Yu-zen

new blog

2011-01-30T09:42:00.000-08:00

I have a new blog/website for all things crafty. Actually the main difference will be that the new blog will have tutorials, and most of the crafts will have to do with repurposing, responsible travel and the like. I would love for you to visit!
www.clevercoco.wordpress.com or just www.clevercoco.com (it will redirect you).
The first tutorial is on how to make a duvet cover.

The gloves are off

2011-01-21T21:58:00.000-08:00

I got back from Costa Rica on Tuesday, left for the in-laws on Thursday and got back home Sunday. That is my excuse for not blogging or making anything until now. Tan-ta-da-duuuum... my latest and greatest...gloves
I made some last year but got bogged down with school and life so I hadn't made any since, until I got an email from a wonderful lady in Texas that bought two pairs last year for Christmas asking if I had made any this year. So I made some. I don't know how to get the color on the camera or the computer right, so maybe I won't be able to sell any of them, but I had fun making them at least. If I don't sell any you can be sure you will be getting all rejects for birthdays, barmitzvahs (what?) and just because. Good news is, everyone that reads this lives somewhere cold.

Now what?

2010-12-27T16:30:00.000-08:00

I am not sure I will keep this blog, as you (and by you I mean the only person that visits this blog, ever. You know who you are.) may have noticed I don't update it very often-as in every 6 months. Yet Christmas '10 brought me a lot of gifts or rather really significant gifts: I finished school. For.E.Ver. And as a combination Christmas-graduation-I can never hope for another ever again present my wonderful in-laws and husband bought me a Bernina 350 sewing machine. It is amazing. I think the only thing it doesn't do is enrich uranium and give birth to babies or puppies, or at least I haven't gotten to that part in the manual. I will keep you updated.

So what now? I have run out of excuses, mostly, for not making things or getting a job. I just finished the book "The Art of Non-Conformity-set your own rules, live the life you want and change the world" by Chris Guillebeau. I know long title, but an interesting read. So now that I don't have school and I can't seem to find a job that I would enjoy that I am qualified for I figure I should be a non-conformist, at least until something else happens.

Here we go...

Summer break

2010-05-19T10:06:00.000-07:00

Finally done with school, at least for the summer, so now I have all the time in the world...except for regular mommy duties and trying to take advantage of free air travel. Still it is part of my goals for the summer to blog more, especially about the stuff I make/fix/remake, in part to motivate me to do it. I also want to take more pictures and involve the kids. Oh and I want to figure out a way to fund trips to places like Europe and Asia and Latin America and even the US, with the kids. Any ideas?

more stuff from Chicago

2010-03-16T13:40:00.000-07:00

thrifted stuff from Chicago

2010-03-16T13:30:00.000-07:00

thrifted bliss...

2010-02-12T12:17:00.000-08:00

2010-02-12T12:08:00.000-08:00

The reddish dress is actually more of a peach color, but it is 100% silk, as is the red jumpsuit and the turquoise skirt. The maroon dress is a polyester but the print is really pretty and it is see through so one would need a slip underneath anyway.

thrifted stuff...

2010-02-12T11:55:00.001-08:00

Dollhouse with lights and sounds $3
vintage patterns for spring/summer frolicking $3 for all 8

Couch

2010-02-10T21:27:00.000-08:00

Pluses: it is longer than the old couch so two can relax on it with their feet up. Wider so two can snuggle together to watch a movie. The print is really retro. It is soft but not sagging. The square-ness of it makes it easier to sew a cover for it for protection and if I ever get bored with the print/colors.
Minuses: It does not have a hide a bed in its depths. I am fiercely protective of my new couch so rambunctious children get screamed at for wanting to play on or near it. Nothing looks good with our orange-brown carpet. I posted the two photos one with compensation for the orange day light and one with the daylight.

On a side note, we need to figure out something for all the tall bare walls.

Hopefully soon I will post pictures of all of the cool retro clothes I have acquired lately.

