lostsentiments

...and then, there were three...

2012-02-12T12:00:00.001-08:00

... three C3PO's that is!

Yes it's true! I had 2 orders for them and I figured I was on a roll, why not make yet another for the shop for someone who has yet to discover they want one :).

I nabbed this pattern from a talented etsy artist Lucy Raven - she has a set of 12 patterns you can grab which is cool :) Her success in pattern selling gives me hope for my own pattern selling in the (hopefully in the not too distant) future. Don't get me wrong I love to crochet these lil guys but I realize times will change and I won't always be able to get to my hook and yarn but I still want to be involved in inspiring others to get their craft on! :)

Up next to be hooked is Darth Vader O.o so stay tuned... there should be a triplet set of them as well coming up.

I hope you're all having a wonderful weekend! Thank you for reading!

Let Natures Beauty Inspire You...

2012-02-12T11:48:00.000-08:00

as the winds change and time passes.. fall speaks to us of of the slow decay life brings and spring gives us hope of new beginnings...

...because I had many new favorites beckoning me to put them together in a treasury... and I get caught up in the dreaminess of them sometimes so much so I have to come share them here on the blog. :)

I've been so busy with my star wars orders I haven't had much time to make treasuries or interact. So enjoy! :D

Viking beard is done! :)

2012-02-05T17:00:00.000-08:00

Woo woo! :) This is such a fun set - I put it as soon as I finished it and my sister and I had a good laugh for about 10 minutes. ANYONE can look like a dude just putting this set on :) I didn't manage to get an in focus picture of me but I tried!

I was able to get a picture of the set on a large tan pillow. My husbands going to be tickled pink when he sees them! :)

LOL - this set is a riot! When I tried it on and the yarn covered all of my torso! Good times, good times! I's sure it'll be perfect for the mister though, since he's 6'4" :)

Chewbacca's fur just got furrier!

2012-02-02T20:18:00.000-08:00

The first Ewok and Chewbacca I made was with wool-ease thick & quick super bulky weight yarn...

...only I had people help me make it less chunky. Yes we unraveled the chunkiness first by hand, (which proved to be quite cumbersome as you can imagine)THEN I believe it was the husbands idea to stick the end of the yarn in a drill and hit reverse. I must say it is a brilliant idea! Cut my time in half unraveling the chunky thread! That and my sister and a friend of ours assisted me by holding the drill with the yarn attached at the end of the hall way - I at the other end of the house made sure the two parts were unraveling from each other while my sister would then proceed to make balls from them for me to use :)

Of course this process IS necessary :) How else will you get such brilliant variegated color for an Ewoks skin? :)

So now that I have my Ewoks skin set in place for the next few Ewoks I will make... I grabbed another skein of yarn from JoAnn Fabrics tonight and my sister pointed out a different kind of yarn with brown and gray hues throughout that looked perfect for the future Chewys! :) I present Dark Brown/Angel Hair Yarn.

This is soft and already thin enough to use for future Chewbacca's :) Yay for low maintenance ;) I wanted to share the fun find and a bit of the process of how these lil creatures come about. :) I am really picky when it comes to color and texture. I hope it shows! :) In a good way! ;) Will post a furry Chewy once he's ready for a close up!

The White Room.. Decorated

2012-01-21T17:11:00.000-08:00

It's done! It's been done... for a while. Though I was hoping to post pictures when I gotten a bed frame I liked and had a new home in the house for the trunk but this is reality and its been far too long without sharing, so here are the pics :)

I love how it feels cold, yet cozy... for now I have no vision for the walls and have found in the process of decorating the house that I like mirrors... we have at least one in every room except the sitting room upstairs. I like that mirrors reflect light and open up the room, frames can be ornate as well which add to the decor, mirrors are hard not to love :)

I hope you enjoyed the update! :) Happy decorating everyone! Thank you for reading!

Lovely blues...

2012-01-19T20:41:00.000-08:00

A trip to the grocery store had me taking a detour to Michaels and JoAnn Fabrics tonight.

I have a custom order for The Scholars Collar Scarf and needed to grab more yarn.

I checked Michaels first for the sapphire blue I needed and no dice... I did however spot an amazing teal color that I had to make mine! As I looked at it the color seemed to dance in front of my eyes - its so vibrant!

My thinking is to make some heart bunting with this beautiful color like that of one I have in my shop.

With Real Teal in my hand I scanned the rows one last time at Michael's yarn selection for the blue I needed and saw there was a sale on Sugar n Cream cotton (oh yes! ;)) Of course I have an idea for this blue too! I want to knit up a beautiful open work soap sock...

Onto JoAnn Fabrics - we found our sapphire blue within a few seconds of reaching the yarn area and then I spotted a beautiful pink that I somehow managed to walk away from... I reasoned I have lots of yarn already (if its possible ;))

Here is the beautiful blue we'd been working our way to, discovering other wonderful hues along the way :)

oh ideas, ideas... so little time so many colors...

Done and done!

2012-01-18T19:16:00.001-08:00

The set of star wars furries are done! :)

I present Ewok and Chewbacca for your viewing pleasure! I can't wait to share them both with my friend who asked me to make them - I hope she falls in love with them. :) These are fun lil dudes!

Ewok is available in the etsy store... Chewy is soon to follow but with different fur :)

Chocolate chip cookies and... Chewy?

2012-01-16T19:17:00.000-08:00

Yep! I made some chocolate chip cookies tonight since we all needed a lil something for dessert AND I managed to finish Mr. Chewy!

Here is a quick pic of him... I'll share a more "official" pic once the Ewok is done too.

Onto start the Ewok!

Star Wars Chewbacca!

2012-01-15T19:10:00.001-08:00

Yes, yes - he's almost done! I cannot claim his pattern as my own but Lucy hooked me up :) She is pretty talented!

I got her pattern since a friend of mine requested Chewbacca and an Ewok - so for starters - feast yer eyes!! :)

His pattern also came with a bag which I will rustle up tomorrow and I hope to have an Ewok head put together by the end of tomorrow night as well :) cross your fingers for me! So many projects - and time just flies!

Clarice - New inspiration for lostsentiments

2012-01-14T16:13:00.001-08:00

I recently acquired a lovely 7inch tall made in japan doll. The lady I got her from said she was going through her moms things and was tired of holding onto things out of guilt. I was happy to help her of course - she had originally posted the freecycle email saying this was a bisque doll in need of TLC. Seeing the lil ceramic doll I did not care about what she lacked... her lovely doll face was enough to charm me!

Once I brought her home I started taking pictures of her. Not sure when I'll use her and actually I managed to knock her over causing her to lose he head again - lol oops!

For now - here are a few shots to make her debut - please welcome Clarice... she is so dynamic :)

Fallout 3 Bobblehead Revisited

2012-01-13T17:55:00.000-08:00

Back in 2009 I was asked to make an amigurumi of the Fallout 3 Bobblehead after finishing the bobblehead I showed my husband and he immediately wanted one :) I've had several other projects come up since December 2009 but I hadn't forgotten his request... while I was hoping to his bobblehead done by his birthday in July, July came and went without me starting a stitch on it...

December came and I was determined to have it done for him by Christmas. Between custom orders for the etsy shop I worked on the bobblehead and knew that though he really liked the original work, that I could be more detailed. And I would be more detailed...

I used oval safety eyes instead of circular ones I had on the previous bobblehead and gave great care to the shape of his hair and hands. I was able to bring this guy to life in time for Christmas :) (yay!) and recently snagged the bobble from his desk long enough to take a few pics to share with you! :) I hope you like him!! :)

My little vintage pillow...

2012-01-09T17:58:00.000-08:00

That's right.. it's mine! All mine! Well, until someone buys it ☺. For now I'm holding it nice and safe with the other items wishing for new homes right now that I sell from my shop.

