east.west

all the food you can handle

2008-07-28T21:53:00.000-07:00

i've been bad/good lately and trying new recipes, like these spelt peach-brown sugar muffins, which are completely delicious. i didn't do a side-by-side or anything so i don't know if it's the spelt or just that it's an amazing recipe, but they're dang good. it was my first time with spelt flour also. i've never avoided it, but just like most things i'm encountering as i become a better vegetarian/vegan, i just never knew it existed until recently. i think it says a lot about the way we eat that so many vegetables, for instance, are unrecognizable to us.

i also am a pushover when it comes to things my husband wants me to bake, because i'm just so excited he wants me to bake something. so i made these chocolate chip cookies, but i can't remember where i got the recipe.

i also made the millet and broccoli for Veganomicon's Millet-broccoli croquettes that i will try to make in full tomorrow evening.

these whoopie pies were attempted this weekend. i ran out of powdered sugar so they weren't as filling-heavy as the ones in the video, but i loved them anyway. they were incredible. though none of my stuff looks as nice as the experts' do. but, hey, the important piece is the taste, right?

in other food news, i picked up a "gypsy pepper" which was a beautiful eggplant-y purple colored bell pepper. i was curious and my husband was nervous, but it tasted like a more mellow green bell and it had this soft green color on the inside. i kind of love it. i can get so nerdy about food, but it really was lovely.

i also really want to make these amazing looking "parmesan cutlets" some time this week. i guess everything but the cookies and the whoopie pies are at least pretty healthy.

untitled 1

2008-07-24T21:36:00.000-07:00

instead of cookies last night, i had a pack of peanut butter crackers. but i made the oreo cookie cookies tonight (from have cake will travel) and had two. i have to admit: they're pretty great.

today was the same as yesterday but i had cherries instead of a plum and for dinner we had a stir fry with brown rice and zucchini and kale and carrots and onions and garlic and green bell pepper with cashews and sesame seeds on top. some grapes and cookies finished us off for the evening. this weekend i'm planning some good baked and otherwise cooked goods. i should compile a list at work tomorrow in my down time.

yesterday i worked on the sock and would have finished but i hit a snag in my understanding of the pattern and had to pull a little out. i'm avoiding it now, until i can figure out what i'm doing.

2008-07-23T11:47:00.000-07:00

i'm thinking it'd probably be a good idea to keep track of what i eat each day to make sure i'm getting all my nutrients. the first 5 years of being a vegetarian i wasn't so good at doing it right, and then there were 5 years of doing it a little better, but this past year, with my husband deciding to become a vegetarian and me cutting out eggs and dairy, i've gotten really into reading about the science of it and getting nutrition books and taking notes and looking up ENDLESS amounts of DELICIOUS-looking recipes. but i've never been one for counting calories or anything like that, so keeping track of the nutritive value of what i'm eating doesn't come naturally; i just sort of do the mental checklist: "yep, i've had a couple of vegetables in different colors today." but i want to be sure. and i want to show our friends and families and coworkers and communities around us that we're eating healthy, we're eating well, and we're eating delicious food. i want it to look easy and fun and crazy delicious. and i want us to be healthy. i think the best way is to keep track, at least for now, and since this is just here for me, why not here, where i am keeping my progress in other things, like crafting. so, today, i have had or plan to have:
-flax toaster waffle with peanut butter
-handful of tortilla chips, almonds, cashews, and walnuts
-a black plum
-a peach
-a peanut butter sandwich (natural of course with whole wheat bread)
-two caramel rice cakes
-a bag of baby carrots
-leftover tamale pie from last night, with kale, onions, yellow squash, and green bell peppers
-salad with sunflower seeds
and i might, might end up making oreo cookie cookies because i am a horrible person. none of it is fancy or impressive, and i'm probably missing some extra veggies since the ultimate goal is 9 fruits and vegetables each day, but it's a start. we eat pretty much the same lunch every single day. it's balanced but doesn't make for great reading. but that's ok. i read people's food blogs for inspiration and exciting reading. this is just in the name of science (or something like that).

socks in progress

2008-07-21T21:46:00.000-07:00

"child's first sock" from nancy bush's knitting vintage socks.

i tried this techinique from the book where you cast onto two needles to give extra flexibility but i think i made it just too loose, so i might have to unwind from the top once i'm done and cast off, but i don't want it to be too tight, either, so a little research might be due. this is a very bad picture,but you can sort of see the pattern in the book. it's a super fun and surprisingly easy pattern that i'm really enjoying knitting:

all i want is more

2008-07-20T14:32:00.001-07:00

more things i've been working on:

the zip bags need to be pressed and i think i still need to perfect the little side tab. i'm trying to find the exact right length that makes me happy.

a simple, and very quick cowl. when i first learned to knit, i ran out of yarn very shortly after starting my wonky little scarf and just sewed the ends together, thinking i'd practically invented "the neck warmer" as i called it. 7 years later, i keep seeing cowls everywhere. i like that things have come full circle.

Some embroidery i've been working on. the teal didn't turn up as well on the gray as i'd hoped.

next on my list of things to do are the "child's first sock" pattern from Nancy Bush's Knitting Vintage Socks and finishing this baby cardigan i've been working on. i'm at the sleeves, but i'm frogging the little vest from last time's entry for the yarn and it's being difficult, so i got the sock book at the library and am going to let myself get distracted briefly on that project.

dedication?