Shag rag rug

2010-02-01T15:22:00.000-08:00

I love 99 cent days at Savers, they are awesome. For instance I purchased a king size flat sheet for 99 cents and ripped it into strips then cut those strips into 4 inches and then sewed those strips onto a rectangular piece of burlap to make a shag rag rug for the kitchen. It was a little time consuming but really not as bad as it would have been to thread the strips onto the burlap and then tie a knot as I saw in some books. I think to be able to do a larger one I would do manageable sized squares or rectangles and then sew those together. The picture of Colette is just an image from the local zoo that I touched up a bit with just the few tools that come with iphoto.

Not much...

2010-01-22T12:15:00.000-08:00

Lilli kissing 'Wilson'. (Wilson the baby/volleyball under my shirt).
Some cuter shoes.
These are peacock feather strands with a lone small black feather wrapped together.
The day they ALL went to school.

Here are some of the things I've been working on;

growing a baby with 4 kids to distract me

making baby shoes and of course, jewelry.

I would like some inspiration but looking at stuff is always fun too- Hello Etsy!

My Zumba fitness practice is going slow but I think it will be fun soon enough.

As for the baby, I keep wondering what I could make for him....

shoes, hats, clever titled onsies? How to do it? Trying to organize my craft room better because the baby will be staying in there for the first year or so.

I wish Nicolle was here to help me decorate it and make stuff!

renovations

2010-01-20T20:10:00.000-08:00

Here is a picture of my craft room before organizing or painting and the second picture is of the partially completed paint job with the robin's egg blue/green.
The picture of the monkey is just for fun.

Help for Haiti

2010-01-17T20:04:00.000-08:00

I think I will probably donate some things to sell to this place, since I can't afford to buy any of the lovely things that are for sale there. Anyway check it out, I think it is an awesome way to use craft skills to help people.

gloves and prints

2010-01-11T15:38:00.000-08:00

These are the prints that I got at zims for between 1-2 cents each, since they are closing and everything is at least 70% off, at least until Friday when they close for good. Anyway I saw this picture of a wall where they covered it with prints like these, I thought it was beautiful and a brilliant way to temporarily redecorate. I think I need to get more of the prints for it to work, especially since they don't really go together. Then I also have been making a ton of gloves, actually most of them are gone, either as presents or sold, but I have a couple of kids mittens left that I made to match an adult pair. Here Colette is helping me model. I have gotten a few more sweaters that are going to be re-purposed, and I am itching to paint, at least the white stuff, but I have been told it is too cold for it to work, I may get to a point where I just try anyway, but until then I need to find one specific project to work on. I have this unexplainable desire to sew some fun clothes but I think I should probably try to sketch all my ideas before I start ruining things. I will post some of those sketches soon. Until then keep crafting.

christmas gifts for the kids

2010-01-11T14:41:00.000-08:00

I of course can't prove it, but I had this idea long before I saw a store bought version...A tin lunchbox with magnets that you can play with on the outside...Anyway I made this elephant one for my little pachyderm-obsessed guy. So far he really enjoys it, and I have some magnet sheets left to keep adding to the box. The one thing I need to refine is the coating. You can probably see all the scratches and areas where the paint has come off. Until I can figure out a way to make it more permanent I will just use the bare areas as an excuse to paint new scenery for the elephants to explore. In any case I think it would be fun to make all kind of themed tin boxes, mostly of things that aren't already available. All in all I had fun making it and I hope I get to make some more soon.

quiet ramblings

2009-12-17T21:40:00.000-08:00

I have made some new gloves with leather patches on the palms, I will post pictures later. Do you ever get so many ideas and inspirations that you can't get them out and done fast enough? That is what I am dealing with right now. I have let things that I want to do/make get so far behind, not to mention housework and interacting with the babies, that I don't know where to start and I don't know how I can possibly get any one thing done...
Just before bed time today we made the melted crazy crayons from here which Colette was really really excited about. Sometimes I feel simply horrible for not doing more things with them, especially Colette, since she is getting to that age that she wants to do things. Johnathan is also attention hungry, just wanting to be played with and noticed. I need to think up activities and crafts that I can do with them so that we can all be satisfied...

moderate success!

