calm

  We had a chance to get away and spend some time at a retreat in Minnesota. it was such a great time to relax. I don't know why blogger is being weird and typing this like a link but it won't let me type other wise.

I don't get this crazyness.

My new sewing space!

It works, and I can sew and sew here.  It is a high traffic area, being on the way from the upstairs bedrooms to the kitchen, so the layout is not great, and when I'm done EVERYTHING gets put away. I've been itching to sew and figured out a new way to do a denim quilt, that pile of squares is a part of it.  Starting this has reminded me of the denim crazy quilt I have in progress... I started in November 2006, and I only know that cause I embroidered my start date on my first block.   I should pull that back out again, since i have more scraps from cutting out all these squares.

I'm also starting to get into upcycling, and I have some jeans aprons in the works as well.

Pics of where I disappeared to for a couple weeks coming tomorrow!

err, later today after I sleep?

upcycling t-shirts

today I am making these upcycled re-useable grocery bags. yep, trying to be green.

First you get a shirt you aren't going to wear anymore... like this, that one on top there, and sew up the bottom, with it right side out. yes, right side out.

Next, you turn it inside out, and even out the bottom of it.  You are going to sew all the way across the bottom, without catching the seam you did on the outside.  This way, when you turn it back right side out, you have a finished looking seam showing, and its reinforced for your heavy groceries.


So turn it back so you're looking at the front, and line it up nice like you're going to fold it.  Lay it on a flat surface.  If you started with a tank top, you are probably done, but perhaps wishing it wasn't a ribbed tank top.

Go ahead and cut off the sleeves. I left the seam there for a little more stability, but do whatever you want here.  its easier to go thru one layer at a time if you want to keep the seam intact.  And use the scissors, a rotary cutter seems like too much work here.

Chop away at the neckline, but carefully.  The neck on this T was too small for groceries really, so I gave it one slice through the center of each layer.  I didn't like it for this one, but you might, so I'm showing you.

I went ahead and chopped the whole thing off, through both layers, and down to the lowest part of the front.  Much better!  This is a huge bag, and will hold a bunch. 

Watch out for stretchy t-shirts when you do this, the stretchy ones droop towards the floor pretty good when you put heavy stuff in there, but are awesome for bulky light stuff.

New Sewing Space!!!

I've been productive today!

I have found my new sewing space, and have actually had the chance to get back into using my machine again. So nice to finally be doing that again.

I have also re-listed all the items I have to sell in my Artfire account. Hopefully I will be able to be selling things, as the money from that will be going to pay for my crafting, as we have no money for that.

I do have pictures of my new space, but the usb card reader has walked away and I haven't been able to find it yet. So instead I give you me and my hubby in London! Proof that I actually went somewhere this summer!

I cannot tell you how wonderful it is to be sewing after a 2.5 month hiatus.  Sewing is my stress reliever, and I need it!

i'm home!

Hello blogland, I'm finally back. I missed you blog, posting and reading everyone's creative geniusness.

Before I left, I had to move out of the sewing room...someone lives there now, and I am auditioning smaller spaces to work in. If you have any tips on working in a smaller space, let me know.

For now I'm trying to catch up on all the blogs I've been missing.

I'ts good to be home.

so long for now... for reals this time

Well its been too long hasn't it?

too bad, its gonna get longer. (tehe)

I quit my job (WOO HOO!!!!!!) and we're going to Europe. crazy.

I will definitly not be posting here until at least mid august.

Don't cry, it'll be okay, i promise....

we leave in 2 days, i have to pack for the summer and move out of my glorious sewing room, good thing i'll be distracted for a couple months.

have a good summer, and check my other blog to see where i might be.

I love you all, my wonderful bloggy friends, i cannot wait to read up on what all of you have done this summer!

Oh, what a weekend!

It started before the weekend.

My sewing machine broke around noon...the needle started sewing thru the plastic bobbin case. What was merely a "was that hole already there?" turned into " no no no this is not happening!"

My lovely Brother, ate its own bobbin workings.

Not only that, it chose to do so on the day before the craft fair. When I had 12 Jeans aprons to finish. It should have taken about 3 hours.

So, I rummage thru MIL's closet, grab her trusty Kenmore, and can't get the frakkin bobbin thread to work, because who knows how to adjust the tension on the bobbin? not me. An hour of scrap sewing, and I ditch that for a drive to my mom's house, to pick up her brother machine.

It took 3 hours of my life before I finished adding a binding by machine, to the edge of a very short jeans apron. I fought the whole way, coaxing the thread, encouraging the machine, re threading about 100 times. And I finished the apron. However, what should have taken 30 minutes took me 3 hours, so, I was done. Called the craft show, and said I can't come (I had a very full shoe box worth of inventory, but not nearly enough to pull off a table, let alone a booth!).

