chumbama

I've been laid up on the couch for the past three days with the latest cold/flu bug that's been going around. I'm grrr-ticked off that I'm sick because people have been coming into the office when they know darned well that they've got something. So, their over it by the weekend and back at work while I miss the unseasonable summer-like weather on my days off, stuck inside taking over-the-counter drugs like clockwork. (I think the pseudophedrine is making me cranky, eh?)

Last week, one of my co-workers and I planned an inauguration viewing party (yes, during work hours...it's history in the making!) with cupcakes. I made the Obama-esque toppers with our logo thanks to a nifty app from Paste Magazine, but may not be able to enjoy the sea of Lilliputian rally posters on toothpicks (they are so cute!) because I may have to take another sick day. I'm considering dropping them off in the morning for the office crowd to enjoy, but I've been having slows starts in the morning with this cold and may not make it there in time. If we don't make use of these toppers, I just might head out to Legoland and sneak them onto the parade route of their inauguration replica built out of legos.

i won

Earlier this week, I received a call that my raffle ticket was the winning ticket for an opportunity quilt from the Country Loft. I've purchased so many raffle tickets for quilts that I really couldn't remember who they were or when I even entered their raffle, but I was totally excited to have won whatever it was. Turns out they had a booth at the past Race for the Cure in Balboa Park.

We picked the quilt up this weekend from their adorable shop which is a converted quaint house behind a white picket fence. The shop was chaotic and full of quilters. No sign of a recession in there. Turns out they were holding an Open House and the quilt enthusiasts were abuzz signing up for classes and buying supplies for new projects.

When I let one of the ladies know that I was there to pick up the quilt, the ears of the shop workers perked up and they all peeked in from various doorways to get a look at me. They seemed more excited than me!

The quilt is beautiful and filled with vibrant colors! They mentioned the quilt maker and quilters names, but I forgot them a few seconds after hearing them. Fortunately, one of the ladies suggested that they contact the quilt maker and have her create a label for me including the quilt pattern name too. They seemed happy to hear that I completed my first quilt last summer and made sure I had their class list in hand before leaving with the quilt.

lord have mercy

Holiday breaks spent with loved ones typically include mindless hours in front of the t.v. watching marathons of shows you didn't watch during the season (most for a good reason) and movies which didn't make the must-see list earlier in the year.

As I baked my test batches of Barefoot Contessa's pecan shortbread cookies, Steven Seagal's direct-to-video Kill Switch was playing in the background. This movie is priceless! I think his on again/off again accent is supposed to be Southern, but it sounds more like he's trying to channel his inner Isaac Hayes (who plays the Coroner). Now, imagine Steven Seagal referring to people as "Baby" using a Marky Mark intonation. In one scene, he used his long drawl to exclaim, "Lord have mercy!" three times. At one point, I almost thought he was going to call out to the po-po, but it was only half-baked as " the poh-lice". Not too surprised to find out that multi-talented Seagal wrote the script. (He's in a blues band too.) The fight scenes are just as awesome. While the stunt double is getting pounded, they splice in shots of Seagal throwin' punches and slicing the air with a knife.

Most memorable scene for me? When B pointed out that the bad guy and his soon-to-be victim enjoyed tea time before the crime and we noticed that we had the same exact tray. The tray was a thrift store find back in our old Hillcrest neighborhood and was featured as the background on one of my older posts.

What a way to start off my viewing experience for 2009. Let's hope I get back to sewing before I can get my hands on a copy of Above the Law when his accent changes to portray a master of Aikido.

Happy New Year!

flirty skirty

When I got up on Saturday morning, I headed straight for my sewing machine to finish this Flirty Skirty apron. I had to get it in the mail that day in time for my sister's birthday today.

We all flew out to Austin for her graduation from Texas Culinary Academy in July. We were so surprised when we read on the program that she was graduating as Suma Cum Laude! Way to go! She's starting a new job with a bakery soon. I thought it would be nice for her to have a bright, cheery apron to wear to start off her work days...at 4 a.m. Baker's hours, yuck!