2009-12-14T21:33:00.001-08:00

Although I am certain it is 90% attributable to last minute shoppers looking for something inexpensive and use-able, I have sold 4 pairs of gloves on etsy! This is by far the most success I have had, even though technically I have sold more buttons I usually lost money with those so the gloves are a HUGE step up. I am pretty sure that as soon as the holidays shopping is over I won't sell anything I am elated that three people have liked my stuff enough to shell out $17.50 for each pair! It almost makes me wonder what I could have done if I had put more effort in to it all. I will be crafting pretty much full time after my finals so check back for pics of the crazy things I come up with then...

pictures of gloves

2009-12-12T20:58:00.001-08:00

These have been so much fun to make, especially since they are exceptionally useful. And I sold my first pair on etsy! So exciting for me! I can't even being to tell you how hard it is to not completely blow off school at this point and just make stuff until my back hurts and I get blisters on my hands...I was talking to Susan and we discovered that we both have the habit of having a hard time falling asleep because we are thinking about making stuff or decorating and what not. So it is official, I am a craft nerd. Seriously, Wednesday afternoon can not come soon enough..except that I need to study and write book reports and so on...

Days 2 and 3 of craft-a-day month

2009-12-05T07:52:00.000-08:00

So I will have to add pictures later but for now let me just say I made mittens into fingered gloves and added the buttons and I also made some super sweet hats (I have to admit I got the main pattern from marthastewart.com, a place I have frequented lately for ideas)
Next big project that I really hope will work out...a shaggy recycled rag rug (say that three times fast!) I had been racking my overworked brain trying to figure out how to make this and a visit to etsy helped it all come it to focus..I will post pictures of how they turn out. I want to make a big one for the living room, and a couple of smaller ones for the kids room, my room and the kitchen.
I also still need to figure out how I am realistically going to decorate the apartment for Christmas. Especially when I am making so many gifts and things to attempt to sell...oh and finals, blah..

new things

2009-12-02T20:31:00.000-08:00

This is my first time needle felting...as you can see..but it was fun and armed with some bandaids and more wool roving I will be ready to do more!

more crocheted things-FREE* read below

2009-06-28T09:56:00.001-07:00

The first little guy is a Cthulhu (pronounced ka-thu-loo for those of you like me that had no idea how to say it). He has little tentacles over his mouth and wings on his back. BTW I made a big batch of eyes out of polymer clay so all of the little creatures now have sight. Unless it is requested that the eyes be embroidered on they are the clay eyes just glued on.
Next is a teeny robot I did a few weeks ago that I just put the eyes on. He's the reason why I left my fingers in the pictures, so you can kind of see their size.
Next is Nosferatu. I want to stitch something funny on his front like I heart Bella (or Edward, but I wouldn't want to offend assume:)*Note* Nosferatu has found a home where he can stalk happily.
Finally another monkey, but this time with a different color scheme, the clay eyes and better stitching, just improved all around. I am dreaming up some characters that aren't a part of the creatures in the book so that I can put them in my etsy shop, since these are from the book I don't feel right selling them so if you see one you like comment and claim him/her and you can have it. Only one per person please and first comment first serve :) oh and yes it does include the sub-par ninjas and red monkey :)

crochet things

2009-06-20T10:06:00.000-07:00

These are first attempts, I hope I get better at following the patterns..The black ones are ninjas.

cheek art

2009-04-13T20:01:00.000-07:00

These things only take a few minutes to do.

2009-04-13T20:00:00.000-07:00

2009-04-13T19:59:00.001-07:00

new pictures!!

2009-04-13T19:57:00.000-07:00

photoshop in class today

2009-04-08T18:12:00.000-07:00

We played with Photoshop today in photography class and I wanted proof that I did it...It doesn't look much like Colette but it is, her face at least. I guess this means I will be putting my face on skinny ladies bodies from now on :)

glamour shots

2009-04-01T17:34:00.001-07:00

This is the picture I took for my photography class. It was fun.

new ideas for old things!

