Stuff Stopper and Chili Fest

So this was a quick little project I whipped up while Brian was in the field. This summer he picked up a plain piece of wood to slide into the slots of his truck bed liner.  It worked great to keep stuff from sliding around, which is very useful since the truck bed cover made it hard to climb in and grab stuff that shifted around.  While he was out, I painted it black and improvised the Harley bar and shield design.  The longest part of the whole project was waiting for the layers of spray paint to dry.

 

 

This weekend we took a little ride up to Hatch, NM for the Chili festival!  Of course I wasn't able to actually sample any of the honorary produce (since even the "mild" would have made me explode), but it was a fun day with our friends.

We're now in the midst of trying to find a new place to live, since the lady we've been renting from decided that she wants to occupy the place we've called home since we got married.  Fingers crossed it will all work out for the best!

Hey, it's a start...

Well, I've been meaning to post, and wanting to post, but not seeming to find the time to post.  I thought I would have time to get you all caught up on everything that has been happening, all the things I've been doing and making, and all that jazz.  But it seems that I'm too busy doing and making to post!  So instead of an comprehensive post, I decided to just show you two of my more recent projects that I'm really happy with.

When I first moved out on my own, I got this old wood dresser from my Grandpa Frankie.  It is perfectly useful and made from real wood (not pressed board crap) but it hasn't been considered stylish since ET phoned home.  Since I've been moving toward a red-and-black theme in my craft room, I decided to give the dresser a spray paint make over.



And boy did it work!  It's so shiny and new looking (the dings and dents almost disappeared)!  The funky knobs were a great find at Hobby Lobby (and were half off) and just pulled the whole thing together.  All told, the upgrade cost about $30.  Well worth it, in my opinion, though in hindsight I maybe should have gone with a matte finish instead of glossy.

 

My good friend Amanda showed me some brilliant ideas for simple upgrades to Onesies, and in about an hour I had whipped up these four Cutesies!  Now I just need to get them mailed out to the proud new owner before she out-grows them!

Did you miss me?

Me deepest apologies for my long absence.  It appears that the blog site went through some kind of update, and I was having the hardest time getting signed back in!  But I have figured it out and have some really interesting things going on that I can't wait to tell you about!

Unfortunately, it was way past my bed time when I finally got this far... so I will have to wait.  But I promise, fun pictures and updates are coming soon.

Finally! Ruidoso pics

Ok, so hiking in the snow after a bout of pneumonia maybe wasn't the best idea, but it ended up being fun!

Brian at the trailhead. One-way down, then we had to walk back!

Hmmm, who's a bigger nut?!?

Ugh

I've been trying all morning to upload some photos of our anniversary trip. Unfortunately, the website is not cooperating. Please try again later.

Grrr.

I'm a Pastor's Daughter!

It's been a busy, busy weekend! I flew home to Georgia this weekend to see my Daddy get ordained as the new pastor for Messiah Lutheran Church.

Not only was I in town, but Dad's sisters (Debbie and Robin) and brother-in-law (Don) all made it down from New England.

I also got to visit with some friends in Savannah and enjoy a good meal at Moon River Brewing. The only downside to the whole weekend was finding out that I'm sporting a case of pneumonia. Here I thought the coughing and fever were just a touch of a cold...

A warm welcome to 2012!

Well, a frantic 2011 came to a frantic end last month. I took a moment to reflect on some of the many things that happened this past year, and came up with the following:

*Went house hunting in Savannah

*Stopped house hunting when Brian got orders to move to Texas

*Got married

*Met my father-in-law and step-kids for the first time

*Raised an adorable little puppy

*Quit a job that I loved

*Moved halfway across the country

*Spent 7 months looking for a job

*Made some pretty amazing restoration projects

*Started adapting to Army life

*Spent two weeks with the kids

*Brian and I spent our first holiday season together

*Started a Master's degree

*Met some pretty cool people and a bunch of knitters

*Took computer classes and got Network+ certified

*Finally got hired and started working again!

All in all, I'd say it was a pretty crazy, busy, stressful, wonderful year. I am not really one for making New Year's resolutions, but I do have a few things that I would like to work on this year.

*Stay focused and proactive in my studies

*Make time for taking care of myself, physically and mentally

*Excel at my new job

*Keep in touch with my friends and family

*Explore ways to expand my creative outlets

Between working full time, taking two classes each semester, participating in the El Paso Knitting Guild, and still making time for my husband and dogs, I'm sure 2012 will prove to be a very full year!

