Grati - Tuesday

Today I would like to take a minute and say thank you to a few different people.

First, a thank you to my local post office workers. I think I go to the post office often. Not ALL the time but with the different swaps I participate in, I'm there mailing more random shaped and sized packages than others probably. It's a tiny little post office down the street from where I work in. They know who I am, they like to chat and are always so nice about tapping up my packages when I've run out of my own =P

I am thankful for my Aunt Donna. She recently joined Facebook and has seen all the different crafts I make. I saw her on Thanksgiving, Christmas and a couple weeks ago at my niece's first birthday (she's my Dad's sister). She is repeatedly telling me how talented I am and that I need to "do something with this gift". It really means a lot to me and I love her so much for the encouragement. I really am exceptionally lucky for the family that I have.

I am grateful for Jeremy. I am always so thankful for the things he does for me but it's the little things that I really need. The things he knows I need and won't ask for but he does anyway. He brings me food sometimes when I don't have any (I pay all my bills and then use what's left for food...sometimes it ain't much. He puts gas in my car when I'm almost on empty and pay day isn't near. (Especially after the holidays and all my spare cash has been spent.) Sometimes I don't know what I'd do without him!

And last but certainly not least, I am grateful for my beautiful, little, sweet niece Lindsay!! Look at her in the little dress I made her, isn't she just too stinkin' cute!?!



I hope you are having an amazing day and be sure to say thank you to those who deserve it!

Jamie

Movie Monday: Dark Passage

Last night I watched 1947's "Dark Passage" starring Humphrey Bogart and Lauren Bacall. They are such a great couple!


I was really surprised by this movie and the style it was shot in. Almost the entire first hour is shot from the first person perspective. The story is about Vincent Parry who just escaped San Quentin prison where he was serving a life sentence for murdering his wife. He ends up being picked up by Irene Jansen who heard the news report of his escape. Turns out she was always at his trial and wrote letters to the newspaper expressing her concern for what she thought was an unfair trial. We find out that her father died in prison while also serving a sentence for murdering his wife, which she thinks he was wrongly accussed of.

Vincent realizes that his face is plastered all over the newspapers and there is no way he can escape the city without being recognized. Luckily on the way to visit a friend who was going to give him a place to stay, he is picked up by a taxi driver who has a friend who can "help" him. He goes to this doctor in a back alley and gets a whole new face...guess whose face...Humphrey Bogart's!! The movie switches to the normal third person (is that right?) once he has the bandages all over his face. Eventually they are removed and he looks older but unrecognizable.

Over this time a relationship has been building between Irene and Vincent. I mean obviously there would be a relationship, she's helping him escape for crying out loud! During the movie Vincent is framed for the murder of the friend who was giving him a place to stay. It is very clear that Vincent didn't commit this murder either and he is determined to find out who did! I was pretty surprised who the murderer actually is but they explain it pretty well.

In all I really enjoyed this movie. It was a thriller but kind of a quiet thriller, nobody's jumping out at you or anything. You're just kind of on the edge of your seat hoping Vincent doesn't get caught and gets away!

As you've notice...I'm an old movie kick!
Got any suggestions?!

I hope you're having a great day!

Jamie

Movie Monday Disclaimer:
I live on Netflix and thought it would be fun to share reviews of some things I watch. I do not stream movies as I don't have internet or any kind of gaming console at home. I am on the 3 dvds at a time plan and love it since I don't have cable either. I watch TV shows this way too but mostly movies. If you have any suggestions, please feel free to share!

Fun Fact Friday #4

When I'm depressed...

I want to be alone.

I want someone to just listen to me and let me be sad and just talk it out.

I don't want advice or someone to try and cheer me up or fix it. Just let me vent.

I need to write things down. I used to write A LOT when I was in high school and up until I was about 21 or so. I have a box full of either 13 or 16 journals, I can't remember exactly how many. They are numbered though. The first notebook I ever wrote in my boyfriend at the time gave me, I was about 16 or 17. I was really depressed and mad all the time (went to doctors and was on meds, the whole 9 yards. I was your typical pissed off, gothy teenager.) He suggested I try writing what was on my mind to get it out of my head. It helped immensly.

I also want to do nothing. Like just lay on the couch or stay in bed watching movies.

I go through cycles of being super duper happy and content with my life. Then at other times I will be really sad and depressed and just feel hopeless. It's a pretty normal cycle and I think it's kind of natural. It's the ebb and flow of life, sometimes shit sucks and really brings me down. Then there are times that everything is awesome and I am happy as can be. I think because I went to all those shrinks and write things out I am more aware of my moods. I know when I am sad. I am fully aware that I am depressed and that I need to just push through it, take in and try to fix or leave alone whatever is bothering me. There will be an end to it. I will be happy again.

What about you?!

Jamie

Fun Fact Friday Disclaimer:
I found The Imagination Prompt Generator and loved the idea of writing posts based on its random prompts. Every Friday I will share a lil' something about myself based on these prompts. I see it as a means of sharing a bit more about myself with you! It will be a random topic or question and my responses will be pretty free form and random as well. I'll of course edit for spelling and punctuation but I want to just let it flow for the most part. I hope you enjoy and maybe even join in!

