Sewing Machine Held Together With Electrical Tape

Photo A Day: Day 18

2012-02-18T22:13:00.000-05:00

Drink:

Charlie has been drinking hot chocolate with whipped cream. Sometimes he adds Kalua. I stick to milk. I like this mug, it's from a race Charlie and I like to run in my hometown. He usually wins. It's a good drink to have after a long day of skiing.

Lauren

Photo A Day: Day 17

2012-02-17T20:54:00.001-05:00

Time:

I went pretty literal with today's photo. It's our kitchen clock. I like that you can see the reflection of the rest of the room in the glass of the clock. I stole this clock from my Mom when Charlie and I moved back to New Hampshire. I like the retro vibe.

Speaking of time, is it just me or do the hours in a Friday work day seem to go by painfully slow? Also, time spent waiting for your brother who doesn't have a cell phone to show up at your house and never gave you a time that he would arrive also seems to go by slowly. I guarantee skiing this weekend will go by in the blink of an eye though.

Lauren

Photo A Day: Day 16

2012-02-16T16:25:00.001-05:00

Something New:

I'm going on vacation soon and needed to stock up on reading materials, to read on the plane and on the beach. Two friends have recommended "The Forgotten Garden", I borrowed it from the library and read the first 60 pages in a day or two and loved it. I don't like taking library books on vacation so I decided to buy it. I don't really ever buy books, but if the next 200+ pages are as good as the first 60 I won't mind having this book around. I've been dying to keep reading but I want to save it for vacation, and I've also got too much sewing and work in general to do in order to fully enjoy myself once vacation starts. Just in case I finish my first read I bought "The Almost Moon". I loved "The Lovely Bones" so I am hoping that this book will be just as good. We're leaving in a little over a week.

Is it bad that with the exception of underpants I am packed and ready to go?

Lauren

Photo A Day: Day 15

2012-02-15T22:27:00.000-05:00

Phone:

I thought about today's photo challenge when I was at work. I was tempted to take a picture of my work phone, but decided not to. So I came home and took a picture of my cell phone. This got me to thinking about the differences between my work phone and my cell phone. I typically don't like answering the phone at work for several reasons. First, I sound like a 12 year old and parents aren't afraid to say it. Second, I never know how to answer the phone. "Hello?", "Lauren here", "Lauren Therriault at your service", the list of possibilities goes on and on. Third, people who call me at work call about work things, which aren't always that fun. Lastly, people who call me at work call me when I am working. I don't want to talk to them while I am working, I am busy and have a tightly planned neurotic schedule to keep. In terms of my cell phone, well that baby almost never rings, but when it does I sure am happy to answer it. Mostly because I am pretty sure it's someone I love calling to tell me something great, or at least funny. People who call my cell phone also don't comment "you sound like you're 12." Probably because they already know me and know that I am not 12.

Goodnight!

Lauren

Photo A Day: Day 14

2012-02-14T22:03:00.000-05:00

Heart(s):

I can't ever seem to stick to singular things for this photo challenge. Here's an up close look at a Valentine's Day card from my far away friend. I love getting mail, especially when it's a cute card.

Lauren

Valentine's Day Cards

2012-02-14T16:58:00.000-05:00

Happy Valentine's Day Reader(s)! I typically don't really like V-Day. *Inset heard before jargon about consumer holidays and broadcasting your love on only one day a year , or read THIS article. * One thing I do like about Valentine's Day is doing crafts and making cards. I made picture frames with a bunch of the kids I work with at school with their adorable pictures inside. That was fun but boy was there a lot of glue on the table. For some reason kids on my caseload don't understand the concept of "a little bit of glue." After getting some practice using Picnik to make Charlie's Christmas present I decided to try to make a Valentine's Day card. It proved to be more difficult than I had thought. Who would have though making a realistic yet cute owl out of geometric shapes would be so hard? Here are my results:

The colors look different but they were the same when I created them, it's due to the depleting ink status of the printer I used. The goes against the flow of "cool" kid inside of me is secretly upset that I jumped on the "owls are cool" train, but oh well, they're so dang cute! And the SLP inside of me hated writing "Owl" instead of "I'll", but the cutesy crafter in me won over...this round at least. As you can see I won't be quitting my day job to become a graphic designer. I sent them to my friends and family members, one friend said my card was "a Hoot", har har, she's just as funny as me. Here are close ups of the cards as well as the "owl" (I use that noun lightly when referring to my cards). The links to download them are below each one, free of charge even, imagine that! If the links don't work let me know and owl try my best to fix it *laughs hysterically while slapping knee/patting self on back for being so comically genius.*

The "Owl Love You Forever" card can be downloaded HERE.

The "Owl Be Your Friend Forever" card can be downloaded HERE.

Just the "owl" can be found HERE.

I did have fun making these cards, after I got over the I want to throw my computer into a wall phase, and am sad to find that Picnik is closing, insert sad face here.

I hope you have a Happy Valentine's Day with someone special to you!

Lauren

Photo A Day: Day 13

2012-02-13T18:28:00.002-05:00

Blue:

A shot of my snazzy new shoes. I won them! I never win anything, but I actually won a free pair of shoes. Thank you Saucony! And who says Facebook is a waste of time, without it I wouldn't have a free pair of shoes. New shoes make a crappy Monday a little better. They sure to smell nice, and they are blue so it counts for todays photo of the day. The only problem is that my new shoes are too pretty and new to wear. I'll wait until mud season is over.

Lauren

Photo A Day: Day 12

2012-02-12T17:39:00.001-05:00

Inside Your Closet:

Whenever anyone comes over I always do two things; clean the toilet, and close the closet door. This photo doesn't make it look too bad. I was tempted to only show you the above photo. Then you would think; wow all her hangers go the same way and her clothes are somewhat color coordinated (I suspect I am color "near sighted"). You'd probably also think; man, she has a lot of cardigans, which I do. But, I decided to show you the closet in all it's glory.

Six beach towels, 4 sets of queen sized sheets, ten or so clutches, three (hangs head in shame) sewing machines. All of the wrapping paper from my bridal shower(s), a box full of wooden spools, another box full of wedding cards, two sewing "necessities" boxes, goggles and swimming cap, because I totally need those. A ziplock bag full of rice. Eight pairs of high heels, two teddy bears Charlie won't let me keep on the bed, and he thinks I threw away, a box full of scrapbooking supplies, and a do it yourself hemming machine. Do you feel like you know me better? I am having heart palpitations and hoping no one calls "Hoarders" on me.

Lauren

Photo A Day: Day 11

2012-02-11T19:08:00.000-05:00

Makes you happy:

I couldn't pick just one. It was a busy day! Lots of playing and family time. Happy Saturday.

Lauren

Photo A Day: Day 10

2012-02-10T15:01:00.001-05:00

Self-portrait:

Headed to Maine for the night. Sayonara New Hampshire.

Lauren

Photo A Day: Day 9

2012-02-09T17:25:00.002-05:00

Front door:

This is not my front door.

It's the front door (only door) to this Bob House. I thought a picture of my own front door would be kind of lame so I ventured out and went ice skating. It was super fun.

And beautiful.

I only fell once. I was in the middle of taking a picture and next thing I knew I was on the ice and my butt hurt a lot. I didn't even realize I had taken this picture until I got home and downloaded them, it was good for a laugh.

I secretly love winter.

Lauren

Photo A Day: Day 8

2012-02-08T19:02:00.001-05:00

Sun:

Or what was left of it on my run after work today.

Lauren

Photo A Day: Day 7

2012-02-07T19:44:00.001-05:00

Button(s):

How original huh? My ever growing button collection.

Lauren

Photo A Day: Day 6

2012-02-06T19:37:00.001-05:00

Dinner:

Left over lasagna. Lasagna is such a funny word to type. Salad, with blue cheese, and milk, of course.

Lauren

Photo A Day: Day 5

2012-02-05T11:37:00.000-05:00

10am:

Our friends stayed here for the night after the skiing adventure. Here we are after breakfast. Wayne couldn't come because he was in Canada for work so we face timed him, he's the blur on the ipad. What a fun weekend.

Lauren

Photo A Day: Day 4

2012-02-04T20:27:00.003-05:00

Stranger:

We went skiing today with our friends and I chickened out of taking a picture of a stranger on the chair lift. So I took one of a strange from the chair lift. Kind of a cop out but I like the angle.

Lauren

Photo A Day: Day 3

2012-02-03T18:39:00.000-05:00

Hands

Charlie and I have been prepping for our friends to come visit so we've been busy in the kitchen. Charlie has been cooking, I did a lot of cleaning, but I figured you didn't want a picture of my hands cleaning the toilet bowl... I'll save that for day 19. He didn't really like me bossing him around and when I told him he wasn't making it look pretty he said; "Cooking isn't pretty, that's what my mom always said."

I thought this one was cheating because I didn't take it, but I did tell Charlie where to stand, to get lower but not so low, and to adjust the shutter speed, so I guess it's okay. It also shows that I did sooomething to help for the festivities tomorrow.

The baking buzzer just went off! Goodnight!

Lauren

Photo A Day: Day 2

2012-02-02T17:48:00.001-05:00

Words:

"Live to the point of tears."~Camus

These are the words I look at first thing when I wake up and right before I go to sleep. Made by my friend Beckie. Somedays I take the words to heart, other days I just like the pretty colors.

Lauren

Photo A Day: Day 1

2012-02-01T16:51:00.001-05:00

I've decided to join a photo a day group. I found it, where else, on Pintrest. You can find out more about it HERE. It's an Australian woman and she has some pretty cool pictures and ideas. Day 1 was "your view today." The first picture is out of our kitchen window. Sometimes I get so annoyed with the traffic, or the street lights outside of our apartment that I forget that it can be pretty living here too.

Hope I can keep up with it, good thing February is a short month!

Lauren

Frank

2012-01-29T13:38:00.000-05:00

As some of you may know, My grandfather, Frank, passed away a few weeks ago. His memorial service was this weekend. His 4 sons, including my dad, spoke at the service, as well as four of his close friends, and my cousin Zachary. My dad asked me if I wanted to speak and my response was "No, I will cry too much." Instead of crying in front of 100+ people I've decided to write my memories here to share with you.

* Edit: This introduction was written almost a year ago. I just couldn't finish my post. Not because I was crying or anything like that but because every time I tried to write a whole post I wrote one thing and then had too many memories to start another. This post has been compiled over the course of several months of remembering. *

Things I'll Always Remember About Frank.

1. His laugh. Frank had an infectious laugh that could span a few octaves. It started low then worked it's way up to a high almost girlish proportions and then subsided into few "ho ho's" as he calmed himself down. He would open his mouth wide, I suppose that's the dentist in him, and let it all out. There was always a bit of leg slapping or foot stomping mixed in as well.

2. His love of fitness. From early on I always remember Frank wearing running shorts, tennis shoes, an old tee shirt and a hat. He was always up for a game of tag, a bike ride to the store or a race against you on your Rollerblades and him on foot, which he would always let you win even if he could have beat you. If you asked nicely he would even let you stand at the top of the stairs and he would catch you when you jumped, as long as you didn't weigh very much that is. I'm not sure if I actually remember this, or if I've just heard the story so many times that it feels like I was there. Either way, I've heard many times about Frank being at the cottage on the Cape before a hurricane and body surfing in the huge waves. I'm not sure how old he was at the time but I know it he was over 60 at the time. I think part of my interest in running is thanks to Frank who ran his last 5k when he was 82.

3. How he was never embarrassed by anything. This might not seem like a lot coming from someone as self-conscious as me but I always admired how Frank never seemed embarrassed by anything. He would wear purple tee-shirts, his shorts were dangerously short at times, he loved to needlepoint and garden. Growing up I think it was always nice to have someone around who wasn't afraid to be who they were and like what they liked.

4. His generosity. I think if I had asked he would have given me or even a perfect stranger the shirt off of his back. Frank worked hard for his money and never seemed to buy anything for himself, but was always willing to take the whole family on a vacation. I have many fond memories of spending time with my cousins, aunts and uncles and Grandmother and Frank in Mexico, Florida, in Tone, or on the Cape. Once Frank and Grandmother even took me on a 10 day vacation to London. I remember my uncle ordering an expensive bottle of wine while out to eat in London on this trip. Frank said; "You're wasting your inheritance!" with a laugh and footed the bill anyways. I think it made him happy to be able to make others happy and have great experiences.

5. "Wanna go to Boston? Wanna go to Lynn? Look out little girl that you don't fall in." I think Frank bounced me and Garrett on his knees singing this little tune half a million times.

6. This is something that I don't even know if he did on purpose or if it just had to do with my above mentioned comment about never buying anything for himself. I remember when I was in 5th grade there was a contest to design a "gateway" on the school property to get to the wetlands behind the school where we did experiments and observed nature and all that other middle school stuff kids do. Someone else won the contest but I still wanted to be involved in working on it. Frank and Grandmother came to visit for a weekend when my school was working on the project and volunteered. I don't even remember what we did to for work on the project but I remember the shirts they gave us. They were dark green with a yellow outline of the archway and said "GBS Gateway to the Wetlands" or something to that extent. Even as a 5th grader I thought they were kind of ugly. Not Frank though. It seemed like whenever he came to visit us or we went to Auburn to see them he wore the shirt. Like I said, I don't know if it was because he really liked the shirt, or if it was because he never bought shirts for himself, or if he just liked to wear it when I came to visit because it reminded him of me. I'd like to think it was the last reason.

These are some of my favorite pictures of Frank.

with Garrett and me around Christmas time.

See, I told you he wore purple a lot and liked short shorts.

Taken a few weeks before he passed away.

New Pillows

2012-01-21T20:36:00.001-05:00

Here is a long story for you. Are you ready? Okay...so before Christmas Charlie and I went to a party at our friends new house in Maine. We took mostly back roads to get there and on the way home the next day we got stuck behind a car going very slow and carrying a Christmas tree on top. As we got closer we noticed that the tree was on top of a large piece of fabric to prevent the tree from scratching the car. Upon further inspection we realized that the piece of fabric was in fact a duvet cover, and the same one we had on our bed at home. This prompted us to think about how long we had actually been using the duvet cover....our answer was too long. If someone driving a 1995 Honda Civic felt the need to protect the top of their car from Christmas tree damage with the same duvet cover that we were using on our bed we decided we should probably look for a new one.

Fast forward to last weekend when we were at the L.L Bean outlet in Concord. In the discount bedding section we found a navy blue duvet cover for way less than full price and I had a gift card, Score! Before we checked out Charlie said; "Are you sure you want something this dark?" I assured him I did, whilst thinking about how to girl it up (i.e. Throw Pillows!!)

The first one I made is the Sprocket Pillow. I'd been eyeing it for quite a while and knew right away that this would be my chance to make it. The Tutorial (HERE) was super easy to follow. I did make one change, the pattern/directions calls for sewing a strip between the two circles, I skipped that step to make the pillow flatter, and because I didn't have enough batting to fill up a pillow that big.

My points didn't exactly match up but it's okay because the large button does a great job of hiding that.

I finished it moments before Charlie got home from school and we had to laugh because he coordinated perfectly with the color scheme of the pillow.

The second pillow was a bit trickier. I wanted to do something gathered but I kept screwing it up so I went to the old standby, the pintuck pillow. I sewed one in the short lived "sewing club" a few years ago and I knew I liked the look so I went with it.

