teacup adventure

a portrait

2012-02-21T22:40:00.000-05:00

I'm taking a lower-level digital course this semester for a general art major requirement, and it actually hasn't been as horrible as I anticipated.

Object design can be so challenging, and the final product doesn't always have that "wow" factor that people seem to expect from art majors. People are so used to seeing our products fully formed that we rarely give a thought to the design behind them, let alone the actual fabrication process. When coming from that background, digital design is quite gratifying. It's easy and quick (compared to object design, at least!) to get a final image without too much trouble.

I made this image for our first assignment, a self-portrait in Illustrator based on a photo:

I just chose impressionism as a general theme and went from there. The second project is to use the laser-cutter to create another version of the portrait. We'll see how that goes an I'll post the result if it's any good!

hearts

2012-02-14T18:27:00.000-05:00

Welp, here we are readers, February 14th again. This is the first Valentine's Day I've found myself in a relationship, but since my long-distance boyfriend doesn't get here until tomorrow night I'll still be watching You've Got Mail tonight and doing homework. So, in the meantime a few related things:

Happy Valentine's Day! XO, Etsy from Etsy on Vimeo.

Etsy's papercraft valentine's greeting... typical!

While it is slightly weird that my taste in lingerie is being followed by 206 people, my underthings pinterest board is pretty great. Lots of pretty things I can't afford.

And lastly, Gemma Correll's take on love:

Happy Valentine's Day, readers!

Music Monday: Gotye

2012-02-13T08:00:00.001-05:00

Good morning! I haven't done a Music Monday in such a long time! I must admit, I've mostly been listening to Rilo Kiley albums on rotation for the last few months, but I did come across the Belgian- Australian artist Gotye recently.

His track "Somebody That I Used to Know" feat. Kimbra has been getting a lot of attention, and rightly so, in my opinion. I've actually really been enjoying the video as well- the muted color palette suits the tone of the song quite nicely

I found this little interview with the artist, in which he talks about the song's recent success, saying he thinks maybe the public would like a pop song about something other than going to the club. It was endearing.

That's all for now! Hope your week's off to a good start.

five good things.

2012-02-11T00:27:00.000-05:00

I'd forgotten all about the Friday feature I used to do called five good things. It's been so long since I did one that I practically have a backlog of good things. Still, I'll spare you the whole list and stick with five.

1. Pinterest. I've had a pinterest account for quite a while now, but I've only recently begun to really utilize it. If you don't know about this latest micro-blogging platform, it's a site that allows you to 'pin' photos onto different boards you create yourself according to your interests. You can follow other users or just choose to follow specific boards (I tend to go for the specific boards so I'm not inundated with recipes- there are a lot of moms on pinterest). It's actually a great tool for designers and artists for keeping track of your inspiration. Not to mention the site's beautiful interface! You do need an invitation to join (or you can simply sign up and wait a few days until you're accepted), so if anyone would like an invite just leave a comment with your e-mail address!

2. Ira Glass, host of my favorite podcast, This American Life, joined Dan Savage on my second-favorite podcast, Savage Love, last week. Listen to it here- scroll down to episode 276. I really can't think of anyone I would rather hear talk about blowjobs than Ira Glass.

3. My cousin had a baby yesterday!

Babies. They are pretty cute.

4. Portlandia did a redux of their hilarious "Dream of the 90s" called- wait for it- "Dream of the 1890s." I think it's better than the original.

5. And, finally, on a personal note, my boyfriend is coming to visit in less than a week!

Happy Weekend everyone!

Thank You!

2012-02-05T21:09:00.000-05:00

When I got back to my apartment after my month abroad, I had a package waiting from one of my favorite blogger ladies- Miss Ashley from Against the Woodgrain! She sent a great collection of fun things, like vintage photographs, doilies, cute bobby pins, cupcake-patterned hand towel.

I promptly stitched one of the doilies onto my bookbag. At least ten other girls around campus have the same one, so now I'll be able to pick mine out of the pile outside the bookstore.

If you don't already read Ashley and her husband's blog, make sure you check it out- it's full of diy projects, outfit posts, and lots of snippets from their daily life. Thanks Ashley!!

My Last Day

2012-02-04T18:36:00.000-05:00

It's always difficult to leave. I thought maybe I could sneak out this time, but in the end I wasn't quite discreet enough and the teacher called out all the children, and I had to say goodbye, one by one. I thought maybe this time I could hold back tears, but I was wrong.

I tried to ease myself back into the ways of "home," giving myself half a day in Lima before my flight, and then a night at my parents' house before I went back to my apartment. But the now familiar wave of repulsion to life here still hit me, and I spent the next few days trying to adjust to the abundance of everyday life.

I've been reluctant to throw myself into school, work, and all the other obligations that accompany my life here. But I have neither the time nor the money for such hesitancy, so I suppose there's nothing else for it other to plunge back in, whether I like it or not.

Hogar Murals

2012-02-03T07:32:00.000-05:00

First of all, a big thank you to everyone who chipped in for the supplies to restore the Hogar's murals and create a new one as well. The kids were so excited about each step in the process! For my own mural, I decided to base my design on Peru's ancient Nazca Lines- lines made in the ground that make shapes that can only be seen from the air. Very mysterious!

The courtyard wall now has three murals: on the far right, the mural I painted on my trip in 2010, in the center, the mural I restored on my most recent trip, and on the left my new mural!

There's one more panel left on that wall, and the kids and staff have already decided I'll be back next year to paint a mural of Machu Pichu. Hopefully I will!

Las Cataratas de Palacala

2012-01-23T21:55:00.000-05:00

On Sunday I took a day off from volunteering and traveled to some (relatively) nearby waterfalls with a few Peruvian friends and some new American friends.

It was QUITE a long hike up, but luckily we had this nice perrito (little dog) guide with us the entire time. It ended up being an over four hour hike, first in the brutal sun, and then farther up in icy mountain air with drizzling rain.

It was still a really fun experience and the hike itself was certainly interesting. We came across the giant reservoir above, as well as the lone donkey below.

I'm glad I got to take a little trip since I've been almost entirely at the Hogar for the past month. Only three days left!

Feliz Anniversario

2012-01-19T21:10:00.000-05:00

Every year the Hogar has a huge party on January 16th to celebrate its anniversary. The teacher and the social worker organize it and get almost everything donated. This year was the 17th anniversary and the party was crazy fun.

The kids worked on traditional dances for weeks beforehand, and they asked Danielle and I to join in since the home has far more boys than girls. As you can see, I got the better costume.

One of the funny things about Peru is that people just regularly refer to being from the jungle. Like, the jungle. I never even really thought of the jungle as a real thing before coming to Peru. They called the dance below simply "Selva" which means jungle. The kids were SO cute in their facepaint and native costumes.

After the kids' dances and some songs, most of the younger kids scampered inside and there was a many-hours-long dance party. Peruvians love to dance, con or sin alcohol. So fun!

Feliz Anniversario to the Hogar and thanks to everyone who donated to the mural restoration fund! I'll have updates and photos of the murals soon.

Want to help?

2012-01-13T08:51:00.000-05:00

As you know, I'm in Peru for my second volunteer trip to the Hogar de San Francisco, an amazing home right outside Lima that provides a home and treatment for children in need of medical care. On my last trip here, I painted a mural in the courtyard. I was happy to see that it's still in good shape, but unfortunately some of the home's other murals (painted by other volunteers in the past) have begun to deteriorate.

Dr. Tony has asked me to repair them while I'm here, which I'm more than happy to do. I'm also hoping to complete a new mural in the courtyard. Between getting quality paint, thinners, and brushes, the repair work and new mural are going to cost between 100-150 USD. A lot of you have expressed interest in the home, and I'm hoping some of you might want to chip in to get the old murals repaired and the new one painted! If I can get 20 people to donate five dollars or ten to donate ten, that should cover it! I already have a paypal account set up, so if you're interested in helping out, the best way would be to just send the money to teacupadventure@yahoo.com through paypal. If you have any questions about it, please comment or send me an email. Thanks everyone for your support!

Lisbeth y Segundo

2012-01-09T08:49:00.000-05:00

Both of the photos above were taken by my friend Danielle. Since the kids are on summer break right now, they're around the Hogar all day unless they need to go to the hospital, which means they request to be taken to the park all the time. Luckily it's pretty close by and the kids are pretty good at entertaining themselves!

The first picture is of Lisbeth, a five-year-old girl with cerebral palsy. She was here when I volunteered last year as well, and she's matured and healed so much! The eye patch is just to help her lazy eye- nothing too serious! The kids have nicknamed her Abuelita (grandmother) because she looks like a little old woman with her crutch and eye patch. And check out those pink glasses- I can't get over how cute she looks in them.

Below her is Segundo, a little boy who has pins in one leg; I believe to lengthen it. He was also here on my last trip. He is one of the quieter little boys, and generally much better behaved than some of the others!

That's all for today, thanks for reading!

Baby Hour

2012-01-06T15:50:00.000-05:00

After an interesting day or so of transit (I ended up spending a night in El Salvador), I arrived at the Hogar on Wednesday. My friend Danielle came with me (though we traveled separately), and we're having a great time. My internet connection isn't great and the photos take too long to load to show you all the kids, but here's a taste of today's baby hour(s):

We took six of the babies to the park, and it was so fun! Unfortunately one of the girls had a seizure, but that's the kind of thing that's pretty commonplace at the Hogar.

This little guy is Felix- he's four months old and recently had his cleft palate repaired.

More to come and thanks for all your well wishes!

Hogar Bound

2012-01-02T08:47:00.000-05:00

I'm waiting in the airport to take my various flights to Lima, Peru. From there I'm off to the Hogar de San Francisco, where I spent three months volunteering in 2010. I'll be there for just 25 days this time. I'm flying through San Salvador so I'm already surrounded by Spanish-speakers here at my gates. I'm pleased that I'm still understanding snippets of Spanish, so I'm hoping the transition back into the language won't be too rough. I suspect I'll be blogging pretty infrequently, but hopefully I'll get a few posts in. Happy New Year everyone!

2011 in Books

2011-12-30T10:58:00.001-05:00

It's time for my yearly round-up of books. It includes all the books I completed in 2011. It's funny how just looking at the titles reminds me of where I was when I read each one.

