Cabin in the City

Books, cats and midwestern charm.

Lisa

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First Snow Pompom Wreath

Filed Under: Make Tagged With: ,

Not so long ago, we had our first snow here in Milwaukee. It was totally dreamy and gorgeous and perfect for getting me into the Christmas spirit. It was the kind of weather that makes you want to hole up inside with an easy afternoon craft, so I did just that.

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A few weeks ago when I was at JoAnn, I saw a wonderfully tacky pom pom wreath. Huge, puffy and gorgeous, it also cost upwards of $50. Since I’m a crafty gal, I decided I’d make my own version only much smaller and more affordable. I figured it would be relatively simple, making it the perfect snowy afternoon-in make.

For this project you’ll need:

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  • 12″ styrofoam or straw wreath
  • 2 skeins of yarn
  • Coordinating embroidery floss or string (just something finer than your yarn)
  • Pompom maker (mine was for 2.5″ pom poms)
  • Fine gauge wire
  • Wire cutter

I bet you can guess where the first steps of this DIY are going. You’re going to want to start by making a mountain of pompoms. For my 12″ wreath, I used two whole skeins of fluffy yarn. You can pick any kind you like – mine was extra fluffy with a little bit of metallic fiber running through it, but plain old yarn would be equally cute. My only word of advice is to grab an extra skein – you’ll end up needed more yarn than you think.

I’ve never used a pompom maker before, but I know from the interwebs that they make perfectly round product every time, so I popped for the $5 tool, and it was well worth it. I found that the package instructions weren’t quite clear enough, so if you’ve never used one before, you can follow my steps below or watch this video. Making all this puff balls will take some time, but that’s what Netflix and The Great British Baking Show are for. 🙂

So just a quick explanation on the pompom maker – it has two sets of jaws that wrap around the center (which is held together by a pin). To start, open up both sets of jaws and wrap the yarn around and around until it is roughly even with the high ends of the U shape.

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Then you’ll clip through the yarn all the way around the circle. I truly thought it was all going to hell in a hand basket at this point, but it’s not. When the yarn is clipped take a length of embroidery floss, pull it through the crevice in the middle of the pompom maker and tie a good knot or two. Be sure to tie it tight! This is going to hold it all together.

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After you’ve tied that knot good and tight (that’s where the embroidery floss comes in– I couldn’t get this fluffy yarn to hold well enough), just open up the jaws, pull the two sides apart and there’s your pompom. They come out looking practically perfect – you might have to trim a few stray hairs, but nothing major.

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Once you’ve made your batch of pompoms, it’s time to start wiring them to the wreath. To do that, I just cut a length of wire, threaded it through the middle of the pompom and then wrapped it around the wreath, twisting the ends together on the back side. I did this over and over and over again until I had filled the whole circle.

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I had envisioned the puffs being a little more randomly placed, but on such a small wreath with only one size pom pom, they formed two rings instead. I don’t mind the look at all, but if you want more of a staggered finish, I’d advise using multiple pompom sizes (probably smaller than my 2.5″ ones) and perhaps a larger wreath.

Once you have all your pompoms wired and spaced how you see fit, you can finish up the back. I simple took those pointy ends of wire and stuffed them into the styrofoam so they wouldn’t poke anyone or scratch the wood paneling. If you plan on hanging this on a more delicate surface, you could simple hot glue a ring of felt over the turned-in wires to prevent any potential scratches.

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To finish, I simply took a loop of ribbon and pinned it to the back side with a T-pin. It’s as simple as that!

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I have to say, I’m pretty pleased with the way this turned out. It is a tad muted (the shimmery fibers don’t come through on camera so well), but it has that plush look I was aiming for. Plus, it was a breeze and could be easily duplicated in all sorts of color combinations for different occasions. I’m thinking of grabbing a small pom pom maker and some super bright yarn to make an everyday version. Now if only there was a second season of that baking show…

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Get Paid

Filed Under: Make Tagged With:

This is a friendly reminder to all you artists, crafters, bakers and makers out there to get paid. Get paid for the work you do for others. Is it difficult to talk money? Is it uncomfortable to ask for what you’re owed? Yes and yes, but it’s also absolutely necessary.