Close up of the pin tucks.

Here's a look at the entire whole bed. The new navy blue duvet cover goes great with this quilt, the one that inspired me to start blogging.

And it is officially 8:30 on Saturday, after a long day of exercise class, ice skating, baking, and believe it or not, grocery shopping I am very tried and off to bed. We're hitting the slopes tomorrow and I've got to get my snow bunny beauty sleep.

Lauren

26 Things

2012-01-18T18:25:00.002-05:00

It's my birthday. Hurray. Like I said, 26; yikes! A student said I was 100 today when I told her to guess my age, so I suppose things could be worse. Here are my 26 things to do this year.

Get a dog. I really want one and I think my constant talk has convinced Charlie too.
Buy a house.
Move into house without hurting myself or being a mega jerk to others.
Stay physically active.
Think more about things before I impulsively buy them.
Go on a honeymoon.
Take pictures.
Throw things away. Why must I save every card anyone has sent me? P.S. Thanks for the birthday cards peps!
Finish things before starting other things.
Think before jumping to assumptions, especially in regards to the students I work with.
Stand up for myself. I told one of the teachers I work with that my motto at the beginning of the year would be "I don't take shit from anyone." I need to start following that motto. If only I could post it on the wall at school....
Keep working on keeping new and old friends.
Send more letters to people.
Learn more about my family history.
Eat more vegetables.
Read more books.
Try to stop swearing like a trucker Friday night - Sunday night.
Finish that gosh darn cross stitch for my Mom that I started in 2008!
Make a quilt and give it away. Who will be the lucky winner?
Worry less.
Be more creative. In other words, spend less time online thinking about being creative and actually do something creative.
Hike somewhere and spend the night, and not flip out about peeing in the woods or being dirty.
Stop and smell the roses every now and again.
Ask Charlie for things instead of assuming he can read my mind.
Spend time with my family and friends.
Continue appreciating what I have and feeling lucky, because I am.

Cheers to 26!

fruity concoction I'm sipping while researching vacations to tropical paradises and laughing

because my birthday presents are wrapped in X-mas paper.

Lauren

25 Things

2012-01-16T12:56:00.000-05:00

On my birthday for the last few years I've posted my goals of the year. Today I decided to check back on my progress and begin thinking about my 26 (yikes!) goals for this year. Here's last years goals.

Get married. Done
Buy a new (to me) car.Yep
Go somewhere I've never been. Did that lots.
Keep running (I don't really have a distance goal this year, and I never really set time goals for myself, I just want to keep running even if it means running after a long day at work with a reflective vest and a headlamp.) Meh....sort of yes and sort of no.
Host a party. Does a ski trip count? I kind of forgot about this one.
Get better at my job/ keep learning. Depends on the day you ask.
Call my friends more often. Oh shucks. I try.
Visit my family. Yes. It's a good thing Charlie likes my family and I like his because we visit a lot.
Keep saving money for a house. Yes but it's slow going.
Start more traditions with Charlie.I think so, he probably doesn't remember them though.
Be more comfortable doing things alone (eating out, going to the movies...yikes I break out in hives just thinking about it.) I went to one movie by myself, and ate alone at Panera twice, and I lived to tell about it!
Visit at least 2 waterfalls I haven't been to yet. We went to lots of waterfalls.
Go on a road trip. Road trips to weddings?
Make new friends. Yes! Hi Liz! Hi Nick!
Be nice and appreciative. I try.
Research sewing machines and buy a new one (one that can make button holes). I did buy a new one. It was rather spur of the moment and I should have done more research but I do really like my Berninna. It can make button holes but I have yet to use that feature.
Go on lots of mini adventures. There are a lot of things to explore in our area which has been fun.
Hike mount Katahdin(and not complain once while doing it). Ooops. Hiked Kineo instead.
Grow my hair long then cut it off. Yes! It nearly drove me crazy growing it long for the wedding, but now I am thinking about having long hair again.
Practice my (forgotten) sign language skills. Oh no. I remember and use about 3 signs. Does watching "Switched at Birth" count?
Sew clothes, with and without patterns. Kind of. I made a skirt recently, post coming soon. (Once I iron it.)
Cook ~~more.~~ Meh. Why did I write that? I've been more active in looking for ideas or what to cook but not so much in cooking them. Cleaning up is my forte.
Try my best to not talk negatively about people. Oh dear, I stink at that.
Spend quality time with people I like. Yes. I think it's easy when you like the people you work with and live with your best friend.
Be happy with my life. It's a pretty good one. Besides the impending doom of turning 26 I think I am doing an okay job at this.

Off to think of 26 things to do this year. But lastly, here is a picture I really like.

Lauren!

2011; in 16 Photographs

2012-01-13T15:00:00.000-05:00

The past few years I've done a "year in pictures" review. I'm only 13 days late this year! I am just going to warn you in advance; 2011 was the year of the weddings. We went to four and had one of our own. Prepare yourself!

1. Bachelorette party at Water Country! 2. Bridal Shower with my Mum and Grammy. 3. Engagement photos at Profile Falls 4. Bridal Shower with Cait and Lorelei.

5- 8 Wedding shots by Hartery Photography.

9. Kiki and Patrick's wedding, Bar Harbor Maine. 10. Dan and Bethanie's wedding, Waterville Maine. 11. Jay and Meera's wedding, Ringwood New Jersey. 12. Jaclyn and Mike's wedding, Sterling Massachusetts

13. Braid Gang at Taylor Swift 14. Me and Charlie on the first day of school. 15. Me and Lorelei at Christmas and 16. Out takes from our Christmas Card Photo.

2011 sure was busy. Can't wait to see what 2012 holds.

Lauren

Nerdy Chemistry Artwork

2012-01-12T11:09:00.000-05:00

For Christmas I like to make Charlie something artsy and since he won't let me sew for him, or knit for him, and he thinks scrapbooks are annoying, that leaves me with painting pictures for him. The last few years I've painted pictures, one was a Robert Frost poem on a winter backdrop, last year I made him a painting of a song quote I thought he liked but he said he forgot. Now that painting is in our bedroom and he says the reason he likes it is not because of the quote but because the house I painted looks like it's smiling. Geesh! This Christmas I decided not to paint him anything but to do some editing on Picnik (a photo editing website). I followed this tutorial, which was very helpful, and I think the results turned out quite nicely.

Charlie recently decided to get a double masters degree (I've always suspected he just wants to be better than me...but that's another story), in Chemistry. I found this idea, where else, on Pintrest. It's elements made to spell out "I love you". I just think it's funny that Uranium is used for good in my art not for nuclear weapons. Here is a close up of the one I printed out for Charlie.

If you like it you can download it to print HERE.

You can download this one without the "We've got Chemistry" HERE.

Lastly, I made this and printed a 3x5 size of it in a small magnet frame for Charlie to use in his office/classroom someday. You can get that one HERE.

Enjoy!

Lauren

I Actually Made Something from Pintrest!

2012-01-12T10:45:00.002-05:00

Well, in all fairness, Charlie made it. But it was my idea. Bacon Pancakes. Seems funny coming from a converted vegetarian, but they were so good. I saw the idea on pintrest and today when I woke up at 9 am in a snow day haze I recommended that Charlie and I try out the idea. He didn't seem to mind, but did make fun of me because he thinks I talk about pintrest too much.

Delicious. Charlie is a fantastic cook, I am so lucky. I cleaned up the mess and photographed.

Yum! I hope you have a great day.

Lauren

Winter Hike

2012-01-09T16:09:00.000-05:00

Yesterday Charlie and I went for a winter hike. We'd both heard about a cabin on top of a mountain near our house and decided yesterday was as good a time as any to try to find it. After some bushwacking and use of a compass we made it to the top. Here is the view. That's Cardigan Mountain in the distance.

There hasn't been much snow but the trail we walked on had quite a bit of ice covered by snow, which made for some slippery moments, and also some fun track spotting.

We actually saw the animal that left these prints sliding/walking across the snow and then it took a dip in a stream, thus eluding my picture snapping. We've decided there must have been two of them because there are two sets but we only saw one. Charlie used his tracks book to figure out it was a mink.

On the way back down we say these tracks. Come to find out they were made by a squirel, not too exciting but fun none the less.

At the top there was a one room cabin with pots, pan, a cook stove, an air mattress, lots of toilet paper, water, band aids and most importantly, playing cards. The owner was nice enough to open the cabin to others. There is a "guest book" inside that was really fun to look through and see when and why people had come to visit the cabin, that's what Charlie is looking through in this photo. We even found the name of someone we know! After spending a few minutes pondering how someone would carry two glass doors, windows, and all the wood to build this tiny cabin Charlie informed me that the materials were brought in on a helicopter. Crazy huh?

Charlie loves winter hiking (when there is snow) and I think he is crazy, so I figured I would post pictures of what is most likely bound to be my first and last winter hike.

Lauren

Happy Holidays

2011-12-22T17:46:00.001-05:00

Hello long lost blogging friends. Bet you though I fell off the earth, I did not. I just fell into the Hunger Games Series and also fell into watching season 1 of Grey's Anatomy. My apologies. Here is a picture of our Christmas tree.

We/I got super excited and cut down a tree right after Thanksgiving. I was too anxious about putting all of the handmade ornaments on the tree to wait one second longer. Now that I have a nearly dead tree and more needles on the floor than on the tree I realize I should have waited. Oops. Live and learn I suppose.

It sure is pretty though. I tested out some settings on the camera to get the lights to look cool; this is the best one I got. On another Christmas related note; here is a picture of Charlie and me that I think is positively hilarious. It was taken at our friend's holiday party. I convinced Charlie that we should dress up and he convinced me that we should wear blazers, then of course I had to add a holiday pin, and a cheesy pose. Would you vote for us if we ran for Senate?

Happy Holidays!

Lauren

Man Camp

2011-11-23T20:38:00.000-05:00

My Dad and brother always make fun of Charlie for not knowing how to do "manly things." This past weekend, to remedy the situation they had "Man Camp." First my dad and Charlie fixed the sink in the kitchen; I read the comics. Next up was logging 101. There were a few dead/ nearly dead trees in the yard that needed to come down. Charlie got to use a chain saw to cut up some of the trees. I ran around the woods taking pictures of my ornaments. Then Charlie cut down a tree with an axe. Doesn't he look proud?

Not to be outdone, I cut down a (smaller) tree with an axe. It was pretty exhilarating. My arms are still sore. I am just glad I have all of my fingers and toes.

Man Camp concluded with venison Shepard's pie, and watching football on the couch. I ate the potatoes and corn and took a nap.

Lastly, I was playing around the with camera and Garrett joked that I should take a few pictures of "a real man" so I snapped this one. It cracks me up, the Cassidy Adam's apple proudly on display beneath the worlds scruffiest beard.

The next man camp will be all about splitting wood. I think I'll bring some knitting.

Lauren!

Ornaments

2011-11-21T20:45:00.001-05:00

I love homemade ornaments. A few years ago I started asking my mum for kits to make felt ornaments from one of my favorite blogs Posie Gets Cozy. The kits come with pattern pieces, the perfect amount of felt, embroidery floss, sequins, buttons and any other necessities to complete the project. Last year I made two ornaments over one lazy weekend, the year before I made two over my extended graduate school vacation, and this year I decided to get an early start and finish up the most recent kit before we got our tree. Each ornament takes quite a while to made but the details are really what make each one so special.

This coat reminds me of one I had when I was little, which was not this sophisticated, but it was cute and I did have mittens with strings tied to the coat so I would not lose them.

I experimented a lot with different pictures of each ornament and this was my favorite of the polar bear. Since the bear is only two pieces of felt it came together much faster than some of the other ornaments which take lots of different colors of felt and cutting etc. The polar bear did come with yarn to make the worlds tiniest scarf though, more on that later, once my fingers stop bleeding.

Last but not least, a lovely mug of hot chocolate. I'd love to spend a few winter nights snuggled up watching a movie sipping hot cocoa from a mug that cute.

There is one more ornament from the kit that I have to finish, the hardest of them all, so hopefully I can finish that up before we get a tree. Oh, and it is snowing out so my polar bear has been complaining non-stop about not having a scarf. Hopefully he'll pipe down once I get it all done.

Happy Wednesday!

Lauren

Hi Dad!

2011-11-07T19:42:00.000-05:00

My Dad said I don't post enough so here are some pictures from this weekend. It would appear by looking at recent posts that all Charlie and I do on the weekends is search for waterfalls while I take a bazillion photos. That is correct. Oh, and nap. Wait, that's just me. This weekends adventures were Rainbow Falls, and Livermore Falls. Livermore Falls had more to look at and explore. At the falls there is an old run-down mill, a huge suspension bridge of some sort and a massive tipped over tree. The rocks by the falls were also really cool and had spirals and other formations cut out of them. Lots of the holes had frozen water in them, so I now have about 50 pictures of leaves frozen in water. Hope this keeps my reader(s) entertained. I have lots of sewing that I've been doing but alas it is all for Christmas. I will show some completed projects soon though. Promise.

Lauren

Welton Falls Hike

2011-10-23T21:36:00.000-04:00

Charlie and I went hiking today. It was lots of fun, except when we had to take off our shoes roll up our pants and cross a freeeezing river. The waterfall we hiked to looks kind of small in the pictures but Charlie is hiding in the last picture, can you find him? The second picture is a close up of where he is standing in the forth picture. The area was very cool and had been carved out by rocks and glacier(s). I can't wait to go back in the summer when we can swim here. Don't worry though, even I am not stupid enough to think about jumping.

Sometimes I think I want to move to be closer to friends and family, but other times when we go exploring I think I want to stay here because there are so many cool places we've yet to see and experience.

Lauren

Fall Faux Suede Purse

2011-10-05T21:22:00.000-04:00

After I finished the Irene Purse I realized it was a bit spring-ish for the upcoming fall months so I set out to make a fall/winter purse. I started by "pinning" a bunch of pictures of purses I liked. See my inspirations here. It seems that cross body purses are big this season, as well as leather...or maybe I just liked those looks and searched a lot of them. I really fell in love with this yellow purse from Urban Outfitters and even thought about buying it but then it was out of stock so I had to make my own version (now it is back in stock...figures.)

Let's just say that finding yellow faux leather material in Northern New Hampshire is not exactly a possibility but I did find some faux suede fabric in the bargain bin for $2 a yard! Sold. I still really had yellow on the brain though so I found some yellow cotton for the inside.

I also looked for a pattern while I was at the fabric store but couldn't find one. The other day it rained all day long so I made up two prototypes for this purse and when I was satisfied I started sewing with the real fabric.

The best part about the purse is all of the details, at least I think so. It has a front pocket perfect for carrying a checkbook and pen, a pocket inside that fits my cell phone perfectly and an inside pocket that is the perfect size for my wallet and keys.

It even has a back zippered pocket to hold my flash drive and chap stick. I like that everything has it's own space and I never feel like I am searching for anything. I also like that the flap opens up and you can see everything inside, no dark abyss that hold all of my junk and is very hard to locate anything. I guess that's the benefit of thinking about the elements of a purse you want for 4 weeks and making your own pattern.

The last element that I love is that the strap is adjustable so it can go from an under the arm purse to a cross body purse in a mater of seconds.

