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this weekend was fantastic, everything went perfectly.
my friends laura and chris came down from san francisco and stayed with me for the weekend, friday night we walked to warren and laura leigh's for a halloween party.
my friends laura and chris came down from san francisco and stayed with me for the weekend, friday night we walked to warren and laura leigh's for a halloween party.
{my watermelon turned out great, a lot of people got that i was baby and were impressed that it also functioned as a purse, my friend laura was a "deviled egg"}
{warren and laura leigh as a dragon and dragon slayer}
{brian and robin}
halloween night we all went to the prospector for the show. my friends in the commotions were the b52's and the valley arena were the misfits.
{the commotions}
{the crowd was really into the valley arena as the misfits}
{twice during their set, warren (the lead singer) said "nobody puts baby in a corner"}
happy halloween!
sadly, my first pumpkin rotted, so this is take two. i used my lino cutters to etch out the owl and moon. this halloween should be fun, i have a costume i'm excited about and my best friend will be in town.
i'll be back monday with pictures and stories!
sadly, my first pumpkin rotted, so this is take two. i used my lino cutters to etch out the owl and moon. this halloween should be fun, i have a costume i'm excited about and my best friend will be in town.
i'll be back monday with pictures and stories!
i think this falls into the "treat" category. in a wave of inspiration (perhaps because i now have a designated space to sew and a closet devoted to all the accoutrements that go with it) i decided to make emilee a trick-or-treat bag for halloween. i found the template for the cat on martha stewart's website, cut it out of some black felt, embroidered some fabric i already had, and sewed it up. this project took me 3 nights (maybe 5hrs total) and i'm pretty happy with how it turned out. there are some things i would change or add, but for a last minute project i think this worked out fine.
{complete!}
time to put it in the mail. now i just need to finish my costume, i can't wait to share pictures!
this is cracks me up every time i see it...
this year my new haircut has inspired my halloween costume, i'm going to be "baby" from dirty dancing. to create the look i decided to create a felt watermelon to carry around, and i made a pocket so i can use it as a purse.
{my inspiration}
{drafting a pattern, this first pattern turned out too boxy}
{sewing together the pieces}
{almost done! i'll need to buy more ric-rac}
i still need a dress and shoes, but i'm really happy with my felt watermelon so far... nobody is going to put me in a corner!
things have more or less settled at my new place and i wanted to post some pictures...
{the area under the arch is my new sewing area}
{my little room, it has just enough space for all my things}
{little toulouse is still adjusting}
i'm still working on my giant craft/storage closet, i'll post pictures when it's complete.
friday night my friend Laura Leigh invited a small group of us over to carve pumpkins, it was a warm evening and i got to take advantage of my new living situation and walk the few blocks to my friend's house (though it was a bit cumbersome with the pumpkin). Laura's boyfriend Warren made us pumpkin zitti and roasted our pumpkin seeds when we were done carving. it was such a fun evening watching scary movies and eating pumpkin seeds, i loved carving so much i bought another pumpkin over the weekend.
{carving away, Warren was also our photographer}
{i did end up with some pumpkin in my hair}
{Priscilla's pumpkin}
{Laura's pumkin, isn't that mouse adorable?}
{my pumpkin; it's a vampire leaning down to bite a womans neck... yes, i have read twilight too many times}
{carving away, Warren was also our photographer}
{i did end up with some pumpkin in my hair}
{Priscilla's pumpkin}
{Laura's pumkin, isn't that mouse adorable?}
{my pumpkin; it's a vampire leaning down to bite a womans neck... yes, i have read twilight too many times}
it's that time of year again, when i go through my yarn stash and think of projects and start making a list of gifts to make. in addition, this year i want to make some stockings for for my new roomie, myself, toulouse, maybe the corgi puppies, and various decorations. this means that i need to get started yesterday...
these days i find the fun gifts to make or give are for my cousin's kids and little emilee. today i was reading one of my favorite blogs maya*made (her own work is gorgeous and she has an adorable etsy shop) and she posted about a lovely online shop called wild apples. wild apples sells hand-crafted wooden toys and they remind me of some to the toys we had growing up. i'm thinking, in addition to what i'm already planning on making the kids, these would fun to give. there is a part of me that knows the kids would probably prefer barbie's or lego's, but these are really special!
mom and dad have been out of town so i've been in charge of the corgans, and they are a handful! they are also super cute and very mischievous. thursday night we stayed in Long Beach and friday we went down to my parents for the weekend.
