Green with... well.. Pinocchio.

So here I am, only the third week of school and already I want to bury my head in a pillow and my sorrows in copious amounts of cookies. The workload is rediculous, as are the hours, and sometimes the density of people makes me want to physically assault them, but other than those things, it's good to be back.

Unfortunately, the only problem seems to be that most of my classes are Designer-oriented, while I'm studying to be a Costume Tech. Every day seems to be filled with comment after comment along the lines of "It seems to me that you're just not thinking like a designer."

Huh. Wonder why that could be?

To combat all of that horribleness, the first thing I did when I walked in the door this afternoon was make a batch of these new Resees No-Bake peanut butter & chocolate bars.

They. Are. MAGNIFICENT!

And while using this brilliant green spatula to help stir them, I started thinking of other green things... and then other adorable things.... and then...

The fabled Pinocchio plushie!

I oogled this little guy for sometime before finally getting him on sale a few weeks ago... here he is traveling around my apartment.

Surveying the landscape from the ficus tree in the living room just like a real scout.

Aww! He's communing with the local wildlife! (Although, I don't think he realizes it's just plastic)

His attempt to infultrate the fridge was rather unsuccessful... He's not very stealthy.

I made him settle for some kettle cooked chips and control of the remote instead of the peanut butter & chocolate goodies... healthier? probably not. But the dessert simply wasn't ready yet!

Speaking of dessert, here's a sneak peak at my latest project... It's both sweet and adorable! I can't wait to finish.
I have so many new patterns I want to post in the shop, but honestly, the whole shop needs a serious re-boot. New pictures, new banner, new marketing campaign.. ::sigh:: It's a lot of work I have no time for, so until I can make some time, the shop is going to continue to be on hiatus.

Also, as a side note, I'm thinking of taking up silkscreening......

What a bazaar weekend.

Pardon the poor wordplay, but that's how things have felt lately and that's what has been consuming my time. Bizarre, right?

I woke up last Wednesday morning with a terrible headache and a vile urge to throw up which could only mean one thing - the Bazaar was coming up (and that maybe my dear friend Paul and I had consumed a little bit too much rum the night before). I spent my next 4 days sweating and peddling dishes in Ocean Grove, New Jersey to support the Ladies Auxiliary of the Auditorium Ushers (quite the mouthfull, eh?). I was the youngest memeber to ever join when I first paid my dues at 13, but I had been working my own five and dime table at the Bazaar since I was 8. Unfortunately, it doesn't matter how many years I've done this, I'm never quite physically or emotionally prepared to spend all that time in the sun with my Grandmother who has quite the knack for inadvertantly pushing my buttons packing and lifting heavy boxes of dishes and dealing with cranky customers who think they shouldn't have to spend more than a quarter on anything.

On the upside, the Bazaar means good shopping! I always manage to bring home a menagerie of blankets, plushies and, of course, vintage dishes. There is way too much to be put in just one post so I'll be sharing them over the next few days as I get around to all the mending and washing and find homes for all the new arrivals. These are exciting times.

In other, totally unrelated news - as you all know, my boyfriend is moving soon and in his fervor to move boxes and get everything properly labeled, he got just a little carried away....

His impending move also needs I need to get a move on with my special project.. Hey, at least I know what I'm doing the next few days...

Tune in tomorrow for more Bazaar finds, updates on my current crochet projects and more teaser pictures of the super-secret project!

A bitter pill.

Yesterday, I made a promise that I would be okay. A stupid, stupid promise that is going to end up being the hardest thing I'll ever have to do. I'm not good at being selfless, at "being the bigger person," and I'm certainly not good at letting things slip away without a fight. But I have to stop fighting because I promised I would stop fighting, and I have to be happy because, unfortunately, I promised that too. My problems are my own to cope with now even though I haven't slept in days and there's no way I should be coping with anything solo.

Oh well. My word is my word and I suppose situations like these are why large doeses of blueberry pie and iced coffee were invented... and crocheting, of course.

This guy is my next project:I started him this morning in Red Heart Super Saver Gold yarn. When he's finished (whenever the hell that will be), he's going to be quite large. It's been a long time since I've worked on a large crocheted plushie and I think it will be a welcome distraction from the current mess that is my life.

As a side note, I spent my Saturday night at my Aunt Trudy's 60th birthday party and while I was there, I met this wonderful tea cup - adorable, great personality, looking for something long-term. All I had to do for us to be together was to liberate him from his last relationship with the Italian restaurant we happened to be at, and you know, with a purse as large as mine, it wasn't difficult.