2008-07-12T20:58:00.000-07:00

i'm still alround though it's been a disaster of a week at work since my boss got fired and i have to make heads or tails of everything i can (is that even a phrase?). i've finally been working on some things, and finished some others. first up, i finally finished those socks and gave them to a friend for her birthday

and i finished the fair isle beret, though it turned out a little bit of a strange shape, which i guess is the nature of the beast. i've finished another little beret but i have to take some pictures. i feel funny putting my face up, though...so i took it off and put up a replacement one. it's silly but oh well...

and i'm getting finished on these handpainted art supply bags. i put in the zippers today and just have to sew up the sides tomorrow. i'm glad to have these done. i painted them a few weeks ago but had to get some thread and stuff like that.

also, this tiny vest has been in the making for a while.

i've got some more finished objects but i'll save them for tomorrow maybe.

back in black

2008-06-16T14:25:00.000-07:00

i'm trying to lure myself out of a semi-self-imposed sabatical from crafting right now. it's definitely time. since i couldn't do anything with a broken arm, and then a recovering broken arm, i got used to sitting around and now need to break out of that. i still don't have my full range of motion in my arm, but enough to get most crafts done. so, my goals need to start being defined (because i'm crazy like that and can't start anything without a list) and it also got me thinking how nice it would be to treat this midway through the year thing like a half new year's. like a half birthday, this would be a time to celebrate and to remind myself that i don't have to wait for any specific time of the year to resolve to do things i want to do or be who i want to be. yes, i see the irony in waiting until exactly 6 months into the year to do this, but i'm not perfect. i have undiagnosed (self-diagnosed) ocd - that's how it works. i'm a new me, what with the new short hairstyle and almost having two working arms, so it feels like a good time anywya. i try to keep resolutions and the like more of a picture of what the coming year would, ideally, look like rather than commandments but it seems to be a mix running through my head right now:

-exercise damnit! i've been trying to jog at least three times a week. stick with it! get up early. it'll be fine.
-thou shalt avoid dairy. if i was on my own, it'd be easy, but i'm not. i live in this world with a husband and parents and in-laws and friends. that's what makes it a challenge. you believe it, so live it.
-get grad school recommendation paperwork to professors.
-write a short story a month. i will force myself to actually stick with a story, play with the dreaded middle, and possibly even create a whole story and multiple drafts. just for fun. just for the challenge to the way i usually work.
-i will open my etsy shop for the fall. back to school august is the time. it's not about selling stuff, but about creating things i'm proud enough of to present to the world as from my brain.
-let's plan our next big trip. august is australia to visit my dad. what's next? i want to get excited and have something to look forward to. and then we'll know how much we need to save, even if it's 3 years from now.
-we will sell my car by the end of the summer and put the usual car payment amount into the house fund. it will be so.
-take friend up on offer (after i asked) to teach some chords on the guitar. write a song for husband.
-get up nerve to play it for him. ugh...
-email in spanish with laura
-contact each of my cousins at least once this year. i'm going to be the glue that holds us together across this great nation of ours if i need to, even though i'm impossibly self-conscious about being interesting enough to be that person.
-talk to local community garden or m & h or b & m about whether they'll take compost. if so, start composting.
-volunteer with local organic farm once a month
-take a pretty picture once a day

hmmm, yes, that sounds good. it's pretty average and basically the same thing i always hope i'll do, but there's nothing wrong with reminding myself, right? i'm the kind of person that needs to write and rewrite my notes before a test so it makes sense.

depression sets in

2008-06-13T11:49:00.000-07:00

i was supposed to go to portland next weekend. i've been planning this trip for a while but only finally got around to pinning down my accomodations (staying with my cousin, who i idolized as a kid, so that was going to be fun) and figuring out when to go. admittedly, today is a little late to be booking my flight but i called about these credits we had a couple of weeks ago and figured it woudln't be a big deal. except that apparently the credit is in my husband's name so i can't use them. it's totally my fault, but i still can't help being furious with the dumb rule that says that because my husband cancelled his flight the day of, rather than two weeks earlier - under which circumstances i could have used the credits - i'm screwed. except that, oh, he couldn't have cancelled earlier because we'd booked the flight the day before because his grandpa had a stroke and was dying. i know you can't give exceptions out to everyone but it seems like in this case, when it's my husband, not some complete stranger, it wouldn't be a big deal to just change the first name on the credit. now i have vacation days with nothing to do and will probably watch movies all day (which has its merits, but i was kind of looking forward to something else) and it's the second time i'm having to cancel on my cousin and a friend who live up there days before i'm supposed to be there (see grandpa-in-law having a stroke), so i just feel like a bad friend and flaky and i'm just really disappointed. and mad at myself. and mad at delta. at least it's friday...

great...

2008-04-06T09:18:00.000-07:00

oh, good. i broke my arm.

works in progress

2008-04-02T07:49:00.000-07:00

Since i'm bad about actually finishing projects, i tend to have 5-10 things happening at once. i did manage to finish this bag tonight, though i still need to press it. it's definitely nowhere near perfect, but i tend to rush things when i'm anxious to finish. it's the handbag from Bend the Rules Sewing. The striped fabric is from a collection of napkins i picked up at the thrift store last weekend. the inside green is darker than it shows up here; it's kind of an army green, and it's from a great tablecloth i thrifted a couple of months ago.