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Animal, Vegetable, Miracle by Barbara Kingsolver*
The Secret Intensity of Everyday Life by William Nicholson
The Overloaded Liberal by Fran Hawthorne
Eating Animals by Jonathan Safran Foer*
Three Cups of Tea by Greg Mortenson and David Relin
Sweater Quest by Adrienne Martini
The Poisonwood Bible by Barbara Kingsolver*
A Girl's Guide to Hunting and Fishing by Melissa Bank
A Walk In the Woods by Bill Bryson*
Notes from a Small Island by Bill Bryson
The Autograph Man by Zadie Smith
A Memory, A Monologue, a Rant, and a Prayer ed. by Eve Ensler*
The Lacuna by Barbara Kingsolver*
Bossypants by Tina Fey
Orientation: And Other Stories by Daniel Orozco
Unfamiliar Fishes by Sarah Vowell*
Wordy Shipmates by Sarah Vowell
An Object of Beauty by Steve Martin
Print Workshop by Christine Schmidt
The Dirty Life by Kirstin Kimball*
I Am An Emotional Creature by Eve Ensler*
Printing By Hand by Lena Corwin
South of the Border, West of the Sun by Haruki Marukami*
Do Good Design by David B. Berman*
Cradle to Cradle by William McDonough

I've starred the ones I particularly recommend. I think The Lacuna was my favorite book from this year. Barbara Kingsolver is an astonishing writer, and The Lacuna just included so many things that I love that I was bound to like it. Secret caves! Spanish! Frida Kahlo!

As always, there were a few books I didn't quite finish. The World is Flat by Thomas Friedman was ambitious to start with- I didn't make it past the second chapter. I started both Zen and the Art of Motorcycle Maintenance and On The Road- both books that have been repeatedly recommended to me, but they just didn't hold my interest. I barely read anything this semester. There's something about reading for pleasure that requires a purer concentration than my mind can provide during the school year.

I'm starting off the new year part of the way through Toward the Gleam by D. M. Doran, and I secured a copy of The Hunger Games to read whilst I'm in Peru. Any other book recommendations for the new year!?

Muir Beach

2011-12-29T11:17:00.000-05:00

Believe it or not, I've still been withholding photos from my trip to the bay area. I wanted to touch the Pacific Ocean, so my boyfriend (who cannot possibly object to being mentioned, since he's not supposed to be reading this) took me to Muir Beach.

I always find the beach a strange place to be in winter. Socks are so intrinsically antithetical to sand.

Look how peaceful. Maybe I like the beach better in winter- there's no obligation to swim or tan or pull at your bathing suit.

2011 was so much calmer than 2010. This was my one significant trip of the year (smaller ones including Charlottesville, Boston, and New York), whereas in 2010 I spent ten days in Israel and three months in Peru. 2012 looks to be another year for traveling- I'll be starting off with another month in Peru and I suspect it won't be my only trip of the year.

Red Cage Fungus Necklace

2011-12-26T13:58:00.000-05:00

Hello readers! I hope everyone had a lovely Christmas if you celebrate. I wanted to share this beaded necklace I made a few weeks ago, inspired by this fungus:

I'd like to make some more pieces based on this idea when I get the time!

Studio Party

2011-12-23T08:41:00.000-05:00

I'm very happy to report that fall semester is officially over. The Object Design and Metal and Jewelry programs had a studio party to celebrate the end of the semester on Tuesday, which I believe was planned by Catherine (and these are her photos, too!). Apparently it's a tradition to build a pyramid every year- that's me in the third row being crushed into the second.

We made some easy crafts to take a break from the usual metalsmithing, casting, and digital object design that goes on in the studio. Everyone made some of those fluffy tissue paper pom-poms that are all over the internet. I thought it would suit Rebekah well as a hat:

I designed and 3-D printed a hair comb that looks like a buzzard (I refer to it as my ugly bird barrette) for my digital object design final, and I thought a studio party might be my only chance to get away with wearing it and actually get complimented. It's like it's nesting in my hair:

I made a ring out of the leftover tissue paper scraps and some wire! The other ring was just a party favor, but I kind of like it... I want to cast it in silver for next year, maybe!

I actually have been dressing really festively this year- check out those red tights! I wore my ugly red Christmas sweater out to the bars last night- I don't understand why I had to buy my own drinks, ha! Can you believe how close it's getting to Christmas!? And it's already Hanukkah, of course! What are your plans for the holidays?

Alcatraz Island

2011-12-21T15:50:00.000-05:00

I didn't really know much about Alcatraz before visiting it last weekend. In addition to being super creepy, it has a really interesting history.

The audio tour included descriptions of several escapes and escape attempts. My favorite was the one in which a couple of prisoners dug their way through a concrete wall with SPOONS. Spoons.

There was also a brief "Indian Occupation" of the island, in which Native Americans claimed the island as their own as a political statement about the sort of land Native Americans are usually "given" by the government.

Anyway, I certainly enjoyed it and would recommend a trip if you're ever in San Francisco!

San Francisco

2011-12-19T13:22:00.000-05:00

I went to San Francisco for the weekend. It was mostly beautiful, but I still think I'm an east coast girl. These are just a few shots from around town- more to come from Alcatraz Island and Muir Beach!

Holiday Sale

2011-12-12T18:42:00.000-05:00

Hello readers! I spent the majority of yesterday at Philly's Punk Rock Flea Market, where I'm happy to report that I sold lots of knits! That being said, there are still plenty of nice things for sale in my shop, and tomorrow is the last day to order to have your items guaranteed to arrive by Dec. 25th! For the rest of tonight and tomorrow you can use the coupon code CHRISTMASCAKE (named after one very depressing Rilo Kiley song) to get 25% off your order!

Ugly Christmas Sweater Party

2011-12-09T14:55:00.000-05:00

My group of friends really likes seasonal parties, what can I say? I make everyone do these really silly self-timer group shots, and I must say our numbers are growing.

Heath has been a pretty great semi-recent addition. I mean, look at this guy:

Ridiculously good-looking, great taste in sweaters, and he knows how to knit... what more could you want?

Ellie (the lovely hostess) even had a hot chocolate bar, which was delightful.

It was actually kind of difficult to find full-on ugly sweaters... most of ours were kind of on the line of questionable and ugly. Goodwill failed me.

Anyone have any good seasonal parties coming up?

bits and pieces

2011-12-06T18:00:00.000-05:00

Life has been so all over the place the past few weeks, though mostly in a good way. I keep thinking things should be winding down, what with the semester ending and all, but really they're only winding up. I'm going to San Francisco for four days right in the middle of finals, then there's Christmas, and then I'm leaving for Peru on January 2nd. And then the spring semester starts up as soon as I get back. Alas, I do it all to myself, but I'm actually happier than I've been in a good while, so there's that.

I went to this over the weekend, and it was really, really great! Such a great idea. I believe the organizers are planning on having more events, so I'll try and get that information up when I have it!

I also went to Holiday Heap this weekend, which is a really neat indie craft fair in Baltimore. I picked up this cool tote for five dollars (FIVE DOLLARS) and I'm really pleased to have something sturdy and awesome to carry my knitting around in.

On a similar crafty note, I've been trying to squeeze in some holiday decoration-making here and there. Emily and I went in on a tree, and Quinn came over a week or two ago and we made some crafty decorations:

There may have also been some wine involved, hence all the giggling.

Welp, I have to get back to booleaning my barrette in Rhino now so I can send it in to the Object Lab. The best thing about digital object design is all the lingo you get to throw around. ANYWAY hope your week is off to a good start and I'm hoping to be a little more organized and interesting in the future!

Occupy Towson Forum

2011-11-29T18:22:00.000-05:00

This is tomorrow night! If you're local you should come check it out, especially if you've been curious about exactly what Occupy is all about. I drew the flyer, as you might have gathered.

You can find the facebook event here.

How Much I Hate Urban Outfitters

2011-11-27T11:30:00.000-05:00

If you read my tumblog, you know I have a deep-seated hatred for Urban Outfitters. Don't get me wrong, I know almost every big corporation out there uses sweatshop labor, but I find UO particularly offensive because its clothing is directed toward a young, liberal demographic despite its right-wing "values," and it's weirdly successful in doing so. Even my Social Design teacher was excited when one opened up just down the street from my University. This company sucks. A lot. Naturally I decided to take matters into my own hands.

I printed out four to a page of these little guys and distributed them throughout the store, and I'll definitely be going back for follow-up missions. I've noticed that even people who are generally quite progressive sometimes just can't accept that they shouldn't be shopping at UO. I get it, they have really cute, trendy sweaters/shoes/bags/pillows/whathaveyou. But, SERIOUSLY, what is more important here? If you want to dress well and in a unique way, check out etsy, thrift stores, and bust out a sewing machine. I know that sometimes you just want a 20 dollar sweater and you want it right now. And I'll be the first to admit I occasionally succumb to such desires. I almost lost it in Target a few days ago over a mustard-colored cardigan with elbow patches and realized that it was time to leave. If you need to, find yourself an alternative. Wouldn't you rather support a small business or independent artist than a mega-corporation that gives money to Rick Santorum? If you're local to Baltimore, check out Holiday Heap and Merry Mart next weekend for creative alternatives to that triangle-printed crop top that you and a thousand other girls have your eye on.

If you'd like to do some guerilla actions of your own and want the illustrator file of my little write-up, leave your email address in the comments. I kind of wanted to do something a little fancier, but sometimes I find I won't do something at all if I drag it out.

I'm always interested to hear about people's views and actions to do with shopping at such places since it's a weirdly subdued subject in our society- what do you think?

A Few Thoughts on Thanksgiving

2011-11-24T09:57:00.000-05:00

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As possibly the most "American" holiday, it can be easy to find Thanksgiving somewhat distasteful. With its roots in a fictionalized tale of inter-cultural cooperation that soon became genocide, and the traditions of watching football and eating as much as you possibly can, it's easy to be cynical about Thanksgiving. But on the other hand, the idea that we set aside a day to simply being grateful for what we have is sort of amazing. I spent last Thanksgiving at the Hogar in Chaclacayo, and it was just an ordinary day, as you might expect. I was trying to decide whether to give in to pneumonia and go home or attempt to renew my visa. At the same time, I knew that I would soon have to deal with the ridiculous amount of excess that would greet me when I returned to the States in the midst of the holiday season. And I have found since then that gratitude is the only antidote to guilt. Because in being thankful for what you have, there is also the implicit acknowledgement that others do not have, and that we must always strive to balance that scale, to help others in any way that we are able.

On that note, I'd like to ask you to consider skipping the Black Friday craziness this year. I doubt many of my readers will be waiting outside superstores at absurd hours of the morning, but I really don't understand why we allow ourselves to be manipulated by corporations that have, to be frank, continuously fucked us over. I, for one, will be Occupying Black Friday, and I hope you choose to as well!

Have a great, gratitude-filled Thanksgiving!

The Mint Museum

2011-11-23T15:52:00.000-05:00

I'm pretty sure I want to live in The Mint Museum. I was looking up things to do in Charlotte and came across The Mint Museum of Craft and Design. They have a whole floor of what is essentially object design. The traveling exhibition was Sheila Hicks' work, which was so so great. I actually wasn't supposed to be taking pictures on that side, but here's one from before the security guard made me stop:

The other side of the Craft and Design floor featured a variety of objects from all different mediums. I'm taking a class called The History of Modern Studio Craft this semester, so it was neat to see a lot of the pieces we've discussed in person.