I must tell you though, I got a new camera from the hubs for Christmas and I'm now having fun with the pics that would have otherwise been trashed if it weren't for effects from picnik.com!

Tonight I was going through photos I want to update for the shop and found this one in a file - picnik to the rescue! I'm in love with it! Might there be a market for old vintagesque (<---tee hee, not a word ;))pics? I dare say... yes...

Fun Post it notes for the shop!

2012-01-06T18:09:00.000-08:00

The weekly run to the grocery puts us at Target first for the frozen section goodies (and great prices - seriously ;)), but to get there we have to pass the(dun-dun-dun)dollar section. Every so often I'll rummage through there and find something that makes me think of a girlfriend who would also find the lil dollar bundle adorable so I get it. What can I say, a lil dollar spending makes me happy :)

This past week when we hit up Target we passed the dollar section since it had been revamped after the Christmas holiday. In place of where the wrapping paper used to be there was now a slew of post its, stamps and stamp pads. I found this post it and HAD to have it! Since I couldn't only find the one on the shelf I all the more have coveted this lil number! I look forward to using it when writing thank you's and adding little notes to customers.

Still contemplating the stamp pads that were there... is a dollar too much to for an inch and a half by maybe 3 inch colored stamp pad?? Hmmm...

Gift Guide for your not so average girl...

2011-12-03T09:05:00.000-08:00

a treasury to help you find the perfect gift for her :)

she is cold as ice... but I bet I could melt her so...

2011-11-20T09:54:00.000-08:00

In response to this weeks nonteamtreasury challenge #57 here for your pleasure is a weekend treasury :)

Cinnamon Star Ornaments are done! :)

2011-11-13T16:10:00.001-08:00

It's true! :) I let them cool and then adorned them each with a small jingle bell for added charm :)

Here they are!! :)

Cinnamon Star Ornaments are in the oven!

2011-11-13T09:46:00.000-08:00

It's true :) I'm so excited about them! The cinnamon is a bit intoxicating, I hope my family can get through the 2 hours they need to be in the oven :) I plan to also try another recipe to bake ornaments later today :) but for now, here's a pic of the cinnamon stars before the oven! :) The recipe I used is here should you want to try it :) Thought I admit I added ground orange peel and ground cloves to the mix :)

What are you getting into today?

Day of raking leaves

2011-11-11T18:47:00.000-08:00

My sister and I were out raking up leaves and while the city picks up the leaves we rake, we have to put them in bags and hull them to the curb OR rake them there in one big pile... well we 1st tried a wheel barrel to get the leaves there since it was taking far too long to just rake the leaves to the front yard. The wheel barrel route lasted one trip to the front and then the wheel went flat and it veered to the left... all the way to the front :(. No bueno!

Continuing to rake and racking our brains as to an easier solution I remembered we had some plastic drop clothes that were huge - we could rake the leaves onto that and then take it to the front curb to be sucked up by the city! Viola!

Here's what it looked like from the deck...

...needless to say it cut the time in half! That plastic drop was big and could handle a lot of leaves! :)

Happy fall everybody :)

winds of change...

2011-11-11T17:18:00.000-08:00

..they're coming soon...

a great collection of items for that special someone :)

treasury in response to the nonteamchallenge :) #56!
http://treasurychallengenonteam.blogspot.com/

So cozy at home...

2011-11-07T19:42:00.000-08:00

with the wind whistling outside painting a beautiful picture of leaves frolicking down the road... why not stay inside and enjoy the home... enjoy!

Good times, good finds and good food in NYC! :)

2011-11-06T15:43:00.000-08:00

This past week my mom had rounded up the three of us girls (easier said than done ;0)) and stayed with our cousin Liz (who you might know better as the writer of Sex and the City, and she's the co-author of best seller He's Just Not That Into You) in the Big Apple :)

The trip was a blur we were SO busy!!

The 1st day there my mom had gotten us amazing seats at Dr. Oz' show! While they were moving the set around, Dr. Oz came closer to where we were sitting an my mom went ahead and asked why he doesn't wear a tie! :) He then grabbed the microphone from the guy who gets the crowd pumped up for all the applause's and asked what her name was!!! (squee!!!) Dr. Oz then said "Janel asked why I don't wear a tie" and went on to explain that when viewers normally see someone in a tie at their home its normally a guy who is serving them papers so his look is in between the tie and scrubs. Which was pretty cool and made sense. Dr. Oz was really personable... he had a segment where a girl had made brownies using a can of pumpkin mixed with Duncan Hines mixed topped with a bit of drizzled peanut sauce, well he brought over the platter and shared them with us!!:D In addition to all these fun tidbits, you might see my mom, sisters and I on the 400th show of his :). I'll be sure to post the youtubes of it when I see it :0). Before we made it to Dr. Oz's show we roamed around Rockefeller Center and across the street where we saw Billy Bob Thorton and Matt Lauer for the Today Show. We were literally 12 feet from them!! Crazy fun times! :)

We then galavanted around in the NBC store where someone offered us Jimmy Fallon monologue tickets, so we grabbed food before hand (yummy chicken that I can't remember the name of the restaurant :s) and once we went through all the security, briefing and were there for the monologue it felt like it took not even 10 minutes! Still, we had some laughs and it was really cool to see the set that they use... and that the background of a window with building lights behind it is fake :s. I did not know - ha!

Wow, that was just day one. Maybe I'll share day 2 tomorrow or something this is getting to be a LONG entry! :D

Onto a picture ;) - this is one of the items I scored while visiting! :) Found in a jewelry and second hand store called Jillery. It was so charming I had to share :)

MAMMOTH SIZED COOKIES!!

2011-10-30T15:59:00.000-07:00

Seriously, when making these cookies they call you to scoop 1/4 a cup of dough for EACH ONE. So being the person I am, I followed the directions. ;) And they come out at 4 inches wide. You only need one for a meal lol :)

Here is a look see for you to drool over until you decide to whip up a batch of your own... of COURSE I'll give you the recipe :D. Here it is! Enjoy!

These are a few of my favorite things!

2011-10-30T12:31:00.000-07:00

Though my very favorite person is not listed here ;)

Hope you like them too! :)

A child knows... your secrets...

2011-10-30T11:24:00.000-07:00

but loves you anyway...

Pulled from my favorites... enjoy!

She likes feathers...flowers...trees and lace...

2011-10-30T10:41:00.000-07:00

you might say she's an outdoors kind of girl...
but you'll find she's happiest when she's at home.

one of a few treasuries I'll be listing today... had to share! Enjoy! :)

Viking Hat with Huge Horns is done!

2011-10-29T11:13:00.000-07:00

To do:

- Finish viking hat with uber huge horns - check!

- Figure out how anyone's made a beard before without a pattern - about to find out!

In the meantime I thought I'd share a pic of the completed hat! :)

Hope you are having a wonderful Saturday! Over here in VA we're getting SNOW in OCTOBER. I'm sure stranger things have happened :)

The Viking Hat in progress

2011-10-27T19:21:00.000-07:00

I've been working on some other projects this week alongside the hat and horns :) I've discovered I need to invest some $ in a camera because my phone as a camera, well, sucks :s. So my apologies for the crap photos, I aspire for better!! :) And will get a camera that takes clear decent photos.

Here is the hat and the 1st horn. The horn is not yet finished, it will be slightly curved and attached to the hat but I first want to complete both horns and then curve them at the same time for a better chance of consistency :)

Enjoy!

White Crocheted Snowflakes...OOOoooh... Dreamy!

2011-10-26T12:25:00.000-07:00

I love me some snowflakes! I love how when they fall, being as white as they are, they cast a contrast against the sky... its all so scenic to me!

Oh and the days where it would snow from morning to night growing up... the sky would be a shade of gray... so pretty..☺

Yes, I love me some snowflakes, some winter wonder land and decorating the inside of your home as if you lived in a ginger bread house! I'll take two please ;).