A Hat and a Whale

Liz told me that she had wanted a hat for Christmas but her mom got her a pair of earmuffs instead. When I posted something on facebook about not having any crafts to work on now that Christmas was over she jokingly said I could make her a hat. I told her I would and asked what kind she wanted. She searched around a bit and posted two things for me to look at. One was a hat with cat ears and the other was the Rheatheylia Divine Hat. I asked her what color she wanted and she said either a dark purple, black or grey. I have made so much stuff with black and grey lately that I decided I wanted to work with a nice purple instead. I also decided on the Divine Hat, it's just so pretty!

This is Red Heart Soft in Grape, it is such a pretty yarn and very nice to work with. Now that I see pictures of it outside it's not AS dark as it could be but I think it's very pretty! I read a bunch of the reviews on Ravelry and people said that the hat came out really big and that they had to use a smaller hook. I started with a smaller hook but after the 15th round I realized that the thing was just waaay too small. I guess those people must crochet pretty loosely. So I frogged the damn thing and started it again with the hook the pattern actually calls for (what a concept?!) I ended up adding two more rounds of the shell pattern as well as two more rounds of the ribbed band. This way it comes down over the ears, I mean the whole point of a hat is to keep your head and ears warm, isn't it? It fits me perfectly so I hope it fits her too.




While at the store looking for this yarn I also had to get some fabric for a Tea Wallet I made my swap partner for a Tea Swap I participated in (more to come on that later). I had picked up 3 different fat quarters but ended up only using two in the end. The one fabric I had left was totally asking to be made into a whale stuffie! Liz loves whales so I decided to whip this little guy up and mail him away with the hat as an extra surprise for her. I drew the pattern up, cut out the fabric, sewed him, glued on some felt eyes and a little heart for some added cuteness. After he was done I realized I forgot the freaking spout of water!! Luckily I had some blue felt left from my Mom's flowers that worked perfectly. Normally I would have sewn the spout in but since it was after the fact I was able to finnagle it with the glue gun. He doesn't stand as well on his own as I would have liked but you can mess with him a bit and he will or just prop him again something.



I also figured that Liz would think I'd just give her the hat next time I saw her. I thought it'd be more fun to mail it because seriously...who doesn't love getting mail?!

Stay crafty kids!

Jamie

Movie Monday: Primal Fear

First, let me preface with this; Jeremy's dad gave me a giant box full of VHS tapes.  I guess he was doing a bit of cleaning and knows I have a VCR.  I thought it was very nice of him.  As I start digging through the box it becomes clear that these must all have been his girlfriend's movies. There are 4 Richard Gere movie's, a couple Michael Douglas, some Mel Gibson, etc.  They aren't necessarily movies I would rent on my own but I'll give 'em shot.

I watched a couple so far. One being Primal Fear with Richard Gere.  I didn't even look at the back, I just grabbed it and hit play. 

I was VERY pleasantly surprised to see in the opening credits a shot of a young Edward Norton.   I found out this was his first movie! Fun Fact you might not know about me...I freaking loooove Edward Norton!! He's one of the only 4 famous people I follow on twitter.  Anyway...

Based off the title and the tagline on the cover I imagined this was going to be about a business man who commits a crime or something along those lines.  Boy, was I wrong! (Also, the title doesn't really go with the movie in my opinion.)

It's about this hotshot lawyer who decided to take a very high profile case pro bono.   Edward Norton's character is accused of brutally killing a very prominent Catholic priest.  The beginning is kind of a slow build up because they don't give you a motive.  Of course I had my suspicion which turned out was wrong, similar but still wrong. 

The movie is kind of like a long, more in depth episode of Law and Order.  They elude to a failed romance between Richard Gere's character and the prosecuting lawyer but they don't get too deep into that.  There's some political conspiracy as well. 

Then about 2/3 of the way through the movie there is a MAJOR revelation that I was sure explained the murder! Everyone is satisfied as to why and how Edward Norton's character could possibly kill the priest; the lawyers, psychiatrist, judge, even me!

BUT THEN at the very, very end an EVEN BIGGER twist is revealed and Ooooo it's a good one!!

I definitely recommend this movie, lots of good twists and turns that will keep you wondering and guessing throughout the entire thing!  Plus Edward Norton's in it!

Jamie

Fiber Exhibit

Crochet Concupiscence does a weekly post that includes a call for crocheters. Some weeks ago the post she did had a few different things mentioned but the one that really jumped out at me was the Square Foot Fiber Art Pinup Show.

You are to "Create a 12" fabric square in any textile technique and any material and submit it for our display wall. No theme and no restrictions other than a finished size of 12" by 12"". The deadline is 3/2/12 and there is no fee to enter. People who go to the show will vote for their 3 favorite squares and the top 12 will be photographed and put into the Southeast Fiber Arts Alliance 2013 calendar. You can also allow your piece to be sold with a portion of the proceeds benefiting the SEFAA.

This sounded so interesting to me that I am definitely going to participate! I instantly thought about doing a 12"x12" granny square but then I thought that wouldn't be very exciting especially since I made so many this past year. I thought about it for a while and really wanted to come up with something very different from what I've done in the past, that I'd be proud of and want displayed. I decided that I really love free form crochet and since I have never attempted it, this would be the perfect excuse! It will be something new and challenging for me to try and it'll be a great way to use up some of my yarn stash!
I've had a bunch of free form crochet favorited in my Flickr account for quite a while that I'll use for inspiration. I also found a couple of websites that help someone who has never attempted free form get started. I'm so freaking excited!!! I'll definitely keep you guys and gals posted on my progress and the outcome.

