Classy Lamp

 I've had an ugly lamp in my possession all of my adult life.  It was in my house growing up.  I'm sure it wasn't  ugly when my parent's bought the lamp.  But 40 or so year years later the lamp was looking pretty dated.  The entire time I've lived in my house the lamp has been in the basement.  I couldn't bring myself to give it up.  I knew it had potential.

So today, after telling John for over a year I was going to do something with it, I did something with it.  I cleaned it, primed it, and painted it.

 It's now a shiny light blue.  It is my new bedside lamp.

 I love how it looks now.  The paint and a new lampshade really glammed it up.

Crafty Jars

 I spent Saturday hanging out with Kathleen, Mary-Claire, Deirdre, and Kathy.  We had a crafty day.  I got a lot of knitting done, but by far my favorite craft of the day was playing with Kathleen's Shilhouette cutter.

I made a snack jar for work.  I hope that the cheekiness of the jar will keep people from stealing my almonds.  I'm not going to hold my breath.

I made a jar to hold Wrigley's treats so I don't have to look at a Milk Bone box in the kitchen.  The jar has a bone and says Wrigley's Treats. I was focusing on the super cute dog, so you don't get the best photo of the jar.

 

She seems to like it.

I would tell you about what a great time I had and how much I love hanging out with my family, but I'm not going to blog about how great they are until they update their blogs.

Market Day Review: Egh.

This afternoon I headed to Market Day with Sarah. I have been excited to check it out all summer. I was expecting great things based on the photos and vendors featured on their twitter feed.

I was disappointed in the selection. There was booth after booth of jewelry made from old buttons. Sure, there were cool things too. I got a card and this hilarious t-shirt (which may offend my Mom. I hope it doesn't). Sarah got a purse and a t shirt.

There was some good stuff, just not as much as I was expecting. Perhaps that's because I've been to the amazing Renegade Craft Fair in Wicker Park. I was hoping for coolness on that level (sure, that level of coolness was assisted by the presence of Mary-Claire and wigs, but it was wicked awesome in it's own right).

Saturday Morning Knitting

This morning was very stormy. Farmer's Market was cancelled due to the weather. It was the perfect morning to sit at a coffee shop knitting.

So that's what I did. I met Ivy for a few hours of knitting and chatting. She leaves for a week in London in a few weeks, so it was nice to catch up with her before she goes. Unfortunately it isn't possible to read her shirt in this photo, it says "London the Sioux Falls of Europe".

Maker Monday: week five

This week was not as productive as last week. I made one chemo cap (which I forgot to take a picture of before I gave it away). It was red and fuzzy, perfect for Valentine's Day.

At the moment I have my sweater, a kitchen scrubbie, and Mom's scarf on the needles. Her scarf is now 38 inches long, so it is moving along nicely. I've included a picture of the scarf below. It will be wider and have a more defined lace pattern once it is blocked.

My knitting goals for the week are: finish the scrubbie, make baby booties for Angie, start a baby blanket for the Staceanator, work on my sweater, and finish Mom's scarf. I probably won't get it all done, but I am willing to try.

tulle academy

Yesterday I saw something in a store and today I made it without a pattern or directions. It sounds cooler than it is, as it was just cutting ribbon and tulle and looping it around elastic.

Most importantly, I got Carnahan to craft with me. She is a notorious craft hater, so it's kind of a big deal. I may have even talked her into sewing lessons next year.

And for those of you wondering, I didn't make a tutu for myself, Carnahan and I each made one for her daughters.