Category Archives: General craftiness

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Japan!: Harajuku day

When we asked the girls what they wanted to do first thing when we got  back to Japan, they both instantly answered, “Harajuku!” So today we took the train into the happiest place on Earth. :)

Behold the fashions:

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Check out the spiked shoes.
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A Japanese girl in boyfriend jeans! It’s like seeing a unicorn! Or Bigfoot!  (That’s why the picture is blurry.)

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Z made a new friend.

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I think this one is my favorite. And I mean that completely non-ironically, she totally pulled this off.

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Nope, this one is my favorite.  Shorts with polo ponies, a tux jacket with cropped sleeves, bow tie, and off center baseball cap. I love it.

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You can’t really tell in this picture, but one leg of her pants is black while the other is leopard print.

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And I end with this because it delights me- there is a beauty care line here called Gatsby. Sigh.IMG_6266

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What’s been going around here

It’s been a while, hasn’t it? Things have been busy! Earlier this week was the culmination of lots of work- I finished a first draft of a 50,000 word novel for NaNoWriMo (National Novel Writing Month, wherein crazy people attempt to write 50,000 word novels in a month), and held a craft fair (with some of my friends) that I had been crafting like crazy for in the preceding weeks.  Then there’s school and there was Halloween, so much goodness! Would you like to see?

Halloween goodness. Rapunzel and Belle (or, more accurately, Cinderella in a yellow dress)

Z pretending to fly a real Boeing 747 at the Hiller Aviation Museum.

A dirigible (squee!!!!) at the Hiller Aviation Museum. I LOVE dirigibles!

We “mummified” an apple with salt and baking soda. That was fun.

Things I made for the craft sale (or for friends, or for my kids or nephews. Pretty much just stuff I made):

For my darling Ana and her miracle baby boy.

Felt wreath. I love how this turned out!

Little foxes. I have about 6 more of these to make now- 3 for a friend’s kids, 2 for my own kids, and 1 for me!

Mini peeps! Love them! (That was both a command and an expression of my feeling toward them.)

Have I posted this before? I feel like I may have. It’s a quilt I made for Tiny, with my virtual quilting bee friends. I sent out the fabric, they sent back sewn squares, and I sewed it all together.

More dollies for the craft sale.

Throwing stars for the craft sale. Filled with rice, you throw them and the ribbons trail behind.

Harry Potter pillows for my nephews’ Harry Potter room. My sister redid their room for their birthday, and these were on their beds. (The room is insanely awesome.)

Also for their room- their own Gryffindor scarves.

What the trees look like around here. So pretty!

New bird ornaments for my Christmas tree.

The girls met Santa!

And last but not least,

Tiny is tough. In case you were wondering. :)

There are also a number of projects that I can’t post yet because they’re for Christmas presents, but I’ll post them after Christmas, because I’m happy with how they turned out.  I’ve been keeping track of everything I’ve made this year, and I’m currently at 121 things made. That’s kind of crazy. :)

Anyway, I should maybe possibly be posting more, now that the craziness of last month is over. We’ll see.  But I’ve missed you!

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It is 7:16 am.

I’ve been up for an hour and a half. Well, that’s not strictly true. I woke up at 5:45, then laid in my bed for 15 minutest trying to decide what to do. Go back to sleep? (SO tempting. And rational. Who gets up at 5:45?) Get up and work out? I’ve been trying to get back into my workout routine and have been sleeping instead, so since I was awake I decided to haul myself out of bed and pay a visit to miss Jillian.

Miss Jillian is mean at 6 am. :) I did her 6 week 6 pack Level 2, which is really just uncalled for. But now I’m up and moving, which is a good thing.

Z is sitting on the floor playing Cootie, or “Cutie” as she calls it. She’s just playing with the bugs, rather than playing the game.  Tiny is asleep, and will hopefully sleep in for a while. I violated one of my huge self rules yesterday (Never wake a sleeping child, they will hate you and you will hate yourself) and woke her up at 8:30, and she was a big ol’ mess. So today she just gets to sleep.

It’s really pretty outside, overcast and lovely looking. I’ve realized that I’m really ready for fall, but seeing as it’s just starting to feel like  summer, I think we’ve got some time.