Isn't he just perfect? I think this is the beginning of something really beautiful.

And now off I go to eat some more pie, watch some more Boston Legal, and do some more extravagant online shopping. Oh and I'm going to be happy. Really really happy.

One Crazy Summer.

What a great movie. I adore John Cusack and I can honestly say it's the first and last time I've appreciated Demi Moore in anything.

It's also how I've been feeling a lot lately. This summer is nuts. There's been adventure, love, heartache, cliffhangers, drama, mystery... everything a good plot life needs to stay interesting (and keep me from sleeping).

I got a wonderful package of T-shirts from Threadless Tees last week that I'll have to model tomorrow but my most exciting new editions came from my dear friend over at EveryEskimo. Tillie arrived last week and, of course, I had to document her delivery!
Her box.. adorned with adorable polka-dotted tape! So cute. I swear, everything Regina does makes me want to squeal with joy.
Her little tissue paper! (Of course at this point, because Regina is so thorough and I was dizzy with over-excitement, it had just taken me 20 minutes to get the box open and get to this point. The suspense was killing me!)
And here she is! Itty bitty and packaged with care. She also came with some cute, hand cut tags, a vintage picture, and a personal note. There was some serious love in that box.
And last but not least, here is my EveryEskimo family portrait. Ickabelle and Everyone thinks I'm a Monster (whose name is actually Charles) are in the back row, my own custom made foundling rests in the middle, and Tillie and Shell (who was purchased for me by someone very special as a suprise) complete the picture in the front. I think Tillie looks practically ready to giggle in this picture, don't you?

It's always a pleasure doing business with Regina and I encourage anyone looking for some great vintage finds or an incredibly unique plushie to head over to her shop right away!

Speaking of shops.. mine has been a bit slow lately. As I said a few posts ago, I'm hoping to get some new patterns in there soon. Unfortunately, I have so many ideas at this point that I can't seem to just stick to one project at a time! I'm working on a cowl right now that I'm hoping to have finished within the week and I'll be starting something new tonight.. I also can't stop thinking about those Charley Harper needlepoint patterns. AND I still have to finish my suprise project..

Oh summertime. How I love you.

Lay on, Macduff

If there's one thing I've learned, it's that time doesn't stop. It may seem as if things are dragging on or blissfully lasting forever (depending on what kind of connotation you want to apply to the perceived slowing of time) but time never puts it seatbelt on, folds up its refreshment tray, and comes to a full and complete stop. It just doesn't happen. And if time is going to keep moving, than I have to as well. I may not be able to keep up, but I can sure as hell try. I'm still scared, but I can't hide under my covers while the world passes me by. I've never been one to stop fighting.

I have to continue with my life. I bought more material today to work on that mystery project from a few posts ago (which I'm hoping to have finished up very very soon). I went shopping for adorable patriotic toppers for the 4th of July cupcakes I'm making tomorrow. I've got 3 new crochet projects going. I'm just going to keep chugging along.

As a completely unrelated side-note, I am in love with Sleepyrobot13's Etsy shop. Her tag line is "Things u never knew you needed" and she is completely correct. Her little polymer robots are heartbreakingly adorable and I want every single one. Here are just a few samples of her genius:

Each one is cuter than the next! For $12 a piece, you can afford to splurge and get a few... that is, if you can decide which ones to purchase!

Things to do..

So here I am making yet another list. (Well, technically, transcribing another list as this one is an extended version of the one I scribbled down on a Post-it around 2:30 this morning, but I digress.) This one is for this week. There is so much work to be done, so many people to see and projects to be finished and cupcakes to be baked. It's going to be a good week. A long one, perhaps, but a very very good one.


And so, here we go...


Things To Do
1. Purchase tillie as soon as my check clears today. The wonderful Regina from everyeskimo reserved her for me as I simply can't live without her. She'll be a wonderful edition to the itsy bitsy everyeskimo softie family I've acquired.

2. Find some kind of allergy medicine to help clear up my breathing. Saturday night I was down at my Grandparents beach house and I had an allergic reaction to something in the air. My eyes became puffy and red, my throat closed up, and I could barely breathe. Even today, when I try to take a deep breath, I start coughing. While I'm terribly allergic to mold, dust, and pollen, I've never had a reaction like this and I'm pretty reluctant to head down the shore again if there's a possibility this could happen again. I usually have terrible luck with allergy medication, well, medication of any kind really, so I'm not quite sure where to start, but I have to find something. We're supposed to be having a 4th of July celebration down there this week and I couldn't imagine missing it.