2009-03-09T15:10:00.000-07:00

Check out my etsy shop!

paper dolls

2009-03-02T18:58:00.000-08:00

I did a Johnathan paper doll plus their favorite animals at their heels. I still haven't started the clothes, they are harder than I thought they would be.

artsy photos

2009-02-25T19:31:00.000-08:00

If only Johnathan would let me take his picture I could get some artsy ones of him too...

paper dolls

2009-02-23T18:33:00.000-08:00

I have to admit that I got this idea from The Black Apple, but I wanted to make it a little more personal so I thought I would try making a Colette doll...the fun will be dressing her up in stuff she has and stuff she doesn't...:)I thought that it would be fun to allow people to send me pictures for me to use to make them their own dolls...tell me what you think please!

more doodles

2009-02-23T18:31:00.001-08:00

Again these are copies I have done of some of Carl Larsson's drawings. They have been fun and good practice for the style and subject matter that I want to attempt...I haven't decided if I am going to paint them in or not, as most of them were in black and white.

Little doodles

2009-02-04T17:24:00.000-08:00

Now that I am unemployed I have a bit more time on my hands, I have to do something constructive with that time...Here's what I came up with:

more stuff....

2008-11-12T14:53:00.000-08:00

new wee buttons

2008-11-12T07:10:00.000-08:00

I was thinking of selling them as groups of 4 for $4.

Newer stuff!

2008-11-11T08:01:00.001-08:00

Good everyday earrings.
They remind me of doughnuts on a ring.

Gold line, reconstructed pakistani jewelry!

You can't see the end of the earrings are small emerald crystals.

I now realize that white would have been a better background but oh well, my camera is charging- not soon to be ressurrected.

Shells I scoured the beach for! plus, real pearls.

I finished the bird nest's necklace, but i don't remember if I already posted it.

2 necklace closures twisted into earrings.

Some crazy brown MOP (double drilled) shells I found the store for like $2. I could never figure out what to do with the topaz crystals, but I like to color combo. The kids almost broke the camera again so..... (aside from my crappy pic taking.)

I have made a handful of rings.

2008-11-10T07:47:00.000-08:00

I love the yellow but I have nothing to match it.

I wear this one all the time! It's huge but I can put alot of hair back.

My kids tore up this one, it is no more.....

I have temp. put jewelry making on hold but I still have alot of items that are already made. Not sure what to do with it all. I want to update my etsy shop but I don't want to spend money just to put something up for sale. Maybe I'll switch out the old with new.

You'd be surprised at how much I wear this one!

I am debating on whether to make these beautiful vintage appliques into something; hairclips, pins or attaching to clothes. I will post those soon also.

I want some feedback, tho'!

I have made so many hair clips and I keep forgetting to take pictures!

But i wanted to congratulate Nicolle on the awesome outfits that she made for Halloween! They were amazing! So if you see this, Nikki, please post your outfits on the Yu-zen blog!

These are old pics. but I am currently making and taking pics of recent and new ones.

VOTE!!

2008-11-01T12:03:00.001-07:00

http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=VhDRVKDcXQo

Almost election day!!

2008-10-29T08:00:00.000-07:00

I heard this on the radio yesterday I heard this little poem (?) that brought tears to my eyes:

"Rosa sat so that Martin could walk, Martin walked so that Obama could run, Obama is running so that our children can fly."

I will post the monkeys in their costumes as soon as they are done.

Arsty fartsy

2008-09-10T22:46:00.000-07:00

A drawing and me facepainting at the Obama booth.