If you do any kind of fiber crafts you should think about participating too!

Jamie

Fun Fact #3

How do you feel about celebrating your birthday?

My birthday is September 28th. As a kid I always had birthday parties. I remember my parents took my friends and I roller skating a few times or I had friends over to our apartment and we played games outside. As I got older my mom took my friends and I ice skating once and a few times I had friends sleepover. I didn't have a sweet 16 party even though a lot of my friends did and after that I didn't do a whole lot for my birthday. I'm not the kind of person who makes a giant deal about it. But I'm also not the kind of person who wants to pretend it doesn't exist. Now I'm to the point where I like hanging out with Jeremy and my friends, eat, drink and play a little Win, Lose or Draw.

The first birthday I had while Jeremy and I were together was probably the best I ever had! We had plans to go to the Eastern State Penitentiary with two of our friends, Bryan and Taylor. As I was doing my make up in the bathroom Bryan called Jeremy to tell him that his car wasn't starting and that we'd have to go pick them up. The thing is, his car was at the Trexlertown bridge and it was fairly new. The whole thing seemed fishy to me but whatever. The bridge is where we get into the Lehigh River when we go floating. It was weird that they would be there at the end of September but I was told they were hanging out with some kids just drinking under the bridge. It's this big area where people hang out, dirt bike, ride bikes, have fires, etc. So whatever, we headed over to pick them up. When we got there, there were a bunch of cars but I didn't take notice to any of them or think it odd since there were allegedly people hanging out. As we were walking down to the river to find Bryan and Taylor I could hear Halloween music. There were also Halloween decorations hanging around and in the bushes and trees. I made a comment that we should stay and hang out with these obviously cool kids! As we got farther down I realized that there was no one around. I also saw that there was a beer pong table set up and an area waiting to become a bonfire. Then all of a sudden my sisters boyfriend stood up from behind the table and Liz walked out from the bushes. Then all these other people came out from hiding. I was so confused until Liz explained that it was a surprise birthday party for me!! All my PA and Jersey friends were there and it was amazing!! Not only was the whole place decorated for Halloween but we had music, food, kegs, cake, a bonfire, beer pong, Jeremy made everyone bring me presents AND a bunch of us camped out in the woods!!! It was so much fun and I really felt so loved by all the time and effort Jeremy and everyone put in to organize this and keep it from me!
The birthday after that is when Jeremy and everyone surprised me with a car! I won't go into that one, you can read all about it here.

I like celebrating my birthday but I don't like it to be a giant deal, I get kind of awkward when I'm the center of attention. Just hanging out with some friends, drinking beers and eating some munchies while playing games is what I love.

What do you do for your birthday?!

Jamie

Fun Fact Friday Disclaimer:
I found The Imagination Prompt Generator and loved the idea of writing posts based on its random prompts. Every Friday I will share a lil' something about myself based on these prompts. I see it as a means of sharing a bit more about myself with you! It will be a random topic or question and my responses will be pretty free form and random as well. I'll of course edit for spelling and punctuation but I want to just let it flow for the most part. I hope you enjoy and maybe even join in!

Book Review: Lost December

For December's book club choice we read Lost December by Richard Paul Evans. It was the perfect book to read for Christmas, I really enjoyed it. I read it on my Pandigital and it went super fast. The story is kind of a modern day version of the Prodigal Son, which the author explains right away.


Luke Crisp was born into a a wealthy family, his mother died when he was a kid but he has a wonderful relationship with his father. His father started and runs Crisp Copy Centers and that is where the families money comes from. Luke was raised a hard worker, managing copy centers at a young age. He thought after graduating college that he would take over the family business but much to his surprise his father tells him he should go to Philadelphia to get his Masters Degree as well as some life experience.
In Philly he meets a group a friends that basically change his entire life. His best friend Sean tries to make Luke see life the way that he does. Sean believes that because they all have lots of money they deserve to really "live", drinking, partying, sleeping around, spending ridiculous amounts of money, etc. After they all graduate they decide to go to Europe and just live it up. Once they get there it becomes very apparent that everyone is living this grand life off of Luke and his trust fund. One thing leads to another and Luke realizes that these people aren't really his friends and they are just using him. Right before he tries to leave he realizes that he didn't have as much money as he thought and that his friends have been spending A LOT more of his money than he thought too. His girlfriend who he had planned to propose to even leaves him when she discovers that all his money is gone!
He comes back to the states and literally only has the clothes on his back. He goes to his fathers office only to discover that his father had major surgery, handed the business over to the Vice President and said "Luke is dead to me". Stranded and homeless in Las Vegas, Luke tries to put his life back together. He lives on the street, in the sewer pipes, at soup kitchens and selling the few belongings he has to get by. One night he is mugged and beaten. A man name Carlos literally rescues him. Carlos feeds him and takes him to the nursing home that he manages. He gives Luke a job there and a place to sleep. After a little while Luke gets a second job at one of the branches of his fathers copy centers. He meets a woman that he falls in love with and tries to mend things with his father.
It has a very happy ending, I was literally crying while I finished the book. It's totally a riches to rags story and full of life lessons. It was the perfect story to read around Christmas but I can imagine it being great anytime of year. Like I said it goes very fast and I highly recommend it!

Jamie

Gifts for Kristin

The book club girls and I do a Secret Santa exchange for Christmas instead of each of us giving gifts to the 4 others. It's pretty great because not only do we get to focus on one person and really try and come up with something awesome for them, it's easier on the wallet!

