Change of plans

Last evening was a very, very lazy one.

Alex had class and then homework, so I suppose it was just me and the cats being lazy. And the whole time, I was thinking of all the stuff I needed to work on – like the pillow for The Boutique and something for my 100th post giveaway — but I really didn’t have it in me to do anything. And I figured I could do it all tonight.

There’s nothing like your oldest and dearest friend giving birth to click you into high gear and change your plans!

My friend K — who I’ve been friends with since we met on the bus in sixth grade – had her first child today. A little boy named Greyson. I’m thrilled and happy and so, so, so excited for her and her husband. She’s going to be an amazing mom. And I have a bunch of stuff that I need to make and send to her up in Pennsylvania to welcome their new little man into the world. So that’s what I’ll be doing tonight.

Now, it’s not like I haven’t had seven months to plan for this. And, well, I’ve planned for this. Lots of great plans up here in my little ol’ head. I’ve just been a horrible procrastinator when it came to actually putting my plans into action.

But not tonight. Tonight is devoted to K and Greyson. Like I said, there’s nothing like the actual birthing process to get a gal movin’.

Congratulations to K and D on the newest member of their happy little family!

Invigorating

Bettyninja left a comment on my blog a few days ago that put into words something I’ve been thinking for a while now. She said that she loves how creative our blogging craft world is, and that everyone has such different talents and interests.

One of the things I’ve grown to love the most about blogging is that I get to be a part of this amazing community of incredibly talented and artistic people.

Although people in my “real” life support and appreciate what I do, they don’t have a deep understanding of it. My sister might really like the pillow I made for her birthday, but she probably doesn’t fully understand the amount of work and consideration and emotion that goes into it. And that even though it’s hard work, it’s also invigorating and fulfilling and fun. So much fun. Surely you know what I’m talking about!

I love getting comments from fellow bloggers, and then reading their blogs and seeing all the clever things they’ve been up to. Sometimes I’m inspired. Often I’m in awe of what others are capable of. And I always enjoy seeing everyone’s photographs.

Alex and I found the lime green plate in the above photo on sale for $2 (!!!) at Urban Outfitters and thought it would be perfect for candles. When you have two cats in a small apartment, it doesn’t hurt to light a few vanilla-scented candles occasionally. The green and white tray is a gem we found in the sales bin at Anthropologie a few months ago. I don’t think I’ve ever purchased anything full price at Anthropologie. Their stuff is amazing but very, very expensive.

Here’s a peek at something I’ve started for The Boutique.

Yes, it’s an antelope pillow. I hope to finish and post it in The Boutique this week. I also have several new ideas bouncing around in my head, so we’ll have to see what happens there.

Antelopes, beads and gifts from across the pond

What a fun, full weekend.

Friday, we celebrated my sister’s birthday. We grilled turkey burgers and I gave her the antelope pillow I made for her.

She had said she wanted a pillow “with something random on it, like an antelope,” so that’s exactly what I did. The pillow is an interesting fusion of our two styles.

Saturday was Gasparilla. We walked to the channel at the end of my street and started the day watching hundreds of people in boats throwing thousands of beads to the crowd on shore, followed up by the main attraction – an enormous boat filled with hundreds of pirates (they even hung from the masts) that eventually pulled up to the shore so that the pirates could “invade” Tampa.

We then walked about a mile to the Gasparilla parade, which consisted of pirate-themed floats, thousands of drunk people lining the streets, and beads, beads and more beads.

And did I mention there were beads?

The night ended with a large group of us back at my place playing beer pong. This was my first Gasparilla experience, and I must say, it was FUN. Catching the beads became almost like a game after awhile. And it was a perfect people-watching day. But the day was long, and even though it was a lot of fun, I’m glad it only happens once a year.

Amidst all this craziness, I managed to check the mail somewhere between the invasion and the parade and could not have been more excited to find this.

Months ago, Jox at The Knitted Blog and I agreed to do a swap — I sent her a set of handmade coasters, and she sent me a beautiful hand-felted leaf brooch. However, when I received her envelope, it was empty. She had obviously mailed it to me, but somewhere between England and Florida, it had fallen out of the envelope.

So imagine my surprise when another one showed up in my mailbox yesterday with a lovely note from Jox saying that she hoped this one made it to me. I’m not sure that the photograph even does it justice — it’s truly a stunning brooch. Jox, thank you so much for sending this to me! I feel very lucky.  

PS — Coming up on my 100th post and starting to think about doing a giveaway. Any suggestions or requests?

Perspective

My fabric stash has been taking over my cutting table. I’ve kept most of my fabric in piles along the back of the table, and it’s been driving me insane. So today, I purchased a storage unit with six cubes to fit perfectly underneath the table, thinking “Oh, six cubes will never be enough to hold my many, many flowing yards of fabric. But at least it’s a start.”

Not only did the shelves provide plenty of storage for my (measly) fabric “collection” (ha!), but there was one. Whole. Entire. Cube left over for a box. Funny how when it’s all folded nicely and placed into proper little storage cubes, it suddenly doesn’t look like a very impressive stash.

And I think we all know what that means. (Trip to the fabric store on my lunch break?)

I’ve visited blogs where ladies have shared photos of their fabric collections, and some of them are just breath-taking. Fabric is so beautiful, and I find it especially pleasing when it’s organized by color. I just want to dive in and live among the rows and rows of bold prints and soft calicos, where it’s okay to mix red with pink, stripes with plaids, bright green apples with vintage Chinese lanterns.

Working by the light of the owl

Finally picked out a shade to go with the awesome lamp my sister got me for Christmas. It sits next to my cutting table and sheds the perfect amount of light onto my work space, where I’ve been working all evening on a project I can’t share just yet.

This weekend is Gasparilla, an annual Tampa event that entails pirates “invading” the city and a Mardi Gras-esque parade complete with beads and lots of really, really drunk people. Luckily, it’s walking distance from our home, so we can check it out without worrying about driving or parking. I moved to Tampa this weekend last year, so I’ve yet to experience the drunken joy that is Gasparilla.