{puppies at the office}
{creating a cage cover for toulouse]
{almost complete, i didn't have enough muslin to make a lining}
{when they weren't wrestling the puppies were sleeping}
{reading on the couch}
{next project: mermaid dish towel}
this weekend i went with my mom to look at a corgi puppy. my mom had recently been in contact with the breeder we bought our beloved corgi zipper from and saturday we drove out to san bernadino to look at two puppies. though we intended to purchase just the female, after much talking and playing and cuddling, my mom bought both the sister and the brother. they are quite adorable and very cute together, i think they're names will be zoe and buster, but that may change...
{already very comfortable with dad}
{precious!}
{the boy is the one whose face you can see, the girl has the white collar}
{already very comfortable with dad}
{precious!}
the prospect of moving has stalled all my crafting endevours, that said, i think i'll be buying this stamp set from yellow owl workshop once i've moved and money isn't so tight...
i cut 6" off my hair and added some bangs.
i'm thinking dirty dancing meets flashdance...
{goodbye locks}
here are the pictures of the projects i mentioned in my last post, enjoy!
{laura's towel, i'll use this fabric scrap to make a loop}
{label for emilee's quilt, the mermaid pattern is from sublime stitching, i tried to mimic the colors in the fabric}
{squares for the next quilt top}
and a sneak peek into my new apartment...
i'm moving in with my friend kristina; this is a view from the kitchen to the living room. most of the furniture will be gone and the nook you see in the foreground will be my sewing area.
i'm very excited!
{laura's towel, i'll use this fabric scrap to make a loop}
{label for emilee's quilt, the mermaid pattern is from sublime stitching, i tried to mimic the colors in the fabric}
{squares for the next quilt top}
and a sneak peek into my new apartment...
i'm moving in with my friend kristina; this is a view from the kitchen to the living room. most of the furniture will be gone and the nook you see in the foreground will be my sewing area.
i'm very excited!
i've been keeping busy over the last week doing lot's of sewing and embroidering. i finished the dishtowel i was working on (it just needs a fabric loop), i embroidered a label for the back of emilee's quilt, i started piecing together the back of the quilt, and i started sewing together the blocks for my next quilt. whew!
unfortunately, my camera battery was dead, so i have no new pictures to share.
i'll try and post them tomorrow...
unfortunately, my camera battery was dead, so i have no new pictures to share.
i'll try and post them tomorrow...
however, i will share a little sculpture i've been salivating over.
the countdown is on for the big move, oct. 1!!!
my dear readers, i fear i have to confess something, i have a serious addiction to art prints. i can not get enough. i have so many websites saved in my favorites folders devoted to prints. i don't know where this comes from. as long as i can remember i've collected postcards and prints and covered every inch of wall surface available to me.
i dont think i can stop.
that said, i thought i'd share some of the prints i've been lusting after....
i dont think i can stop.
that said, i thought i'd share some of the prints i've been lusting after....
jacob arden mcclure for keep calm gallery
alyson fox for keep calm gallery
jane mount for 20x200
friday night jasmine and i grabbed the dogs and carpooled down to mom and dad's where we also met up with david. the weekend was everything i hoped it would be; visited with grandma and marty, lot's of sun and pool time, reading, embroidering, delicious food, watching movies, playing games with emilee, and catching up with robbie.