Here is my best try at a mirror self portrait. I still haven't mastered the don't scrunch your face up when looking trough the camera face.

The best part is the entire purse only cost $16, much better than a $39 purse from Urban Outfitters or $300 from Kate Spade.

Do you have any fall projects you've been working on?

Lauren

edit: I just added this to Friday Sew N' Tell.

Daisychain Sampler

2011-09-22T18:13:00.000-04:00

I knew back in May when I saw it that I absolutely had to have this embroidery kit, so I bought it. It came shortly before our wedding and I opened the package, admired it, then set it aside. After the wedding I got to work. I like to do projects like this one when there are people around and I can work while talking. I also don't mind working on embroidery while watching a TV show or a movie. This embroidery was a saving grace while we were on Cape Cod during a pretty bad spell of weather over the summer. I also like that it isn't hard to get back into. I can pick it up after not working on it for 2 weeks and fall right back into the rhythm. I've never worked with crewel wool before, it takes a bit of getting used to. I like that it is fuller than embroidery floss, and feels nicer, it is a pain to thread through a needle and also can stretch out if you pull it too hard.

I am making slow but steady progress and wanted to share something since I've been pretty absent lately. I am a bit uptight and can't go out of order, only 6 letters left to go.

Are you working on anything special?

Lauren

Ch-ch-ch-changes

2011-09-02T10:55:00.001-04:00

Welp, I thought that if I updated my blog I would post more. Let's hope so.

Since the only new pictures I have of anything recently crafty that I've done are from the wedding I just decided to make a whole new header of wedding photos. For some reason I was a bit busy on the wedding day which means all of these photos are from my friend Jaclyn. Thanks Jac!

In other changes news, the first week of school went well. As predicted I dragged my feet and complained non-stop for a week about the start of school and then once I got there it wasn't so bad. I am having trouble getting used to being called Mrs. Therriault though.

Charlie has started student teaching and another huge change has been that we now get up at the same time in the morning and must share a bathroom.

I've joined Pintrest. It's pretty snazzy and easy to use. No more copied pictures hanging out on my desktop to confuse me. If I had joined this site before our wedding I would have either been way more organized, or way more stressed out because I would have had 10,000 ideas instead of 7,000 ideas.

We are going to New Jersey this weekend for another wedding. This will be the 5th one this summer. One might think that I would be sick of weddings but I am not, especially now that I know how much effort goes into planning one. Can't wait for Jay and Meera's big day! Then I will have another sister-in-law.

I think the biggest change around here will come in October when we don't have plans every weekend and can do some more projects around out apartment.

Off to New Jersey!

Lauren

The Irene Purse

2011-09-02T09:17:00.000-04:00

Last week I noticed that my Bonsai Bag was looking a bit sad and dirty and just plain faded. (I suppose using it for a year straight will do that.) I figured I wouldn't have time to sew a new one though with school starting back up again and two more weddings to go to. Then! Hurricane Irene came along. Luckily our power did not go out, nor our roof blow off, and the first day of school was canceled due to the storm. So, stuck at home with no where to go, I started looking for tutorials and patterns for another purse. Low and behold I found a pattern in my drawer that I borrowed from a friend. Simplicity Pattern 2396 and sewed a new purse in the time it took Hurricane Irene to dump 9 inches of rain on us. I thought I should name the purse after her. Here it is, the Irene Purse:

The corduroy was left over from the Bonsai Bag, inside is lined with a plain blue sheet that was left over from the Peacock Quilt, and the polka dots are from Denyse Schmidt's line of fabric at Joann's; which I bought with no plan in mind just because "I had to have it!"

Don't blow away purse! I used the pattern for the pieces and then pretty much disregarded the rest of it and added details that I like to make it more personalized.

Here is the inside. The pattern says to just put a pocket but I made a zippered one to hold my phone and flash drive, which would go missing for days, or be scratched irrevocably if left to fend for themselves with the other inhabitants of my purse. On another note the pattern says to make the inside just like the outside of the purse, meaning you would have to cut 4 pieces of fabric for the lining and also pin and gather it. I ignored this and just traced the outside section once it was sewn together onto the lining fabric and cut it that way. Much easier in my opinion.

The pattern also said to add a magnetic snap to close the purse but I didn't have any at home and I couldn't very well drive 30 minutes to Joann's in the middle of a hurricane so I added this flop over thing. I think it looks cute and keeps the bag closed.

Piping is the best.

The pattern also said to sew the straps into the purse but I added these metal loops because I think it makes it look fancier. I just wish I had made the purse straps a bit thicker, they aren't very sturdy with only one layer of interfacing.

I had this whole snazzy idea for a photo shoot but Charlie got annoyed when I kept asking him to take more pictures, he just wanted to identify trees in the yard, figures. This is the best one.

Not exactly what I was going for. But you get the idea.

I'm going to enter it in the Purse Week Contest.

Lauren!

A Quilt for Kiki and Pat

2011-08-18T09:10:00.000-04:00

I bet you thought I would never show you another sewing project ever again huh? Well, I was working on a big one all summer but had to keep it a secret. I made a quilt for a wedding present for two very good friends, Kiki and Pat. Kiki is one of my (only) readers and I didn't want to spoil the surprise so I kept it all a secret, which was very hard.

Without further adieu, the wedding quilt:

I used a charm pack and light blue fabric for the sashing using a modified version of THIS pattern.

I like this part, even if as Charlie said, "the writing varies greatly in size."

My only downfall was that I am terrible at math and made the quilt in a very funny size; essentially it's a square quilt. I suppose it would be good for going at the foot of a bed or using on the couch.

I had wanted to machine quilt this one but I got too scared and chickened out, so it's hand tied with red embroidery floss, which I think is incredibly cute, but I might be biased. I couldn't resist a few shots of the quilt on a rocking chair.

As always, I used THIS tutorial for the binding. I am almost to the point where I don't have to look at the tutorial anymore, but I still check just to be sure.

My goals of finishing the quilt before the wedding, keeping it a secret, and making Kiki cry when I gave it to her were all successful. Yes!!!

Thanks for reading!

Lauren

Wedding Craft Run Down: Decor

2011-07-30T10:00:00.002-04:00

Next on the list of wedding craftiness is the decor. I bunched this all together because there isn't a whole lot to say about each item.

First is the tissue paper pom poms. I can't remember where I first saw these but I knew I wanted lots of them hanging from the ceiling of the tent. Martha Stewart has a how-to that I followed. The only bummer is the length of standard tissue paper is not long enough to make these pom poms. I made one out of a stack of 8 sheets of tissue paper and it was horrible. I finally figured out that the sheets weren't long enough so I had to overlap sheets, to make them the correct length, which took a while, then do the steps Martha outlined. Another sort of pain in the tuckus was rounding the edges; seems pretty easy for the first three pom poms but when you're on your 19th pom pom your hand gets a bit sore.
Here are some pictures of the growing pile.

To hang them up you cut small gauged wire and make an "S" putting one end through the loop you made on the pom pom, and one around whatever you're attaching it to. We used the strands of lights. Here is a picture of the pom poms all hung up (Thanks Jaclyn for the picture, can you believe I didn't have time at my own wedding to take pictures?!?):

While you're looking at the above picture I'll just quickly talk about the other decor. For table decorations my Mum and I picked out a bunch of vintage looking patterned fabric and she made table runners so each table had a different runner. The centerpieces were planted herbs in old enamel bowls we found at vintage stores. We used a bunch of old mason jars to hold candles and my dad made a bunch of candle holders out of birch trees. Lastly, to tell our guests what the table names were I painted pieces of wood with chalkboard paint then my friend Cait wrote the table names on them. The tables were all named for mountains or waterfalls that Charlie and I have hiked or skied. Then we went all geeky and arranged them geographically, even though no one noticed. And now I am sure you can see why the table arrangements took us so long.

Moving on to the outside decor. I painted out barn boards with directions for parking and other activities. I also painted more signs that told the mileage from where we were to towns that Charlie and I grew up in or have lived together. To figure out the distance I used this Google Map Distance Calculator.

Lastly, for outdoor decor, we hung up a bunch of quilts. Jaimie brought along the one she had made and finished the quilt she made us for a wedding gift, and the four I have made we hung up as well. To hang them up pieces of clothes line rope were cut to length and tied around trees then the quilts were hung on the line with clothes pins.

Alrighty, that's all of decor. Maybe I'll do one last totally random post about all the other miscellaneous projects.

Lauren

Wedding Craft Run Down: Place Cards

2011-07-29T10:00:00.003-04:00

Here is a quick wedding how to run down.

First up, place holders. We I knew we wanted people to have designated seats at the wedding. Upon deciding that I set out to find a cute and inexpensive way to make the place cards. Inspiration struck when I saw a picture of clothes pins holding the name cards. I knew I wanted the clothes pins to be more excited though so I decided to whip out my old friend Mod Podge, some paper, and get working.

This is what I came up with:

I cut strips of paper the height and length of the clothes pin, used a paintbrush to swipe on a layer of mod podge, laid the paper on top and swiped more mod podge to seal. I used left over paper from the invitations (because there ~~was~~ is a lot) to make the name cards. Then they cliped right in.

I only had 100 clothes pins, because that's all that was for sale at the store, but 129 guests so I needed to somehow figure out what to use to make 29 more place card holders. Inspiration struck again when I remembered a shoe box full of old wooden spools. I used pretty much the same technique for the spools as I did for the clothes pins, measure, cut, glue. These took a bit longer because you have to hold the paper for a while to let it dry since it's rounded (in other words, get your hands all gluey).

After they are dry comes the tricky part, I used a band saw to cut a little line in the top to hold the place card. A hand saw would work too though.

Lots of people asked me; "Didn't it take you a long time to make those?" To which I responded; "Not as long as figuring out the seating arrangements." Which is 100% true, but I liked the way they looked so the time doesn't matter. Now I have about 75 clothes pins and 15 spools and must figure out what to do with.

At the wedding people also started clipping their place card to their clothes with the pins. Apparently they thought it was what we had wanted, even though the idea never occurred to me, but it turned out to be a good way for our guests to know each others names though.

Up next: Tissue Paper Pom Poms/ Decor.

Lauren

That Was Easy: Collection Display Fix

2011-07-28T21:53:00.000-04:00

Hello! Do you remember when I posted last year about my purse collection? Well, for my bachelorette party my dear friend Allie gave me another adorable vintage beaded purse. Isn't it fantastic?

I love it. I was so happy to get such a thoughtful gift and I knew it would be perfect for using at the wedding, which I did. It held a stack of tissues, and about 20 bobby pins, and I think I used all of each supply.

After the wedding craziness wore off and I unpacked everything I knew I had to find a way to display my new purse on the wall with the others. But how oh how could I when the purse does not have any straps or handles?

Today the solution came to me. I took a piece of ribbon, and tied it around both side of the purse flap. Then screwed two hooks into the wall the correct distance apart and then hung the ribbon from the hooks.

The ribbon still showed however so I just twisted the hooks down a bit and now my strapless purse can hang from the wall with my other purses.

Aren't they all just so cute you could squeal?

I also decided to put an index card inside each purse so that I can write down when I used it and for what occasion. I think it will be fun to look back in a few years and remember where the purses have been, besides displayed on the wall.

That's all for now.

Lauren!

I'm Not Dead! I'm Married.

2011-07-24T09:20:00.001-04:00

Hello blog reader(s)!

I know it has been well over a month sine my last post, and you've probably been worried sick about my health and wondering if I've died of heat exhaustion or maybe fallen off a cliff. No need to fear though, I am alive and well, and married. *Gasp*. Yep Married. Turns out planning a backyard wedding sans wedding planner, is quite time consuming. Luckily I have the summer off and was able to "move" to Maine and put the finishing touches on the wedding for three weeks, and then get married, and then take over a week to recover and post about the wedding. I think I'll break down the wedding into several posts, since there is ohhh so much to share, but here are a few pictures, snagged from my friends and family to hold you over.

just married.

just married part two.

let's all take a bunch of pictures.

Lots more to come. If you feel like crying here's a youtube video that my fantastic friend and wonderful photographer Sammy made of some of the wedding pictures she took. Or maybe I am the only one who cries looking at them.

Lauren!

Bridal Shower Apron-2

2011-06-16T06:58:00.000-04:00

Although it doesn't seem like it, I have been sewing quite a bit around here. I just can't tell you about it. Well. I can tell you about one project.

My friend Jaclyn had a bridal shower last weekend, I couldn't go because I had another shower to go to (more on that later). For her shower I made her an apron. I've decided that aprons are the best bridal shower gift ever and will make one to give to every bride I know. I made one last year for Sammy, one for Meera, and I also made one for my friend Heather for her shower, which was in April, but I forgot to take a picture...there was a cute baby at the shower and I was a little distracted.

Here is a picture of Jaclyn's apron. Isn't she adorable? I used an apron that I already had to get the basic size and shape. I really wanted to have white bias tape for an accent, but I didn't have any and didn't feel like driving 30+ minutes to Joann's, so I just used some cream colored fabric cut into strips and made my own bias tape. I think it turned out even better than just white bias tape would have.I love when that happens.

I want to modify the pattern a bit more and work on making different tops and adding different accents. I've got plenty of time for that, and plenty of bridal showers to make them for!

Lauren

Orion Embroidery

2011-06-08T14:00:00.000-04:00

I was looking though my "craft" photos and realized I had made a project and forgot to tell you about it. *This is where you pretend to care and say "Oh Lauren, tell me more!"*

My friend Cait likes the constellation Orion. It seems like whenever we're outside at night together she is able to find the constellation and says something to the effect of; "I just love Orion." She was even Orion for Halloween once!

When it was Cait's birthday (in April) I decided to make her an embroidery of Orion. I saw the idea on Minature Rhino. I can't remember if it was from the blog or the etsy shop though. As I recall Cait was the one who showed me this blog in the first place....and a present Cait made Charlie and I (that I am too supersticous to hang up or show you just yet) was inspired by this blog as well.

Making it was pretty easy. It's a small swatch of dark blue linen and yellow-ish cream colored embroidery floss. I searched for images of Orion online and found one that I liked, copied onto a piece of paper about the size of the hoop and then pretty much went for it. You could trace the design onto the fabric if you're a less "wing it" type of person. Overall it was a very simple project that I think turned out quite well.

Lauren!