In an effort to let other people decorate their trees and other trimmings in a winterwonderland fashion, keeping in mind the snowfilled winter skies I thought these pictures were fitting to list a few crocheted snowflakes:

Hope they get you in the winter wonderland mood too!

Autumn... You leaf me breathless...

2011-10-16T12:35:00.000-07:00

a Sunday treasury for the fall season :)

enjoy!

Soar...

2011-10-15T01:33:00.001-07:00

Soar...inspiring gift ideas :)

Mainly because I couldn't sleep and needed to do something to pass the time. :) I hope you like it! I think it may be my new favorite!♥

What I'm working on for the Hubs :)

2011-10-14T17:44:00.000-07:00

The Mister has been asking for this awesome knitted viking hat & beard for a few months now... between etsy and ravelry I was able to find a pattern for the hat at Mamachee's etsy shop :).

Here's a pic from one of her listings :) what a cutie! :)

Here is the work I've done so far from her pattern and a shot of the yarn I'm using if you like the color ;)

I must add that I learned a new stitch in the process :) fpdc = front post double crochet ☺ Learning new things makes me so happy!!♥

I've had to add some extra width to the hat pattern only because my mister has quite a huge melon on him. Which is also why I haven't bought the viking hat and mustache set from someone else. I'm happy to do this of course after he said he'll wear it "all the time" :)lol - we'll see.;) But I love watching his face light up when he sees I'm working on it :) I'll keep you posted :D.

The final result will be similar to that of this picture from crochetjandra

only the beard will be a Chestnut heather :) by lions brand wool ease :)

Since my mister is somewhat of a red head, he's got some burgundy going on... so jealous ;) but I'd rather admire it on him though than have it for my hair ;D I love my mister :)

So - whatcha working on these days? :)

Heaven... Don't miss for the world...

2011-10-02T09:46:00.000-07:00

Vinylartstudios inspired this treasury...

...for a lil reflection and reminder, the things of this world will pass away, we're made for more... thank God ;)

Pumpkin, Spice and Everything nice...

2011-09-30T19:44:00.001-07:00

Because so many favorites were begging to be added to a treasury ;) Enjoy!

The birds and the bees and the flowers and the trees

2011-09-25T13:28:00.000-07:00

...and this thing called love.

SO it's the weekend again which means its treasury time :) I've had numerous treasury features this week myself but would rather share those I've made :).

Was out taking pictures with my sister today as well to revamp some listings that have "gathered dust" and need a fresh face for the public. :0) I'll be changing up the pics in the next few days and doing a few new lists. Etsy is so addicting. :)

As for this treasury - enjoy! :)

Gray... but not subdued..

2011-09-18T18:50:00.000-07:00

items definitely not lacking in vitality, intensity or strength :) thank you talented etsians!

So after the upsetting treasury delete yesterday :S I got back up on the horse and made this lovely :)

Currently, as I type, this treasury is at #3 on the hotness scale for treasuries on etsy. This has never before happened to me and I must share! :) Thank you for taking the time to take a peek HERE :)

Shh...

2011-09-17T16:47:00.000-07:00

I woke up this morning before everyone else, luckily the situation proved to be inspiration for the title! :)

Shh...

I will say, after I had the treasury up for half the day, I went to look at who had left comments and somehow hit delete :/ talk about a bummer!! Luckily I had sent the artists who were featured in the treasury each an email so I was able to piece it back together, good as new... less all the lovely comments that were originally there :( but not all was lost ;)

God is so faithful

2011-09-16T21:19:00.000-07:00

We bought our house a little over two years ago, not long after we moved in did we realize it had water problems. So much so that one room has been left untouched with a dehumidifier to hold over the room until we could do something about it. Recently my once a mechanic husband has been swapping services with a friend of his who is a general contractor, which means we got to take a closer look at what water problems the house really has for a very fair price. Initially we thought that a sliding door toward the back of our house put in by a previous owner was the main culprit so we went ahead and purchased a new sliding door.

Upon installing the door our contracting friend found out that the people who "harry-homemade" installing the old sliding door also messed up when putting on not only the roofing causing the water to not run away from the house, but also put on "town home" gutters that are not meant to take the load of water that runs off our single family home... and in addition to finding out we need new roof... the guys peeled back bits of our siding to reveal that there was no Tyvek put down to the plywood before adding the shingles, ergo our entire house not being wrapped in a nice blanket of Tyvek means that the water was rotting our house and this was, well... not okay.

SO yay! New roof, new siding and probably some other new things we are bound to find along the way of this soon to be redid home!

But I saved the best of this story for last. When my husband was helping the contractor remove the old sliding door, they found that the harry homemaker thought it was a good idea to rig the wiring under the door and not put a protective case around said wiring. Had the wire gotten "hot" on its own and touched any metal portion of the door the next person to touch that doors handle or any other metal part of the door, well that would be the last of them. SO not COOL! If anything, let this be a witness to people who try and do things to "improve" their home on their own. BE SAFE about it. The whole house could very well end up in a pile of ashes... so believe me when I say its worth the money to get someone to do it the RIGHT way, the FIRST time. :s

My wonderful husband is out today working on his buddy contractors vehicle again, and tomorrow we'll be going over what changes we are hoping for the house, and what we can budget. But I feel its important to share not only the message of when buying a house do all that is within your power to get a house inspection (we were sure the Broker/Realtor had this done for us, but had they, really, these issues among a few others would have been brought to light and (hopefully) rectified)... but ALSO to point out how God has been so faithful to us and not giving us more than we can handle. The 1st year it was our a/c/heater that went out on us and we had to replace the entire unit - but we were able to do it financially (thank God). I'm just so thankful we hadn't known about these other issues than or I think I might have been ridiculously overwhelmed at all that was needed... baby steps. And I realize, these are not first world problems in the least... we are blessed beyond what we even realize. And having house issues I'd say is better than having a health issue. Thank God, I do. But would also appreciate prayers during this time. So far, I haven't felt over whelmed but see this as an opportunity to change some things about the house that we've wanted to since moving in... creaky flooring, soft spots in theflooring, etc.

Anyone have some housing issue stories to share? Feel free! Would love to be in understanding company ;)

On the hill...

2011-09-11T15:47:00.000-07:00

Today's treasury:

I can scan the horizon... I can reflect... I can wish for winter in the spring of the day... and hope that my dreams will never fade away...

And I wonder... does the moon feel at home?

2011-09-10T21:16:00.000-07:00

Does it feel loved by all the twinkling stars around it, blanketed by the blackness of the sky? ...always on a journey... back to where its been...

Today's treasury started with a few of my favorites that I'd been collecting, excited to share and put to a story of some kind :)... and it ended with a fun science artsy treasury instead! I used Etsy Search to find some new shops and their beautiful pieces :) This photo was my center piece by lovely meluseena...

Enjoy!

Little Girls Precious Granny Square Baby Blanket

2011-09-05T10:18:00.000-07:00

About a year ago now, I was in Iowa visiting for Thanksgiving Holiday. My parents took me and my husband to a thrift store to find some knick knacks for the house and I remember at the time I was looking for a doily for the bedroom. The thrift store had their blankets and larger doilies hung up on hangers and as I went sifting through the rack I stumbled upon this thick soft rectangle blanket. I'm not sure if the creator had further provisions for this piece because it was too wide to be a scarf and not wide enough to be a lap blanket. But the yarn was beautiful and they were selling the item for a mere 50 cents! I realized that the amount of yarn in this item was at least 4 skeins and with the weight of this yarn we were looking at $5.00 per skein. So what would take $20.00 of yarn to make this unloved item was being sold for next to nothing! SOLD! My mom ended up shipping the half a blanket to me a bit ago since we had too much stuff to carry back with us for our flight as it was...once I unraveled the scarf/blanket/thingy and made my 4 balls of yarn, I knew I would make a baby blanket out of it due to the colors but not until my friend from Iowa told me she was expecting did I set to work! I have since purchased the white yarn and a few skeins and changed my mind about what colors I would put together with what.