School has gone excellently this week, the girls are enjoying it, and we’re getting into a flow. I’m getting down my own procedures for tracking what we’re doing, and getting a better feel for how much time to allot to each subject, and how long Z’s tolerance for each subject is.  (Math? Unlimited. Writing? 7 minutes.)  Yesterday  we started learning how to sew, using yarn and plastic canvas. Whoever invented that stuff was brilliant. And whoever suggested it to me (my momma) is brilliant too. The girls loved it, and even Tiny was getting the hang of her needle going “up and down, up and down, up and down”. Today we’re doing our regular lessons and then going swimming for P.E. Bliss.

I’ve been working on a bunch of projects lately (and have a bunch more to do- goodness, the list is long!), would you like to see?

These are our school rules. We refer to them quite often.

A quilt for a friend’s baby.

A quilt for another friend’s baby. We had a “kid baby shower” for the new baby’s big brothers and their friends, and had each kid draw on a square. I think it turned out cute.

I’m part of a virtual quilting bee, and I got to be the first to host (to pick the pattern, send out fabric) and thus will be the first to have a completed quilt! I chose a “Confetti quilt” pattern- lots of little squares of fabric on a white background. These are the two sample squares I made up.  There’s supposed to be an element of “wonk” to it, so that it looks like confetti that just landed on the blanket. I’m not totally sold on the wonkiness, but trying new things is what the virtual bee is all about!

This little dolly is for the class I’m teaching at Super Saturday.

This is my Grandma. I didn’t make her, but isn’t she dang adorable? I ran across this picture this morning and just had to post it. I’m fairly certain that my girls get their feist from her.

And Tiny is awake. I’m off to get girls dressed, fed, and ready for school.

Oh, but first, it was my anniversary yesterday! 9 years of marriage, woohoo! We went to my favorite restaurant for dinner (SO GOOD!), I got a ridiculously expensive set of knives that I’ve been wanting, and I got B a new watch. And while I was at it, I got myself one too. I haven’t worn a watch in probably 5 years, but this one is worth breaking the trend.

The faces of the watches are actually super cool and flip over. I’ll take a picture of that later. :) I just like how mine looks like a bracelet when you flip the face over.  I’ve been really into bracelets lately (inspired by Mackin Ink (seriously, there are not words for how much I love her writing. And let’s be honest, I pretty much love her too. Is that weird? To have a girl crush on someone you don’t even know?) (And yes, I just did a parenthesis inside a parenthesis, and now I’m doing another one. You got something to say about that?) ) – I’ll have to take a picture of all my new ones sometime soon, but here’s a teaser:

And now the girls are playing, so I have half a minute to talk about books read recently:

Heathers by John Bowie: This is part of the Deep Focus series, where people write about their experiences with a film while analyzing it. (Kind of like the 33 1/2 series for music.) It was interesting, and a great read, but I wish he’d gone just a titch farther in his analysis. He did, however, confirm that Sherwood, Ohio was a nod to Sherwood Anderson’s Winesburg, Ohio, which was validating.

An Ideal Husband by Oscar Wilde: I love this play. Love it. I love the wit, love the incisiveness.

The Imperfectionists by Tom Rachman: Goodness sakes alive this book was good. Really really grab you and not let you go but in a really subtle sneaking up on you kind of way. It’s the story of an international newspaper and the people who work there, told in a series of interlinking short stories, and once I started reading it I just couldn’t stop. There’s an honesty to the stories that makes them compelling, and while they’re not action packed, there’s an underlying emotional tension that had me flipping through the pages like it was a thriller.  There are a couple of the stories that I just keep thinking about, and it’s been a couple of weeks since I finished it.  (Note: There is quite a bit of swearing, so be warned if that bothers you.)

And now it’s really time to go get moving. What’s happening at your house at this moment?

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What I’ve been up to

Hello there.

I feel like I haven’t posted in a while. Is that true? I don’t know.

