D.I.Y. Love: Block-Print Valentines

by Anna H. Blessing (Chicago, IL)



There’s nothing sweeter than coming across a Valentine while sorting through bills and junk mail midwinter. Since sending (and receiving!) love-filled missives always has me superexcited, I got really organized this year and made a few prints to send to friends and family during a printmaking class I took at Spudnik Press.



Linoleum block printing is relatively easy to do on your own at home. Though access to an actual printing press is handy, you can rub the paper with the back of a wooden spoon to pick up ink from the design.

Here’s what you’ll need:

A piece of linoleum
A brayer for rolling ink
Ink (oil based is best, but water based is easier to clean)
A linoleum-cutting carving set
Tracing paper and transfer paper

And here’s how you do it:

1. Draw your design, then trace the reverse of it onto a piece of tracing paper using a window.

2. Place the transfer paper on top of the linoleum, then put your tracing paper image on top of that.

3. Trace over with a pen or pencil to leave the lines of your design on the linoleum.

4. Carve away.

Of course, a class, an online tutorial or a book is handy, but jumping in and getting started is the best way to learn. And in case you’re running a bit short on time for a crafty, hand-carved Valentine, here are a few totally adorable pre-made cards that’ll still charm your sweetheart:

Rifle Paper Co., Anatomy of Love:



Mr. Bodington’s Studio, Perfect Pairs Valentine:



Larkpress, Ribs with Heart:

D.I.Y. Gifting: Make-Your-Own-Playdough Kit

by Anna H. Blessing (Chicago)
 

With cold weather upon us and snow just around the corner, this little D.I.Y. playdough gift is just about the best thing you could deliver to any friend or sibling with little ones trapped indoors in need of a project.

After a trip through Stars, an antique emporium in Portland, Oregon, I found a set of unusual and adorable mini vegetable cutters (complete with an asparagus stalk!), as well as a little wooden rolling pin. Voilà, the idea for a homemade playdough kit was born.

 
My mom used to make this playdough for me when I was little, and it lasts for a pretty long time as long as it’s in an airtight container. Plus, the simple (nontoxic!) recipe takes only a matter of minutes.

 
HOMEMADE PLAYDOUGH 

1 cup salt
1 cup flour
1 cup water
1 tablespoon vegetable or canola oil
2 teaspoons cream of tartar
 
1. Heat all ingredients in a small pot over medium heat, stirring constantly until the mixture starts to thicken, becomes difficult to stir and starts to pull away from the edges of the pot.

2. Scrape out of pot and separate dough into pieces to add food coloring.

3. Knead dough for 10 minutes.

4. Store in an airtight bag or container.

5. Wrap and gift to your favorite rug rat.

98 Santas and Counting

by Anna H. Blessing (Chicago)

Alright, I confess: I own nearly a hundred Santas. When I was growing up, my parents gave each of the children an ornament theme and, as you can probably guess, mine was Santa Claus. Every year since I was born, I have been given at least one in just about every material and shape you can imagine. (Basically, as long as he had a beard and a bit of red, he was Santa.)

My collection recently expanded to 98, thanks to several amazing ones my grandma (an avid amasser of Santas) gave me. In light of nearing the 100 mark, I’ve rounded up my top 10 favorites from the archives.

1. This vintage Santa sat atop our Christmas tree for my entire childhood—and also on top of my dad’s when he was little!

2. My husband brought me this minimal guy from Stockholm a few years ago.

3. A gift from my sister last year. I love his crazy felted beard.

4. This Santa was intricately hand stitched by my mom.

Read More

The ABC’s of Baking Tasty (and Healthy) Crackers

by Anna H. Blessing (Chicago)

101 Cookbooks + alphabet cookie cutter set = very adorable oatmeal crackers.

I absolutely love baking, but it often involves piles upon piles of delicious, addictive, sugary, floury, buttery stuff. Enter superfoods goddess Heidi Swanson, whose beautiful photo-centric blog, 101 Cookbooks, emphasizes whole, fresh and local foods. That’s where I found the recipe for the rye flour and rolled oats crackers I made above. Crispy and tasty, these guys feel indulgent but turn out to be really healthy (which is why I made them in kid-friendly alphabet form for my little girl).

Heidi says the trick for crackers that perfectly snap in two (instead of crumbling) is to make them extra thin and then flip them midbaking so each side gets browned. My tip? Use the freshest rolled oats you can get for that toasty flavor. (Fellow Chicagoans, I’ve found great ones at Three Sisters Garden.)

101 Cookbooks: Oatmeal Crackers

• 1 cup rolled oats
• 1¼ cups whole milk, heated just to boiling
• ¼ cup room-temperature unsalted butter
• 4 tablespoons natural cane sugar
• 3 teaspoons aluminum-free baking powder
• 2 teaspoons crushed anise seed (optional)
• ½ teaspoon fine-grain sea salt, plus more for sprinkling
• 1¼ cup dark rye flour
• 1½ cups all-purpose flour, plus more for dusting

Meet the bloggers

Well, first off, there’s us. We’re an ever-changing group working on all sorts of creative things at Madewell. Designers, media mavens, tastemakers, industrious interns—the gang’s all here.

We’re really excited to share all the stuff—big or small, far and wide–that constantly inspires us. Hop over here and you’ll get the story on each of us.

But wait, there’s more…

We cast a net from coast to coast, sweeping up some of our favorite writerly women who we think are just so Madewell. (We have a hunch you’ll think so too.) Read up on the group, whose musings you’ll find mixed in with our own.