How to build a pipe clothing rack

I love the industrial style look of these black steel pipe clothing racks!  I use one for my craft shows, and I always get questions about where I got it.  Well, I made it!  I’m going to explain how you can make your own.

The awesome thing about these racks is that it’s super easy to customize them to be exactly how you want it.  I used 1/2″ diameter black steel, but you can also get the silver galvanized ones.   The straight pieces come in standard lengths like 12″, 18″, 24″, 72″, etc etc.  but places like Home Depot will also cut/rethread them for you if you need something super specific.  You can also get the T-connectors, L-connectors, floor flanges, etc etc.

First, make a plan of what you want to make.  Here’s what my plan looked like. Triple check that you’re getting all the correct pipe sizes (I suggest sticking with 1/2″).  For the base I used a 12″ wide, 8′ long pine board.  

Here are a few other possibilities:

Before you actually put clothes on your racks, you’ll want to clean the pipes.  They tend to be a bit greasy.  I just use Dawn dish soap and a green scrubby. 

 

Put your base together with the flanges, two vertical bars, and one of the horizontal bars so that you can be positive your anchor screws are in the right place. 

Center your base, and then mark where your flange screws will be.  Drill some pilot holes so that you don’t split your board or put your screws in crooked!

Flanges in place!  If you’re going to be painting or staining your board, you don’t need to screw them in just yet.  

Flip your board over and place your wheels where you want them.  I put my wheels about halfway between where the flanges are on the opposite side and the ends.  I find that it is most sturdy this way. 

Mark the screw positions and drill some pilot holes. 

Before you add the hardware, do any staining/painting/decorating of the board.  You do this part after all of the marking/drilling so that it doesn’t get banged up.   I also spray painted my connector pieces gold. Once your board is done, attach the flanges on the finished side, and the wheels on the other. 

Now for the assembly.  Screw in your vertical pieces and the T-connectors.

Screw the horizontal bar into one end as tight as you can get it.  The other end will be loose. 

Position that loose bar and screw it in halfway.  By screwing it in halfway, you’ll also be unscrewing it halfway on the other end.  You may need to try a few times to get it just right.  It will be totally secure if you get it right in the middle!

Put the rest of it together, and you’re done!

And look how nicely it comes apart!  Perfect for transporting to craft shows or for moving.  It’s also easy to change things up if you want to add an extra row or change the size. 

 

Let me know if you have any questions!

Lemon Cake (with lemon filling and lemon buttercream)

I made this cake for a Relief Society activity, and it was a hit!  Some people were asking for the recipe, so I’ll just post it here so it’s accessible.  You can control how lemony you want it! I like VERY lemony.  I didn’t use food colouring, but you could if you want it more yellow.

Cake

-1 (18.25 ounce) package yellow cake mix

-1 (3.4 ounce) package instant lemon pudding mix

-1 3/4 cups water

-3 egg whites

Preheat oven to 350 degrees.  Spray a 10×15 inch pan with non-stick cooking spray

In a large bowl, mix together cake mix and pudding mix. Pour in water and egg whites.  Beat on low for 1 minute.  Increase speed to high and beat for 4 minutes.  Pour batter into prepared 10×15 inch pan.

Bake in preheated over for 25-30 minutes, or until toothpick inserted into center of cake comes out clean.  Allow to cool completely.

Lemon filling

-3/4 cup granulated sugar

-2 Tbsp cornstarch

-1/8 tsp salt

-3/4 cup cold water

-2 egg yolks (slightly beaten)

-1 tsp grated lemon peel

-3 Tbsp medium lemon

-1 Tbsp butter or margarine

In a small saucepan, combine sugar, cornstarch, and salt.  Gradually add water and whisk until blended.  Whisk in egg yolks, lemon peel, and lemon juice.  Cook over medium heat, whisking constantly until thick and bubbly.  Boil 1 minute, remove from heat.  Stir in butter. Cool to room temperature, without stirring.

Lemon buttercream

-1 cup butter

-6 cups confectioners sugar

-Zest from 1 lemon

-Juice from one lemon

-Lemon extract and milk

Cream butter.  Blend in sugar, beating well with each addition.  Blend in lemon zest and juice.  Add lemon extract and milk as needed to reach desired taste and consistency.

To assemble, cut the cake in half horizontally.  Spread lemon filling over bottom layer, then place top layer back on.  Frost with lemon buttercream.

Varsity Cowl Neck Pullover

I have a new pattern to share!  This is the Varsity Cowl Neck Pullover from Peekaboo Pattern Shop!  Bennett is being my tiny model for this one.

