Category Archives: Wanna-Be Martha

Rainbow Dash Halloween Costume

October 25, 2012 – 9:00 am

Ah, Halloween. The Reese’s Peanut Butter Cup-filled day when kids dream of being princesses, dinosaurs and witches, or in Lotte’s case: a chicken, a moose, a blue macaw and Rainbow Dash from My Little Pony. A certain monolithic e-commerce site named after a humongous South American river has My Little Pony costumes for sale but they are, well…pathetic. Kind of awful. Like, huh? In what world? Really, how hard could it be to make a Rainbow Dash costume for a kid? Blue clothes, cutie mark, wings, rainbow hair and tail. Done. Easy peasy! NOT time consuming like the bird costume from Rio. Look!

Here’s what you need: blue shirt and pants (mine don’t match perfectly in hue, but that’s okay), white, yellow, red and light blue felt, florist wire (or pipe cleaners), glue gun

*When you google “Rainbow Dash wig”, you find an assortment of awesome vendors on Etsy that made wigs that were just a *smidge* out of my price range, but worth a look. There are also a few tutorials that use markers, like this one using Sharpies. I found a decent deal on a wig and tail combo at this anime site. I figure we’ll keep it in her dress-up box and she’ll have years of fun with it. (Hush. Let me rationalize spending almost 50 bucks on a freaking rainbow wig and tail.)

*The wings? These were about $3 at some Halloween pop-up shop. You could always make them using wire hangers and pantyhose if you’re feeling motivated, or seriously, just google “fairy wing tutorial” and a zillion pages pop up. In this case I think buying them was cheaper.

Step 1: Make the cutie mark. What do you mean you don’t know what a cutie mark is?! Look at this Rainbow Dash:

See that little rainbow lightning bolt and cloud? That’s her cutie mark. Grab some felt. Cut it and hot glue it and you have yourself your very own cutie mark. Fin.

Step 2: Put two pieces of light blue felt on top of each other. Draw 2 ear shapes and cut them both out with the 2 pieces of felt still layered. That way you’ll end up with 4 pieces. Got it? Good. Hot glue those suckers together around the outer rim, but leave the bottom open so you can shove in some florist wire or a pipe cleaner. Here’s a shoddy picture to demonstrate:

I took a few pieces of wire, bent them in half and shoved them in. Nothing fancy.

Step 3: Poke the pointy wires through the wig and secure. Now, I didn’t want the wires scratching my daughter’s scalp, so I covered the wire on the underside of the wig with a little felt patch and some hot glue. Again, nothing fancy, just practical and simple. Nobody will SEE the underside of the wig, so don’t worry about what it looks like.

Guess what? THAT’S IT.

Fly Rainbow Dash, fly!

Tags costumes, crafts, D.I.Y, Halloween, My Little Pony, Rainbow Dash | Permalink | Comments (13)

Fit Wanna-Be Martha

Baby Steps to Going Veggie

September 27, 2012 – 10:26 am

In the 6 years since becoming a vegetarian, people have constantly asked me, “Uh, so… what do you eat? Salad?”. (No. Rarely.) Those first few years, I eased into it with fairly simple recipes with vegetables I was already super familiar with. There’s no need to become intimidated right off the bat with raw kale salads and mashed parsnips, so here are a slew of “starter” recipes: recipes that were my go-to when I first transitioned to vegetarianism. Yes, they are cheese-heavy, and if you’re looking for vegan recipes this isn’t the blog. This is for those dabbling with going veggie: people doing Meatless Mondays and contemplating the big switch without scaring off the rest of the family used to gorging on meat and potatoes. These are the exact recipes that set me on the path towards a cruelty-free and healthy lifestyle and not one of them includes tofu, which I know wigs people out.

Eat up!

**I would combine all of these recipes with something more simple. For example, if I made the pesto risotto I would just saute some green beans with slivered almonds on the side, or roast some brussel sprouts- anything, really. You don’t need recipes for those sides. Just go for it. Olive oil with salt and pepper is always the best.

Zucchini and Ricotta Galette by Smitten Kitchen

Butternut Squash and Carmelized Onion Galette by Smitten Kitchen

Kale Lasagna Diavolo by Vegetarian Times

Risotto with Pesto and Peas by The Food Network (leave out the stupid ham)

Spicy Squash Salad with Lentils and Goat Cheese by Smitten Kitchen

Asparagus and Cheese Tart by The Food Network

Spinach or Broccoli Calzones by The Moosewood Cookbook

Tabouli by The Moosewood Cookbook (serve with hummus and pita, maybe some grape leaves or falafel- you can find frozen falafel at Whole Foods and they’re fab.)