This PSA comes to you after a coworker commissioned a piece of work from me and forgot to pay. Word of this spread to a creative colleague, and she gave me a stern talking to this morning. At first the idea of asking for money – even though it was money I had earned and a price that we discussed! – seemed way too uncomfortable. But she gave me a proverbial shake of the shoulders and said that’s absolutely not OK. Allowing others to take advantage of talent, time and experience without compensation is an insult to not only to the creator themselves but all artists; it discredits their craft and it devalues their work.

Two pieces I got paid fairly and promptly for.
Two pieces I got paid fairly and promptly for.

And that chat really reignited that sense of creative justice I have in me. So all you makers out there: get paid. Get paid fairly for you time, talent and materials. Settle a price and form of payment up front; it is not acceptable for someone to say they’ll pay you $20 and give that to you as a $20 Starbucks gift card or a $20 shirt – those are not equivalent. Tell your client what your price is, when you expect payment, how you expect payment and, if need be, follow through. I did it today, and it feels good.

This is an important lesson, makers. Now go get it.

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Livin’ la Vida NOLA: Spooky Edition

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I filled you in last week on a bit of my New Orleans trip. Those stops were all great, but I’m going to give you a peek at my favorite parts of my trip: the spooky stuff – just in time for Halloween!

I’m a sucker for ghost stories and history, so going to New Orleans was a dream. A super haunted city with a past? Sign me up! My pals and I decided day one that a ghost tour had to happen. Admittedly, we weren’t all that prepared for our trip, so we chose a tour company at random. We booked a ghost and vampire tour with French Quarter Phantoms, and I LOVED IT. Seriously could not get enough, especially of the vampire stories. I was all I’m not into vampires, thanks but then I heard all about the casquette girls and was hooked.

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We heard a handful of spooky tales (some were seriously spine tingling), saw some historic sites, laughed at our guide’s jokes (Ducky knew what was what) and even got to see the LaLaurie mansion. You American Horror Story fans out there already know a little about Delphine LaLaurie, but for those of you who don’t – she was horrible and sadistic and also very charismatic and wealthy. Her former home (also formerly Nicholas Cage’s home) was a real fright fest. I had to get a snap in front of it because I’m terrible that way.

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After that tour, let’s just say my interest in all things creepy NOLA was piqued. The next morning we booked a tour of New Orleans’s oldest cemetery: St. Louis No. 1. I’ll be honest, I wanted to explore this city of the dead alone, but it turns out you can’t (as of March this year). So Amanda, Irina and I stuck it out with a tour group and a very dry tour guide (totally should have booked with French Quarter Phantoms instead).

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But as dense as the tour was, it was also incredibly fascinating. Despite the information being delivered a la Ben Stein in Ferris Beuller’s Day Off, we learned all about the tombs. First off, I learned something very important. The graves aren’t above ground because of the water table or some such nonsense – turns out that type of burial was totally en vogue in Europe at the time these cemeteries were founded.

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I’d spare you the details, but I’m into gory stuff on occasion. Turns out that once you inter a body, it takes about a year to slowly cremate in that tomb with the help of chemicals and the scorching heat. When it’s opened up again, the ashes and remains are swept in to a caveau – or a well – beneath the mausoleum. And then I learned that something like 50 or 60 people can all be entombed in one small plot. And that boggled my damn mind. And community tombs could hold over a thousand. WUT?

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The main draw for St. Louis No. 1 is that it’s the oldest remaining cemetery in the city. It’s also home of the United States’ second most visited grave (right behind Elvis): Marie Laveau, the former Voodoo Queen of New Orleans. I was expecting something way different from her tomb thanks to American Horror Story: Coven, but it turns out when the characters go to her grave on the show, they’re going somewhere else (St. Louis No. 1 is off limits for Hollywood is what we were told).