It’s rated as an “adventurous beginner” pattern.  The best part is that you don’t have to hem anything because all the openings have cuffs!  Hemming is the worst.

I used a lightweight jersey and some rib knit for this one.  You can also do fleece or sweater knit for a warmer version!

This buffalo plaid pullover is for sale in my shop, too!  Mr. Bennett is 13lbs in these pictures, and would fit from about 10-15lbs (around 0-6 months, depending on how big your babies come ;)

 

Sunki Dress by Figgy’s

I’ve been super busy with making things for the shop, so I don’t make a lot of stuff for
us to actually keep and wear!  But I got the chance to try out the Sunki Dress by Figgy’s, so Eleanor totally got dibs on this one!

This fabric has been standing out to me every time I go to Joann’s, and it was perfect for the Sunki.  It has some structure to it, and the weight is perfect for fall and winter.  I used an off-white canvas for the pockets, and a gold zipper for the back!  It has instructions for a regular zipper, but I decided to do an exposed one.

It’s still a little big on Eleanor, but she’ll grow into it soon enough.  The style is meant to be a bit boxy, so if you have a narrow girl you might want to size down and add length.  It will be really cut with tights and boots, I think!

It’s not too tricky of a project. The pockets are probably the hardest part, but there is a tutorial right here with extra pictures to help.Check out Go To Patterns* for more fun projects.  I love this website because it is basically a collection of a bunch of the “best of” from a bunch of different designers.  Plus if you sign up for the newsletter you can get lots of coupons!

*affiliate link

Welcome to the world, Bennett!

Tags

birth story, expecting baby

Since it has been almost two weeks since Bennett was born, I figured it was time I write out the birth story before I forget!  It isn’t especially graphic, but if you don’t like birth stories it might be TMI.  Feel free to skip this one if you’re going to get grossed out :P

Back on Tuesday, July 7th, my parents had just gotten here to Spokane for a visit.  That weekend I was going to be doing a craft fair so they were going to help out with getting everything ready, setting up, etc.  Baby wasn’t due until the 23rd, so I figured I would have plenty of time to do the show, finish up Etsy orders, and get all of the baby clothes and gear ready before his arrival.  Eleanor was two days after her due date, so I had my fingers crossed for another late baby!

I woke up at 3am to either my water breaking or getting kicked in the bladder and wetting the bed.  Since I was asleep at the time I wasn’t positive which it was, but since I started getting fairly strong contractions right away I was pretty sure it was my water breaking.  I went back to bed and dozed for a few hours, then woke Sam up at about 7am telling him I was pretty sure I was in labour.  I think it took a sec for him to believe me ;)  The contractions were 5-7 minutes apart, but they were still pretty mild.  With Eleanor we went into the hospital really early and I didn’t want to do that again, so I sent Sam off to work.  The rest of the day I just stayed at home working on my craft fair stuff and making my mom worry that the baby was going to pop out at home.

By 5pm my contractions were 3-5 minutes apart and getting more intense.  I called the nurse and asked if I should just come in soon since I knew that if my water was broken, they like to deliver within about 24 hours.  She said to go in and get checked for sure, so I waited for Sam to get home from work then we headed over to Sacred Heart.  Thank goodness my parents happened to be there to stay with Eleanor!

We got to the hospital and did some waiting in triage, and they determined that my water had broken.  It had already been 19 hours, and I was at 5cm/80%.  I asked to walk around for a while to try to move things along before they gave me pitocin.  For an hour Sam and I wandered around the hospital looking through baby name apps.  We did have a list of names we liked, but we just weren’t settled on anything yet!  We thought we had another 2+ weeks to decide!  They then checked my and baby’s vitals, then let me walk around for another hour. We also spent some time shopping online for a crib, since Eleanor is still using hers and we hadn’t figured out where he was going to sleep yet!

After the two hours of walking, I was at just 6cm/80%.  When the nurse was checking me something got nudged and caused a ton more of the amniotic fluid that had been stalling things to rush out.  This let baby’s head drop down a lot more, and my contractions got WAY more intense right away.  I just hung out for about an hour, then we got the anesthesiologist in to give me the epidural.  If things weren’t moving along more after half an hour they were going to start Pitocin. They did the check- and I had suddenly jumped up to being ready to deliver NOW.  My doctor was just a few minutes away (bless her for coming in at 2am!) so they got everything prepped and ready.  After 4 or 5 contractions of pushing, baby was born at 2:30am!  He was 6lbs 14oz and 19″ long.