Obamania

2008-09-10T22:32:00.000-07:00

Since I figure that very few people actually look at this blog, and those few that do already know my political leanings (at least now you do), and this has to do with artsy stuff I am doing a lot of lately I feel like posting this here....The first picture is a drawing I did for some buttons and such, the ladies at the Obama in Utah headquarters were very pleased, which made me pleased:)
The next two pictures are of young girls that have Obama-fever. Some of them had some unusual requests but I was happy to oblige and by the end I had gotten pretty good at free-handing the Obama logo. Unfortunately they are too young to vote but I am happy to see some enthusiasm in this blood-red state.
Next is a photo of me and Mr. Obama (ala cardboard) but I had volunteered for 4 and a half hours doing free facepainting so I couldn't resist a photo-op. It was tons of fun, I got very sunburned but just on my arms, and I felt like I had contributed something. I only wish I could do more....

Kenzie's fancy pics....

2008-09-03T20:53:00.000-07:00

My sisters have some serious skillz!! The only reason I am posting these here is because it shows off too things: Kenzie's picture taking talent and I made the white pants I am wearing and the red hat. Please don't laugh at my lame attempt at posing, I am not naturally cool. Check out Kenzie's flickr page and you can also check the family blog to see pictures with the extremelly photogenic Johnathan:)

I signed up for a ceramics class that I started tonight so as soon as I finish anything I will post pictures.

Sisters' ideas.

2008-09-03T14:31:00.001-07:00

Whaddya think?

New ideas!

2008-08-19T08:19:00.000-07:00

these are some okay earrings I made and I had to cut down on the earwires to have enuff for all the earrings!
leftovers. No real gold. too expensive!
I love these stones but they are Tiny! Greyish-blue. They remind me a bit of labradorite but I don't think they are.

Are the posts too huge? Should I put a huge stone on the posts? The green square is real peridot but the clear crystal is just crystal.
These are also leftovers but they are tiny, almost like a kid's earring. Pink dyed pearls with a milk crystal.
This dark blue is gorgeous but it is also tiny. I don't know what the dark blue is, but the lighter blue is real turq. rounds

These are same stones from previous pic, but with sterling bead w/ surrounding heishi beads
This is the beaded flower. Swarvoski amber, garnet rounds and green pearls.
Here is the green leaf/ stem felt on a clip. I want to combine the bead flower with the felt but it might be perm. and I would hate to waste the stuff, if it doesn't look good together.
Here is one of my favorites. This is suppoused to be a heart shaped sterling silver bird's nest with a (vintage German bead) robin's egg in it.
This is all st. silver wrapped around garnet rounds.

Tell me what you think. (I made these all.) I actually think the birds Nicolle paints would be adorable on a hair clip or somehow transferred into silver to be worn into jewelry.

New buttons (pins)

2008-08-15T17:13:00.000-07:00

I am especially pleased with my birdies, but I am a little worried that no one can tell that they are birdies. I am not so pleased with my gold fishy ones, but that is ENTIRELY my own fault for not painting on the gold right. OOoops. Anyway, I found out that the things in the consignment store are doing pretty well, mostly because they are cheap little things. I never expected or expect to make any real money from things I make, but it is still satisfying to know that some people like the stuff I make enough to spend even a few bucks on them:) It feels like a personal compliment. At least that is how I am going to take it:)

etsy shop!

2008-07-28T20:50:00.000-07:00

I know Nicolle knows, but this is for anyone who wants to comment on the proposed design for my etsy shop.

I don't want to only sell Jewelry

(because It is insane how many people sell jewelry on Etsy)

so it will be for anything I might want to sell,

blah, blah, blah

the ugly one is my sketch, the pretty one is my friend Vega's design.

Please, please cast your vote and opinion.

birds?

2008-07-28T20:05:00.000-07:00

Do you remember how I was telling you about a dream I had about a little watercolor bird? Well here are some early attempts. I am probably going to have these ones made into buttons...just to see how it goes. Tell me what you think.

Note cards?

2008-07-24T12:49:00.000-07:00

That is the main question right now...pricing. I drew the fish, then scanned it and arranged them on a powerpoint, then printed them on watercolor paper. I hand painted each one, they aren't big so it doesn't take me long. The problem I forsee with note cards is that I have some nice note cards with envelopes that would work beautifully, except that I would either have to draw on each one as well as paint, or I would have to have a stamp made that I could use on paper of any size. I have been thinking about the stamp option for a while but I haven't decided on a size and I am hesitant to spend more money when I haven't really sold anything...As for your question Karla, I would like to hear any and all suggestions you might have about pricing. I also made some bookmark sized fish, I will post pictures when I can.

gift cards?

