just maryse

Hello December!

ha! i missed november in it's entirety!  a month known for getting things done in the form of one NaBloSweWriYaddaYaddaYadda challenge after another, i was the anti-NaBlo without even trying. YAY ME! heh.

so what have i done since Rhinebeck? not much. i'm still working 24 hours a week. it's a schedule i'm really enjoying. my weekend begins before i've gotten fed up with my work week! i'm unclear when my last day is though. i thought it would be the beginning of december but now it looks like it's the end of december. the anxiety of being jobless hasn't hit me yet, but i'm sure it will soon enough.

what this awesome 3 day work week did allow me to do, was take a class with the very cute lizzy house at Gather Here in Cambridge.  lizzy is a very talented, young fabric designer and she taught us fabric print design.

now i don't sew.  and i honestly have no plans to design my own fabric, but as i explained on the first day of class (a 2 day - 6 hour a day class), i'm curious by nature, and i want to know how things work. so i swallowed my anxieties about being in a class filled with trained artists and said "what the hell."

and i had so much fun! we spent the first day drawing, and tracing. the last time i spent 6 hours straight drawing, was probably when i was 8 years old. i was much better at drawing then. heh. this time though, i didn't allow myself to edit any of my work. at regular intervals we were given assignments and were made to talk about what we had created so i kind of didn't have time to throw anything away because it wasn't perfect.

the 2nd day, we drew a little more, and then transferred designs to a lino block and carved the son-of-a-bitch. i had moments of frustration because like anything, drawing, carving, etc. requires practice and if the last time you carved into a lino block was in an 8th grade art class, your work will show it.

 

 i call it a design element.

then i inked that thing up and did a test print on the kraft paper covering the work table.

then it was time to print the fabric!

it's kind of cute, right? and in case you can't tell, that little car is supposed to be a mini.

do i see myself getting into the fabric design business? hardly. but this little class really made me happy and i've started doodling new motifs on my ipad.

the moral of the story? do something that scares you. you might love it.

Hexagon Swatches

thinking about some new projects.

 

swatching a bunch of hexagons.

 

 

in eye searingly bright happy colors.

 

NaBloPoMo Day 21

work today was challenging, but not in a good way. the boss was around (he's usually not) and spent more time than was necessary looking over my shoulder, literally.  OMG I HATE WHEN HE DOES THAT. i was tired. conference calls were trying. it just was generally a meh kind of day.

so here's a little list of things that weren't so meh and managed to make me forget about my stressful day.

1. driving home from the train station, i saw a doe cross the road right in front of me.

2. then i went to the grocery store to pick up a couple of things and i bought some wasa crisp bread. i really like wasa crisp bread in light rye. 

3. as soon as i got home, i poured myself a hearty glass of wine.

4. and flipped through the november-december issue of marie claire idees that my dad sent me.

5. i like marie claire idees. and i like that no matter how busy my dad gets, he always remembers to send me the latest issue as soon as it comes out.

6. good night.

 

Back to the Future

this weekend i went to go visit a friend who recently moved out of the area.

her new home looks like a movie set, with little shops and restaurants and people walking their dogs, and folks in cars NOT honking.

where people paint their doors orange.

and bridges are covered in flowers.

only downside, they might be a little behind with the times.  "back to the future" was playing at the movie theater.

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day 150  -- i hate work by the way.

Things I Like Monday ... On Tuesday

a couple of weeks ago i received an email from someone with an intriguing question.  she asked if she could do a drawing of my niece for her portfolio. as a patron of the arts (ok, maybe not), since she was thoughtful enough to ask permission, how could i say no?

i couldn't.

and this beautifully detailed pencil sketch is the result (posted with permission).  isn't it fantastic?

the artist's name is amber uphoff and her website is called "A Shade Better Than Stick Figures." if you're looking for THE christmas gift to end all gifts, a commissioned portrait of a loved one may be just the thing. 

amber also has a blog, from which she sells t-shirts, buttons and mugs with her drawings.    go check it out.

seriously.

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day 137 -- so far, the "new 90210" is lame. 

Things I Like Monday

Vacation Days.

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day 80 --  what I don’t like?  when I lose my internet connection.  this was bound to happen eventually.  that I wouldn’t be able to post for whatever reason.

Things I Like Monday

i'm going to knit night tonight so i'm posting earlier rather than later.  but that doesn't mean i'm writing a long post or anything.

just two items on the agenda:

1.  i'm liking the babette.  i've started section 7 and here are the first two squares for that section.

these may be two of my favorite squares ever.

and

2.  caro's kick ass camera straps are in her shop.   i love them.  especially the squirrel one.  you will too.  go.  now.

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day 73 -- posting early to shamelessly promote the brilliance that is caro.