We're having a ball out here!

No, really, we went to a Ball! Brian's unit had a Holiday Ball on Thursday, so we got ourselves all scrubbed, polished, and pressed for the festivities. This was Brian's first chance to wear his snazzy new Class A uniform, and I have to say that I think the new colors (blue and black instead of green) look really sharp.

I tried dress shopping downtown, but the choices were, for the most part, not my style and the size selection was limited to say the least. So, I did what I often do, and decided to just make my dress myself! I took a pattern I used before and made a few tweaks, and came up with this purple satin gown. I even finished it was a day to spare (though I did whip up a little matching zippered clutch about an hour before we left).

I didn't lose my slipper, but I still got the prince in the end. :)

Giving Thanks

Well, it's that time of year again. Cooking for hours, eating too much, rushing to finish up my Christmas crafting. And, of course, thinking on all the things for which I am grateful. Here is a short list (in no particular order):

the first full holiday season with my hubby
family that supports me
friends that keep in touch
dogs that lick my hands
an abundance of craft supplies
opportunites, both present and upcoming
plenty of food

Apologies and updates

First, apologies yet again for a long absence. This Master's program is more work than I expected, but classes are going great! I'm working on two really interesting projects at the moment: one on learning theory as applied to knitting and another on the volunteer management system for Army Family Team Building. Very cool stuff!

Secondly, Momo found a new friend! And so did I! Amanda is another Army wife that I met through a knitting buddy, and her 11 month old puppy Lucy is Momo's new BFF. It is such a hoot to watch these two little monkeys play with each other. And, of course, the extra benefit is that they wear each other out so we get some peace and quiet! Harley tolerated their shenanigans, and even tried to get into the fun while chasing the ball outside.

When she's feeling especially lonely and I'm busy knitting or reading in the nap chair, Momo has taken to planting her face between my feet. It's so cute that I can't even get annoyed at how distracting it is.

On the crafting front, it's been pretty low key since I finished the big red chair. Lots of fun little projects and nothing overly ambitious. I've made a few shrugs for ladies on base, and a dear friend of mine commissioned a knitted work: she wanted an obscenely large knitted diamond ring. I am pretty darn proud of the fact that I designed the whole thing all by myself and that it actually came out the way I envisioned! I must be getting good at this knitting thing...
Here's a shot to give you proper scale for the finished product. That's one BIG diamond! And I got to use my new knitting machine to make the band.

The El Paso Knitting Guild had a yarn swap a while back, and I picked up this beautiful bamboo yarn. It's super soft and looks stunning with the way it patterns. But I'm using a size 3 needle and working these fingerless gloves in all rib stitch, so it is taking FOREVER to finish! At least I'm doing both gloves at one time or I would probably never finish the second one...

Just a few years ago I picked up a pattern booklet from Paton's that included felted Mary Jane slippers. I'm pretty sure I bought it just for that pattern. Well, I finally knitted up a pair and they are even cuter than the picture! I had to make a few adjustments, but they are soft and warm and cute and wonderful! And, yes, I will be making many, many more of these. Christmas is right around the corner, after all.

Apart from all the knitting, I also stumbled across an amazingly clever idea: book purses! Who would have guessed, transforming old, hard cover books into charming little purses. I made a practice run with a Lemony Snickett book, then tried it for real on this book about Texas.

It certainly isn't a "throw everything you might possibly need for a two week trip" kind of purse. But it definitely has some style to it. I have a few other old books I snagged from the Goodwill. Let's see how those turn out...

When we moved to El Paso I had this idea that we'd be relatively warmish when most of my New England friends were shivering in their parkas. Sadly, it seems that El Paso doesn't comply with many of my expectations. This morning as I walked the dogs it was a whopping 34 degrees. In all fairness, it's supposed to get into the upper 60s later today. But still. Grrr.

A comfy spot to study

I'm half way through my first Master's level class, and I'm loving it! I start my first Training Specialization class on Monday and can hardly contain myself. I almost forgot how exciting school can be (I say "almost" because a true nerd never forgets..."

I have found, however, that I need a distinct place to do my studying. My craft table works fine to set up the laptop for research or paper writing, but it's not really comfortable enough for all the reading I'll be doing. The big nap-chair is ok, but being in the kitchen nook makes it a little noisy if the TV is on in the living room.