I also did some hunting for options on how to connect granny squares and found this blog not only helpful but entertaining ;) I love the colors she uses in her creations! I ended up using the effect of "crochet as you go" to connect the squares and I'm pretty pleased with it ;)

Here is the first of two blankets I've created with the yarn from the thrift store.

I love how sweet it looks and I know my friends lil girl will make it all the more precious! :)

I'll share the other blanket once complete! :) I think it will be the boys version but still adorable as ever! :)

Thanks for reading!and yay for thrift stores! :)

Lovely Fall...

2011-09-05T08:15:00.000-07:00

the oranges.. greens... browns... the way the trees start to bow... as their life retreats until the spring...

Okay, last day of the 3 Day weekend and I'm trying to keep the idea of going back to work out of my mind... so, here is my distraction for this morning... please enjoy this treasury... onto another project!

Delicately Refined...

2011-09-03T12:48:00.000-07:00

Newest treasury!

Some of my new favorites mixed with a few of my older favorites. Many of my friends from the Etsy thread "We Love Vintage Do You"

There are many days I miss the solitude and the peacefulness of a walk along a dirt road in the midwest... the adventures had as a kid before there were lots of video games, we were outside much of the time... things seemed simpler then too of course. I can still appreciate the breath of fresh air the scenes of nature bring and the items that remind me of times gone by... delicately refined.

You'll forget the sun in his jealous sky... as we walk in fields of gold...

2011-09-02T15:42:00.000-07:00

My latest treasury...always excited to share! :)

So she took her love... for to gaze awhile...upon the fields of barley

In his arms she fell as her her hair came down... among the fields of gold

~Sting

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

I've had Stings song in my head lately while perusing etsy and seeing the lovely images of fall fields... I remember in high school listening to this song and dreaming about what it might look like, this field of gold and the peace that might be found there... thank God for beautiful music, talented musicians and artists of all kinds, no? Enjoy!

Autumn loves it when I come to her house...

2011-08-27T16:57:00.000-07:00

My latest treasury... always excited to share! :)

we play games, drink tea...we make things, she tells me stories... I am captured by her elegance, enchanted by her colors, her style... how she changes the leaves & romances winter to fruition... once she's gone, I always look forward to seeing her again... I'm so glad Autumn loves it when I come to her house...

DOMO!!!!

2011-05-11T18:58:00.000-07:00

Hello! :) Next on the to do list became an amigurumi Domo! :) My friends son has a birthday coming up and this was a last minute put-him-together-though-you've-never-made-him-before project. I looked at a few pictures of Domo and set to work. I had safety eyes already at my dispose so that was lucky :)- I don't know of any stores that carry them, only those online. I did improvise the pattern and typed it up as I went. There are a few things I want to tweak on it but here is my first amigurumi domo! :) Enjoy!

Bomb-Omb is done! :)

2011-04-30T15:57:00.000-07:00

Feast your eyes! :) I knew I'd be using sparkly fun yarn for the fuse end since it added to what Bomb Omb is! :D I also used a separate gray yarn from the one I used to build up the top of his body because I thought it looked more like a winding fuse :) All in all I'm happy with how he turned out - hope you like him too! :D

Bomb-Omb in the process

2011-04-30T09:24:00.000-07:00

Geeks & Nerds unite! To come up with adorable "real life" (tee hee) replicas of their favorite characters on the gaming screen!

Okay, so it's not a worldwide effort and while no one is really uniting to do this (lol) :D A friend of mine who proudly vouches for being a nerd said I should bring this guy into our reality... and so I am. :D

Here's the progress so far! I'm making up the pattern as I go.

here is what I'm aiming for...

Oh and I should say - my husband is a nerd too - nerds are hot :) lol :D Get yours today!

If you like Goomba - here's one I made too! :D

Must...Break...The Silence!

2011-04-27T09:33:00.000-07:00

As some of you might know, or none of you know, last year at the end of August I started a new job and away went the focus or desire to blog, it's just sucked a lot of my time :s.

Since there are a lot of things regarding the house I want to catch you up on (and hope to in time) I have to share some other, nonhouse things along the way... I'm in blog recovery lol er, something like that O.o.

Alright - so lunch break today I'm perusing the arts& crats section of craigslist and find a listing for Magic Ring Pom-Pon. No, this is not a misspelling, maybe it's just the old school way of writing Pom-Pom. Kind of like how old worlde english favor & color were spelled with U's = colour, favour. you get the idea.

I got curious.. to google I go to find out what the heck you can make with a pom-pon magic ring. After all, the picture were also showing, aside from pom-pons, rugs of all things - I scratched my head.

After a few attempts via web and images I found a blog (yay!) and have to share the link with you to this witty, hilariously funny blogger. I have to figure out how to follow them yet wince I can't simply click "follow" BUT - if you figure it out, lemme know! :D

Without further ado - visit this link for a craft laugh break. Oh so funny... Hahahaha - oh, oh and it's fittingly titled Pompon Therapy. Note the spelling ;)

-----> HandmadeByMother <-----

UPDATE: I figured out how to FOLLOW her blog! :) Squee!! :D

Long overdue finished Hippo

2010-08-14T10:29:00.000-07:00

Meet who I would call Harriet :0) Harriet the Hippo :0)

Full of curiosity and fun! I tweaked a recipe for the pattern I found here: http://bittersweetblog.wordpress.com/2007/03/12/hungry-hungry-hippo/ But, as mentioned only used it as a base and went from there :0) You might notice there was no tail on the one with a pattern, I HAD to add one! :0) It's soo cute! :0) ^_^

A friend of mine whom I made through Freecycle loves Hippos and upon request made this one. It took me a few months though only because I kept putting it off with the housework that needed to be done so I could focus on it.

I only just sent my friend the pictures :0) hope she (and you!) love them! :0)

If you have Ideas I'd love to hear them! All opinions welcome! :D

2010-08-07T10:46:00.000-07:00

... if you are familiar with Etsy AND familiar with Treasuries you *might* be familiar with Curation Nation, its a group of Etsians who have come together to help promote and encourage each other in their business through making treasuries, having monthly meetings via the internet, etc. It sounds like a wonderful opportunity to be part of a team like this and grow with. At any rate, I currently do not fit the requirements to apply for this group but it's good, means I have some goals to set my sights on and I think today is the right time to start :0). What i need to join:

"How to Join: For us to review your application to be considered as a team member your shop must have a minimum of 4 pages of products and you must have a minimum of 6 treasuries created in Treasury East. Your shop must also fill a void in the existing team. Many categories are already full."

Its quite possible my type of shop is not needed but we'll cross that bridge when we get to it - for now, I must list!

SO in lieu of needing to list - I have acquired a bit of furniture pieces that I'm toying with the idea of passing on via the shop - they are repurposed and One Of a Kind hmmm - if any of you fans has an immediate response to the postings today Please let me know. I do value your feedback!

I think I need to post my redecorating final pics on my blog so
people can see what "lostsentiments" style is - a kind of
granny/shabby/vintage chic - and help those who like that style to come to me with their wants for their own home or room... but what would you CALL that? lol :0) granshabvin chic?? is that even ...catchy?? :0) LOL *discuss* ;) Seriously - feedback? thoughts? talk to me :0)

Room Picture Ideas

2010-08-06T05:26:00.001-07:00

I realize, I haven't unveiled any one finished room here on the blog just yet - rest assured this will happen! ^-^ I want to be able to post the "final" product of the rooms but things are a bit disheveled at the moment and not everything has a "place" just now. SO stand by :0).

Meanwhile, I'm kicking around some ideas in my head and loving some pictures of fellow etsians that I may decide to incorporate into the scenery of the house.