Here we have my husband's anniversary gift in the making. i'm making these little wee wonderfuls in our likenesses. He's been working a lot of overtime, which makes me endlessly bitter, so i've had a little time to work on them. though i picked some bad fabric for the clothing and had to back it with some flannel cotton after the fact. hopefully they turn out okay. i love their little heads so much. all the fabrics except for the wool for the hair and the cotton flannel for the faces and hands were from thrifted sources or my fabulous collection from my mom, which i got during her recent move.

i also just really love the backsides of their heads. the outline of their hairlines on the pale fabric is just too cute.

i've also been working on some knitted items. this is a little "convertible top.dress" pattern i'm trying to perfect. it would actually have two straps, not be a halter but i just wanted to get an idea of what it would like with more than just one dangling strap. my plan is to make it adjustable so it can be a little dress for an infant and a top for a growing baby. i've still got a long way to go, though. the color's showing up horribly here, but it's a straight-up teal. it's from recycled cotton.

these are those two patterns i was working on a couple of weeks or maybe a month ago. the first is a sweet little beret. i put a felt "button" on the flap because i didn't want to have any choking hazards. i figured this would be slightly less of a concern. i need to find a way to display it better so the shape can be better seen. it's made with organic cotton.

and this is a tiny little dress that turned out girlier than i was expecting to make. i opted for a less flowery flower as a decoration and put it in neutral colors to balance it out and i like the way it turned out. this is also organic cotton. and it's very sweet and tiny.

lastly, (though not really because i still have to weave in the ends on the striped socks i finished and i've got a fair isle beret i've had sitting around for a while waiting for more work and probably a zillion other things), i started a little amuragami (oh my god, i have no idea what the word actually is but i am too lazy to look it up now) pig for my australian niece who loves pink. a couple of these are gifts to send along to australia when my dad and stepmom get out here to visit, like the bag and the previously seen socks. i'm still not great at crocheting, but i'm trying! i got a bunch of hooks and a book and a carrying case from the husband for the holidays.
i guess that's it for now! work's been nuts so it's been nice to blow off some steam (a phrase i probably once promised myself i'd never say) with some good ole crafting.

more in the works

2008-03-15T17:00:00.000-07:00

some hanky holders. two cotton flannel hankies will fit in each of these. i love using handkerchiefs and it's always better than using paper you throw away...except when i'm really sick. otherwise, you'd have to have a zillion. i still have to press these:

a little dress i'm working on. i'm really excited for this but i think i might run out of yarn before i can finish:

flailing

2008-03-12T10:19:00.000-07:00

i'm kind of too lazy to figure out the legalities of putting pictures up from corporate websites, so i'll just link.

i've been failing miserably at my attempts to green up my lifestyle in a more systematic way. granted, we do pretty well, but the hope was to really step it up. i've been having issues figuring out what to do with the water that's collecting in my bucket in the shower and my husband's probably tiring of it sitting there full of old, cold water. i've been too scared to start planting anything because i don't know a thing about keeping plants alive and i haven't mopped even though i should. i'm thinking it might be easiest if i put a little plastic watering can in there one day and the next day a smaller bucket for using to flush the toilet or something. the larger bucket when i'm going to mop on a weekend or something. this takes a lot of thinking! i've also resisted buying all of the fancy eco-things i want, like this aerating showerhead, to reduce our water use. and these sandwich wraps. part of it is that this month i'm trying to work on my consumerism. which was a stupid decision considering this month we've got a lot of things, like a bike for my husband and helmets for both of us, to get and i'm saving for a new camera. but, i figured that there's always going to be something so it would be a better challenge to make this work while we're in the middle of wanting to consume a lot. however, i do think it's important to REDUCE first and foremost and then from there, get the recycled and greenest options.
so my goals are:
-to buy secondhand clothing only, which i basically already do, but now with no excuses (though underclothing is new...until i learn to sew my own underwear, which i think would be rad). and i joined the Wardrobe Refashion challenge to help spur me along.
-and i'm buying only rechargeable batteries,
-and used cds, dvds and books (though i blew that last night when i bought "curious george" new for my nephew).
-also, i want to really try to buy local, unless the price difference is significant. so, for instance, i'm trying to find someone locally who sells locally-grown and spun yarn or at least someone who recycles yarn locally, but it's been tough. i realized that the time it takes for me to do it would end up forcing me to sell things for more because of all of the extra time, so we'll see what happens there.
-also, though we don't eat out very frequently, i'm going to attempt to only eat at locally owned restaurants.

anyway, it's a constant battle i guess so it makes sense that it feels like i can't keep from always realizing that i've failed again in this little experiment, but i guess that's human, right?

getting the hang of it

2008-03-11T11:38:00.000-07:00

here are some more projects i've been working on. well, this is that completed sock. completed but for some kitchener-ing at the toe:

and a new beret. it's got a sweet little flap that will close up and hold a felt button (we don't want any babies swallowing a hard button right?). it's very simple, as most of my designs are because my whole goal is to make organic, repurposed, and cute as affordable as possible but i've got a couple of ideas that i hope will make it feel even more special. i do like the little flap, though:

once i get all of my stuff finished, i'm collaborating with a friend who is, sadly, moving to houston next month but who is a fantastic and creative photographer. i'm really excited. i got really inspired by this yesterday. what a great way to show how your clothing lays and moves and set yourself apart. i think alyson fox must definitely be the bee's knees.

works in pr...done

2008-03-09T09:22:00.000-07:00

finally, some progress to be shown:

that "artsy clutch" from Bend the Rules Sewing:

I made it reversible. these are both fabrics from vintage pillowcases:

my first sock; i'm hoping it'll fit my stepmom who's coming to visit with my dad from australia in about a month. since it costs so much to ship to them, i save most of their gifts for when someone can pick them up, so i'm trying to get together a big package of stuff to give them to take back to the nieces and nephews out there...plus a little something for them too.

here's a prototype for an art pouch that i'm making for east.west. my hope is to finish up an art smock i'm working on and have them color-coordinate. my goal is to finally get this off the ground in april with a "spring collection" of which this will be a part. it's larger and has little zipper tabs but i think i'm going to change the tabs a bit and hand sew the lining. i like the look of it better usually. the fabric is vintage from my mom's old collection:

lastly, here's that silhouette thing i was working on for our house. my husband oh-so-kindly pointed out that i looked like cro-magnon man (i'm on the right), so i think i'll work a ponytail into mine to give myself a neck:

double trouble

2008-02-29T14:26:00.000-08:00

i forgot about it being a leap year until today. it makes me feel like i should be doing special with my extra day, really living it up.

that's how i tend to feel a lot of the time: like i should be out there enjoying life more. what that means is hard to say. to everyone it means something different. i struggle a lot with not getting frustrated about working. i do non-profit work, even, and i still have a hard time finding the meaning in seeing coworkers more than my family and spending 40 hours of my week working...oh yeah, for the next 50 years. of course i know the importance of what i do, what we all do, but, like i said, it's an ongoing struggle. which is why i'd like to find a way to allow what i really love to become a larger part of my life, whether that's knitting or spending the day with a friend. doesn't it seem like everyone seems to find more time than you for fun when you're looking around at blogs? i know it's because we're only seeing snippets of each others' lives and that when you look at a blog, spanning years sometimes, you're looking at an overall picture, painted by the writer. lots of pictures and excited stories about camps and trips and, sometimes, sadness, isn't the same as living through it all and we all have the boring, mundane days. not everyone writes about them, though. with all of that being said, i've got a pretty amazing life and amazing friends and family. i just want to make sure i recognize the opportunities i have for enjoying that. it's supposed to be gorgeous weather this weekend, so instead of sitting inside sewing all day, which also has its merits, i'm going to try to make sure i get out lay in the grass with my man until we're ready to go home.

so, i decided that before i cut off all my hair for locks of love again, which i'm planning to do in a couple of months, that i should take advantage of having long hair and do my hair in the heidi braids i've always loved and admired. my hair's super thick and doesn't like to be tamed, so it's ridiculous looking but i'm trying to work it anyway. dang, i can't keep one of these postings short. that should be a little challenge to myself.

superbad

2008-02-29T09:51:00.000-08:00

i'm so bad at this posting thing! i need to step it up. the whole point of this was to keep myself working and feeling accountable, so i need to start making that actually happen. i keep needing to make gifts for people, which doesn't help, but that's a pretty lame excuse. speaking of, i'm doing this silhouettes for our house right now. hmmm...looking at them right now i see some thickness on mine i'm not too excited about due to my mane blocking the fact that i have a neck. is that why i see a lot from disneyland with the little girls in ponytails? or maybe that's just because it's a popular style for little kids. they were going to be a gift for my husband and then i remembered that he actually doesn't even really like silhouettes but i do, so i guess it's really a gift for me. i have this really rad frame from a thrift store that's wood and has three little oval cutouts...hopefully he doesn't dislike this once it's done. we frequently have a difference of opinion when it comes to decor. for instance, i love this SO much and he really, really doesn't. i'm tempted to get it anyway (we each have a VERY little bit of personal money to play with each month) for some future office space of my own or something (like, in 5 years). i'm debating it heavily in my head.

anyway, i haven't been very good about my eco-goals. i mean, i'm doing what i always do, which is nice and all but i haven't been pushing myself to reach the less waste goal for the month. it's a shame because some of it costs money (like more mesh bags and those sandwich wrap things) but that's a bad excuse too. i could make stuff or go to the store more often and get less so i need fewer things or a million other things. but i'm feeling pretty re-energized so i think i'm finally feeling the fire under me to really get going. i think this weekend i'll force myself to pare it down to what we really need to make or order to use less. we have really cut down on what we're tossing, though, so at least we've hit that goal. we are only having to take out the trash twice a month at this rate. we're feeling pretty good about that. we just need to keep it up.

february already

2008-02-05T15:56:00.000-08:00

i'm a little disconcerted at how quickly this year (uh, this lifetime) seems to be going. this weekend i did not get to those striped sleeves but i did manage to start three more projects! the whole thing i was trying to do where i focused on something instead of getting excited and moving on didn't seem to work so well. but there's always next weekend i guess. since valentine's day is coming up, i decided i should make my husband a little something. we go out to dinner (or, rather, we're going out a week early) but don't do gifts, but i figured a little something homemade breaks no rules. i got some really pretty yarn that is brown but has these little blue fibers. I also started a little vest from this book that will go on my little husband doll for our anniversary. i'm going to make "myself" a little jumper dress that i've been thinking of making a pattern for. i figured modeling little knit-wares on these little dolls would be pretty cute. what's the third project? oh, yeah, i'm doing my little fair isle beret. i'm really excited. it's from this book and i've been thinking a lot about berets lately and after i'm done with this one i'm going to make a little one for my doll. the beret and jumper-dress patterns will hopefully turn out and then become items for east.west . i hope they turn out as cute as they are in my brain. this is the one i've been working on:

i've also just got to add the eyes to this little monkey for my nephew's upcoming birthday. it's from this pattern, which was very easy and i recommend it.

