Schmancy-ness

Inertia

2011-11-10T06:49:00.004-05:00

Remember the golden rule? Remember how I decided to start over? Well, I did. About a month ago. I came up with a new design, I cut my paper strips, I got everything ready to go.

And then everything sat there, and sat there, and sat there some more. It wasn't that I didn't want to work on it, I just... didn't. I don't know why, maybe I was just busy, or maybe I was lazy. But I do know that now I've started I'm quite pleased with how it's looking, and I'm hoping to have this done shortly*.

*"Shortly" is a relative term, though. When I say "shortly" I mean a month or so. If I were talking about eating dinner, "shortly" would mean within the hour. That's funny, isn't it?

There's Always Tomorrow

2011-09-20T08:00:00.002-04:00

I've given up on the Golden Rule. Not the actual concept, just the quilling. It just wasn't working for me, and I didn't want to work on it. I know last time I said I was going to finish it, but I just... couldn't. Every time I was going to work on it, I'd find some excuse not to. The dishwasher needed unloading, or I wanted to paint my nails, or whatever. I realized that it wasn't that those things really needed doing, it was that I flat out didn't like what I was working on. I tried to force myself into it, but I rebelled by throwing it in the trash. Take that, self-discipline!

It brings up an interesting question, though: when do you walk away from something that isn't working? How much time do you force yourself to devote to something that you're not really excited about? When is enough?

I definitely plan on reworking the Golden Rule piece because I like the idea of it, I just didn't like my execution of it. I can do better than that, and I intend to shortly. But I needed a palate cleanser before I took another stab at it.

Anyway, as soon as I trashed the Golden Rule (again, the quilling, not the whole "being nice" thing) I felt inspired, and this is what I came up with.

I'm Ambivalent About The Golden Rule

2011-08-29T09:00:00.000-04:00

So, I started this back in May and this is as far as I've gotten. It's not that I actively dislike it, really. It's just that I'm not excited about it. I've made a commitment to finish one project before moving on to the next one, though so I'm going to get my butt in gear and finish this.

I had an epiphany while I was at work the other day. I was gazing out the window and saw two Goldfinches in the bushes. I think that's what this needs-- some lovely birds. After all, Goldfinches, Golden Rule, it's good right?

A Blast from the Past: Everything is Awesome

2011-07-12T09:00:00.003-04:00

A revisit of my first quilling project. Not that I don't like the old one, of course, but I felt like seeing how I could take things in a different direction. I'm pretty pleased with this one. I'm really having fun with the fancy borders in my work lately. But I am still quite fond of the more free-flowing look.

e

2011-07-05T09:00:00.002-04:00

This piece is 4x6, which is the smallest I think I've ever done. There's not much to it really, but that's what I like about it. Sometimes, less is more. Right?

Thanks (Finished)

2011-06-21T09:00:00.002-04:00

Thanks

2011-06-14T09:00:00.002-04:00

In progress. I wanted to do something a little fancy that combines precise symmetry with more organic shapes. This is just after the precise bits, and starting on the organic parts.

Making things symmetrical and straight is not easy but the results are pretty nice, if I might toot my own horn for a moment. Now on the the fun part, in shades of blue!

Getting There

2011-06-07T09:00:00.003-04:00

I thought I was done with this. But I'm not. It still needs a little something else. It's almost there.

Take Two

2011-05-31T09:00:00.000-04:00

This picture shows my second attempt at this project. The first attempt was a lesson in "do not craft in low light" and/or "do not craft when tired." It seemed OK at the time but in the daylight it looked like a nightmare. So, that was unceremoniously dumped in the bin and another attempt was made, in bright daylight and fully awake. I'm much happier with this.

JACOB

2011-05-24T09:00:00.002-04:00

It's done! My first quilling project in a year is done! I'm over the moon happy to be quilling again. This piece isn't perfect. Far from it. But I love it anyway!

I'm Not Dead

2011-05-10T08:00:00.000-04:00

Though I can certainly understand if anyone has assumed I was. It turned out to be impossible to do much besides take care of the baby and try to keep myself fed and the house from becoming a disaster area. I'm in awe of bloggers who have a baby and continue posting on a regular basis. As you can tell, I'm not one of those.

That project I mentioned starting in my last post? I don't even remember what that was, or where it might have gone. Hopefully it wasn't anything fantastic. I'd hate if my masterpiece was lost in the shuffle, never to return.

My little boy is a year old now. He's big and strong and smart and he's just marvellous. It's so amazing to see the world through the eyes of a baby. All those things we take for granted, like the vacuum cleaner or the street lights or toes? Having a baby makes you appreciate how truly fascinating all of those things are. It's definitely helped me to gain a new appreciation for the beauty and wonder that really is all around us, if we only take the time to look.

I've not, in the last almost year, had time or energy for much in the way of artistic or crafty pursuits. Printing some pictures to hang on the walls of our new house was about it. Oh, and knitting a cowl over the winter.

But now?

Now I'm back, baby!

These are a couple of pictures of my first quilling project in far far too long. It's an 8" by 10" piece, since I didn't want to bite off too big a project my first time out. I have really missed quilling. I forgot how much I enjoy planning out my lettering, choosing colors, working on placement. It's so much fun, and it feels so good to be back!

Progress

2010-06-21T09:00:00.001-04:00

So, here's my little man at 2 months. He weighs nearly 10 pounds, which is apparently pretty light for a 2-month old- he's only in the 10th percentile for weight. But for someone who weighed 4 and a half pounds at birth, I'd say he's done a fine job of filling out.

There has indeed been some crafting happening here at Casa Pulltaffy. A bit of quilling, a bit of knitting, even a bit of cooking. Which is not a craft, is it? Ah well. Anyway, I will hopefully have some pictures later this week of my latest quilling project. It's just barely started but I'm proud of it!

Look What I Made!

2010-06-10T08:59:00.003-04:00

He's got such a little monkey face. I lurve him. This was taken while he was still in the hospital. He's loads bigger nowadays.

Still no crafting getting done, but I wanted to pop in and thank everyone for the comments and kind words! My heart is touched by your praise and good wishes!

We're getting into a sort of routine here, hopefully soon I will be able to carve out a little "me" time to start something creative!

An Unexpected Event

2010-05-04T09:00:00.002-04:00

So, a couple of Fridays ago, something happened. Then, the next day, something else happened. The first thing that happened was that my water broke, and the second thing that happened was that I had the baby. He came a month early. Four weeks early sometimes means the baby needs help. Sometimes the baby doesn't. Our baby did. He spent more than a week in the NICU at one of the best children's hospitals on the East Coast, and is scheduled to come home today. I can't go into details about the medical stuff because thinking about it too much brings back the absolute terror I felt when I was laying there in the operating room and I heard the NICU doctors say "start chest compressions" and whisk him away before I could even see him. I've never been so scared in my whole life.

But, he is doing very well now, and that is the Most Important Thing. He had a very rough start, but has been progressing in leaps and bounds and generally reassuring his poor terrified mama that he's going to be OK. He is a very small baby, but he is strong and that is what matters.

I don't know how often I'm going to be posting for awhile, what with a new baby to take care of and love and cuddle. I have a few projects in the works but I'm not sure how much time I will be spending on them. I'll be back whenever I can!

A Bit Unsure

2010-04-29T09:00:00.002-04:00

Well I started on the Best Friend Cardigan. Using such giant needles, I figured, would maybe be easier on my hands. I'm not exactly happy with this pattern so far. First, Ravelry told me that in my stash I had the proper yarn weight for the job. But the actual yarn billed itself only as "Bulky" not "Super Bulky" so I gave it a try and found that it really wouldn't work, so I tried doubling up, using two strands held together.

It's working better now, but I actually think I'm using the wrong sized needles- this thing is GIGANTIC and coupled with the fact that I'm not totally satisfied with how big the stitches are in relation to the thickness of the yarn, I'm leaning towards frogging the whole thing and starting over on smaller needles.

I also opted to leave out the bobbles called for, as it seems many people have done, judging by the photos posted to the Ravelry page. Bobbles + super thick yarn = not attractive.

My overall feeling about this project so far is a resounding "meh." And I hate feeling that way, so something's got to give.

Dewey Cabled Pullover Completed

2010-04-28T09:00:00.002-04:00

It's not easy to take pictures of white things on white backgrounds. On cloudy days. Anyhow, I finally finished the Dewey Cabled Pullover, about a week behind when I'd hoped to be done. It's done, at last. Not blocked yet, but done, and I'd gotten rather tired of knitting with white yarn (my last project was in the same white yarn as this one) so I'm not sure when I will get around to doing it. I have a stack, actually, of baby sweaters that need washed and blocked. I guess I ought to get going on that, before the little guy arrives!

More Patterns

2010-04-27T09:00:00.002-04:00

The most fun thing, I think, about making a pattern on the computer is how easy it is to change things. By switching out the colors, something can be given a very different feel. I like to play around with the colors I use in a pattern to see the different "looks." I'm most happy with the two color schemes on the left- the very cool blues in the top one make me think of summer, and the hot reds in the bottom one are very peppy. I could see that color scheme being used on kitchen towels or chair covers for a retro/pop sort of feel.

Patterns Part One

2010-04-26T09:00:00.001-04:00

Over the weekend I did some more pattern design. For some reason I was picturing this in orange, but then when it came time to actually color it, I couldn't find an orange that made me happy. So here it is in other variations for now, perhaps when it comes time to actually do something with this design (Spoonflower, perhaps, or background for another project?) it will reappear in the proper color as originally imagined.

Initial Quilling Finished

2010-04-23T09:00:00.002-04:00

I forgot that I'd finished this earlier in the week! I was hoping for a nice sunny day to take photos but the weather has not been cooperating, so this is the best I could do.

I'm really pleased with this project. It was refreshing to have a break from the technicolor extravaganza of my last few quilling projects. I think the white on a blue background is very nice- the highly saturated background contrasts nicely with the white, making it crisp and simple, yet elegant. I'm planning to track down a white frame for this but it might be harder than I thought since I need an 8" by 8" frame and I can't remember where I saw one!