I suppose I should preface that a move I am fond of is Fried Green Tomatoes. I love the raw homey feel of the town they are in and how there isn't anything brand spanking new, don't touch or sit on. Instead there is a feeling of every bench, booth or chair being free reign for any town folk or stranger to have a seat in.

Then of course you have another of my favorites - Anne of Green Gables/Avonlea where they use everything they have with a "waste not, want not" mentality. The trails and places Anne discovers are picturesque and the colors of the season they are in paint the scenery. It's so inviting and I love it!

In both movies people don't have a whole lot of access either so while their homes are cozy, they are not over done. The rooms are a haven, a place to go and escape the noise outside - you won't find a cell phone here :0) lol :D.

Right, so with all that in mind I move on to the pictures I'm being drawn to - soothing, dreamy, rich in wonder and possibility. :0) If you please ;).

These artists are in no certain order - only thing I require is you enjoy the pictures and feel free to check out their shops for more! ;)

Katya Horner of Slight Clutter Photography has many, many lovelies in her shop - however my eyes tend to specifically feast on this picture:

Breaking Through

and another just this morning caught my eye (though in truth, they are all eye catching, I'm looking for certain rooms and color schemes though :0)) this one in particular for our bedroom:

Wonderland

and this one possibly for "my" room:

Gratitude

not that your minds eye is fixed on these images allow me to share that Slighclutter is currently having a sale - here are the details as you will find them on their shop announcement...

CURRENT SALE #1 is 20% off 16x16" and 25% off 16x20" fine art prints in the Large Prints set. Runs through August 10th.

CURRENT SALE #2 is an ongoing Buy One, Get One Free ("BOGO") sale for purchases of prints 12x12" and smaller. Please see details in the "shop policies" section. Does not apply to "set of four" listings.

Now to unveil another artist with some amazing talent - ThisYearsGirl

And while again many of the pictures in this shop are positively alluring I've been coveting this one the most lately and WANT for my room ;0)

The Queen

It reminds me of how we each carry burdens, many all our own... while yes, we can share them with others we are the sole bearers of most and we all need a place we can go for a reprieve and comfort ourselves. You might have guessed I really like trees - something about them.. tall, strong, silent, comforting.

Next Artist to mention -

love this one - I'm thinking of it for the bedroom, but there is no way I can get all of these pictures I'm sharing - :0) Sharing anyways! ^-^

JudeMcConkey's Photography

The Fern

Karcharz

The Door Still Opens

InMostLight

Feel the Magic in the Air

and since I've shared a novels worth here lol :0) (AND I'm runnign out of time!) I'll end here. I will update soon! Thank you for reading and viewing! :D Enjoy! All the best, ~Dawn

Almost a year later

2010-07-28T20:21:00.000-07:00

July 31st 2009 we signed for the house and while no, we didn't move in right away, we've almost been homeowners for a full year now - craziness!

Also almost a year later the sitting room upstairs is just about complete! With painted walls (compliments of my family who visited in May ^-^ and decor strategically placed to maximize the "homey" or "cozy" feeling. I'm totally excited! I will say however that I am purposely not posting pics right now so you will get the full Before and After affect. I had to at least write and tell you about the progress though! ^-^

Man what an adventure it's been! Freecycle has been a God send. I've gotten so many candles and things over the year(s) and been "storing" them up for this season! ^-^ The season to "sow" and make manifest the vision for the house that has been in the works for too long! dah! :0) Forgive the poetic antics - its the best I can do for explaining sometimes :0)

Alright! I'm sure to post again tomorrow, cause this weekend, well... I have plans... ;0)

I'll leave you with these at least, the pictures of the sitting room BEFORE when we first moved in.

AND when we had to emergency move in since our apartment washing machine decided to flood us out! You will note most of our items are in trash bags and no, I didn't know what was where or who put what in which bag. We had a group of friends swooped into help and make small work of the packing and moving, but in truth, it was all a very arduous task unpacking... what can I say, when it comes to organization I'm a type A lol :0)

You might see the black sleeping bag in the lower right hand of this picture. The first night the hubby and I stayed in our house, he was there and he gave me the couch. Love him. He's too good to me.

Alright, so get ready for some changes people! :0) ^-^ Woot! woot! :0)

As always thank you for reading AND thank you for supporting me through the projects! Eesh! ;)

Update on the weekend paintcapade! :0)

2010-07-25T16:15:00.000-07:00

So I'm beat, I think both mentally and physically right now from everything this weekend. I'm hopeful that these weekends where I tackle a project will soon be behind me so I can focus on the things that I want to do. I'm definitely making progress on the house, sometimes I feel like it's two steps forward and one step back. With painting you can't always do one coat and be done with it. There are touch ups or yes, the second coat sometimes. So it' not just "oh I'm going to paint". Le sigh, for give the detail I went into there -as mentioned I'm a bit beat :s.

Alright! So! Pictures! The trim is Semi Gloss White, the main color is Flat Dove White and the ceiling is ceiling paint. Inside the closet, we have kilz2 white primer, no sense in giving it a hue I figured, since the kilz is bright as it is :0)

here's a quick before pic of when we first bought the house and the room hadn't been touched by any type of cleaning or face lift mechanism :0).

BEFORE:

DURING:
Had to first scrap the remaining lines of wallpaper off the ceiling. As you'll notice in the BEFORE pic - they had some blue sky adhered to the ceiling that needed to go.

Onto priming the walls and saying goodbye to all the nicotine stains on the walls :0) Yay! :D

AFTER:
Last night we took pictures of the room done...

Finished touch ups today and put the final coat on the desk and a mirror I needed refinished :0)

So now for the decorating... that should be fun, but I'll need a few nights sleep first I think :0) I will say decorating is the most fun of all the home stuffs :0) so whoo hoo :0) for decorating :0) and yes, I will take pics ;)

As always, thanks for reading! :D ~Dawn

What is in store this weekend?

2010-07-23T12:48:00.000-07:00

The plan of attack is to try and get "MY" room done as far as the painting goes, this weekend.

So kilz/prime tonight, then paint ceiling Saturday morning and then onto the trim. Hopefully Saturday afternoon the ceiling and trim will be dry enough that I cna hit the walls without fear of messing things up.

I may be dreaming as far as the time frame but I figure if I can paint the room within that time then I'll have Sunday to recover. Right? :0)

Um, pray for me, cause I'm overwhelmed thinking about it! But I just have to get started and then I'll be good. :0)

I'll take before and after pictures, maybe even a few in the process of things if its going well lol :0) so feel free to check back before long! :D

UPDATE 7/24/10 Pictures!

Treasures acquired today

2010-07-07T16:15:00.000-07:00

So the truck died at the freecyclers house :0( not cool. BUT my hubby came in and saved the day - fixed the truck and followed us home. The lady who had posted her items name was Ursula - kind soul who brought my sister and I water while waiting in the near 100 degree weather... inside a parked not running truck. Thank God for good people!

In addition to the trunk and the rocking chair, Ursula showed us this large lovely braided wool rug that they needed to get rid of! This will be perfect in our sitting room upstairs once we get hard wood floors! We are so blessed! Now to break out the shop vac and go to town on cleaning the rug and "my" room that I scrapped the other night :0) stay tuned!

What else, what else... :0)

2010-07-07T11:59:00.000-07:00

omigoodness! I'm picking up a 100 yr old refinished trunk tonight! Freecycle rocks my socks! :0) The person had posted the offer for the trunk 6 minutes before I responded and then continued to list a large black rocker in excellent condition. When I opened the post for the rocking chair all I saw was an email full of code, so what do I do? I don't falter, no! :0) I know I want it, based on the description in the subject line and I send another email requesting the rocker for pick up at the same time as the trunk. ... and guess what? In response they tell me that they have a tiny matching rocking chair as well, how about a 3 for 1 deal?? :0) lol So of course! Yes! Where do I sign!?!?! :0) jk jk :0) Right! So tonight after work I'm going to be picking up some new pieces for the house and I'm SO excited! now if the walls would jsut paint and sand themselves so I can really "nest" we'll be in good shape! :0) ;) lol I'll post pics of these 3 bad boys later gators! :0) so stay tuned!