Look at this thing! It's like a giant slug basking in the sun. In fact, I think it's called "Pine Basking".

I liked this thing. Not particularly innovative, maybe, but being from Maryland and all I can appreciate the sentiment.

Good lighting choice I thought.

I actually have a ton more pictures but the lighting was not great for photography and I didn't have my tripod.

If Charlotte wasn't so far from Baltimore I'd try to drag my major there on a field trip. Speaking of field trips, I'm actually planning the Interdisciplinary Object Design trip to New York this spring. Any suggestions?

making things

2011-11-19T18:53:00.000-05:00

I originally started this blog (almost three years ago!) to document my crafty endeavors, but I feel like it's been forever since I posted about anything I've made. My coursework, in terms of object design, is increasingly digital, but occasionally I get a physical object I can hold, like my fox bracelet:

I designed it in Rhino and then had it printed at my school's very own digital fabrication lab. Digital fabrication is kind of ridiculous- you upload the file and then this machine PRINTS your object in 3-D. Then you get to sort of excavate it out of the gypsum with a brush and a vacuum. Here's the bracelet a little closer up:

Sorry for the iffy quality- both are cell phone pictures! It's super gratifying to get a tangible object out of all those hours of designing, even if it is a ridiculously large cuff that looks like a dead fox!

In terms of more traditional crafting, I knit up this quick scarflet with yarn courtesy of my good friend Quinn:

I used a free pattern off Ravelry, which you can find here.

I kind of feel like I'm already behind on my holiday crafting. I have a feeling that the majority of it will be completed AFTER finals, which end on Dec. 21st. Yikes. Have you started any holiday-related making?

Weekend Trip: Day Two

2011-11-19T11:26:00.000-05:00

Day Two of my trip last weekend began with me declaring that we couldn't camp out in 20 degree weather the next night! We spent most of the morning trying to find alternatives and eventually found a girl in Charlotte who was willing to let us couchsurf with her. It was our first couchsurfing experience and we loved it!

We were also determined to check out the Brevard Fish Hatchery, which was closed when we tried to visit it the day before. We'd kind of been joking around about how great it was going to be, because it seemed like such a weird tourist attraction, and we really didn't think it was going to be great at all!

But then we actually loved it! You throw feed into the water and the fish go CRAZY. It was weirdly fun and addicting.

We also checked out the tiny town of Brevard. We checked out a really neat toy store and some cool boutiques, and then had a late lunch at a cool little cafe appropriately named Mayberry's.

We got so excited when we saw Brevard had its very own Occupation! I've been involved with the Baltimore one and my friends have gone to Occupy Tampa, so we had to go talk to the four men and one dog that were occupying this population 6,000 town.

They were excited to talk to us and very friendly. The one guy insisted I take a picture of his dog, Buddy, who has now been featured on Awwcupy.

I also went to the Mint Museum that afternoon, which deserves its own post and will be forthcoming.

Thanks for reading, I hope your weekend is off to a great start!

Weekend Trip: Day One

2011-11-15T21:14:00.000-05:00

This past weekend I met up with my good friends from Peru that live in Florida. They drove up, and I took the bus down, and we met in the middle in North Carolina.

We spent the first night at Pigsah National Forest- in the freezing cold. Seriously, it was actually 20 degrees out.

Note the baseball bat for protection.

Lots of cool waterfalls!

The hedgehog mittens also enjoyed the trip.

So the town of Brevard, North Carolina is known for its white squirrels. They make up 25% of the squirrel population there and we were super excited to spot one!

My Floridian friends had never jumped in a pile of leaves. I needed to remedy that immediately, of course.

Did you have a good weekend? What did you do?

the end of october

2011-11-06T11:50:00.000-05:00

A few bits and pieces from the last night in October before November (and the holidays!) begin in earnest.

I am super envious of Greg's saddle shoes, but at least I get to wear chunky wooden platforms with tights.

I spent the actual Hallow's Eve at my friend Ellie's carving pumpkins... this is the view from her apartment window.

A little pumpkin family. Guess who carved the cat??

podcast lovin'

2011-11-03T16:22:00.000-04:00

I more or less always have something auditory on when I'm pottering around my apartment. I'll watch TV if I'm doing repetitive handwork, but if I'm cooking or trying to clean my room (wow, sounding really domestic right now) or whathaveyou, I listen to podcasts or audiobooks. You probably know about most of these, but I thought I'd put them out there just in case!

The Artist Lady I work for actually recommended The Savage Love Cast to me. Essentially, Dan Savage sits there for an hour and answers people's various sexual and romantic quandaries. I think the real value of this podcast is realizing that there are people a lot weirder than you out there.

Like everyone else, I am in love with Ira Glass. I've been listening to This American Life for years, but only recently realized I can subscribe to it for free so new episodes get sent right to my iTunes. Yay! Also, this week's show features a middle school within walking distance of my apartment!

I generally describe RadioLab as "pop science." This podcast talks about interesting science news and stories centered around a theme in a way that's pretty easy to listen to.

After making this list I realized I'm only listening to podcasts led by males- any recommendations for awesome podcasts led by females?! Oh, and you can subscribe to all the above podcasts for free on iTunes!

21 Things in Review

2011-11-02T12:03:00.032-04:00

Last year I came up with 21 things I wanted to do or focus on until I turned 21. As usual, some of them got done, some of them didn't, and most of them fell somewhere in between.

1. draw daily

I did better with this at the beginning of the year, but I'd venture to say I draw something at least once a day.

2. grow food

Oh goodness, I may have been a little overly ambitious with this one. My only plant that survived was the basil, which has been moved inside for safekeeping.

3. make a zine

Will I ever do this!? Why is this so difficult?

4. knit a blanket

I thought about it and looked up patterns a couple times, but it juuuust didn't happen.

5. ride a bike

Alas, another one that didn't get accomplished. I have been taking public transit a lot though!

6. be open to change

Hard to say definitively whether I did this over the course of an entire year or not. I certainly tried!

7. choose kindness

I really think there are few things more important than being kind, pure and simple. I definitely have a cynical side, but I try really hard not to let it win out.

8. apologize less

I've really come a long way with this one. Sounds like a weird thing to focus on, but apologizing all the time for things that aren't my fault makes me seem weak and makes me feel less confident.

9. appreciate and respect my body

I'm not sure exactly what I meant by this one, haha. But I've been pretty conscious about getting enough sleep and exercising (sometimes!) and eating well.

10. begin to eliminate harmful chemicals from my routine

I made huge progress on this goal. We use almost all all-natural cleaning products in our apartment, and I try not to use any chemically or artificially "dirty" personal products. I actually just signed up to be an independent consultant for an organic skin care and cosmetics company called Neal's Yard Remedies. More on that in another post!

11. do a craft show

My friend Sarah and I shared a table at the Baltimore Farmers' Market and Bazaar, and we're all signed up to have another one at the Philly Punk Rock Flea Market in December!

12. spread handmade message

I think I did this by starting a Stitch 'n Bitch group at Towson... still one of the best things I have going in my life right now.

13. meditate more

I went through a few months during and after taking a meditation and mindfulness course when I was really good about this. I was meditating every single day, and it was so helpful! Unfortunately I've fallen off the wagon a little bit, but I'm working on getting back into it.

14. learn to tie knots

Not entirely sure where I was coming from with this one... regardless, it didn't happen.

15. exchange, give, and receive as much as possible instead of buying

This one is really about being generous with others and hoping that they'll do the same in return. I can be weirdly stingy about some things, and I've really been making a conscious effort to share and let material things go.

16. learn to build a fire properly

I think I was trying to build my skill set? Didn't do this one either.

17. volunteer regularly

I started this birthday year in Peru, where I was volunteering full time. After arriving back home it took a little longer to get into the swing of things. I teach for and try and volunteer for Art with a Heart as much as I reasonably can. Still, I've been thinking a lot recently about how I don't really like the concept of "volunteering." Like, I'd rather just have my whole life be a manifestation of my values, and I think some things that are traditionally considered volunteering would naturally be part of that. On the other hand, being part of protests, such as the Occupy movement, isn't really considered volunteering, but I think you're still dedicating your time and energy to something that hopefully will help people, so why not? Anyway, side ramble!

(standing in front of one of the murals I painted at The Hogar)

18. bake bread from scratch

I only did this once, but hey, it was good bread.

19. "dismiss whatever insults your own soul" (Walt Whitman)

20. "beyond a wholesome discipline, be gentle with yourself" (the desiderata)

I still love this. Meditation actually helped with this as well. It can be so difficult not to beat yourself up for things you've done or the way you feel. But I've made a lot of strides this year as far as accepting my emotions goes.

21. "do not compare yourself to others, for always there will be greater and lesser persons than yourself" (the desiderata)

I am getting better with this, especially when it comes to my art and design work. I think developing your own style really helps with this.

Halloween Party

2011-11-02T11:01:00.001-04:00

Happy Belated Halloween, friends! I love Halloween. It's like the ultimate fall holiday. I mean, yeah, you got Thanksgiving, but let's face it, Thanksgiving is basically a pre-Christmas holiday. This is the first fall I've spent in my own, non-university-owned apartment, so I thought it was time to throw a Halloween party!

I dressed up as the Little Utz Girl. For those who aren't familiar with the little lady, she's the icon for the Baltimore-brand potato chips Utz. And yes, I straightened my hair!

My friend's Steph makeup looked AMAZING. There's been a lot of awareness this Halloween about culturally insensitive costumes, which I think is great (the awareness, not the insensitivity), so I hope this isn't considered offensive.

My lovely friend Quinn and her boyfriend Tim dressed up as the Fantastic Mr. and Mrs. Fox. So cute!

My roommate Emily was a monarch butterfly (I did the facepaint!) and her boyfriend was... something dead?

I loveeee Ellie's Rosie the Riveter costume!

I was really excited to show off our lights on our terrace! The leaf garland was inspired by A Beautiful Mess.

What did you do for Halloween? Did you see any great costumes?

birthday

2011-10-25T21:02:00.000-04:00

Last weekend I celebrated my 21st birthday in my hometown with my family and a few friends. We went out and did a little pub crawl on the eve of my birthday and hit up some of the small town joints. The whole thing was a bit of a joke since last call everywhere in the county is 12:30, but it was surprisingly fun!

On the night of my actual birthday I had a nice family dinner, which was for my little brother as well, who shares my birthday. My family got me a GP, which is really more of a gift for all of them, since they're the ones who have to deal with my panicked phone calls.

