On Your Own, For Your Own

Love List # 77

2009-06-08T20:06:00.004-05:00

Who doesn't love piglet?

Love List # 76

2009-06-08T20:01:00.001-05:00

outside our door

Love List # 75

2009-01-31T23:56:00.004-05:00

This new dress I made for Mia, and this picture in general. I hope to be uploading some simple dress patterns soon, as well! I have decided to use recycled materials only for my stuff in the future ... (or mostly).

Love List 74 Tiny Tiny Tea Party Dinner

2009-01-17T09:56:00.005-05:00

Menu:
App: Guacamole and blue chips
Main: Hard Boiled Eggs and Bird Bread with Goat cheese
Desert: Mini Green Tea Ice Cream Cones with Blueberries

and a tiny tiny clean up~!

Original hem tutorials for jeans!

2008-11-26T23:02:00.003-05:00

I found this great tutorial for hemming your own jeans, but keeping that cool original hem. It can be done by hand, even, if you do not own a machine!

http://www.sketchee.com/963/hemming-jeans-like-a-pro

and also this one in case either of these go poof in the future.

http://www.daciaray.com/?p=38

Love List #72

2008-10-25T11:02:00.001-05:00

Costumes from Sweeney Todd....It's almost halloween! YEAY!

Love List #71 Haircuts

2008-09-19T22:03:00.005-05:00

I think I love it. No, I do, for now.

I hated it at first...then I cut some more..and a little more..and stopped there. ( I have always cut my own hair, so really I have no idea what it looks like from the back).

I think it is always hard to go from waist to chin. After 2 days, I'm definitely loving the loss of about a pound of hair which was clogging drains and getting tangled in everything and worn in a ponytail most days anyway...still getting used to it. My hair got wavy/curly when I got pregnant, so this chopping round has been fun... seeing what happens differently.

I only wish I had known I was going totally short when I started, then I could have donated. Instead I ended up with pieces.

Anyway. It is hair, it grows back. I might as well love it.

Love list # 70

2008-09-03T02:22:00.000-05:00

Yogurt fun...

Love List # 69

2008-09-01T11:00:00.001-05:00

Hanging an open chalkboard in the window...no sign.

Love list # 68

2008-09-01T09:00:00.000-05:00

Learning toe tailing, the value of a powerful plug in drill, and how heavy sheetrock is. Love new knowledge..hopefully I will not have to use that knowledge again anytime soon.

Love List # 69

2008-08-30T00:54:00.000-05:00

going for it!!!

http://onlineathens.com/stories/081008/business_2008081000583.shtml

Love list # 67

2008-07-03T12:12:00.004-05:00

My play! Well, definitely not MY play, but I did the costumes for it, so I suppose my loves would be costuming in general, small theater companies, and getting to know Shakespeare. Taming of the Shrew set in the 1950's by Rose of Athens Theater.

Love List # 66

2008-06-28T12:08:00.000-05:00

The smell of honeysuckle.

ooh, also bacon, real maple syrup, freshly cut grass, magnolias, old books.
Definitely NOT mothballs. The worst!

Love List # 65

2008-06-20T12:03:00.001-05:00

Ordering room service in a nice hotel. It is not often I am in one, so enjoy a nice grilled cheese all fancied up! This was at a hotel on Seneca Lake where we went for my cousin's wedding. Beautiful.

Love List #64

2008-06-18T12:01:00.000-05:00

Picnics on breezy afternoons

Love List # 63

2008-06-03T11:55:00.000-05:00

The big respect project. More to come on this hopefully in August!

Love List # 62

2008-05-05T11:35:00.006-05:00

Green
Green
Green
Green
Green

Polish Wycinanki Paper Cutting

2008-03-21T09:20:00.003-05:00

MATERIALS:
Construction paper and White paper
Scissors
Pencil
Glue

DIRECTIONS:
Fold a piece of Construction paper in half
Draw a design along the edge of the paper with the fold
Leaving paper folded, cut out design
Glue design to a piece of white paper larger than the design
Glue White paper to a larger piece of colored paper

NOTE:
This project evolved into making paper dolls with 3 year old Mia doing the drawing and me doing the cutting.

From "Folk Art Projects Around the World"

Japanese Star Streamers

2008-03-21T08:55:00.005-05:00

Tanabata is a popular Japanese festival based on a story of a Star Princess who was a weaver. She fell in love with the cow-heard star and neither star did their work. The star princess's father sent them to opposite ends of the Milky Way, only allowed to meet on the 7th day of the 7th Month. During the celebration, children write poems on streamers tied to the trees and streets are decorated with streamers made using origami folding techniques.