also in my brain lately is lost. but, a lot of my friends are really into lost also and i decided on the perfect holiday and birthday gifts to give throughout the year that ties in my love of giving handmade gifts, my love of hand making gifts, and my love of lost. i'm afraid to post anything in case sometime in the next year one of them stumbles upon this. or, who knows, maybe some day i'll stop being so self-conscious and actually tell someone about this. i guess i'll wait until i can wait no more. since i'll be making some of it for my husband, too, i cant even tell him. i want to tell someone though! since this is a great big void it's very, very tempting.

lastly, i've decided to focus on reducing my waste this month. my husband thought i said reduce my WAIST when i first told him. who knows, maybe one will lead to the other. my goal is to reduce my waste to the point that i throw nothing away at work...zero...by bringing my lunch and not eating little pre-packaged goodies or using paper napkins or anything like that, by recycling all paper that comes my way, and by using a handkerchief instead of tissue and a towel instead of a paper towel. now, all of these things i already do, but it's time to get serious. every once in a while i really want some chips from the vending machine and, when i can scrape together pennies found at the bottom of my bag, sometimes i'll indulge. i'm not against some occassional indulgence, but i'd rather have something i really want and not just whatever happens to be there and cheap when i want something bad for me. i'd rather go get some ice cream with my husband that night or something. at home, i want to reduce our waste to no more than two trashbags full every month. we're relatively good about recycling and not printing out needless things and buying a ton of disposables and pre-packaged things, but trash adds up quickly and i want to get dedicated about it. to me, this means a couple of things have to change: i'm going to purchase those sandwich wrap-mat things for each of us for our sandwiches, to reduce our ziploc use (though we do always reuse them, it's still a lot of ziplocs used at the end of the year), also i'm going to get more mesh produce bags and the linen ones for other bulk items, like rice, etc. i'm also going to finally sign up with http://www.greendimes.com/, i think, to stop our junk mail insanity. we rarely go out to eat, but when we do, i'm going to bring my own container for leftovers. and that towel and handkerchief thing go for outside of work too. except when i have a cold. what else? i guess that's about it. we already use a shampoo bar with recyclable box container and no conditioner and bar soap. ugh, i did have a setback, though. for a while i've also been using a face soap in bar form but my skin was really upset about it so i have switched back to the bad old face wash but i am still a work in progress, so that's going to happen sometimes i guess. so, since most of these are already in place, i'm thinking it won't be too tough. getting my husband to not leave me in a restaurant if i break out some tupperware might be tough and we do have a couple of purchases to make, but i think it's going to be a good month. i eventually want to start composting but that's a semi-pricey change, so that'll come when it can. and we would just end up donating it to some local garden or something anyway, since we have woodchips in our backyard. anyway, i guess that's it. i'm too wordy i fear.

oh! and i finished that bag that i was working on. i haven't decided whether i'll put buttons on yet, like in the original. i made some fabric buttons from a bright blue fabric for this side but since i made the thing reversible (the opposite of the way the fabrics are in this picture), i'm not sure the buttons would all lie flat very well on both sides. in the meantime, i've been proudly sporting it anyway.

lost lost lost lost lost lost

2008-01-31T19:38:00.000-08:00

looking at these pictures, i'm thinking i might need to do the camera thing with that birthday money. i love my point and shoot (a very generous holiday gift from my husband/then-boyfriend several years ago)... we'll see. anyway, here are some works in progresss (the extra s is *totally* on purpose):

this is a little zippered pouch i tried. it's my first time with a zipper and zipper foot! i still have to hand sew the lining to the zipper. that seems really scary. eventually i would like to create a little pencil pouch for little ones but want to play around with the pattern.

this will eventually be the "artsy clutch" from bend the rules sewing (by amy karol). i absolutely LOVE these fabrics. they're both from thrifted pillowcases. i've been afraid to start it for some reason; i guess it's because i don't want to do anything that isn't absolutely perfect with these pieces of fabric. they'll look so cute in this cute pattern, i'm just afraid i'll mess it up somehow...

this is the sweater pattern i'm working on. it's a test pattern so it's for myself. i love the colors together but the cream one was thrifted and i totally just ran out so i had to get some to replace it and it's slightly off, but oh well; luckily, it's just for me and i'm known for wearing mismatching, holey clothing on occassion. i'm going to hopefully finish the back tonight, and the sleeves this weekend.

and these will hopefully eventually be one of these (the short sleeved shirt). i got this (and 9 other simplicity patterns) at joann's when they were on sale for $1 EACH! last week. it was beyond the deal of the century. the red shirt is a shirt i'd gotten because i liked the fabric but the cut was a little less than flattering. i've been dying to use it for something cute though. hopefully i can take it on. yes, i'm trying lots of new things and if i just started on zippers, maybe i'm jumping the gun on shirts? yes, probably. but that's usually how i do things. i tend to jump on in and hope for the best.

speaking of, i ordered these last night. i'm really excited. since my husband doesn't (well, no one) read this (therefore the overly personal and confessional quality), i can say that i'm going to make olive and archie in the style of me and him for our upcoming anniversary. 8 years. that seems like it's doll-giving time. i showed him the other patterns and he actually thought they were really cute. i might do a cat one that looks like our cat. since we are, you know, obsessed with her. i want to make a little bear for my 1 1/2 year old nephew and a bunny just because. plus, she made a fox once based off of that pattern and i'm obsessed--OBSESSED-- with foxes.