We celebrated with pie instead of cake, and I'd just like to point out that my 12-year-old brother got 12 candles while I got... 3. Nice, Mom.

Overall it was a very nice weekend and I'm looking forward to continuing celebrations next weekend with my Birthdayween/Hallowbirthday party!

Loch Raven Reservoir

2011-10-20T16:05:00.000-04:00

October is my absolute favorite month of the year. I've been petsitting the past few weekends and have gotten the chance to take the dog out on a few nice autumn walks.

Hanging out with Mia really makes me wish I could have a dog! Alas, it won't be happening anytime in the near future.

Happy October!

Quinn + Greg's Birthday Party

2011-10-17T09:00:00.002-04:00

I'm a bit behind on posting photos and things, but occasionally I do things other than homework-work-sleep-protest! My good friends Greg and Quinn had a joint birthday a few weekends ago and it was really fun to see everyone dressed up and out of the Center for the Arts.

Ellie and Quinn were some of my first friends at Towson- Stitch 'n Bitch could've just as easily been called 'Crafty Girls with Short Hair' in the early days!

Justin and Greg are one of my favorite couples. So excited Justin is transferring to Towson next semester!

Group shot! Everyone looking real cute in their dresses and ties. And check out Quinn's cute decorations too!

Occupy DC

2011-10-16T10:57:00.000-04:00

source

Have you been following the Occupy movement?

source

I went to Occupy DC last Thursday and had a really incredible day.

It's been incredible to see so many different people from different age groups and different backgrounds striving to take control of their lives and hold the government and businesses responsible for the actions they've taken against the American people.

I went to Occupy Baltimore last night and things were a little more tame, but I think I got there during a lull. If you're local, check out the Occupy Baltimore site here. If you're not and want to find an Occupation near you, check out the directory here.

headed to occupy DC

2011-10-06T09:31:00.000-04:00

See you on the other side, folks!

teacup adventure + carnival goldfish

2011-10-02T19:52:00.000-04:00

My good friend Sarah and I had our first craft table last weekend at the Baltimore Farmers' Market! We didn't have the best location and we didn't sell a ton, but it was definitely good to have the experience! And the rain held off for most of the day, plus we met a lot of knitters, which was great. Have any of you readers done much tabling at craft shows or farmers' markets?

music monday: joanna newsom

2011-09-26T08:00:00.001-04:00

Every autumn I remember how much I love Joanna Newsom. Right now I am really convinced that The Milk-Eyed Mender is the greatest album of all time. I hadn't done a post about Ms. Newsom previously because I feel like most indie music fans know of her and her ridiculously wonderful, achey voice. That being said, I've decided that everyone can use a little reminder of how great she is, regardless. And if you haven't heard her, well, prepare yourself.

So this first video is of a live performance of "The Book of Right-On". I would really love to see her live- I mean, check out that harp!

If you're ever feeling discouraged with humans or life in general, just watch her playing her harp and listen to her weird voice contorting all over the place. I never cease to be amazed at how weird and weirdly good she is.

"Peach, Plum, Pear":

I also love that my oft-mentioned little brother Matthew loves her as well. Ever since he was little he would request "that one woman... you know... the pinecone one... with the weird voice."

Here's "Sadie":

I think all these songs are from Milk-Eyed Mender because I love it so much. But she has lots of other albums, and one that came out pretty recently, too! Is her voice not the best thing?

snapshots

2011-09-20T21:46:00.000-04:00

Life has been a whirlwind since classes started a few weeks ago. I'm mostly loving my classes, particularly Social Design. I actually have a blog for that class called Saving the World by Design, which you can check out right here. Since I'm being graded for that one, I'll undoubtedly end up posting a bit more often over there than here.

Since this blog's been seeing very little action lately, I thought I'd just share a few snapshots of the last few weeks:

An attempt at going "clubbing" ended up with everyone staying in at my friend Ellie's apartment. I wasn't too horribly disappointed, ha.

I made a quick visit to see some old high school friends at College Park a few weekends ago. The night pictured was momentous because Danielle (on the far left) decided to come to Peru with me in January! We just bought our tickets on Friday- SO excited.

My older sister Colleen and I had a family birthday party. I've been happily seeing a lot more of her since she moved to relatively-nearby Charlottesville, VA!

Some of my usual blog-worthy activities like reading and crafting have become restricted to books and designs related only to class for the time being. However, I'm still re-blogging inspiration and ranting more informally over on my tumblr pretty regularly. I miss you guys!

recent crafts

2011-09-10T13:02:00.001-04:00

Hello readers! Sorry for the long-ish absence! Despite a very full schedule, I have made a few crafts lately, mostly for gifts. Here's a fall wreath I made for my sister's birthday:

Wreath-making isn't really a craft I'd dabbled into before (it's sort of difficult to make hot-gluing leaves onto a wreath base subversive...), but I actually really enjoyed myself and I like how it turned out.

I also recently knit a hat that looks like R2D2 for my Dad's birthday. He's a huge Star Wars fan, but we pretty much exhausted our options with the yoda figurines, so I thought it was time to move onto knitwear.

I can't really take credit for the design- there are tons of different variations on this idea on etsy, so I just sort of combined the elements of different ones to create something I could make and that would fit my Dad. He loved it once he figured out what it was.

That's all for now- I hope everyone's having a great weekend!

summer reading: part two

2011-08-31T15:55:00.000-04:00

As class starts tomorrow, I thought I better share the rest of my summer reading while it's still relevant!

I saw this book in some fancy shop and spent quite some time lamenting my lack of funds to purchase it, and then came across it at the library! It's a super fun look at simple printmaking.

I love magical realism, so I was a little disappointed when South of the Border, West of the Sun didn't lean that way quite as much as Murakami's Kafka on the Shore does, but it's a beautiful and tenderly told story regardless.

Is there anything that Eve Ensler writes that doesn't make you cry and then want to save the entire world immediately? She is just the greatest. An ex-boyfriend recently commented that I've gone all "crazy feminist" and I place the blame squarely on Ms. Ensler. I highly recommend this book- you won't regret reading it!

I picked up The Dirty Life at the recommendation of Laura. It reminded me in some ways of Barbara Kingsolver's Animal, Vegetable, Miracle, but I think Kimball has a voice that many of us can identify with more than the unshakable Kingsolver. The Dirty Life tells the true story of Kimball's transition from big city journalist to full-time farmer, wife, and mother.

What have you been reading?

fall leaves

2011-08-30T15:09:00.000-04:00

I had some leftover leaves from another project so I put together this little hairpiece for fall. It's kind of over the top, but I don't really care because autumn is the best season, as everyone who knows me is sick of hearing. The school Starbucks has started serving pumpkin chai! And school starts in two days, what?

housesitting

2011-08-27T11:45:00.000-04:00

Hello readers! I've been doing a lot of housesitting this summer, and it really is the best thing.

Sitting around outside, getting paid to eat other people's food and play with their pets- it's a good deal.

Of course, now it's the opposite of sunny and everyone's anxiously awaiting Hurricane Irene. Hopefully it's as harmless as the earthquake we had last week. I've decided to stick it out at my apartment- we're not supposed to get much more than flash floods here. I hope everyone manages to have a nice weekend, natural disasters aside!

a few new knitted things

2011-08-21T11:51:00.000-04:00

Hello friends! I just listed a few new knitted things in my etsy shop yesterday, if you'd like to take a look! I've been using a lot of chunkier and textured yarns lately, which is lots of fun to work with, and also makes a nice, warm knit!

The Watercolor Chunky Headband.

The Colorful Knitted Headband.

The Teal Patterned Beret.

I hope everyone is enjoying the last few weeks of summer to the fullest and that you're having a great weekend!

P.S. I also wanted to say thank you to Sofia for your lovely comment! I normally would've emailed you, but since it was anonymous I just wanted to let you know it made my day.

the world is a good place

2011-08-20T12:44:00.000-04:00

“The world is a good place. Say it over and over again if you have to. The world is a good place where bad things happen. Once we lose our faith in humanity, we’ll never recover. Fight for justice, fight for safety, but don’t fight the idea of good people in the world who will stand there and fight with you, never against you. Allow yourself to be idealistic. Give up the cynicism for one day and believe with all your heart that the fires of London will be put out, that the governments around the world will hear their people, and that not every person who moves in next door is going to keep you up until 2am with their truly awful saxophone practicing. And even if they do, at least they’re a lover of the fine arts, right?”

- How to Restore Your Faith in Humanity by Becca Sands

photo by Romualdas Rakauskas source.

what I wore 8/12

2011-08-12T14:29:00.000-04:00

It's been quite some time since I last did an outfit post... I've been spending a lot of time in business casual wear, ha. However, as you can see, I fixed up my frame! I still want to try a lot of your suggestions, but I figured that in the meantime I would just staple in some pretty IKEA fabric and get it up on the wall!

dress: delia's
cardigan: hand-me-down from my sister
necklace: made in my metalsmithing class
wedges: target

Summer's not really my favorite season for style, or at least not in Baltimore. Hot, hot, hot. The sweater's just for show. Maybe in the fall, though, with some chunky tights? Are you excited for cooler fall days or are you living it up in the heat?

summer reading: part one

2011-08-10T09:53:00.000-04:00

Good morning readers! Goodness, summer just seems to be a terrible time to keep up with blogging. That being said, I've been reading up a storm and wanted to share some of my thoughts on my recent reading.

If you listen to This American Life, you might recognize Sarah Vowell's name- and you'd certainly recognize her voice! She has the gift of being able to make anything funny, even the depressing antics of our colonizing American forebears. I have to say that it barely even occurred to me how on the states acquired Hawaii before reading this book. I knew there was something about a Hawaiian queen involved, but I'm ashamed to say that I didn't know a single detail. This book is an entertaining, informative introduction to Hawaiian history.

Like Laura, I could sing the praises of Barbara Kingsolver all day. Her fiction and nonfiction alike are enthralling and always thought-provoking. I loved the Lacuna. From secret caves to Frida Kahlo, it was a delightful read all the way through.

Bossypants is just about what you'd expect from Tina Fey- and I don't mean that in a bad way. It was a a quick read, but full of laughs and witty insights. Definitely a fun summer read!

Unlike most of the public, it seems, I'd yet to read anything by the prolific Steve Martin until happening upon An Object of Beauty in my university library. I couldn't put it down! I especially enjoyed the references to the Isabella Stewart Gardner Museum, an extremely unique little museum I'd visited just a week before reading!