Baked Potato Soup by Smitten Kitchen (skip the bacon)

Lentil Soup by The Food Network (Use veggie broth, and tweak to make your own. I omitted the celery and added more carrots. I have also added diced sweet potatoes.)

Yam and Black Bean Burrito by The Esalen Cookbook

Asparagus and Shiitake Mushroom Strudel by The Esalen Cookbook

Zucchini and Parmesan Omelette by Tessa Kiros’s book Apples For Jam

Saag Paneer by 101 Cookbooks (with some Naan or Vegetable Samosas and rice)

**More tips: Indian Food and Mexican are simple ways to go veggie. So is Italian! Eggplant Parm with a side of broccoli rabe! Pasta pasta pasta!! So. Freaking. Simple. Good luck!

Tags recipes, vegetarian | Permalink | Comments (8)

Boston Wanna-Be Martha We Love Art

Getting Crafty at Make Meaning

September 25, 2012 – 11:46 am

We all know how much I love getting messy and making art with LJJ, right? If we’re not out collecting acorns for a wreath or leaves for some printmaking, odds are we’re painting at the kitchen table and sprinkling glitter all over something. Everything is just better when it’s handmade by little fingers. This is why when I was offered the opportunity to go check out the awesome art destination, Make Meaning, I was super psyched.

Make Meaning is a NYC-born art space with 2 locations in Manhattan (often frequented by celeb-tots like Suri Cruise. Swear.), one in Scottsdale, Arizona and one in Dedham, Massachusetts. I’ve been to those paint a ceramic statue places before and liked them well enough, and that’s pretty much what I expected as I parked my Prius at Legacy Place in Dedham.

As soon as I walked through the front door I realized I was so wrong. Make Meaning looks like Willie Wonka made an art studio. It’s a colorful craft explosion of the highest magnitude, and I was blown away.

Here’s a breakdown of the facts about Make Meaning:

They have seven core art experiences you can work on: candles, soaps, glass (!!!!), jewelry, paper, ceramics and cake decorating. How AWESOME is that?! While your kids are loving every second of painting a ceramic dragon, you can make a gorgeous vase or candle for your home. I could have stayed for hours, which is pretty doable since they have snacks to sate the little ones in case they need to take a break.
Make Meaning is membership based: $36 for one year for an individual, or $149 for up to a family of five. That membership includes the “sitting fee”, $25 towards a class, a $50 coupon towards a birthday party, a VIP pass to share with a friend and 10% off retail purchases. That leaves members with only the cost of the activity.
If you’re not interested in the membership and just want to check it out, you can pay a daily sitting fee of $12 + the cost of the activity.
They offer customizable classes for any age.
A birthday party at Make Meaning includes a main event + a side-show, a custom birthday cake, pizza, drinks, the staff, free day passes for all the guests to leave with, and a ton of extras.
Reservations are recommended to get a table on crowded days, but not required. They take walk-ins.

After a quick pit stop for some much-needed coffee, Lotte and I arrived at 10am and were greeted by a group of smiling faces at the front door. We took a quick tour of all the experiences and decided to start with some soap making. I have never made soap, have you? So random and cool. You can make more luxurious bars of scented soaps, bars with little surprises and toys hidden inside of them, or cupcake soaps. With guidance from the instructor, Lotte decided to make a scented kitty-cat cupcake soap. Adorable.

Enamored with the massive array of sparkling beads twinkling across the room, LJ decided to then make a necklace. After initially grabbing one massive handful of about a million pink, glittery beads in a fit of OH MY GOSH MUST HAVE SPARKLY THINGS, I was able to convince her to calmly choose a few different colors and styles and she happily sat threading them on one by one.

For our last art experience we decided to make a candle. By this point the place was hopping with activity and we got to see people rolling out fondant to decorate cakes, trying their hand at glassmaking and painting some bowls about to get fired in the kiln. It was just fantastic, and it didn’t hurt that they had a killer mix booming from the speakers. The second a Matt & Kim song came on Lotte shouted out, “OH, I LOVE THIS SONG!”, and my inner indie-pop lover beamed with pride.