2008-07-18T16:50:00.000-07:00

I painted these yesterday...I can't really decide which style I like better. It was mostly just a test, so tell me what you think.

finally!

2008-07-10T17:51:00.000-07:00

dresses

2008-07-01T17:43:00.000-07:00

I hope that I am brave enough to wear these soon:)

shoes and one more dress

2008-07-01T17:38:00.000-07:00

It was buy one get one half off so of course I bought three pairs instead of two or four. Dummy.

2008-04-30T15:29:00.000-07:00

This might be a little long 4 Lilli
need to put the other sleeve on
2 ways to wear it!

Dresses and bags!

2008-04-30T13:13:00.000-07:00

I need more thread!

three new prototypes

2008-04-29T17:38:00.000-07:00

2008-04-23T11:24:00.000-07:00

cheesy paintings

2008-04-23T11:15:00.000-07:00

aprons!

2008-04-21T10:49:00.000-07:00

2008-04-21T10:43:00.000-07:00

Domo arigato Mr. Robato

2008-04-17T16:16:00.000-07:00

Well? Any suggestions? I think that I won't tell you about things, I will just post them because I think that you start to imagine them one way and then you are probably disappointed when you see what I actually made. Lots of love

2008-04-15T12:02:00.001-07:00

Please vote on your favorite(s). These are to be the invitations for fabulous Michelle's graduation. Thanks

2008-04-15T11:56:00.000-07:00

dollies

2008-04-07T19:57:00.000-07:00

Here's the picture again of the dolly I made for Colette. Then Michelle gave me the BRILLIANT idea of making a PIRATE doll for Johnathan so here it is. I gave him an earring after I finished the pictures but they took so long to load I don't want to take a new picture so just imagine it:) He's filled with rice so he is a lot more floppy than Colette's doll that is filled with fluff. Enjoy.

"dolly" is a hit

2008-04-03T13:30:00.000-07:00

So far....
I made Colette a doll from "the black apple" template and it has been an hour and she is still playing with it. Amazing. I will post a picture as soon I get a chance. I also am working on some new painting ideas and I finished (sort of) my apron. I realize now that I am not very good at finishing things, I am pretty half-a$$ed. Sorry:)

Look at these vintage appliques!

2008-04-01T09:39:00.000-07:00

I need to know how to iron them, and I need Nicoole to call me or email me! I lost my phone again....
I got them in a grab bag at the thrift store, also included was some old silk wide ribbon, some thin lace and alot of piping. I now have a bag of stuff that I love but have no idea what to do with it! Help!

two paintings

2008-03-20T15:55:00.000-07:00

I did these quickly in class yesterday because I was too frustrated with the "circles". I don't know how to finish the one of Colette, I don't really want to do the background that is in the photo (a carseat) so I was thinking of just doing dark...nothing. I used hotpress paper which is notoriously hard to control and is better suited for really free water+color. The other excuse is that the mother+child painting is originally in oils so it is hard to transfer that to watercolor. Still I like drawing and I like details, sort of. So if there is a picture out there that you want me to do let me know and I will try to oblige. XO

New f inds!

2008-03-18T16:17:00.000-07:00

I have been LOOKING for doilies, finally, I get some! 9 of them!

The red ones are larger but I think I can do something with them!

I have been trying to find something cheap (stripes or polka dots!) to recover the couch cushions,

can't beat $2!

Of course, I JUST noticed that the REDS don't match! Hmmm....now what? All thrift store items are non-refundable.

This a sweet lemon yellow lace I found at the thrift store. It's gotta be like 2 yards!

Same place, too cute to pass up, the back is the same orange as the thread.