{darcy and fraiser staying close to the kitchen and bbq}
{embroidering on the swing}
{dad really enjoys watermelon}
{a very blurry picture of emilee and me}
last night i completed the first corner of my towel embroidery project. the lines are a all a bit wonky, but i think that adds to the charm, right? i'm very pleased with how my stitches look, the towels had an easy grid to follow which allowed me to keep an evenness to the stitches. i'll start the opposite corner tonight, the colors will be brighter and should add a nice contrast. after all that, add a loop from some scrap fabric and i should be done!
the next project i need to return to is emilee's quilt! i want to complete it by her birthday (mid september), and really only need to piece together the back and then quilt it. it feels good to be making things again.
i finally started a new project! i love embroidering for the simple joy of having a project that is so portable and, unlike knitting, it's light and perfect for warm summer nights. i'm using the towels my mom bought me, a pattern i purchased from sew bettie's shop, and embroidery floss from a bag of goodies my grandma sent me. i'm loving the simplicty of the back-stitch on the white background. in one corner the dolls will be green, blue, purple and in the opposite corner they'll be red, orange and yellow.
{nesting dolls}
here's a glimpse of the goodies my grandma sent me. the fabric on the carrier is not quite me, i think i'll whip up a new cover. the carrier inculded; a sewing book, books on candlewicking, a ton of embroidery floss, buttons, elastic, and various little tools. i've also rounded up my various embroidery patterns, i think most gifts this christmas will feature something embroidered.
{goodies from grandma}
{embroidery patterns}
last night my friend laura and i drove down to my parents. mom and dad had two extra tickets to see willie nelson, john mellencamp, and bob dylan live at the storm stadium in lake elsinore. i've seen dylan once before and knew what to expect, as far as the other two performers i had no expectations. willie nelson played first and his voice sounded amazing, his son was playing with him and his sister came out twice to play piano. john mellencamp played next and was incredible, by far my favorite performance of the night. he played mostly the hits (i didn't realize how much mellencamp i knew) and one or two new songs. the only disappointment was that he didn't play jack and diane. dylan played last and while it is thrilling seeing him, the band overwhelmed his voice and he has arranged his old songs to the point of not being recognizable. we all agreed his best song was all along the watchtower. such a great evening, even in the sweltering heat (that's what frozen margaritas are for, right?).
{willie nelson, his son has on the bandanna playing the guitar}
{mellencamp invited his son to play the last song with him}
{bob dylan}
{mom, me, and laura (dad's arm is in the bottom left corner}
{willie nelson, his son has on the bandanna playing the guitar}
{mellencamp invited his son to play the last song with him}
{bob dylan}
i collect a lot of online tutorials, there is a special folder in my "favorites" box devoted to online tutorials. over the past year i have printed scores of projects and they have been wholly disorganized and strewn about my sewing supplies. i've had the idea of making a "project book" for some time and monday night i made it a reality. with a stack of some plastic protective sheets and a 2 1/2" thick binder i created a nice no-fuss way to organize and store project ideas. on the inside the plastic sheets have the full instructions and any pattern pieces i've created and the interior pockets allow me to include thinner store bought patterns. i also devoted a plastic sheet to the sewing examples i created in my sewing class, this way i can have a handy reference to something like how to sew french seams.
{the cover}
{the inside}
{the inside}
i've been wanting to attempt more embroidery projects lately. my friend laura gave me some darling mermaid patterns, in addition i bought a ton of patterns at the quilt show earlier this year. i had mentioned this to my mom and she kindly bought me some flour sack towels to embroider on. last night i washed them all and this morning i found a post on sew, mama, sew about doing a "sew-along sampler", what could be more perfect?!?!
{towels pre-washing}
{the sew-along sampler}
lastly, i found this picture on my friend laura's computer and think it's too funny and random. i think it was taken last summer, where i have no idea. i miss my little bother, even if he does bite.
{me and mattie}
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