Short and Pink

I'm finally out of school and I've been cooking some more! Working on a (late) father's day present for my dad....tiny pies! They are made in muffin tins and since I only have one muffin tin, it is taking a while. That is actually ok with me, because it has also allowed me to sew in between sets. I'll post on that later.

Peach.......

Apple.....

And I'm working on strawberry and blueberry.

In addition, I threw this little pouch together for my niece. My mom is going back to my sister's for the month of July, and taking a bunch of stuff, including all the gifts I slacked off and didn't send on their birthdays. Bad Aunt!My niece LOVES pink and loves having her nails painted, while her older sister is the official nail painter of the family, so I sent these for her.

I've been working on some bracelets made from ties, I'll post about those soon!

Where I've Been

I have never, since I started this blog, even when I had a broken arm, gone this long without posting. And part of the reason is that I haven't sewed One Single Thing since the beginning of April.

I miss sewing, I really do, but as a teacher, this is the craziest time of the year, and I honestly haven't had time. In addition, my New Year's Resolution this year was to eat healthy for real, and I have been participating in a Biggest Loser competition at my school, which means I have been doing things like cooking and working out, which is great, but time-consuming. =) I've lost about 25 pounds since January though, which makes me quietly happy - and I feel better inside, and I feel better about myself. I am NOT to the point of posting pictures of myself yet, but there's less self-hatred when I catch a glimpse of myself in a window.

The cooking thing is going well, though. My mom gave me a subscription to a fantastic magazine called Clean Eating last year, and I am a HUGE fan. I love that the recipes are super simple and I love the entire premise of eating un-processed food (well, I may process it by cooking, but I do it myself) and learning HOW to read labels and HOW to cook healthier. This is different than a diet, which is why I think it has been working for me.

Anyway, I can't recommend this magazine enough, I have liked everything I have made from it and I love that all the ingredients are regular things you can find in any grocery store or farmer's market. I have never really liked cooking, and for the first time I actually do like it, thanks to this magazine. Here's the link, if you want to check it out, or you can get it at larger supermarkets or Costco.

PS - I was not paid for this, I just really like this magazine. =)

PPS - I realize that I sound slightly crazy in this post. =)

Jamie Oliver

This is a fantastic show. I hate most reality shows, but this is pretty amazing. If you haven't had the chance to see it, I highly recommend it.

Jamie Oliver's Food Revolution

There are full episodes online if you missed it.

Where I've Been

I haven't had so much of a creative block as I have too many irons in the fire at this point. I currently have 4 or 5 partially finished projects sitting on my table and it's at the point that I kind of don't know where to start. In addition, when I turned 31 in December, I decided I was old enough to wear what I wanted and that it was time to stop worrying about what other people thought. This is why I wore black nail polish and sequined All-Stars to school today.They make me happy.

And, most importantly I decided it was time to actually get healthy for a change. I have tried to lose weight before, but this time I am doing things a little differently, and while things are slow, they are progressing in the right direction. And then I decided that I needed to expand my horizons a bit, so I have been volunteer tutoring with a Somali Refugee organization once a week. All of this means that I have been spending less time sewing and more time cooking, working out, and just being away from home. I leave my house at 6 am and don't get home until 4 or later, then in bed by 10 and the time just sort of drips away. But the thing is, I am happy. Really happy, so I am ok with things for the most part. I have been sort of turning things over in my mind and am trying to decide what to do with my etsy shop and I still haven't decided what to do yet.

Meanwhile, I have been playing around with the "math is sweet" thing. I know it's dorky, but I like puns, and being a teacher (and 31) means that I can indulge my dorkiness if I want to. I have also been playing around with freezer paper stencils because I love the simplicity of the designs. I have some ideas, which I am somewhat reluctant to share yet, but one of them involves the words "history rocks" with one of the easter island heads (because, you know, they are historical rocks, and history rocks - ba dum dum -) and that made me think of Easter, which made me think of rabbits, and well, one thing led to another and I ended the weekend with this: Here's the thing....I am getting lost in this design...and it is to the point that I can't decide if it's funny or stupid. So please tell me, do I have something that makes sense and is very mildly funny in a dorky kind of way or if it is something that is just kind of "nod-your-head-and-smile" but not at all funny and so on. Does it actually look like something you would recognize? When you look at it, do you think, "oh yeah, that's one of those easter island heads" or do you think, "hmmm....it's a squished grey rabbit wearing sunglasses."

These are things I need to know....input? Anyone? Please?

PS - if you need a reminder, the Easter Island heads look like this

Comments

I have had to turn the word verification back on for comments, as I have been pretty seriously spammed over the last few days. I will turn it back off in a while, sorry!!

National Pi Day

March 14 is National Pi Day, or at least it is with math teachers. You see, pi is the ratio of the circumference to the diameter of a circle. The ratio itself is 3.14159.... and continues out into infinity. So March 14, or 3.14, is National Pi Day and among math teachers, is celebrated with pie. Because our school day ends at 2:03 (which is a mere 4 minutes after 1:59, the next three numbers of pi after 3.14), in our school, it is celebrated at 1:59 on March 14. (3.14, 1:59).A few days ago, an image popped into my head on the way to school and I couldn't get it out. So this weekend, I sketched it out, made it into a wax paper transfer, and made it into a bag. I think it's pretty cool.....what do you think?

The shell is a really light canvas and the lining is cocoa brown nubby linen-looking material I got from freecycle.

Oh Julia!!

Hi Julia....would you mind linking your email to your profile? It's in the settings section of your google account. I can't seem to find a way to connect with you! You asked which pattern I used for the diaper bag, it is Simplicity 2924, but I did modify the pattern a bit to include more pockets. Thanks!