Reusable "zip-lock" bags

So I've seen several different versions of these around, but most of what I've seen has sounded pretty complicated (sewing vinyl to the inside, etc), but this woman on the I Can Teach My Child blog is brilliant.  She guest-posted (is that a word??) this tutorial on Oopsie Dasie, and it is fabulous.  She used a vinyl tablecloth to make her baggies.  You know, the kind you use on a picnic table that has soft cotton on the back?  The tutorial is very easy to follow, and the tablecloth only cost me about $3.  No more wasting money on plastic bags for me!

My first bag took about 45 minutes, mostly because I had to keep stopping and starting.  (The second one only took 20 minutes!)  I would suggest using a more heavy-duty needle than you would normally use, and be prepared to sew more slowly.  The vinyl gets very thick towards the end and I nearly broke my size 14 needle.  A 16 worked just fine.

In her last step she has you put the velcro together and stitch up the sides, so that the stitching is on the outside.  I did mine with the stitching on the inside.  Just fold the bag in half with the Velcro on the outside, sew up the sides, then turn it right-side-out.  .....it'll make more sense when you read her instructions.

The second one I made a little bit wider (I believe her tutorial says to make it 7.5" wide, but I went up to 8" for the second one.)  It only took about 20 minutes to make start-to-finish.  These really are very simple!

See the difference in the width?

These are the perfect size for snacks and (hopefully) sandwiches, they are washable, and they are somewhat insulated with all the felt on the back of the table cloth.  Plus, the bags only used about 1/100th of the oblong tablecloth (Ok, I just made that percentage up), so I could make a ton of these bags and still have enough table cloth left to make some bibs.  Hmmm... tomorrow's project??

Not really a craft, but oh-so-yummy!

Ok, as the title states, this post is not about a craft, but about some yuuummmmyyyy soup I made the other day when it was so chilly and rainy.  Here's what it looks like, then I'll post the recipe..

Here's the basic recipe, then I'll add some of the changes I have made:
2 stalks celery, thinly sliced
1 cup diced red pepper
2 cups fresh white small mushrooms, cut in half
4 tbs butter
2 tbs all-purpose flour
2 cups chicken broth
2 cups peeled/diced russet potatoes
1 medium yellow onion, chopped
2 1/2 cups whole milk
3 slices bacon, crisp and crumbled
1 cup petite frozen sweet peas
2 cups fresh or frozen corn
salt and pepper to taste


In saucepan cook celery, onion, red pepper, mushrooms in hot butter over medium heat about 5 minutes or until tender.  Stir in flour until combined.  Stir in broth, bring to boil, stirring constantly.  Add potatoes, return to boiling.  Reduce heat; simmer uncovered about 15 minutes or until potatoes are tender.  Stir in milk, bacon, peas and corn.  Heat thoroughly.  If you like thinner soup, add additional milk.  Season with salt and pepper to taste.


Now here's how I change it:
As far as veggies go, I basically use whatever I have on hand.  In addition to the ones mentioned above, I also sometimes used green bell pepper, carrots (chopped finely so they will sauté quickly), broccoli, and zucchini.  Adjust the amount of   butter you use for sauteing according to how many veggies you have.  There needs to be enough butter to mix with the flour to make a thick broth.  Once the veggies and potatoes are done, it is also very tasty to add fresh parsley and chives (or use as garnish), and this soup is very good with chicken!  I like my bacon to stay crunchy, so I also use it as a garnish (not pictured).  An interesting variation is to use creamed corn instead of fresh or frozen--it gives it a nice, thick, sweet finish.  Top with cheese and you have quite a tasty (and filling) soup!






o