Thing You Might Not Have Known About Me- Part 2

2011-06-07T10:00:00.001-04:00

Ever since my Grandfather, Frank, passed away I have made a conscious effort to floss every night.- He was a dentist.
People keep asking if I am going to change my name when I get married and when I say no my excuse is "Charlie had to go to speech therapy to say his last name" or "Half the kids on my caseload have issues with /th/!" But really, I just think my name is the best name in the world and don't want to change it.
I hate wearing contacts but I am petrified of having lasix surgery.
I am obsessed with saving money...sometime to the point that I have about $40 in my bank account to last me until pay day.
I have a very hard time realizing that everyone on the planet doesn't try as hard, or work as hard as I do.
I am kind of color blind.
I recently realized I own 6 purple dresses.
I still take naps...probably 2-3 a week.
I eat chocolate chips by the handful- or I did until I went on a no dessert until the wedding diet.
I still do simple math on my fingers.
Whenever I accidentally leave the house without makeup on I get really self conscious, but then people always tell me they can never tell I am wearing makeup anyways, so I wonder why I bother.
The phrase "If I were in charge...." crosses my mind at least 5 times daily.
I once wanted to be a shoe designer, now I own about 10 pairs of shoes, and 3 are running shoes.
I only set my alarm on the 3's ex: 5:03 and 6:03, although I rarely actually get up at that time, I mostly roll around in bed counting the hours (on my fingers) until I can go to sleep again.
I had never eaten an avocado until Charlie forced me to. Now I love them!
One of my biggest fears is that I accidentally burn my face with my iron.
Another huge fear is that I slip on a patch of ice while running and my head gets crushed by an 18-wheeler.
I think it's lucky that these two "biggest fears" are highly unlikely.
It took me about 13 years, but I think I have finally accepted my nose.
I am petrified by the though of having children, but I still want them....just not today, or tomorrow, or in the next 4 years.
The only time I miss having a TV is when I am sick and want to watch dumb movies on TBS or ABC Family.
Here is a list of things I am really bad at:

making things grow.
paying attention to things that are cooking.
having a serious face.
being interested in world events/politics.
spending a limited amount of time on the computer.
finishing library books before they are due.
reading directions.

Here is a list of things I am good at:

asking for help.
writing lists and checking things off of lists.
organizing things.
spending 4 times as long thinking about projects as I do completing them.
reading a map.
never getting lost, except inside of big stores.
enjoying the company of others without having to say a word.

What's something I might not know about you?

Lauren

Voile Quilt- Finished.

2011-06-06T19:00:00.001-04:00

Hurray! The Voile quilt is finally done. It got really hot here for about a week and I (seriously) sat with an icepack on my legs while I finished handstitching this quilt. Oh, the lengths quilters will go thought to get a project done.

I finished stitching the binding just in time for our friends to come and visit. My only ~~demand~~ request was that the friend who did use the quilt take a shower before going to bed...he had just run and gone swimming so it didn't seem like a huge deal but I may have sounded a bit bossy. I've already told Charlie he can't sleep with this quilt due to his excessive drooling.

And if talking about your fiance's incessant drooling wasn't embarrassing enough, I dragged him to the local park this fine evening to snap photos of him holding the quilt for me. When I commented that he was being a stinker pants he said; "I want you to know I would never do this for anyone but you."Awe shucks, thanks Charlie.

I'm trying to not stink so much at taking pictures so I tried some in the shade too. What do you think?

I like this one because you can see all of the circles I spent hours sewing. I really must move away from handstitching...it takes forever!

Last photo I promise. This one shows the backing fabric which I L.O.V.E!

Now I can say that this quilt is officially 100% done, and just in time because I've already purchased fabric to make another one! Add that to the list of 10,000 projects I have buzzing in my brain.

Lauren!

Progress

2011-05-17T18:53:00.000-04:00

The other day I counted 9 more circles to quilt. Then I quilted 4 while watching Black Swan. Then I put the quilt out again and counted 10 more circles to go. Sometimes I think this quilt is playing games with my head.

I hope to have it done by the weekend. A friend is coming to visit (that never happens) and I want the guest room to be "done." Nothing works like a deadline to get you into quilting high gear huh?

Working on it isn't such a chore, I love the fabric, still, after 100+ circles. It's so pretty and so soft. Finished pictures coming soon (I hope).

Goodnight!

Lauren

Wapack Statistics

2011-05-08T21:36:00.003-04:00

I hardly passed Statistics so I don't know if this qualifies, but here are the numbers and other info from my race yesterday.

Miles: 21.5
Time: 6:55:50
Mountains Climbed: 8
Total Elevation: 8,000 +
Times I got Lost: 3
Extra Miles Run While Lost: 1.5-2 (maybe)
Times I Swore: 4
Black Flies Swallowed: 4
Number of Times I Sat on a Rock: 1
Times I Saw a Snake: 1
Times I Screamed and Hopped Around Like an Idiot: 1 (see above)
Falls: 2, no blood though.
Initial Goal: Finish with the same or better time as last year
Second Goal: Changed at about mile 8, don't cry/puke, just finish.
First 12 miles run in: 3:45
Last 9 miles run in: 3:05 (remember I sat on a rock for part of the time)
Miles I Ran Alone: 11.5, .5 or more were spent running with an old man that I thought knew where we were going, but then didn't. Then I convinced Charlie to run with me.
Words I spoke to Charlie While he was Running With Me: Less than 500 (over 3 hours) and most of them were "This hurts", "How much longer?" or "You lied."
Times Charlie Said "This is the last hill.": 3
Tears Shed: 4
Chafed Body Parts: 0, the one success of this race. Sorry that's TMI.
Times I was Farted on: 0, another success, unless you consider that the farting man was so far ahead of me that he couldn't fart on me.... For the back story click here.
Last mile pace: 8 minutes (if only I had done the rest of the race that fast!)
Times I Upchucked: 1 (post race) Gatorade+ Lauren= bad/barf.
Food Consumed During the Race: 3 energy chews, 2 cooked potato slices, 1 pretzel stick, 2 orange wedges, 3 nibbles of a cookie, one cup ginger ale, and one handful of chex mix. (Not enough obviously, but all I could force myself to eat and not feel like upchucking.)
Food Consumed After the Race: 1 handful of popcorn, 1 girl scout cookie, 3 sips of Gatorade (bleck, see above), 1 orange Coolata, 2 jumbo marshmallows, 1 heaping plate of stir fry, lots of cookie dough ice cream.

Race shirt, Half eaten Jumbo Marshmallow and Coolata in Hand.

How Bad I Smelled on a Scale of 1-10 when this Picture was Taken: 12.76

2 Questions You're Probably Wondering Answered:

1. Will You Run Wapack Again?- Of course, I have to redeem myself.

2. How Long Are You Going to Take off From Running?- until my body stops yelling at me "What were you thinking?!?!?!" with every step I take.

Thanks for reading! And Thanks to Daddy and Mary Lou for cheering for me, and a special thanks to Charlie for running 9 miles with me in 3 hours, even though he could have done it much faster and not had someone calling him a liar or gagging every 4 minutes.

Lauren!

"I Can't Wait for Summer" Top

2011-05-08T20:59:00.000-04:00

Last year I was blown away the people who entered in "Spring Top Week." This year it's called "Spring Top Sewalong" since it's more than a week.

Luckily my vacation fell during the time period and I was able to make a top to enter. I named it the "I Can't Wait for Summer" Top.

The fabric was bought last year at Joann's. It's swish dot which seems to be all the rage lately. The pattern is a modified version of Simplicity 5552 . I changed a few things. The shoulders were much too long so I fixed that. I took in the sides a bit to make it more form fitting and less pregnancy topish. Lastly, I added some elastic to the back to add a bit more shape. Maybe someday I'll be brave and try shirring. Maybe.

Lastly, in case you miss seeing my face:

Goodnight!

Lauren

Must Have...

2011-05-03T17:04:00.000-04:00

This sampler kit.

source

I'm. In. Love.

If I didn't have a quilt to finish, one to start, 4 chicken embroidery things...an embroidery project I've been working on since 2008 (sorry Mum!), and a kit of ornaments by the same felting/embroidery/blogging genius, Posie, I might buy this kit.

Oh, what the heck. It's ordered. At this rate it will be done by the time I have a kid....in 2017.

Lauren

Five Coin Purses

2011-04-17T08:00:00.001-04:00

Last weekend we finally had a (somewhat) free weekend. We ran a trail race and hung out with friends on Saturday and on Sunday I did a long run and got to sew quite a bit.

A few weeks ago I was at a fabric store in Portland, Z Fabrics. As I was checking out I saw a cute little snap purse. I mentioned its cuteness to the clerk and she said, "We sell the pattern, it's right there" (points to 4 inches away from my hand). I snatched up a copy and put it in my pile before I could even think otherwise.

I knew I wanted to make two for my friends Allie and Cait. They had a surprise party last night, unfortunately I couldn't go but I wanted to give them something anyways. I set out to make two of the purses last weekend. Then I found so many scraps of fabric that called to me: "Lauren, make us into tiny coin purses too! We're so small, you'll never use us except for this project. Do it TODAY!"Instead of making two I made five.

They came together pretty fast. I only had three snaps so for two I used velcro.

Here's all of them. Two are for Allie and Cait, one if for Cait's roommate, Carla who was in on the sending of the gifts, and the other two are for my cousins, Mia and Macy.

For some reason I think it is hilarious to give people copies of the school picture that was taken of me this year. I included a copy in my cousin's coin purses.

I hope everyone likes them.

Happy Weekend!

Lauren

Wedding Talk

2011-04-15T20:29:00.000-04:00

I had hoped to not turn this into a wedding blog with the upcoming nuptials. However, it seems that with the exception of hand quilting I have not been sewing much and instead have been doing lot of wedding stuff.

As you can imagine, being the blog lover that I am I have started reading, or more accurately looking at pictures, from lots of wedding blogs. Here is a list of wedding blogs I have recently become addicted to. Don't be surprised if you see many of the ideas used in our wedding.

Ruffled
Wedding Chicks
Style Me Pretty
Real Maine Weddings

I am already trying to bookmark house building blogs and websites so I don't go into total blog withdrawal after July 16th.

Lastly, since I am into shamelessly promoting my insanely talented friends. Here is a picture of the save the dates we sent out.

Our new friend Karina designed them. She's a graphic designer, and a fantastic one at that. She said she wanted to do our wedding invites etc, I sent her every picture I could find of invites and save the dates from above mentioned blogs, we e-mailed about 100 times and this is the final product. I couldn't be more thrilled with them, and am very appreciative of all of the hard work Karina put into them. You should check out her website if you're in the market for anything graphic design related. She also is a miracle worker when it comes to home design, and refinishing old furniture. Her peacock inspired dinning room is to die for.

That's all for wedding nonsense.

I'll be back sometime with some sewing projects.

Lauren

::Right Now::

2011-04-02T11:38:00.003-04:00

Right now, I am...

:: watching the sun melt away all of yesterday's snow.

:: loving my new biscuit cutter, one of the few things we registered for that I knew I would use more than Charlie.

:: wanting a big hug.

:: looking through lots of old pictures and remember good times.

:: heading out for a long run, with no route in mind, just going to run.

:: patting my belly after eating far too many homemade soft pretzels.

:: enjoying a weekend off, there aren't many of those left on the calendar.
:: appreciating all of the lovely comments and e-mails I've received from friends and family.

:: surprising myself with my motivation to suddenly finish the quilt, and surprising Charlie when he woke up to see the living room furniture pushed away to make room for sandwiching said quilt.

:: feeling grateful for having had yesterday off, even if it means another day in June.
:: working on hand quilting several hundred circles.

:: hoping you are having a wonderful weekend, and that you remember to tell someone you love them.

Lauren

Idea and inspiration from SouleMama.

Raving About Hartery Photography

2011-03-24T06:20:00.002-04:00

I would like to shout from a mountain top, so here goes. (Lauren climbs to mountain top) Hey Everyone! Check out the amazing pictures my wonderful friend Sam took at my bridal shower last weekend. She's a fantastic photographer, lovely person and all around just great. I can't say enough good things about her. Here's a sneak peak.

Sam has been taking pictures for quite a while, many of my most favorite pictures from college were snapped by her. She's starting to build her business in the hopes that one day she can become a full time photographer. If you're interested and live in Maine or anywhere close I highly recommend her. Check out her website, I'm sure you'll be hooked; Hartery Photography.

Lauren

Bridal Shower Apron

2011-03-14T21:27:00.002-04:00

This weekend was very busy. We went to Connecticut for Charlie's grandmother's 90th birthday party. It was loads of fun. I had never met most of Charlie's relatives before so it was great to get to meet them. Plus, I already knew all of their names and where they lived from addressing wedding stuff. Lots of putting faces to names. After the party on Saturday Charlie's aunt hosted a bridal shower for me, and also for my future sister in law, Meera. Having a joint shower is not as much pressure, I'd recommend it.

Anywho, when you're sharing a bridal shower with someone you don't just get presents you get to give them too. I made Meera an apron over my vacation. I purchased the book "A is for Apron" over a year ago and finally decided to put it to use. The only problem was that there were no pattern pieces included, just a few pages in the back that needed to be enlarged 400%. I had/have no idea where to get pattern pieces enlarged and printed, and I didn't really feel like leaving the house at the time, so I pulled some newspaper out of the recycling bin and winged it. After cutting most of the pieces out Rich came inside, noticed my dilemma and tried to help me to do math to fix it. At that point it was too late, and my measurements were far too off to be remedied so I continued down my path of winging it/ figuring it out while I worked, plus I hate math.

Despite my winging it I think the end result is pretty nice. After reading some of the reviews of the book lots of other people had problems with enlarging and following the poorly worded directions as well. Glad I am not the only one. I even winged it/ deviated from the pattern enough to make it reversible.

I also added some little details, tiny mismatched buttons.

Jay (Meera's future hubs/ my future brother-in-law/ Charlie's brother) decided to put the apron on once the boys returned from bowling. As I was snapping his picture Charlie said "She's going to blog about this!" At least he knows me well, right?

The best part was when Meera opened my gift to her she said "An Apron! I was so jealous of the apron you made for Danielle for Christmas." I love making gifts for appreciative people, especially when they are also really nice and fun to boot.

Lauren!

Unbelievably Comfortable Skirt

2011-03-13T11:00:00.003-04:00

While I was sewing this quilt top I kept thinking to myself, this fabric is so nice you shouldn't be making a quilt that you can only sleep in, you should be making clothes you can wear all day. Luckily, around that time Anna Maria Horner came up with her Flirting the Issue Skirt. I bought some of the fabric from her new line and was able to make a skirt over my vacation.

I didn't want to show it until today because I am wearing it to a bridal shower and I hate ruining surprises.

The pattern was free and very easy to follow. The skirt itself is unbelievably comfortable. I think I might make 10 more and never have to wear uncomfortable pants again.

I'll post more pictures after the bridal shower.

Happy Sunday!
Lauren

*************

Edit, Here's a picture of Charlie and I at the bridal shower. It was lots of fun. This picture makes me desperate for summer and some natural highlights in my hair.

Car Garbage Collector

2011-03-11T15:09:00.001-05:00

I think I forgot to mention here that I got a new car! Check that off my list of 25 things to do this year. It isn't even a "new to me" car, it's a new to the world 2011.

Since it's a new car and has a new car smell I decided that no one should eat in the car. That lasted approximately 2 days. Then I decided that since it's a new car and has a new car smell, and since I can't keep myself or Charles from eating in the car I decided that we should attempt to be clean when we are eating.

I had seen a few posts or tutorials in books about making car garbage collectors but none seemed to fit my idea. I schemed up the idea for this one, where else, but in the car. Here it is:

It even has a pocket for wet wipes, or maybe some Doritos.

It even has a tissue dispenser. I can never find tissues in the car, problem solved!

Here's what it looks like in my new car. Pretty snazzy huh? I'd show you a picture of the whole car except it's raining, and the car is dirty.

Off for a weekend getaway. I'll be back on Sunday with all of my other posts. I don't want to ruin any surprises by posting pictures.

Stay dry!

Lauren

Wedding Dress- Always

2011-03-08T07:33:00.006-05:00

Fooled you didn't I! There are no pictures here (yet) of my wedding dress.

