My Thoughts Exactly

Not much to write today. Bo's expression conveys how I'm feeling right now: wishing I could hide (and sleep). I've got a mountain of schoolwork and work work that I'm slowly trudging my way through this week. Saturday can't come soon enough.

Bed Bugs

When my sister Kathy was expecting her first child she enlisted my help to decorate the nursery. She didn't want anything too cutesy but she wanted something original. It also had to have ladybugs. So one afternoon, I packed up my paint box (my sisters often tell me to "bring the paints" when I come to visit) and brushes and set out to work.



To make sure we didn't go overboard with the bugs, we cut out paper shapes about the size that we wanted to final bugs to be. We then taped these to the wall in various layouts before choosing what we liked best. I learned this trick from a magazine a few years ago and have been utilizing it ever since. The whole process really only took a few hours. I used basic craft acrylic paints (gotta love 'em!).


The best part about this day was the delight my sister had when she discovered that she can paint afterall! For the longest time she would insist that she can't paint and that I got all the creative genes in the family. But after I showed her how to paint a ladybug and bee, she was painting her own like a pro.


It is no surprise that my niece loves anything having to do with ladybugs now.

To Be Square

I'm afraid I've lost a little steam on my granny square project. Really it's just a matter of my eyeballs being bigger than my ability to actually do everything I want to do. Is this an adult form of ADD? Fortunately, I know myself pretty well and predicted this. So I chose a small project to start off with. I have thirteen of the eighteen squares I need for my granny square bag complete. Only five more to go!


I love the color combination I chose. Every time I finish a square I think it is my favorite until I finish the next one. I am having a bit of a problem trying to keep my squares all the same size though. Is this is a rookie mistake I will soon grow out of? I hope so. Oh, and weaving in the ends is a terrible bore! But the end result is just so pretty.

City bag

I have a confession to make. I've made a lot of stylish bags over the last two years, but for the past few months I have been guilty of carrying an ugly, pen stained backpack to and from work. It just didn't seem right. So, I made myself something I could be proud to be spotted carrying.


I can fit a lot of stuff in this bag, which is good because I carry a lot of stuff. The contents of my bag vary daily but usually contain some combination of the following: gym shoes/clothes, lunch food, homework/school notes, craft magazine or novel.


I finally learned how to sew an inside zipper pocket. The zipper and the bag are not perfect (sewing with vinyl is hard!), but overall I'm pleased with the end result. For the sake of my sewing machine, I don't think I'll be sewing with vinyl again anytime soon.

In her hands

Caught up in the granny square fever, I spent last Saturday with my Mom learning to crochet a square.

I grew up watching these hands make amazing things. Now they are teaching me to make my own.

Thank you, Mom.

Pincushions

I recently participated in a pincushion swap through swap-bot. I had been wanting to make a flower pincushion ever since I saw the tutorial on whipup.



The process really is as easy as the tutorial makes it seem. I made two pincushions in one night. The green and brown pincushion went to Karyn in Austraila. I hope she is enjoying it. I am keeping the currently buttonless light green one for myself.

As I was making these, I realized that I have a very limited button collection. I am currently searching for more unique buttons. If you have an idea, please leave a comment. My buttonless flowers would be forever grateful.

Less studying, more baking

I dug myself out of my mountain of homework long enough to make my favorite fall treat.

I found this recipe a few years ago and I haven't used any other since. Try it, you won't be disappointed!

A little note

To let you know I'm still around. I made these note cards a few weeks ago and sent them off in a package for one of Moki's swaps.


I am such a paper hoarder. According to dictionary.com:

hoard (noun): 1. a supply or accumulation that is hidden or carefully guarded for preservation, future use, etc.: a vast hoard of silver.

Haha! My "silver" is fabric and paper. The definition describes my paper and fabric supply/buying habits to the T. However, I tend to use the fabric up much more quickly than I use the paper.

This year, like last, I am going to make little notecard sets to give as presents around the holidays. Theoretically, this should decrease the hoard...just as long as I don't buy more in the meantime. How do you decrease your stash of "silver"?

My Letters

I took Latin for three years and one week of my high school career. During my junior year, I dropped Latin and signed up for Art instead. It was really happenstance that I ended up in Art, for it was the only other elective class that was open during that time period.



I loved Art class so much that I signed up for Art II during my senior year. My new teacher really inspired me and believed in me. Halfway through the year, she invited me on a special field trip to the Museum of Women in Arts in Washington, DC. Every art teacher in the county was allowed to invite 2 of their best female students. My art teacher chose me!



These photos are some of the art pieces I sent to my partners for Moki's letter swap. I learned the tempera resist technique during my high school art career and really enjoyed the process. The idea for these pieces came to me one morning. Funny how my greatest ideas come to me right before or after sleep. I really must start keeping a pen and paper on my nightstand! I hadn't done this type of painting since high school and was worried about how it would turn out. When I washed the ink away, I was filled with awe and surprise when the final piece starting revealing itself to me.