This is only the beginning of my summer reading, so I'll certainly be back with part two before the summer is out! What have you been reading? Any recommendations or warnings?

music monday: motopony

2011-08-01T09:46:00.000-04:00

I've been lapsing a bit on my music mondays, but this monday morning finds me housesitting, surrounded by a whole menagerie of animals with not much else to do besides feed them and swim in the pool, so no excuses. Today I'm going to share a song by Motopony that I've been listening to a lot called "King of Diamonds":

Check out the band's site here and you can even get a free download of the song here. Hope your week is off to a great start!

the wedding day: a few snapshots

2011-07-30T08:58:00.000-04:00

As I mentioned, I spent last weekend at my eldest sister's wedding, and the week before doing much of the preparation. I was much too busy running around and having a good time to take any pictures the day of, but luckily I have a few relatives who got some good snapshots.

Caitlin wore a simple strapless dress from David's Bridal, and a beautiful lace bolero and birdcage veil from Etsy.

The bridesmaid dresses were custom-made by etsy seller sohomode out of a vintage fabrics. I'm going to take mine up a few inches and then hopefully wear it again!

The bouquets (made by yours truly) were a simple combination of sunflowers and baby's breath, tied with translucent gold ribbon. I wish I'd gotten a few shots of some other details, like the mason jar center pieces and the caketopper I made! Hopefully the official photographer did, and I'll be sure to share when those photos come in!

Did you attend any spring or summer weddings this year? Any good memories from or big plans for your own? Hope your weekend is off to a great start!

what to do with a frame

2011-07-26T08:32:00.000-04:00

I found this glorious frame in my parents' garage a few weeks ago. I love it so much, but can't quite decide what to do with it! It's quite large (my foot's in the photo to give some reference as to size) and I think I'm going to hang it opposite my bed. I've considered: 1. framing a big piece of fabric, 2. creating a knitted taxidermy animal for the center, 3. making a mixed media piece with yarn and paint, and 4. using stencils on a canvas to spell out a word or short quotation. What do you think??

good morning monday.

2011-07-25T08:42:00.000-04:00

Good morning! I am so woefully behind with blogging... my apologies! My oldest sister got married this weekend, and I was bridesmaid, florist, and decorator, so I had a pretty busy week leading up to the big day.

Between the bachelorette party, rehearsal dinner, decorating, bouquet-making, and of course the wedding itself, I haven't had much time to spare. I hope to be back in full swing this week though, so keep your eye out for more posts! Have a great monday, readers!

I open at the close.

2011-07-16T11:49:00.000-04:00

I can't believe it's over! I am still reeling in shock a little bit. I'm happy to report that both the premiere experience and the movie were great though! I won't spoil anything for anyone waiting to see it, but except for a few minor things, I thought the makers did a great job of sticking to the book. The premieres are so great because the audience is so into it- everyone clapped at Mrs. Weasley's infamous line during the final battle scene, and of course when Ron and Hermione finally kissed.

Here's how I made my costume: I spray painted a basic v-neck gold, and then embroidered "I open at the close." (mostly behind the register at work, ha!) across the front. I made the wings by shaping pipe cleaners into a semi circle and then hot gluing tons of white feathers in that basic shape. I hotglued and sewed the wings onto the edge of the neckline, et voila! And I added some feathers to my hair for good measure.

Have you seen it yet? What did you think? Any other exciting plans for the weekend?

harry potter, tonight!

2011-07-14T08:05:00.000-04:00

You may or may not know that I LOVE Harry Potter. I've been reading the books and going to the midnight premieres with my best friend since I was real little, and tonight's not going to be any different! I've been preparing for the last week or so, re-reading the seventh book, buying tickets, and getting my costume together. I'm being a golden snitch, specifically the one that holds the resurrection stone! I've been sneaking my embroidery hoop into work so I could stitch "I open at the close." onto a gold tee shirt. I'll have photos of the costume post-premiere, but in the meantime, I wanted to share some harry potter crafts and other goodness:

This is a great idea, especially if you aren't up for full-on dressing up.

An excerpt from the last book. Gets me every time.

Look at them all grown up and handsome! Especially Neville... what happened there!?

Luna Lovegood's one of my favorite characters! Learn how to make her radish earrings here.

Do you like Harry Potter? Do you have plans for the big tonight? I'd love to hear about your costume, if you have one!

music monday: noah and the whale

2011-07-11T21:59:00.000-04:00

hello friends! I hope your week is off to a good start. Today I wanted to share a little song called "L.I.F.E.G.O.E.S.O.N." by Noah and the Whale. It took me quite a few choruses to figure out what was being spelled... my auditory processing is not the best. Anyway, here's the song:

Today was the fourth day in a row I worked at my soul-killing big box craft store job... my eyes are still a bit glazed over! I wanted to make sure I posted something for music monday though, so here you are! Have a great rest of your week!

cylburn arboretum adventures

2011-07-07T08:02:00.000-04:00

Good morning! This weekend I had the pleasure of visiting Baltimore's Cylburn Arboretum with Laura of Radiator Tunes. It's the first time I've spent a significant amount of time outside all season due to my allergies, which seem to finally be winding down, thank goodness! It was the first visit for both of us, and I think we were both pretty impressed! It's incredible that such a beautiful (and free!) garden is just hanging out right in the city!

It was also great to get some quality use out of my camera again. I hadn't gone in a good photoventure in a while.

There's a gorgeous old mansion on site that'd be a lovely backdrop for a wedding or other occasion.

And lots of pretty plants, of course!

Something about this mossy-faced woman really appealed to me.

Laura assured me these tiny wineberries were safe to eat!

We both enjoyed these quirky little signs- and the wonky trees they were hanging from!

I'm definitely lucky to have such a beautiful place near by, and of course lucky to have such a good friend to accompany me!

independence day

2011-07-05T08:22:00.000-04:00

Hello, friends! I have a few photos to share from independence day reveling. In fact, I actually celebrated on July 3rd since I had to work on the 4th. I went back to my hometown for the day and my parents were nice enough to let me commandeer the grill... we finally got it to work after a few tries, as you can see!

I just had a few friends over and we hung out outside and ate veggie kabobs and pie... it was a good time.

Oh, and you might have noticed my festive dress, ha! I tried it on as a joke a few years ago at a Goodwill in Delaware, and much to my surprise, it fit perfectly. For two dollars I thought it was worth it to have the perfect fourth of July dress every year.

Have I mentioned that I drive a beat up old truck? People always get a laugh out of it, but I've started not to mind it. We thought my dress went ridiculously well with my vehicle, so we had a little bit of a photo shoot. I won't be posting the embarrassing ones!

Did you do anything to celebrate this weekend?

music monday: the head and the heart

2011-07-04T20:01:00.000-04:00

Hello readers! Happy fourth if you happen to be an American! I had to work today (boo) so I did most of my celebrating yesterday- documentation to come shortly! In the meantime, meet the head and the heart, a folksy group from Seattle. Let's start with "Lost in My Mind" which seems to getting a lot of independent radio play:

Pitchfork's not a fan, but who cares, really? Not this girl. Here's "Rivers and Roads":

Check out their site here, if you're interested. That's all for now, friends. I hope you've had a nice holiday, if you're celebrating!

summertime.

2011-06-30T18:03:00.000-04:00

source

I was feeling a bit angsty the other day and decided that perhaps I'm not quite utilizing summer to its full advantage! Isn't it funny how sometimes we know what we want to be doing, but we just don't do it? I know I would much rather read a book than watch TV, get up early than sleep in late, eat veggies instead of junk, etc., but sometimes I find myself doing the opposite! I made a little list of things I want to focus on in the next few weeks, just on a personal level:

1. Things to do everyday: meditate, exercise, knit, read, draw, vitamins.
2. Redecorate bedroom: new bedspread, frame pictures, hide cords
3. Go to the farmer's market.
4. Write letters.
5. Be happy, healthy, and productive!

Just a random little assortment of things to feel better.

music monday: julie doiron

2011-06-27T22:26:00.000-04:00

I can't get enough of broken voices, voices on the verge of cracking, voices with a little bit of a rasp. We live in an auto-tuned world, and I think most any break from that is worth pursuing. Julie Doiron is another wonderfully imperfect songstress I want to share with you. If you liked Laura Veirs and/or St. Vincent, I'd imagine you might like Ms. Doiron as well. I'm just going to share a few of her lovely videos and keep the narrating to a minimum.

"Me and My Friend":

"Darkhorse":

And of course, I can't NOT include a tiny desk concert when there's one available, so here's that:

I hope you enjoyed this week's music monday and that your week is off to a great start!

what I wore 6/24

2011-06-26T12:55:00.001-04:00

top: actually a dress, originally from target, tea-dyed by me
skirt: value village
sandals: target

I haven't done an outfit post in a while because my day-to-day business casual isn't all that inspiring. I wore this to my internship the other day while in the midst of reading The Lacuna, which partly features Frida Kahlo. I occasionally have a "frida day" wherein I wear red lipstick, braid my hair, and find something kind of ruffly to wear. I usually skip the whole unibrow thing, but one day, ha! Does anyone else find themselves channeling a favorite person in their outfits, or is that just me?

craft round-up

2011-06-23T18:19:00.000-04:00

Hello again, friends! I've been a bit sick this week, with the flu I think. I've been dedicating myself to fever dreams and several seasons of parks and rec, but now that I'm on the upswing I'd like to share some neat craft projects that have been floating around the blogosphere and tumblrverse (oh my, I'm on the internet too much!):

This wreath is a cute alternative to fake florals and seems easy enough to make! Source.

I think this would make such a nice banner to leave on someone's door or in her office for a birthday or just a nice surprise. A much nicer and durable alternative to the prosaic paper cut-outs, and probably just as easy! Source.

I loooooove this animal head jewelry rack. There's something so creepy-but-cute about it. You can check out the whole tutorial right here. I actually work at a craft store (the exact one will remain undisclosed), and we totally sell those little animals, but c'mon, am I going to pay five dollars per animal just to saw off its head? The answer to that is no, no I am not. But I'm keeping my eye out for ones in decent shape at thrift stores!

I've definitely been getting interested in making my own stamps lately. Reminds me a bit of printmaking but minus the hassle of the press! Source.

What's your next craft project? As always, thanks for reading!

music monday: sarah lee guthrie and johnny irion

2011-06-20T22:51:00.000-04:00

Hi everyone! Did you have a good weekend? Mine was pretty wonderful, mostly. I can't believe I went on a weekend trip and didn't take any pictures. Very unlike me. Oh well, at least I have a song to share with you! It's Sarah Lee Guthrie and Johnny Irion's "Target On Your Heart":

I was kind of "eh" about this song the first few times I heard it, but I've gotten really into the voice inflections. Also, upon further research, the Sarah Lee in question is Woody Guthrie's daughter. Say whaaaat? Anyway, check out the duo's website here and have a great week!

five good things.

2011-06-17T08:00:00.002-04:00

Hello readers! Happy Friday! It's time for five good things...