So, I am now mopey, I have no working machines... and hubby takes me out to dinner, and we saw wolverine, it was fun, but no first craft show.

Saturday rolls around, and yes, I slept in when I should have been having a booth and selling my stuff! I start looking to see if there is a way to fix my machine, and kind of hopefully looking for a new machine, cause my hubby said to look. I started by looking at janome, cause this time around we are getting something solid, a work horse, something I can sew on for hours and hours and hours.

I must say, I am quite lost when there's no sewing machine to be had. Its what I do with my life. Not having a sewing machine meant I just had a messy room, not various projects in the works. (which is a much better way to describe the piles of crap I have all over the place).

Looked at Janome, Bernina, And Husqvarna Viking; did you know bernina and husqvarna buy their machines from Janome? mmm hmm, I originally loved the threadbanger 12, for its no frills, utility-ness, and metal frame, and the price was great at 300. I then loved a Bernina Activa, but that was too expensive, if I need to make payments or it costs more than my first car, its too much. I also loved the janome 6600, with 2 sets of letters and #'s to embroider, umm, but again, more than my first car.

I drooled, and longed, and we went to guitar center to look at a cajon; its a box, that is a drum. My hubby wants one (he is a drummer) and they are really cool. However, that brings us up to 2 things that will cost about 300, and he would bring the cajon with us on our missions trip, so I am all for the cajon. we didn't get it cause they don't have what he wants, but its cool.

So on Sunday, we get home from church and he says, I want you to have this machine, can we buy it today? umm, yea. yea we can buy it today, give me your phone so I can call the dealers and find one in stock. So, the 10 dealers closest to our house don't even carry the thing because its so basic, the only have the mucho more expensive ones. We had to drive almost an hour to find the one store that carries them and has one in stock. GAH! but we bought it, and they matched the prices I was seeing online too.

oh my gosh, if you ever make it this far in my post, kudos to you. This thing sews like butter. Like Butter! oh its sooo nice. The feet from my brother machine are usable on this one, so walking foot is still good. I can drop the feed dogs for if I ever really do get around to free motion quilting. the throat space is much bigger, but I will need to measure, they don't advertise that fact.

when we got home I got to work on a disc golf bag for my wonderful hubby who bought me a new sewing machine. He designed this bag, and it looks really great. It was canvas, and this machine did not even flinch at 12! layers of canvas!!! it sews so nicely, is quiet, doesn't shake, did some lovely nice top stitching for me, so yes, I think I am in love.

so far so good. I like my new threadbanger 12.

Help!!!! Or a Great opportunity for Crafters

If anyone is in the Orange County Area of CA, would you like to share a booth at a good sized craft fair with me? It is this Saturday, May 2. I have already paid for a 9'x6' booth, but with all the crazy in my life I'm barely going to pull off a long table of stuff.

Email me, and I'll give you all the info.

Hopefully someone can take advantage of my lack of products!

Oh, its at Piecemakers in Costa Mesa, just down the street from Orange Coast College.

I'll be gone for a while....

Its getting to be crunch time for me. Since we are going to europe this summer, applying for a fulltime ministry position in Kansas City, having a huge garage sale, my first craft show, and my husbands graduation in may, I am now always busy.

I may not have time to post here very much before we leave, May 28. After that i definitly will be gone until mid august, at which time there will be traveling pictures galore for you to see.

I might post updates on my other blog, but thats ify at best.

Want to know what needs to get done in the next 5 weeks while I'm still working fulltime?

• Gigantic garage sale april 25, make signs, organise, sell stuff
• my first craft show may 2, make way more stuff, figure out how to make my space all cute, make business cards, price things, make way more stuff,
  
• plan husband's graduation party, probably may ?teenth a saturday. i will need to figure that out, invite people, do food(i'm cooking, so however many people come there will be way too much. Its a gift and a curse, like when once in a blue moon i make dinner for me and hubby, and we eat something not so good for a week. I grew up in a large fam, and it never looks like enough food) make sure my mil doesn't freak out about it, i'm sure theres more.
• plan road trip and book hotel rooms. our missions trip training is in chicago, were from socal, were need to check out a ministry in kansas city on the way there, and leave our car with a friend in minneapolis. It'll be our one year anniversary too. good times, tons of driving. If you are in the kansas city area and want to meet up, i'll be there for 2 days. just not sure which 2 quite yet. theres sooooo much driving, and i need to nail this down so i can book the cheapest hotels i can find.
• get ready to go to europe. crazy. i need to mail in my passport today. i should go do that.
  

Life is busy!! I know i will keep up on blogs til i leave, but I might not post again.