All in all: we loooooved it at Make Meaning and we’re pumped to return to Legacy Place to make a whole bunch of holiday gifts for the grandparents. It isn’t cheap, but you have to realize that this isn’t just about gluing pom poms onto some construction paper and calling it a day: this is a high-end art-making experience. I mean, you’re decorating cakes and making gorgeous serving platters! It’s completely unique and extraordinary in the variety of supplies and mediums. Make Meaning is most definitely worth a visit. We look forward to getting our membership!

[Disclaimer: While I was given the opportunity to experience Make Meaning at no cost, I was in no way compensated for this review. All opinions are my own.]

Tags art, creativity, Dedham, Make Meaning, Massachusetts | Permalink | Comments (12)

Wanna-Be Martha We Love Art

The Blue Macaw Costume

September 16, 2012 – 10:43 am

Okay, okay, I give in! Last year when I put up this Halloween post with pictures of the costume I made for Lotte, I received an insane number of emails asking me how I made it. INSANE number, and in the past month it’s picked up to a few emails a day! A few people even offered to pay me to make one for their kids. I am crazy flattered and so psyched that everyone loves the costume and is reaching out to me, so I decided to revisit it for a second and put up a quick post with some deets.

For those that don’t know or remember, Lotte was a blue macaw from the under-appreciated movie, Rio. We still love that movie, and there is ZERO merchandise available, so I understand the panicked moms reaching out to me when their kid cries out for a Rio costume.

I didn’t take pictures of the process, so I’ll try to explain it the best I can. Bear with me.

Step 1: Buy the materials.

a blue t-shirt and some leggings (or maybe tights) from American Apparel (or where-ever)
a ton of felt. Not wool, just cheap craft felt. I chose a few different shades of blue, but make sure you buy enough of 1 color so you have big pieces for the wings. You can order them from here (they’re on sale!).
a glue gun and sticks, if you want to glue everything OR
a needle and thread, if you want to sew
a kid’s cheapo hat. I used a 99cent ladybug helmet from Michael’s. Anything will work.
newspaper or newsprint
masking tape
tin foil
cardboard plates
flour + water for paper mache
scissors. Duh.
paint + brushes + Sharpies

Step 2: Make the wings. Learn how by going to this awesome blog.

Note- I didn’t use those exact measurements. Instead, I held up a big piece of felt between LJ’s shoulder blades and stretched out to her hand. Mark it and cut it. Do the same for the other side. Fiddle with the shape until you’re happy. In that tutorial, they cut out strips of bumpy “feathers”, I did them individually and it took FOREVER. Either works. They sewed the feathers on, I used a hot glue gun and burned the crap out of my hands. Either works. Layer the feathers, starting at the bottom of the wings and moving up. I fastened the wings onto the back of the costume with a few stitches, and made little felt bracelets to attach the wings to her wrists. Play around with it.

Step 3: The body

You can leave the shirt plain, and with those killer wings, that would be more than enough! If you want to go all out, though, I did the same thing as I did for the wings. Layer them, starting at the bottom. Again, I used hot glue, but you can sew. You can leave the sleeves on or cut them off: I think I cut them off and layered a turtleneck in case it was cold.
IMPORTANT! Cut the neck open a little bit wider or they won’t be able to get their head through with all the felt and glue.

Step 4: The head

This part takes some improvisation, depending on what kind of hat you dig up and how much you can freestyle. Here are some pictures of it unpainted, post-paper mache.

First, cover the entire hat with tin foil. Tape it up. It’s doesn’t have to look pretty.
Look at that beak? See how it kind of looks like cardboard/paper plates? I fiddled with plates for quite a bit until I was able to cut the right shape and tape them together. Tape the beak onto the hat. Again, it doesn’t have to be pretty, just stable. Tape the shit out of it.
Those eyes? I balled up some tin foil and taped it on. Seriously. That’s all.
Now the fun part, if you like getting messy. Here’s a simple paper mache recipe. It’s only flour and water! I would also add a little bit of salt. Rip some newspaper or drawing newsprint into strips. Here is how to paper mache, if you don’t know. DON’T GIVE UP!! IT IS SO, SO EASY. Trust me. I do this with elementary-school students. You can do it. Once it’s all covered, set it someplace to dry.

Step 5: Paint it!

Google image some pics of Blue or Jewel and do the best you can. I did the blue first, then the beak, the eyes, etc. Add shading if you’d like. Touch it up with sharpies. Jazz it up with a few feathers if you’d like.
Chin-strap. You might need to improvise some sort of chin strap because the head will be a teensy bit heavy.