$4 at aYWCA. I think it is real stone; mother of pearl, rose quartz, and either amethyst or purple glass. It's like 30" or more of beads!

patterns

2008-03-18T11:17:00.000-07:00

more circles

2008-03-18T10:56:00.000-07:00

possible outfit?

2008-03-14T14:34:00.000-07:00

variation on the same

2008-03-05T22:05:00.001-08:00

Sorry it is crooked, it scanned that way and I am too lazy/tech. impaired/impatient to fix it. I did a couple of these in different sizes but I really like the small circles...but I think I will just have to do a wash or something simple because if I paint all of the circles individually or different colors it will be too busy.

Some finished projects!

2008-03-05T09:52:00.000-08:00

I actually finished these all yesterday, except the doll. I did another shirt but it needs some work.

My first filled shirt. It's lopsided, I know, BUT I actually did it in a few minutes! Sewing is an ART!

I love the way this looks, I hand stitched it on. I keep thinking about wearing it, but it's a little big for me.

My first doll, it was going to be a bear, but wasn't turning out. It's not done yet, but I got pretty far, in a day!

Thrift store treasure!

typing

2008-03-04T10:06:00.001-08:00

Typing fun

54 words

Speedtest

I have always been curious how fast I type now so this was a little thing I found that made me feel good. Try it out if you want.

JoAnn

2008-03-04T09:09:00.000-08:00

Yesterday I spent over 4 hours in JoAnn without buying anything! A definite first for me but before you congratulate me: I was working. Yep I am working at JoAnn. It was ok, they have a big sale going on so it was a bit crazy. And while it was crazy they had me watching videos! Anyway there was one that at the end of the video it had this thing where Howie Mandel pretended to be a JoAnn's salesperson and went around harassing people. Like for one guy he took away his buttons and said "zippers" wink wink. Then he wouldn't sell fabric paint to a lady because he was accusing her of being in a gang and that she was going to "tag" with the "puffy paint" Needless to say it was the highlight of the videos. Today I have to work again so my plan is to get there early and buy some stuff before my shift. Oh and don't forget to vote if you haven't done so already!

New material!

2008-03-03T15:41:00.000-08:00

New possibilities! The fabric I got.

the bright flowers

I love this stuff. Brown.

This ribbon is cute.

Bruce made the beanbags and the little game.

Cereal boxes covered in scrapbook paper

Old wool felt cap, pristine!

I got this apron at Target, on sale.

BUTTONS!!

2008-03-02T14:20:00.000-08:00

The long awaited buttons arrived on Friday! Yay! Plus here's a Kabbalan-inspired painting that I did on Saturday morning while the hubby took the baby to x-country ski.

paintings from class

2008-02-29T13:53:00.000-08:00

The first picture is a copy of a painting that my teacher's husband did. Personally I like the way mine turned out almost better:)
The next three are collages that I did in class. I have a really hard time with collages and abstract painting, but then again I am not terribly good at realistic stuff either. I guess I am just really discouraged.

finished embroidery

2008-02-29T13:32:00.001-08:00

Today I woke up in an inexplicable slump. I keep trying to get out of it but I remain bummed and unmotivated. The hair on the embroidery didn't turn out how I wanted it to, but I don't know what to do it, other than just pull it all out and make the girl look like she has a hat on or something. Anyway, I will post some pictures of some paintings too...

New stuff!

2008-02-28T14:05:00.000-08:00

My last vase. Dylan broke it. I will recycle this into something cool, or maybe I'll give up and just buy some cheap thrift store vases. I need some new fake flowers too!

I have had these earrings made for a month and just today finished the bracelet, finally! This stone is round garnet. I love it, it's a little small but great all by itself!

I saw something like this on a lady at church, and quite liked the design, but I think the crystal

s should be smaller and therefore more delicate. oh well. It's sparkley!This a actually a velcro wire condenser (?) I tried sewing the crystal onto the velcro but the crystal kept breaking and the velcro wouldn't heal from the sewing..... So I glued it! I thot it would look kinda punk rock but uhh, I don't know.