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What was probably more interesting than Marie Laveau’s spot itself were all the “faux Laveaus” around the cemetery. These fakes are graves that are no longer maintained by caretakers because they are considered abandoned – meaning the space is old or forgotten by family for many years. These sites are heavily vandalized. Essentially the exes are superstition: visitors come in, ask Marie Laveau for a favor, leave a gift, mark the tomb with XXX and spin around three times in hopes that their request is fulfilled. If it is, they come back and leave another gift.

I’m no authority on any of this of course – all this is second hand from very knowledgeable tour guides – but I’m intensely fascinated by this now. I need to know everything about voodoo, ghosts and vampires in this town.

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Catch ya on the creepy side!

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Livin’ la Vida NOLA

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When it comes to the Adventure section of this blog, I keep it pretty local. What can I say? I love Wisconsin. But the other 49 need a little love too, which is why I am so happy to share my trip to New Orleans with you.

You see my old pal Amanda got hitched and moved down to Louisiana not too long ago. We go way back – like 1993 way back, like K4 at St. Joe’s School way back. I can’t let something like 1,000 miles interfere with that, so my friend Irina and I packed our bags and met her in the Big Easy.

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My pals Amanda + Irina + me.

Let’s just say I loved this place. Architecture, atmosphere, people, strange open container laws (or lack thereof), history, spooky history – need I go on?

My friend Irina and I flew in late Saturday. Getting to our hotel after 8PM, we knew there wasn’t much we could see as far as sights, so we dropped off our bags, grabbed a quick bite and did our due tourist diligence: Bourbon Street. It was a weird place but I can’t say I wasn’t into it. Sure, Bourbon Street is everything I hate about, say, Water Street in Milwaukee or any college bar, but for one night in a new city, I was totally buying into slushy drinks served in commemorative cups and trying to catch beads thrown from tourists’ hotel balconies. It was a fun time for the two hours we were out, but two hours was totally enough.

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But Bourbon Street at night is not fun for photos. It is, along with the rest of the French Quarter, fun during the day. Since we only had a couple days, we spent the majority of it poring through the Quarter. We ended up spending a good amount of time around Jackson Square, partially because we kept running into it and partially because it was great. We listened to a jazz band, a guy and his African bass harp and I got a tarot reading which was a total New Orleans must-do for me.

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The tarot reading was totally up my alley, although I know most people don’t really buy into it. Take it with a grain of salt, enjoy it and soak up the parts that really speak to you – that’s my philosophy at least. A few things were laughably accurate, so it was totally worth it just to have someone tell me, “when decisions are being made, you want to be involved,” because I do. I can’t help it. And it paid to have someone figuratively shake my shoulders and tell me to take a back seat in matters I can’t control.

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One afternoon we ventured outward toward Magazine Street, a place a coworker described as a Third Ward-Brady Street mashup (for you Milwaukee folk). Although the walk was long from our hotel, it was very much worth it. It was full of cute little shops and restaurants – I think we could have spent all day there had we started earlier on a Sunday.

NOLA_7Magazine Street had by far my favorite eats of the whole trip, however I’m no authority because 1) we only spent three nights in NOLA and 2) I hate seafood (I know). All I’m saying is that I had a great roast beef po’ boy and a tasty new beer at Ignatius and I tried French macaroons for the first time at Sucré – until this point they were the stuff of Gossip Girl and blogger lore.

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But our trip wasn’t all macaroons and NOLA Blonde Ale. It was also appropriately spooky. I’ll be back later with some scoops on ghosts, vampires and St. Louis Cemetery No. 1.

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What Have I Gotten Myself Into? – Kitchen Edition

Filed Under: Cabin Tagged With: ,

Great minds think alike. You want proof? For a wedding gift both Michael’s parents and my parents decided to buy us a new stove. Not together. Independently of one another, they purchased cards (my mom unwittingly bought a super cute lesbian wedding card) and wrote “Congratulations! For your wedding, we’d love for you to pick out a new stove.” We were obviously shocked and overwhelmed by the generosity of both sides (and super stoked because our electric stove was the worst).

Since our families are too generous (like really – we were flat out overwhelmed) and a tad stubborn, they refused to go in on the stove together. Instead they compromised. The Stocks would purchase a beautiful Frigidaire Gallery gas stove and my parents would help us out with a similarly-priced home upgrade of our choosing. (Which is way beyond anything we could ever expect or want or need, but we appreciate it nonetheless.)

