Wednesday, December 7, 2016
Remind me
.... that when I someday publish a crafting book, I should make sure it has a fun, colorful cover:
Tuesday, December 6, 2016
Book Bag: Clothes, Crafts, and CRAZY cool!
The Curated Closet: A Simple System for Discovering Your Personal Style and Building Your Dream Wardrobe
by Anuschka Rees
265 pages
Normally, this kind of book isn't my thing. I'm just not that into clothes. But I liked this book because:
A) it was about breaking away from the endless consumerism of buying cheap, disposable clothes and following fads and
B) it took into account the fact that there are many, many different styles and personality types when it comes to clothing and
C) it had exercises to help put the theories in to practice. (For example, take a photo of what you are wearing every day for two weeks and then analyze what you are wearing a lot and what you look good in. How does how you want to look match up with how you actually look?)
I thought the book was very sensible, and I am going to recommend it to Arwen when she gets a little older.
Materially Crafted: A DIY Primer for the Design-Obsessed
by Victoria Hudgins (Creator of the blog A Subtle Revelry)
175 pages
I will let the author telling you what the book is about in her own words.
It always begins the same: We see a pretty photo, we click the link. We read a post that starts with "melt the wax" and we freeze because we don't really know how to melt wax, what kind of wax to use, or where to buy the wax.
We then search "working with wax" online and, upon article after article of technical jargon that often contradicts itself, and is full of unrelated keywords and obnoxious ads. We get discouraged, downhearted, and quickly put aside the original idea we has to be creative, to make something new and unique with their hands. And we returned to scrolling through the pin boards, seeing great ideas and dreaming about accomplishing them someday.
Victoria covers the basics of these categories:
She also has very simple projects included for each category. There's some stuff I want to try, like the baskets woven from T-shirts and the concrete planters and the plaster of Paris/lace doily bowls.
Each section is not exhaustive – if you know a lot about what wood or fabric already, for example, you will find them pretty simple, but that is okay. It's just enough to get someone started using each material. And the projects are simple enough that you aren't going to get in over your head too much.
That's not the case at all for the next book, though.
Extraordinary Projects for Ordinary People: Do-It-Yourself Ideas from the People Who Actually Do Them
Edited by Noah Weinstein
465 Pages
This book represents the best (or the wackiest) of Intractablesl.com.
Most of these projects I couldn't do because they involved wires and programming something called an Arduino.
But the cool factor is really high!
Yes, the more I read the book the more nervous my husband got! It has inspired me to want to turn our summer family reunion into a family events where we design and build a boat that can break down and fit in the back of a sedan. I'd also like to make the next-and-bolts chocolate using a DIY silicone mold.
It really made me envy those people who have computers/electrical type of technical skills. I need to get me some of those….
by Anuschka Rees
265 pages
Normally, this kind of book isn't my thing. I'm just not that into clothes. But I liked this book because:
A) it was about breaking away from the endless consumerism of buying cheap, disposable clothes and following fads and
B) it took into account the fact that there are many, many different styles and personality types when it comes to clothing and
C) it had exercises to help put the theories in to practice. (For example, take a photo of what you are wearing every day for two weeks and then analyze what you are wearing a lot and what you look good in. How does how you want to look match up with how you actually look?)
I thought the book was very sensible, and I am going to recommend it to Arwen when she gets a little older.
Materially Crafted: A DIY Primer for the Design-Obsessed
by Victoria Hudgins (Creator of the blog A Subtle Revelry)
175 pages
I will let the author telling you what the book is about in her own words.
It always begins the same: We see a pretty photo, we click the link. We read a post that starts with "melt the wax" and we freeze because we don't really know how to melt wax, what kind of wax to use, or where to buy the wax.
We then search "working with wax" online and, upon article after article of technical jargon that often contradicts itself, and is full of unrelated keywords and obnoxious ads. We get discouraged, downhearted, and quickly put aside the original idea we has to be creative, to make something new and unique with their hands. And we returned to scrolling through the pin boards, seeing great ideas and dreaming about accomplishing them someday.
Victoria covers the basics of these categories:
- spray paint
- plaster of Paris
- concrete
- paper
- thread
- wax
- would
- Clay
- glue
- fabric
- metal
She also has very simple projects included for each category. There's some stuff I want to try, like the baskets woven from T-shirts and the concrete planters and the plaster of Paris/lace doily bowls.