Look for me in august!!

new listings on artifre

check out my artfire store, i just uploaded a whole bunch of these button earrings!!
DeathByDenim.Artfire.com

some one elses give away, and its my 100th post

go check out coffeetimestitches, she is having a cute giveaway for her 400th post.

maybe i should have another give away for my 100th?

what would you like me to give away?

And the winner is...

first i would like to thank those of you who came to visit and play along with the giveaway.

I had fun seeing the comments, and i think i should have explained what i meant by "follower". I had some comments, saying they followed me, but they did not show up in my "list of followers" widget. I have no way of telling who "subscribes" to my blog via reader or bloglines or whatever, i can only see who "follows" my blog, via google friend connect thingy. If you "follow" and your pic shows up in the widget, you got credit for following me. If you subscribe, and called yourself a follower, I am so glad you read my blog, but you did not get points for following.

ok?

some of you got lots of points. Barb, for example, had the most, so thank you thank you for joining artfire and mentioning me.

You can still join artfire for less than the normal rate, but now its $12 a month instead of $7. which is still less than the "normal" unlimited account rate of $20 per month. Click the link on my side bar to find out more.

I have lots of things to list tomorrow and Friday. I have been playing with earrings after i saw some really cool ones at a wedding and said the winner is lili11, and i could totally make those.

so, things to list and things to mail. Friday will be busy. I also want to get to work on my treadle. I have an old toothbrush for the cast iron nooks and crannies, some wd40 for cleaning properties, and some singer sewing machine oil, umm, for the oiling part. and some scrubbers, and screwdrivers for getting pieces off and back on. And my treadle belt is in the mail! I'm hopping to sew on it this weekend. So fun.

Did you the miss the winner?

It's in there, look again

I had to do something fun today.

last chance giveaway

there are only a few more hours to enter into the giveaway. All of my followers are counted for 1 entry, but if you posted on your blog about the giveaway, let me know, I'm not checking followers blogs unless theres a comment.

give away here

Don't miss it!

giveaway ends soon!

dont forget tomorrow is the last day to sign up for my giveaway, don't miss out.

I own a freaking treadle!

woke up this morning, looked on craigs list, and found this for $60. so i ran out the house, got some cash, and went to find it, and it was still available!!!! it has a bunch of pressure foot attachments, including a ruffler foot. I love it, everything moves so smoothly, and it even had the original manual. which is good cause i have no clue how to use it. its only missing the belt to turn the needle. it has a couple extra bobbins too, and some really old spools. i love it. the date on the manual say 1912.

Found a Great Give away

if you go over to sew-fantastic you will find a wonderful giveaway from Jane.

you should go.

you should also sign your self up for my give away, a new prize will added to the list tomorrow.

ArtFire Give Away

So, by now you should all know that I took the plunge, and opened an Artfire store. There's not much there yet, but I'm working on it. I have also mentioned a Give Away in connection to my Artfire store. Sounds good so far right?

What you can win:

• A $25 gift card to Pottery Barn
• A reversible slouchy purse like this one, same colors, but not used.

I will also be adding more fun things as we go on.

To enter, do any or all of the following, each separate thing gets you another entry.

• Leave a comment on this post
• Be or Become a follower, if you already follow my blog, you're already entered
• Check out my artfire store, and leave a comment here telling me what your favorite item (of mine) is.
• Post about this Give away on your blog
• Link back to this Post on your blog
• Link to my artfire store on your blog. http://deathbydenim.artfire.com/
  

So, there are 6 entries up for grabs, but...

If you join artfire, and say I sent you, you will earn 10 Super Bonus Entries!!!

Tada!!! 16 entries!! You must be so excited by this point, you probably can't stand it. I know, its so great, I wish I could enter too.

You have 1 week, until midnight Pacific-time, on Tuesday March 31. The winner will be announced some time on Wednesday April 1.

I will be checking, and keeping track of who has which entries, but feel free to comment telling all you have done. Just don't comment anonymously, make sure I can email you to tell you that you've won.

On your mark, get set, GO!

new flimsy, project improv style

pretend its not sideways, i did this on sunday, it was fun, just a bunch of 2.5 strips all random. i'm not sure if its done or if i will add to it, its a smallish baby blanket size.

next post will be a give away, so stay tuned

m.i.a.

umm, hello, my sew craft blogroll went missing.

lame.

so sorry to all my lovely sew craft blog group 2 buddies, I will fix this asap.

i really cannot remember deleting this, or have any idea why i would.... its just gone.

so... look forward to that returning, as well as a general clean up of that side bar.

update: its fixed, and back on my sidebar looking a little nicer than before. yay!

whats new with me

first, i made a dress, and wore it public, and i like the dress but not my choice of color. when you see it you'll know why. I feel like i look like a frumpy 30's 40's housewife, but not the sexy kind. Like I should be wearing sensible shoes and rationing my food card.