It took me about two seconds to determine what needed some overhauling (and two more seconds for Michael to agree): the kitchen countertops. The tile counter is original to the house and has seen better days – which after 53 years of use is understandable.

Pardon the terrible quality of these photos, but you have to see the before to appreciate the after.
Pardon the terrible quality of these photos, but you have to see the before to appreciate the after.

I know that granite and quartz have become a bit standard for kitchens nowadays, but that’s not going to fly in this house. First off it’s incredibly expensive, but also sticking a slab of elegant stone in a 1962 ranch that looks like someone’s fishing cabin would be so silly. So I took a hint from the era in which the home was built and thought laminate. I know, I know – you’re thinking why not butcher block or solid surface or anything else but laminate – but I checked out the Formica website, and they’ve got it going on. I’m loving this Black Walnut Timber pattern and whatever Dolce Macchiato is from their 180fx line. Also they have a partnership with Johnathan Adler and I’m dying over all the linen patterns.

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Gross. You can see the coffee grounds in the grout from here.

The thing is that once the tile top is gone, so is the tile backsplash. And once the backsplash is gone, there’s going to be a gap between the counter and the vintage wallpaper (which I love). And then you have a “if you give a mouse a cookie” situation where switching countertops means an even bigger kitchen project.

I won’t lie to you: I’m excited at the prospect of new counters, but I’m also a bit sad to be tearing up the kitchen. I suppose that’s part of the territory of moving into a loved one’s home. I’m hoping to preserve the vibe by using an extra roll of the same vintage wallpaper on the narrow wall.

Full-on galley kitchen. Tiny, narrow but totally functional. Not pictured: accordion door pantry.
Full-on galley kitchen. Tiny, narrow but totally functional. Not pictured: accordion door pantry.

And maybe once this is all said and done I can actually give a little tour of the cabin. This blog is all cabin this and cabin that and I have yet to really show you all around (other than these terrible before photos).

In the meantime, weigh in on those countertop swatches and let me know what you think! Inquiring minds need to know!

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Lazy Saturday: Nieman Orchards

Filed Under: Adventure, Lazy Saturday Tagged With: ,

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Our Fall + Funvember list is coming along pretty well. We checked off scary movies, a dinner party and Wine + Harvest Fest, and we’re working on Twin Peaks right now. But you know a good fall checklist isn’t any good without some standards, namely apple picking. So this past Saturday, Michael and I headed out to Nieman Orchards in Cedarburg.

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We’ve picked at Nieman’s something like five times now – it’s definitely in tradition territory. Every year is the same song and dance: ultra nice people, tons of apples, giant pumpkins and the best apple cider – they make it right there and leave out all that processing that takes out that fall flavor. Seriously, it’s good stuff (and it’s also on our list).

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And this time around, it truly was a lazy Saturday: got up, putzed around, went to the orchard, got home and changed into jammies for a few episodes of the aforementioned Twin Peaks. Essentially, it was the best kind of day.

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You know what the real kicker was for Saturday? What made it just about perfect? Annual Garfield photos. Michael and I used to love us some Garfield, and this little cutout just kills us.

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Fall + Funvember List [+ Printable]

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It’s mid-September now, which means you can’t throw a pumpkin spice latte without hitting someone saying, “I just love fall.” And you can count me in on that. I’m a big fan myself for all the basic reasons you’d expect: boots, flannel, apple cider, etc.

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To maximize on everything fall has to offer, Michael and I compile a bucket list for the season, but we’d never call it that. It’s the official Fall + Funvember List. Yeah. Funvember. This started the first year we dated; November happened to be full of fun stuff – Michael’s birthday, Thanksgiving, a handful of concerts – so we dubbed it Funvember. You can tell we’re both writers, eh?