This year I got Kristin and I knew I wanted to make her a scarf too. I thought about making a hat as well but decided against it in the long run. Again I kept leaning toward cable pattered scarves but decided on this slightly different take. I found the pattern on Ravelry of course.

Whenever I think of Kristin I instantly think of the beach, she's a total beach bum by all definitions. However, a scarf is a winter item so how the hell can the beach come into play?! The beach makes me think of pretty blue colors. Kristin wears more neutral and muted colors so when I found this blue it just made sense.

This scarf didn't take too long. I did have to look at the pattern for almost 2/3 of the scarf because I just couldn't seem to remember it off the top of my head. The number of stitches on the outside of the center cable changed a lot so I guess I just couldn't remember. It didn't go as quickly as some of the others I've made but it wasn't too difficult either. I'm very happy with how it turned out though.

I also found this really cute pillow on CafePress. It seemed really appropriate because Kristin is also a huge music lover. I love the design so much!

Hope you're having an awesome day!

Jamie

Some Gifts for the Bestie

This year I made Liz a few different presents.

First I made her these adorable decopauge ornaments. Normally I don't like to give people Christmas themed presents, it kind of seems like a cop out to me. However, in November I saw a picture of decopauged ornaments like these and I instantly wanted to make them for her. I know that she loves things made from old book pages so these just made sense. I headed to the thrift store looking for an old book that I could tear up. The only suitable one I found happened to be an old Algebra book from one of the high schools around here. It seemed pretty appropriate since her boyfriend has a Math degree. I figure next year they can put these on their tree! I jazzed them up with some glitter glue and ribbons too. She loved them a ton which is always the best response to a gift!




A while ago I saw a print someone did of a stylized tree with a heart and carved initials. I don't really make prints but I remembered seeing this wood patterned fabric in my interweb travels. An idea started to form in the crafty part of my brain. I headed to Etsy and found a fat quarter of the exact fabric I wanted, just enough for the idea I had. My idea was to embroider a heart with "Liz & Larry" in it (obviously Larry is her boyfriend). Initials just seemed too plain so I went with full names. I mean even the full names is fairly simple but I think the image and idea of it is so sweet. I used the same Maximum Rabbit tutorial to make the hoop nice and puffy and the back finished.



Last but not least I made her a new tampon carry case. One of the very first things I ever sewed for Liz (and a bunch of other people) was a tampon carry case. I heard her mention on Halloween that she needed a new one. BOOM Christmas present idea stored in my head! This one I made a lot better though (well some of the execution is a bit wonky but that's what I get for leaving shit to the very last possible second, literally). Instead of just a pouch, I added a pocket and made 4 separate compartments for the tampons. I thought I had some good fabric that I could use in my stash. Once I looked throught them, I didn't think she'd like most of them or I just couldn't find anything good to coordinate. I'm not totally in love with these two fabrics but oh well, live and learn. They looked nice when I layed them next to each other but once put together, I was a bit underwhelemed. Anyway, it will serve it's purpose.



I also gave her this adorable purse made by LoverlyForYou.



She loved everything which is always the point!
Hope you're having an awesome week!

Jamie

Movie Monday: Rebecca

style="text-align: left;">I watched the movie "Rebecca" last night and it totally gets 5 stars from me! Interesting fact: it is the only Hitchcock film to have won an Oscar for Best Picture.

It was made in 1940 and is about a young, shy woman who meets a wealthy widower while in Monte Carlo. They fall in love, marry and she moves into his gigantic mansion. When she gets there, it is painfully obvious that the memory of the first Mrs. De Winters, Rebecca still haunts the place. Mr. De Winters is clearly still effected by the memory of her as are servants. The woman who manages the house completely hates the new Mrs. De Winters too.
At the beginning we are lead to believe Rebecca drowned in a boating accident. Then her body is discovered (the first body identified really wasn't her!) and everything starts to unravel. Apparently Rebecca told her husband she was pregnant but by another man. In a fit of rage he accidentally kills her and tries to cover it up. As the story progresses we learn that she really wasn't pregnant and Oooo the suspense of what really happens unfolds!! I won't tell you more because you really should rent it!

The whole time I was watching this movie I was so captured by the story and the characters! It's an amazing film, full of suspense, mystery and brooding atmosphere. It's also one of the most romantic movies I've ever seen. Not the kind of romantic with pink roses, boxes of chocolate and makes you want to puke though. It's just a very beautifully made movie. I loved every minute of it and I'm definitely going to watch it again before I mail it back.

Also, the character Jack Favell's voice was soo familiar to me. I looked it up and he is the voice of Shere Khan the Tiger in Disney's Jungle Book!

Have a wonderful day!

Movie Monday Disclaimer:
I live on Netflix and thought it would be fun to share reviews of some things I watch. I do not stream movies as I don't have internet or any kind of gaming console at home. I am on the 3 dvds at a time plan and love it since I don't have cable either. I watch TV shows this way too but mostly movies. If you have any suggestions, please feel free to share!

Do you Twitter?

I've been on Twitter for a little while now. At first I thought it was kind of weird but I really like it now. I can chat with other crafty ladies and blog friends. I get to see when people have new blog posts, giveaways, pictures, etc. Also I love when people post links to other sites of interesting or funny stuff that I normally may have missed.

So I'd like to be able to keep in touch with you all more! Do you have twitter?! I'm @jamietoohey

Tweet ya later!