I also made a new purse, but did not manage to follow Lola's mystery, cause i used that fabric for this purse, since i wanted it to use the next day. again, no pics, but i used the fabric i posted in a previous post.

I officially have things listed in my artfire store, all 3 of them, and there is a give away in the works, i'm building up something fantastic for it.

stay tuned

I have a store

I took the plunge, and opened an artfire store. The only problem is that I have nothing to sell right now. I opted for Artfire instead of etsy because i tried etsy, but they would not let me change my email, and i had some horrible emails from support when i tried to close/rename/new email my account, basically they said get a new email address, and open a new account. And then I heard of ArtFire, which has a promo going to sign up for the premium/unlimited account for $7 a month for life. They have a free basic account, but its limited items/pics, so I went for the unlimited. They have no listing fees, and you can list as much as you like, with up to 10 pics per item (i think 10 is the right #). It looks good, Etsy-like but more of a flat-rate Etsy.

so my artfire is deathbydenim.artfire.com

but there's nothing there yet. once there is, I will have a link on my side bar, and probably a traffic generating give away of some sort.

also, they have a limited number of $ 7 accounts left, its less that 500 out of 5,000, so check it out soon if you're interested,

say you heard from me, first 10 people will be entered into a special drawing from me. go to http://www.artfire.com/modules.php?name=sevenforlife&afuid=18987

purse fabric

here it is, purse fabric for Lola's mystery. I'm on pins and needles waiting for my mystery purse instructions. the brown under the blue will also be for a dress I'm starting today. i hope the dress turns out ok, and looks nice on me. i will have pics of that when its finished.

Its been too long

its been too long since I've posted, and much too long since I've posted something I've made. so sad.

I am so excited to announce I bought a 1/4 foot for my machine for $5. not $25 like the sewing machine store was asking. Joann's had a whole section of $5 or less pressure feet for low shank machines, and i think i will go pick up some more even tho i don't know what i would use it for. There was a ruffler thing, and a Teflon foot, and something with a roller on it. I can't pass up a deal like that. And when I opened it was metal, not plastic; i had been concerned because it was sooo light, but its metal, and i bought a back up. Needless to say, all my seams have been more 1/4 inch before this, that thing is tiny. I also have to make sure my needle is in the middle not the left, or i will break the needle. I can see this happening.

I have my fabric picked out for Lola's mystery purse along, its yummy. And I was brave and got magnetic clasp thingy to close the purse with, so hopefully i don't kill it.

My goal is to post pics tomorrow, of things made, and something i received for a swap.

I can't believe its been more than a week since I've posted.

so...

so, today at work(btw, i'm still at work) my boss called an impromptu staff meeting about department restructuring(no layoffs) just new start times all around. she also managed to sneak in that my hours would be cut, but no one else's.

mmm hmmm.

i was answering phones during this meeting, so i couldn't look at her like she was talking crazy.

after a private meeting with her i found i would be working later start times(11am or noon instead of 10am), as well as fewer hours(60 instead of 80 per pay period of 2 weeks).

so anyone looking to hire a great preschool teacher/nanny/babysitter/cake-decorator/lesson-planner/amateur-quilter/amateur-photographer/phone-dispatcher in the Orange County CA area, shoot me an email, its on on my profile.

I'm looking for work, people.

a give away, from Japan

don't go here, to the quilted pig.
and don't enter yourself in her giveaway of yummy japanese fabrics.
dont.
because i want to win.
so don't go.

ok?

a wonky star, and some guts

so, my first wonky star for bushfire survivors. i used my 3.5 crumb squares in the middle. i quite like how this is looking so i may need to make some for me.

and because i want to show these pics:

i fixed Paige's/my mom's machine to the best of my abilities(and it purrs like a fat lazy kitten), and the inside of a sewing machine is pretty cool. i pretty much just opened it up and lubed up the part that looked like they'd stick or make noise. the only thing i wish i hadn't done was oil the shaft that moves the needle up and down, it took quite alot of sewing thru scraps to get rid of the extra oil.

there are some sewing machine guts below, this is not for the faint of heart.

look away!

its on its side like a beached whale....this is the right side if you were looking at it head on.
all the parts that make the needle go. and i figured out what the tension knob actually moves. and see that light bulb in the middle? i had no idea it ever existed, and whenever i used this machine there was no light....well, the light still works, and know we know its there
another angle on the needle side

top view, looking from behind. the yellowy white cylinder in the middle is the stitches! turn the knobby on the front, and it clicks thru the different templates. they yellow goo is the consistency of petroleum jelly(Vaseline) it doesn't smell either, its goops.