1. My bestie Kathleen visited last weekend and we had a great time. Here she is with the golden snitch I made in metalsmithing class!

2. This neat stamp idea.

3. I'm going to New York City and Boston this weekend! Visiting lots of friends and generally having a good time and enjoying the cooler weather!

4. This cool little collection:

5. My friend Amanda just opened up an etsy shop! Check it out here.

Have a great weekend guys!

music monday: caitlin rose

2011-06-13T08:00:00.003-04:00

Good morning and happy Monday, friends! I hope everyone had a lovely weekend. This week I'm featuring Caitlin Rose's song "Shanghai Cigarettes". Female vocals, slight country twang, satisfying voice inflections, catchy lyrics... what's not to love? The video's pretty dreamy too.

Give "Shanghai Cigarettes" a listen and check out her site here! Thanks for reading (and listening!) and have a great day!

recent reads

2011-06-12T11:14:00.000-04:00

I typically am only able to read 2-3 books over the course of a semester due to time constraints, but once summer or another break hits, I start making my way through my to-read list.

Mostly recently, I read Writings to Stop Violence Against Women and Girls: A Memory, a Monologue, a Rant, and a Prayer edited by Eve Ensler. This group of writings is a pretty quick read, but one that will resonate long after you've put the book down.

I also recently read The Autograph Man by Zadie Smith. Smith is one of my favorite contemporary authors. While I certainly enjoy being challenged in my reading, I ultimately still want a novel to read as a story, rather than a discombobulated collection of stream-of-consciousness narratives. Smith does a great job using some non-traditional writing techniques while maintaining the integrity of her storyline

both in The Autograph Man and her other books, White Teeth and On Beauty.

I loved Bill Bryson's A Walk in the Woods, and had high expectations going into Notes from a Small Island. Unfortunately, I was quite disappointed. While Bryson's nostalgic trip across Britain is mildly entertaining at points, the author spends most of his time lamenting the horrific architecture put up across the country in the '60s and '70s.

What have you been reading lately? Any recommendations?

the house on stilts

2011-06-10T08:57:00.000-04:00

Hello friends! Last weekend my sister Caitlin and I drove down to Charlottesville, VA, to help one of my other sisters, Colleen (don't even try to keep track- I'm one of eight children) move into her new home. Since her new home was yet to be set up, Colleen kindly rented a house for us all to stay in over the weekend. When she showed me some of the online options, I actually begged her to choose this option- it's sort of a cabin/treehouse/house on stilts.

Pretty cool, right? The inside was pretty tiny, just one room and a loft. It was filled with books about knitting and spirituality and diy- my kind of place!

Also, there was a chicken coop under the house- check it out!

I was kinda too scared to actually go in, but I did get some pictures of the birds chicken coop chillin'.

I have to say, it was GREAT to take a trip, even just a little one. A few days after I got home I bought bus tickets to Boston- definitely been bitten by the travel bug. Do you get antsy if you stay in one place for too long?

bedroom inspiration

2011-06-07T19:05:00.000-04:00

I'm fairly content with the rest of the apartment, but I still feel pretty blah about my bedroom. I've been going through my saved images looking for inspiration, and I thought you guys might like to see some too!

source

What's your room look like?

music monday: walk the moon

2011-06-06T08:00:00.000-04:00

Good morning, readers! This week I'm featuring the Cincinatti-based band Walk the Moon. They play the song "Anna Sun" all the time on WTMD, but it didn't really begin to grow on me until I checked out the video! I'm actually going to share two versions of the song, the first being the official, super-hipster (but mostly delightful) music video:

Alternately, you can just skip to 2:05 for a really ridiculous dance move.

The second version of Anna Sun is a much more low-key acoustic version. Love all the acapella-type bits going on!

You can check out their site here. I hope you enjoyed this week's music monday and that your week is off to a good start!

five good things.

2011-06-03T00:09:00.000-04:00

Hello friends! It's been a while since I've done a five good things friday, so here goes.

1. I started knitting these shorts. So excited to finish them and wear them around, looking as ridiculous as possible. Here's my progress so far:

2. I'm taking a wee trip this weekend to help one of my older sisters move. I've been aching to go somewhere, so hopefully this'll help a little bit.

3. It's plenty warm enough to wear my short-alls alllll the time.

(Like my overflowing laundry basket? I never have enough quarters to do laundry.)

4. The short-alls bring me to a fabulous blog I recently discovered called The Man Repeller. All about it. This girl is hilarious and dead on.

5. This sloth video. You will die of cuteness. Seriously.

Meet the sloths from Lucy Cooke on Vimeo.

Bon weekend, readers! What do you have planned?!

stitch 'n bitch

2011-06-01T00:00:00.000-04:00

I picked up some photos from a disposable camera I've had for over a year yesterday, so I have few posts lined up related to the events documented therein... the first being my stitch 'n bitch group!

Stitch 'n bitch is great. I'm not exactly sure what it is about knitting in public that draws really great people. Even at the very first meeting, everyone could tell we were all going to be friends.

We have a wide range of attendees, from experienced knitters like Quinn (the redhead), who is just finishing up an amazing crab-patterned sweater, to newcomers knitting their very first scarves. We always joke that you have to be female and have short hair to join, but we have had a grand total of three males attend, and we do have a few long-haired girls as well! Topics range from Harry Potter (always brought up at some point!) to art classes to travel to religion, all of which often lead to a few dropped stitches. We sometimes get a few stares, but people are usually just interested, if anything.

I'm super grateful to have had the opportunity to meet all these neat knitters in my area- stitch 'n bitch is definitely one of the best things I have going in my life right now.

As always thanks for reading, and I hope everyone's week is going swimmingly!

music monday: tallest man on earth

2011-05-30T10:28:00.000-04:00

Good morning folks, happy monday and happy memorial day! I have off from my internship (the job I like), but not from my craft store job (the job I don't like), but oh well! Hopefully you all have some delightful plans for the day. In the meantime, I'd like to share the artist the tallest man on earth with you. Some of my favorite people have put him on mixes for me, which was a high enough recommendation for me to do some digging.

So this guy's real name is actually Kristian Matsson and he's Swedish. Does anyone else picture Sweden as this perfect country filled with clean lines, tall trees, and good healthcare? Anyway, here's a NPR Tiny Desk Concert starting with his song "I Won't Be Found":

And here's "Burden of Tomorrow":

I'll leave you with just those two since the first video is wonderful and has lots of songs!

Have a great day! xx

saturday stuff

2011-05-28T12:10:00.000-04:00

Hello friends! Today I have a few assorted things to share.

First, I finally finished my hedgehog mittens! I got the pattern back in December, but my motivation slowed as it started to get warmer. I'm still quite pleased with them though, and am excited to wear them in the cooler months.

I also whipped up a little flyer for a show happening next week:

It's so great to have some time to make things again. I'd been meaning to make a little string of pennants for the terrace, and I finally got around to it this week. Here they are, fluttering around:

What are you up to this weekend, readers?

spring printmaking series

2011-05-27T00:19:00.001-04:00

Hello friends! I recently picked up all my printmaking work from school, so I decided to photograph my series to show you!

This is the first collograph I did, and it's quite a large print. If you're not a printmaker, a collograph is a plate made from a piece of matboard. You can carve into it, or add and layer materials on it. I do a combination of both. In this piece it's mostly cut into, but there's also fringed electrical tape, contact paper, and some other things on there. You coat the whole thing in ink, and then thoroughly wipe it off, leaving ink only in the crevices, so that when you print, it's the lines you've carved IN that show up. So the opposite of linoleum or making a rubber stamp, if you've ever done that.

This is a much smaller 8 x 8 bleed print. In real life the black looks a lot more dirt-like since I used a grainy texture on the plate, which transferred over to the print.

This is another 8 x 8 print, and it's the last one I created. It's about words coming out of your mouth when you don't want them to. Happens to me all the time. (p.s. I actually printed an edition of these, so you can buy an original print here, if you're interested!)

I had a lot of difficulty getting this next one where I wanted it. I actually used color in a few of them to emphasize the green on the luna moth, but ultimately decided I liked it better in black and white. This one's a little larger, about 11 x 11.

This next one is one of my favorites. I got the idea from always doing this one mountain meditation I learned back in my meditation and mindfulness class. It's about recognizing your potential and capabilities.

This next one is a polymer plate, which is a very different process from a collograph. I had a hard time photographing it, so this isn't quite what it looks like in real life. I was pretty heavily influenced by Frida Kahlo for this whole series, but particularly for this one.

This one's just a small test plate I did using a copper plate.

Anddd the whole series, including my pink linoleum print from earlier in the semester!

Oh here's a bonus print. I didn't include it in my series because no one likes it, and while it might not be the best compositionally, I really dig it conceptually so I thought I'd include it here anyway.

It feels great to see everything all together and finally finished!

wedding shawl

2011-05-24T09:00:00.001-04:00

My main knitting project for the past few months has been this alpaca shawl as a wedding gift for Laura. I'd been saving the bulk of my yarn from Peru for something special, and this seemed just the thing! I used this pattern, which is free from Ravelry!

It can also be worn as a kerchief for a more casual look!

Have you made any special gifts recently?

music monday: songs for summer

2011-05-23T08:56:00.000-04:00

Finally finally finally, it's summer! My last exam was today, thank goodness. My summer schedule is still pretty full, but it won't be anything compared to the past two weeks. In honor of the season of popsicles, skinned knees, and lemonade stands, I give you songs for summer:

family of the year- "let's go down":

naked kids- "grouplove":

regina spektor- "folding chair":

diego paulo- "holiday":

(diego paulo was local to my old school, UD, so I got to see them perform a bunch of times. super summery.)

Alright guys, that's all for now! Posts will be coming a lot more regularly now that the finals frenzy is over. Have a good day!

honeycomb band ring

2011-05-18T17:31:00.000-04:00

I'm still in the midst of the craziest week of the semester, but I wanted to share with you one of my favorite metalsmithing projects.

I based the design off a honeycomb and then sawed it out of a piece of silver, and then sweat soldered it to another piece of silver. After shaping the ring, I simply soldered the seam and added a patina to get the darker color of the design. With lots of burns, crying, and cursing in between, of course!

I promise I'll be a better blogger after finals, friends!

music monday: sarah songs

2011-05-16T23:14:00.000-04:00

hello, friends! It's been a little while, and for that I apologize. It's been sort of a rough day! I had a pretty bad allergic reaction around my eyes, and all my plans got thrown off so I could go see the allergist and get it taken care of. in attempts to cheer myself up, this week I'm going to share some of my favorite "sarah songs".

First up, the classic Hall and Oates tune, "Sara Smile"

Next, one most indie fans are probably familiar with, Death Cab for Cutie's "What Sarah Said":

And lastly, a more recent tune and a new favorite! It's called "Sara" and it's by Chad VanGaalen.