FIN! You did it! Fly blue macaw, fly!

Let me take you to Rio, Rio…

Tags Blue, blue macaw, costumes, DIY, Halloween, homemade, Jewel, movie, Rio | Permalink | Comments (2)

Self-Indulgence Wanna-Be Martha

Just call me hoarder of the morning, angel.

January 3, 2012 – 7:00 am

I have a few resolutions for the the year 2k12 that I’m not going to delve into too much here, since they’re pretty bane and not at all thrilling. They include:

Take yoga. (…for the love of christ. WHY IS THIS SO HARD FOR ME?)
Get acupuncture.
Use more glitter. (Why not?)
Start drinking cocktails. (Wine and beer are so over. I’d like to become a full-fledged lush.)
Eat more farro. (Vegetarian power obligation)

Perhaps the most important resolution, though? The one I’ve been DYING to have my entire life and have never really had the space or means to do so, but will now that we’re moving to a bigger space in Boston? The one that has been lying dormant for my entire 36 years and is now itching to break free and reach fruition?

Collections, bitch.

I am going to start collecting things. So many things. I’m going to collect things SO HARD, and SO FAST, Pete and LJ will be calling the A&E network by year’s end, pleading for my intervention and public shaming. (Not really. Although, maybe. You never know.) So what have I been dying to hoard? (SQUEALING INSIDE WITH EXCITEMENT!)

1. Jadeite Kitchenware (OMFG LOOK AT THAT!)

This image is from Martha Stewart’s personal collection, and you guys, there’s an ENTIRE SLIDESHOW of it. I can just picture my new kitchen loaded with these green gems, and it makes my knees weak. I have no idea why.

2. Vintage Silhouettes (*fainting at the chicness*)

This image is from the blog Sight and Sound, and features other amazing silhouette collections, also. My parents had two oval silhouettes in their bedroom when I was growing up- I think that could be why they appeal to me- they’re so aesthetically striking and comforting at the same time. I’m obsessed.

3. Vintage Fiesta Ware

Do me a favor. Before you say, “What the eff? Is she insane? They’re brightly colored bowls.”, click on THIS LINK and look at all of that goodness. Do it now. I’ll wait.

****

You get it now, don’t you? You want to start collecting Fiesta Ware also, you know you do.

4. Map Textiles (Cuteness ALL UP IN MY FACE)

I love maps. I love hoarding vintage-looking fabrics that sit untouched in a sewing box in my closet because I’m a tool. I didn’t even KNOW that there was such a thing as vintage MAP TEXTILES. Did you know that was a “thing”? There are tablecloths, handkerchiefs, napkins, you name it. All CRAZY CUTE. Here’s where I got that image, and a slideshow of a zillion more. I love. I want.

5. Vintage Lilly Pulitzer dresses

Look at this dress.

You see “uptight Stepford Wife vacationing in Palm Beach in the 60s”, and I see “Abso-fucking-lutely”.

Here’s the thing very few people know about me: I already have quite a little collection of about 10 Lilly Pulitzer dresses. I might wear black and dark gray like Daria all winter, but I have NO QUALMS about wearing a fuschia dress with mermaids, seahorses and bric brac come summertime. Bring it. I don’t have any of the vintage prints and styles, though, which are pretty fantastic. Wearing Lilly Pulitzer dresses are like wearing sunshine and gin and tonics. Yes, please.

6. Pyrex, ya’ll.

This image is from one of the many Pyrex Collectives. There are many, MANY blogs devoted to old pyrex. They’re all amazing. My kitchen is going to be very, very crowded, but also SO BADASS and adorable. Finally,

7. Vintage Children’s Books

This image is from the blog Vintage Kids’ Books my Kid Loves, a blog dedicated to, well, vintage kids’ books that are awesome. What I adore about these books, though, are the illustrations. They’re just the best. So charming and precious and unlike anything going on in children’s book illustrating today. I want to frame a million of them and hang them in the playroom we don’t even have (yet). Look what happens when you google “vintage children’s book illustrations”, and try not to die a thousand deaths from the sweetness.

So, there you have it. My dreamy collections that are about to begin. Poor, poor Pete.

By the way, if I tickled your fancy (and I KNOW I did for at least one of you like-minded lunatics), and you’re looking to start a collection of something rad: try here for some inspiration. You can also troll etsy, ebay and flea markets for ideas. WOOHOO! Wish me luck.