to get the top off i had to put a drop of oil on the screws holding it in...they wouldn't budge at all

we saved $99 buck by me oiling this thing up, i like it.

green quilting

I've decided to try this out. i should have time...its not til April. i will be using my new Eco friendly batting, and stash fabrics (which i have been good about not adding to, BTW).

for the record, i bought the green batting because it was about 85% off on clearance. not necessarily because of its greenness. frugal is green too right? but i seriously need to stop joining things, i have too much to make for now.

i am really hoping my Flynn frame shows up tomorrow or Saturday. I am going to piece together my crumb blocks into a crib size, to play with my new frame and i want it to come. crumb blocks should be green too. it means I'm not wasting all those bits of fabric.

sewing progress, post 2 today

on the top we have some crumbs that are getting pretty big by now, with more in progress. i haven't made much of a dent in the scrap/string bins either.

i did trim a bunch down to 6.5 inches wide, and made this scarf on friday. its really simple, 6.5 inch wide crumbs, sewn together to get long enough for one 6.5 inch cut from some fleece. sew right sides together, turn inside out, and topstitch.

tomorrow will be a big sewing day just for me, and on saturday Paige is coming over, and she will finish her robe, and take home her sewing machine. also on saturday, Paige will be filling out an application to go with Royal Servants on the Euroquest team(with me!). i might be more excited about this than she is.

too much batting...or not

i spent $42 dollars

i came home with

4 crib size battings

4 twin size battings

and 2 queen size battings.

there was no king size or id have that too. i think im set for quite a while, don't you?

if you see me at joanns again today, i might have more batting in my cart.

because i spent my allowance(cash).....not my birthday money(bank)

maybe i can go before work

Fabric and Notion requirements:
1 yard of the Main fabric
1 yard of Accent fabric (will also be the lining)
2 yards of heavy fusible interfacing
Matching Thread
1 magnetic snap
*optional* 4 D-rings for straps.
Sewing Machine
Rotary Cutter and Mat**

i actually need

2 yards of the fusible

magnetic strap if i am so brave

4 D rings

new cutting mat?

i'm going to Joanns tonight. i have $30. i want to pick up some Eco batting on clearance, and maybe a new cutting mat. mine is getting these threads that are pulling up, despite my flipping and rotating to not keep cutting in the same spot. i will not buy fabric. i will resist.

Lola, i love your alfred pic. it is awesome, i cannot wait for this purse along to start

trying something new

I'm trying out AdSense. i may not like it tho, because its very spacious. anyways, click on an add, and i may get some spare change from it. I am pretty sure these ads won't stay too long, but a trial run is going to happen, possibly for a few weeks.

i am only trying this in a effort to scrimp and save as much as possible for our missions trip to Europe this summer, for more info on that, go here.

books books books

Did you know the average American has only read 6 of these books?

Here's the challenge -
Bold the books you have already read
Italicize the books you intend to read
Notes in parentheses next to note-worthy titles.

