Somebody stop me!

These wallets are addictive! Seriously, I can't stop making them. They are just so cute, and simple, and fun! Quick, pop over to Etsy and grab one now :)

Today I debuted my twirly, gray linen skirt at work and got rave reviews. I was feeling especially sassy yesterday and whipped up this headband to wear with the skirt.

Originally I had planned on using some of the red fabric from the skirt to applique a heart or flower, but I figured that might limit the outfits I could wear it with (and just might have been a bit more "coordinated" than I could stand). So I rooted through my multi-generational button stash and challenged my Type-A personality to pick a random design for these mismatched buttons. It's not something I would have thought I would like, but I love how it keeps my hair out of my face (which is key to preventing me shaving my hair off again) and several folks said they thought it was great. So I guess it's a winner!

Help! I've fallen in love with making wallets!

Being a Gemini, I know that I have a tendency to go to extremes: I don't just tidy the house, I wage all out war on dirt and disorder; I don't just plant a few pretty flowers, I spend whole weekends conquering entire tracts of land; I don't just tell my boyfriend I miss him, I send him baked good every week for a year (granted not all my extremes are negative things).

When I found that great pattern for super-cute wallets, and had a blast whipping up a few last weekend, I should have known there would be trouble. Because, of course, I didn't stop at just a few. Oh no.

I made more this weekend.

Then I had to whip up a new purse to carry my fun new wallet...

But, alas, since I fell pray to the "oh this is a really simple bag so I don't need to use a pattern and let's just estimate sizes instead of actually measuring" mentality, the new wallet doesn't even fit in the new purse.

Guess I'll just scrap the purse idea for a while and stick to the addictive wallets...

P.S. Crock pot granola is perfectly lovely, as long as you remember to stir it every 45 minutes or so. Without adequate stirring, you could end up with Cajun Granola (i.e. blackened nuts and charred oats). Bon Appetite!

Just working? Or working it?

I totally kicked it on an enormous grant this week, so I took most of today off from work to recover and reward myself.


When I first attempted the Infinity Dress, I intended to use some gray linen that I had picked up a few months ago. I trimmed and shaped the skirt and waist band, but then realized that once I assembled the rest of the dress it would be way shorter than I feel comfortable wearing. I knew I'd get around to doing something with the linen eventually (or I should say, I hoped I would get around to it...).


When I got home from work this morning I put in some quality time on a project that has drawn out way longer than necessary (photos to follow shortly) then needed a brain-break. So I pulled out the gray linen and played around with it. For not having a pattern, or even a really clear idea of what I wanted to do, I'm really excited with the end result! It's just a big circle (however wide your fabric is, the drape will be half that length) with a smaller cirlce cut for the waist). I cut a 3 inch bias strip for the waist band, then added the red on the bottom just to make it a bit longer and add some color. The waist was cut exactly to size, and I put it on over my head so I don't have to be bothered with zippers!

There's something strange going on here. Me. Skirts. Smiles. It's very strange, but I like it.

Oh, I'm also attempting to make granola in the crock pot, since firing up the oven for an hour when it's 1000 degrees didn't seem so fun. I'll let you know the results when the verdict comes in.

Sewing!

Not much time to write, so here are a few photos to keep you occupied!

A few additional options for ways to wear my new infinity dress. The photos are kinda crappy as I was snapping them quickly in poor light, but you get the idea...

I spent all most all day Saturday sewing these awesome tri-fold fabric wallets. I absolutely LOVE them! As a matter of fact, I liked it so much that I actually kept one for myself, a rare occurrence for me.

I made 8 with the cherry blossom fabric and one really sweet Batik (but forgot to snap a picture of that one!). I have one of the cherry blossom wallets posted on Etsy already, if you are so inclined... :)

The Infinity Dress!

I knew that the Craft Gawker website was going to be trouble the first time I saw it! And sure enough, right when I had every intention of going home last night and finishing up a quilt project, I stumbled across a new project that just HAD to be started last night!

I had heard about the Infinity Dress before. My friend Amanda told me she bought one from the Earthbound Trading Company down on Broughton Street. But we all know I'm cheap and wouldn't buy something that I could make (and the fact that I rarely buy new clothes regardless of the price). I think I may have even seen her wear it once and thought, that's pretty cool, but not my style.

Well, I saw a snapshot of an Infinity Dress on CraftGawker that took me to this very well explained how-to link. The pull was irresistable. It looked so easy. And it looked like something I would/could actually wear. And just that very morning I was wishing that I had a summery, stretchy dress to wear.

So I swung by Jo-Ann's and picked up some stretch-knit fabric and skipped home, envisioning that in about an hour I would have a fun new dress. And it almost happened that way. However, since I didn't really have a pattern, and I was basically winging it, there were a few little stumbles along the way. The most frustrating part is that the stumbles were caused more from me rushing than the fact that I didn't really know what I was doing.

Long story short: I have an awesome new dress!

Supposedly you can wear this thing a thousand different ways. But for a tom-boy like me, I will probably not experiement that much. As it is, I'm still getting used to having that much of my back exposed!

Now that I have done it once, I'm sure I will be make a few more. I found some very pleasing mossy-green fabric that would look cheerful and spring-like paired with the blue. And the next one really should only take me an hour!

Yes, it was a Happy Birthday!

I'm not really a big fan of birthdays. It's not that I have a problem with getting older, I just don't particularly like all the attention that goes along with my birthday. Ironically, I LOVE making a big deal out of other people's birthdays...but that's because the focus is not on me!

This weekend I turned 31 and had a nice, relaxing, low-key time of it. Joy came to spend the weekend with me and we had a great visit! She went with me to my workshop for the awesome folks from the Statesboro Habitat for Humanity, we had yummy food, went to see the new Sex and the City movie, laughed and cut up as sisters should, and even went for a stroll on the beach. I think the walk on Tybee was my favorite part of the whole weekend (until it got too hot to think and I nearly melted into the sand).


The last time that Joy and I took a leisurely stroll on the beach like this was probably our trip to Block Island (which I think was back in 2006). We've been to the beach since then, of course, but not solely for beach walking. I prefer walking, while she's happy to roast in the sand...


Two very nice ladies offered to take a picture of us together, and asked if we were twins! It seems like Joy and I are the only ones who don't see the family resemblance (we must be in denial).


So, there are several things that I loved about this little beach trip:
1. I love to honor special moments by spending time in nature (my last stroll on the beach was on New Year's Day).
2. I loved spending time with Joy, just walking and talking and being outside on a beautiful day.
3. I love the way my new tankini top from Land's End fits (and I really love the fact that I got it on clearance!).
4. I loved to see what 8 months of Pilates has done for my health! Seriously, not to brag or anything, but I feel great!
When Joy and I got back from the beach, my new roomie had left these beautiful roses on the counter for me! Jessie is going to be my roommate for the summer and I'm so excited to have a crafter around to keep me motivated!