A fabric ball in the Czech Republic

Adéla Procházková of the Czech Republic sent this sweet photo of a fabric ball she made yesterday for her daughter, Anezka.

Adéla says she is a beginning sewer - didn't she do a great job! If she can make one of these little balls, you can, too. The geometric shapes around the ball make it so easy for little fingers to grasp.

Thank you, Adéla, for sharing the photo and permission to share it. I think your ball turned out beautifully.

And thank you to google translate, which charmingly renders the title of her photo ("balonek pro male deti") as "balloon for young children."

By the way…if you haven't checked out Polly's latest post about the large polka-dot quilt, I can't help but think that it has to be more than coincidence that some favorite children's items are covered in dots. So bright and cheerful.

This new fabric ball just makes me smile. I love the way this pattern continues to roam all over the world, bringing joy to so many children! (Just in the last few hours I've had hits on the fabric ball tutorial from New South Wales, Slovakia, and Mexico.)

Spa Treatment at Home!

I gave myself a wonderful home spa treatment tonight. Ahhh…feels so good!

I got some of the ideas from this post on the Weight Watchers website:

Some of them I just figured out on my own.

Here's what I did:

1. Steam facial treatment
Bring 3-4 cups of water to a rolling boil and add 4-5 herbal tea bags.
Reduce heat to simmer and let the tea bags steep for 2 minutes.
Remove the pan from the heat and let it cool for 2 minutes.
Remove any makeup, put your face over the pan and then cover your head with a thick towel.
Let the steam from the herbal mix bathe your face for 10 minutes.

2. Egg white facial
Wash your face with your normal cleanser or an exfoliating scrub.
Apply an egg white facial. I used a purchased product, or you can make your own at home.
Leave it in place for 10 minutes, then rinse with warm water.
Apply a light moisturizer.

Meanwhile…

3. Pedicure treatment
Run hot water 3-4 inches deep in a basin or the bathtub.
Add the herbal water from the facial treatment and about 1/4 cup of moisturizing shampoo.
Soak your feet for 10+ minutes while you complete the egg white facial.

4. Manicure treatment
While your feet are soaking, rub moisturizer into your hands.
Massage each finger, between fingers, along the back of the hands up to the wrist.

About now you will need to dry off your feet and take a break to wash the egg white from your face.

5. Pedicure treatment - continued
Finish soaking your feet for a few more minutes.
Use a pumice stone to exfoliate the rough spots.
Follow up with a salt rub (recipe below).
Rinse and dry.
Apply a thick layer of moisturizer. Wrap the feet in plastic wrap, and then in socks.
After 10 minutes, remove the socks and moisturizer and finish rubbing any remaining moisturizer into the skin.

Tuck yourself into bed and enjoy sweet dreams!

Salt Rub Recipe
This is a wonderful salt rub to keep on hand. I keep it in a small plastic container in the shower, and another one near the kitchen sink. It exfoliates and moisturizes at the same time. It will keep indefinitely.

1 cup fine sea salt
1/4 cup baby oil

Stir the ingredients together. Store in a screw-top jar or tightly sealed plastic container.