1) Pride and Prejudice by Jane Austen
2) The Lord of the Rings by J. R. R. Tolkien
3) Jane Eyre by Charlotte Bronte
4) Harry Potter series by J. K. Rowling
5) To Kill a Mockingbird by Harper Lee
6) The Bible
7) Wuthering Heights by Emily Bronte
8 ) Nineteen Eighty Four by George Orwell
9) His Dark Materials by Philip Pullman
10) Great Expectations by Charles Dickens
11) Little Women by Louisa May Alcott
12) Tess of the D'Urbervilles by Thomas Hardy
13) Catch 22 by Joseph Heller
14) Complete Works of Shakespeare
15) Rebecca by Daphne Du Maurier
16) The Hobbit by J. R. R. Tolkien
17) Birdsong by Sebastian Faulks
18 ) Catcher in the Rye by JD Salinger(one of my favorites)
19) The Time Traveler's Wife by Audrey Niffenegger
20) Middlemarch by George Eliot
21) Gone With The Wind by Margaret Mitchell
22) The Great Gatsby by F. Scott Fitzgerald
23) Bleak House by Charles Dickens
24) War and Peace by Leo Tolstoy
25) The Hitchhiker's Guide to the Galaxy by Douglas Adams
26) Brideshead Revisited by Evelyn Waugh
27) Crime and Punishment by Fyodor Dostoyevsky
28 ) Grapes of Wrath by John Steinbeck
29) Alice in Wonderland by Lewis Carroll
30) The Wind in the Willows by Kenneth Grahame
31) Anna Karenina by Leo Tolstoy
32) David Copperfield by Charles Dickens
33) Chronicles of Narnia by CS Lewis
34) Emma by Jane Austen
35) Persuasion by Jane Austen
36) The Lion, The Witch and The Wardrobe by CS Lewis
37) The Kite Runner by Khaled Hosseini
38 ) Captain Corelli's Mandolin by Louis De Bernieres
39) Memories of a Geisha by Arthur Golden
40) Winnie the Pooh by AA Milne
41) Animal Farm by George Orwell
42) The Da Vinci Code by Dan Brown
43) One Hundred Years of Solitude, Gabriel Garcia Marquez
44) A Prayer for Owen Meaney by John Irving
45) The Woman in White by Wilkie Collins
46) Anne of Green Gables by LM Montgomery
47) Far From The Madding Crowd by Thomas Hardy
48 ) The Handmaid's Tale by Margaret Atwood
49) Lord of the Flies by William Golding
50) Atonement by Ian McEwan
51) Life of Pi by Yann Martel
52) Dune by Frank Herbert
53) Cold Comfort Farm by Stella Gibbons
54) Sense and Sensibility by Jane Austen
55) A Suitable Boy by Vikram Seth
56) The Shadow of the Wind by Carlos Ruiz Zafon
57) A Tale Of Two Cities by Charles Dickens
58 ) Brave New World by Aldous Huxley
59) The Curious Incident of the Dog in the Night-time by Mark Haddon
60) Love In The Time Of Cholera by Gabriel Garcia Marquez
61) Of Mice and Men by John Steinbeck
62) Lolita by Vladimir Nabokov
63) The Secret History by Donna Tartt
64) The Lovely Bones by Alice Sebold
65) Count of Monte Cristo by Alexandre Dumas
66) On The Road by Jack Kerouac
67) Jude the Obscure by Thomas Hardy
68 ) Bridget Jones's Diary by Helen Fielding
69) Midnight's Children by Salman Rushdie
70) Moby Dick by Herman Melville
71) Oliver Twist by Charles Dickens
72) Dracula by Bram Stoker
73) The Secret Garden by Frances Hodgson Burnett
74) Notes From A Small Island by Bill Bryson
75) Ulysses by James Joyce
76) The Bell Jar by Sylvia Plath
77) Swallows and Amazons by Arthur Ransome
78 ) Germinal by Emile Zola
79) Vanity Fair by William Makepeace Thackeray
80) Possession by AS Byatt
81) A Christmas Carol by Charles Dickens
82) Cloud Atlas by David Mitchell
83) The Color Purple by Alice Walker
84) The Remains of the Day by Kazuo Ishiguro
85) Madame Bovary by Gustave Flaubert
86) A Fine Balance by Rohinton Mistry
87) Charlotte's Web by EB White
88 ) The Five People You Meet In Heaven by Mitch Albom
89) Adventures of Sherlock Holmes by Sir Arthur Conan Doyle
90) The Faraway Tree Collection by Enid Blyton
91) Heart of Darkness by Joseph Conrad
92) The Little Prince by Antoine De Saint-Exupery
93) The Wasp Factory by Iain Banks
94) Watership Down by Richard Adams
95) A Confederacy of Dunces by John Kennedy Toole
96) A Town Like Alice by Nevil Shute
97) The Three Musketeers - Alexandre Dumas
98 ) Hamlet by William Shakespeare
99) Charlie and the Chocolate Factory by Roald Dahl
100) Les Miserables by Victor Hugo

some of my favorite books i didn't find on the list
A Tree Grows in Brooklyn by Betty Smith
Night by Elie Weisel

purse sew along

i joined lola again's mystery purse sew along. starts in mid march. have you seen her purses? they're super cute. i'm excited.

update: i found a flynn frame from allbrands, the same frame i would get if i bought it from John flynn's website, for $69 with free shipping, instead of 130 +15 for shipping. i'm buying it tonight when i get off work. and i will have 30!!!! bucks for fabric, or thread, or a new rotary cutting mat, or some replacement blades for my rotary cutter, or books, or the kaleidoscope ruler i want (or can i borrow yours for a little while?) or, or, or, maybe some clearance clothes shopping, or batting, i probably need some batting. Or i could be patient, and see if i get anything else for my birthday this Saturday with my fam. i don't think i will last. those joanns coupons are burning a hole in my purse, and i know they have some eco friendly batting on clearance i might want to try out... with my new frame!!!!

i want one one

i know i dont have the space to make anything big, but i want one. i have resolved myself to not owning an actual long/mid/short arm and frame, anytime in the remotely near future, but i have wanted this since i decided hand quilting sucks (for me, i am mucho impatient) way back in, say, august or september 08. (i know, torture)

i thought i would want a grace frame for hand quilting, those are much less costly, but my meager attempts at hand quilting in a hoop were super lame and i wanted to cry. I do not have the patience at this time in my life. Also, i am a great starter, and a horrible finisher, so visions of quilts piled up and never actually finished were springing into my brain. And so i decided i want a long arm, used.

umm, still too much.

so yesterday, when my mother in law gave me a birthday check, she mentioned i might want to get one of the things on my christmas wish list. i believe they were a good iron>$7, a 1/4 inch quilting foot, and the john flynn quilt frame.
i got the iron for xmas, it hasn't died on me yet, so i will be putting that $100 towards the $130ish cost of the flynn frame. and PVC pipes are also fairly cheap, so the larger frame sizes will be a possibility in the future.