anyway, january is coming to an end and my reduction in water use month was a little shaky but i managed to change some ways and keep going with a lot i was already doing. i do need to order our new shower head, though. next month i'm not sure which i'll pick. i jotted down ideas for all 12 months. like reducing energy consumption, increasing my social activism, etc. we'll see what strikes my fancy as i look through that list again tonight. well, maybe tonight. we watch one show and one show alone and after what feels like forever, it's finally back. i don't even know if i can handle the stress and suspense of this show. it's amazing.

i need more practice

2008-01-29T19:32:00.000-08:00

okay, so i'm not the best at updating this. what are you going to do i guess, right? i have been terribly inspired by reading the old entries in this blog and am only about one year in and can't even believe how prolific she is and how much progress she has made in the year (04-05 i think). it makes me feel conflicted because i feel like i've been sort of at the same point in my crafting abilities for the past several years and so i wonder whether it's pure talent (which at least half of it has to be because her stuff is amazing) and i realize i should probably stop trying new things until i've mastered the previous craft but i get so excited about new things (wood burning tools and linoleum blocks here i come!) so i'm not sure where exactly i'm going. anyway, i'll add some work in progress pictures tomorrow or something.

also, i decided that every month i would tackle a new "green" aspect of living. i already try to do a lot but there's always something more i can do. so, this month i'm attempting to decrease my water use. so far, i've gone down to 5 minute showers (which is tough because i love long, hot showers), am only shaving with my electric razor dry, will not throw out any undrunk (undrinken?) water since i tend to pour myself cups of water i don't finish all of by the end of the night, turn off the water when i brush and wash dishes and, yes, "let it mellow" and i will: purchase a low-flow showerhead, put a brick in a ziploc in the toilet (to reduce the amount of water going down when i do flush), and put a bucket in the shower for when my shower is warming up to flush the toilet, mop the floors, or water plants. one of the things has also been to try to convince my husband to turn off the water when he brushes and washes dishes. he's getting there and is so supportive of everything, so i'm trying to keep the pressure pretty low.

i'm ready

2008-01-06T21:20:00.000-08:00

oh, 2008. i'm such a new year's junkie. i've been so optimistic about this coming year and all of the things i'm going to accomplish and learn that it's getting a bit obnoxious for my husband; i can tell. but i'm this way every year. i have such high hopes, which usually wane as the months go by. what is going to make this year different, i hope, is that i'm trying to do away with my all-or-nothing attitude. which is to say, if i don't get it all done today, it's okay because i'm not perfect and i'll try again tomorrow. for instance, the first work day of the year, i vowed to get up early and do my yoga tapes. unfortunately, that didn't happen. but i did wake up early. uh, i just couldn't get out of bed. but, instead of getting upset at myself and declaring myself and the year a failure, i praised myself for getting up early at all because it was a step in the next direction and the next day i did get up and do that tape. plus, me and the husband have been exercising, mostly with nice long walks, almost every day. everything else is still sort of in flux, but i'm still figuring out how it's all going to work in the schedule and with everything else, and that can't all get figured out the second it becomes 2008, so i think because of the wiggle room i'm giving myself, i'll accomplish a lot more of what i want to. at least i hope so. i've been much more patient so far (hey, it's been a week; that's pretty good, right?) and have been working on being less sensitive. all of this will take time, though, i figure. (these are the stockings i made for us last year but finally embroidered with our initials this year)

so, first up, are some projects that i finished for gifts for friends. our camera is a point and shoot and some day i'd like to get either a digital slr or a scanner so i can scan the pictures with my good manual. in the meantime, these are little felt ornaments i made for a friend. the raccoon and owl were from the book Doodle Stitching.

The blue sweater was the placket sweater from Last minute knit gifts, and the black sweater is based on one from the first knitting "book" i picked up, which was a teach yourself to knit kind of magazine/book at michael's or something. i adjusted the pattern to have a different edging and, of course, added the skull and crossbones. i added a little button and i-cord tie after taking this picture. the former was for some friends' child, and the latter for my nephew. both are gorgeous little boys.

this was my first sewn pillow cover. it's just a little envelope pillowcase for a friend who gave me the fabric and a bunch of the pillow forms like the one here. i also made the cupcake for the same friend. she makes amazing cupcakes.

so, now that the holidays are officially over, and i have a bunch of new crafting books (these are but three of the probably ten that i got, i'm ready to get down to business. well, i did let myself get distracted by these handwarmers from http://www.knitty.com/ (called fetching), which were a satisfyingly quick knit.

the goal is to practice my skills a little with some patterns in the books and play around with some sewing and crocheting (my husband got me supplies to learn because i'm always saying i want to!) and then get down to my new designs. i have a ton of ideas i'm excited about. and i guess i'm planning on more distractions. i got some equipment for some block printing and some books from the library on different fabric dyeing and printing techniques and designs. and these are from the calligraphy/font book i'm going to now buy because it's so gorgeous.

i'm so ready for 2008

new year optimism

2008-01-01T20:27:00.000-08:00

i'm always way too excited about the new year. i get so positive and so hopeful about the kind of person i'm going to finally become in the coming year. i like to start new habits and kick old ones at a symbolic time of the week, month, or year and so january first is the ultimate day to start again in my crazy brain. every year is the same, though, with unfettered enthusiasm, which begins to fall apart as the months go on. and every year i think it'll finally be the year that i actually fulfill all of my resolutions and hopes for change. and this year is no different.