In case you were wondering...

2010-07-06T20:07:00.000-07:00

... why I've been so quiet (aside from a giveaway ;)). I've been keeping busy running around collecting items from freeycylers like this desk

The room I had in mind for my "studio" and then decided against is getting worked on! Just this weekend I sanded the walls and stripped the ceiling of the wall paper the previous owners had stuck up there :p. So things are in the works! :0) and I can't wait to unveil what I'm now calling "my room" once it's done! :0)

I have SO many ideas for the house and have been able to bring the main ones to fruition for the most part IE. landscaping and the big room upstairs that I'm in most of the time for now.

But yes, I'm brainstorming, planning, sanding, painting, repainting, decorating, trading on etsy for home decor and making my own pieces for home decor.

All the while I'm also brainstorming ideas and items I want to make as originals or signature items if you will from lostsentiments shop - SO at SOME point, while I wish I had a time line in place I don't, so at SOME point lostsentimensts will be getting a revamp and face lift! So stand by! :0) Feel free to check in every so often and I will do what I can to keep you up to date on how things are going or the things I'm doing. :0)

Want a FREE Teddy?? Read on...

2010-06-08T08:51:00.001-07:00

Hello my fine friends! :0)

Recently Tia of http://christopherandtia.blogspot.com/ graciously agreed to host a giveaway for a lostsentiments Tiny Amigurumi Teddy! (very exciting I know! ;0)) and I had to come share it with YOU :0)

Tia did a wonderful job of explaining away why mothers would love a tiny, faceless amigurumi teddy for their little one and sprinkled throughout she shares her own day to day mother trials, tribulations, victories and praises (o.~) of her children... it had me laughing out loud! This is good stuff! :0)

So please, read her blog to enter for a free amigurumi teddy and while there - why not follow this kind hearted lady?? ^.^ Let's keep discovering each others lost sentiments one at a time!

All the best, always,
~Dawn

It's Curtains for you! Curtains I say! :0)

2010-06-06T18:05:00.000-07:00

A sister of mine moved in recently and the windows in her room were in need of some curtains :0). While the room she stays in is lovely with natural lighting (2 windows) when the sun comes up at 6:30AM she doesn't need to know - BUT the sun has been waking her up for lack of curtains. Candace and I ran to Target to peruse the curtains and quickly realized the "standard" sizes were either too long or too short for her windows... so to the fabric stash! Though we started with a wine color we found the fabric was too short for what we needed and went rummaging again. Much to our surprise we found a green lot that was big enough and a nice white/green fabric to reinforce the back side and keep the room energy efficient :0). heck yes!

Here are a few pics of our first curtain making escapade! :)

28 cut outs for 14 loops for curtains and the fun begins ^.^

folding material to pin for sewing! :0)

let the sewing begin! :0)

Candace (sister :0)) ironing the 1st completed pane ! :0)

Me sewing the 2nd pane... almost done! :0)

completed! :0) 1st curtain

completed :0) 2nd curtain

thermal backing :0)

and the loops all have reinforced material too! :0)

All in all, I'm SO proud of us :0) It was an undertaking and I've gained A LOT of respect for seamstresses :0)

Back to crafting..

2010-05-18T12:56:00.000-07:00

I've been working on our bathroom an dmy mind feels like it's going to explode with all the ideas I have and want to make a reality for decorating the house!

There will be many projects I will factor into the decorating and still yet, knowing that I will be making many things for my self, for my house, I wonder... what shoudl I make for my shop??

If you have any ideas of something you'ld like to see me make or have listed as an option in the shop PLEASE let me know and I thank you for your time and ideas! :D

THREE Treasuries

2010-04-19T05:31:00.000-07:00

Pretty crazy, I know!

Please check out the following links and give them each some love!

All treasuries were made by someone on the wonderful BNS thread I am a part of - such a wonderful group of supporting artists!

Petting Zoo
Featuring New chick on the Block

Fiber Arts...East
Featuring New chick on the Block

Second Chance BNS Superstars!
Featuring Iris - Tiny Amigurumi Teddy

Remember - Treasuries only last for so long! Check them out now while you can! :D

Thank you for looking!

Struggling with the scale?

2010-04-10T18:43:00.001-07:00

I recently read a post by a girl who is well over 200 lbs and by all accounts sounds like she has been taking the right steps towards losing weight but not nearly fast enough as she would like... I offered this encouragement and wanted to share it with others.

As always, thank you for reading!

Roar!!!!! The scale is not our friend some days is it?? We want it to show all the effort we have put in has paid off and a smaller number to show it's face and smile at us... so what do we do when it refuses to move, or even decides to go up?!?! Do we falter?? Heck yes! But who has the last word? You do! Every day you decide to make those smart choices, everyday you decide to drink your water, and everyday YOU (and only you) decide you're going to hit the gym, the pool, or whatever your heart desires to "work it out"! You look forward... not back dear! You keep on keeping on because although those numbers may be saying one thing.. your body may be doing another.. it may be water weight hanging out or better yet, it may be some lean sexy muscle trying to show up and it will weigh more than fat my dear! Do not make friends with the scale love :) make friends with your ipod, your fruits, your veggies, your machine or workout dvd of choice :). I wish changes happened over night for you, I wish it were easier, and I wish it didn't have to be a thought. But you will meet your goal love! You will! Hang in there and keep looking ahead... great things are on their way dear... beyond what you can think or imagine. hugs to you! ~Dawn

Why I run...

2010-04-08T07:06:00.000-07:00

Its in the everyday small changes and steps that over time we can look back and see how far we have come! And the small "habits" we change today will soon be part of our routine and as comfortable as breathing. It gets easier! Kind of like the run you don't necessarily want to do, the first couple steps aren't nearly as easy as the pace you have going well into your run. Like I said... it gets easier... just have to keep putting on foot in front of the other

I keep on keeping on with my running because I want more for myself.. more than what I currently am and have now in the physical sense. I do not want to be self conscious about my "cottage cheese" nor it be a nagging thought everytime I put on something a bit more revealing, I want to enjoy myself. I deserve that and much more.

I also run to clear my thoughts and leave the stresses of the day behind... I need to physically exert myself to let go of the frustration I feel against the things I cannot change but need to endure until circumstances change.

I encourage anyone on a fitness journey to think of the soreness as a medal from yesterdays work out, you broke down and pushed your muscle to be built up again and be stronger than it was before. :) YOU did it! :D Now drink that water and take the vitamin C to support your body in quick recovery! :D You can do it! :D And no one but YOU will reap the rewards of your committment to yourself to be healthier and more active. :)

Best of luck to you all! Please feel free to share why you run, or bike, or hike, or swim (!) etc. Thank you!

Journals... Nice Journals... More than $3 Journals...

2010-04-07T06:37:00.001-07:00

when I get a really nice journal I hesitate to write in it - honestly... I normally opt for a notebook that was .50 and scribble the crap out of it in putting down my thoughts. I used to journal quite frequently before I was married, I didn't have a close friend in VA - all my friends were back at home, those who had been there physically with me through lots of things... I think my thoughts were probably overwhelming though... and they never stop... so to a journal I went to repeat myself in different fluid ways... not very often would I look back on my pages... in a sense with a journal, your thoughts are noted but you note them to be forgotten and leave the rubble behind... the substance of what you discovered comes with you though... I've thrown away and discarded the journals I logged much heart ache in.. I've written poetry and pulled poems out of my writing in the past... maybe should get back to it before I go to bed and just dump my thoughts then...