We’ve been keeping up with this tradition for going on five years now. Every year we have our standards, like pumpkin carving and apple picking, along with a few unique items. Last year it was a surprise Spoon concert (thanks to a ticket giveaway from 88.9 Radio Milwaukee). Now, I know that most of you won’t be going to the Wisconsin Dells Deer Park or to Cedarburg’s Wine + Harvest Fest, but I figured I’d share our list anyways.

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And if you want a more general (but still fun and worthwhile!) version of my list, just click here to download. Happy fall! 🙂

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On Introducing Cats

Filed Under: Life Tagged With:

Michael and I are cat people through and through. Since we met, we’ve sunk significantly deeper into the cat mom and cat dad roles. It’s probably annoying, horrifying or endearing to those around us. At any rate, we knew one day we’d merge not only our love of cats but our feline friends themselves. And I’ll be honest, I wasn’t looking forward to that moment.

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Why? Because my cat Zara – despite her beauty and her natural instinct for knowing when is precisely the right time to curl up next to me – is a cranky little beast. Everyone knows this. Everyone knows that she only likes me and my parents, will tolerate my two aunts and Michael (only recently) and will growl, hiss and flatten her ears at all other humans. It’s just how she is, and everyone accepts it and goes about their lives.

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But Michael’s Mukki, dear sweet China cat sunflower, is the opposite. If Mukki was a person, he’d be your best friend. He’d invite you inside, hand you a beer and ask you to join his game of Mousetrap. He’s a chill dude, and everyone loves him.

So the idea of having Little Miss Sociopath and Mr. Personality meet was terrifying to me. Like really terrifying. And this was only exacerbated by the fact that Zara in her nine years on earth, hasn’t met another cat (outside of her littermates). So here’s a total crank that has roamed this planet for almost a decade without seeing feline life, and then one day – BAM! – there’s a creature that looks just like her (but orange) sitting in her cat bed. What. The. What. Can you see that going smoothly? I didn’t either.

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So we took the advice of the Wisconsin Humane Society and dozens of episodes of My Cat from Hell and decided to introduce them nice and slow. Yeah, that’s right. After four days of swapping them in and out of bedrooms and listening to them yowl we said screw it and let them see one another. It wasn’t great. Mukki was a gentleman and ate his food as Zara hissed for five straight minutes.

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Now, three months in, I am finally finally beginning to see some progress. After months of hissing every time Mukki entered the same room and growling when he climbed her scratching post, Zara is starting to chill out a bit. She is still not interesting in snuggling or sniffing or being very nice, but there are days where she’s OK with sharing the recliner with Mukki and me (of course begrudgingly if you asked her).

So we’re doing alright. I’m hoping by Christmas they’ll actually make some sort of physical contact that is not a swat or an unsolicited sniff. I’m hoping for a family Christmas card, you guys. Wish Michael, me and the kitties luck!

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Hey There, Hayward

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Hey, ladies and gents! I’m finally back from my northwoods vacation. I will say it feels pretty good to be back at home with Michael and the cats, but I’ll also say that I do miss the weirdness of northern Wisconsin already. So with that in mind I thought I’d show you a few of my favorite stops on our day trip to Hayward.

OK, out-of-towners, get ready for a lesson in northern Wisconsin quirk. Hayward is way way up there. It’s the biggest town for miles and therefore the place to be. I’ll be honest, there’s not much to it (the whole town has about 2,000 people after all), but I love it nonetheless. So here’s a rundown of my three favorite locales just in case anyone is looking. 🙂

Moccasin Bar

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I’ll start with the stop closest to my heart in the weirdest way: the Moccasin Bar. You can’t miss this place. Besides being right off the main drag, it’s also a glorious eyesore. I mean that with great affection (I have wall-to-wall green shag carpeting after all). The place stands out with its mint green siding and musky sign. If I’m a sucker for anything, it’s a massive pop of color and vintage Wisconsin.

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OK, I’m also a sucker for a good old fashioned. The Moccasin bar doesn’t have good old fashioneds, though – they have great ones. I don’t know what the bartender did to my standard brandy sweet, but it was incredible. Heavy on the bitters, this cocktail went down easy – I could have sat there all day.