Since I’d been in active labour for 23 hours and there was some meconium in the amniotic fluid, the NICU doctors were there to check out baby.  He got cleared, but then when the nurse was doing some other checks she thought his tone was off and had some shallow breathing.  The NICU folks came back and decided to take him down for some tests.  Sam went with them, and I got moved to a different room.  My doctor came to talk to me and explain what was going on, since everyone else was so busy with the baby.  She was really great and made me feel a lot better. Nobody wants to see their newborn being rushed down to the NICU– especially when you aren’t even sure why.

It turned out that baby was just taking a bit of time to adjust to the outside world.  All of his tests came back fine, and by the morning his colour was better and his breathing was normal.  We were just going to watch him closely for a while. We took him back to  the room, and we finally had a chance to settle on a name! Sam and I were both drawn to the name Bennett, and that was that!

Later in the day the pediatrician thought she noticed a heart murmur, and an echo confirmed it.  They think he will grow out of it quickly, but he needs to get rechecked in 6 months to make sure.

We’ve all been doing great, and we’ve had lots of help and support!  I’ll do another post later about how Eleanor has been adjusting to having a baby brother.  Spoiler alert:  she’s going to have to warm up to him!!

White Fam in Orlando

Our family had a blast in Orlando last month!  Sam’s parents were so generous to take us all on vacation as a sort of last hurrah before Kiersten leaves on her LDS mission to Japan.  The very best part was getting to spend time with everyone– but Orlando was a pretty awesome place to do it!

Love these guys!

We went to both Disney World and Universal Studios.  Both were really neat!  Unfortunately I couldn’t go on most of the rides since I was 32 weeks pregnant, but there was still a ton to see and explore.  I definitely want to go back someday and hit all the crazy rides!  I LOVE roller coasters, river rapids, tower drops…

Eleanor was pretty hesitant about most of the rides.  She just really didn’t like it when it was dark and enclosed and had loud noises.  But she had a blast with a few things– and most of them had to do with animals!

In Jurassic Park at Universal they have some really lifelike dinosaur exhibits.  She was in awe and just kept pointing and exclaiming at everything.

  Eleanor was also a big fan of the aquarium!  It was also very nice and air conditioned, so we were good with spending a bunch of time resting there :)  I thought that she might get scared when the really big stuff came right up to the glass, but she loved it!

We also found a playground area with some fun stuff.  It was a hit!

We basically tossed her into the ball pit because it was a long way down and adults weren’t supposed to go in.  She had never been in one before, so we weren’t sure what she would think of it.  She landed way down in the balls with her face down, laid there for a few seconds, and then just exploded up in the air with the biggest smile on her face, holding up two of the balls.  It was hard to get her to come out after!

I think that Eleanor’s favourite thing was the petting zoo in Animal Kingdom!  I’ve been wanting to take her to one for a while, and as expected, she loved it!  I’ll have to find a good petting zoo around Spokane to take her to!

My favourite attraction was probably the Harry Potter stuff!  They had Hogwarts, Hogsmeade, Diagon Alley, and some of the other stuff from London.  There was so much detail and little hidden gems there!  I’ve been a Harry Potter fan since elementary school and I can’t even tell you how many times I’ve read the books, so it was really cool to be there!

Here are a few of my favourite pictures and moments from the trip-

She enjoyed the carousal for the first 30 seconds. Not so much a fan for the rest of it.

She liked the parades- lots of music and people to wave at!

Auntie Kiersten– we’re going to miss her so much!

Thanks again Mom and Dad White!  It was really an amazing vacation, and we so appreciate the chance to go!

Spring Has Sprung!

I think that winter has officially passed in Spokane!  Knock on wood, but I don’t think we’ll be getting any more snow– at least not any that sticks around.

It took a few days for Eleanor to get used to wearing shoes and walking outside.  At church she would just wear tights, and when we went outside in the winter it was always in a carrier or in the stroller. But now that the sidewalks aren’t so slick and the wind isn’t so brisk, we love walking around the neighborhood.

  

We recently found out that baby #2 is definitely a boy!  At our early ultrasound that was the guess, but the tech told us not to “paint the nursery” or anything yet.  But even before I was pregnant this time I felt like our next baby would be a boy.  I guess I had a 50/50 chance of being right, but we’ll call it mother’s intuition ;)

At first I wasn’t totally sure how I felt about having a boy.  It’s new territory.  But I know that this little guy is supposed to be with us, and I’m excited to have a brand new little baby!  Seeing friends and people out and about with their teeny babies makes me all emotional and really look forward to having him here!

