Tuesday, May 30, 2006

i'm back....tack 3

First of all I want to thank my handful of readers who let me know they were there in a less than cheery time for me. It really meant so much to me! So, thanks! *blush, blush*

Now, back to business. I don't think I've mentioned it before but I'm participa
ting in back tack III. My partner is Whitney from whittycism, I created for her and she'll be creating for me. As you all know there were some strict guidelines to follow and I did. The only thing I didn't feel like doing was any of the patterns they suggested, so I did my own. It's a mixed media type of softie, I used an iron on transfer for the image and the embroidered it and sewed it together by hand, of course, because I still don't know how to use a sewing machine. I'm pretty sure my back tack partner doesn't check up on my blog but just in case, WHITNEY PLEASE LOOK AWAY NOW!!!!

Here's the front of my softie. Is pushi-pushi reworked with a body instead of just a floating head. I tried to make her look like a Fruit which I hope comes across with a limited color palette. The thread I used for the embroidery looked very beautiful on the spool because it was so shiny and thick but it was a beast to work with! It's made of rayon, and could only use very short pieces at a time because it would start to deteriorate and fuzz... obviously is not intended for the use I gave it but I think it looks o.k. It is my very first softie. I made a gazillion mock ups and trial versions and it's still full of imperfections but I'm o.k. with it. I really hope Whitney likes her.




Here's the back.



Here's what will go in the package with her. I don't know much about pushi-pushi, except that she is Japanese, I'm pretty sure she is Tino's PR person on account of Tino being famous in Japan. Other than that all I know is that she's a fashion maven and a picky eater, that's why she's brought her food along.




These are the photos I submitted for the back tack lineup and they've been killing me because they are absolutely horrible! They have this blue cast all over because I took them outside...grrrr... but they've been sent, so I have to let go, right? ...just breath and let go.



Friday, May 19, 2006

lacan follows me to blogland

All I wanted was to have a crafty blog. Truth is I am not a prolific knitter, crafter or idea producer. I sporadically get things done and even more sporadically come up with ideas worthy of being deemed "cool" or "cute". What I do a lot of is feel bad about myself for not doing enough (fill in the blanks): work around the house, craft projects, reading books about parenting, spending quality time with Tino etc. I am also a big mess and I'm not only talking about my surroundings (I will spare you a visual) but there are toys everywhere, jackets piled up high on chairs, Target bags half full with stuff that we purchased days and days ago. I am also a mess inside my head and for this I will spare you a mental picture. And then there's the move, the big impending move. I am a ball of emotions about that, I'm stressed, I'm happy, I'm scared to death, I'm excited. And the list of things that need to get done, the packing, the throwing away, the storing and the money that will have to be spent to get it all done. I am overwhelmed to say the least. And I feel lonely, utterly lonely. Yes, I have Alex and I couldn't ask for a more wonderful partner but it does take a village once there's a child in your life, doesn't it? And so the reality is, at this moment, I can't be one of them craft blogs, I can not show you a beautiful home full of hand made cleverness, and you won't be able to find wonderful hand made things here on a daily basis. Who I am right now is a 30 something still trying to figure out what the heck I want to be when I grow up, dealing as best I can with a 20 month old toddler, and trying to be brave through this period of big changes. And that is that.

Wednesday, May 10, 2006

happy mother's day to me!!!!

Today is mother's day in Guatemala (and I'm pretty sure in all of Latin America) and though we live in the US we are Guats after all so I get to celebrate today. Yeaaay!!! This is my second mother's day, I can't believe it! Time has flown by.

I showed Alex this once and he knew I really, really wanted it, I might have also showed him Ashley's Etsy shop, anyway, he ventured into the deep waters of Etsy and couldn't find that piece or Ashley's shop =( (I'm not worried, we have an
anniversary coming up in 2 weeks and this time I'll provide more info =P)but he and Tino did manage to get me other super cute things!!!

Behold super cute item #1: itty bitty kitty that's holding an even ittier bi
ttier mouse and came in a super cute little pouch(I know they are from Etsy but I can't find any details on the vendor...sorry. I also apologize for the blurry and bad lit pics but it's rainy and grey here in Louisville today).


Super cute item #2: raccoon coin purse.


Super cute item #3: this large hotpad from this Etsy shop (the sushi/dot fabric is soooo cute!).


And here's a recap pic of all my gifts =)

And the cutest mother's day gift of them all =P


A shout out to all the Guat moms and moms all around the world!!! and this quote that my friend Andrea sent me, I don't know the author but it's really cool and crafty: "I always wanted to invent something that would move around & make funny noises & would change the world as we know it & I forgot all about that until I had kids & now I see I came pretty close." Happy Mother's Day y'all!!! =P

Monday, May 08, 2006

this, that and the other

This past weekend Tino, Alex and I went to South Bend to meet this cutie in person and to visit some friends.


I can't believe I'm going to say this but I actually had lots of fun in South Bend! I know I'm always bitching about the place but going back to visit I realized that we did meet some wonderful people there and built some very strong and awesome friendships. Here's a picture of Tino playing the piano at our friend's house. He loved it! And he wasn't banging on the keys all willy nilly, he was gently p
ressing the keys like he knew what he was doing, very cute.


The wonderful thing about long drives is that you get to do stuff in the car. If I were a faster knitter I would've probably finished the project but I got this much done.

I'm making this toy by Jess Hutch for a little girl whose birthday is on friday. I think my version needs some kind of bow to make it girlier...if only I knew how to knit bows. Maybe I should get some barrettes. Mmmm... I'll have to go to Target and see if I find something suitable. I shall report back soon.

Monday, May 01, 2006

done, donner and my heroe

Life is back to normal. Craftiness shall resume. Can you believe that now that I finally have time to myself, I don't have any materials?! I ordered some yarn for a couple of projects and some fabric to finish a project. If you feel like you are experiencing dejavĂș when you see the pictures is because I showed you these projects before when they were half way done. These are Tino's socks, which I thought were going to be big but it turns out they fit him just right but what's the use because they are wool and is too warm to wear them. But I'm hoping they'll stretch for when he finally needs them. I can cross this project off my list.


Here's the other project that I showed you before but this one is just half done. I finished sewing the quilt top.

Here's a picture of the embroidery I did on the center block.

I'm waiting for the backing so I can start quilting. Wish me luck. Remember, it's my first time.

And then I couldn't leave without showing you a picture of my hero right after he crossed the finish line of the marathon last saturday.
The whole thing was so emotional! There were runners at the finish line who completed the marathon first and as exhausted as they were they would go back and grab by the hand those who looked like they couldn't take another step and help them to the finish line. Tino and I were waiting for Alex before the finish line, Alex picked up Tino, ran the last stretch and crossed the finish line with Tino in his arms. It was an incredible experience!

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