An Alternative Activity and an Epic Whine

2010-04-22T09:00:00.002-04:00

Most women who have never had a baby still hear about pregnancy from other women, or read about it in magazines, or see discussions of it on television. I'd wager that most of them, like me, figure that by the age of about 15 or so, they have a pretty good idea of what being pregnant is like- the morning sickness, the waddling walk, the constant peeing, etc.

Apparently, though, I'd been laboring under a misconception about the scope of my own knowledge. I had no idea that a pregnant woman was more likely to develop carpal tunnel syndrome. And I had no idea that carpal tunnel syndrome was such a pain to deal with. I've had to start wearing a brace on my left wrist. My right hand hurts, too, but the left is just excruciatingly painful and numb up to my shoulder to the point that I am having difficulty holding onto things with my fingers. (This could prove to be an issue once the baby gets here.) It probably doesn't help that I broke my left wrist when I was 10 years old, and it never quite healed the way it ought to. Plus, I'm left-handed, so I use that hand much more than the other.

I've been wearing a brace at night, and for most of the day, for 3 days now. I have been feeling some improvement which is encouraging, but not enough that I've been able to keep up my usual pace as far as crafty work goes. I'm sad about that because I have so many things I'd like to be doing, but I'm having difficulty even writing, so I don't think I'd do a very tidy job quilling!

So, I've been trying to keep myself busy with quiet-hand activities. It's tough to do that because I am the kind of person who *has* to be doing something with my hands all the time. I can't even watch television without drawing or knitting! One thing I am able to do without too much trouble is make patterns- most of the work is done right-handed and mistakes are easily corrected. I'd been meaning to spend more time on pattern design anyway, so I'm able to keep myself amused.

This pattern was inspired by an episode of Clean House I watched yesterday. The master bedroom makeover was done in shades of lilac, gray and black, and a touch of orange. It managed to avoid the "Halloween-y" look we normally associate with black and orange, and it got me thinking about those colors.

And Now for Something Completely Different...

2010-04-21T09:00:00.002-04:00

After my last two rainbow-palooza quilling projects, I wanted to do something a bit more subtle, something of a palette cleanser between courses. What could be farther from those projects than this? Simple white quilling on a blue background. I'm really enjoying this project and the freedom from worrying about what color to use- it's all white! It lets me focus a bit more on form, without the distraction of color changes. I'm definitely planning to stick with a limited color palette for a few projects!

Confessions

2010-04-20T09:00:00.003-04:00

So, the other day my husband and I watched Twilight, and a few nights later we got stuck in and plodded through the sequel. It was... painful, to say the least. There's so much about the movies that is troubling, especially looking at the relationships from the perspective of a young teen (which I was once, a million years ago.) It's not a healthy example for anyone, but especially girls who haven't yet had much experience with romantic relationships. Not to get all radical feminist, but that is some serious normalization of physical violence and emotional abuse of women. Yuck.

Anyhow, all was not doom and gloom during our teen movie fest. I spotted a really nice curtain in the background of one scene:

(source)

Which served as inspiration for a new pattern:

So I guess I'm trying to tell myself that all was not lost, and I didn't actually waste several hours watching horrible movies. I'm imagining this pattern as a tiny print on some home dec weight fabric, maybe as pillows or even to cover a chair?

In Which I Attempt to Rationalize

2010-04-19T09:00:00.007-04:00

Gluttony on a cone.

I’m a very selfish woman sometimes.

I’ve been thinking about my next knitting project, and whether I wanted to continue making baby things, or maybe be a bit self-centered and knit a sweater for myself. I tried to justify it by thinking, “Well, if the baby will have an adorable cardigan (in fact, a half-dozen or so), why shouldn’t his mom be stylish too? It would be a disservice to an impressionable little boy to go around being a slobby mom.”

I also couldn’t help but think, as much as I’ve been enjoying the almost-instant gratification of knitting baby-sized things, I wanted something a bit more. More complicated, more time consuming, something that would take more than a week or so. I know, I know, it doesn’t make sense, because when I do work on a big project, I complain about it taking so long and feeling like I’m not making progress. And yet, there it is. What can I say? I’m complicated.

Anyway, I’d been browsing around on Ravelry and Knitty a few minutes here and there, drooling over all the lovely patterns, and I finally decided on making, at some point, the Best Friend Cardigan (a lovely bulky knit cabled sweater for fall and winter) and the Georgie Cardigan (an almost-copy of several Old Navy cardigans I have and treasure.) So, which one did I buy materials for?

Both.

Yes, that’s right. In a fit of self-interest, I bought both several skeins of Patons Divine Yarn in Chantilly Rose and a great big cone of Lion Brand Wool Yarn in Charcoal Heather. And a few pairs of needles. In my defense, I used an online promo code to get 50% off the cone of wool, so my total purchase was less than $50. And I don’t think that’s a lot to spend to keep myself occupied for what will most likely be at least a month. But I’ve told myself, “Now you listen here, madam, you are only allowed to make one of these, and then you must knit at least three baby things before you may make the other.” I think that’s fair, right?

Possibilities

2010-04-16T09:00:00.002-04:00

I love the potential in art supplies. There they are, just waiting to be used to create a masterpiece!

I forgot I even had these lovely Prismacolor pencils. I found them in a drawer of my arts and crafts area and thrilled myself quite thoroughly! Of course I had to sharpen them all to a nice point and then arrange them according to color, because I have a bit of the OCD about arranging things. When I was a tiny little kid, we had some of those old-fashioned wooden blocks, you know the kind, with the letters of the alphabet printed on them in different colors? My favorite thing to do with them was not build things, or try to spell, or throw them at the cat, or any of the typical kid things. I liked to sort them into piles- all the red ones, all the blue ones, etc, in nice neat little groups. I absolutely hated having to put them away, in a big messy jumble of colors, in the bag they went in.

I was a weird kid.

I'm a weird grown-up too.

I plan on taking these lovely pencils and my sophisticated sketchbook with me this weekend and doing some sketching for my next couple of quilling projects, and a few pattern ideas that I have been kicking around in my head. Maybe I will have something to show on Monday!

Imagine Quilling Finished (I Think)

2010-04-15T09:00:00.003-04:00

I think I might be done! In fact, yes, I am done. Probably. Well, OK, I might not be. It's possible I will look at this tomorrow and decide I need to fill in one or two spots. But, I might not. I'm unpredictable. Or fickle. But it's OK for me to be that way about this sort of thing- it's easy enough to add a bit more, but much harder to take away, so I'm trying to err on the side of caution. I take a look at this whenever I walk past my desk, and so far, I've actually not been feeling the inclination to add anything. So it's probably done.

Dewey Cabled Pullover in Progress

2010-04-14T09:00:00.004-04:00

I'm really liking this pattern. It's got a unique construction that makes for an easy assembly without a lot of fussy seaming. The front and back are knit in one piece, with a neck hole cast off, the shoulders (all 1 1/2 inches) worked separately, and then stitches cast back on. The sleeves and side seams are the only bits to sew together! Easy peasy!

I've made pretty good progress on this sweater, considering that I always have at least 3 projects going on at one time, and that my hands have really been aching lately. Thankfully, I have a husband who is very good about giving me massages and hand squeezes. He's a super guy!

I'm hoping (probably overly optimistically) to have this sweater finished by the end of this upcoming weekend. And then, I need to decide what my next project will be- another baby item, or a selfish sweater for myself?

Stuffed (Mushrooms)

2010-04-13T09:00:00.003-04:00

At my baby shower, among the many delicious dishes served, were some mushrooms stuffed with cheese and breadcrumbs, with garlic and parsley mixed in for good measure. Obviously, I didn't eat any, what with the whole vegan thing, but it got mushrooms on my mind. The next time I was at home and looking for something to have with supper, I knew what I wanted to make.

This is my version of cheesy stuffed mushrooms. They were a hit with my dairy-loving husband, but I can't guarantee they taste especially cheesy- he's just easy to please.

Ingredients:

1- 10-oz. package of button mushrooms
1/4 cup of breadcrumbs (about one slice of stale bread)
1/4 cup of firm or extra firm tofu, pressed to get out some of the moisture
1/4 cup of cashews
2 T olive oil
2 T lemon juice
2 T chopped fresh parsley
1 T barley miso (or more, to taste)
2 cloves of garlic, crushed
salt and pepper to taste

Wash the mushrooms and remove the stems. Dry the mushroom caps with paper towels or a clean kitchen towel. In a food processor or chopper, process the mushroom stems, cashews, oil, lemon juice, miso, and garlic until mixed into a uniform, thick paste. Add in the breadcrumbs, tofu, parsley, and salt and pepper, and process again to combine.

Fill each mushroom cap with 1-2 T of filling. Reserve any remaining filling for another use. Bake mushrooms @ 425 degrees for about 12 minutes. They are done when the mushrooms have begun to release their liquid and the filling is set firmly. Enjoy!

*You'll probably have some filling left over. I always do. It makes an excellent spread for on crusty Italian bread, on it's own or as part of a sandwich. Just toast it under the broiler for a few minutes to get the bread crispy and the filling hot.

Making it Official

2010-04-12T09:00:00.002-04:00

Up until now, I did my quilling projects with materials I already had on hand- I snipped the end off the eye of a needle to use as a rolling tool and cut strips of lightweight card stock from my stash. I wasn't sure if it was something I would keep up with, so I didn't want to spend money (even a modest amount) on tools and materials for a hobby that was going to be forgotten after a few months.

Well, it's been a couple months and I've done two decent projects, and I've got the quilling bug! I have plans for more projects already- some sort of a family crest/last name plaque and a big initial for in the baby's room. Sometimes when I go to sleep, I lay there with my eyes closed and see visions of quilling.