Jamie

Fun Fact Friday #2

Could you stay in bed all day and think?

I could definitely stay in bed all day. I've been known to stay in bed for a ridiculous amount of hours as it is already. The "bed" I have now isn't that comfortable but the bed I used to have was pure heaven and I could stay in that thing all day given the right circumstances (rain, the bf, and movies). Right now I have a futon. It's a bit classier than you are thinking, you can see that actual one here but it's still not that comfortable. Now to stay in bed all day "and think" I'm not sure I'd actually be able to stay awake the whole time and think. I'd definitely fall asleep off and on. Although, dreaming is kind of thinking isn't it? If I couldn't have my phone or watch a movie I'd be okay but I'd definitely want to read. For some reason I associate reading with being in bed. It's actually kind of hard for me to just sit on the couch and read, I'd much rather be laying down and reading. I guess that comes from always reading at night before bed. I mean that started when I was a kid and my parents read us bed time stories and continued into high school when I'd read before bed and even now. I get in bed, I pick up a book...it just makes sense, comfy and reading! Plus if I was in bed all day and thinking, I'd come up with ideas and plans and things that I'm sure I'd want to write down. As you may remember, I loooove a good list. So when I get to thinking a lot and planning things or wanting to remember something I have to write it down in my little notebook. All in all, I'm pretty sure I could spend a whole day in bed!

Could you?!

Jamie

Fun Fact Friday Disclaimer:
I found The Imagination Prompt Generator and loved the idea of writing posts based on its random prompts. Every Friday I will share a lil' something about myself based on these prompts. I see it as a means of sharing a bit more about myself with you! It will be a random topic or question and my responses will be pretty free form and random as well. I'll of course edit for spelling and punctuation but I want to just let it flow for the most part. I hope you enjoy and maybe even join in!

Gifts for Jessie

Sometime around Thanksgiving my sister saw me wearing the earwarmer I made myself last year. She loved the idea of it keeping her ears warm but not messing her hair up. Jessie does a lot more with her hair than I do, she curls it, wears little barrets and what not so understandably she doesn't want it to get mussed. Obviously I would have to make her an earwarmer for Christmas! She loves this dark maroon color and I thought the off white really looked nice with it, very wintery and pretty. I made her earwarmer with the same pattern I used before but instead of a few little flowers I decided to make one giant flower instead, pattern found here. I also was able to use buttons from my Nana to secure the back. While I was making it I figured it be awesome if she had a scarf to match! Again I faced the dilemma of loving cables but not wanting to give everyone the same damn scarf! I looked and looked and LOOKED for something I thought she would like. I didn't want anything too plain but not anything too complicated either. I actually saw a girl at the grocery store with a really pretty ribbed scarf. It was a varigated yarn which I never like but it gave me an idea. I would make a ribbed scarf and then jazz it up with a pretty border. This was the first scarf I made that was worked longways, I used the easy ribbed scarf pattern but didn't add fringe. It went super fast but I couldn't find a border that I liked. They were all too lacey and grandma looking. Eventually I settled on this one that I found on the Lion Brand website, it went quickly too. When I put it on to see how it looked in the mirror, I fell in love with how the border hugs right up under your chin. It is so soft and warm! When she opened it she gasped and said it was beautiful, I love people who give awesome reactions to presents!! She popped it right on and loved it instantly. When I told her the buttons on her earwarmer were from Nana she loved it even more. I'm so glad she liked it, I always second guess myself when giving people gifts!




While searching for the border pattern I came across this jewelry holder on the Lion Brand site as well. Jessie has about a million dangley earrings, they're basically all she ever wears. They're all so pretty and I hate to see them just in a pile on her dresser. I figured she desparately needed one of these things! I didn't really like the pattern used on that one though, it was too dense so I just searched around a bit for a different shell or scallop crochet pattern. I found this beautiful shawl on their site and figured out how to use a different hook size to get the 3 scallop patterns to fit into the 12x12 picture frame I found at the thrift store. Thank goodness for people who leave reviews of patterns. I never leave reviews but I totally read them and use them as a basis for whether to use it or find another pattern instead. Everyone said to use the chart another user made! I mean A. thank you to everyone who said they used the chart and that it was much easier but B. thank you to the woman who made the chart!!! The pattern really was hard to understand just reading but seeing the chart made it crystal clear! I whipped this guy up in a day and then just stapled it to the back of the frame with a staple gun. She loves it and sent me a picture the next day of it hung up with all her earrings on it!




Stay crafty my friends!

Jamie

Oh Strumpets Valentines's Craft Swap

Oh Strumpets is organizing a fun swap for Valentine's Day!


That pretty much says it all! You have until Friday to sign up, I did and you should too!

Jamie

Gifts for Mom

Not too long ago Mrs. Priss posted a tutorial to make little felt flowers. I thought they were so stinky adorable but what the hell would I ever do with them? I'm not really a flower kind of girl but I bookmarked the post anyway because I knew other people would enjoy them and I could find a use at some point.