For those followers who do not have facebook (hi Dad!) I have decided to post this story here as well. It's an extended version.

My Mum has sewed almost every important dress I've ever worn. For example she sewed the dress I worn on the first day of kindergarten. Skip ahead 8 years to when I started wearing dresses again, she made my 8th grade graduation dress, prom dress, high school graduation dress, bridesmaid dress, and plenty of dresses in between.

In all honesty when it came time to think about a wedding dress, and since we're being honest here, that was in 2009 before I was even engaged, it was clear to me that my Mum would make it for me. I think it was pretty clear to her too, or at least she didn't seem surprised when in 2010, after getting engaged, I showed her a pattern for a dress I wanted her to make and she exclaimed "It's beautiful" and not; "Are you freaking nuts?!?!"

Skip ahead again to us searching stores for the perfect fabric. We found one that was positively beautiful, but the $190 a yard price tag was not exactly in our price range. Then I found another fabric that was equally beautiful in my mind and ordered it. The package came the other day in the mail, in this box:

I've always been a fan of recycling and I found this absolutely hilarious. Who sends expensive wedding dress fabric in a recycled maxi pad box? Luckily my Mum, Rich, and my friend Kiki were around to witness the box arrival.

Here is what I posted on facebook; "Today the fabric for my wedding dress came. It showed up in an "always" maxi pad box. I suppose that's better than a "depends" box." After the initial hilarity had worn off I began to think about how fabric arriving in a box marked "Always." It's probably a very good sign for an upcoming wedding. I think it's also a good sign that my Mum will always love me even if I sign her up to sew me a wedding dress and constantly stress her out. I know I will always love her and always be grateful for all that she's done for me.

Lauren

Pin Tuck Shirt

2011-03-07T19:42:00.000-05:00

I, Lauren Cassidy, followed a pattern. I just wanted to write that down since it happens so infrequently; which if you weren't aware of before you will see what I mean in upcoming posts this week. Back to my pattern following. It wasn't so bad. My only complaint, and main reason I don't follow patterns, is that when I measure myself in order to figure out what size pattern pieces to cut out for some reason the measurements always lead me to cut out pieces that are a size 12. I am not a size 12. But for some reason when I figure out my measurements it always adds up to a size 12. Then, feeling bad about myself and pledging to start a diet in the morning I cut out the pattern in a size 12. Next, I spend 2+ hours sewing, try on the garment and then contemplate gaining weight so that I will fit into the garment I just spent 2+ hours sewing and is obviously much too large for me. Quite the conundrum. For some reason I always forget about this size 12 dilemma, and therefore do it again; it might have to do with the fact that, as I mentioned, I follow patterns so infrequently.

Anyways enough complaining. Here is the shirt I cut out as a size 12 then spent twice the amount of time I should have making it actually fit me.

Luckily I was able to resist the urge to rip the shirt to shreds(which is a frequent urge of mine) long enough to pack it away for my trip to Maine. While in Maine, as you know, I fell into a sewing coma, and was able to finish the shirt with some help and advice from my Mum.

Snazzy huh? Here is a close up of the pin tucks in the front.

Here is the extra long elastic in the back to scrunch up the extra fabric.

And for good measure here is a picture of me wearing it today. I had originally intended to wake up early to take pictures and post but as you can see plans changed. I figured tired Lauren after work would look better than tired Lauren before work. I was home alone and wanted the light in the kitchen so this is the best I could do.

Goodnight!

Lauren

The Perfect Sewing Set Up

2011-03-06T09:41:00.001-05:00

Hello Friends! As you know I've been sewing up a storm here in Maine, and loving every second of it. Sadly, today I must go home. The real world is calling me; it says "Hey, Lauren, you have a case load of 40 kids who need therapy, 3 who need evaluations, and 2 who need new IEP's! Did you forget about them?" Sadly the real world is correct, and I must return from my sewing induced coma.

On a brighter note, I will try my best to post one project that I have completed everyday this week. Sound fun? I might even give you a snazzy tutorial, if you're good.

In closing here are some pictures of the awesome sewing set up I've been working with this week.

Four sewing machines for two people. That's a ratio I could get used to.

The best part is that my Mum is here to help me. In other words, fix my mistakes, pin a hem, entirely re-work a dress (see pink dress on dress form), and just talk. Part of me wonders what's been running faster this week; the sewing machines or our mouths.

It's been a good week.

Lauren!

Outdoor Quilt Photo Shoot

2011-03-03T17:45:00.000-05:00

I've been in Maine all week on my vacation. It has been great. I've had a chance to see a lot of my family, a few friends, and a new baby. I've also had time to sew! I finished the quilt top and couldn't resist taking it out to the barn for a photo shoot.

********

I might be mildly obsessed with this barn. I am also very excited to finish the quilt now. Hopefully in time for a spring time barn photo shoot.

Stay warm! Lauren

February Blues

2011-02-20T21:55:00.000-05:00

Ho hum. I think February is the most depressing month of the whole year. I think that's why they only made it 28 days long. Thank goodness for that. I have been feeling kind of down lately and thus sewing minimally, sleeping lots, and doing nothing in particular.

Here are some of the reason I have been feeling glum:

My grandfather is rather sick. Not like a cough. Pretty sad business.
I love my job but is is stressful at times, especially in February (or before big vacations). I want to feel like I am doing my best and doing everything with 100% effort but sometimes/ most of the time I feel like I am putting 100% effort into staying afloat and not forgetting something really important.
It's cold. I am sick of the cold and mostly sick of the wind. I want to go running and be outside but the wind makes it unbearable. It also makes my apartment cold which makes me cranky.
I'm still searching for friends.
Planning a wedding when you are the most indecisive person in the world is very hard. It's even harder when your fiance is the most decisive person in the world and can make decisions in .2 seconds when it takes you 4+ hours of deep contemplation to figure out the exact same thing.

Here are some things to be unglum about:

I got to see my Grandfather, Frank, today. As well as my Grandmother, Grandmother, and my brother, Garrett. It was pretty fun. They even said my cooking was good.
On a whim I bought a new (to me) sewing machine. It's a used model with a new engine. It's wicked snazzy. I have been slowly trying to figure it out and absorb as much information as I can in short sittings.
There are only 5 more days until school vacation. I am going to spend it in Maine, and do some wedding stuff, hang out, relax, read, snowmobile, have a party, and maybe see a brand new baby, if he comes on time.
All of my squares are done for the quilt.

I love the fabric I am using to make the quilt so much that I bought more this weekend to make this skirt.
There are only 27 more days until spring at which point I can wear my new skirt.

Now if those aren't unglum things I don't know what are. Thanks for reading my soppy nonsense.

Lauren

p.s. I know unglum isn't a word; but it should be.

p.p.s. Here is one of my most favorite pictures in the whole world:

That's me on the day my brother was born. Looking at this picture helps me remember that even if you aren't happy about something in the moment you might be happy about it later.

Call Me Crazy

2011-02-17T10:33:00.001-05:00

I've signed up for Wapack and Back, the trail race that nearly killed me last year. Here's the legal mumbo-jumbo I had to "accept" in order to register. I almost never really read the agreements, but I decided to read this one and couldn't decide if I should laugh, cry, or never think about running this race again. Instead I decided to post it here so you could laugh, cry, call me crazy, etc. Here it is:

"I know that running a trail race is potentially hazardous activity, which could cause injury or death. I will not enter and participate unless I am medically able and properly trained, and by my signature, I certify that I am medically able to perform this event, and am in good health, and I am properly trained. I agree to abide by any decision of a race official relative to any aspect of my participation in this event, including the right of any official to deny or suspend my participation for any reason whatsoever. I assume all risks associated with running in this event, including but not limited to: falls, contact with other participants, the effects of the weather, including high heat and/or humidity, traffic and the conditions of the course, all such risks being known and appreciated by me. Having read this waiver and knowing these facts and in consideration of your accepting my entry, I, for myself and anyone entitled to act on my behalf, waive and release the organizers, sponsors, property owners, public entities and their representatives and successors from all claims or liabilities of any kind arising out of my participation in this event, even though that liability may arise out of negligence or carelessness on the part of the persons named in this waiver. I also grant full permission to the race organizers and sponsors to use any photographs or other records of my participation in this event for any legitimate purpose."

After signing up I also realized that Richard (farts in your face Richard) is also signed up. My main goal is to beat him, and beat him by enough so that I won't be within 1 mile of his farting.

I hate being farted on.

Lauren

Baby Shower Gift- No Sewing Necessary

2011-02-16T16:52:00.000-05:00

What's with people in their 20's having babies?!? Jeeze. Seems like everyone I know is having a kid, or two. My good friends from college are having their second baby in less than a month. Seems like just yesterday I was making their first kid something. Their first was a boy and they're expecting another boy, so I knew they wouldn't need anymore clothes or toys. This got me thinking, what would a second child need or want? Or more specifically, what would the parents of a second child want or need?
Something personalized! I found the idea and materials at the craft store. When I got home Charlie asked me why I needed a giant "L" for our house. He's funny. I painted the frame yellow and the "L" blue with light brown dots to match the scrapbook paper behind it, added some Mod Podge Luster, and some hot glue and it was done.

I shipped it off and had nearly forgotten about it until I got the thank you card in the mail today.

Now all that's left is to have the baby, but not just yet!

Lauren

Valentine's Day Decorations

2011-02-06T16:25:00.000-05:00

The chain quilting I did the other day made me think about other chaining projects/ideas (and no I don't mean the bunting that I now realize I should get cracking on if I want it to be done by July). I mean Valentine's Day decorations.

I saw an idea on maya*made last February, after Valentine's day had already passed, and stored it away until now. While working on a painted project (more to come soon), I remembered the idea and was able to locate the tutorial. Pretty easy. I painted some of the hearts in different ways and also crumpled some of them. After the red paint dried I used Mod Podge "Luster" to seal them and make them a bit shiny without having to add glitter; yuck. Did you know I hate glitter? (I won't steal Demetri Martin's joke about glitter but I will provide you with a link to it...well upon searching I couldn't find a short clip, just skip to minute 3, or enjoy the whole thing, or don't click it, I'll never know.)

Back to the project. Instead of gluing the hearts to a string I just chain stitched them with a sewing machine. Now if only I could decided where to hang them, because outside the closet isn't a very good spot.

Happy Sunday!
Lauren

Chain Quilting

2011-02-02T19:15:00.002-05:00

Yesterday at 10:30 while I was working with two students the principal came onto the intercom to announce that there would be a snow day on Wednesday (today). I think my outburst of excitement was louder than the two students combined. I mean, what's better than finding out in the morning that you don't have to get out of bed because there is a snow day? Finding out there is a snow day before you even go to bed. While the two students planned to stay up late watching who knows what on the Disney Channel, I planned to do some serious sewing.

And that I did. I used this technique and finished chain piecing all of the squares for the quilt I'm working on. I just had to get a picture of the long chain before cutting it apart and making it into pinwheel squares.

Pretty huh? It makes me think of the bunting I ~~have~~ want to make for decorations for our wedding.

Now all of the chained pieces are cut apart and most have been sewn into squares. I stayed up far too late last night working on them, then stayed up even later watching several episodes of "The Office" on Netflix. Did you know Pam and Jim kissed?! We just had to watch more to find out what happened. Today I thought about doing some more sewing but Charlie and I went skiing instead.

Just a few more blocks to go and then I can start sewing it all together.

Lauren!

::Right Now::

2011-01-24T18:49:00.003-05:00

right now, I am ...

:: wanting a fireplace or wood stove to warm my fingertips and toes. My bones even feel cold.

:: loving that the days are getting longer, even if only by a few seconds each day. Leaving work late is much easier to manage when there are still specks of sunlight on the horizon.

:: wondering if I should make a twin or queen sized quilt out of the extra Anna Maria Horner fabric I just had to buy.

:: feeling sad that my friends have left, but happy to have spent time with them.

:: enjoying season 2 of the Office on Netfix. I can't believe I never watched it when we had a TV.

:: admiring my new (old) wall hanging.

:: smiling at the birthday card display in the kitchen. I am lucky to have so many nice friends and family members.

::anxious about buying a new car, which has been bumped up on my to do list, in order for my other "to do's" to get done.

:: taking a break from the purple dress so as not to get aggravated and tear it to shreds.

:: rejoicing at all of the wedding planning that has been getting done lately.

:: reminiscing about my first marathon after receiving my "finishers certificate" in the mail today.

:: planning a week of productivity, snow days or not.

:: wishing everyone I love would stay the way I would like to remember them.

Happy Monday!

Lauren

Idea and inspiration from SouleMama.

Just in Case

2011-01-20T22:14:00.003-05:00

Did you hear it's supposed to snow tomorrow? In preparation for a potential snow day I decided to cut out a pattern I've been dreaming about for quite some time... you know just in case it does snow, and we do get a day off, and Charlie leaves me alone for 2(+) hours, and my serger doesn't make me want to pull out my hair. (As a side note; have I ever mentioned how much I hate cutting out patterns? I always get the sizing wrong. I used 10 billion more pins that I should, I don't have a table to do it on so I have to sit on the floor, I have to follow directions, yuck. I hate it, but I decided that if tomorrow is in fact going to be a snow day I want to have this horrible process out of the way so I can fully enjoy myself. End of rant).

The pattern I used is from "Sew U Home Stretch", which is all about sewing with jersey and other knit fabrics. The fabric is purple jersey from Marden's for $2.99 a yard (and it's 60 inches as opposed to 45!! Cha-ching.)

I'm going to make this dress. Cute huh? Hopefully it will turn out alright, and if not, oh well the fabric only cost $5.98.

While I was on the floor cursing patterns, and stabbing myself with pins, I figured I might as well cut out another one. I snagged this pattern from my Mum last weekend. I don't think you can see from the picture but the shirt has pin tucks all down the front, very cute. The blue fabric is also from Mardens.

And just in case we do have school tomorrow I cut out and glued together this "Consonant Blend" game for a few of my students. One should always be prepared, for a school day or a snow day.

Goodnight!

Lauren

Seascape Wedding Present

2011-01-19T16:35:00.003-05:00

Remember long long ago when I dyed fabric for a project? Yeah, I kind of forgot about it too. Well, back in March I dyed the fabric, and in April I made this for Charlie's birthday, and I also turned a lot of the dyed fabric into this:

A seascape. The idea came from an example of another "Accidental Landscape" I saw in a quilt store. Here's a close up, please excuse the pins.

I knew right when I saw the example that it would be perfect for my friends Keith and Sam as a wedding present. They were getting married in June and I thought I would 100 percent be able to get it done...... but, not so much. I can't remember all of the excuses I made; mostly I think it was lack of time and not being able to find the exactly right elements. Anyways, to make a long story short, 7 months after the wedding the seascape is officially done and has been given to the happy couple.

The colors look a little bit different here because it is framed. For finishing touches I used scraps of lace as the waves, green variegated thread for the sea grass, and little beads and bits of sea glass to look like shells. Throughout the scape I used different colors of silver and gold thread to add texture and shine, kind of like sand. Here's a close up of the fence where I added my initials and the year.

I think my most favorite part is either the lace waves or the starfish made of beads, or the fact that Keith and Sammy like it.

Lastly, here is a picture of the framed and finished product.

In writing this I just realized how many of my friends are getting married this year, guess I should get crackin' on those gifts so they'll be done by 2012.