The other nice thing about it, which makes me think I won't be quitting any time soon, is that it's quiet. As much as I like sewing dresses for Blythe dolls, that's not really a quiet (or portable) hobby- I can't exactly take the sewing machine to bed and work on things while I'm getting sleepy. But I can roll quilling strips in bed! Quilling isn't something that will disturb a sleeping baby, either, which is a plus.

My mom and I went on an adventure this weekend. She has recently gotten interested in scrapbooking, and though she hasn't actually done any yet, she has spent a great deal of money on supplies. She's a very disciplined person- she told herself she wouldn't start any scrapbook projects until she had finished the pile of mending and the mountain of filing she had in her home office. And she has kept that promise. She's been working through those tasks and this weekend she expected to finish. So we celebrated with a trip to Hobby Lobby. The closest one to where we live is an hour away, so it's not a trip we plan to make weekly, but it was fun to go and check it out. We both went in with lists in hand for things we wanted to find, and we each left with several bags full of fun stuff.

Among my purchases were some "official" quilling supplies- two types of rollers (slotted and needle-type), a quilling board, for making rolls if uniform sizes, and a pack of real actual quilling papers. The colors in the pack are not all ones I plan to use (brown, ick!) but I wanted to try them to see how that paper compares to what I've been using. I guess it's official now- I'm a quiller!

The Hypothetical Cardigan, Part 2

2010-04-09T09:00:00.000-04:00

I've found a few more inspirational/aspirational patterns for cute, retro cardigans over at Ravelry:

Peggy Sue- A very fitted, cropped cardi. I'm not so sure this one would be flattering on a busty, post-baby body, but it's so sweet and I am in love with the color on the model. I like the cabled bottom half, too- that's a neat idea.

Georgie- I actually own a black cardigan that's very very similar to this, it's been relegated to an only-around-the-house sweater because I wore it so much!

Katharine Hepburn- Very elegant, and exactly the fit I want. I'm wondering, though, if I could just knit it (or the Georgie sweater) without the cables? If I just used the pattern for shaping but knit the whole thing in stockinette, would it still fit properly?

Also, this Best Friend Cardigan is not at all what I'm looking to knit right now, but holy moley is it cute! I think I will plan to knit this for fall/winter.

Of course, there's also the old standby of making my own pattern. I just don't know if I'm brave enough to try that right now. My brain is not exactly firing on all pistons lately. I put something in the fridge the other day and then stood there waiting for the timer to go off, because I'd meant to put it in the microwave. I stood there for a good 60 seconds before I realized my mistake!

As far as yarn goes, I'm thinking that I'll scope out some lightweight yarns this weekend, my mom and I are making a trek to the nearest Hobby Lobby (about an hour away) and I'm sure something there will catch my eye!

The Hypothetical Cardigan

2010-04-08T09:00:00.003-04:00

I'm thinking that I might feel like knitting up a cardigan for myself. All this baby knitting has me thinking about grown up knitting. Not grown up knitting as in, naughty things, but grown up as in, things in adult sizes.

I knitted myself a sweater in Cotton Ease about two years ago. It's a nice enough cardigan, long and sort of elegant, with a basic cable pattern. But Cotton Ease is a very heavy yarn, and the sweater is very warm. These days I'm thinking about something a bit more spring-y, lighter and more delicate. Basically, I want to knit myself an Old Navy cardigan.

So I am on the prowl for a pattern. My ideal pattern: something with sport weight or lighter yarn, 3/4 sleeve, with a stitch pattern that is pretty and feminine, though I'm not opposed to stockinette- I have 3 or 4 Old Navy stockinette cardigans, all of them stockinette, and gorgeous. If I do something in stockinette, I can add some pretty ruffles or flowers or something.

Basically, I suppose, I'm looking for an incredibly easy and incredibly gorgeous, fancy, and feminine pattern that I can knit for myself in many many colors to throw on over a basic t-shirt or button-down shirt to dress myself up and look beautiful. I've been browsing around online, and I'm starting to think this pattern might not exist. I suppose it's too good to be true, like a lot of the ideas in my head.

Some possibilities I found on Knitty:

Que Sera Cardigan- I love the retro styling, the color (!), and also the Doris Day reference. I don't love the yarn weight. Or the long sleeves, which I could shorten easily enough.

Tempest Cardigan- A basic stockinette, I would leave out the stripes.

Serrano Cardigan- long-sleeved, but again, I could fix that.

Orange Tofu

2010-04-07T09:00:00.002-04:00

This is what I made myself for lunch the other day. I've made it several times since. It's just that good. This is a veganized version of the Orange Beef Recipe from blogchef.net. Veganizing this one was simple, just a quick substitution of pressed tofu cubes for the beef, and I pan-fried them rather than deep frying because I'm just too lazy to deep fry. Tossing the tofu (of beef) in cornstarch makes them fry up deliciously crispy and chewy.

The sauce for this dish is a light and less sweet version of typical fast-food Chinese versions. I also made this dish with chicken for my husband. He got up to get seconds before he was even done with his first helping. That's a pretty good endorsement!

An Inauspicious Start

2010-04-06T09:00:00.002-04:00

Here's the start of my next knitting project- the Dewey Cabled Pullover (Ravelry link) from the book Vintage Baby Knits. I'm using the same yarn- Patons Beehive Baby Sport- as I did for the Classic Cardigan I just wrapped up. It's a nice soft yarn that doesn't knit up too heavy, which I like. I'm thinking the simple cable pattern is enough to keep me interested, and that's always a plus!

Showered!

2010-04-05T09:00:00.004-04:00

Our new stroller! It's a Graco Flip-it Travel System, and the handle adjusts to both the perfect height for a shorty like me and for a manly man like my husband! Yay!

Whew! What a weekend. I had lofty plans to do a lot of crafty things- quilling and knitting were at the top of my list- but I have barely managed to do anything! I'm exhausted in spite of hardly doing anything. Saturday, my family threw me a baby shower. It was such a fun time, family from my side and my husband's side came to my mom's house for delicious food and visiting. Here's the menu:

Bruschetta
Homemade Hummus
Toasty Breads
Marinated Olives
Potato Salad
Pistachio Crusted Cheese Log
Stuffed Mushrooms
Dates Stuffed w/Cheese and wrapped in Bacon
Tossed Salad
Tropical Fruit Compote w/ Ginger Syrup
Cookies Galore!

We played a fun game, too- Baby Shower Price is Right, where we guessed the price of a bunch of baby items, like lotion and diaper cream and outlet covers. Some of the things were very affordable, but some were surprisingly pricey.

While us gals did the baby shower thing, my husband, his dad, and my stepdad went to a huge sporting goods/hunting and guns type store for the day, which is a very manly activity. My husband said they needed to counteract all the estrogen of the baby shower! The store is so big they have a restaurant inside it, where you can get deer meat sausages and ostrich hamburgers and all sorts of weird meat things that sound disgusting to me, but they had a very good time. Being Army men, my husband and his dad enjoyed looking at the antique guns they had on display, while my stepdad the fisherman spent time looking at boats and fishing poles and whatnot. They had a lovely time too, which made me very happy.

As far as gifts go, I was overwhelmed by the generosity of our family! Our little guy is almost all set for his debut, we received so many wonderful and essential baby things. We only have a few little things left to buy but the fun things, like dinosaur onesies and hats with little ears on them were well taken care of by kind relatives! We got a lot of practical things that I hadn't even thought of- like a sun shade for the car window. How useful is that! It didn't even occur to me that we would need one.

All in all it was a lovely time. I'd never been "showered" before, so it felt a little strange to be in the spotlight, but it was such fun to visit with all my crazy relatives, and both Mother-in-Law and Step-Mother-in-Law were in attendance and behaved themselves (I was assured that they would, but I've never seen them in the same place before, so I was a little nervous!)

On a less fun note, for about a week now I've been dealing with a pregnancy symptom I'd never heard of before: intense joint pain, particularly in my feet and hands. My fingers are so stiff and achy that it's hard to even type, and my feet hurt so badly that I can only be up for about 10 minutes before I have to take a break. The medical explanation is that hormones cause your joints to loosen, in preparation for labor, but ALL your joints loosen, not just your hips. So you get swelling and pinching of nerves, which causes pain. It makes sense, of course, but it was quite a nasty surprise to wake up one morning and feel like I'd suddenly developed arthritis. This also explains why I've been such a butterfingers lately, dropping things left and right, and having my legs fall out from under me at random times! I'm not a klutz, I just have loose joints! :)

My hands hurt, so even though I want to be creative, my fingers are not cooperating with me. I did a bit of quilling yesterday, and I plan to do some more today. I also did a bit of knitting last night and I'll probably work some more on that too, but for now I think it will be short periods of working with rest and massage breaks aplenty. In the end, of course, a few weeks of achyness and a decrease in productivity is a small price to pay for the reward, so I'm not too terribly sad about it!

Imagine Quilling In Progress

2010-04-01T09:00:00.004-04:00

Here's an in-progress shot of my current quilling project. It's going well so far. It's slow going, to fill in such a large area with such small bits. I learned a few lessons from my first project that have helped already with this one. First of all, I made my letting bigger. It's much easier to be precise when your letters are more than one inch high. Also, since I knew exactly what I was doing, color-wise, I used colored paper instead of white for the letters. This helps them blend in with the surrounding areas.

I'm not sure how far to extend or how much more to fill in- I want to sort of gradually taper out rather than have a solid line between the white space and the colored areas. I guess I will just go with the flow!

Sketchbook Cover

2010-03-31T09:00:00.002-04:00

It was getting to be time for a new sketchbook, and I decided to upgrade on the size. In college I always bought 5X8" books, since they were easier to lug around with all the other books and art supplies I needed to carry around. I never really got out of that habit, until recently when I started feeling boxed in by the small size. So, I've moved on up to a 9X12"!