Ben Franklin

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I’ve got a real soft spot for Ben Franklin stores. For starters, I’m a crafter. Beyond that, though, my first job was at my hometown’s successor to Ben Franklin – Banner Crafts – and because of that, I’ll always love these sorts of local craft stores. Hayward’s compact store is a real treat with a pretty incredible fabric selection. There are aisles jam-packed with some adorable quilting cotton and flannel. It’s no Mood (for you Project Runway fans), but the selection is actually pretty impressive. I grabbed a little tipi fabric because I couldn’t help myself. I’m thinking one day I’ll make it into some pillowcases or maybe a little tote. Who knows – I’m still sitting on a cut of 60s-inspired fabric from my trip last year that I said was going to be a kitchen curtain.

Tremblay’s

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I’m pretty sure I saved the best for last. Tremblay’s Sweet Shop, or as my family calls it: Taffy Town, is the highlight of our trip. My family has been going up north to the Hayward area for 15+ years now, and after all this time Tremblay’s is still a highlight for us all. Every year it’s the same song and dance with us: we file in, my Aunt Mary hands us all a basket, we load up on taffy in every flavor you could ever want (even though my favorites are the ultra-basic chocolate and mint).

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But beyond a great selection of taffy, Tremblay’s has gummies galore, kid candy abound and some damn good chocolately treats. This year I grabbed some sea salt caramels and chocolate covered Oreos for me and handful of chocolate-nut combos for Michael. Oh – and peanut butter fudge. I saw a slab of it sitting on the counter by the register and had to ask what it was because OMG it looked incredible. Because the girl at the counter was very kind (or an excellent salesperson) she let me try it, and because I’m a sucker I took home a half pound then and there.

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This mini list doesn’t even cover all the awesome and weird and weirdly awesome things Hayward has to offer, but it’s a little start if you’re bumming around. If you need a few more ideas, I’d recommend West’s Dairy for a scoop of ice cream (they were closed by the time we got there this year – bummer), the Fishing Hall of Fame if you’re into having your picture taking in a giant musky mouth and Outdoor Ventures if you’re in need of outdoorsy things and like having nice people help you.

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Remember the Library?

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I’m off to the northwoods soon for my family’s annual girls only vacation. We’re way the hell up in northern Wisconsin with nothing to do but sit by the pool, paddle out on the lake, shake some dice and read. And boy do we read.

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Every year I treat myself to a book shopping spree where I buy enough books to last me all week long and plus a few spares just in case. Favorites from last year were The Shining Girls by Lauren Beukes and The Other Typist by Suzanne Rindell. Let’s just say I made some good choices.

This year I planned to do the same: head to my local bookshop, grab an armful and enjoy. This didn’t go according to plan. After an unsuccessful trip to a small bookstore nearby, I ended up at ye olde Barnes & Noble just frumped. At $15 a pop I couldn’t afford to buy a half dozen books. I know there will be some great ones, but I also know that some will simply be a good time and some might be pretty meh. So I was standing there debating if some historical fiction about Marshall Field would be worth the price when I thought – duh – does the library have this? Is this too weird a title? So I looked that baby up, and it was available. And so was the next one about an obituary writer and another about a haunted house! Who knew the library would have every odd title I wanted? Everyone. Everyone else knew that, but I still have this mindset where I’m 10 at the Saukville library and they never have the Dear America book I want.

But not anymore! Thank you, Milwaukee Public Library.

Here’s everything I picked up (excluding the Lana del Rey albums that I find catchy and problematic all at once):

  • The Dark Between by Sonia Gensler – yes, I know this is YA, but what’s vacation for if not easy reading about the spiritualist movement?
  • Dollface by Renée Rosen
  • The Fate of Mercy Alban by Wendy Webb
  • The Obituary Writer by Ann Hood
  • The Perfume Collector by Kathleen Tessaro
  • The Vanishing by Wendy Webb
  • What the Lady Wants by Renée Rosen

So that’s it! I’m off for a bit. I won’t be reading them all, but a girl has to have options. Maybe if there are some standouts I’ll write you all a little recommendation. In the meantime, go buy The Shining Girls. It was so good and all your friends will want to read it too. My copy is still making the rounds.