Do you know any good songs with your name in them? I hope your week is off to a good start!

another sunny day

2011-05-11T17:39:00.000-04:00

Last weekend I was asked to housesit, which was delightful. Even though I still spent most of my weekend at the studio or work, I did have a nice Saturday afternoon. It's really the first time this spring I've spent much time outside at all, which is a bit sad!

As much as I love my little apartment, I'm definitely looking forward to having at least a little bit of a yard one day! That's all for now... it's back to the jewelry lab, can't complain!

music monday: gregory and the hawk

2011-05-09T09:00:00.001-04:00

Good morning and happy monday! Today I'm featuring one of my very favorite artists, gregory and the hawk, aka Meredith Godreau. Her songs are achingly beautiful, and will most certainly break your heart. I'm going to start off with my favorite gregory and the hawk song, the oats we sow:

The next song reminds me of a much sadder time of my life, but it's a beautiful song all the same. A Wish:

I'll readily admit that 2008's Moenie and Kitchi is my favorite album of hers, but I wanted to include something a little more recent, so here's For the Best from 2010's Leche:

You can check out her website here for more music and information. I hope you enjoyed this week's music monday and that your week is off to a great start!

tea party time.

2011-05-07T08:06:00.001-04:00

Good morning, friends! Today I have photos to share from a fabulous tea party given by my friend Amanda and Steph. The whole thing was lovely, from the photos lining the path to their apartment to the rose-flavoured cupcakes.

Amanda made an amazing amount of delicious food! Luckily for me, I got to enjoy the cupcakes again the next day in my metalsmithing class!

Here's the whole group: (as you can see I found an opportunity to wear my mother's prom dress!)

And here are the hostesses. I met Steph through my metalsmithing class, and her roommate Amanda is in my knitting group.

I couldn't help but try all three kinds of cupcakes.

We were all pretty fascinated by the blooming tea- especially since it was in this super cool teapot that was Amanda's great-grandmother's!

I feel really lucky that I'e made some friends here that are into the same things I am! I've definitely been inspired to throw some some of classy party this summer- after finals, final projects, and all sorts of other deadlines, of course!

This weekend I'm planning on spending a lot of time in the studio, cuddling with the dogs I'm pet-sitting, and going to work. What will you be up to?

mail time.

2011-05-05T08:00:00.000-04:00

good morning, friends! I'll admit that I'm dreadfully behind on sending out mail, but I did want to share some recent mailbox goodness.

These two cute cards came from hannah and britt. And both included little surprises as well- so nice!

These are the two cards I made and sent in reply!

I hope to have a second this weekend to make and send a few more! Have a great day, everyone!

ten facts.

2011-05-04T14:18:00.000-04:00

hello everyone! two of my readers were nice enough to tag me to write ten facts about myself (thanks Simple Summit and Jello's Kitchen!). Soooo, in case you didn't know enough already, I'm breaking out my fun facts.

1. I'm one of eight children, four of whom were adopted from Russia.
2. I've had my bat mitzvah as well as a confirmation.
3. I'm allergic to raw carrots, strawberries, pears, apples, bananas, macadamian nuts, almonds, soy, avocados, and all kinds of trees and grass.
4. I've lived in ten places in the last three years.
5. I want to be a beekeeper some day.
6. I think about my Peruvian kids every. single. day.
7. When I first cut my hair short when I was 13, I brought in a picture of Audrey Hepburn in Roman Holiday to the hairdresser.
8. I can touch the tip of my nose with my tongue.
9. I am saving up money to get a hedgehog.
10. I meditate every day.

And I'm not going to tag anyone in particular, but please feel free to share if you'd like! Have a happy Wednesday, it's back to school work for me!

music monday: tennis

2011-05-02T22:55:00.000-04:00

Kathleen put a few Tennis songs on a mix for me a while ago, and I liked them, but when I caught a segment with an interview of the intrepid couple on the radio a week or two ago, I became way more intrigued. The two members of Tennis, Patrick Riley and Alaina Moore, went on a yearlong sailing trip, and were inspired to make music about their journey after their return. Pretty cool stuff, right? Needless to say, I'm about ready to pack up a little suitcase and start sailing the coast. In the meantime, check out a few of Tennis's great tunes:

"Baltimore"- had to start with the song named after my city, of course!

"Take Me Somewhere":

You can check out NPR's segment on the duo here, and their website here. Hope your week is off to a good start, and that for all of your sakes, that your Monday was not as hectic as mine! Also, a shoutout to Greg, my biology friend and fellow appreciator of all things awesome, who always reads my music posts and enjoys being mentioned!

saturday stuff

2011-04-30T11:15:00.000-04:00

Hello friends, I hope your weekend is off to a good start! I had a great time at the Transmodern Festiva l last night (pictures to come after I get my film developed!)- if you're local you should definitely check it out! I'm feeling a bit overwhelmed by all I have to do in the next three weeks (I had a silent panic attack in my metals class yesterday and then passed out- just trying to keep things interesting, you know), but I made a schedule (color-coded! I feel like Hermione!) and I know everything will get done. In the mean-time, a few pretty things to share:

Lovely blossoms outside my apartment building.

Aerial view of my welded piece for metals class.

Loving my new sandals.

Have a great rest of your weekend, readers!

dotty.

2011-04-27T09:00:00.003-04:00

I bought this dress a few weeks ago on a fun visit to DeBois Textiles with Laura. I was trying to talk myself out of it, but she convinced me I could wear it to her wedding! I gave it a test run at a family party on Sunday. I love it, even if the polyester fabric is slightly regrettable. On the plus side, it never needs to be ironed!

dress: DeBois textiles (vintage)
belt: Goodwill
sandals: Target

Any one else have any good vintage finds lately?

fifty followers sale

2011-04-26T00:00:00.002-04:00

Hey there, readers! A few days ago I reached the fifty followers mark, and I'm celebrating by having a fifty percent off sale in my etsy shop. That's right, FIFTY! Pick up a cute spring accessory, like a headband, bow, or floral patch, or stock up for next year with a hat or a scarf! It's for one day only though, so make sure you checkout by midnight tonight! The code you'll use at checkout to get the discount is FIFTY. Thanks to all my followers and other readers (I know other people use bloglovin and the like)!

music monday: meiko

2011-04-25T09:00:00.005-04:00

good morning friends, and happy monday! I hope you had a good Easter if you celebrate it! Today I have a new-to-me artist to share. Her name is Meiko, and my biology friend Greg introduced me to her via a mix CD. She's just the kind of mellow, a-little-bit-pop-a-little-bit-folk, female vocalist that I love.

Here's "How Lucky We Are," the song that was on my mix!

And here's another one, "Under My Bed":

Be sure to check out her site here. That's all for now- have a great Monday!

midpoint

2011-04-23T13:16:00.000-04:00

Good morning, friends! This gloomy Saturday morning brings my half-birthday and six months since I set my twenty one goals, with six months more to go! Time is such a strange, fluid thing. Six months ago I was in Peru, and it was a sunny spring day there. I wore my favorite dress, got eggs cracked on my head all day (a Peruvian tradition) and went out to dinner with some of the other volunteers. It was before things took a very serious turn, before Lily died and before I got sick and had to go home. It seems like it's been both more and less time. Anyway, I'm the sort of person who likes to mark time (as I imagine most people who blog are), and so today I want to see where I've gotten to on my twenty one things so far!

1. Draw daily: Now that I'm back in school, this one's easy. I've really been enjoying developing ideas and images for my printmaking classes, but not having the stress of making them perfectly realistic.
2. Grow food: Well, my seedlings have all sprouted so I can only hope in a few months time that this goal will be complete!
3. Make a zine: this summer, I promise!
4. Knit a blanket: I haven't yet... the prospect is a bit daunting, to be honest.
5. Ride a bike: Well, I did once with my little brother a few weeks ago. I really want to start using one as transportation this summer though!
6. Be open to a change: This is kind of a vague one, but I think I've been doing an okay job.
7. Choose kindness: I'm trying. It makes me really happy when an opportunity comes up to do something nice. I really dislike when I find myself saying negative things about people, so I am trying to limit that as well.
8. Apologize less: This is one area I've definitely improved in. I think living on my own and really doing my own thing has given me more confidence in myself and my actions.
9. Appreciate and respect my body: I've been doing really well in recent months with eating healthy food and getting enough sleep. I also try not to hate myself for my myriad of relatively menial health problems.
10. Begin to eliminate harmful chemicals from my routine: We use chemical-free cleaners at the apartment, and the majority of personal care things I use are all-natural. I am cutting back on makeup, but haven't quite fully made the transition. Unfortunately being an art major exposes me to chemicals in many of my classes, but I try to take precautions.
11. Do a craft show: I applied for one a few weeks ago and haven't heard back yet. I've been slacking on this one a bit.
12. Spread handmade message: doing what I can!
13. Meditate more: I think this goal wins! I've been meditating everyday for a few months now.
14. Learn to tie knots: no progress whatsoever.
15. Exchange, give, and receive as much as possible instead of buying: I haven't really been making a conscious effort to do this, but the nature of working minimum wage has made it a part of my life anyway!
16. Learn to build a fire properly: Hopefully I can practice on my upcoming camping trip with Sarah and Abby!

17. Volunteer regularly: This was very easy at the beginning since I was still in Peru in a volunteer position, but has been more difficult since I've begun school. I intended to volunteer at Art with a Heart, but when offered a paid position, I couldn't really justify saying no given my current situation. It often feels as if there simply isn't time, between taking nineteen credits and working two jobs, but I know there must be somewhere.

18. Bake bread from scratch: I did this once so far and hope to do so again soon.

19. "dismiss whatever insults your own soul" (Walt Whitman): Always trying.

20. "beyond a wholesome discipline, be gentle with yourself" (the desiderata): This is something that mediation has really been helping me with. When I get overwhelmed or am having a hard day, my tendency is sometimes to beat myself up about it and work even harder. However, I've been trying to give myself the time and space to work through things instead of ignoring them.

21. "do not compare yourself to others, for always there will be greater & lesser persons than yourself" (the desiderata): My current situation lends itself to this much more than being at UD did... living on my own is great, as is the less competitive atmosphere of the Towson art program.

Thanks for sticking with me- have a great rest of your weekend!

the time it takes

2011-04-21T07:56:00.000-04:00

I haven't been updating with as much as my school/art work as I'd like, but here's my finished "time" project for my Visual Concepts class. For each project we're given a general theme or idea that we can interpret pretty much however we want.

