MySpace and Sewing Projects

I caved and signed up for a MySpace account. I feel even less commitment to it than my Facebook account.

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I'm weighing the options for my next sewing project. There's this pattern I bought for some purses:


Or this tote that I saw referenced on

sew_hip

Or another apron from the same pattern (but different style):


Or this clutch from Sew Stylish:


Or this obi-style belt, also from Sew Stylish:


The only problem is that I'd have to buy the fabric to do all these projects. I already get crap from Greg about how I'm buying craft/hobby supplies at a faster rate than I am using them. : (    I also need to figure out how to use our sewing machine so that I can sew at home. (I've been going over to Greg's parents' house so that I could use his mom's as well as get help from his mom).

Completed Apron

Finished my apron last night!


I'm pretty happy with it. The workmanship is not superb, but I didn't expect it to be given that it was my first serious sewing undertaking. Looks kind of like a dress, doesn't it?

And, just because I think it's cute:


I was carrying all my sewing junk in a plastic bag before, but I've now transferred them to the Hello Kitty bag I bought at a street market in Taiwan a couple years ago (but have neglected to use since then).

Promotion Dance Invite and Habitat for Humanity

Mary says she has problems seeing pictures on my posts . . . anyone else have that problem?

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Kevin's 8th grade promotion dance is coming up and I thought the invitations to the dance they handed out to all the 8th graders was neat:


Asian theme? I'm all over it.

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Got this in the mail the other day:


With a 50% off coupon too! Unheard of.

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Got up at 4:30 this morning to do Habitat for Humanity with work. We were slated for landscaping at first, but then got switched over to painting. I think painting is better, but it's still hard work . . . makes me not want to paint our house, although we will only be painting interiors (as opposed to exteriors).

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Target is like a jack-of-all-trades. It has everything . . . including a scrapbook aisle. Does it compare to a scrapbook store? No. But I still like it - a lot. I'm surprised by what I do see in the scrapbook aisle. Last time, I was impressed to see that they carried a pretty big Autumn Leaves acrylic stamp block (plus a few sets of stamps). I also saw a glass coaster kit that looked like it would be fun to do/have and I like the line of card-making supplies with the folded and flat cards in different colors of cardstock and vellum with matching envelopes. I'm wishing I got some now because I just got an idea for making a card. I'm also just waiting for someone to ask me to help them with their wedding so I can make sweet invitations for a shower or something.

Pink Tights with Lace

When I was in first grade, I had some of these, only in hot pink (and smaller):


Between now and then, I would've thought these leggings with lace were the most not-cool thing ever. Who would've been caught dead wearing these in high school? But I bet if you go to any high school now, you'll see lots of girls wearing these with flats, skirts, dresses . . . even I'm looking at them and thinking, Would these look good with my boots? Luckily, no-lace options are available - the lace is still iffy. Fashion is cyclical and weird.

Boba Was Had

Also, boba was had yesterday:


But I was so excited that I forgot to use a coupon. : (

Black Socks, Cutting Mat, and Clothes Shopping

On occasion, I'll wear black socks with light-colored slacks (grey) because (1) I've run out of clean nude-colored nylons or (2) I don't care.


When I think about it though . . . perhaps the black sock/light slack combination is a fashion no-no? Or maybe even just a fashion frown? Have I become complacent with the nuances of fashion? Have I started down the path of mom jeans and granny panties?!

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I bought a cutting mat today for sewing purposes. It's pretty nice and big (little bit colorful, but the selection was limited), except for this:


Should I be worried about this . . . ? Is it harmful to humans or just lab mice? And to what degree should I be concerned?
Do you think it's psychological if I say that I feel kind of dizzy after smelling the fumes?

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Why does it seem like I find more cute stuff when I'm not out for the express purpose of shopping for clothes? Other times though, I'll go to the mall with the intent to buy clothes and come out, more or less, empty-handed. My trips to Mervyn's and Target today were quite productive when it came to buying these:


Mervyn's


Target (I opted for the white version of the belt instead of the brown)
I was not so productive, however, in locating an adequate, non-girly, picture flip frame for Greg's office. 

Based on purchases made today, I retract my previous statements regarding wide belts and revert to/stand by my original assertion that the reason I didn't look good with wide belts was because I didn't have the right belt and/or shirt to go with.