And if you're going to tote around a sketchbook, you may as well carry a pretty one. I've had this tutorial at Kirin Notebook in my bookmarks for a couple of years, and used it for a couple of different bookcovers. It's fun because it's reversible! You can have one side fancy, and one side plain. Or both sides fancy. Or both sides plain, like I did here. I wasn't feeling adventurous when I made this notebook cover, I was actually trying to make it a bit more elegant than my usual stuff. I think I did a pretty good job!

Committing to Knitting- March Update

2010-03-30T09:00:00.003-04:00

Well, it's amazing how much you can accomplish if you set small goals for yourself and follow through. Here is my (practically) finished Classic Baby Cardigan. I've not done the button bands yet because I'm debating with myself about buttons vs. a zipper. I've never put a zipper on something I knitted, so I'm sort of nervous, but then I think, how hard could it be? A zipper would probably be easier to manage on a wiggling baby. Wouldn't it?

Girl Scouted

2010-03-29T09:00:00.002-04:00

Do you like Girl Scout cookies? I used to, back in my pre-vegan days. Nowadays, I'm wary of pre-made foods and all the strange ingredients than can be found in them. High fructose corn syrup is a particularly terrifying ingredient since it's in so many things. (I don't care what the HFCS lobby's commercials say, it might be safe "in small amounts" but a typical American diet has a LOT more than "a small amount," but I digress.)

Anyhow, being vegan means that Girl Scout cookies are no longer an option. Being allergic to peanuts means that Tagalongs are doubly bad. But they sound so good! Shortbread cookies with a layer of peanut butter and covered in chocolate? Yes please! Luckily for me (but not so luckily for my thighs) CHOW has an answer- make your own Girl Scout cookies. They've worked out approximate recipes for Tagalongs as well as for Thin Mints and Samoas and you can find them right here.

I further adapted their recipe by using cashew butter instead of peanut butter for the filling, and using a vegan version of shortbread which is actually just the shortbread recipe from the Better Homes and Gardens Cookbook but using soy margarine instead of butter. Because I'm too lazy to use egg substitutes and that recipe doesn't call for eggs.

These cookies are very very good. The only thing I might change next time is to put more filling on each shortbread- the cashew butter flavor is sort of overwhelmed by the chocolate coating, but I think evening up the chocolate v. filling ratio would be an easy change. And really, is there such a thing as too much chocolate flavor? I think not.

Blythe Gown Update

2010-03-26T09:00:00.002-04:00

So I've been working on some schmancy gowns for Blythe. And what better to go with a schmancy gown than a schmancy fascinator? The gown is a variation of my original pattern, which I made almost a year ago. I've done some gathering on the bodice to give it a bit more shape, and fancied up the skirt with a sequined panel and some embroidered trim (done on the sewing machine.) I put the sequins on by hand, and it took a looooong time but I'm very glad I did it, I think the result is quite stunning. I'm still working on finding a good way to attach tulle to the inside of the skirt. I can make a separate petticoat type garment, but then the dress is difficult to get on. I'm going to tackle this built-in crinoline issue next, and once that is settled, I think I can declare the dress pattern complete!

I'm really liking the little beaded and sequined fascinator I made. It's basically just a felt-covered barrette, with tulle and feathers sewn underneath and beading and sequins sewn to the top. I think it helps fancy up the outfit!

Thrilling Quilling

2010-03-25T09:00:00.002-04:00

So here's a little design I whipped up to help me visualize my next quilling project. I think it looks pretty neat. Probably the colors will wind up being a bit different, since I didn't actually try to match up what colors of paper I have on hand, but the rainbow idea will still come through. Most likely it will be filled in more as well, but I only did enough fiddling in Illustrator to give myself an idea of how it will look. I'm hoping to get started on this sometime over the weekend, so I *should* have some in progress photos early next week!

Breakfast of Champions

2010-03-24T09:00:00.000-04:00

What does a hungry, pregnant vegan eat for breakfast? A delicious savory bagel sandwich crammed full of deliciousness, that's what! I love hearty breakfasts, I always have, but since getting pregnant and *especially* now that I'm in my third trimester, my appetite is astronomical. When I get up in the morning I'm positively ravenous, and a bowl of cereal just isn't going to cut it.

To make a fabulous sandwich like this, start with a toasty bagel. I put some soy margarine on mine and toast it in the toaster oven. When it's sufficiently crispy, I open the oven and lay thinly sliced onions and a handful of spinach on top of the bagel, then close the door and let the spinach get a bit wilty, about 3 minutes.

Then, I take the sandwich out of the oven, remove the veggies, spread a big schmear of soy cream cheese on one half, and a couple of tablespoons of hummus on the other. I put the veggies back on, plus some shredded carrots, sliced green olives, and tomato slices. Avocado is good on here, too. I finish it up with a generous dollop of dijon mustard and some salt and pepper.

Just writing about it is making me hungry, if you'll excuse me...

Committing to Knitting

2010-03-23T09:00:00.003-04:00

Today's unrelated photo, vegan crabless rangoons. Won-ton wrapper recipe from here.

So, I've been a slacker about knitting. As in, there was dust on my knitting needles. I'm not sure why I abandoned the project I'm working on, it's a perfectly serviceable basic white cardigan. Maybe it's not exciting enough to hold my attention, maybe I got distracted by other projects, I don't know.

But no more! Starting right now, I'm making a Commitment to Knit (r) which means that, no matter what other projects I'm working on, I will spend at least one half hour each day knitting. There's no good reason why I can't have my needles in hand while I watch Wheel of Fortune or the Colbert Report (or both!) each night. Taking it in little chunks, rather than a huge amount of time each day, I think I'll be more likely to stick with it. Hopefully later this week I will have some in-progress photos to show the work I've been doing!

Patterns

2010-03-22T09:00:00.004-04:00

Last week was a craftless wasteland. Real life sometimes gets in the way of my imaginary life. I hate going for that long without making something, so by the weekend I was going a bit crazy. But the weekend was crazy too! My sweet awesome husband had a birthday and celebrations and birthday outings and dinners and cake-making made the weekend fly by.

I did find time to play around with some pattern design. I love to make patterns but then I never know what to do with them. Sometimes I make a very organic/wacky/free-flowing pattern, but then sometimes I make a pattern like this, very graphical and simple. I can't decide which I prefer, I suppose it depends on what mood I'm in!

So Much Food!

2010-03-12T09:00:00.000-05:00

Herb Toasts with Tomato Salad

I can't stop making Martha Stewart recipes. This week I've been hungry ALL the time. I've not really done much in the way of crafty things, because I cook (and then devour) food all day. I'm supposed to be gaining one pound each week, and I guess my gigantic appetite is a sign that the wiggly little person inside me is growing properly. That's quite a comfort.

Almost everyone I know has asked me, at some point during my pregnancy, if it's safe for the baby if I don't eat meat/dairy/eggs/etc. I guess vegans are pretty rare around here, and pregnant vegans are extra unusual. But so far I've just been eating whatever I get hungry for- if I feel like chili, I have chili. If I crave a big bowl of spinach salad, I have that. An avocado with grapefruit? Sure, why not! I'm a big believer in listening to your body- if you crave something, there's probably a (nutritional) reason. Though I suppose you can only use that reasoning if you crave things that are generally good for you. I guess if I were constantly yearning for bacon cheeseburgers, I would have a hard time justifying that.

These herb toasts with tomato salad are simply divine. I've made them 3 times this week, and paired with a nice big salad they make an amazing lunch. Coupled with the lovely weather we've been having (seriously, it's been 60 degrees!) I'm in a very springy mood!

I've got a few different crafty ideas bouncing around in my head right now, hopefully this weekend I can drag myself out of the kitchen and work on one or two!

Lunchtime Musings

2010-03-11T09:00:00.001-05:00

Chickpea, Mint, and Parsley Spread, from Martha Stewart.

I think there are two types of people in the world: those who savor what they put in their mouths, and those who barely notice. Clearly, there are times when even those of us who revel in our culinary experiences are hurried and/or famished, and rush through a meal. And I'm sure those who pay little attention to the food they eat have, on occasion, been struck by the deliciousness of some particularly wonderful food. But I think, for the most part, people are one or the other. Even if I don't have a lot of time to eat, I am still aware of the tastes I experience. But the best is when, after starting with a counter piled with vegetables, boxes, and bags, I can sit down to eat something I have made, and unhurriedly revel in what I'm eating.

During the time it took me to enjoy 5 of the above pictured grapes, my husband ate a large bowl of potato salad. It's not uncommon for him to get up to take his plate to the sink while I am savoring the last few bites of my side salad before I start eating my main dish. I think, perhaps, part of his quicker eating is the time he spent in the army- the food wasn't especially good, and you didn't have much time to eat anyway, and you might be getting your first hot meal in several days, so you ought to just eat as fast as you can. Also, it might be that he isn't the one who just spent an hour in the kitchen, slicing, dicing, sautéing, seasoning, and tasting. Perhaps creating a dish makes you more inclined to savor eating it?

Thanks Martha!

2010-03-10T09:00:00.003-05:00

When I was little, there were two kinds of potato salad: the yellow, mayo-and-mustard kind, and the German kind, hot and bacon-y. I never liked the yellow kind, it was too gummy and slimy and yellow. I could eat bowl after bowl of the German kind though!

This potato salad, from Martha Stewart, is deliciously reminiscent of the simpler German potato salad, but even lighter and fresher. Without bacon and a thick dressing, it's a very summery salad. I love fresh parsley in things. Or on it's own- when I was little and we went out to eat, I would always try to sneak a few nibbles of the "garnish" parsley on my plate. Mom thought I was weird.

My husband and I enjoyed this so much that we polished off the whole batch in one day. I'm not ashamed to admit that I ate more than he did. (Hey, some of that potato salad was for the baby- he's a hungry kid!) It's supposed to be served hot, but the cold leftovers were just as good later in the day. This is definitely going to be entering the recipe rotation for spring/summer.