Each color represents the amount of time it took to knit that section (check out those giant needles! I got them in Peru)- the yellow is one hour, the aqua floral is a half hour, the grey fifteen minutes, the gingham five, and the tiny sliver of white is one minute. On the "yarn" is written things that could be done in each of those periods of time. It's supposed to be a comment on what we choose to spend our time doing, as well as that a lot of society deems "domestic" tasks, i.e. those traditionally assigned to women, as unworthy of our time. Many of these things, be it cooking, cleaning, sewing, or gardening, are outsourced to lower-paid members of our community, or even, in the case of sewing or knitting, outsourced overseas altogether.

Oh! And they yarn is made of strips of household fabrics, like curtains and sheets.

Have a good day, everyone!

family tree

2011-04-20T09:46:00.000-04:00

hello friends, happy wednesday! Today I just have this gorgeous old photo to share. I went home Monday night for my older brother's birthday, and my mom broke out a bunch of family photos while searching for streamers. I had to scan this one- it's too perfect! The two in the center are my great grandparents, and the boy on the right is my grandfather. The girl on the left is my great aunt myra, and I honestly did a little bit of a double take when I saw her! She died before I was born, so I'm not sure what she looked like in her later years, but here I think she looks so much like me! I don't really look too much like anyone in my family, and especially not on my mom's side, so it was so funny to find this resemblance. She also has great style with her lace up flats and big collar!

music monday: laura veirs

2011-04-18T22:13:00.000-04:00

It seems I've pushed music monday to the very limits of it actually being published on Monday! Today was a busy day, what with a crit in my visual concepts class, a bio lab, writing a paper, and going home for my older brother's birthday, but I still want to share some music from laura veirs with you today.

The first time I came across her music was when I checked out her 2007 album Saltbreakers from the public library on a whim because the cover looked cool. It turned out to be a good whim to follow! Here's my favorite song from that album, "Drink Deep":

My current favorite of hers is "Wide-eyed, Legless":

I just cannot get enough of this song... it's so creepy and yet kind of dance-y at the same time. Definitely more interpretative dancing than you know, the other, normal kind, but dance-y all the same.

Check out her site here for more information and to check out the rest of her music.

I hope everyone had a lovely Monday and that your week is off to a great start!

thrift store treasures

2011-04-16T22:15:00.000-04:00

Last weekend I went to my local Goodwill (conveniently less than a mile away!) under the guise of picking up some sheets to tear into yarn for a school project, and ended up getting so much stuff the girl at the cash register asked if I had a tax exempt card. I said it was for a project... I guess people's first guess on a project that involves six sheets and some curtains isn't art project. Oh well! Anyway, in addition to the sheets I got some kitschy wonderfulness.

I have a really hard time leaving handmade things in thrift stores. Especially knitted or crocheted blankets. It actually sort of breaks my heart to see them being sold for a couple dollars since each one represents hours and hours of work. This one's being hung up in my bedroom since I already have one on my bed and another in the living room! Okay, so I know that cat basket is hideous. I'm planning on taking off the handle and painting it a solid color. Probably teal. I looooove this little embroidered tiger. The back reads "Merry Christmas, 1974, made by Mary Jo." I just think it's the best.

I had to get this tiny little impressionist piece too. Look at the frame!

Our framed collection is growing!

Have you gotten anything good at the thrift store lately?

five good things.

2011-04-15T19:01:00.000-04:00

hello friends! It's been a crazy but good week. I woke up yesterday thinking "everything's going to get done and it's going to be awesome!" which is probably the most optimistic awakening I've had at six in the morning, ever. However, due to said craziness le blog has been a bit neglected, for which I apologize. So, without further ado, I give you five good things!

1. this tutorial. We always talk about doilies in my knitting group so I think a few of us are going to get together and make these!

2. Financial aid came through for next year! There are still a few formalities to take care of, but that's going to relieve a TON of pressure come next year.

3. "Nope. Zero,” the president said to the speaker. Mr. Boehner tried again. “Nope. Zero,” Mr. Obama repeated. “John, this is it.” A long silence followed, said one participant in the meeting. “It was just like an awkward, ‘O.K., well, what do you do now?’"

-President Obama to Speaker Boehner about how much he would be willing to cut from Planned Parenthood funding.

Sometimes I'm pretty proud to have this guy as our president!

4. plans a growin' everyday.

5. I've been knitting with giant needles and torn up sheets for a school project, and it is so much fun! Definitely a change of pace from my cobweb weight yarn and tiny needles I'm using for something else I'm making!

(sorry for the grainy photobooth picture!)

What's good in your life this weekend? Any exciting weekend plans? I have my first day off in a while tomorrow so I think Laura and I may head to the Baltimore Museum of Art for their new photo exhibit- I've been hearing rave reviews!

sunny day

2011-04-13T10:10:00.000-04:00

It's back to cool and rainy now, but Monday was gloriously, gloriously warm. It was almost ninety degrees out! I spent most of my day on campus, but I came prepared. I brought my Harry Potter beach towel and sunscreen and studied and worked on an art project out on the grass! I felt a little silly, but I get hives from grass and burn faster than toast! I got most of this outfit from the kids section of Goodwill this weekend- both the shirt and the dress for less than three dollars! I've been looking for a nice chambray-type shirt forever. Since I try to shop secondhand as much as possible, it's been a long search. All the women's shirts seem to have some horrible cartoon embroidery, and for some reason a small men's denim shirt has not cropped up. This one's actually a boys' 10 originally from The Children's Place. Can't complain!

dress, shirt, and belt: goodwill
pin: self-made
sandals: target
sunglasses: permanently borrowed from kathleen

Have you broken out your spring clothes yet?

music monday: brett dennen's loverboy

2011-04-11T09:00:00.001-04:00

Hi guys! For once I'm updating you on music in a timely manner. In fact, Brett Dennen's new album, Loverboy, isn't even out yet. It comes out tomorrow. I am that good. So, even though it won't be officially released until Tuesday, you can stream the whole album here. When I did this yesterday it did this sneaky thing where it posted something on my twitter, just a fair warning. If you don't want to take the risk, you can listen to the oh-so-wonderful "Sydney" right here:

I know I already posted this song a week or two ago, but I'm still listening to it nonstop. Another good one from the new release is "Dancing at a Funeral":

I just love these new tunes. So dance-y and cheerful and wonderful. So much that I don't even mind that listening to them hijacked my twitter account. Much love to you all- have a wonderful start to your week!

family ties

2011-04-10T09:00:00.002-04:00

Last Sunday I had the pleasure of attending my eldest sister's bridal shower. She's the first of my siblings to get married, as well as the first of my cousins. I'm lucky to belong to a large, close-knit family, and we all couldn't be happier for her! Of course, it all does have a strange end-of-an-era feel to it, but it also represents the beginning of a new one, filled with lots of weddings and births, I'm sure!

Almost all of my female cousins were able to attend the shower, so we were able to get a rare group shot:

Here's another photo with just my sisters and my mom:

From left to right, it's my mom, myself, Colleen (the sibling closest in age to myself), Caitlin (the bride), Anna, and Lyuda. Anna and Lyuda were adopted from Russia over seven years ago, but people rarely guess they were adopted until they find out they're both sixteen, but only four months apart (which of course would make it physically impossible for them to be biologically related!). Isn't it funny how Colleen and Anna look alike? The four of us are going to be bridesmaids. I can't wait for our handmade dresses from sohomode to arrive!

And of course, a present for the bride was a must! I just got her a little slow cooker cookbook, as per requested on her registry, but I tried to pretty it up a bit with some tissue paper:

I can't wait for her wedding, and of course Laura's too!

I hope you've had a lovely and peaceful weekend thus far, and that you enjoy the rest of your Sunday, readers!

five good things

2011-04-08T14:13:00.000-04:00

hello friends and happy friday! today I have another five good things to share with you:

1. Two new friends came over last night to help bake a cake for our jewelry prof's birthday. He has a unicorn tattoo so we thought a similarly themed cake was a must:

2. "Words," a great video by Radiolab and NPR:

3. I may have mentioned it before, but there's a boy who practices playing the accordion in the stairwell of the center for the arts, and he always plays this one song from the Amelie soundtrack! I always feel like I am Amelie as I stride up or down the stairs. It is the best thing.

4. I got a twitter account! If you have one please feel free to follow me @teacupadventure and/or leave your twitter link as a comment. I resisted getting one for a long time, but I actually like it. It's a great way to get snippets of information you might not otherwise come across.

5. My knitting group. I am seriously delighted to have come across all these amazing girls who knit or want to learn! We've only met twice but it is just too much fun.

Any of you have any exciting weekend plans?!

april 6, 2010- april 6 2011

2011-04-06T10:19:00.000-04:00

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On this date last year, it was a bright Tuesday. I woke up and put on my sailor dress and sandals, and headed to breakfast. On the way there I ran into the complex coordinator for my part of campus, who informed me I hadn't received my much-counted-on transfer to central campus to be an upperclassmen RA. I was devastated. I had counted on that switch, I had needed it. I kept walking to breakfast, and proceeded to cry over my grapefruit. Within an hour, I had decided to leave Delaware, and most likely not come back. It might seem like a trivial thing to base a decision on, but in retrospect, it was already a strong desire, and the prospect of having to RA freshmen again was the catalyst I needed. Suddenly I had a world of possibilities open to me which I hadn't allowed myself to even consider before.

To quote my journal entry from the following day, "I have a choice. In five months I could be back here, paying however many thousands of dollars to be here, feeling dead and stagnant, or I could be somewhere else. I have that choice. Being here is the path laid out for me, but I have no obligation to do so. I have no real ties here. All I have to do is go. Take a step in any direction and the outcome will change."

And I did go. It is one of the things I'm most proud of. In the year since then, I finished up my sophomore year at Delaware, went to Maine to be an arts-and-crafts counselor for two months, went to Peru for three months, came home, and started all over at Towson. If someone had told me before I left for Peru that I would make a good friend who would die, develop two types of pneumonia, become lactose intolerant, and experience the most devastating emotions I have ever felt, maybe I wouldn't have gone. But if that's all I had been told, it wouldn't have been the whole story. This year, and particularly my experiences in Peru, have shaped me. I came back with a much clearer idea of who I am, my place in the world, and my responsibility to take care of the rest of it, as well as myself. I am not afraid the way I used to be.

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In some ways, it might seem like things haven't ultimately changed that much. After all, I'm back in school again, still an art major, still doing many of the same things on a day-to-day basis that I did a year ago. But everything has changed. Living in an apartment as opposed to a dorm has made a huge difference. I can choose my own food, I can choose when I come and when I go, I can grow things, I can make things in peace. College is not my world anymore, and I am so grateful for that. My classes are an important part of my life, but it's not my whole life. I work two jobs, I have a wonderful little apartment to come home to, and friends all over the world.

I am so thankful for all the wonderful friends I've made and experiences I've had. Thank you for taking the time to read if you've made it this far. Have a lovely day!