Lauren

25 Things To Do In My 25th Year

2011-01-18T09:30:00.010-05:00

Last year on my birthday I posted 24 things to do while I was 24, and even checked my progress yesterday. Now that I am 25 I have to think of a whole new list plus one. Here goes:

Get married.
Buy a new (to me) car.
Go somewhere I've never been.
Keep running (I don't really have a distance goal this year, and I never really set time goals for myself, I just want to keep running even if it means running after a long day at work with a reflective vest and a headlamp.)
Host a party.
Get better at my job/ keep learning.
Call my friends more often.
Visit my family.
Keep saving money for a house.
Start more traditions with Charlie.
Be more comfortable doing things alone (eating out, going to the movies...yikes I break out in hives just thinking about it.)
Visit at least 2 waterfalls I haven't been to yet.
Go on a road trip.
Make new friends.
Be nice and appreciative.
Research sewing machines and buy a new one (one that can make button holes).
Go on lots of mini adventures.
Hike mount Kathadin (and not complain once while doing it).
Grow my hair long then cut it off.
Practice my (forgotten) sign language skills.
Sew clothes, with and without patterns.
Cook ~~more.~~
Try my best to not talk negatively about people.
Spend quality time with people I like.
Be happy with my life. It's a pretty good one.

Think I can do it all? I sure will try.

Lauren

24th Year Wrap-Up

2011-01-17T09:30:00.003-05:00

Last year on my birthday I made a list of 24 things to do while I was 24. Now that 25 is quickly approaching I decided to go back to my list and see if I made any progress.

1. Graduate with my Master's degree. - Check!
2. Find a job. - Done!
3. Move closer to the White Mountains and find a (2 bedroom) apartment. - Did that too! I should have added, "Re-do 2 bedroom apartment" as well. What a relief that the painting is over.
4. Cook more meals/ be more adventurous in the kitchen.- Well, sort of. We've been trying out new recipes a lot lately.
5. Read for fun. -Negative. I did get two new books for Christmas and have started reading one.
6. Make outfits/clothing for myself.- Now that I have a dress form, and a serger, I should be making more clothes for myself....
7. Run a long race (more than a half marathon, but less than a marathon.)- Ha! This is funny to read. I did the wapack race, 21 miles up 8 mountains, and also a marathon. Pretty good for a girl who didn't think she could ever run over 5 miles.
8. Be more appreciative of what people do for me. - I am trying. The goals about doing things are so much easier than the goals about thinking or realizing things. When I get frustrated I try to remember all of the nice things that Charlie does for me; cook me dinner, go to quilting stores with me, hang out with me even when I am sick, addresses Christmas cards so I don't have a panic attack, etc.
9. Stop complaining about my parent's divorce; it's been 5 years, I should probably get over it.- Practically done.
10. Draw and paint. -Does painting rooms count? I have painted a few things besides walls this year, nothing to brag about though.
11. Go to farmer's markets.- Welp, not so much. There's always next year.
12. Be more aware of what I eat and where it came from.- Oops.
13. Be nicer.- I am trying. I would say that I am thinking more before I speak in order to be a nicer person.
14. Start an etsy shop.-No. I decided it wasn't for me.
15. Learn how to and execute the refurbishment of my dresser. (A project I have been meaning to do since I got the dresser 4 years ago.)- Drats. Maybe with the sander I got for Christmas this will happen.
16. Volunteer. Double drats.
17. Accept my nose, it's big, oh well, it's mine. Like my dad says; "If your nose was any smaller I wouldn't know you were coming into the room."- Done. I can honestly say that I have not complained about my nose in a year.
18. Make at least 1 more quilt, and experiment with new quilting techniques. (But let's be honest, this will probably turn into about 3 quilts.)- Yep :) I only made one, but I have started another one.
19. Be more giving with my sewing projects, who really needs 43 purses? - I am trying. Giving handmade gifts is really fun so that makes giving away something I spent a lot of time making easier.
20. Have confidence in the things I do, say, and wear. - Part of my job is knowing what I am talking about, or being able to fake it really well. I am getting there.
21. Organize and simplify. - Organize, yes. Simplify, no.
22. Learn more about having good credit, saving money, stocks, just money in general, since sometime soon I will have some. - Well....I do have some money, and I am trying to save some to buy a house/ car someday in the future. I am very wary of stocks.
23. Watch less TV.- Done! We don't even have one. Pretty hard to watch lots of TV when you haven't got one. I was worried that when I went to visit people who have TV's I would get sucked in, but the opposite is true. I have no patience for commercials or boring shows. I consider this one of the biggest successes of my 24th year.
24. Find something enjoyable to do, and something to be happy about everyday. - I'd say so. During dinner I have started asking Charlie what the best part of his day was and thinking of the best part of my day. Usually it's something small or silly that I might never have shared unless I was really thinking about the day.

I think I have made some good gains and changes. I'd say that complaining less is probably the biggest one followed by drastically minimizing the amount of TV I watch. Now I'm off to think of 25 things to do while I am 25, and also enjoy the last day of being 24.

Lauren

Laptop Case

2011-01-13T17:27:00.000-05:00

Lots of good things have been happening lately. The first is that I got a brand spankin' new laptop for work. Yahoo. The second good thing is that yesterday I had a snow day. Double yahoo! Put these two things together and what have you got?

A new laptop case!

I used this tutorial which I found on a website of 19 laptop case tutorials. The tutorial was only confusing at one point, and it could have been because it was 10 o' clock at night. It's made from all scraps and things I had on hand, because who wants to drive 35 minutes to a Joann Fabrics in a blizzard? Luckily, I buy zippers of all colors and lengths so I had a long enough one for this project. It's also lucky I have been practicing with zippers for the past 15 months and actually managed to make a (nearly) mistake free zipper, curves and all.

The laptop fits perfectly inside (because I fixed it three times.) Now, if only the laptop would stop breaking/freezing/deleting my files/ needing to be sent back to the Tech guy at school a.k.a my new bestfriend Dennis, I would have the laptop to put inside the case, and more importantly, to use. Hopefully the third visit to Dennis will do the trick and this laptop will work by tomorrow, and be the talk of the school in it's super cute handmade case.

Lauren

Pincushion/ Back in the Saddle

2011-01-08T09:04:00.001-05:00

After Christmas I was pretty tired of sewing. It probably had something to do with deciding to sew every person I knew a present, and not realizing until the last minute that my goal was purely absurd, and then being stubborn and sewing all of the presents anyways. In the midst of all the sewing and wrapping and stress I didn't even realize that I didn't take any pictures of the presents. What a bad blogger I am! My forgetfulness, and stress, and maybe a stomach bug, made me realize I needed a break.

So a break I did take. Until last night when I decided that I could not sew another thing until I had a new pincushion. I found this tutorial which lead me to this other one, which is the one I used. I liked the first tutorial but didn't feel like making mine out of 6 different fabrics. I used left over scraps from Sammy's Apron.

Pretty cute huh? The tutorials said to fill it with fiberfill but I thought that would be too light. Mine is filled with rice, so it's heavy and sturdy and won't get knocked off of the table and shoot pins everywhere.

After sewing this little project I felt inspired and started cutting out and sewing quilt squares out of the Anna Maria Horner Voile I bought back in (gulp) August.

Now, thanks to a little pincushion I am back in the sewing saddle and boy does it feel great. Off to cut some more squares!

Lauren

Wordle

2011-01-05T20:11:00.000-05:00

Have you heard of Wordle? The librarian at school told me about it and I've been playing with it on Charlie's computer. (Didn't I just say I would stop wasting time?) Anywho, Wordle works by taking any piece of text and making the words used more frequently bigger. I made two for work and this one is made by linking my blog into the program. I guess I said "just" and "year" a lot in my recent post.

Here's another. I made it out of one of my favorite poems. Do you know what it is?

Pretty cool huh? Okay, now I am going to stop wasting time.

Lauren

New Years Resolutions

2011-01-04T19:17:00.003-05:00

I've been going back and forth on whether or not I want to post my resolution for the new year, as well as whether or not I should make them in the first place. I tend to make goals like "lose 15 pounds". When you've weight the same amount since Senior year of high school that's a pretty tricky goal to attain. However, I have decided to not make any weight loss goals this year, I have also noticed how if I write something for all to read I feel more accountable for it. So, here goes: my resolutions.

1. Be nicer- To this most people have responded "but you're nice already." Yes, to you I am nice, but to Charlie I am sometimes downright mean. This makes me sad to say, but it's true. I tend to hold things inside until I get home and then, for lack of a better word, explode, usually in front of Charlie. I suspect this is because I am comfortable with him and can't seem to keep my inner jerk contained when I am upset about something. In testing this resolution out for the last 4 days I have been quite surprised with how much better I feel and also with how easy it is to just keep my mouth shut if I don't have anything good to say. So my biggest goal in 2011 is to be nice to myself and to Charlie. It is after all the year we're getting married so I figured I should start off 2011 and our marriage on the right foot.
....in regards to the wedding...

2. To not act like Veruca Salt prior to or during the wedding. Once someone told me I acted like her and I was moderately horrified and always wondered if he was joking. I hope to keep my cool and not turn into a Bridezilla or a spoiled rotten 9-year-old on July 16th.

Although, it would be really fun to quote her in some cases, "I want a ball, I want a party, Pink macaroons and a million balloons and performing baboons and ...Give it to me Now!" Sorry, I couldn't resist, but I will come wedding time.

3. Sew more clothes for myself- I have yards upon yards of fabric stashed in corners of my apartment waiting for me to make them into articles of clothing. I should just do it already. Here is a short list of items I want to make (so I will stick to my guns):

Pheasant top- blue flower print.
Wool skirt- yet to be purchased wool fabric
Summer dress- green jersey fabric purchased at MOOD last January (see what I mean!!)
Sweatshirt- purple jersey I found for $1.50 a yard!
Summer skirt- blue patterned jersey print (also from MOOD, I have a problem)

4. Waste less time- I seem to waste a lot of time doing practically nothing. Most of the time I swear I am in some soft of daze. For example, today I got home from running at 4:30 and then all of a sudden I was still in my running clothes sitting on the floor staring at the computer and it was 5:30. Geeze! What was I doing for that hour? I have no idea! That should ~~stop~~ (ahem) be minimized.

5. Make friends- I've been living here for 5 months and I have no friends. Sad but true. I keep making excuses like; "no one my age lives in this town"or "no one who is my age in this town has the same goals or interests as me." In reality I just don't know where to look for friends. I've been in school for the last 18 years of my life. For about 12 of those years I was with people I had known my whole life. In college I made friends with people on the team with me, we shared the same sport. In graduate school I shared the same passion and goals with all of my friends. Here it's just harder. I work part time at two schools, which doesn't seem like enough face time to get to know people. Heck, it's January and I still don't know everyone's names! Also, as I have mentioned, the people I work with are older. I can't tell you how many times people have said; "My granddaughter is your age!" Part of me wants to say; "That's nice, does she want to be my friend?" I am not exactly sure where to look for friends around here but I am determined to find at least one.

Those are my resolutions, what are yours?

Lauren

Happy New Year

2010-12-31T16:00:00.008-05:00

Wow! It's already 2011!??! Last year I did a little photo round up of all of the fun and exciting things I had done the year before so I decided to do another one this year. I tried to put them in order but then I got frustrated and just winged it without caring about the chronological order. Here goes:

1. Visiting Zeke and Shannon in South Carolina. Loads of fun. Wish they still lived down the street.
2. Sammy and Keith's wedding.
3. Passing Comprehensive Exams. Yahooo!
4. Getting Engaged! Double Yahoo.

5. Moving and exploring our new area.
6. Graduating!
7. My Dad and Mary Lou's wedding.
8. Christmas Party 2010.

9. Going to MOOD in NYC.
10. Spending time with good friends.
11. Going to New York City (again, these trips were more spread out than the pictures lead you to believe.)
12. Running my first marathon. ( Did I just say "first" yikes, I must be crazy.)

It's pretty surreal to realize how much has happened and changed in just one year. I hope 2011 brings just as many good memories and fun times as 2010.

Happy New Year everyone!

Lauren

Happy Holidays!

2010-12-21T17:21:00.000-05:00

Hello! Just popping in to tell you all that I am almost done with all of my holiday projects. Only hand sewing left to do, and a bit of last minute painting....why I do this to myself I shall never know. Having a sewing blog is very hard around the holidays. I have been sewing and creating like crazy but cannot share any of it with you. You'll just have to wait until the New Year I suppose. Until then, here's a picture of me and Charlie that was included in our holiday card this year (more on that later.)

Merry Christmas!

Lauren

Holiday Traditions

2010-12-11T09:02:00.001-05:00

Last year I posted about how Charlie and I discussed traditions we wanted to carry on from our families or start when we were "older". I guess that a year later we are "older" and the traditions have begun.

Searching for the perfect tree in the freezing cold; saw in hand.

White lights in the windows.

Advent calendar to count down the days.

Searching for locally crafted ornaments.

As well as a few homemade ones.

And the cookie cutter ornaments.

Big retro light bulbs on the perfect tree.

Now all we needs is a tree skirt. Maybe next year. Oh, and a roaring fire would be nice too, but I think that will have to wait until we move into our 1000 square foot home.

What traditions have you carried on or started this year? Whatever they are I hope you're enjoying them.

Lauren

p.s. I downloaded this cool program to make my pictures look like this. Try it out!

Felt Ornaments

2010-12-06T16:25:00.004-05:00

Last Christmas I asked my Mum to get me a kit (or 2) to make felt ornaments. I had found the kits with instructions, felt, and all of the other supplies included at Posie Gets Cozy. My Mum did indeed buy me the two kits and I made one kit while I was still in Maine for the holidays last year. I posted two of the three here. This weekend we got our tree and pulled out the box with decorations in it and I realized that I still had a whole other kit to make three ornaments. After setting up the tree I got to work making this kit. I watched "Little Women" and "Gone with the Wind" while making these. Does that give you an idea of how long they took? And I only got two of the three done!

Super adorable ice skate. The kit gave yarn to make the pom pom but I ran out of steam on Sunday night and didn't make it. I'll get to it someday, until then I think the state looks pretty darling without the pom pom.

Little gingerbreak girl. She reminds me of the woman from "The Sound of Music" who keeps bowing after the concert so the von Traps can escape the Nazi's, but all that aside I think she's awful cute too.

Lastly, here is the house from the other kit that I did not show last year. This one is Charlie's favorite, I think because he would like to live in a house like this one someday. I guess I wouldn't mind that, after all it is quite a charming little house. Definitely under 1000 square feet.

Hopefully the last felted ornament will be finished soon. I just need to think of another long movie to watch while making it, and perhaps one that won't make me cry; it's harder to sew with teary eyes!

Merry Merry!

Lauren

Sew N' Tell - Pot Holders

2010-12-03T15:29:00.006-05:00

December is a hard time to have a sewing blog, mostly because (almost) everyone I am making presents for reads this blog. I did manage to make a few gifts for non-blog readers though. Pot holders! I forgot to add a little tab to this one. Oops.
The person getting this pot holder will also get a snazzy trivet:
After experimenting with that quilted pot holder I made two more.
I think my brain was not working because I did the binding on all three at the same time and I smacked myself for not adding a tab to the first one, then did the binding on the second one and forgot again! Luckily, I remembered by the third one. My one other mistake was that I wanted both side of the hand pot holder to be the white Christmas pattern but I accidentally cut the pieces out wrong so now the back looks like this:
Oh well. I think it looks good anyways and hopefully the person receiving them will not care.