This pregnancy has been harder than the first.  A big part is that I just don’t have as much freedom to relax if I feel tired or sick since Eleanor doesn’t nap much.  And while I had a pretty easy first half of the pregnancy, lately I’ve been getting really nauseous and crappy feeling during the day.  I really feel for the ladies who get that (and even worse!) through their pregnancies.  Not fun!

This morning I watched the video below, and it filled my heart with love and rejuvenation.  It’s a beautiful tribute to mothers and the good that they can do.

Since everybody asks- Eleanor will be 19 months when the baby in due.  Yes, it will be tiring and crazy and we don’t fully understand what we’re getting ourselves into.  But it will be rewarding and good and worth it.

Sam is still plugging along at law school, his internship at the US Attorney’s Office, and working for his dad (office manager stuff for his construction business).  I’m so proud of how hard he’s working and how well he’s doing.  We look forward to having him around more after he’s done school in about a year, but he’s doing really great at trying to balance everything, and we appreciate the time we get to spend together.

Ohhh baby.

If we’re friends on facebook, you’ve probably heard the news that we’re expecting baby #2!

Eleanor will be a little over a year and a half when she becomes a (little) big sister.

Here’s the video of when I told Sam.

Just like the last pregnancy, I’ve had it pretty easy.  I get dizzy and nauseous if I don’t eat enough at the right times, but my only big symptom is exhaustion.  It was a lot simpler last time when I could just take naps whenever I wanted, but now I’m at the mercy of a one year old who hates to sleep!

We’re pretty excited!  It’s going to be hard and crazy with two very little kids, but we know that it was the right decision for our family!

Happy Girls Run Half Marathon

Last weekend was pretty eventful!  On Thursday night I went to a meet and greet/book reading with the authors of Run Like a Mother and Train Like a Mother.  They also have a pretty great website/podcast/facebook page.

It was held in a Crossfit gym, so Eleanor had a lot of room to roam around.

 

There was a great surprise waiting at home– Sam’s parents and sister had come for a surprise visit!  We had no idea they were coming!  It was great seeing them.  It had been a while!

 

 

Now, I am no food photographer, so this picture probably just looks gross.  But seriously, if you want to have amaaaazing pizza, go to The Flying Goat in Spokane.  The Dalton (below) is our favourite. It has honey apple BBQ, pulled pork, carmelized onion, and coleslaw!  It’s amazing.

 

 

 

  

Next month I’m doing a full marathon, and since my training schedule called for a long run on Saturday anyway, I decided to sign up for the Happy Girls Run Spokane half marathon.  It was a spur of the moment decision, but I figured I had might as well get to do my long run on a cool course with water stations ;)

It was a difficult course!  Half of it was technical trail (dirt or very rocky) and it had some brutal hills.  But it was very pretty, and a really fun run!

Let’s keep in mind that the next two pictures were after I just ran ;)  This is Dimity and Sarah, the book authors I mentioned.

 

 

 

 

 

Fellow mother runners, these books are fantastic!   On Amazon they’re less than $5 used! I had felt kind of alone in my “demographic” of being a long distance runner and new mom, but these ladies GET IT!  They understand why it’s important for moms to run, and offer wonderful insight and inspiration to help get me out there. They’re also hilarious.  Check them out!

Summer has been flying by!  Eleanor has been growing right on schedule! She’s going to be eight months old next week, and is a little over 15 pounds now.  She’s getting really good at pulling herself up to stand and walk along the furniture.  

1 month vs 7 months

We’ve had a blast giving her solid foods.  She makes fantastic faces with everything!  I’ve been posting some of the pictures on facebook, but I’ve also gotten some great videos of her first tastes.  I’m planning on putting them into a short little video of the best reactions.  We were surprised to find that she actually really loves feta cheese! (Don’t worry, it was pasteurized). 

Blueberries!

Sam has been kept busy with a few summer classes, working for his dad, and his internship at the US Attorney’s Office.  I love crime television shows, so it’s also fun for me to hear about some of the crazy cases he works on.  

We’ve been so blessed to have lots of visitors this summer, too!  We always love to have some company.  I think it made time go by even faster since there was always another “staycation” coming up.

Of course we busted out a puzzle when my grandma came!

That’s about it!  There hasn’t been a ton going on lately.  Just growing baby, working dad, tired content mom!