Winter Gear

2010-03-09T09:00:00.002-05:00

I got the itch to make some winter gear for my Blythe doll so I whipped up a few ensembles for cold weather. I found some tiny tiny sequins and I've been having fun embellishing tiny things with them. I have some new eyechips waiting to be put to use too, maybe I will get to that today!

Monochromatic

2010-03-08T09:00:00.000-05:00

Kiwi, Granny Smith apple, celery, and grapes.

Here's what I ate for breakfast this morning. It's not quite a Waldorf salad, since I didn't slather it in mayo, but it's not quite a fruit salad either, since I put celery in it. I don't know what it was, really, other than a mish-mash of all the green things I found in the crisper. Yesterday at the grocery store, the Granny Smith apples called my name, and I listened.

I've finally reached my third trimester! I'm still sort of in shock that I'm actually having a baby (me! really!) but I have been able to relax more now that I'm in the home stretch. Things were a little iffy those first few weeks, so it's a real relief to know that everything is going well, and feeling him kick reassures me that he is still in there, and doing fine. It's a strange feeling, having an actual person growing inside of you. Strange, but good.

I Think I'm in Love!

2010-03-05T09:00:00.005-05:00

With this pillow, from Pier One Imports. How did I find this pillow? In a banner ad! The first time ever in all my years internet-ing that I actually clicked on a banner ad! I love the simple, bold geometry* of the design. I'm not going to buy it, though, because a.) we already have an inordinate number of pillows (if I could invite guests to sit in a big pile of pillows instead of on a sofa, I would) and b.) it completely clashes with the color scheme of both the living room and the bedroom.

However, I definitely see this as the inspiration for some sort of project. Probably embroidery. But what sort of project? Something tiny? Something grand? Should I use floss or crewel wool? I'm still pondering the possibilities, but I'm certain this design will reappear in something I make in the near future!

*I can't type or say or hear the word "geometry" without thinking about my high school geometry teacher, who for Christmas would set up a tree in the back of his classroom and decorate it with math-related ornaments. It was called the "gee-I'm-a-tree" and I still giggle every time I think of it.

Head Warmer

2010-03-04T09:00:00.000-05:00

To go with my red winter coat, a nice peppermint-y bonnet! This is the Golden Compass Hat, by Renee Sparks. I'd actually made a brown/aqua/white variation a few years ago, and absolutely loved it, but it didn't quite go with the coat I have now. Plus, I have a lot of pink and red yarn and I've been forbidden to knit anything for the baby that's pink so I have to get my pink fix somewhere!

This pattern is knit with 6 strands of worsted weight held together, and as such it is super thick and warm, keeping out even the strongest of winter chills. My grandmother would approve of this hat, as she was always bemoaning the hatless state of her grandchildrens' heads, with dire pronouncements of, "you'll get an ear infection!"

Nameplate

2010-03-03T09:00:00.000-05:00

When I was a child, we moved a lot. From kindergarten until I started junior high, I attended five different schools. It was a lot of changes in a short time, and for a child that can be unsettling. My mother made my brother and I each a cross stitched name plate to hang above the doorways to our bedrooms. It was a very small thing but for me at least, it helped a lot to have a tangible reminder that I belonged there.

As an adult, I'm not a huge fan of the way cross stitch looks, and I'm absolutely hopeless at it anyway, so I just went with a simple satin stitch for this nameplate. The letters were freehanded, because I wanted a sort of uneven look. I have a tendency to over-complicate embroidery if I don't have a pattern- I get a bit carried away. For this piece, I wanted a clean, simple feel, and I'm happy with the results.

Oink

2010-03-02T09:00:00.000-05:00

A little white pig, from the book Fun Dolls. Another (more successful) attempt at knitting with jersey fabric. I didn't have any suitable pink fabric, but I had some white jersey- actually a shirt of mine that I no longer wore- so I decided to give it a whirl! I'm glad I did, I think he turned out pretty cute. I left the hooves off, though, because well.... I forgot about them, and by the time I realized I had already carefully hand sewn both feet and one hand on and I didn't feel like going back. I think I prefer him without hooves, anyhow. He looks like a little ghost pig.

Blue Birds of Happiness

2010-03-01T09:00:00.000-05:00

Pattern from the book Fun Dolls

So remember awhile back I mentioned that I don't like sewing with jersey fabric? Here's an example of the quality of my work when I do. These birds are not awful, but they aren't exactly good either. You can't really tell in this photo, but the rear bird's head is decidedly lopsided. I think next time I will draw myself a guide line for attaching the head, and use flannel instead. The pattern itself is quite nice so do I intend to make a second batch of bluebirds.

Jasper Diamond Hoodie Completed

2010-02-26T09:00:00.000-05:00

From the book Vintage Baby Knits

Every knitting book begins with advice to the knitter- selecting yarns, reading patterns, buying needles and notions, and, most importantly, swatching. I always swatch, carefully measuring and counting out my stitches, switching needles if I have to, and yet- my projects never turn out quite the size I intend. Sometimes it's significant, sometimes it's inconsequential, but it's always a bit off.

That's the great thing about knitting for a baby- unless I knit something for size 0-3 months, and he turns out to be a big baby and goes right into 3-6 months size, I know he will at some point fit into what I've knit. It's a good feeling.

This Jasper Hoodie was an enjoyable project. The pattern is interesting enough that I didn't get bored knitting it, which can sometimes happen to those of us with short attention spans.

*I haven't put buttons on this yet, because I forgot to write down what size I needed and by the time I got to the craft shop I couldn't remember the size or how many I needed.

Quilling Project Finished

2010-02-25T09:00:00.000-05:00

Wowza! I had such fun with this project! Balancing areas with relatively long lines with the areas that are more "busy" is kind of a tricky thing. So is knowing when to stop. That's something I often struggle with- whether it's painting, embroidery, cooking, plucking my eyebrows, whatever. Especially with a project like this, it would be easy to just keep on going until the whole thing was covered, a solid mass of rainbow colors. I tried my best to restrain myself. I'd work for awhile, take a break, come back and look at it, stand back and play art critic. I kept reminding myself, "it will be easy enough to add more, but darn tricky to take away." I think, for the time being, I'm done. After it's been hanging up on the wall for a day or so, I might change my mind. I'm a fickle woman.

More Bunnies!

2010-02-24T09:00:00.002-05:00

I'm apparently on a bunny kick lately! These bunnies are made from the Hazelnuts Felt Bunny pattern. They are easy to make, and very cute, despite my slightly uneven stitching. I'm not super happy with the noses on my bunnies- for some reason I had a lot of trouble with them, and I'll probably go back and give it another try. Bunnies' noses, after all, ought to be tiny and cute and tidy.

Bunny Embroidery

2010-02-23T09:00:00.006-05:00

From the book Doodle Stitching, by Aimee Ray.

It's tough to get a good photo of embroidery. My camera's not the greatest (for my next birthday I'm angling for a new one) but it's not the worst in the world either. I think part of the problem is the lighting in our apartment- our windows face south so even when it's bright and sunny outside we don't get a ton of it inside.

Anyway, I'm really fond of this pattern, and I think it will be nice for in the baby's room. I used greens for the foliage rather than the suggested blue because the color scheme I've been planning on is mostly greens. I did this on a super luxurious Belgian linen, which is soooooooooo much nicer to stitch on than your basic starched white cross stitch fabric. It's got a bit of a sheen to it, too, which really makes the stitches pop!

Quilling Project

2010-02-22T09:00:00.004-05:00

Test piece, 4" x 4." Please excuse the terribly sloppy lettering!

Well so, my lettering at first left a lot to be desired. I left my guide lines for the letters so I could see how close I was and let's just say I needed a lot of practice. So, that's what I did. I spent about a day and a half working on my technique. I found that rather than trying to make each letter from one strip, if I piece them together they look cleaner and it's easier to be precise.

The beginning of a big project- "everything is awesome"

I also improved my creasing technique- it took a bit of trial and error but I think I have found a method that gives a nice clean fold. Here is a picture of the beginning so far- lettering, being such a precise thing, takes a long time. I've been doing two letters at a time, then letting them dry thoroughly, before going on to the next set. The words only take up a small space overall but I'm sure they are going to be the longest part of the project. It's not exactly fun, but I know once the letters are done I will get to the really neat part- freehanding a fabulous design with flowers and swirls. Looking forward to that helps me get through the not-so-fun part!

Bunny Softie

2010-02-19T09:00:00.004-05:00

Wee Bunny pattern, from the talented Hillary Lang of Wee Wonderfuls fame. My bunny looks significantly more creepy than hers, because I went a little crazy with the embroidery. (I tend to do that.) I've had that back side fabric for a long time, I cant remember where I got it, but it intrigued me- is it cupcakes? sushi roles? those nougat candies they sell at Christmastime? Whatever it is, I think it's super cute!

Audrey Hoodie Completed

2010-02-18T09:00:00.002-05:00

From the book Vintage Baby Knits

I never realized how much I love seed stitch! This pattern was so easy to knit- the sweater body is knit in one piece, then the hood attached and a simple crochet trim added. I love the nubby but still soft texture of the seed stitch for the body, and the trim gives it just a bit of sweetness without being too cutesey.

Turtle Stack

2010-02-17T09:00:00.005-05:00

Way back last year sometime, I went on a crafty-book-buying bender and bought rather a large number of sewing/embroidery/knitting books that looked fun. Among them was a copy of Fun Dolls, by Aranzi Aronzo. The book certainly lives up to its name, with many simple and cute patterns for smallish dolls.

These Turtlies were easy enough to whip up in an afternoon- the most complicated part of the pattern is the shell, a pentagon-shaped center piece with 5 trapezoids attached, and even that was not exactly taxing.

I used green flannel for these turtles, though the pattern called for jersey. I hate sewing with knitted fabrics in general, and I wanted something a bit more sturdy but still soft and good for cuddling. Flannel to the rescue! We only have one fabric store within driving distance, and while they don't have a huge selection, they do carry quite a range of solid flannels.