I love journals though, do not get me wrong! They are an art in themselves and it's funny how a binded, hand made piece can be so moving just to look at :) I sometimes think I should write in my best handwriting to add to it :) :D

Blank pages before you... a story to unfold... of joy, heart ache, struggle, endurance, encouragement to yourself... treasures to be realized within yourself... exciting indeed!

I have friends on Etsy who would love to have you embark on your own journal journey and provide you with the canvas... please feel free to visit Robynsart Etsy Shop. Robyn is currently embarking in a journey of journal making and would love to come alongside you with your journal writing! PaintingPam is mixing up her journals using lots of fibers - and flowers! :) Please stop by both shops and have a look see! :D

Thank you for reading!

I was Run-nin...

2010-03-28T05:45:00.000-07:00

Where to start... I've been running lately. Just yesterday I put up my first double digit distance ever... 13.74 miles... until then I was anywhere between 4 - a lil over 8 miles for one run. I've been sharing my runs on my facebook as a way to keep myself accountable to myself. Someone mentioned I would benefit from having a blog, which I have - so I'm sharing ;).

At this time I am not training for any particular event. Basically running to run and relieve the stresses of the silly rat race. So I guess I'm training for the rat race lol that I would not run if I didn't have bills to pay. Being from the midwest and having a general notion that people are decent and coming to the east coast have been an eye opening experience. That and it's definitely given me a thicker skin which I hate, but it's either that or constantly get my heart squished and beat up. No thank you. Granted it still happens, just not as often as it used to.

Right, so I'm running to run, to feel alive. I've heard the slogan "change your body, change your mind" and I believe they go hand in hand. My hope is that as I progressively get stronger day by day I will be more head strong too and able to brush off the day a bit easier as I leave it in my tracks.

I always like to ask people, if you run... why do you run?

The Visitors Refuge

2010-03-13T06:28:00.000-08:00

Patrick (my brother) is coming over!!! ^.^ Last time he was with us he had to suffer a couch - T.T I decided I was going to make up the room for him ALL cozy like ^.^

Not to my surprise once I showed my husband he said we should move into this room ^.^ lol - this is in the lower level of the house and I'm not one to prefer a basement room. This room has windows though!

Nothing has been painted since we moved in ( though I do have all the painting supplies in hand to do it! lol ).... so this will all be taken down at some point and then put back up... still so much work to do - but I needed to "nest" O.~ ... just a bit ^.^

I want to sleep there! o.~ hope my brother enjoys it ^.^ Snug as a bug in a rug ^.^

Here is other corner of the room ^.^ ready to read a book? ^.^ I am! O.~

The wall that you do not see in any of the pictures is where the door and the closet is.

This really isn't much of a "before" pic since nothing was done to the walls or carpet (beyond numerous runs of shampooing and cleaning :p) but this was the canvas I had... and this is the only pic I took before I added anything, probably 5 months ago.

JUST Realized this is worth noting - ALL pieces you see - the metal pieces on the wall, the candle holder, the lamp, the chair, the mirror, the tiny lamp, the SPACE HEATER, the chair, the mattress AND the bed skirt - ALL FREE through friends or from freecycling! ^.^ the pillows and bedspread I had for years and the roses on the wall were dried from the husband ^.^. The champagne bottle in the window was from our wedding ^.^ AND the candles are hit n miss... some free some from the family.

All to say and encourage you to take heart, you may have to do some hunting and running around for stuff but it can all come together simply and elegantly ^.^

Thank you for reading! ^.^

I want BRAINS - Custom Zombie order :D

2010-03-04T18:01:00.001-08:00

Yay! This WAS FUN!!! :D

Complete with crazy hair, slime, a null for eyes :D Sooooo excited to share with you :) Here she is!

I was asked by a fellow etsian to make an amigurumi zombie that had a face like this one, with similar features, but clearly not the same body:

Thank you for looking! :D

OOAK Amigurumi Penguin - Iced Tea

2010-02-21T10:40:00.001-08:00

I think of Iced Tea.... Yes, have some... lol :) Just my humor, forgive me ;)

At work our "mascot" is a penguin. A few months ago I won a customer service award and it was an etched glass penguin that sits on a base and lights up. Well, a coworker of mine who comes in and does filing every morning noticed the piece and started to tell me about her daughter loving penguins, how she would get one of those for her in a heart beat basically. Which started getting my mind on Etsy - I know there are many artists there and someone I'm sure does etched glass.

Of course my brain going through channels the next came upon ME making a penguin.

You may or may not notice that I primarily have bears in my shop. You might wonder, why primarily bears? I picked them because I thought they were classic and the pattern is fun and they are adorable. For me its an undertaking to make a pattern from scratch even when I know in my heart of hearts I can create or replicate an idea just with my hook and the right color thread. But honestly, it can be an overwhelming task to me. The sheer time and attention I want to give it I must, especially if it's my creation. There is no "settling" here.

I thought of the chick in my store and realized I could use that as the illustration of what I could make for her daughter. I pitched the idea to her in an email. As my coworker went onto do her filing I told her I sent her and email about penguins and laughed cause I was both nervous she might not be interested and excited 'cause she just might be! :) LOL She said "thank you".

Within the next hour she got back to me and said that she wanted one. I was of course tickled pink and she was all about getting the money to me asap. lol Which is funny to me because I like to wait until I know I've made 100% what they wanted before I get the money.

Onto the weekend!

Yesterday and today I was busy making my coworkers penguin and then writing up and taking down exactly what I wanted my penguin to look like. Please see the pictures:) The one with eyes like the new chick on the block: is the one for my coworker.

Thank you for reading :)

The Studio - to be or not to be?

2010-02-12T10:31:00.000-08:00

Well hello :)

I figured it was high time I update anyone who read the prior post about my studio - just how things are coming!

As of now - the possibility of doing away with the "room" is actually an option that depending on how the floor plan works out - may be a very nice addition to the house.

After my first post about the room I began thinking about a floor plan, colors, storage, etc... I realized as much as a room for all my wonderful things is, well wonderful I'm not so sure for my creating style that it would serve a purpose for me beyond a storage room. I say that because I do not craft without a tv or the presence of someone else. I take my crafty things with me various places (like on road trips :D) but never has it been to have a "me, alone time". Some may need or want this room (and by all means should have one! :)) but my times of inspiration too are not often in the moment of me looking at the yarn or whatever media I am working with. No, my inspiration comes when I'm out and about... so if you do not see any further posts about a studio, you will know why. :)

My yarn has it's "decorative" place(s) in my living room and when guests come I do pick up the coffee table that is usually adorned with needles, buttons, yarns, patterns, beads, etc. I think the baskets of yarn add an element to the house of coziness and (so far) the mister (^.^) has not said otherwise either. ( I will add some pics of the living room once I get home,, eh-hem after I've picked up a bit :D ).

You might be asking now - "But Dawn, what will come of the room then if you aren't going to make it your own?" Well my dear friends :) part of this realization that a craft room doesn't quite suit me, the hubby and I were talking about making our bedroom bigger. The wall next to the closet is actually a chimney and if we were to connect the rooms, we could convert the blocked off chimney to a fireplace and the area I might have had - into a library with a cozy chair to sit in and have tea, read a book, etc! WE would also connect the bathroom to this room as well. In daydreaming about making a bigger bedroom with an attached bathroom and fireplace I found I really came alive, even more so than the idea of my own studio. LOL And just as when I fell in love with my husband... I "just knew" this idea suited me best!

When this dream will come to fruition I do not know.. we have to get a blue print of the house, find out where the supporting beams are and if our dream can even be made possible.

For now, the room still needs to be painted and the ceiling scrapped clean of the residual pieces of wall paper.

As always, I'll keep you posted! Even if it's sometimes after the fact ;) Thank you for reading! :D

NO WAY?!?! TWO treasuries? !? way...