This is my first hand-made gift. I'll definitely make this apron again, but will have to rethink how to apply the pockets. Hope she likes it. Happy Birthday, Sis!

press and sew

Even pressing the seams before sewing will take more practice for me. For this project, I had to press 1/8" seam, followed by a 1/4" along the waist and bib of the apron. The curved area was a bit forced and I the seam wasn't consistent in width. I thought it wouldn't matter too much, but when I used my machine's guide lines for 1/4", the fatter part of the seams didn't catch the fabric turned over for the 1/8" fold. In the future, I'll keep an eye for all straight lines for the pattern.

I completed the body and attached the pockets yesterday. I decided to minimize the rick rack to the top of the pockets. I was planning on lining the perimeter of the apron with the rick rack but when I laid it out on the table, it looked a bit too crafty.

how sweet it is

After a long break full of distractions, I'm finally getting back on the sewing track. During my weekend-long birthday celebration, my family and I found ourselves in Carlsbad and I had to show them the fun fabrics at Sowing Sisters. Barb, my instructor for my first quilt was there and got me excited about taking another class. The others were also caught with the bug, but delegated the projects to me and my mom who are the only ones who know how to sew (though I'd barely call myself a sewer yet). We left with patterns for an Amy Butler purse and two aprons with fabulous fabrics to work on the projects, of course.

Yesterday, my Sowing Sisters sewing sister, Linda (we were in the same quilting class), and I went to the San Diego Quilt Show. We spent the entire first half of the day at the show, leaving with more projects for ourselves. I found an easier apron kit and she's going to take on an Amy Butler quilt kit. We were walking down the aisle commiserating about our rookie quilting woes of lining up seams, so we were both so excited to find the quilt pattern she chose which didn't require lining up any seams! I was tempted to buy one as well, but figured I had plenty on my plate already and needed to get started on those first...it took a lot of restraint to pass up the fabrics/kits I saw. After lunch a yummy garlicky shrimp burrito from Tin Fish across the street, we headed into the scrapbooking event back at the Convention Center which she had passed for.

I'm going to start cutting the fabrics for the Flirty Skirty apron tonight, after my next bass lesson from B. Learning how to play the bass is about as on track as my sewing progress...

I indulged in a summer day of plans to nowhere with B (it's Labor Day weekend after all!) before jumping back onboard the sewing train. We started the day hunting at the swap meet, then found ourselves on a long country drive to Julian. One of our great finds was this original painting titled "How Sweet It Is"...very fitting for our day!

fair henna

Last weekend, we went to the San Diego County Fair with B's parents who are annual visitors to the garden, wood working and fine arts exhibits. They seemed a bit disappointed with the garden exhibit. Maybe they were less elaborate this year due to drought concerns? I really liked smelling the roses (so fragrant!) and was surprisingly drawn to a red rose with just five petals, the Paul Ecke, Jr. rose. It looked delicate, yet vibrant. Not a very rosy name though, eh? I later found out that he was a local horticulturalist.

We wandered by the animal pens -- floppy-eared bunnies, hornless baby goats and cows, lots of cows -- and were headed toward the wood working exhibit when I saw the henna booth. I've always wanted to have this done at other street fairs, but the lines were always too long. Luckily, my timing was right and I was able to sit in right away. I was really impressed by the symmetry of the free-hand design the henna artist completed. I think it looked better than the picture in their sample book!

They suggest you keep the henna paste on for at least 6 hours. I made it through the fair, then as we sat down to wait for the shuttle to take us back to our car in Solana Beach, I crossed my legs at my ankles and yup, you guessed it, I smudge some of the paste off. Fortunately, it was dry and that part of the design was already absorbed into the skin. I'll just have to wait and see if that area fades sooner than the rest. I'm sure it'll be fine. It's survived about a work week now and is still looking good!