As I was walking the dogs last week, I noticed that someone had left this beat up, sad old chair on the side of the road to die. Sure, it was in pretty rough shape. But under that battered exterior, I saw potential. So I swung by and tossed it in the car to be given a second (or, judging by the age, a third) chance.
Based on it's condition and questionable origins, the chair stayed in the garage during the deconstruction process.

And there was a LOT of deconstruction! I tore out hundreds of furniture tacks and staples, ripped out bags of ancient batting, foam and fabric, and sanded down really awful finish on the wood. When all was said and done, the naked little chair looked even sadder than when I found it.

But, after many, many hours of love, dedication, measuring, fixing, painting, cussing, and more than one hissy-fit, I now have an amazing new reading chair!!

I even rearranged my shelves to create a cozy study-nook. I couldn't be happier if I were twins!

Etsy is BACK!

After a long absence, I decided to start putting items up for sale on Etsy again. I shut down the old site and thought long and hard about what the new site would be. I found that listing just random things that I've made really wasn't such a great idea. So I sat down and had a think, and came up with a whole new idea.

You Got It Covered!


Yup. I'll be selling things that cover other things. Laptop covers. Checkbook covers. Notebook covers. Coozies for coffee cups. Even stuff to cover yourself, like aprons, hats and slippers. I'll post items I've already made, but I'm also open to taking requests. Here's a sample of a few things that are either already listed or soon will be:

I'm not expecting to get rich here. But if I can raise a little cash to buy more crafting supplies, I'll be one happy crafter!

So bookmark this page and check back often for new covers: http://www.yougotitcovered.etsy.com/.

And tell your friends!

A very exciting announcement!

About 10 years ago I was just moving back to Connecticut after graduating from Piedmont with my BA in Theatre. When interviewing for jobs, people would often ask "So what can you do with a degree in Theatre?" to which I archly reply "I can act like I know what I'm doing!"

All kidding aside, I believe that my Theatre degree really has been quite useful. Technical skills can be taught fairly easily, and technology changes to quickly that knowledge can become outdated as soon as it's revealed. But my Theatre degree taught me how to listen, adapt, interact, and communicate. Oh, and it was a lot of fun.

Now here it is, the fall of 2011 is creeping closer, and I'm 5 months into my job hunt. Thankfully unemployment and Brian's income meets all our needs and a little more, so I'm not panicked financially. But I'm just about ready to climb the walls! For a super-motivated go-getter like me, there is little worse than waking up each morning and trying to find things to fill my day.

Granted, I am making some progress on long-neglected crafts. And the baking endeavors have been fun. But I miss doing something meaningful with my time. I miss getting up every morning and having a schedule of important stuff to check off my list. Somehow, a To-Do list that reads "get up, shower, fill 8 hours, eat dinner, go to bed" just doesn't quite cut it.

So, while I continue my hunt for a job (not even "the perfect career" but just a job) I have decided to take on another project. No, I'm not redecorating the interior of my car or knitting a sweater from dog hair or some other senseless time-filler. I am going back to school!

That's right, I am finally going back and getting my Master's degree!! When I decided not to attend NYU right after Piedmont, I always thought that some day I would go back. But I never really knew what I wanted to study. I briefly considered a Project Manager degree when I was working for GP, but the idea of being responsible for a huge project budget was a little daunting. When I was at CCCS, I considered an MBA, but didn't really like the whole "business" aspect of a business degree.

When we moved out here, I thought to myself "Once I find a job, I think I'll look into getting a Training degree." See, I've realized that I'm really good at training. Whether it was mentoring math in college, providing new user training at Pfizer, or conducting first time home buyer workshops, I have a knack for getting information across to people. This weekend a friend asked me "Why wait till you're working? Why not start now?"

Well, I didn't really have a good answer for her (besides not having income to pay for the classes, but that's what loans are for until I start working). So I did some serious internet research, compared a few different schools, and found out that Capella University has a really in-depth Master's of Science in Education: Training and Performance Improvement program. It's exactly what I wanted to study when I imagined a training degree, and it's more affordable that I would have guessed. Classes start on Monday, and I should be finished in just under two years. WooHoo!

Knitted nummies!

Besides hunting for jobs, trying not to melt in the incredible heat, mushing on two adorable puppies, and making edible yummies for my hubby, I've also been knitting up some really fun foods! A college friend asked if I could make some play food for her kid's kitchen, and I think I have risen to the challenge. What do you think?