my resolutions are too numerous to list, but it all boils down to the same thing i've been trying to stick to for years: eat better, exercise more, learn new things, travel, be open-minded and try new things, get more green. within each of those is a plethora of more fleshed-out rules, guidelines and goals. am i setting myself up for failure by trying to accomplish and become so many different things? who knows. can people actually change? we'll see. in the meantime, today has been so lovely and so productive, that i'm still genuinely sure that this year will be the best yet. my husband and i woke up late only because we were up very late celebrating the new year with friends last night and within a few hours, we had done a ton of cleaning, organizing and (for me at least) getting rid of things we don't need. there's still a lot of all of those to do and i'm amazed at how much better i've gotten at each of these things (sometimes, over long periods of time, i have changed habits for the better!). we also treated ourselves to dinner out (via a gift card received for the holidays. obviously sticking to our budget is on that list o'resolutions) and some relaxing time knitting, for me, and video gaming, for him.

my birthday is at the end of december and, between that and christmas/chanukah, i've got a little bit of money to play with and i'm debating what to do. i want to get into some new things, like dyeing my own yarns and there's this really neat planting kit so you can dye with natural dyes, and i want to finally learn to skateboard, and i want a ukulele and some crafting books (though my collection has exploded in the past month...i'll have to post about that; there's some really exciting stuff in there) and vegan cookbooks (i'm inching closer) and some art clay silver and metal letter stamps but i also want a digital slr camera. i'm really bad about spending a lot of money on one thing, so i'll probably end up with a lot of little things, but we'll see. anyway, i found a couple of neat websites that had tutorials on recycling yarn from thrifted sweaters and i think i'll try my first this weekend. the whole goal of my future business endeavor is to use secondhand yarns and this technique will probably prove essential, so i'm excited. anyway, i'm just really excited about the new year and i know my husband thinks i'm crazy but i've also got some resolutions as regards becoming an even more amazing wife than i already am, so i'm sure he'll be fine. i'm sad the holidays are done with (especially those days off of work) but i'm really looking forward to 2008.

home?

2007-12-05T21:31:00.001-08:00

i just watched a very emotional documentary: "The Lost Boys of Sudan." It should be noted that refugee rights and experience is my passion, and so perhaps that's why it affected me so particularly, but i hope that it is a human reaction - that anyone presented with this movie would be moved to action. Unfortunately, empathy doesn't necessarily breed action. I'm no saint, though. I frequently forget that i get amnesty international calls to action at another email address i infrequently check and i don't think i've volunteered anywhere for six months probably. Part of the movie actually addresses how busy americans are. isn't there always something to do? when do we find time to make a difference, or make real connections with people? we see friends but not as much as we see coworkers.

The movie brought up a lot of compex questions (aside from the humanity vs. art questions natural to documentary makers and watchers), such as whether it was better to be in America than in the Kenyan refugee camp the boys came from, what americans project to other countries, how we take care of our citizens and those seeking refuge. I felt so lucky to have chanced into being born in a country, and then a family where i didn't have to worry about having food. Now, my family doesn't have much. my family has it harder than other families. but we had some kind of a roof over our head, you know? at the same time, it's a cultural thing to think that brick and mortar houses are better than straw huts. granted, there are health risks in some countries that can't be ignored, like places people get malaria or dysentery because they don't have safe water or mosquito nets, but the documentary presented the boys as being part of a community in Kenya...it was a community in a refugee camp; something that is psychologically and physically tough, not to mention the harrowing things they'd had to live through before that, but i guess they got through it joining together. it was very powerful to see.

i've had the good fortune to travel more than i thought i'd get to but not as much as i dream to do. in my last year of college, i got a scholarship for a trip to Cambodia and Vietnam (the details of the trip, and even getting the scholarship are numerous enough to come some other time), where i encountered a one room hut where a family of 5 black hmong gathered around a fire to keep warm and shared their small amount of food with us, while we slept in their communal bed and they slept on the floor. i witnessed such kindness and such desperation, in the swarms of kids who sold books, scarves, food, drinks to travellers who could not escape them, such joy that i am so lucky to have seen. As i said, refugee rights have long been a pet passion of mine. I'd say my interest in international issues dates back to high school, and anthropology was my minor in college, with english being my major and my plans for graduate school to study comparative literature so i could immerse myself in other cultures further; but the semester before my trip to asia, i took an anthropology course and ended up doing a project on african refugees. it changed everything for me. i currently work for a non-profit organization doing fund development and, while i enjoy it, i am desperate to get into a refugee rights organization. if i could start my own, it would provide aid and companionship to refugees who are here, but also training and assistance for those who wanted to change things back home. Refugees are, by nature, taking refuge from something, and many remain connected somehow to that place. fascilitating a change somewhere that means something to them, in addition to helping forge a place for themselves here...that would be my ideal. anyway, i guess it's just frustrating to me when i don't follow through, so i mean to change that, and i also feel like there's a huge emphasis on the environment right now (though not as large as it should be! the details of my foray into the environmentalist world is also fodder for another future post), but sometimes the "enviro-blogs" i read seem to show an absence in an interest in social issues. i guess it's too overwhelming if you try to take on everything. i am going to try, though!