I have also been searching for anything flynn frame blog related while at work(and can only read blogspot blogs), since i am now again lusting over this piece of equipment which will dramatically improve the quality of my life. right?

at least until i find that long arm sitting on the curb waiting for me to get it.

My friends new blog

I found this one on face book, my friends from church are starting a photography business. They have a bunch of cute pics, and I'm on their header!(i'm the one in the wedding dress!) Doug took a bunch of wonderful pics at my wedding, and some of them are on their blog. Including the best pic ever of my hat. i saw those and drooled, then had to go look at my wedding pics again. Go check them out, and if your in the Los Angeles/ orange county ca area use them for your photographers. they really do great pics.
ddphotodesign.blogspot.com

bucket list meme, or i'm bored at work

Basic instructions - bold what you've done, my notes are in green
1. Started your own blog
2. Slept under the stars
3. Played in a band (I played flute in 6th grade. Never practiced but ended up with a B)
4. Visited Hawaii
5. Watched a meteor shower
6. Given more than you can afford to charity
7. Been to Disneyland
8. Climbed a mountain
9. Held a praying mantis
10. Sang a solo
11. Bungee jumped oh my no. not ever. scared of heights
12. Visited Paris
13. Watched a lightning storm at sea
14. Taught yourself an art from scratch I'm claiming quilting on this one.
15. Adopted a child
16. Had food poisoning
17. Walked to the top of the Statue of Liberty
18. Grown your own vegetables
19. Seen the Mona Lisa in France
20. Slept on an overnight train twice when I was in China, so crowded but so much fun
21. Had a pillow fight
22. Hitch hiked
23. Taken a sick day when you’re not ill
24. Built a snow fort
25. Held a lamb
26. Gone skinny dipping
27. Run a Marathon
28. Ridden in a gondola in Venice I'm going there this summer, I've wanted to go forever.
29. Seen a total eclipse (sun and moon!)
30. Watched a sunrise or sunset
31. Hit a home run
32. Been on a cruise
33. Seen Niagara Falls in person
34. Visited the birthplace of your ancestors
35. Seen an Amish community
36. Taught yourself a new language
37. Had enough money to be truly satisfied I think we're there right now.
38. Seen the Leaning Tower of Pisa in person
39. Gone rock climbing
40. Seen Michelangelo’s David (at Caesar's Palace)
41. Sung karaoke
42. Seen Old Faithful geyser erupt
43. Bought a stranger a meal at a restaurant, I'm counting drive thru's when we paid for the car behind us
44. Visited Africa
45. Walked on a beach by moonlight
46. Been transported in an ambulance
47. Had your portrait painted
48. Gone deep sea fishing
49. Seen the Sistine Chapel in person
50. Been to the top of the Eiffel Tower in Paris hopefully this summer, they have an elevator right?
51. Gone scuba diving or snorkeling
52. Kissed in the rain
53. Played in the mud
54. Gone to a drive-in theater
55. Been in a movie
56. Visited the Great Wall of China
57. Started a business
58. Taken a martial arts class
59. Visited Russia
60. Served at a soup kitchen
61. Sold Girl Scout Cookies
62. Gone whale watching
63. Got flowers for no reason
64. Donated blood, platelets or plasma, not for this girl who cries whenever a needle is coming towards her. God bless all of you who donate, its beyond me.
65. Gone sky diving
66. Visited a Nazi Concentration Camp I will this summer. The Holocaust is one of my favorite things to study and read about. I've always wanted to go see what it was really like. As horrible as it was, I want to see what people are capable of, both the horror and surviving. I always feel so blessed to live where I do with the freedoms that we have in America. When I was about 10 we went to see a holocaust survivor speak, I want to say it was Corrie ten Boom, but it probably wasn't. I'll have to check.
67. Bounced a check
68. Flown in a helicopter
69. Saved a favorite childhood toy
70. Visited the Lincoln Memorial
71. Eaten Caviar squeaky in my teeth and gross
72. Pieced a quilt
73. Stood in Times Square
74. Toured the Everglades
75. Been fired from a job
76. Seen the Changing of the Guards in London
77. Broken a bone never, but I did burn my arm really bad when I was 4. I couldn't have candles lit on my birthday cake til I was 12. And I told myself I was too old to be scared anymore. I still am scared though, fire scares the crap out of me, and I'm super careful when I cook
78. Been on a speeding motorcycle
79. Seen the Grand Canyon in person
80. Published a book
81. Visited the Vatican I might get to this summer!
82. Bought a brand new car
83. Walked in Jerusalem
84. Had your picture in the newspaper, we heard there was a dead whale being buried at a local beach, so my mom packed us all up to go see it. i guess the dead whales that wash ashore in California are buried all up and down the coast. It smelled so bad.
85. Read the entire Bible
86. Visited the White House
87. Killed and prepared an animal for eating
88. Had chickenpox
89. Saved someone’s life
90. Sat on a jury
91. Met someone famous I met one of the girls on charmed, Alisa Milano, and some basket ball guy, both on the same night, out with people from my youth group, I had no idea who they were
92. Joined a book club
93. Lost a loved one
94. Had a baby no but I want one
95. Seen the Alamo in person
96. Swam in the Great Salt Lake
97. Been involved in a law suit
98. Owned a cell phone
99. Been stung by a bee
100. Read an entire book in one day, all the time, its what I do at work when I'm not reading blogs, today its That Hideous Strength, by C. S. Lewis, (I don't work much, just wait for the phone to ring mostly)