Also, as I mentioned here my mom just moved to Arizona a few months ago. When she lived in PA she had a real house and tons of gardens. She had a garden in front of the kitchen that she refered to as her "Old English Garden", it was just a mish mash of lots of beautiful and colorful flowers. I even helped her plant some of them. She also had a lily garden that went all the way around her greenhouse that was SO beautiful!! She even had a shade garden of different ground covering type plants along the fence because it didn't get much light there. In the back yard she had a vegetable garden which I think I will miss the most. There's nothing quite like making a salad with tomatoes your mom grew. Not to mention her greenhouse full of different cacti and houseplants. Needless to say, my mother is one hell of a gardener and has two giant green thumbs. Now that she lives in an apartment in Arizona, she doesn't have her gardens anymore.
When I was thinking of what to make her for Christmas, I remembered the felt flower tutorial! I decided I would make her some little stump work emrboidery hoop gardens that she can hang in her apartment. I chose a theme of all blue flowers because she really loves the color blue, in all shades she loves blue!




Keep craftin' kids!

Jamie

Movie Monday: Harvey

I've done movie reviews in the past but I want to make this a more constant series here for you lovies. I've mentioned it before but in case you didn't know, I live on Netflix. Whether I watch movies or TV shows, it's pretty much all through Netflix and I love it! Lately (since before the summer) I have been on a kick of old movies. Black & White, that horrible color of the 60's and 70's, all just old classics for the most part.

It's kind of great to watch all these movies that are really awesome but kind of forgotten about because we are always inundated with what's out now. I have a few very favorite actors and genres and Netflix is pretty great about suggestions. Plus my sister has the same sort of taste as far as these types of movies go so we are always telling each other what to rent.

I had mentioned to my friend, Jess recently how much I love Jimmy Stewart and she recommended the 1950 movie "Harvey" to me. To be honest when she told me it was about a guy with an imaginary 6'3" white rabbit, it sounded kind of weird.


It was awesome though! I found out through some of the extra features that it was actually written as a play and Jimmy Stewart was in that too!
The movie is really well done and in the beginning you can kind of see why his family is concerned that he has this imaginary friend. I mean he talks to him all day long, they go to the bar together A LOT and he doesn't see anything wrong with it. I'd be more concerned with how much he drinks but his family is mostly just worried about their reputation. Through some funny miscommunications while his sister was trying to admit him into a sanitary, she was admitted! Toward the end you actually start realizing, who the hell cares if he has an imaginary 6'3" rabbit as a friend?! He isn't hurting anybody and he's one of the most pleasant people around, even though he may drink a bit. I won't ruin the ending but it's really good. Not too serious but not too slapsticky either. I highly recommend it!

Jamie

Movie Monday Disclaimer:
I live on Netflix and thought it would be fun to share reviews of some things I watch. I do not stream movies as I don't have internet or any kind of gaming console at home. I am on the 3 dvds at a time plan and love it since I don't have cable either. I watch TV shows this way too but mostly movies. If you have any suggestions, please feel free to share!

Dress for my niece

As you may or may not remember, my first niece was born in January last year. She is the most beautiful, happiest, sweetest little thing! When I started thinking what to make her for Christmas and looking on Ravelry and Etsy for crocheted patterns for babies. I fell in love with all the tiny hats and booties and thought I could make her an adorable little set! At Thanksgiving I mentioned it to my step mom, Lonnie and she said it was a great idea. My Dad chimed in though that at the moment it's impossible to keep a hat on her let alone anything on her feet. Apparently she's always taking her shoes and socks off, bummer! I had noticed quite a few little crochet dress patterns during my searches but some were just too frilly and ridiculous while others looked really difficult. If it wasn't Christmas and I didn't have a big ol' list of other stuff to make I might have felt more confident with spending a lot of time on one. However, with all the other stuff I was making I knew I'd run out of time. Lonnie thought a dress would be perfect though, DOH!
I asked what size she is wearing now since I always hear that babies don't actually wear the size that goes along with however many months old they are. Good thing I asked because she is just about to be a year old but is wearing 18 month old clothes. I searched and searched some more for a dress pattern that didn't look impossible or too freaking frilly. I mean I get that she's a little girl but she's not a doll! Anyway, I kept going back to this one dress from Crochet Garden...it is just so cute! I thought it looked so beautiful in the bright red so I used Vanna's Choice in scarlett. I got to work on this little gem and was so pleasantly surprised at how easy the pattern was to follow. It's worked from top to bottom and is almost all one piece. The straps are separate pieces you make afterward. I stuck with white ribbon and little roses. I also decided to buy a little white turtleneck she could wear with it.
When I went back to the ER for my pancreas I brought it with me to work on because I figured I'd be waiting a while. I'm glad I brought it because I got a lot done and it actually sparked a conversation between myself and some other people in the ER waiting room. I was sitting all by myself when all of a sudden a big group of people, a few years younger than me came in and sat all right around me. I came to find out the one guys mom was in a car accident and rushed to the hospital. All of his friends came with him for support which I thought was wonderful, they were like a family themselves. Well we were all sitting there and after a while one of the girls asked what I was making. I held it up and showed her it was going to be a dress for my neice. At that point the top was done and I was about 1/3 of the way through the skirt. She of course "Oooed" and all the other friends looked and they started asking all kinds of questions. How did I learn to do that? How long does it take? When do I find the time to do it? And what not. It was kind of nice to talk to them since we were sitting right next to each other and were all in kind of crappy situations at the moment. Plus they were all what I refer to as "gangsters". I mean they aren't really, they're just all spanish kids who grew up in Allentown, ya know...like urban and hip hop kids. So, we're really different people but we were talking about crocheting, it was funny to think about afterward.