My only disappointment with this project is the eye placement- I don't know that I'm happy with how far up the eyes are. I think they might look better if the eyes were farther down their heads. I'm sort of debating whether I'm unhappy enough to re-make their heads, or if I'm being too harsh a critic.

Peg Bear Cub Triplets

2010-02-16T09:00:00.005-05:00

Awhile back I posted about the amazingly fun book One-Yard Wonders. The big reason I bought the book was because it includes a pattern from one of my most favorite and inspirational crafty bloggers, Jhoanna Monte, who blogs over at One Red Robin. Her contribution to the book is a pattern for the adorable Peg Bear.

I have a Peg Bear, Gabber, handmade by her that was my Valentine's present to myself last year, and he's beautiful. I made one on my own using her pattern, and it turned out pretty well, enough so that I was feeling experimental, so I shrunk the pattern down to about 60% and whipped up these three Peg Bear Cubs, small enough for little hands to play with! For size comparison, here is a pic of full-size next to mini:

A Cautious Step

2010-02-15T09:00:00.004-05:00

Quilling strips, freshly cut and waiting to be turned into something fabulous*!
(*jazz hands implied)

So the other day I was thinking about artwork for the nursery. (The one we don't have yet.) Of course I can't predict what sort of child I will have- will he be shy and introverted (like me), or boisterous and adventurous (like his dad)? As he grows up, will he like having his mom make costumes and toys and things for him to play with, or will be only want store bought things? In quiet moments, when I am sitting still and feeling him wiggle and kick me, I wonder what sort of child he will be, and what I can do to make sure his childhood is full of wonder, and that he does not lose his imagination as he gets older.

Sometimes when I am out and about, I see a young child doing something silly- talking to himself, dancing around, having a wonderful time, utterly unconcerned what other people are thinking about him. I love seeing that- the completely unashamed silliness that we so quickly learn to hide, lest we be made fun of or thought odd by others. I want my son to keep that joyous experiencing of life for as long as possible, and even if he feels he needs to hide it away, I want him to know that he is free to be as ridiculously goofy at home as his little heart desires.

As such, I want to make the room he grows up in happy and full of fun and inspirational things for him to look at and play with. I've been working on a few things to hang on the walls of this imaginary room. One project which is just getting started is a quilled picture. I've still not settled on the final design, I think I will just get started and see where my basic idea takes me.

Quilling is a craft I don't have a ton of experience in, but I've always wanted to get more involved in, and after being inspired by the *amazing* work of Yulia Brodskaya, I decided I simply must try something more in depth than the few small projects I've finished so far.

Happy Day!

2010-02-14T09:00:00.005-05:00

Well I'm back, finally, from a quite long absence from the blogging/crafting world! I had some health issues around the holidays that really took a toll on me. Finally (knock on wood) I am feeling back to myself and well enough to do crafty things, so the ol' blog will be dusted off again so I have a place to document my artsy fartsy pursuits.

Everything with the baby is going well, thankfully my health issues weren't related to the pregnancy. Knowing this was a big help in feeling better- as crappy and sick as I felt, he (yes, it's a boy!) wasn't feeling it. We found out just after the holidays that yes, we are having a boy, and no, he is not at all shy about showing off his boy-ness. The ultrasound tech said, "Well I'm sure you guys can tell what that is!"

I've got a lot of plans for new projects- knitting, sewing, quilling (yes, quilling!), and some Blythe-projects too!

This is my dear husband and I's second Valentine's Day being married, but the first one we will actually spend together. Last year he was in Kuwait on the way to Iraq, and I got a card and flowers but having him home is much better! Our plans for the day are to stay home and avoid crowded restaraunts- with being vegan, it's not easy to eat out anyhow, so we are going to cook our own fancy dinner- spaghetti alla marinara, pistachio-crusted tofu (chicken for him), and stuffed mushrooms. We are going to eat our delicious food and watch Sherlock Holmes movies- sounds like a perfect day to me!

Great Minds Think Alike

2009-12-04T09:00:00.004-05:00

The other day I was watching TV and a commercial for Wal-Mart came on. In the ad, a woman was walking down a wintry street, wearing the cutest crocheted hat. It looked like a granny square hat- made using the same stitches, but not a hat assembled from them. I spent a good half hour looking online for a granny-like hat pattern and didn't have much luck finding exactly what I was looking for. Eventually I tried searching for "crochet hat walmart commercial" and lo and behold the first link led me to this thread on Crochet Soiree!

The thread links to several hats that are quite similar. I'm trying to decide between this one at Bernat and this one at Caron. I think after I finish the baby sweater I'm working on right now, I will take a break from baby things and make myself a hat and scarf!

Milkshakes

2009-12-03T09:00:00.003-05:00

I mentioned on Monday the Babycakes cookbook. Here is another delicious treat from the book: milkshakes! The one on the left is vegan, made with soy ice cream, almond milk, and Newman's own chocolate sandwich cookies. I ate this one. The one on the right is for my husband, made with Breyer's french vanilla ice cream and Lindt white chocolate holiday truffles. I know it's not exactly milkshake weather, but I've really been craving milkshakes lately (thanks, pregnancy hormones!) I like my faux-Oreo DQ Blizzard version- it's heavy on the cookie pieces and light on the ice cream. Using ice cubes in the milkshake helps you not need as much ice cream, making it a lighter (but still delicious) treat!

One-Yard Wonders

2009-12-02T09:00:00.002-05:00

I am so excited about this book! Like with my knitting, I tend to get really bored with long involved projects. I love to sew, don't get me wrong, but I have trouble with repetitive projects, like making a full-sized quilt. I have made exactly one of those and I don't think I will make another any time soon!

This new book has more than 100 projects that use one yard (or less) of fabric. Talk about stash busters! I, like most people who sew, have a seemingly never ending pile of remnants from other projects, and I never seem to know what to do with them, other than patchwork. There are so many fabulous things in this book I want to make, I don't know where to start!

Trellis Completed

2009-12-01T09:00:00.002-05:00

I finally finished my Trellis sweater! I made a few mistakes (like I always do) but by now I have enough knitting experience that I can *usually* hide them or at least make them presentable. For this pattern, despite the instructions saying to put 5 stitches at the beginning of a RS row onto a holder, I put stitches from the WS on a holder, and then when the time came to rejoin those stitches for the collar, they were not where they needed to be. So I bound off those stitches and pretended it never happened!

Yum!

2009-11-30T09:00:00.005-05:00

On our last trip to the bookstore, my husband was browsing through history books and I was wandering around nearby waiting for him to finish. I glanced down at a table of books, and this book jumped out and into my arms!

It's full of delicious recipes for everything from traditional chocolate chip cookies, cobblers, and (yay!) macaroons, to fancy crumb cakes and mini volcano brownie bites. The great thing is that the recipes are all vegan, and use (mostly) coconut oil and unrefined sugar, so they are delicious but not as bad for you as they could be!

I made the Chocolate-Chocolate Chip cookies for Thanksgiving. I had been planning to make a vegan pumpkin pie but then I decided to make something chocolatey since my husband doesn't like pumpkin pie- this way we would both have something sweet to eat after our big meal.

I've never done any cooking with coconut oil before, and I have to say I was surprised that these cookies don't taste coconut-y. You can't even tell they are made with coconut oil. We will definitely be having these again!

A Helpful Tool

2009-11-27T09:00:00.003-05:00

When I first began knitting, many years ago, my mom had a tiny clear plastic container of red and green stitch markers. After I had a good grip on the basics of knitting and could read a pattern on my own, I ventured into the world of cables.

Within a day or two, I experienced what every knitter does at one point or another: I knitted the stitch marker right into the pattern. I didn't realize it for a few rows, and when I showed my mom, she said I could either frog it back to that point, or she could carefully cut it out for me.

Fast forward to today, and that problem is no longer an issue. How fantastic are these!? I'm sure they've been around for a few years, but I just ran across them a few weeks ago. They have come in handy several times, because despite the ensuing years, and the amount of practice I've had knitting, I still, every now and then, knit my stitch marker into the knitting.

Charm Squares Baby Quilts

2009-11-26T09:00:00.002-05:00

I was thinking about how many blankets a baby needs- obviously for in the crib you just need a fitted sheet and something warm to dress baby in, but for awake time- playing, visiting relatives, etc, baby needs blankets of varying weights. And probably a few blankets in each, what with the spitting up and diaper accidents and things.

I'd already made a lightweight knitted blanket and I was looking for something a bit heavier, when I came across the Charm Squares Baby Quilt tutorial on Sew Mama Sew. Just what I needed!

After a quick trip to the fabric store (well, quick if you subtract the amount of time I always spend drooling over the fabrics I *didn't* come to buy, like the satins and silks, the velvets, and the fancy netting) I returned home armed with everything I needed to whip up these two quilts.

I'd never done much quilting before, so the actual quilting part- attaching the quilt top to the batting and backing- was kind of a challenge. For the first one, the green one, I did my free-motion quilting sort of widely spaced, about an inch or even a little more in some spaces, and for the red one, I was a little more precise about it, spacing my lines about a half-inch apart.

After a quick wash, I compared the textures of the two. I think I prefer the red quilt, since it got a lovely crinkly texture all over, whereas the green one didn't. It took almost twice as long to do, but I think in the end it was worth the extra effort.

Although the green one is, of course, still perfectly capable of covering a sleepy pup!

Blue Baby Blanket!

2009-11-25T09:00:00.002-05:00

Here's my first knitted Baby Blanket! It took me more than a month to finish because I would work on it for a few days, set it aside, then remember it was sitting there waiting to be finished, and take it up again. The pattern for the blanket is from The Purl Bee, originally calling for Koigu yarn. It would have been more than $100 if I'd used that yarn, and spending that much money for one item just isn't something we have in our budget right now, so I used the much cheaper Bernat Baby Sport Ombre. Koigu is lovely yarn, obviously, and maybe someday I will have a budget that will permit me to use it for something. In the meantime I think this knitted up pretty well. I like that this blanket is light- Baby C is due in late May, so we won't be needing heavy blankets for a few months.