What have I been doing? A lot of crafting and sewing. In the past two weeks I’ve made: 4 fabric belts, 15 reversible headbands, a fairy picture album, 6 notebooks, a baby quilt, 3 dollies, 3 necklaces, 2 canvases, and a mini quilt.  Would you like to see?

A lot of them are for the fundraiser that’s coming up for Autism Speaks, but some are for me, for my mom, or for Liz. It’s been fun, being so create-y.

But because I’ve been focusing on that side of things (since the beginning of the year, it seems), I haven’t been reading as much as usual, but I have been reading a bit, so here’s what I read in April and so far this month.

A Charlotte Mason Companion by Karen Andreola : I have quite literally been reading this book on and off for at least 8 months. But I finally buckled down and finished it. It was a reread, and it’s so chock full of great information that I feel like I need to start it over again. It’s a staple for Charlotte Mason philosophy homeschoolers, and is really fantastic.

The Continuous Atonement by Brad Wilcox: I read this book on Easter- and it was perfect timing and a very good book.

A Moveable Feast by Ernest  Hemingway: This was also a reread, and is simply brilliant. I adore Hemingway, I love his distilled, honest prose, his pursuit of truth and expression. His sentences are so deceptively simple, and he packs so much into so little.

Bossypants by Tiny Fey: This was awesome and hilarious. I already loved Tina Fey, but this book really solidified that, as it shows her as really goodhearted. Foul mouthed, but goodhearted. :) I literally laughed out loud in a number of parts, and thoroughly enjoyed it all.

So yeah, that’s what I’ve been up to. Oh, and I got my hair cut:

And I took the girls to their well checks today where we had a grand total of 5 shots and a TB test. Poor babies. There was a lot of screaming, and then a lot of bribing to make them feel better afterward. :) And we went to see Grandma for her birthday, so that helped the day be better.

What have you been up to?

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Emptying my head

I’ve got a lot rolling around in my head these days, but I’ve been struck by a cold and none of it’s coming out very coherently. So I present instead some random thoughts.

I found this post really interesting, and it put together really well some thoughts I’ve been trying to sort out about compassion. I feel like I’m getting a masters (or maybe just intense beginners) class on compassion lately.

This post is part of that class too. Read it, if just for the second paragraph.

This is my new favorite blog. She writes gorgeously and honestly.

These pictures inspire me.

These inspire me even more. (I LOVE the idea of pininterest, and love collecting pictures, but I have the feeling I’d just end up taking everyone else’s pictures.

I’ve been listening to this album nonstop this week: Lamb of God: a sacred work for choir, orchestra and soloists, it’s so amazingly gorgeous. I can’t recommend it highly enough in preparing for Easter.

Speaking of Easter, I am not the least bit prepared. I haven’t gotten out any of our Easter books, I don’t know that the Easter bunny has thought about baskets… I need to get in touch with that guy.

Do you want to see some stuff I’ve made recently?

These little guys were a quick make- and the girls love them. They’re supposed to have legs, but, well, they don’t.

I made the two little bear/bunnies for a baby shower gift- the dark brown and green for her new little boy, and the white and pink for his big sister- because you know she’d try to steal the other one. :) The Godzilla was just for fun, and is sitting on top of my desk, though Z wants it desperately. I expect it will end up in her room by the end of the week.

I have the problem that I just have too many things I want to make. This is my craft book shelf:

(And I realized that one book is missing.) I compiled a list, and out of these books, there are over 50 projects that I want to do. That’s a lot.

My next project is supposed to be this:

 

A quilt for Z. The fabric is even cut into strips to be further cut so I can start sewing:

But I found this fabric the other day:

and I am completely and utterly distracted. I’m envisioning a quilt with 12 inch “windows” from this fabric, surrounded by thin brown strips (to make the window frame), then basket weave squares (like in the skull quilt above) in these colors:

with a little of this thrown in for good measure.

Or maybe that on the back? I’m not sure yet.

But I do need to get to the skull quilt first, as Z is getting a new bed, and needs a bigger quilt to go with it. All of her current quilts are definitely toddler bed-ish size, and she, sadly is not.

I don’t think I have anything else to say. I’m going to go make the lasagna that we’re going to have for dinner. What are you up to today?