I'm really happy with how the pieces turned out and I hope my swap recipients enjoy them. I really look forward to having time soon to do more of these.

In case you're wondering, I've never regretted dropping Latin for Art, but I do regret not taking art in college.

More swap goodies

As I was walking home the other day I thought to myself, "Oh, it would be so nice to have a package today". I then immediately thought that I really shouldn't get my hopes too high. But when I got home, I discovered that I had three packages waiting for me to open!

My first package was another initial from Moki's letter swap. Isn't it cute! Leta made this for me and I am so pleased with it. I have the perfect spot for it on my shelf in my "studio" (aka, dining room corner). You should check out all the other beautiful things Leta makes on her blog. I especially love her cards.


The next package was a quilted letter from Jackie. She blogs about it here, but it is so much more stunning in person. She got the inspiration from a French alphabet song. The funny thing is that one of my favorite songs is called "Soleil" by Badly Drwan Boy so this quilted applique is perfect for me. Thank you Jackie!

I apologize for the poor lighted pictures in this post. I haven't been home much in the daylight. Later this week I will share with you the other package as well as a new craft obsession I feel coming on. Have a great day.

I heart mail

Oh wow! What a great week it has been for mail! At the beginning of August I signed up for two swaps organized by Moki: a letter swap and a stamped fabric swap. I was thrilled to receive my first letter last week. This wonderful package came from Raesha.


Not only did Raesha send a beautiful painted initial "S" complete with a charm, she also included lots of goodies: bias tape, a vintage embroidery design (which I have just the use for!), handmade travel tissue holder (it is beginning to be sniffly nose weather afterall), and cute stickers with the letter S. I hope I didn't leave anything out. Anyhow, thanks for the wonderful package, Raesha. You really made my day.

Oh but wait, there's more. You see, each person in the swap sent out five letters so that each person would receive five letters. I recieved a few more letters today but I don't have time to post now. Let me just say that I feel so spoiled! I can definitely feel a swap addiction forming.

Now back to studying. Goodnight.

Adjusting

It’s been a while since I posted, but I am not giving up on blogging yet. The past few weeks have been about adjusting: adjusting to school, to the shift in weather, to life after triathlon, to more work responsibility. The first on that list has been the biggest adjustment. My free time has drastically been cut short as I pour my nose into articles, research, and homework. I have moments where I wonder why I am doing this, wondering if it’s worth it. But I think it is. One more year. One more year and I’ll finally have my masters and all the options that go along with it.

In between juggling school and work, my list of crafting to do’s continues to grow. Last week I completed seven bridesmaids bags for a soon to be bride. The bride to be picked out a different fabric for each girl and was genuinely happy with how they turned out. I really put a lot of work into these babies, making sure to pay attention to all the details. I was pleased they were so well received. (You can see more of the bags at flickr.)

With this commission order out of the way, there are so many things I want to try for myself now. Creative Little Daisy posted a similar a thought recently and I couldn’t agree more with how she is feeling. Especially now that my time is limited I am feeling the need to say ‘no’ more often to outside requests so that I can say ‘yes’ more often to my own little creative endeavors. I create things because I want to, and the more I have to, the less creative energy I have.

With that said, I have a bunch of projects in the works that I am very excited about: Moki’s letter swap and stamp swap, a new fall bag (or two!), and redecorating my living room (currently in progress) and bedroom. I promise to try harder to blog more often about these (and other) projects.

Thrift Running

Have I ever told you how much I love my neighborhood in DC? I live on a beautiful street lined of old classic rowhouses that is close to many parks, restaurants, etc. When I started training for my triathlon, I would normally run through the park but I quickly grew tired of this route and so I now enjoy my runs through the neighborhood streets. This not only allows me to get in some hill workouts, but it also gives me an opportunity to gawk at all the beautiful houses in this area.

Early into my run this morning I saw a sign for a neighborhood garage sale. Seeing all the beautiful things that craft bloggers have scored from garage sales and thrift shops, I decided on my way back from my run to stop by and see what kind of goodies I could find.

At one stand I found this vintage 1968 McCall's Sewing Book. I've been trying to increase my severely lacking craft book collection and was really excited to find this. The book is in pretty good condition. It mainly gives instructions on how to sew clothes. I don't currently sew any clothes but I know that someday in the (near?) future I plan to and think this will be a good reference to have on hand.

Tucked into the front cover of the book was this hip vintage sewing pattern.

I like the shirt style, so maybe I'll try out this pattern next summer. I'm thinking the shirt would look great with an Amy Butler style fabric.