My post is super late to the Sew N Tell, but there are some really cool things posted, be sure to check them out.

The Mrs. Kenney Milkweed Pod Santa Claus Ornament Tutorial

2010-11-22T18:19:00.004-05:00

This is my Mrs. Kenney Milkweed Pod Santa Claus Ornament Tutorial. It is named after my 5th grade teacher, Mrs. Kenney, who showed me how to make them.

What you need:

paint
paint brushes
Snow Tech, or other snow like paint.
milkweed pods (don't say I didn't warn you)
a surface to paint on
decorative ribbon
hot glue gun

I usually just pick a whole bunch of milkweed pods and then sort through the good and bad ones once I get home. Good pods for this project are skinny(ish) and still have a rounded appearance. Bad choice pods are flattened, or curved in a funny way.

Steps:
1. Clean out all the fluff from the inside of the pods and clip off the stem.
2. Paint the inside gold, this is optional, I just think it looks nicer.
3. Paint the top part of the pod red like a hat.
4. Paint a cream/skin colored circle (ish) shape under the red, this makes the face.
5. Paint the rest of the pod white. It might take more than one coat.
6. Now the fun part, use your Snow Tech paint and make a band across the bottom of the hat and top of the face, a pompom at the very top of the hat, and a beard and mustache on the face, and two eyebrows. The eyebrows are hard to do but they really make the Santa look more complete, trust me. It's okay if the eyebrows look like Andy Rooney. It is a little tricky to "paint" with this consistency, I used a palette knife, a snazzy oil painting tool, but I am sure the opposite end of a paint brush or even a toothpick would work just fine.
7. Now with some pinkish paint make a mouth, (also optional, some of mine have mouths, some don't), rosy cheeks, and a red button nose.
8. With the tiniest brush you have, or a toothpick, make two black dots for eyes, let dry, then make two even tinier white dots inside the black dots. This part really makes the Santa's come alive.
9. Cut a piece of ribbon or decorative thread, loop and tie, then hot glue to the inside of the milkweed pod at the very top.
10. Hang on your tree and enjoy! Or wrap them up as gifts for your friends and family.
Happy crafting!

Lauren

Christmas Card Conundrum

2010-11-20T19:27:00.002-05:00

I have a problem. I started making Christmas card to send to my friends and family back when I was a sophomore in High School. Seems like a nice idea huh? Not so much. It seems that after making my first holiday card I built a name for myself and became the "girl who makes her Christmas Cards." Now I feel such pressure to make a new holiday card and sent it out to everyone I know and make it bigger and better than last year, and oh the agony of getting Charlie to take a decent photo to include in the holiday card! Oy! I am getting nauseous just thinking about it.

Then, it struck me, does anyone even care if I make them a holiday card? Would they notice if I sent them a store bought card? So I am asking you dear friends and family, how much do you look forward to getting my holiday card? Would you care if I recycled old ideas because I can't think of any new ones? Would you be offended to get a store bought card? Is this enough questions for one blog post? Please be honest.

Also in case I am overrun with post about how my relatives would throw themselves in front of a moving bus if they did not receive a holiday card made lovingly by me, what oh what should I do? I am fresh out of ideas.

Here is a list of what I have made over the last 8 years!!!

snowflakes
snowmen
mittens and ice skates (cutest one by far, just ask my Grandmother, she's been raving about that one since 2002.)
gingerbread men
Christmas trees
stockings
I can't remember one of the years
reindeer

The reindeer one was last year:
Cute huh? Crap, I think I just reminisced myself into make more holiday cards. Ideas are welcomed!

Lauren

Sew N' Tell - Infinity Scarf

2010-11-19T07:19:00.004-05:00

I've been seeing infinity scarves in stores and online a lot lately. I saw one at J. Crew last weekend that I really liked but couldn't justify buying one for $40! A while back I have bought some faux wool fabric at Joann's for 50% off. I had been planing on making a scarf kind of like this one, where there is a slit and the other side of the scarf can slip though to hold it together. This was my intention yet the fabric ended up sitting either on the floor or draped over my sewing chair for the last 2 months. I finally took that as a sign meaning that I probably didn't want to make a scarf like that one if I hadn't gotten around to it yet. Then last week while my friend Lorelei was visiting I told her what my intention was and then went on a rant about how I didn't exactly want to do the original idea but still wanted to make a scarf and then I remembered seeing the infinity scarves and was struck with an idea, talked it out and finally got excited about the idea. Isn't it funny how just talking to someone about something can help you solve a problem without the other person having to say anything?

I got excited about the project after talking to Lorelei but then I got sidetracked. Figures. Darn you real job! Yesterday after sitting in a 3 hour meeting and getting home after dark, meaning it was too late for me to go running, I decided it was time to make the scarf. It was super easy and only took me about 30 minutes, hand sewing time included.

Next time I think I will make it with less length so it loops closer to my neck and can be more of a warmth scarf than an accessory scarf. Making an infinity scarf was so easy, I think I will make 10 for Christmas presents.....get ready friends.
Have I ever mentioned how much I love casual Fridays at work? The only problem is people always mistake me for a middle school student and ask "where is your hall pass?", then get embarrassed when I turn around and they realize I am a school employee!
Now I am ready for work. Sorry for the cheesy photo booth pictures, I can't find my camera and whenever I use photo booth I can't help but act like a goofball.

Lauren

P.S. This has been added to she Sew N Tell for the week, check it out!

Sew N' Tell - Gathered Clutch Remix.

2010-11-05T08:42:00.000-04:00

I had a bunch of fabric left over from making my Bonsai Bag so I decided to make another gathered clutch like the one I made a few months ago. I remembered that I wanted to add a handle to make it a wristlet.
I also decided to try my hardest to make the zipper look presentable. I think it helped that the zipper was too short, so I had to add fabric to the ends to make it fit. I also only sewed one side at a time to make sure I was doing it right. Typically what happens is I sew everything together then flip it right side out and realize the zipper is wonky and then say to myself; "Meh, you just spent all this time sewing and turning it right side out, why go back and fix the zipper?" But with a little extra caution I think the zipper turned out great
Besides the handle I did make one other change. Instead of making the body of the bag gathered I switched it and made the stripe across the middle of the bag gathered. I didn't think the corduroy would look nice gathered up. I wish I had made the gathered piece a little bit longer so I could have scrunched it more. I'll know for next time.
Happy Friday!

I get the day off from work, but we're going to help Charlie's parents move and unpack at their new house, so I'll be working in another sense. Who knows, we might even get some left over furniture.

Don't forget to check out the other Sew N Tell Finishers.

Lauren!

Bedroom Artwork

2010-11-04T16:19:00.005-04:00

When I took pictures of the bedroom for the tour I get discouraged about the progress. I think I still need to do some work in there. I started by doing some of the laundry piled in the corner, but I am not as happy with everything as I would like to be, alas there will be no bedroom tour today. But I can show you the bedroom artwork thus far.
The first is what I like to call my 30 cent art display. The frames were Lorelei's when she was in Iraq. Her mom sent them to her to spruce up her room. They were blue and green and held pictures of light houses. When Lorelei was getting ready to pack up and come back she sent me these three frames as well as a few others. I think the shipping from Iraq is a little questionable because the box was pretty dented and even wet in a few spots so the frames were dinged and scratched, so I decided to paint them black. The pictures inside are postcards of famous paintings. I got them at Ocean State Job Lots for 10 cents each. All and all, this display cost me 3o cents, and I bought a bunch of post cards so if I get sick of them I can always change them.
They hang on my side of the bed above the nightstand.
Next I have two of my most favorite pieces of artwork, also hanging on my side of the room. (I think that's why I was unhappy with the pictures of the bedroom, Charlie's side lacks personality and pizazz. I'll work on that.) This peacock print was made by my dear friend, Cait. She took a print making class in college and this was one of the prints she made. I love how the colors in the print go with the wall color.
Next to Cait's art is a pastel drawing done by my other dear friend, Beckie. I have had it since college and have displayed it everywhere I have lived since then. In fact it was the only piece of artwork in our bedroom last year, because there was only room on one wall, for one piece of artwork.
In case you can't read it; it says "Live to the point of tears." It makes me happy to wake up and see these pieces of artwork that remind me of my friends. I like how all of the pieces have black frames, it makes everything look like they go together.

I have been eyeing the elephant prints in this etsy shop, especially this one, or maybe this one, or maybe there are too many I like to even decide. Although I would want them to go on my side of the room too. Sorry Charlie, find your own artwork!

Maybe if the sun comes out anytime soon I'll show you the (almost) finished living room.

Lauren!

Ideas Galore!

2010-11-03T20:40:00.003-04:00

In case you aren't already really excited for Christmas, here is something that I am sure will have you wanting to start crafting right away! An online Christmas Idea Magazine. My mind is racing with all of the fantastic ideas. But alas, it is past my bedtime. I'll just have dreams of yo-yo Christmas trees and felted ornaments. Only 51 days until Christmas!

Good night!

Lauren

p.s. Tour of the bedroom coming tomorrow.

Sewing Room Tour

2010-11-02T15:59:00.010-04:00

Welcome to my completely finished creative space!
When we first started looking for apartments in this area one of the requirements was a 2nd bedroom. When the landlord asked us during the tour of this apartment why a couple needed a two bedroom apartment (as he eyed my stomach for signs of a baby) Charlie replied; "She likes to sew and I hate the sound of her sewing machine." To which I replied; "Well, it is held together with electrical tape, what do you expect?" As you can imagine I did not complain when Charlie suggested that we get a 2 bedroom apartment. I did however complain when the apartment we got looked like this:
Have I mentioned before that all of the walls were baby blue and all of the trim was navy blue? Yuck. I did manage to live with the colors for a few weeks, but we knew all along that we'd have to do a lot of work in this room to make it look like we (I) wanted it to.
Luckily Charlie took on the task of painting the trim in this room. After having to endure me complaining non-stop about painting the kitchen cabinets I think he felt it would be less bothersome for him to paint the trim himself than to listen to me complain anymore. After the trim was painted we did the walls. I was unsure of the color at first but now I really like it.

Two weekends ago my Mum came to visit and she said that the color looked a lot like one of the colors my bedroom was when I was younger. We then stared talking about the other similarities between this room and my childhood bedroom. The most obvious is that the "guest bed" is the bed from my old room. My Dad built it for me before I can even remember.
What I love most is that it has storage underneath:
It's almost like my Dad knew I would be a fabric hoarder from an early age. Or maybe he just thought it would be a good idea to have somewhere for me to put my mountains of Polly Pockets and art supplies. Either way the extra storage space is ideal for hiding my fabric, patterns, and scrapbooking supplies.
In one corner is my purse collection, which was displayed for many years in my bedroom. I also re-used the curtains from two of my old bedrooms. The patchwork valance was for my old bedroom at my Dad's house and the white curtains were from my bedroom at my Mum's old house.
The book shelf that holds my sewing books, scrapbooks, sewing notions, and my Harry Potter collection was also from my childhood bedroom. It was painted purple several years ago and although it looks somewhat childish I can't bear to paint it, 1. because I am sick of painting and 2. because I like the color, it reminds me of being little.
Last but not least is my desk, where the magic happens. My Dad built that too. When I was a junior in college I moved off campus and needed a desk to do my school work at. Instead of spending lots of money or searching high and low for a desk at yard sales or stores, I did what I always do: asked my Dad to build me one. We designed and built it together and I have loved it ever since. The chair was found in the garage of the house I moved into and has been painted and recovered several times. I think both the desk and the chair are overdue for an update, but like I said, I am sick of painting right now.
Notice the unfinished project on the chair? Not sure which will get finished first; painting the desk and chair or finishing that tote bag.

Overall, I am very pleased with how the sewing room turned out. I am sure many more projects will come from this room. Maybe tomorrow I will show you the (almost) finished bedroom.

Goodnight!

Lauren

Stats

2010-10-28T22:29:00.003-04:00

I'm on a map kick today. Have you fellow bloggers heard about "stats"? It's a feature on your blog that lets you check who has been reading your blog, and when, and where they live. I am currently obsessed with checking my stats. My favorite is the map that shows where your readers are. The most popular areas are dark green, but other ares are light green, can you see them? America makes up my dark green section, 149 hits this week! I secretly wonder how many are my Mum. But there are a few scattered across the world, and some I have had to look up online because I had no idea where they were, Slovenia being one of them. I seem to get about 3-4 views from Slovenia a week. I just like saying Slovenia, and also saying that people from Slovenia read my blog. It makes me feel really cool. So thanks Slovenian's! You rock. And a shout out to Clare, who keeps my Indonesian count right up there with Slovenia.

Goodnight world!

Lauren

Start Collecting.....

2010-10-28T17:55:00.004-04:00

Milkweed pods. It's just about that time of year. When the milkweed pods start to crack open, release their seeds, and dry out. That means it is time to start collecting them if you want to make ornaments for your Christmas tree with my coming-soon tutorial. I know it's a bit early to be talking about Christmas, but I wanted to make sure everyone gets their milkweed pods before they are past their prime. Here's a map of where milkweed grows:

Woodrow Wilson Foundation.

Sorry if you live outside of the red areas. To my 4 blog readers from Sloveia; first, hello, and second, you guys sure are lucky because I just looked it up and I think there is "Giant Milkweed" in Slovenia. You're ornaments should be awesome!

Stay tuned for my milkweed ornament tutorial!

Lauren

Sew N' Tell - Bonsai Bag

2010-10-21T18:36:00.006-04:00

Last week Rae of Made by Rae sent me a tester copy of her Bonsai Bag pattern to test it out. I had already bought all of the supplies, or had them on hand, so when she sent it to me I literally dropped everything and started working. I got to send her some suggestions for the pattern release. It was pretty cool to have this opportunity and to be able to help out a fellow blogger. I also liked doing this because along with Amy's blog, Rae's was one of the first sewing blogs I started really reading and was one of the reasons I decided to start a blog. And now I have a snazzy Bonsai Bag of my very own thanks to the inspiration and patterns of Rae and the Sew N' Tell gang!
I found the corduroy at Joann's during a sale for about $3 a yard and the fabric for the lining and middle was also on sale. I added piping instead of pom-poms or ric-rack. I have finally figured out how to sew piping onto a garment or purse and make it look good and wanted to show off my new abilities. (Now I just have to tackle those zippers.)

The only change I made from the pattern was to add an inside zippered pocket. I am good at those, thanks to J Caroline steps 12-16, I am now a pro at lined zippered pockets.

I love this purse and would recommend Rae's Bonsai Bag pattern to anyone who wanted a cute medium sized bag to carry all of your daily necessities in style. Or at least that's how I feel when I use mine.

It's my 3rd week in a row on the Sew N' Tell. I am on a roll. Thank goodness I have settled into a routine and work and now have time to sew again! Can't wait to see what the others have to post.

