Check one off the list.

Save the Dates = DONE. And I'm pleased with my work.

The back is a post card so that I can write to everyone I send one to. Not sure that I saw a comic-book-type drawing as my save the date, but I like it. It grooves with my desire to be myself with my wedding prep. Now I just need to figure out where to get them printed....

Slowly But Surely...

I'm coming out of my hole. (: Just a few more random things to share. After posting my "wish list" last time, I realized that I am kinda artsy - my dad was an illustrator for a long time and owned his own advertising company, and that rubbed off quite a bit. So I decided that I should try my hand at illustrating my own save the dates and invites. Other than the trees, it turned out pretty well. Here's the first draft:


One thing no other illustrator can do is write in my own hand writing. I like it. It's quirky and me. And it is especially fitting to have my own handwriting on these babies because I am a hand-written thank you note queen. I love hand written notes. So my thought is, why would I send a hand written thank you note to someone for having me over for dinner, but have a machine or a stranger write a note to those I love inviting them to the biggest day of my adult life?? Hmmm.... Added bonus: the writing on the invite will actually match the writing on the envelope. And I don't have to pay anyone. (:

The only thing I'm stuck on is how to put an organic element into the illustration. We are not having a very "urban" wedding, except that it is in a major city. We are having as much of a garden wedding as you can have outside of actually being in a garden. The trees say "Lincoln Park!" to me, but I don't know if they read that way. I think it reads as being a bit disjointed. In any case... the treas as they look there are OUT.

Also, I made this hat ages ago (December, I think?) and it needs to be shared because it is a winner.

Pattern: Ariosa Pom-Pom Hat
Designer: Hanna Fettig
Source: HERE! Free! WOO!
Fiber: Malabrigo Worsted in Stone Blue
Needles: Size 10

I wonder why I always look so mad in these photos...

The pattern called for bulky but this worked just fine. It was much floppier and much less pinky looking before I washed it. On cold and everything! And I didn't dry it! But it shrunk and absorbed some nice pink color (the camera didn't pick it up, I guess) and the braiding looks weird now, but whatever. I wear it all the time and I don't care.

Last but not least, my latest quilting catastrophe. I wanted to make this awesome quilt from Twin Fibers. She even posted a tutorial - how nice! Turns out, even with the aid of a grid square thingy, I am totally incapable of drawing straight lines. So, my project went from easy to unbelievably time consuming. 3 inch squares. Nuff said? Here's what I could get done so far:

17 different fabrics. Love everyone of them.

I'm making the quilt for Riley's 3rd birthday, which is next weekend. She is getting a big girl bed and I think she needs a big girl quilt. I hope she falls in love with it. If she doesn't I'm going to steal it back and hoard it for a future pink-lover.

Okay, back to legal misery. Hope you all had a good V-day.

I have more to say than this.

But I don't have time. In fact, this moment is precisely the wrong time to try an "come up for air" from the depths of the non-blogging underworld in which I have been living for the past... gasp... four months? Really. Wow.

In any case, I'm making my first quilt in months this weekend (Thursday marks the day that it is acceptable for me to come out of hiding for the time being) and I wanted to show off some of the incredible fabric I got from Hawthorne Threads for this very special "I'm getting a big girl bed" quilt. Yeah, it's a cell phone image.... that I took when the fabric arrived at school. So...



Wedding planning is full steam ahead. I wont talk much about it... I don't think. There are certain things that I really really want that we really really (probably) can't afford. Even though I'm D-I-Myselfing a ton - my dress and bridesmaid dresses with the help of my very elegant and talented friend Taylor; the centerpieces; my make up; my nails; my shoes (yeah, I'm going to make a pair from payless look like Louboutins, and I don't just mean make them have a red sole); the save the dates; the table numbers; the escort card box; the huppah - we are still having a hard time making our budget stretch to pay for the rehersal dinner, wedding, and honeymoon. So here are the things I would have if I could have anything (materialistic and wedding related):

1. Betsy Dunlap Calligraphy.



2. Rifle Paper Co. invitations



3. The ability to letter, paint, and illustrate as shown above.

4. To find a place to have the rehearsal dinner that we can afford and that wont burn down.

5. A wedding planner (if this was a longer list, this would be cross referenced with "sanity").

Alright, back in my hole. Hopefully I'll have something crafty to show you for next time. And hopefully that will be before June.

Baby Love

So, a few months back I posted the beginning of the GLA quilt. I started out thinking that I would do a re-run quilt and make the hand embroidered quilt from Last Minute Quilted. Remember this one?

I had some great fabrics picked out from Purl Soho...

.....that I ended up not loving together.

So I decided to forgo the new fabric for the awesome pink pansy fabric that I used for the first hand-quilted baby quilt. That plan came to a screeching halt when I heard from Fiancee's friend (who is having the baby) that they aren't really into pink. So that meant no Alexander Henry bright pink pansy print.

And thank goodness... because otherwise I wouldn't have gone into my favorite city quilting store - Quiltology - and I would not have seen an urban Amish quilt hanging on the wall... and I would not have fallen in love, all over again, with Amy Butler.... and I wouldn't have made my new favorite quilt:

So I LOVE. LOVE. LOVE. this quilt. Everything about it. The colors. The rounded corners (I had never done that before... I did it using a rotary cutter and a tupperwear lid. Not suggested.). The fact that I wrote "welcome" in stitches at the bottom corner and it is possible that no one will ever see it. The fact that after all these quilts, I still can't seem to cut my corners at 90 degrees, so this quilt is much smaller than it started. I can just imagine a new little baby hanging out in the middle of this blanket. Loving life. Drooling. Looking cute next to the awesome Amy Butler prints. (:

The baby swag does not stop with a quilt, of course. I say "of course" because, as a former buyer for a swanky children's clothing store, I take pride in finding awesome baby gifts. Lookie:

The Bummas are soooo smart. I guess the hospital sends the baby home with disposable, non-chemical wipes that the parents are supposed to use for a few weeks. I guess new booties are too sensitive for normal wipes. So these are cute, eco-friendly alternatives to what the doctor sends home. I think this is an especially appropriate gift, since the father of the baby-to-be is a gastroenterologist (I guessed on that spelling...).