I've never knitted a blanket before, and I have to say, it was not exactly a barrel of laughs. The monotony of knitting the same thing over and over and over (and over...) makes it nice to work on while watching movies, but at the same time it wasn't interesting enough to hold my attention. I think, if I decide to knit another blanket, I will plan so that I can have it on one set of needles, and another more interesting project on another set of needles, so I can switch between the two. I guess I'm a bit ADD about knitting- I like shorter projects that I can finish quickly before I get bored!

Vintage Baby Knits

2009-11-24T09:00:00.003-05:00

My first baby pattern book! When this came out in June, I saw it mentioned on several crafty blogs and I thought, "oh if I ever have a baby I am SO buying that book!" Well the other day my husband and I made a trip to Barnes and Noble. These trips are rare and always a special treat. It's not that the bookstore is far away, in fact it's about a 15 minute drive straight down the street we live on. But we don't go very often because we always find so many fabulous things to buy, even when we try to control ourselves we still wind up with at least two bags full of books and British series on DVD.

This particular trip I wasn't especially looking for a baby knits book, but just browsing around the craft section, when I spotted a copy of Vintage Baby Knits, and remembered what great reviews it had gotten. I only had to casually page through it to realize that I couldn't leave the store without it! I have 12 projects from this book in my Ravelry queue but I wouldn't be surprised if I wind up making every last on of them!

Trellis

2009-11-23T07:26:00.001-05:00

Here's an in-progress shot of my version of Trellis, a lovely cabled baby cardigan by Britta Stolfus Rueschhoff. I haven't done anything cabled for a few years, but on such a small scale it works up quick enough I'm not getting bored. I'm a big fan of the Seed Stitch borders- it's a fun change from ribbing. I'm also loving the aqua yarn, after doing 2 projects in the same green yarn I needed a change of pace!

Baby Sweater

2009-11-20T09:00:00.004-05:00

Here's a little green version of the Double Scoop pattern. I decided to modify a few things to make the sweater as simple as possible. I left out the ice cream intarsia- it's cute but I didn't think it would be appetizing on a green background! I also put ribbing on the cuffs and hem- I didn't have the right size needles to do the rolled parts, and I like the tidiness of ribbing. Also, I modified the shoulder seam and added buttons, to make it easier to get on and off of a wiggling baby:

I used the tutorial on Craft Stylish to make matching dorset buttons. I love making buttons!

1-Up!

2009-11-19T09:00:00.002-05:00

I made these mittens last Christmas for my husband, but obviously spending the year in Iraq meant he didn't need them right away. So I kept them here, waiting patiently for cold weather.

I used the basic mittens pattern from the Reader's Digest Complete Guide to Needlework, a fabulous book that covers knitting, crochet, quilting, even macrame! I used to page through it as a child, wishing I could make every project in it. This book even demonstrates left-handed knitting, which was a big help for my southpaw self after my right-handed mom and I came to an impasse when she was trying to teach me to knit.

Obviously, the 1-up mushrooms are from Super Mario Brothers, a game that everyone loves (and if you don't, the terrorists win.)

A Bun in the Oven!

2009-11-18T09:00:00.000-05:00

Part of the reason for my extended absence from blogging was that I just plain wasn't doing much crafty things, so I didn't need to write about anything. The rest of the explanation is that I've been sick quite a bit so even the basic things like cooking and cleaning house and doing laundry have been tough enough. I suppose if my mother survived morning sickness, I can too!

We are expecting our first baby in May. It was a total accident, but a very happy one indeed! I'm terrified and excited at the same time. Most of my crafty things in the last few weeks are baby-related- mostly knitting and a bit of sewing so far, with plans for much more of both, as well as crewel/embroidery, softie/toy making, and quilting in the works!

Ravelry

2009-11-17T09:00:00.003-05:00

I up and joined Ravelry back a million years ago and then completely forgot about it. Silly me. I remembered during my recent search for baby knitting patterns and I've really gotten into it- you can organize knitting needles and crochet hooks, as well as your yarn stash, so you know what you have and don't have. You can also put patterns in a queue and you can decide what order to do your projects in. You can upload pictures of your works in progress, join groups, chat with other people- it's like a big fun knitting party!

An Unexpected Absence, and a Return

2009-11-16T09:00:00.004-05:00

I can't believe it's been so long since I posted! It's not that I haven't been busy- in fact I've never been busier! My husband came home from Iraq at the end of August and it's been a whirlwind of travel, family, parties, and food. Obviously we try to carve out plenty of time for just the two of us. After the first few weeks it was easier to do that, for awhile it seemed like the phone wouldn't ever stop ringing. Of course the holidays are coming up so I'm sure the family gatherings are going to increase again soon enough!

I haven't really been doing too terribly much in the way of crafty things. (A husband who was gone for eight months needs a lot of attention, after all.) I have been able to fit in a few projects and hope to have photos up soon. I'm really excited about the things I've been working on, especially one in particular that my husband and I have been working on together. So far I have mostly done a bit of sewing and a bit of knitting. I've not done any Blythe projects at all, mostly because I am doing a reroot and until I get off my bum to finish that, my girl is in no fit shape to be seen in public, so working on gowns has been put on hold until her head is back together. That is the next project on my list, and I hope to get that done before I start working on Christmas gifts. Cross your fingers!

Summer Food

2009-07-31T09:00:00.002-04:00

Some delicious summery food I've been eating during these hot July days (and will probably continue to eat during August, and September...etc):

Above is pictured a combination/variation of two recipes from the Mother Load: World's Greatest Homemade Slushies and Blueberry Syrup (which I made with raspberries.)- Delicious and refreshing and fun to make!

TLT Sandwiches @ Fat Free Vegan Kitchen- Now I know what Liquid Smoke is for!

French Potato Salad from Ina Garten- (veganized, obviously) delicious light potato salad, free of mayonnaise-y horror.

Retro!

2009-07-30T09:00:00.000-04:00

I'm loving my new reproduction Barbie! I could never afford a real vintage Barbie, so this is the next best thing. She's quite stylish. I've given her a necklace because she didn't have one. I think I might replace her earrings as well. I love the hands on vintage Barbies, with the raised pinky fingers. So dainty!

Iron Upgrade

2009-07-29T09:00:00.000-04:00

I finally had enough of the horrible iron I had. I admit that I bought it because it was pink. I'm not proud of that fact, but at the time I didn't think that anyone would make an iron that sucked so bad. Sunbeam makes nice electric blankets, so I thought they knew what they were doing in the heated-appliance department. Much like the Singer sewing machine I had for less than a year before I replaced it, sometimes a brand can let you down. When the retractable cord started rectracting ALL the time, I was done. I upgraded to the Rowenta Acti Steam and I couldn't be more pleased. It's SO much better, heats up in no time flat, and doesn't drip all over the place. I'm definitely going to stick with this brand!

Crafty Links- July

2009-07-28T09:00:00.002-04:00

Useful links:

Father's Day Tie at The Purl Bee: My husband is going to be a professor, he will need ties, right?

Buttonhole Tutorial at Puking Pastilles: I am intimidated by buttonholes. Will this post cure me?

Sewing Machine Needle Guide at Sew, Mama, Sew: help for clueless seamstresses like me.

also at Sew, Mama, Sew: Perfectly Portable Cushion, with instructions to make your own bias tape!

Dorset Buttons at CraftStylish: I *have* to try this!

More Gowns!

2009-07-27T09:00:00.005-04:00

I've been having such fun working on my Blythe gown pattern! I made a few last little tweaks and now... I think it's done! From the basic gown, I can make variations, like the top pic, with a red underskirt and gathered sections, or, my next project, a version with a long beaded train. It's going to be a few days unfortunately because I did something terrible to my thumb and I think I might have torn something, so I'm icing it and trying to rest as much as possible, which is hard to do when it's your dominant hand!

It's been very rainy here lately, the summer-evening-thunderstorm sort of rainy that makes me feel like a little kid. I live 3 blocks from where my grandparents lived so the sounds- the horns of the trains going by, the siren from the fire station (which just went off as I was writing that sentence!)- and the smells- from the pizza parlor and the cereal factory- are all the same. In the summer I feel especially nostalgic and when we have evening thunderstorms it makes me think back to summer nights at Nanny and Paw-Paw's, being called inside from playing in the dirt pile when the first rumble of thunder was heard. I'm so sentimental!

Triumph Over the Furniture

2009-07-24T09:00:00.005-04:00

before

after

Finally, after weeks of plotting and drooling over the lovely and cheerful Calliope from Jessica Jones' Amusement Park collection, and having to wait to recover from my surgery, I was ready to tackle it: the biggest sewing project I'd ever done. I was terrified of messing up but I was more sick of looking at the old cruddy sofas. I bought them secondhand so they were old to begin with. Someone had spent a long time making slipcovers for them (an effort I appreciate even more after having done it myself) but four years of college left them looking a bit worse for wear. The cushions especially were sad looking, like something you'd see out at the curb waiting for the garbage man. They were not exactly comfortable to sit on, either. I fixed that easily enough with a few slabs of Nu-foam and an electric knife. Making the cushion covers was pretty simple- straight line sewing and two happy red zippers. Easy peasy. New cushions, done!

Next was the scary part- the slipcovers themselves. I used the original slipcovers as a guide but I simplified them a bit, since my fabric was wider than the fabric used originally I was able to use fewer pieces. It was quite a process- sew one seam, try it on the sofa, pin the next seam, try that on, and repeat. And repeat. And... you get the idea. I sewed piping on the edges too, for a little extra pizazz.

It took three days, one day for the cushions and one day for each sofa. But in the end, I did it. Let me repeat: I DID IT! :) I'm sort of surprised I managed to pull off such a big project, I admit I surprised myself for the first few days every time I walked into the living room, like when you color your hair and see yourself in the mirror. I have to say it has been quite a boost to my self-confidence. I've always been sort of hesitant to branch out from using commercial patterns to sew things, but now I feel like maybe I could.