Air

yesterday was day 1 of the next project spectrum element -- AIR.  AIR is colorless and takes on the colors of whatever particles are suspended within.  since i'm kind of a lover of bold, intense colors, i was at a bit of a loss on how i would approach the next installment of project spectrum.

until i saw this.

this is 9 skeins of debbie bliss dksilk in a beautiful light stone color.  i know what you're thinking.  "holy shit woman!  did you win the lottery?  did you finally meet your sugar daddy?  have you cashed out your 401K?"

no.  before i got sucked into the evil that is packrat, i worked saturday morning at Graceful Stitches and they were having their end of season sale.  50% OFF BABY!!!  (sorry i didn't let you all know but i forgot).

so you know, i splurged.  (and yes even at 50% off, it's still a bit of a splurge especially since i'm not really much of a silk person.)

i have no idea what i'm going to do with it.

it's quite possible that i will just pet it.

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day 46 --this time i have no one to blame but myself.

Things I Like Monday

my parents live in france and whenever dad and i chat on the phone, he and i like to discuss politics. what i share with him is mostly my impressions on the primary process but i seem to talk like i know what i'm talking about.  i have him so convinced that one day he suggested that i run for public office.

yeah right.

(see, there's one reason why i'm not fit to run for office.  i actually believe that one should know what's going on to be an appropriate candidate and effective leader.  ha!)

so a career in politics probably isn't in the cards for me.  but that doesn't mean i can't kiss babies.

here we have mr. chichi mcyarnpants.  such a handsome boy.

and the beautiful miss dot mcyarnpants.  (and to think, she'll eat the sweater off your back if you let her.)

and i love the human babies too.

baby wooly-headed. 

and the wee-beastie.

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day 33  -- not above using babies to get votes.

Rosie O’Donnell’s Crafty U: 100 Easy Projects the Whole Family Can Enjoy All Year Long

So when I was asked to do this review, I was very nervous and I almost said no, concerned that I wouldn’t do a good job or I wouldn’t even like the book. 

Well I can’t be sure that this review isn't horrible, but I’m happy to say that any anxiety I had about not liking the book was unnecessary,  because I really liked it.

I have to be honest though.  When I saw Rosie’s mug on the cover, I was concerned.  I used to be a fan, but over the past few years, she’s kind of made me a little twitchy with her  feuds with various ridiculous celebrities   And well I was afraid that her face would be all over this book.  But it’s not.  Do not worry.

What is in this book are tons (well 100 it says so on the cover) of really great projects for kids of all ages. 

The book is divided into six project sections:  One devoted entirely to decoupage projects; another with rainy day playdate projects, and four seasonal.  In the Spring are cupcake flowers and a bunny piñata, presents for mom and dad.  Summer projects include sand art  and a royal icing sand castle.  In the Fall we have Halloween costumes and paper bag turkeys for Thanksgiving.  And in the Winter  are Holiday decorations and Valentines.   The last section, the rainy playdate section, also includes recipes for “silliest putty ever” and something called “kitchen clay” and invisible ink and fake blood.   A lot of these projects are variations on old classics that many adults will remember from their childhood.  But that’s the best part of this book.  They’re all here in one book.

Yes, I do have some favorites.  I like the section on tie-dye t-shirts and painted sneakers.  And deep down I’m a girlie girl so I like the decoupage bangles and the friendship bracelets.  And the cute Oink! Meow!  Glove Puppets.    I love the string bowl and all of the projects made with paper maché.  (See?  I told you there were some old classics.) 

And there’s a recipe for bubble stuff.  But my most favorite?  The one project that made me seriously consider keeping a copy of this book for myself?  The crystal garden called the Mad Scientist Experiment.  Heh heh.   How great is that thing!?

 

The instructions appear clear and concise and don't overwhelm with dozens of unnecessary steps.   I do recommend that an adult be present for most of these projects though.  A lot of them require mixing and measuring, a glue gun, cutting tool, etc.  If you and your kids are even the tiny bit crafty, you’ll have no trouble with any of these projects.  Some of these projects I admit are less for the kids than for the grown-ups.   For example, only older kids or adults would probably want to make the Miss Lazy Daisy costume by themselves.  But there are plenty for the younger set too.

Now I'll admit that I didn't try any of these projects so I can't vouch for how accurate the recipes are or how relevant the instructions are once you're in the thick of things.  But having read the book, cover to cover, I'm impressed.  I plan on trying many of these projects with my 12 year old nieces, even if they don't want to. (So sad, I'm the only crafty one in the family.)

I've got four copies to give away.  One copy is being donated as a prize for Claudia's MS ride fund raiser.  But if  you want to increase your odds of winning a copy, just leave me a comment and I'll select three winners using a random number generator.

What are you waiting for?  Leave a comment, will you?

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day 19 -- begging for comments