I also found this wonderful little 1973 PlantCraft book. I don't have much of a green thumb. Somehow I have inhereted/been given/given refuge to a few left behind plants over the years. Until I got cats, the plants managed to somehow stay alive. The cats killed two plants (did you know cats enjoy eating spider plants?). Now I have two large plants left. I'm not saying that I'm a terrible plant owner, I just tend to forget more often than remember to water the plants. Also, I'm not sure that I give the plants the best environment to thrive. Our sunniest room in the apartment is also the smallest, so the plants would crowd the place if we gave them shelter there. I hope that this book will give me some good tips on how to be a better plant owner.

However, truth be told, I am more excited about the fun illustrations that adorn the inside pages. Check out these funky snails!

These little guys are giving me inspiration for my much needed blog banner.

WIP

I love long weekends, but tell me really, who doesn't?

I'm working on a commission order for seven bridesmaids bags. The bride picked out fabric to suit the individual tastes of each of her bridesmaids. What a fabulous idea! It's been a while since I've sewn any bags. Before the summer I was cranking them out every other day. Summer classes, working, and training for the triathlon really took away any time to be creative. It feels good to be sewing again.

Another work in progress is a little space to call my own. Since we have never used the dining area for its intended purpose of dining, I have decided to convert the space into my own studio. When you live in an apartment in the city, you really don't have a lot of space to work with. Peter and I are lucky to even have a dining area. We both agree that the space will be much more useful as a studio rather than a dining room. I'm trying to make the space more cozy than it is currently without putting a lot of work into it (we rent). Stay tuned for updates.

Off to Joann now for some much needed, and some not so needed, supplies!

home

San Francisco was fun, but it's good to be home. I found these flowers on my walk home from the metro today. What a nice welcome back!

california.california

Well, friends, today I am off to Sonoma Valley to take in the scenery and drink wine of course. Our trip to San Francisco is wonderful so far. I can't get over how cold it is here though. On several occasions I have been wishing I brought my scarf. At the baseball game last night (Go Giants!) I have the pleasurable experience of being warmed by a hot cup of sweet cocoa.

Pictures and stories will follow soon.

my friend Meg

A belated birthday present for my friend Meg:

A wristlet in black fabric with embroidered white flowers and leaves. No, I didn't embroider the fabric, it came like that. I bought a few yards of the fabric over a year ago and have made some wonderful things with it. The lining is a soft coral color, the same as the pin. Thanks to Heather for the great tutorial for the yo-yo pin. I had a lot of fun making this wrapping paper.

I hope Meg likes her birthday present.

Mail!

Yippee. There are few things I like more than coming home from work to packages filled with goodies. First, the shoes:


Oh I love these shoes. I splurged a little but it's been so long since I've bought shoes I allowed this little indulgence. The pictures don't really do them justice. They are shades of green and oh so cute and I can't wait to tromp around in them in San Francisco.


I also received these gorgeous folk art dessert plates from Anthropologie. I have been looking for decorative plates to adorn a certain wall ever since we moved into our apartment a year ago. I wasn't sure really what I was looking for but when I saw these and the half off sale price I didn't blink an eye. Here's a close up of the blue one:

Way too many interests

I'm back. I've been creating. I have pictures/stories to tell. More to come.

Going on Holiday

I'm heading to Memphis this weekend to attend the wedding of one of Peter's friends. Reasons why I'm excited:

1) Graceland - Woo-hoo!
2) Memphis BBQ
3) I can actually enjoy just being a guest at a wedding and won't have to worry about pictures, speeches, weird hair-do's, watching my consumption of alcohol, etc (i.e. I'm not IN the wedding for once).

On the exercising front, I've decided to really start thinking two steps ahead (thanks to Habeela for sharing the great advice). I don't want to do this tri half a##. If I'm going to do it, I want to DO it! I've even started toying with the idea of running a half marathon next year. If you know me, you know this is a big deal. Ever since I began running almost three years ago I have been asked several times if I ever want to do a marathon. HA! I laughed. Nah, I'll just stick to my 3.1 miles, thank you very much. But I haven't really stuck to even those miles very well over the past three years. I am ashamed to say I have been an on again, off again runner. Shameful, I know. All of this is changing though. I knew I needed a shake-up in my routine, so I signed up for a triathlon. I wanted a little more of a challenge on the running front so I signed up and completed a 10k earlier this month (and ran the whole thing- yeah! - I'm still proud of it as you can see). For both of these events I was not and have not been alone. Beth is training for the tri with me and I had my sister and brother-in-law running the 10k. Having a partner to train with is motivating (and fun!!!) but I know that I won't always be so fortunate. I need to be prepared to train on my own (however, Peter, I still think you should start running with me - wink wink). I need to really incorporate running and training into my life. I need to think two steps ahead. It's not just about getting through the run, the swim, etc. It's about conquering a new challenge, being healthy, feeling good and knowing what I can do and what I will do next. So today, instead of going to lunch with co-workers, I strapped on my sneakers, pressed play, and ran 3.75 miles. I came back to work with a clear mind, sunned shoulders, happy legs (you know, the feeling that they've been worked and they are thanking you for it), and looking forward to the next run.