A finished quilt, my first one

i know it doesn't look like it, but its mostly square. i sewed the binding by machine, it just wasn't going to get hand sewn by friday, when i work all week. the label is fabric from the scrap bin, and its machine sewn under the binding, but i hand sewed the other 2 sides. i like it alot, and i'm glad to be done.

i also put it in the wash to get all crinkly and make sure all my stitching stays.

My first machine

this is the machine i learned to sew on, it may have been more fun if sometime in the last 25 years it had ever been delinted, or oiled, or taken in for a tune up. It is a solid machine, made of metal, and weighs 100lbs. My mom got it for their engagement or wedding, and the last thing she used it for was dresses for my sister and me when i was 3. 1 for each of us. then when i started messing around with it she would have me hem stuff for her once in a while.

Before sewing yesterday, paige and i headed over to the sewing machine repair place to check it out and see how much a tune up is. $100. which doesn't seem too bad, but we could buy a new machine for that much. its tempting. Although the sales man wanted us to buy a $200 machine from him, which was normally 500, on sale for valentines day, and oh ya, without seeing our machine he said its basically a piece of crap. can we say commissioned sales person? good thing we had no money.

I asked about used machines, (he said we didn't want those) but they had a few good one for $100. like a janome(something very basic, it didn't have very many stitches), but it looked like a good one.

i had fun looking at the long arms they had set up, I'm pretty sure i was drooling, so its a good thing we had absolutely no money.
i looked for a 1/4 inch foot, and they wanted to sell me a new machine. Although this saleslady stopped pushing when i said mine is just fine and does what i need it too. no more pushing. it was nice. and she got me on the email list when more big sales happen. i'm pretty sure this store is out of my league, unless they get in a used long arm frame, and i manage to convince them i really do want the old crappy one instead of the newer better one.

i liked it, it was fun. and then we headed over to target to look at their sewing machines. they carry brothers, which always have good reviews even on the lowest priced models, so she knows her options in the same price range as fixing the beast.

that poor machine. i think it cries every time someone attempts to use it. it sounds like it is. basically we decided to leave the machine with me, and will take the case off, and delint and lube where i can, hopefully it improves it, and allows Paige to sew at her house. Cause its basically hers now.

Also, my mom couldn't understand why i would want a new one when i could just have hers. umm, because my husband(then boyfriend) was going to let me pick out the machine of my dreams(within reason) for christmas one year. my own machine and i got to pick and brand new with no problems yet? yep, i got the new one.

Sewing with Paige

First of all, the girl could not have picked an easier pattern. I am not so good with making the patterns work right(i don't follow directions well or i just cant figure out what its trying to tell me) and Paige picked out a robe pattern(simplicity 3575) that was soooo easy. i was worried about the sleeves but the way they told you to make it was so easy. its a good pattern for those afraid of patterns, or beginners. she's not finished tho, so we will sew some more in a week or two.

success...pictures

a whole bunch of 3.5 crumbs, and a 12.5 block for project improv. i had fun.
i also successfully went to the bank, without going to the fabric store. i did call to see if they had a kaleidoscope ruler, but no luck, so no trip. if anyone want to loan me their kaleidoscope ruler, that'd be cool. i'll probly buy it on ebay eventually

early am beach pics

woke up at 6 and rode my bike to the beach,
these are the beach bootcamp crazy people, who ran 3 mile from the pier to the santa ana river, to lay in the sand and do push ups in the early early morning.


i want to put more, but they wont all fit, so here is a link to my picasa pics for more beachy fun.