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At this moment

The girls are in bed for rest time. I’m doubting that naps will actually happen, but hopefully some rest will.

I really should be getting my writing done for the day, but I’m not.  Did you know I’m writing a 50,000 word novel this month? Why, you ask? Heaven knows. I get talked into some crazy things. Although, if you want to get technical about it, I may recall that in this case I was the one talking people into it… but let’s not get all detail oriented at this point. I’m up to 10,3000 ish words at the moment, which is ahead of where I need to be to finish on time- about a day ahead, which is making it hard for me to summon the will power to do that same days worth today instead of just sit back and coast. (I know, I know, I’ll do it. Sheesh.)

I’m really unmotivated today, I think I’m coming down with something. I just can’t summon up the energy to do anything. Although I did sort through all of the toy bins today and put everything back where it goes, as well as clean the kitchen and vacuum, so it’s not like I’m laying around eating bon bons. And I’m really not eating bon bons because I’m trying to stay away from sugar, the sole exception being hot chocolate because it’s dang cold out.

I’m kind of completely obsessed with the idea of making a quilt inspired by The Darjeeling Limited, one of my favorite movies ever. It’s set in India and is gorgeous, and the colors keep popping in my head and they need to go somewhere.  I spent a portion of this morning collecting pictures that had the colors and patterns I’ve been imagining, would you like to see?

If you click on that it will take you to a bigger version. I just love the aquas and the oranges and golds with the fuschias — so so pretty.

I have a bunch of projects to do, and I’m tired and don’t want to work on any of them.

I watched Live to Dance last night and highly enjoyed it- some really really good stuff. And even when it wasn’t fabulous, the “experts” were really nice about it, and it was pleasant to watch.  I’d link to some of the numbers, but they don’t seem to be up anywhere.

I think I’m going to go take a nap.

What’s going on with you at this moment? (Hopefully it’s more exciting than this!)

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At this moment

The girls are sitting at the table eating dinner. This is always an epic event and can take anywhere up to an hour. I just informed Z that she is not allowed to talk again until she finishes her dinner. I said it kindly though.

Tiny is singing a song that she is making up about her cousins getting baptized. Santa and monkeys have also made an appearance in the song. She has finished her food, so she can sing.

There are light up Cinderella dress up shoes next to my desk. Z told me today that she kept seeing a blue light by the dress up box last night, and apparently something was setting off these little shoes. So now they’re going to live in the closet so they don’t freak her out during the night.

There is a pan of homemade marshmallows in my kitchen. My beloved Valerie taught me how to make them today, but I don’t have the powdered sugar necessary to turn them out and cut them up, so they will sit there and taunt me until tomorrow. They’re kind of rude that way.

My knee hurts. I tripped and fell today, and while I didn’t skin it, I whacked it pretty hard. Ow.

I have new flannel sheets on my bed, just waiting for me to sleep on them. I’m excited. And they were only $19.99, which is a ton less than I was expecting, so I’m very pleased about that too.

B is out for the evening, so I’m going to attempt to make a stuffed giraffe (I may have lost my mind), and watch a movie.  But what movie? I always end up watching the same 4 or 5 movies over and over – Gosford Park, Being Julia, The Cat’s Meow, The Royal Tenenbaums… maybe I’ll watch The Darjeeling Limited again. Such a good movie.

I have a new Christmas banner!

I opted for a 6 ft. one this time instead of 9 like last time, and it fits perfectly on the wall. I love it. I have ridiculously cute fabric that I want to make a Christmas tree skirt with, but I’m not quite sure how to attempt it. Has anyone run across a pattern for one?

We’re listening to Pink Martini’s Joy To The World album, which is brilliant and you should click over and get it right now.  It’s got such variety and spunk, I love it. It incorporates music styles from all over the world, and has songs in at least 4 languages, but none of it feels gimmicky, and the whole album holds together really nicely.  I highly recommend it.

I also recommend the book I just finished, A Novel Bookstore by Laurence Cosse. As someone who loves (LOVES!) recommending things (have you noticed?), and who thrived in an environment where I could sell books I loved, this book so hit home. It’s the story of a couple who open a bookstore that only carries “good novels”- books that the couple and their consulting board of authors think speak to the soul and are worth recommending. Things take a strange turn as people take offense at the concept of the store, and things get mysterious very quickly. It’s a fantastic read, and has some brilliant passages.