I wrapped this mother of pearl donut in a

lilac silk ribbon and hung a lilac crystal on it, then I had to glue it to keep it together! I really don't like glue!These I like; The purple chips are a lower grade turquoise that was dyed a deep purple but there is lots of turq. inclusions thruout. The round beads are a higher grade turq. and it's all strung on sterling silver wire.
I'm off to make some paper crafts with the kids, I will post pics, if they turn out!

today's plans

2008-02-27T10:14:00.000-08:00

Today I plan to:
finish my homework
Go to class
Buy a laptop for Robbie
make some more fruits and veggies
work on the embroidery
not do anything but feed and play with the babies

This is the sewing box that Robbie found for me at DI for $3. He said that he almost didn't get it because he thought that $3 was too much. What a sweetie. I just nearly shaved my kneecap off on the corner of my bed. What in the dickens are those gnarly metal things for anyway, other than inflicting pain on the people foolish enough to get near the bed? I just looked and yes i am bleeding. If I get a huge bruise to boot I will take a picture and post it.

some projects

2008-02-26T16:52:00.001-08:00

If you look closely you can see the little fruits and veggies that I just made.
For the little embroidery I am going to make the hair blond so that it will look like Colette and I dont think I will use orange at all just pink, white, green and brown. what do you think?

more face painting pictures

2008-02-23T21:46:00.000-08:00

As you can see most of the faces were full-faces so it took me longer than I wanted it to take, but the girls were really happy with it and a lot of them wanted the same thing so eventually I got a little quicker. After the "gig" I met Rob at our friends house for a "murder mystery" dinner. We all had to assume the characters we were assigned and try to solve a murder mystery. It was silly and a lot of fun. Now we are back home and working on our projects we got from the DI. Hopefully I will have new things to post pictures of when I am done...go on and anticipate:)

face painting

2008-02-23T21:40:00.000-08:00

Today was kind of busy. We went to the DI in the morning and spent a couple of hours going through all of the stuff. Then I had a face painting gig. Before hand I practiced a few new designs on myself and on Colette. The family was from Syria, and they were really sweet. The girls were really cute and funny, they were really curious about the paint and what I was doing. They kept saying that I was sooo lucky to be able to paint people's faces. It was fun and the two hours went flying by, plus I made some money too!

more jewelry (in case you haven't seen my family blog)

2008-02-22T15:28:00.001-08:00

This is a 24" chain with tiny black hematite rondelles and white milk faceted crystal rondelles interspersed throughout the chain. The earrings are a shorter version of the same.

This is a 3 red swaravovski bicone inset a silver-plated chain that ends in a crystal faceted briolette. The earrings are 2 bicone crystals hung through a bit of chain. The earwires are sterling silver that I "spun".

some of my stuff!

2008-02-21T20:19:00.000-08:00

this is a really cool stone that I got in Colorado, that I reused in 2 separate pieces. I still don't know what it is! The white round beads are coconut from Costa Rica.
The second piece is garnet crystal and dark red freshwater pearls surrounded by plated butterflies.

I think I'm going to get a webcam and model the jewelry because it's getting harder to take pictures and upload them.

2008-02-21T17:35:00.000-08:00

Here is a drawing and then the painting of a project I did for class. It turned out pretty good. My art teacher was pretty impressed so that made me feel good. She suggested that I do paintings/copies like that for my final project...interesting proposal huh? I don't know if anyone would like little copies of classic art like this but at the very least I wouldn't run into any copyright laws:)

buttons

2008-02-21T17:33:00.000-08:00

Here are the buttons. I didn't realize how hard it is to take a decent picture of the stuff I make!

sweeeet

2008-02-20T21:22:00.000-08:00

So after searching stores for a wearable red hat I finally just had to make my own. I crochet this in a couple of hours and I love it. It is warm, soft and large enough to wear my hair up or down in it. I didn't use a pattern or anything but was pretty much able to make a second one for my daughter, except that I ran out of yarn. Once I get the yarn for it and finish it I will take a picture of her in it too.