When So-So Will Have to Do

Here's the first of nearly 300 slides I want to put in a family slide show. It's my mom at her bridal shower. Nice haul, by the way - just look at that bin full of gifts! Unfortunately, this slide show has been far too long in the making.

During one rainy summer in Long Island, I went through thousands of old family slides (about 25 years worth) and narrowed them down to two slide reels. We got out my parents' dusty old projector, put on some music, and showed them on a bare white wall by the staircase. Then I carted them home with plans to scan them and create a DVD, music and all, to share with the family. Another great project for a rainy day.

That was eight years ago. Obviously we don't get many rainy days here. We've had our share of stormy times, though, and the slides were left to gather dust under my bed.

I finally dragged them out and enlisted my son's help in scanning them. He tore through both reels in a matter of days. Too bad we didn't notice in time that our scanner doesn't go up to a high enough dpi to make good quality scans from slides. Now I have to decide whether or not to go ahead with the project as is, hoping to pass off that grainy, old-timey look as "arty." I had to add a large black border to prevent the image from being blown up far enough to look like a hot mess of colored tiles.

So, what'll it be? Is a half-baked slide show better than no slide show at all? I could wait until I can afford to have them professionally done. Or I could wait until I can afford a new slide scanner AND find time to scan them all over again. I have a feeling if I wait for either of these options, the project will be on hold until we're all too old to remember who the heck any of those people are.

My Summer Bucket List

I think I can handle this.

Tee Shirt Fix

The trouble with brand new solid colored tees is they don't always stay new-looking for long. I'm forever trying to find ways to keep them out of the rag pile. Here's my quick fix for one that fell victim to a cooking spatter:

First, I hung the shirt in the shower and spritzed it all over with a diluted bleach solution (a.k.a. shower cleaner). I wanted to soften up the background color and give it a faded tie-dye look. After rinsing and drying, I lined the inside of the shirt with plastic and painted the design on with bleach. I went for the quick and easy approach and just winged it with a brush, but I think a stencil would work well for a more precise design.

After washing and drying, the design will be lighter. I like the faux batik look - and it occurs to me it might be nice to paint on another color using fabric dye. Lucky for me I'm kind of a klutz...no doubt I'll have more chances to experiment with the technique!