Lauren

Shutter Shelf

2010-10-20T06:53:00.004-04:00

Have you ever seen an idea in a magazine and said; "Oooo! I want to do that!"? Have you ever held onto the idea for 3 years until it finally became a reality? I have. And boy am I glad that I can now use that space in my brain for remembering something else, like how old I am, or my address; two things I seem to always struggle to remember.
Anyways, about 2 years ago I saw a shelf for an entry way made out of two shutters. We never had room in our old apartment for this to anything like that, or anything in general, but when we moved here I knew we would have to make a shutter shelf. I had seen shutters at yard sales a few times but they were all pretty pricey. Then the other day I went out to go to the grocery store but promptly decided to skip getting food when I saw a sign that said "Barn Sale." I'd never been to a barn sale before but it was pretty neat. I bartered with the old man there and bought two dirty shutters for $4.

While Charlie and I were visiting my Dad and Mary Lou last weekend we went to my favorite hardware store and bought the other supplies for about $30 and I put it together while my Dad and Charlie made the bathroom shelf.

Here's a before shot. This is after one spray down with the hose. I told you it was dirty.
I had planned on painting the shutters, but after scrubbing them they looked nice and I liked the color of them. I also realized that painting shutters would really stink and I got lazy so I just sprayed them with some Pledge, screwed in the hardware and called it a day.
I like the black metal touches and the swirlyness of the brackets. I also really like the heart shaped hooks. They are perfect for holding a coat and scarf.

I can't help but smile in the morning when I put my coat on. Other reasons to smile today: our new couches are coming and it's a half day at school. Yippie!

I hope your day is great!

Lauren

Apartment Improvements

2010-10-19T21:35:00.005-04:00

Have I ever told you that my Dad is the best carpenter in the whole world? No? Well he is, but I might be a little biased. We moved into our apartment in August and since then I have felt like the list of things to do/buy/ look for/paint/ improve/ fix has been growing faster than we've been able to check things off. One thing that's been at the top of the list since then was to find something for the bathroom to store all of our stuff. For the last 3 months we've been using a wooden kitchen cart to store everything.
It looked awful, but I figured it would be temporary, until I realized that there was nothing this side of the universe that would fit into this space, hold all of our things, look pretty, match....etc, etc. I was at the end of my rope so I called my Dad and complained; "Nothing in our apartment is done!....blah blah blah more complaining. Luckily my Dad is the worlds greatest carpenter and also very good at telling me calm down. He said he would help us out so Charlie and I measured the space and drew some sketches. Over the weekend we went back to my hometown and Charlie and my Dad had some male bonding time in the basement using power tools and building a bathroom custom organizational system. They put it together while I worked on another project (post coming soon) and offered my highly educated opinions. Then my Dad took a nap and Charlie and my brother had target practice in the backyard while I applied 3 coats of white paint (only in New Hampshire, right?) On Sunday my Dad and I came back here and installed it, and by "we" I mean I help carry it up the stairs and cleaned up the mess.
Once it was installed I painted it another two times to make sure it looked nice and then it was ready to hold all of our junk ( 3 year supply of deodorant and 6 toiletry bags...guess I didn't need that one I just made, should have assessed my current toiletries bag situation prior to making one.) Either way I now have the space to hold all 6 toiletry bags and all of our other stuff. My favorite thing is that I can now display two of my most favorite things ever.
An elephant cup that my very good friend Zeke painted for me several years ago. Elephants are my favorite animal and I love this cup. The best part is on the inside it says "For Lauren love Zeke", whenever I drink from it I see that at the bottom and it reminds me of Zeke and our crazy 19 year friendship. The second thing is my favorite quote in a pretty little frame. It says; "Rivers know this: there is no hurry. We shall all get there someday. ~ Winnie the Pooh." I found this quote back in college when life was just beginning to feel stressful and since then I have held onto it to remind me to relax, and take each day one day at a time. I'll get there someday. I have always thought it fits well in the bathroom, where I get ready for the day and might need a reminder to slow down every now and again. It also seems to fit my current state of apartment incompleteness. I guess I just need to remember to take the improvements one step at a time and know that someday everything will look the way I want it to. But the good news is that now the bathroom is complete thanks to the best carpenter in the world! Thanks Daddy.

Goodnight.

Lauren

Sew N' Tell - Toiletries Pouch

2010-10-15T06:30:00.005-04:00

The other week I was stumbling around the blog-os-phere and I found a new to me blog that I really like, A Lemon Squeezy Home. And in going through some of her post I found a free tutorial to make a make up clutch. The tutorial was a guest post from the Noodlehead blog which is where I found the tutorial for the scrappy clutch I made a few months ago. (Is that enough links for you?) I knew this project was perfect for the vinyl fabric I bought a while back because it was pretty and cool and on sale, not because I knew what to do with it. The tutorial was super easy and quick. Ta Da!
I don't wear very much makeup so I just thought it would be nice to have a toiletries case for weekend trips, and the vinyl makes it easy to clean in case my toothpaste explodes or any other toiletries disaster should occur. I didn't add the scrappy piece to the bag because I didn't have any fabric that really matched. I still think it looks pretty snazzy though. I just really need to work on those zippers, which seems to be a reoccurring problem for me, does anyone know of a tutorial for an; "idiot proof zipper"?
The only other problem is that I temporarily forgot when I was making this toiletries pouch that I am vision impaired and therefore need to bring two types of contact solution, a contact case, and my glasses wherever I go. Now I am all packed to go home for the weekend but the poor Clear Care bottle is too big, he'll just have to rest safely in my duffle bag away from all his other friends.
Be sure to check out all of the other Sew N' Tell finishers this week!

Lauren!

p.s. I was lucky enough to have Rae, of Made By Rae sent me an advance copy of her Bonsai Bag pattern and I have been working away to get it finished. It is turning out great thus far and I am so so excited to show it to everyone and rave about Rae's pattern.

And One More Makes Three

2010-10-13T22:12:00.003-04:00

The third was the most expensive, a whole dollar at a barn sale. I figured I could splurge, since I am collecting them now. Besides, how many of these identical vases can there be in one town?

Lauren

Goodbye Yucky Spiders! Hello Crooked Curtains!

2010-10-08T11:35:00.002-04:00

I have been wanting to make curtains for our kitchen since we moved in. Why you ask? Well we live on the main street in town, so privacy is kind of an issue. But it's a kitchen, do you really need that much privacy for a 2nd floor kitchen? No. Do I cook naked? No. Heck, I don't cook at all. I don't need privacy, but I did need something to block the view of 10,000 spiders.

That might be a bit of an exudation, but seriously the spiders are huge and there are lots of them. Whenever one dies another two take its place! There is a street light right outside the window and several google searches have taught me that where there is light at night, there are bugs, and where there are bugs there are spiders. Bleck!

I needed to do something about it. A few weeks ago I bought some snazzy eyelet cream fabric at Joann's, with a coupon of course, and a few tension rods. Let's just say that work seems to follow me home and training for a marathon kind of takes a lot of time and well I haven't had much time to sew, and it seemed as if I forgot how to sew a straight line. All of the curtains are crooked, some are accidentally sewed inside out. Oops. Just like the cabinets in my newly painted kitchen, please don't look too closely at the curtains in the windows.

They serve their purpose; hide the yucky spiders.
Charlie and I spent almost an hour trying to find the perfect fabric for a valance to match our kitchen, when we finally decided to give up we spotted this fabric on the way out the door. Does that ever happen to you? I like that feeling.
Here's a close up. It's Mary Englelbreit.

Now all we have left to do in the kitchen is hang up some pictures or that clock, or something, we can't decide. At this rate we'll be moving out before the whole apartment is decorated.

This is my first post on the Sew N Tell in a very long time and I am glad to be back.

Happy Friday!

Lauren

14 Thoughts on Running a Marathon

2010-10-04T06:40:00.005-04:00

A marathon is long. 26.2 miles. You might not drive that far in a day! Or a week!
Running a whole marathon when lots of other people are running only a half marathon is quite disheartening. When you get to mile 6.5 and over half of the people in the race with you get to turn around because they are half way done and you realize you're only a quarter of the way done, you might want to burst into tears.
You might feel like you're going to puke. You might even gag a little. In which case it is completely acceptable to talk to yourself (in your head or out loud). If that doesn't work, maybe you should bribe yourself; "Lauren, I'll give you $100 if you don't puke." Trust me, it all seems totally logical at the time.
You fiance might be a way better runner than you and might pass you when he's at mile 15 going downhill and you're at mile 10 going uphill and he looks great and you want to keel over and die.
In the first few miles pacing is completely necessary, around mile 15, not so much. At this point you might even look at your watch and forget .1 second later what your watch said.
Your brain might play tricks on you. "Hey Lauren, didn't you just run past that 18 mile marker sign?"
People who cheer for you are nice, and might not expect you to say things like "What was I thinking?!?"
If you family comes to cheer for you you are the luckiest person ever. If they don't tell you what miles they will be at it will inspire you not to cry at any point because they might be around the next corner.
Nice people might give you a tissue if you ask nicely, or maybe just because you have snot running down your face.
If your aunt used to run marathons and meets you at mile 19 to run with you you are also the luckiest person in the world. She'll most likely fill your water bottles and say nice things like; "You're awesome/ almost there/ doing great!"
There might be someone in front of you who you really want to beat. That person might have the most annoying beeping watch in the word that tells her when to walk and when to run. Due to her mixture of walking and running it may seem like she is taunting you. And you may be motivated enough to run a lot faster than you should to beat her to the finish in the last 1.2 miles. And you may run an 8 minute mile and kick the annoying ladies butt.
Once you cross the finish line there is almost a 100% chance you will cry. No one knows why, it just happens.
Getting a medal put around your neck, a water bottle handed to you, and a tin foil(ish) blanket wrapped around you at the finish line might make you feel like people are waiting on you and you're awesome, but you'll probably still be crying.
You will probably tell anyone who listens that you are never running a marathon ever again. But then a few days later you will probably be searching for long races to run in the spring.

The marathon was great. I still can't believe I did it. It doesn't seem real yet, hence the hypothetical post.

My official time was 4:12:42 and 494th place.

And as I said, I am already searching for more long races to run. I am hooked!

Lauren

Inadvertent Collections

2010-09-23T15:33:00.007-04:00

Once my Grandmother told me, "If you have two of something you can call it a collection." Under those stipulations I have a large collection of shoes, clothes, jewelery, and sewing supplies. I don't have many real collections, but the two that I do have came to me quite accidentally. My first is my collection of beaded purses. I began inadvertently collecting them in middle school.

My first beaded purse was acquired one rainy Saturday afternoon when a friend, Lexi, and I went with her Mom, Cindy, to an antique shop. I spotted the beaded purse in a case and was enthralled. I loved the intricate bead work and the mix of white and cream beads. I knew I had to have it. I am not sure how much the purse cost but I do remember that I didn't have enough money to buy it and Cindy was gracious enough to step in and provide the rest of the money. I love that purse and still use it for special occasions such as my high school prom, and several of the weddings I've been to.
My second and third purses were also given to me by Cindy. She gave me the black one as a Christmas present a few months after she had helped me pay for the first one. I love this one as well, but the long beaded handle is fragile so I do not use it.
The gray sequined was a birthday gift from Cindy. I wish I still had the card that accompanied the purse, but I have long since lost it. Fortunately, I remember most of what it said. Cindy wrote that one of her aunts (I believe) had used the purse for many years and had given it to her a few months prior. She said that her aunt was spunky and fun and she knew that I embodied those characteristics and should have the purse and continue to use it for fun outings. I would like to think that I have lived up to the expectations, the sequined purse has been my companion on many 21st birthday outings, and two bachelorette parties.

The other white purse as well as the tiny white pouch were purchased at another thrift store on an outing with my Mum and the fish pouch was a Christmas gift from my Mum.
In high school I displayed the purses on a wall in my room. Six years later I finally have space in our new apartment to display them once more. I love having them hanging up for all to see. I especially like that they remind me of Cindy, who was a very generous and thoughtful woman.

My second collection just became a collection yesterday. On the way home from work I noticed a sidewalk sale and saw a vase that looked a lot like one I had at home. The first one I bought at my aunt's yard sale back in June for 75 cents. This one was rather dirty so I got it for 25 cents. When I got home I cleaned the second one up and placed it on the shelf next to the first one, low and behold they were exactly the same. This absolutely baffled me until I looked online and found 10 that were also exactly the same. According to my grandmother's saying I now have a collection of milk glass vases. They might be making a special appearance at our wedding next summer. They are mostly for decoration/ accessorizing, since Charlie would probably go into anaphylactic shock if I ever brought flowers into the apartment.
Those are my two collections. What do you collect?

Lauren

Words From My Mum

2010-09-16T20:53:00.005-04:00

After I post anything on my blog I typically check religiously to see if anyone has commented. Last night was no different. Except that when I did check and surprise surprise found not one but two comments I was very happy. But what made me even more happy was reading the special comment that my Mum left. I felt that it was too special to leave hidden in the comments so I am publishing it here:

"To all you folks out there who follow Lauren's blog, I am her mother. If you haven't been following this since the beginning, go back to her first post about acquiring her 1930's sewing machine and you will get a clearer picture of my history. I've not said much in the past but now I shall speak.
It is one of the greatest pleasures of my life to read these posts and see what a wonderful young woman my daughter has become, to me a dream come true and worth every second of hardship, argument(s), rage, and discontent that we have afflicted upon one another at some time along this journey. My Grandmother (the one who gave Lauren her sewing machine) was the most talented craftsperson I ever met and a great role model for me. My grandparents owned a five and dime store, started in the 1930's, in the midst of The Great Depression, until they retired in the early 1970's. One of the many things they sold was fabric. That sewing machine, you know which one I mean, was used to alter many a dress to make my Grandmother's customers happy and confident about what they were wearing. During my junior high and high school years I gained a real interest in sewing and was extremely pleased with the deal my Grandmother offered me. Her offer was as follows.. if you want to make your own clothes the fabric is free, if you don't want to make your own clothes you will have to buy them (cut rate of course). What a motivator plus, if I screwed something up really badly, as I did back then, I could just rip the object in half and forget about it! (I really only did that once and I never told my Grammie). Over the course of time I have made many accomplishments with the/a sewing machine...a three piece suit for Lauren's father, many, many clothes for myself and my children, excellent Halloween costumes, a wedding gown for a friend, a wedding gown for myself, a beautiful dress for Lauren as maid of honor, a prom dress for Lauren like no other and now I am about to make a wedding gown for my lovely daughter. I feel so honored to have been asked to make this dress. It will be beautiful, she will be beautiful, my Grandmother will be smiling down from Heaven and I'll be lying on the ground crying my eyes out but, that's another story so maybe I should start my own blog. I love you Lauren."

Isn't that the sweetest thing you've ever read? My mum and I have certainly,as she mentioned, had some fights and rough patches, but I am very happy that we've managed to come out intact on the other end. I am also so happy to have someone who was patient enough to teach me how to sew and to now have someone knowledgeable to talk to about sewing. I can remember many summer days spent sewing away then anxiously waiting for her to come home from work to help me fix a mistake or show me how to sew a zipper or button hole. Some of my fondest memories of my Mum involve me sitting in the sewing room watching her sew and talking. I am just glad that I make her proud and I hope she knows that I am grateful for all that she has done for me and all that she has taught me, and also that I love her.

Lastly, I have finished one of the two additions to Charlie's quilt. The engagement date is proving to be trickier than I had expected.

Have a great weekend!

Lauren