Honeymoon Scrapbooking and Boba

I finished the first in a series of honeymoon pages!


Now I just have to work my way through all those places listed on the itinerary. 
(I wish I'd ironed the blue ribbon flat).

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Last year, I went to Mill looking to get some green milk tea with boba, only to find (gasp!) that E!ba had closed. Imagine my disappointment. First, Blu Cafe closes, then E!ba . . . Why?! Then yesterday, Greg and I went to Dairy Queen for a Blizzard dinner and look what I came across on one of those giant wall o' coupons:


E!ba, where have you been all this time?! Apparently at Broadway and Hardy. A trip will be made. And boba will be had. Yum.

Question-Talker and Boots

Turk: Look, I gotta go. I've got a new attending and he hates it when we're late. Plus, he's a question-talker.
J.D.: What's a question-talker?
Dr. Lemmon: Do I want you to be on time, Dr. Turk? Yes, I do. Am I going to remember this? Of course I am.

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I have been looking for boots all winter. Okay, yes, is it ever really "winter" in Phoenix? Not really. But hey, winter wear looks nice and you bet I'm pulling it all out to wear once the temperature drops below 50 degrees. In any case, my looking for boots all winter turned out to be a fruitless search given that I wasn't willing to shell out the $100 for a pair of decent, leather, mid-to-tall black skinny-heeled boots. I caved this week after searching on Piperlime and bought a few pairs to try out. I'm keeping these:


They looked so good, I got the brown and the black. A little excessive? Maybe. Do intend to keep these babies in the closet until the next time winter rolls around? No way! I mean, granted, I wouldn't wear them to a summer picnic or a trip to the zoo (that would be skanktastic!), but totally office-worthy (I have to keep warm in those cold office buildings, right?).

I won't tell you how much I spent (unless you really want to know and ask me directly). I've noticed that my spending habits are somewhat less tight than they were, say, a year ago when my income was a big goose egg.

Tooling Around Downtown

Taxes due on the 17th mean that it's busy season for Greg. Busy season for Greg means he goes in to work on Saturdays. Greg going into work on Saturdays means I tool around downtown while he works. Fun! My only complaint is that Phoenix doesn't have quite the downtown that some other cities have. But then, do I really want to hassle with parking the same way that other big city downtown areas do? Not really.

So anyway . . . made a stop at Michael's this morning where I got some silk flowers for a craft project. Apparently floral stems can't be snipped with just anything, so my plans to complete my little crafty project will have to wait until I can get my hands on a better tool. (I already messed up some heavy duty kitchen scissors and a pair of wire strippers/cutters attempting to cut stems).

Also stopped at Frances (finally). Very cool store with a bunch of neat things.


Saw this wide belt I really liked. After trying it on though, I came to the conclusion that Greg was right all along when he said that my body type (i.e., short) is not suited for wide belts. Too bad. I tried so hard to believe and convince both of us that I just didn't have the right belt.

A couple dresses caught my eye there too, not that I could justify actually getting either of them:


I really liked this brown and white printed dress with mint green sheer overlay


I just liked the look of this dress.

I thought this baby tee was so cute, I couldn't pass it up:


The lady who owned Frances was very nice - she let me take pictures to post : ). She opened the store last year, I think pretty much from scratch. Takes a lot of work and guts to start your own business . . . I'm always impressed to hear of the ones that have been successful, because it can be such a gamble.

Went to Lucky 15 after Frances - they had a spring sale going on. I know I said that I didn't really need more scrapbooking stuff . . . but how could I pass up a sale?!

Overall, a pretty productive day for me given that the alternative would have seen me getting up at 12:00 or 1:00. I don't seem to be able to sleep in as late as I used to when I was younger . . . my back starts to hurt after 10 or 11 hours.

Journaling Tickets

Note to self: the photo printer does not like paper with uneven edges.

On the other hand, blank raffle tickets are great for printing titles or journaling:


I also really like these journaling tickets from Jenni Bowlin Studio, but I'm struggling to justify paying $3.75 for a bundle of 18 when I don't really need more scrapbooking supplies right now: (click for more info)



Current music: Hang Me Up To Dry by Cold War Kids

Gmail Paper

Excuse me? Gmail Paper? Why is this necessary? Why can't people print their own emails?