Now the girls are reading Dora books. Well, Z is reading them, and Tiny is looking at pictures and pretending to ice skate. It cracks me up how I have to wrangle Z to read with me in the morning during lessons, but she’ll spend hours reading on her own. As long as she’s reading, I don’t care though. :)

What’s going on with you at this moment?

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Art project of the week

This week for 4 year old preschool we made art with “rain”. Since it wasn’t actually raining (and I hadn’t been planning on it raining), we used lots of different techniques to mimic rain. Here are two artsy-fartsy pictures of our supplies:

Powdered tempera paint in red, blue and yellow. Bleeding Art tissue paper (not “bleeding heart” tissue paper, which sounds delightfully emo. Wait, is that an oxymoron?), 8×11 and 9×12 canvases.  (We could have used regular art or construction paper, but I wanted the girls to be able to go crazy with the water. And you can get 3 8×11 canvases for approx. $4, so it was worth it – both for the lack of frustration, and the durability of the final project.) (Everything in this picture is from Michaels.)

$1 salt/pepper shakers filled with powdered tempera paint from above. Eye/medicine droppers. Spray misters. Spray bottles. (All from Target for $1 each)

Here’s what we did.

For the first project  we used misters to wet the canvas, and then laid pre-cut squares of  tissue paper onto it. (Note- it has to be the bleeding kind, or this won’t work.)  I was kind of hoping for lots of overlap with the tissue paper, but the girls were more interested in using the misters than putting paper down. And seeing as it’s the process that’s important, not the product, we let them do what they wanted. I’ll just experiment on my own with more tissue paper. :)

After the paper was down, they sprayed all of it with water (with some help from the grown-ups – the pressing action on the pumps was a little difficult for some of their little fingers!)

Then we took it out on the back porch and let it dry in the sun. Once it was all dried, the tissue paper came right off and left this. (Not a great picture, I know, but it was NOT cooperating with me.)

Here’s a close up of the effect.  Doesn’t it look like kanji? We decided that this could be a new way to tell fortunes. Crumple up some tissue paper, then “read” the impressions it leaves.


Next we took the salt shakers that were filled with powdered tempera paint and let the girls shake away. After they’d shaken to their hearts content (which wasn’t much to start out), they used the medicine droppers to drop single drops of water onto the paint. This was the effect:

Then they sprinkled the paint onto a different canvas and used the spray misters to activate the paint for a completely different effect. They also got WAY more into the sprinkling this time, so there was a lot more paint to work with.

The littles had a great time with this one, below is Tiny’s picture:

Last but not least, we put some tempera powder into the big spray bottles and let them spray the canvases. I let them use the bigger canvases for this one, because in my head the paint was going to be thicker, and therefore the effect of it being shot onto the canvas would be super dramatic.

Yeah, not so much. It was more of a water color effect. But it was still neat, and the girls had fun with it. Having the spray bottle nozzles tightened so that they let out a really targeted spray worked much better than having them more misty. I think next time we try this I’ll try adding a bit more powder to the water, to see if we can get a thicker paint without clogging the nozzle. I have the feeling it will be a tricky balance.

I’ve read that you can do the powdered tempera in actual rain, which would be pretty dang fun. We may have to do it next time it rains and see what happens.

One of the moms was planning to take these home and bust out the Sharpies, you could have some great inspiration come from using these as backgrounds to draw over. Maybe we’ll do that now…

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What we’ve been up to

It’s been a busy week!

Monday: Bounce-A-Rama!

Tuesday: The beach

Wednesday: Picking veggies and walking the “beam” at Papa’s

Today: Went to the pool, had cousins over to visit, and finished this for my lame best friend who is moving to stupid somewhere other than here. (It’s not her birthday, but I made one of these for my girls and knew she’d want one for her kids too. And now I like this one better than the other one I made. )


And, at some point during the week: Tiny impersonated a rock star

What’s going on with you?