Each section is not exhaustive – if you know a lot about what wood or fabric already, for example, you will find them pretty simple, but that is okay. It's just enough to get someone started using each material. And the projects are simple enough that you aren't going to get in over your head too much.
That's not the case at all for the next book, though.
Extraordinary Projects for Ordinary People: Do-It-Yourself Ideas from the People Who Actually Do Them
Edited by Noah Weinstein
465 Pages
This book represents the best (or the wackiest) of Intractablesl.com.
Most of these projects I couldn't do because they involved wires and programming something called an Arduino.
But the cool factor is really high!
- flame-growing jack-o'-lantern
- Star Trek-style bedroom door
- solar-powered ray gun
- amphibious couch-bike
- tree climbing robot
- birdcage dress
- pocket laser engraver
- digital camera Halloween costume – that actually takes pictures
- bike jacket with turn signal
- bacon roses
- vacuum-cleaner bazooka
- solar-powered bicycle
Yes, the more I read the book the more nervous my husband got! It has inspired me to want to turn our summer family reunion into a family events where we design and build a boat that can break down and fit in the back of a sedan. I'd also like to make the next-and-bolts chocolate using a DIY silicone mold.
It really made me envy those people who have computers/electrical type of technical skills. I need to get me some of those….
Saturday, December 3, 2016
Weekly Round-Up
This week I....
... checked out the designs of architecture students for a possible new Telephone Museum. The designs were cool, fun, and inspired.... but many of them were not very practical. And these were juniors. Lots of imagination, though.
... finished watching the last episode of the last season of Downtown Abbey.
...watched the first snowfall... during the time I was supposed to be raking leaves, getting soil from the compost pile for next year's seedlings, and pulling carrots....
... finished writing a novel. It's a romance for my sister Rachel. Hopefully I can get it proofread before Christmas! I'm already thinking about my next two books....
... checked out the designs of architecture students for a possible new Telephone Museum. The designs were cool, fun, and inspired.... but many of them were not very practical. And these were juniors. Lots of imagination, though.
... finished watching the last episode of the last season of Downtown Abbey.
...watched the first snowfall... during the time I was supposed to be raking leaves, getting soil from the compost pile for next year's seedlings, and pulling carrots....
... finished writing a novel. It's a romance for my sister Rachel. Hopefully I can get it proofread before Christmas! I'm already thinking about my next two books....
Friday, December 2, 2016
Thursday, December 1, 2016
As of Today.....
I have been at my new job three months and I still love it!
and the first seed catalog of the year (and the only one we usually use) has arrived:
and the first seed catalog of the year (and the only one we usually use) has arrived:
Monday, November 28, 2016
Now What?
And so we are coming at last to something I have longed for, something I've wanted for many, many years: normal. My husband is ill and my belly-button is still not healed but soon, please God, those things will be behind us and ordinary life will be in front of us. Right now, I don't have to stress about money, or work, or really anything at all. I have less time, but it doesn't really feel that way as often as I thought it would because work stays at work for the most part.
So what shall I do with the free time that I have? What do I do with all this drive, passion, and energy?
Before I used a lot of my free time for money-saving activities and money-earning activities. I did freelance writing, I did crafting, I did penny-pinching. But I don't really need to do those things now. Yes, that sort of thing will help me pay off the house a little bit sooner. But is that little bit worth it? If I did all of those things when would I ever relax?
I'm sure many of the habits of frugality I have contracted will remain. And because I was too sick to go to the craft fair this year, the stuff I made for it also remains. Do I go next year? As I get farther and farther away from that other life that I wanted to escape from so intensely, crafting starts to seem kind of silly. I knew that I could work all afternoon making gift bags and earn five dollars, but I was so eager to do any little thing I could to escape my situation that I didn't really mind much. It will be interesting to see if all of that gradually fades away.
More importantly, I think when we have a big change in our lives is a good time to think about our values and our spiritual goals. So the question I'm asking myself is also: What can I do for other people? How can I get into habits of generosity? What would happen if I used what little free time I have now to make other people's lives brighter? I have that gift – the gift of lighting up a room when I walk into it, of making people feel more cheerful, of making them feel special, of helping them to see their gifts. I suppose most noble thing to do would be to work for the poor and downtrodden, but I'm wondering what I can do for friends and family first.
I guess what I really thinking about is how I can make my new goals match my values.
Sunday, November 27, 2016
Happy New (Liturgical) Year!
Advent is here! The King of Love and Peace is coming! May we prepare our hearts to welcome Him!
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