should check out?

-Courtney

I know it's not much, but this is my first cake using fondant - my husband helped. We used a packaged fondant, but colored it ourselves. It was for my stepdaughter's 4th birthday party.

I have a bit of an obsession with bacon. In an effort to prove that almost anything could be improved with bacon, I modified a chocolate chip cookie recipe to include it. There are no pictures - we ate them all before we thought to photograph them. Also, they look much like their baconless counterparts. They are delicious.

Chocolate Chip Bacon Cookies

2 sticks butter, melted
6 slices bacon, cooked medium crisp or crisp (for crisp bacon, eliminate 1/4 cup flour)
2 1/2 cups AP flour
1 tsp kosher salt
1 tsp baking soda
1/4 cup sugar
1 1/4 cup brown sugar
1 egg
1 egg yolk
2 Tbsp cream, half and half, or milk
1 1/2 tsp vanilla
1 cup chocolate chips

Sift together flour, salt, and baking soda. Set aside. Pour butter in mixing bowl. Add sugar and brown sugar and cream together on medium speed. Add eggs, milk, and vanilla and mix until smooth. Add bacon. Stir in flour mixture. Mix in chocolate chips. Chill for 30 minutes to an hour. Preheat oven to 375 degrees F. Use a scoop (like a tablespoon sized one) to drop cookies on parchment covered pans - 6 cookies per pan. Bake 14 minutes, checking and rotating pan(s) after 5 minutes. Cool on rack - don't eat them right out of the oven. I know it's hard, but let them cool about 20 minutes or so - trust me.

I MUST have crafty bitches to stitch with!!!! It was my saving grace here in Atlanta! I sew, embroider, glue shit together, recycle stuff, and refinish stuff. Fort Smithians holla!

-Courtney

So I found this bike in a trash pile:



It's a Rollfast Skoot, circa 1971. It has a leopard print banana seat in good condition, the frame is great, but the mudguards, handlebars, rims, etc are rusty as hell and it needs the chain, tires, tubes, etc replaced and a major greasing.

I started getting after it with some steel wool and most of the rust is coming off the mudguards just fine, but it's taking FOREVER! I can do that if I have to, but does anyone know of a quicker way to get rid of rust? Also, does anyone know of a good online source for bike parts? Oh, and ideas for glam-ing up the bike are welcome as well  

-Courtney

Thought I would show it off:




-Courtney

Just thought I'd list them all in one thread, feel free to move any if necessary.

General craft stuff, great for businesses because they keep an order history:
http://www.createforless.com

For dyeing, stenciling, silk painting, fiber arts:
http://www.dharmatrading.com

List of supply websites - lots of them:
http://www.craftsfaironline.com/Supplies.html

Inexpensive Asian items that lend themselves to crafting (I also buy my shoes here):
http://www.pearlriver.com

And the Granddaddy of surplus (which you prolly already know about, but it bears repeating). I recommend their paper catalog for bathroom reading:
http://www.sciplus.com

-Courtney

I'm not sure if this works for every printer or not, but I found out by accident that a printout from my HP Laserjet will iron on to light fabric. I was trying to trace it with an iron-on transfer pencil and the black ink ironed on as well, so now I know I won't have to bother with the tracing part. I would imagine a lot of printers would work for this. I haven't tried it on my inkjet, though, because the laserjet worked and it costs less to use.

Of course, you have to have the iron on the HELL setting and it takes a bit longer to transfer. Also, remember to print your image in reverse if it has letters or you want it to transfer a certain way.

-Courtney