More Meghansl

Yep, I am nothing if not loyal to a pattern that I like.  Ten thousand Scout tees?  Don't mind if I do.  One million Meghan peasant blouses and/or dresses?  Sure.

Here are three more Sis Boom Meghan peasant blouses to add to that total, all made as gifts. 

(As an aside, a shot of me wearing one of my Meghan blouses is up over on my other bloggy blog, if you're interested.)

One Meghan in a fun, summery red/pink/orange batik from Pasar Mayestik, made for Brewster (or Bruce as we call her now, usually pronounced "Brooooooooooose!"):

One Meghan in a black and white floral batik, which I think I bought at an Indonesian handicraft fair that Tim and I went to here in Jakarta.  This one is a Meghan for Meghan, and I have a selfie she took of herself looking cute in it that she will probably kill me for posting since she took it first thing in the morning, but I cropped it so her sleepy face isn't plastered about the interwebs...

This one is for Chaz, who recently became an old lady and now must exclusively wear purple.  JK... we picked out this fabric a couple years ago at Joann's and I never got around to making something for her with it until now.  But I got to test out my new serger when making this one!  Sergers rule!

Briar Tee

After hand-carrying my new (to me, but really it's second hand, or third hand if you count the 8 months that the Real Martha used it in Springfield) serger literally across the world (Springfield --> NYC --> Frankfurt --> Singapore --> Jakarta), it was quite necessary to put it to work and make all that lugging around worthwhile.

Sergers and knits are pretty much made for one another, and both are something I have (needlessly) feared to this point.  In order to conquer those fears, I decided it was wise to start with a simple (but yet styley) pattern: Megan Nielsen's Briar t-shirt pattern.  I'd had my eye on it for a while since it's a cute and modern wardrobe staple, but was hesitant to try it before getting my serger ready to roll.  Well, no excuses now!

My first iteration was made from some up-cycled fabric, a slinky rayon knit that was the bottom half of a Target maxi-dress that I never wear anymore.  I cut the dress in half so I could still wear the top part as a tank, and cut the cropped, short-sleeved Briar out of the skirt.  This little cropped bugger will be gifted to someone skinnier than me because I couldn't fit my size (or the full-length version) on the fabric, but I squeezed myself into it for a blurry selfie nonetheless.  Future recipient, whoever you may be: don't be skerred, the cropped/hi-low top looks cute layered over a normal length shirt or dress!

Dudes: sergers + knits = awesomely simple!  While difficult to cut (see: slinky, slippery rayon), this fabric is super forgiving when sewn.  And I lurve my serger!  I just have to remember to sew confidently, because once that knife hits fabric, that's it, buddies.  No going back.

Expect more knits and serged items in the near future... it will only take me as long as it takes for my washing machine to prep the fabric before I am back with another Briar, I guarantee it.

Sambal Chicken Skewers with Pineapple Jicama Salsa

I know, I know... another sambal-centric dish.  But, in my defense, these dishes were eaten a month apart, only blogged right in a row. Furthermore, this Bon Appetit recipe made the cover of the July issue, so the juicy chicken was just staring at me constantly from the coffee table, tempting me.  It had to be made.

A simple, tasty marinade/sauce for BBQ chicken, for sure.  However, for me, like in the case of the sambal/banana/shrimp dish, my Indonesian sambal (labeled "EXTRA PEDAS") was a bit too spicy... I think the heat from the stuff I buy here is several notches higher than the sambal oelek you get in the U.S.   Tim and I had a couple coughing fits while eating this (which may also be partially due to the fact that I cooked this chicken on the cast iron grill pan inside, being too lazy to wait for the charcoal to heat up outside). We did think the flavor was nice despite the excessive heat, though.

I served the chicken with a side of cooling pineapple-jicama salsa and some lime and cilantro couscous.  I think the salsa was the big hit of the night: crunchy, fresh, a little sweet, super healthy... give this recipe a try for sure!

Strike a pose!

Some more photos of babies striking a pose in the clothes I sewed or knit them!

Baby Anna lounging in her pastel Pretty Baby Sweater:

The tiny newborn baby Mr. Ben and Erin (aka Zoey) rocking her matching Tiny Geranium dress and baby bloomers:

The OG Zoe snuggled up in her pullover hoodie during a cold spell earlier in the summer:

Zoe looking pretty in pink in her batik Ruffle Top:

Shrimp with Sambal and Banana

Right before heading out on our 'round the world trip, the Real Martha cooked up this tasty dish that combined unusual ingredients (shrimp, overripe bananas and sambal?).  Before she made it I tried to convince her to make something else, assuring her that she would eat more rice and sambal than she ever dreamed of when in Indonesia, but she had seen this recipe on the Food Network and was itching to make it...  I'm glad she did because it came out pretty tasty!  An interesting mix of sweet, spicy and savory.

Definitely a good use for bananas that have sneakily gone overripe (other than making a variety of banana shakes).  The Indonesian sambal we used may have been a bit too spicy, but that's easily remedied by leaving a little bit out next time.  I bet chicken, tofu or tempeh would work well in lieu of the shrimp, too.

Zoe and Anna: Top Models

Here are some shots of Miss Zoe and Miss Anna rocking some of the clothes I've sewn for them.  They are so much cuter on the girls than on the hanger!!

Miss Zoe looking bookish in her prairie dress:

 

Smiling in her batik cuffed shorts (Simplicity 4203) and binge-watching Olivia while wearing her up-cycled board shorts:

You can't touch this when she's wearing her Hammer pants:

Loving her Mickey Mouse batik get-up:

Fitting in some outdoors time while wearing her batik romper:

The pleated playsuit earns its name:

More TV time, featuring her flowered bubble pocket shorts:

And, finally, Anna looking quite happy and comfy in her baby bloomers!:

Kasbah Meghan

You're probably sick of seeing this pattern from me, but here is Sis Boom's Meghan peasant pattern in dress form.  I made it with some beautiful Amy Butler fabric, Kasbah in Midnight Blue, which is kind of a faux ikat print.

Love it!  I've worn it approximately twice a week in the past month since I made it... love the print, love the pattern, love how comfy it is!