Status Update

Posted in Uncategorized by

Just wanted to drop in for a quick post to let you know that I survived last weekend. Great times were had by all. Limoncello shots, rocking out in the car, and tons of hysterical laughter on Friday gave way to a more adult evening on Saturday. Good beer, great cheese, and awesome friends! Can’t wait to plan another fun weekend together.

This week flew by. Nothing too exciting, just a lot of errand running, etc. Unfortunately, I wasn’t able to get my planting done. Hoping for maybe next week or else it will have to wait until after vacation. I popped into Anthropologie yesterday and picked up a couple of cute shirts for summer. Oh, and did I mention that it’s actually flip flop season here? Finally!

We are making the trip down to visit Club Ponderosa for the weekend. Looking forward to some great weather and quality time with the family. We’ll be back on Sunday and that’s when the countdown begins for HHI ’10! Can’t wait!

Hope you have a great weekend!




The great washcloth project.

Posted in She's Crafty by

I have just finished knitting a washcloth marathon project. Six washcloths in two weeks, plus a soap sack. Three washcloths and the soap sack were for a dear friend to celebrate her moving into a new apartment. The other two were because I had the leftover yarn and decided to . . .just keep going. Suffice it to say, I am not knitting these again for quite some time. I will admit that they are super easy and fast to knit up. Perfect for watching some LOST and Fringe. Now I’m moving on to attempt a Clapotis. Wish me luck!

BTW That project I sneak peeked earlier? Well its done, I just need to get a photo. I promise to post in next week.

Is it the weekend yet?

Posted in Uncategorized by

I know it is only Tuesday, but I am already jonesing for the weekend to get here. Really looking forward to having my sister and some friends over for a beer tasting! Shawn and I won a free beer tasting party through a fundraiser at his work and we decided to have it this weekend. The theme is going to be locally brewed beers that are great for the summer. Can’t wait!

Hello, my name is Samantha . . .

Posted in She's Crafty by

. . . and I am a sewist.

What? Okay, let me explain. I’ve just joined a “twelve step program” sewing group. This group has been started by Chickpea Sewing Studio as habit forming way to keep up on sewing projects: For 12 months, 12 days a month, I will sew for 1 hour. I like the idea of this plan because its not too ambitious, but will give me a bit of structure/incentive to continue to work on my sewing skills. You can work on any project you like: hand sewing, quilts, clothing, etc. I will be holding myself to this outside of any sewing classes I might take. I am hoping that this will help me take my sewing to another level.

Anyone that cares to join me is welcome. There is a related flickr group here to show off projects, check it out to get some ideas. I’ll be posting projects there, but will make some blog posts as well. Wish me luck!

Look what I made!

Posted in She's Crafty by

Well, I did it. I actually made a real honest-to-God quilt. I still can’t believe it. Much thanks to Anne Smith at Sticher’s Crossing for much hand holding and reassurance.

I am pretty happy with how it turned out. Of course there are some changes I would make, different fabric choices being the foremost in my mind. It’s a bit too bright and I’m not 100% happy with how the grays and browns work together, guess that means I’ll have to make another one. ;0)

Patience and accuracy are truly key. Things that I need to work on. I learned that it is about the process and I can’t skip any steps. The slower I went, the better things turned out. I also realized that I have to limit the amount of time I work on the project. After so many hours, I tended to get tired and want to rush things or not be as careful. This just ends up having to be ripped out and started over, so it pays to take breaks and know when your brain is done.

The hardest part was the actual quilting process. My sewing machine is a bit too wimpy, not to mention I had to use a regular foot, not a walking foot. This made things difficult. I am not yet ready to shell out the money for a better machine, but I know that it will be somewhere in the future if I continue to make any more quilts. Especially if I graduate to a larger size. (This one was a “crib/lap” sized quilt.)

Something I enjoyed that I thought that I’d hate? Hand-sewing the binding. It was quite easy and somewhat relaxing to do while watching TV in the evening. Plus, it kept me warm while I worked on it!

I have already signed up for the next class, it starts May 17th! 



This weekend:

Posted in Lists, Uncategorized by

Ah, the anticipation of a Friday afternoon. My work is done, now I just have to wait for the hubby to arrive home. It’s aallllmoooosst the weekend! Fortunately, there are no big plans. Here are a few of the things I am really looking forward to right now.

Finishing up my first quilt, all I have left is hand-sewing the binding!

Going to the Dane Co. Farmers Market tomorrow morning. Coffee, fresh flowers, hopefully some good veggies, and a chocolate longjohn. Yummm.

Going out to a nice Saturday night dinner with just the hubby.

Working in the yard and cleaning up the garage this weekend.

Spending tonight curled up on the couch and watching TV with Shawn while Walter snores away on his bed.

Lazy Sunday morning reading the papers while savoring some freshly brewed coffee.

Purchasing a food processor.

The wicked thunderstorm that should be here any minute.

Hope that everyone has a great weekend!

Try Tri Earrings

Posted in Fashion by

I succumbed to temptation and picked up some earring from Sulu Designs over on Etsy. I’ve purchased some of her designs before. I really love how simple and light weight they are. Plus, aren’t they just the perfect shade of blue?

Gypsy Time

Posted in Tunes by

Friday I went down to the Chi to visit Roz and go to see Devotchka and Gogol Bordello in concert. Such a great time! Both have strong Eastern European musical influence. I’ve seen Devotchka in concert back at Lollapalooza ’08. They are the main reason I wanted to go to the show. I mean they include an accordion, sousaphone, and theremin, what more can you ask for? . . . How about a cirque du soleil-like performer doing crazy poses hanging from a silk curtain? Insane! Gogol Bordello is a bit different, taking that gypsy influence and infusing it with punk. More energy, but not as lyrical. The crowd was WAY into it though, very entertaining to see people crowd surf to a violin/accordion battle. Bizzaro bit was the back up dancer wearing a mid ’80’s outfit doing Jazzercise routines. Girl was on crack, yo.