I also made a few pillows with the coordinating Fireworks print, and curtains from Boardwalk. The living room is so bright and fun now! I'm really excited for my husband to get back from Iraq (less than 50 days!) to see our happy little home!

Totals:

Yards of fabric used: (slipcovers) 20-ish (pillows) 2 (curtains) 5
Packages of white maxi piping piped: 15
Hours of hard labor: 30
Episodes of the Golden Girls watched: lots

Wall Art

2009-07-23T09:00:00.002-04:00

My first crewel project! Based on designs from The New Crewel. The author is fabulous, and runs a website where you can buy delicious colors of wool and yards of very nice linen.

I wanted to make something to go on a lonely space of wall in the bedroom, something to echo the colors in our bedspread (shades of green) and pillows (also green, and two red ones), but I didn't want to just copy the leaf pattern from the bedcovers. I really enjoyed this project- I never knew how much fun french knots were!

Party Food

2009-07-22T09:00:00.000-04:00

My aunt threw a baby shower for her daughter a few weekends ago, and she asked me to whip up a few things for myself and the other vegan guests to eat. I love any excuse to try out recipes, so I was glad to help. After a few tries, I settled on Eggplant Moussaka and Lemon Bars, both from the Veganomicon. They were a hit, even with the non-vegans!

A Makeover

2009-07-21T09:00:00.003-04:00

I bought a bunch of new bras awhile back, and I was once again bewildered by why they feel the need to add these goofy little footballs inside the cups. I can understand if you're an A cup, wanting a little boost, but us DD gals really don't need the help, thanks. So what to do with them? Our younger cat, Doris Day, thought they were fun to play with but I wasn't sure I wanted little bra footballs laying around the house, so I spruced them up with a bit of embroidery. She really likes to play catch so these are ideal for tossing, since they're light so when she misses and gets bonked on the nose it won't hurt.

Return

2009-07-20T09:00:00.000-04:00

Wow, it's been three months? Time flies when you're on painkillers! Well ok I wasn't on painkillers that whole time. My surgery went well, after a bit of a mix-up when the doctor I consulted with forgot to schedule me for surgery so I waited and waited and finally called to ask when my surgery was and they said "what surgery?" Needless to say, I asked for a different doctor. Recovery was both worse and better than I expected, better because the pain really wasn't so bad, but worse because the pain lasted a lot longer than I'd expected.

During my recovery, I spent a lot of time reading the books I'd bought on eBay, mostly Nancy Drew books I remembered from my childhood. They were fun because they only take an hour or two to read so I felt like a real speed reader the day I read four!

I've been getting back in to the swing of crafty things, mostly doing Blythe-related projects. My first custom work on my Blythe was to change her makeup and eyechips. I gave her white shadow and black liner, and pink lips. It was a fun project and I'm itching to do another!

I also started doing some sewing for Blythe, starting with the existing patterns that I'd found but soon branching out to make my own. While the patterns I found online were certainly cute, I was looking for something fancy-schmancy and old-fashioned. Here's a quick peek at what I've come up with:

Hiatus

2009-04-02T09:00:00.002-04:00

Real life is getting in the way of my crafty adventures. Last month my mom had an ovarian tumor removed. Thankfully, it wasn't cancerous. It has still been a stressful few weeks and I'm doing everything I can to help her out. Between family and trying to keep up with my schoolwork, there has been precious little time for anything fun.

On Tuesday, I found out that I need some surgery too. I've been feeling very poorly lately and I thought it was stress from mom being sick, trying to stay afloat with school, and worrying about my husband, but recently I got very sick so I finally went to the doctor. It's sort of a relief to know that the exhaustion and pain weren't just because I can't keep my shit together but because something really is wrong, but it's also kind of scary to think about being cut open and having some stranger poke around inside of me. The good news is that after the surgery we should have much better odds of having a baby so that's helping me stay optimistic! I only wish that I could have my husband home but he's a bit busy in Iraq so I can't really fault him for that.

Anyway, the skinny is that I'm taking a break from blogging. I'll be back as soon as I can, better than ever! :)

A Happy Happenstance

2009-03-20T09:00:00.000-04:00

Yesterday I got a new pair of sunglasses. I actually haven't had sunglasses for about 5 years, which is criminal because I have really sensitive eyes. But with no insurance and the cost of prescription lenses, I just let it slide. Well, I had had enough, so I bopped down to LensCrafters and picked out a pair of shades. While I was waiting for them to be done, I went over to the bookstore, conveniently right next door, and browsed around. I was hoping to find a book about making doll clothes, but I didn't. I did however find 3 books for my husband, which will hopefully brighten his day, and this:

Which I've been hearing very good things about and which happens to have a pattern for a lovely apron, which I have recently decided is a requirement for my kitchen. It was meant to be!

Arrival

2009-03-19T09:00:00.000-04:00

I shall call her Mini Me!

Seriously, though, she is adorable. Much more adorable than I am. I gave her a haircut already because her hair had a cute little flip at the end that did nothing but tangle and annoy me, and I didn't like the way it laid. That's the only change I've made as of yet, besides giving her a kicky new outfit and a stylin' pair of glasses, but there's more to come.

(Also, I'm now addicted to ebay. But that's another story.)

More Prep!

2009-03-18T09:00:00.000-04:00

Two new purchases from This is Blythe:

Super cute glasses!

and sweet shoes!

Preparation

2009-03-17T09:00:00.007-04:00

Getting ready for Blythe's arrival! The girl can't run around in a cape. She needs some fashionable togs, as far as I'm concerned.

An hour's worth of browsing online led to a couple of really great sources for patterns and inspiration:

here, here, and here.

Sewing such small things is really fun, despite the precision needed to sew such tiny tiny items. It's productive too, which makes me feel a sense of accomplishment.

Upgrade

2009-03-16T09:00:00.002-04:00

Well in the last few weeks I have upgraded several tech toys:

-Replaced my almost-new black Nintendo DS with the white one I preferred anyhow*

-Replaced my not-new and deeply hated XZ-6900 with the new BlackBerry Storm, which is infinitely better in that when people call, it actually rings*

-Got a lovely pink Sony Vaio to replace my old Gateway notebook, which was on it's last legs after 2 years at college and 3 months bouncing around the southern U.S. in an army duffel bag. The new laptop was customized with a shipload of RAM and a super fast processor. It's not quite the shade of pink I was hoping for but it is nice enough and the computer itself is like lightning! Vista takes a bit of getting used to but it's better than I'd expected and I do like the slick look of it.

-Upgraded all the way from Creative Suite 2 to 4. I only have one thing to say about that: sweeeeeeeeeet!

*The first two changes were precipitated by a particularly mischievous little dog who likes to steal things and chew them. He's my dog so I don't even have anyone to blame but myself!

Organization

2009-03-13T09:00:00.000-04:00

These nifty little modular units are about 25 dollars each at Target, on the scrapbooking aisle, which I usually avoid because while I like "cute" I do not like "cutesey" and scrapbooking gear is invariably "cutesey." I'm glad I ventured down the aisle this time, though, because I had been looking for something to organize my crafty and sewing supplies besides the old dresser that I had been using which was both too large and too small, too large in that it took up a LOT of space, and too small in that the drawers were sized to prevent one from storing very much inside. Somehow, despite these drawers being smaller, I fit all of my supplies inside them in an organized manner. I also love that my fabrics are there where I can see them and be inspired. Yay organization!

A Drawerful of Delicious

2009-03-12T09:00:00.000-04:00

Appleton Crewel Wool. Gearing up for my big huge important First Crewel Project Ever, and considering the possibility that I will need more than one skein of each color I am planning to use.

A Lack of Willpower

2009-03-11T09:00:00.000-04:00

I gave in to temptation and bought myself a Blythe doll. I've been wanting one for a long time and I happened across this one on eBay that fit exactly with what I wanted: dark hair, no bangs, relatively cheap. And there she was, a steal at 65 dollars. She is an ADG Kozy Kape (I think) and I'm guessing not as popular as some, like the Tweedly Do, who I was considering buying but cost nearly 200 dollars and had bangs. I just couldn't justify to myself spending that much on something I might turn out not to get much use out of, and if I can't justify it to myself I certainly can't justify it to my husband!

I'm not super concerned with her outfit (which I am not all that enamored of) since I'm planning to sew and knit my own. It's such an exciting world, the whole Blythe thing, which I'm definitely one of the last to hop on the bandwagon of. There are so many people doing absolutely amazing things! I'm just in awe of the talent out there, and more than a little intimidated. I'm looking for a book or even an article with basic patterns for clothing to use as a reference but so far I've not had any luck. I suppose I will have to keep on looking!

Not So Hot

2009-03-10T09:00:00.000-04:00

Here is my first attempt at making softies from the book Fun Dolls. I think they are proof that one ought not sew when they are tired because they are a bit wonky in several areas. I'm not sure if it was my markings that were off or if my pins slipped or what, but the ears on both the bunny and the bear are crooked. I sort of liked it though so I sewed their features on crooked too so they are just sort of odd in general. I kind of like them but I'm definitely going to give it another go and try to make them properly.

On a happier note, the book is full of super cute softies and I think that the practice will really pay of in making my own designs. I have off school for the whole week so I have a lot of time for crafty projects. I can't wait!

a book you should buy!

2009-03-09T09:00:00.000-04:00

The New Crewel, which is fabulous in every way. I'm starting my first crewel project but it's not fit for photography yet :)

Leftovers

2009-03-06T09:00:00.002-05:00

I had a smidgen of this fabric left from my pillow-making party and a lovely pink KitchenAid mixer in need of a cover that was suitably fabulous and not totally lame like the black ones at the kitchen store. There was just barely enough to make this cover- there was literally about 6 square inches left. I love it when things work out so perfectly!