fyi, the pictures above were all taken by me on my trip: the first is of the famed Angkor Wat, which is only one of many, many incredible ancient temples; the second is from a landmine outdoor "museum," where young landmine victims also lived and walked amongst us (every single day -even now, decades after various wars have ended- people are killed or maimed by old landmines in cambodia); and, lastly, this beautiful child was playing on the ruins in Siem Reap...he was most likely homeless or lived in a shack, but had quite a jungle gym

a horrible start

2007-12-04T19:40:00.001-08:00

well, i'm not doing so well at this yet, but i guess (and hope) it just takes some time to get used to it. this is a hard time of the year for me to work on anything but holiday gifts, but those have at least been coming along nicely. I've got one "knuck" (from knitty.com) done for my husband. we're doing this thing for chanukah where we do something nice for each other each night instead of buying gifts, so that's one of mine. however, i want to make sure the first one fits him before i make the other one, so it's a bit of an incomplete nice thing, but i think the sentiment's still the same. i've also got a little black hoodie for my nephew knitted but i want to embroider a skull and crossbones on it, and i'm about halfway done with a sweater for some friends' kid (who i'm helping babysit this weekend, which i'm completely jazzed about because he loves dancing and is a super adorable and flirty 1 1/2 year old), plus a ton of hats for some friends and my brothers. a friend had asked me to make her this pointy hat from this vintage pattern book she had and i couldn't resist making one for myself too. well, another friend decided he liked it so i made him one for his upcoming birthday. my plan is still to make some journals for some friends...since no one reads this anyway, i'll add links later...and i still have to stitch up all of those gifts. i'm confident i can get it all done, though. however, i am most interested in knitting, so the sweater i'm making for myself from a vintage pattern i liked is the thing i want to work on most. i hate stitching my projects together. anyway, some friends are getting married this morning so i finally finished the blanket i made for them and think that the cleared up time will help.

i've been reading a lot lately, though, because i have some books due back at the library in a week. i'm reading "river out of eden" by richard dawkins right now and totally love it. it's non-fiction and he's a darwinist and he writes really accessibly so i don't feel like i'm reading about biology. i heard an interview with him on NPR when his last book, "The God Delusion," came out and thought he sounded really intersesting and i'm so glad i'm checking him out. i'll have to try that book next.

my husband's actually going to be leaving town tomorrow to go on a mini-tour with his band. the last time they went, he had such an amazing time and i'm really excited for him but i'm definitely going to miss him. i love my alone time, but, in addition to being in two bands and working full time, he's taking two evening classes, so i get plenty of that alone time. he did his time, too, though, when i was away at school and working three jobs and he'd come to visit me and be oh-so-patient while i was at work or doing homework. that's what we do, though, when we love someone. our 8 year anniversary is coming up (we just passed one year married) and i can't even believe it. it's gone by so quickly, it's quite a blur. at the same time, i feel like we pretty much grew up together and when i think about how young we were when we met and all of the things we've seen and done together, it's pretty spectacular. the picture is from one of his band's shows.

timely time

2007-11-27T21:00:00.000-08:00

dear lord, i've been intending to start up this blog about three times, all with different names. then i found out that the name i picked was the name of a band gaining notereity. so there went that. i'm terribly private and don't intend to tell any friends about this, which begs the question: if a girl writes a blog so that people will hold her accountable for getting to work on her crafts but no one reads, does it work? well, i guess we'll find out.

i like the idea of the "blogosphere" and all of these people making connections with other people they really feel they have something in common with but had been otherwise kept apart by large or small physical distances. i also wanted to be a writer when i was a kid but never practiced the craft enough to really develop any skill. i always hassle myself to write every day, but it rarely happens. the idea of having a public diary is odd, though, and i'm curious to see how this goes. i'm really excited about the things i'm learning and working on right now, though. through the next year, i want to further develop my knitting and sewing skills and work on creating my new patterns from scratch, rather than working and reworking old patterns until they suit my needs or wants. eventually i'd like to even start a little etsy store or something simple like that. my husband is a musician and, although he has a day job, he brings in a few dollars here and there to support his music. i'd love to get to that point with my creations.

so, here it goes. my goal is to use only thrifted, found, donated, given, or repurposed yarn and fabric for everything i make for sale. i'm really excited about digging up the creativity that will be necessary to make this work. frequently there isn't enough yarn in the random balls in that bag you find at the thrift store to make a whole garment, so necessity will just have to be the mother of invention. i'm predicting lots of stripes. but who doesn't like stripes?

this is a wonky little elephant i made for a friend's birthday. i like to think that it is no indication of my sewing skills, because i did this by hand and am very impatient when it comes to sewing by hand.

beginning for the first time all over again

2007-11-27T20:51:00.000-08:00

east.west, my burgeoning second-hand-made children's clothing and toy project, acts as the love child between the part of me that wants to create all day, every day and the part of me that wants to make the world a better place. hand-crafted items don't often get noticed for their efforts toward world peaceor ending homelessness; however, i think a lot of the crafting revolution of my generation has to do with wanting to feel useful, wanting to have something to show for the time you put into it, not having to rely on megastores for your wares or tv for your entertainment. my goal for east.west is to make eco-consciousness wallet-friendly. i had noticed that some friends who recently had a baby wanted clothing for their new child that was soft and comfortable, affordable, adorable, and in line with their ethics. this is a tall order, as i'm sure many have discovered; therefore, I will fight hard to turn the recycled, repurposed, and/or organic into beautiful, affordable, and practical items for the hip, green little ones in our lives. and this blog will be motivation to keep me on task. i am (in)famous for enthusiasm that goes nowhere. no more, i declare! coming soon: mittens, mitts, socks, sweaters, hats, caps, scarves, stuffed animals, stickers, finger puppets, pencil holders, tote bags, etc. i can't wait!