3. Continue working on this rediculous project and finish up my last rediculous project. Every time I get inspiration, I always end up coming up with some easy projects and some completely ludicrous ones that are going to take me forever. I have no idea if this was the best project to start at this current moment, but it gives me something to do.. and it looks quite promising, doesn't it? Well, actually it looks like oversized calamari.... Hmm...

I also have to finish a project I started as a suprise for someone special. Here's a hint:

It turned out not to be a terribly long list, but it's a list nonetheless that needs to be fit in around work and friends and other appointments. We'll see how this week goes; I hope it'll be as good as I'm predicting.

And finally, because I can't help myself, a gratuitious boyfriend picture.

He can't decide whether to be grupmpy about the hat or start laughing hysterically...
<3

Projects, Old and New

So many projects to talk about, so little time! (mostly because I'm exhausted, but I simply can't resist sharing..)

I haven't been crocheting much for myself lately. Boyfriend has opened up a whole new world of possibilities, and it's been amazing being able to make things for someone who not only appreciates them, but appreciates me. That being said, a few selfish projects have managed to worm their way into my schedule.

First, there was this guy:

With his three layers of ice creamy goodness and his multi-colored bugle bead sprinkles, he was a joy to make. There's nothing like envisioning something in your head and then watching it come to life. He's a modification of the Strawberry and French Vanilla Ice Cream Cone Pattern that's available in my shop. When I decided to make him, I knew I wanted something larger than the original and with a little more spunk. And he certainly has spunk.. especially the scoop of strawberry ice cream at the top. I think the sprinkles make him a bit more sassy than his peers.

Then I didn't make anything for a while that wasn't for someone else until... the fifth season Doctor Who episode with the weeping angels aired. A friend of mine was cleaning out his garden and found his old cement fountain had cracked over the winter and the pudgy cherubs had broken into rather large chunks. He gave a particularly whiney looking severed cherub head to my Mother to stage in my room as a joke. She wanted to throw it out afterward. Unfortunately, I had fallen in love.... and decided he needed a hat, of course.
So, here he is, hat and all: (his mushed face and tempermental whine remind me of the mandrakes in Harry Potter.... I mean, really, how could you resist?)

As for future projects... I just discovered these (unfortunately) at PurlSoho. They're needlepoint canvases based on the work of illustrator Charley Harper, who I idolize. His colors range from the vibrant to the mundane, but the minimalist way he depicted animals infused such a life and sense of soul in them, it's hard to look at his work and not be inspired. He broke nature down to its base parts in such a unique way, his silkscreen work became ledgend and it is easy to see the building blocks of every modern, minimalist artist in his pieces.

Unfortunately, PurlSoho has taken it upon themselves to attmept to make these needlepoint canvases as snooty and expensive as possible. Needlepoint is a dying art, and therefore the canvases are a bit more expensive than they used to be and a bit harder to find, but charging upwards of $100 for the canvas alone is obscene. Apparently, PurlSoho felt the need to have the canvases handpainted instead of simply printed because it makes them "extra special" ::coughcoughextraexpensivecoughcough:: Here, you might as well read for yourself:

"Handpainted needlepoint canvases are extra special because the artist takes extra care to paint the colors on the canvas grid in such a manner that it is perfectly clear what color each stitch should be. If this process weren't taken so seriously, colors would bleed from one hole of the mesh to the next, making it unclear what colors should be used for what stitches and therefore creating a much less satisfying result."

Oh, I get it now. They're trying to save me from having to think about where I'm putting my stitches. Well, that makes sense. A crafter isn't supposed to be thinking about their work or the overall aesthetic value of it. Thanks, PurlSoho for saving me from the incredibly difficult art of using my brain to make creative choices. You really are swell.

Thankfully, in what seems to have been a lapse of judgement in the company's "lets bilk our customers for all they're worth because we're in Soho and we can" department, they not only posted a picture of the completed Rainforest Birds canvas (which happens to be my favorite)...

they also posted a detailed color key which can be seen at full size and downloaded here.And so, armed with the tracing skills I picked up in the first grade and some old, blank, needlepoint canvases I picked up at a yard sale, I'm ready to get started... and save $90.
How's that for using my noodle, PurlSoho?






As an unrelated side note, there will be a boyfriend picture in the next post. I'm done resisting...