And, in the on-going quest to find people with whom I have things in common, I have found The El Paso Knitting Guild! It's a group of about 30 people who share my love of knitting and they meet once a month. I attended my first meeting yesterday and learned some very useful tips about I-cords. I also found out about at least three possible opportunities to sell some of my knitted goodies. That's an all-around win as far as I'm concerned!

Another upcycle project!

You may recall me mentioning a while ago that I was still looking for a chair to go with Brian's awesome new desk. I have been trolling Craig's List and Freecycle, hoping to stumble across something that would go with the 100 year old desk. While Brian didn't mind using my old kitchen chair, I have been wanting to get the trestle table posted on Craig's List to sell, and couldn't really do that until he had a chair. So last week I stopped by the furniture sale on base and found this sturdy, though kinda pathetic, office chair. I knew it wasn't exactly what Brian had in mind, but I had an idea that I thought would please him.

First I had to take the whole thing apart and clean the fabric (although it was dusty, the fabric was still all intact. So I decided to leave it as an undercoat, so to speak, instead of trying to remove it all). Once all the metal was cleaned up, I sprayed it all down with some silver spray paint. You might think that it looks a little like chrome. That, of course, was the idea!

Once all the metal was repainted, I started on the upholstery. I had to make all the piping from scratch because, for some odd reason, no one seems to sell bright orange piping in canvas. Bright orange? Has she gone mad or just color blind? Wait and see...After careful measuring, making paper templates and trial and error, I was able to start assembling the fabric covers. The arm rests needed all new padding, so I manipulated some polyfoam to fit over the metal covers.

Unlike the rocking chair face lift, this project required a lot of sewing, both on the machine and by hand. I would have loved to use plygrip again, but the frame is metal and I would not have been able to tack the plygrip down to anything. As it is, the handstitching on the seams went pretty quickly and looked just as nice. Hmmmm, orange and black? Wonder where this is heading...

Once all the seams were secure, I started to reassemble the chair. This went a bit slower then the disassembly, and I had to take things apart and put them back together again more than once. Lesson learned: take pictures of EVERY PART before you deconstruct!

Once all the bolts were tightened and the chair pads reattached, the chair was finished.

And the best part, of course, is that it is a Harley Davidson chair! I found it funny that the most expensive part of this upcycle was the Harley patch for the back.

Beat up old office chair: $3
Harley Davidson patch: $17
Fabric, piping and foam: $28
Awesome, one-of-a-kind chair for my hubby: Priceless!

I wanted to have the chair done for his birthday, but was a day late. However, I did have his originally planned birthday present done and wrapped with a day to spare!This was my first real attempt at embroidery. Brian already has an awesome embroidered Harley shirt, so I decided to go with the Mustang on this one. I'm pretty happy with how it turned out, but I am not a big fan of embroidery and probably won't attempt anything else again soon.

A Busy July

What a wonderfully fun and busy month so far! The kids are here for two weeks and, just like in Savannah, I always seem to see and do more when folks are visiting! Unfortunately I haven't brought my camera to all the festivities (missed out on pictures of El Paso's Downtown Streetfest, the Old Ironsides Museum, and Wet n' Wild waterpark), but here are a few pics I have snapped.

I got to see my first Diablos baseball game! I haven't been to a baseball game in ages, and even though Brian wouldn't let me bring my knitting for the boring parts I still had a great time.

And there were fireworks!! We could actually see the fireworks show from the house the night before, but it was more fun to watch in the park after the game.


When the weather is hot, there's no better way to cool down than fresh, homemade ice cream!

I was super excited that K was interested in crafting during her visit. The first project: a teddy bear! This was a pretty ambitious first step and she did awesome.

After the bear she picked out some cheerful pink Batik and made this sling purse.

Of course, I can't spend that much time in my craft room without something to show for it myself. So I made a new bear out of some lingering fur scraps. I know it looks like he doesn't have a nose or mouth, but he does I promise!

I was also feeling the urge for a new purse, so I made this frilly little messenger bag with an adjustable strap. Once the purse was finished, I decided to whip up a matching wallet.

The wallet actually turned out a lot larger than expected. It's almost a clutch purse itself! I'm not sure how this will work out exactly, but I'll give it a shot for a while. (I used a combination of this and this tutorial to make the clutch, in case you were wondering.)