The onesie? It's just flipping cute. Go to www.lovesweetpeas.com to order it. My former boss will appreciate your business. Also from Sweetpeas, my favorite non-handmade part of this gift. I forgot to take a photo, so the stock photo will have to do...

Gorgeous, no? If I had a bajillion dollars, I would outfit my future children's rooms in Serena and Lily, exclusively. Beautiful products for moms and babes. They also have a really great book out about decorating your nursery. Check it. I admit, this is a lot of baby swag. Even for me. But, in my defense, the mother-to-be is Fiancee's best girl friend from his childhood. And this is her first child. And that is a big deal.

Alright. Time to sleep. I get to go see my niece this weekend and I need to build up a reserve of resting hours. For some reason, as a 16 month old, she doesn't understand the importance of her aunt getting a full 8 hours! The nerve! (: I also get to go to my sister's classroom (she teaches 2nd grade) for their Halloween party. I think I am going to dress up as my sister. I think they'd get a kick out of it. That, and I have no idea what is relevant to a 7 year old, so I think it is the only costume they will understand. Any other suggestions are more than welcome. Happy weekend!

Knitting Explosion.

Something has gotten into me. I keep starting and finishing projects. Highly peculiar. Wanna see?

Pattern: Whirligig Shrug
Designer: Stephanie Japel
Source: Interweave Knits Weekend Knits, Fall 2009
Fiber: Berroco Ultra Alpaca Light in Light Winter White
Amount: Barely over a skein
Size 12-18 months

This sweater took me just over 2 days of intermittent knitting. So little time for something so stinking cute. Obviously this is not for my kid, because I have none, but I would definitely slip this on over a plain onesie all the time - the sleeves are short enough that they wont get in food, because it is a shrug, the drool doesn't actually touch the sweater, and it is so easy to put on and take off. Love it. The only thing I would change about it is I would do it in a washable fiber to take all the fuss out. I have some left over Cashmerino, which is washable, and I think I'll be using it to make another for a new baby.

The pattern is very well written with no mistakes that I noticed. I really love the designers adult patterns, too. Check them out on Ravelry. The model is Jayden, who is turning 1 year old on Monday. Time. Freaking. Flies.

Pattern: Habitat
Designer: Jared Flood/Brooklyn Tweed
Source: Brooklyn Tweed
Fiber: Beverslide Dry Goods, McTaggert Tweed
Amount: Less than a skien
Size: Medium

So, this is the 4th (I think) Habitat that I have made. Every one is just a little smaller than it needs to be, as they don't cover the ears all the way. So I made this one with a chunkier weight... but then I got scarred that Fiancee would be drowning in it, so I just did the medium. Boo. It is, once again, too short. But I still love the pattern. Still love the fiber. I'm not too mad.

Pattern: Angora Baby Booties
Designer: Joelle Hoverson
Source: Last Minute Knitted Gifts
Fiber: Diamond Angorissima... or something like that.
Amount: Half a skien

I've also made these on multiple occasions for different babies. They are so fast, so easy, and so extremely cute. They took me 1 episode of Mad Men and 1 episode of The Biggest Loser.... so 3 hours. Well, off to pull my sources - 2 weeks until publication! WOOOOT!

Would ya look at that....

I actually finished (FINALLY) my hoodie! I even have proof! Look:

Don't judge, but... this is the first non-accessory I've knit that I could not wait to wear. I did a load of laundry last night just so I had a shirt to wear under it today. And I hate laundry. Particularly laundry on a Friday night. This is a GREAT fall piece.

There is this phenomenon that occurs in the city that I don't think happens in places where people drive. It's called Winter Sweat. Winter sweat happens when a person is walking dreadfully fast toward their mode of public transportation during the cold months. You walk so dreadfully fast (because if you aren't in a hurry to be somewhere, why leave your house in the midst of cold weather?!) that you don't realize your body temperature starts to go up. Then, once you reach the train platform/bus stop/taxi, and you stop moving, you become keenly aware of just what a work out your walk was. The indicator is generally a bead of sweat dripping down your back in a slow, agonizing fashion. Why am I sharing this truly useful information with you? Because sleeveless sweaters help keep the Winter Sweat Keeps my warm, but not so warm that when I get to where I'm going, I'm reaching back in my memory, hoping to find an image of myself putting on deodorant. (: An overshare, sure, but I just want to make clear how much I loooooooove this sweater. On with the show.

Pattern: Heather Hoodie Vest
Source: Interweave Knits, Fall 2009
Designer: Debbie O'Neill
Fiber: Beaverslide Dry Goods McTagger Tweed
How much: Eh, a little over 4 Skeins.
Size: Small
Mods: I made this thing two inches longer.

This is the only photo of me looking taller than someone else.
Detail shot. Of the sweater. Not the ring. Can you tell fiancee took this photo?

So the pattern was super easy. I mean idiot proof. I don't know what else to say about it, because it is that awesome. I think that is all I have for now. Back to doing homework!

Slight distraction

I promised a hoodie vest. But.... Something distracted me...

We got engaged this weekend! I go back to law school Monday, so I am trying to get as much in place as I possibly can in the next few days. Forgive me?