Anyway, once I finished the dress I have to say I was pretty impressed with myself. It's just so beautiful! Jeremy kept commenting on it as well which definitely means something. I was so excited for Christmas Eve and everyone to see it. Basically only Lonnie, Jessie and Jeremy knew I made it. I didn't even tell my step sister, Karyn or my brother in law Keith that I was making it. Before we opened gifts Karyn was talking about how she has been looking for a dress for Lindsay's first birthday party but hasn't been able to find anything she's liked. Lonnie and I both looked at each other and giggled. Karyn was saying she really wanted something purple since the baby is always in pink which was kind of a let down. Once they opened it, everyone was so surprised! My Aunt even said that it's a family heirloom which kind of made me almost cry. I mean that's a pretty serious thing I think. Everyone went on and on about it and asking me all kinds of questions about it too. Later on Karyn told me that they are going to have Lindsay wear it at her birthday, that means so much to me!!!
I can't wait to see her in it and get pictures. For now all I have are the pictures I took before I wrapped it. (LOTS OF PICTURES!)







Isn't it the cutest little thing?!
Thanks for stopping by, I hope you're having an awesome day!

Jamie

Gifts for Jeremy

Ever since the scarf I made Liz for her birthday in September, Jeremy has been "subtly" hinting that he could really use a scarf too. I wanted it to be different from Liz's but at the same time I am in love with cables, I just think they are so classy. After trying to find a pattern for him with no success, I decided to make his almost the same as Liz's. The only difference is I only added one cable on the outside of each edge instead of two for his. I also wanted it to be a pretty neutral color. Jeremy and I are similar in that we both basically only wear black, grey and other dark or neutral colors. Plus he just got a really nice new Dickies coat that is black so I thought a grey scarf would look nice with it. I got to work on it and then realized he needs a new hat too. He's been wearing the same striped visor beanie since last year and it's pretty tattered looking now. I looked all over Ravelry to find a hat for him. I couldn't decide whether to make him a hat that matched the scarf or not, he's not exactly a matchy-matchy kinda guy but sometimes a hat and scarf combo can look really nice. After not being able to make a decision I realized, why the hell not just make him two hats?! I found the first hat with the cables patterns to match and according to the reviews the pattern was pretty easy to follow. I didn't like the brim on it so I just omitted it. This thing is SO thick and warm! The pattern said it was "one size fits most". Well apparently Jeremy has a big head because it's kind of tight on him. He said he doesn't mind though and I think it'll stretch after a while. The second hat...well...I don't knit, right? But I REALLY love fair isle patterns. I think they are kind of kitschy but so cute at the same time. I have the Son of Stitch & Bitch book and there is this awesome hat and mitten set with fair isle skulls that I would love to make for Jeremy. I was on the hunt for how to crochet fair isle patterns. After searching and searching I came across this post on Craftster. I did a few test swatches but didn't really like how they were turning out, the pattern ended up really large and it just didn't look right. Back to the drawing board I went...well back to Ravelry actually. I found this pattern for a skull beanie and thought it would be perfect! I didn't like the crossbones bit so I just didn't do them. It was kind of a challenge at first with the color change and carrying the grey yarn along with the black when not in use but after trying, frogging, trying again, etc. it turned out great I think! It's kind of big on me but it fits Jeremy so that's all that matters! I made sure to use the same grey yarn as the scarf for the skull so they'd look good together too. So, without further adieu...

The scarf.


The matching hat.


A close up so you can see better details.


The skull beanie.


Close up of the skull design.


I'm really happy with how all of these turned out and he loves them too which is the most important part!

Stay crafty kids!

Jamie

Fun Fact Friday #1

I would like to invent...

Oh I know EXACTLY what I would invent if I was smart enough to be able to, a teleportation machine! Not a time machine, that seems a little dangerous. People messing with the past or the future definitely could screw things up. But being able to teleport to work or to my Dad's or my Mom's and back home would be AMAZING!! Not only do I get really nervous in the car when someone else is driving or anxious when I'm driving myself somewhere new (thanks to effing car accidents) it is so expensive! Cars cost money to buy, to upkeep, to insure and to keep full of gas. I hate it! Plus they are murder on the environment, literally. I'm sure there would be costs for teleporation, like to buy the damn machines and have them installed in your house or for the electricity it probably would need to power them. I still think they'd be way better than having to drive cars. They would mess up a good ol' fashion road trip I suppose but I've got 3 of those under my belt so I'm ok with that!

What would you invent?!

Have a Fun Friday!
Jamie

Fun Fact Friday Disclaimer:
I found The Imagination Prompt Generator and loved the idea of writing posts based on its random prompts. Every Friday I will share a lil' something about myself based on these prompts. I see it as a means of sharing a bit more about myself with you! It will be a random topic or question and my responses will be pretty free form and random as well. I'll of course edit for spelling and punctuation but I want to just let it flow for the most part. I hope you enjoy and maybe even join in!

Crash!

And now for something completely ridiculous...