MATERIALS:
Origami paper or squares of construction paper or wrapping paper 4-5 " on each side
18" of string for each streamer
beads or cheerios, fruit loops, etc
Needle with an eye large enough for your string or yarn
Strip of paper to tie to the bottom long enough for a poem

DIRECTIONS:
To make one paper triangle:
Fold square in half (colored side in)
Fold that rectangle in half again
unfold completely
Fold in half diagonally (colored side in)
Unfold completely
Fold in half diagonally the other direction
Open completely, then using crease lines allready created, fold adjacent corners in making back to back triangles.
REPEAT !
Divide all your triangles into three sets
Thread needle and string triangles and beads. Put at least 3 beads or 6 cheerios in between triangles to keep them apart. Leave extra string at each end.
Knot at top and bottom to keep them from sliding around
Write a poem on slip of paper and tie to the bottom of the streamer
Hang using top end of string

From "Folk Art Projects Around the World"

Indonesian Wayang Shadow Puppets

2008-03-21T08:41:00.004-05:00

MATERIALS:
Heavy paper or light card board (cereal box, poster board)
2 skewers, sticks, rulers, or dowels
Tape
Scissors
Notebook paper fasteners that spread apart in the back
Markers or crayons

DIRECTIONS:
Draw a body onto the paper MINUS one arm (use example or make one up)
Draw separately a bent arm and upper arm piece
Cut out pieces and color (optional)
Attach (LOOSELY) arm to upper arm, and upper arm to shoulder using the fasteners
Tape skewers to body and hand

From "Folk Art Projects around the World"

Indian Toran

2008-03-21T08:25:00.004-05:00

MATERIALS:
Large piece of felt (12" X 5")
Colorful and contrasting felt scraps
5" piece of drinking straw
Aluminum foil
15" yarn or string
Glue
Scissors
optional: Embroidery thread and needle

DIRECTIONS:
Cut out two pieces of contrasting felt 5" by 2" for ends of Toran
Cut out designs, animals, flowers, etc., out of the felt scraps
Move them around on your base till you are happy
Glue each piece down (OPTIONAL you can embroider them down around the edges)
Cut small circles of aluminum foil and glue onto Toran
Glue one strip to the bottom of the Toran (one inch on the front, one inch on the back)
Fold second strip in half, gluing only the edges, making a tube
Glue only the secured edges to the BACK of the top of your Toran leaving tube free
Insert straw into the tube, thread string through, tie and hang.

From "Folk Art Projects around the World"

Peruvian Mask

2008-03-21T08:11:00.002-05:00

MATERIALS:
Thick paper, file folder, or thin cardboard
Aluminum foil
Notebook paper fasteners (the ones where you spread them apart in the back)
Scissors
Markers
String or elastic

DIRECTIONS:
Draw basic mask shape like the one pictured and cut it out of the base
We opted to cut out eye holes so it is wearable
Decorate the mask with colorful designs
Cut small ovals out of the aluminum foil
Use the fasteners to attach them all over the mask loosely. You may need to use scissors to help punch the hole in your base.
Optional: Cut a small slit at the chin,overlap sides and secure and cut the base of the nose so that the mask has dimension.
Tie string or elastic on each side so it can be worn.

from "Folk Art Projects Around the World"

Mexican Beaded Bowl

2008-03-21T07:59:00.003-05:00

Borrowed idea from the Huichol Indians of Mexico. Originally produced using dried half gourds, beeswax, seeds, kernels, pebbles, shells, etc.

MATERIALS:
Small lid or saucer (jar lid, plant saucer)
Modeling clay
Lots of big beads, beans, macaroni, pebbles, etc.

DIRECTIONS:
(ADULTS OR OLDER KIDS) Cover lid on the inside, up the sides and over the rim with clay at least 1/4" thick
Draw a design into the clay or let kids place freestyle
See pictures below for design ideas

From "Folk Art Projects Around the World"

Columbian raised line sculptures

2008-03-21T07:48:00.003-05:00

Originally made by soldering gold wire to a flat sheet of gold.

MATERIALS:
Thin cardboard (poster board, cereal box)for
Black posterboard, or paint some black for background
Thin cotton cording or thick yarn
Scissors
Glue
Gold spray paint

DIRECTIONS:
Cut a circle from your thin cardboard
Cut a square bigger than your circle out of the black or painted cardboard
Draw a design similar to the one pictured onto the circle OR glue freehand
Glue cording over the design or let the kids just make designs on their own
Let glue dry
Spray paint entire circle with gold spray paint (ADULTS)
Glue gold circle to black background

from "Folk Art Projects Around the World"

Love List # 61

2008-03-18T01:47:00.002-05:00

THUNDERSTORMS