On the SECOND DAY of my new job I was rear ended on the way to work! I mean it was the worst luck EVER! I was slowing down to a stop on the exit ramp. There was so much traffic that the cars wanting to exit were stopping up on the highway still. Well the dude driving behind me (who had cut in super close behind me to begin with) did not see all the traffic??? so he slammed right into me. Since the traffic was starting to stop up on the highway and there is an entrance ramp in the same lane as the exiting one, I was sort of pulling toward the shoulder so people could get onto the highway behind me. Luckily I was not pushed into the car in front of me but I felt my head whip forward and slam back into the head rest as I screamed "NOOOO" at the top of my lungs and slammed on my breaks to try and stop my car. As soon as it stopped I could feel shooting pains in my neck! I got out and went to the back of my car to look at what this jack ass had inevitably done to it. The guy came over and asked if I was ok and to look at my car too. My car seriously looked fine, like maybe a few scratches on the bumper, if that (keep in mind it was 6:45 in the morning, the sun wasn't up and he had turned his car off so the headlights weren't shining on my car). I told him my neck hurt so he insisted on calling 911. I sat in my car and started crying and called Jeremy. He told me that if my neck hurt that I was absolutely to go to the hospital and to not worry about the job, they would understand. I was so worried because I was going to be late on my second day of work!!! Since I am a temp, I only have the phone number for the temp agency and they don't open until 8:00 am. The people at Nestle would have no idea I was going to be late and would just think I wasn't coming back! Thank God for rational boyfriends who can talk you off a ledge when in a shitty situation, I was really freaking out!! When the cops showed up, one came over and stuck his head in the window to ask if I was ok so I told him my neck was hurting. He stood up and yelled at the top of his lungs "NECK!" and then the ambulance guys came running over (they had parked behind the other car so were talking to him first). An EMT guy got in my back seat and held my head straight until another guy showed up with a neck brace. They put that horrid thing on and put me on a freaking stretcher. They took me to the emergency room where I was poked and proded. At some point my pelvis (yes, my pelvis) started hurting at the spot that sometimes bothers me from my previous accident. When I mentioned that, they wanted to xray it as well as my neck to make sure nothing there was injured again. After a few hours, blood work, pee work and the xrays I was declared fine to go home but not back to work for the day. I had to wear that lovely neck brace for the remained of the day. I seriously felt like some kind of shady, cartoon character in that thing! Like I was about to try and sue somebody! I walked out of the ER to get into my sisters car and she couldn't stop laughing at me. I had also been in touch with the temp agency and of course they were understanding. Now all I had to deal with was finding my car (they towed it), the insurance company, getting a rental car, and the cops. UGH!
When I woke up the next morning I was extremely sore on the whole left side of my body, my back, my arm and neck. I called the temp agency and they said I could take that day off as well since apparently every one is usually more sore the next day and she was expecting to hear from me! I also had a horrible pain in my stomach and believed it to be really bad gas (I once went to the ER when I was 18 because I thought my appendix burst but was told it's cholic). I get it every once in a while, essentially I have gas in my stomach and it won't come out. I lay in bed, rub and massage my stomach til I either burp or fart (very lady like as you can imagine) and it goes away after a while. I never really know what it's from but I knew I had eaten a stupid amount at dinner the night before so just thought it was that. However, it didn't go away AT ALL. For the whole day I just kept burping and was all full of gas, it was really uncomfortable. I tried to figure out if I was allergic to anything I ate or drank but mostly just tried to ignore it and deal with all the car stuff. Then Friday morning I woke up with the same horrible pain right under my ribs and was all gassy...again I just thought it must have been something I had eaten. Well by Saturday it hadn't gone away and everyone was hounding me to go back to the hospital because "What if you tore an intestine or something?!??" so I did. Turns out I had an "Inflammed Pancreas". There isn't a whole hell of a lot they do for you with that other than give you some pain killers (not even any good ones) and make you eat a bland diet until it goes away. It was almost another week before I was back to normal AND I found out that my car was MUCH worse off than I had thought. Almost $5000 worth of damage! Essentially the entire trunk of my car "accorrdioned into your back seat" the adjuster said. I still have a damn rental car and won't get mine back until January 8th!!
Of course I am lucky that nothing worse happened and I have had the best experience with all the people at Progressive. They really made everything as easy as possible for me. The rental car isn't too bad either, it does have heated seats but I miss my automatic starter, CD's and the thing I use to listen to Pandora on my phone through the car radio (I hate the normal radio).
Plus...tell me I don't look so silly in that picture!!

Have a great day and drive carefully out there!

Jamie

It's a New Year again

For 2012 I have set 3 more crafty goals for myself.

1. I will finally crochet myself a cardigan!

There are few patterns I have saved on my Ravelry account over the past year but I think I only searched for Free patterns. I need to go back and look again for any kind of pattern, as well as search on Etsy. I received a subscription to Interweave Crochet magazine for Christmas so maybe I will find a pattern in there. Do you have any suggestions for other places to look for nice crochet wearable patterns? Some of the ones I've been coming across are kind of bulky and not too cute.

2. I will crochet a few items to donate to charity.

I have found a great list of charities that accept crocheted items over on Crochet Concupiscence. Do you have any favorite charities that you donate handmade items to? I am trying to decide whether to find local charities to donate to or just any charity that means something to me. Maybe I'll do a little of both, who knows?!

3. Open an Etsy shop.

I've been talking about this for over a year and I really need to just do it already!!! I don't care if it is super amazing and well thought out and organized at first. I just need to make a few items, open it and go from there! I can pretend that I am "planning" and "organizing" all I want but really I'm just procrastinating because I am scared it will be a big failure. I just need to do it already because I will regret never doing it if I don't.

4. Is probably obvious but...get back to blogging on a more regular basis, I miss it so much!

Do you have any resolutions?!

I hope you all have a wonderful new year!

Jamie