2010-01-29T16:40:00.000-08:00

I'm in Two treasuries at once today! :)

Talk about knock my socks off exciting! :D I will take it and thank you VERY much!

Here are the links to each:

Vineyard Vixen by CorkyCrafts

Funky and Fabulous by kimberleymade

Remember they do expire so get your butt in here an l@@k while you can ;)

The item featured in Vineyard Vixen is Grapes on the Vine - Double Strand Stretch Bracelet

And the Item featured in Funky and Fabulous is EMMA - Tiny Amigurumi Teddy :)

Thank you for looking :) By all means - please comment if you can :)

Change

2010-01-27T06:55:00.000-08:00

It's in those consistent, small steps forward that in time we find, looking back, we've grown in leaps and bounds. ~Dawn Pearson

Flowers for her...

2010-01-24T16:37:00.000-08:00

Less than a week ago I went for a run in our neighborhood and discovered a few things while I did.

My eyes tend to catch things that others see as junk but I see as things that could be used.

ie. 5 blue tabs, 6 cents ( a penny and a nickel ), 2 pinecones, a dum dum wrapper (if you collect enough you can buy something from the site :)) a coke point and last but not least was honked at once. lol

I ran down to a corner and upon turning around so as to not cross the road I noticed a bright red fake flower, I took mental note of it and kept running, I crossed the street to other side and discover there were many more fake silk flowers and leaves scattered throughout the sidewalks... trash underfoot. Puzzled, I wondered where they had come from and why no one had bothered to pick them up. There was a lot of legitimate trash on the sidewalks as well... maybe no one was designated to pick up the trash. That's about all I can figure :s

I later realized that the flowers must have been blown at some point from the cemetary, not even a block away... and just scattered so no, no one was going to come looking for them.

Last night I finished a bowl with red accents and decided it was time to go out and grab the flower for a prop :)

I went out with a small grocery bag and a latex glove :) lol here's what I found :

and here I used the red flower :) I first saw :)

My Husbands so great - as I finished rinsing the pieces off he came into the kitchen to grab a snack, gave me a kiss and said, "oh, our sink looks pretty now" :) I love that he can be playful :) that still makes me smile just that he said that. :)

I'm sure to use these pieces in a project or as a prop, so keep an eye out, ya hear!?!? ;)

TREASURY #3 o.O

2010-01-24T07:03:00.000-08:00

I'm pretty much flabbergasted! :D I only just listed this bowl yesterday and in truth struggled with the colors and picture taking... which normally is not such a challenge for me. (Eh, we all have our days ;)) Waking up this morning to find a new friend on Etsy has added this same basket to her treasury just made my day! :D

Without further ado here is the link to get to the treasury. Again, they do expire!

Here is the pic of the item featured in "Let's Talk Etsy" Treasury.

Click HERE to view the item in my etsy shop:)

Thank you for looking! As always, thank you for your support! :D

The Canvas of MY Room

2010-01-22T19:37:00.000-08:00

Here is the beginning - bare canvas just needing some attention :).

As I progress I'll take pics :)so there will be some before and after action going on :)

Here we go! ....

The Nudge that sent me over the edge.. In a good way :)

2010-01-22T06:46:00.000-08:00

I read this lovely entry by Robyn who I met through a BNS thread on Etsy...and it was just the nudge I needed to get me to share this with you :)

I've been thinking about sharing the next huge undertaking for ME - not just a craft idea but something that would benefit ME in the long run... an escape, an outlet to create in! :D In a word, Studio :).

We moved into our 1st house in October and I was able to designate a room called My Room (lol and yes, my hubby has a separate room with all his 'puter stuffs too :) called His room ;)). I can do whatever I want with My room... and so far, I have not done anything with it. It needs to be painted (at least ;)). The room had wallpaper attached to the ceiling that we pulled down but has remnants still clinging where the seams were. I have no furniture to put in there at this time... so cold in there, uninviting.

But I need that room, it seems overwhelming to start making it my studio - so I need encouragement, and I need to push myself. I need to share this so I can be accountable to others and myself.

I need a studio, this would be a dream come true for me... :)

In short, will take "the beginning" pics tonight and post them here.

So begins the journey :) I hope you will come along with me :) Thank you for reading!

(((((((((robyn))))))))))) thank you, for your post ;)

TREASURY #2 O.o

2010-01-20T15:55:00.000-08:00

Yes siriee Bob! :D an item of mine made it to another treasury! :D how fabulous is that?!?!

Here is the link to get to the treasury. Remember they do expire!

So here is a pic of the item featured in the Yummy Treasury :)

Click HERE to view the item from my etsy shop :)

Thank you for looking! thank you for the support !!: )

Finished U900 Ukulele Duo :)

2010-01-17T08:21:00.000-08:00

I was asked to make the U900 Ukulele duo without having heard of them and without a pattern.

Custom orders (as always) are a learning experience for me :)! I dont' know what size thread or needle the original creator used but they did an amazing job!

I made their jackets out of aluminum foil :) and sewed on their "identities" ;).

The bunny is Usagine U, and the bear is Kumano 900.

Here is a link to see a slideshow, so you can see stills of them.

I tried to take pics like a few of the scenes I saw on the clip:)

Beaded Knit Bag - used size 0 needles (o).(O)

2010-01-15T21:37:00.001-08:00

it's done! it's done! it's done!

*whew*

It's taken more than a year for me to complete this baby. Granted I didnt' sit down and do it from start to finish, I have done many other pieces between the start and finish of this one (bleive me;) lol)

Originally it was a test pilot as I have a friend who was getting married at the end of September 2008 and I was thinking I could make one for her to use on her wedding day.

lol - yeah right ;) clearly I did not make the deadline even for the test pilot so she didn't get one - but her wedding was still as lovely as ever! :) Outdoor wedding, and well, they are in love so it was prettty friggin beautiful :) (SO happy for her :) *beams*)

I did give her a few bracelets of mine I'd made when we had out girls pow- wow just the two of us (so she did get somethign from me, something she could wear everyday ;) ). We stayed up doing our nails and talking like we used to when we were in Junior high :). I live states away from her now and have for several years so needless to say it was a very, very sweet time for the both of us :). Oh! For their wedding they each had only one person stand up with them... and she picked me to be her one and only bridesmaid :) le sigh... such a sweet time :).

I knit this purse with size 0 knitting needles and thread the beads as I went. Once the main portion was done, I crochetted the edges together and went on to add ruffles and a button for closure.

Alright folks, thats the beginning and end of the story (so far!) for this little beauty :). Thank you for looking!

U900 Custom Order Amigurumi...

2010-01-13T20:37:00.000-08:00

They are in the works!Boy does my wrist know it too! ;)

I'm just about done! Here are some pics of Usagino U Bunny and his sidekick Kumano 900 Bear :)

Here is a slideshow, so you can see stills of them:

http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=chjdXvc5Y3o

I'll be so glad to have them finished :) I'm always happy to do custom orders but they can be really time consuming (like REALLY time consuming). There is no pattern that I 'm aware of online for this duo so I had to make them FROM SCRATCH :p.

Alright, alright, so a few pictures, albeit rough ones... :) remember they are without their metal jackets... but they will have them before long! :D

All the noise

2010-01-11T20:46:00.000-08:00

... whether it's truly resounding sounding noise or all the "to do" lists... better yet, all the people you told yourself you were going to call today to catch up (it's been too long) whether you felt like talking or not. Yes, today is the day... then the day ends and you find you didn't call them, the "to do" list got 3 lines checked off but 4 more added... will you ever get a hold on things? The tasks of the day pile up and you wonder who thought you could do it all (?!?!)

Maybe you feel like you are drowning, though if someone were to lend a hand, it'd mean the world....

I hope this, brings you comfort:

"The Lord on High is mightier than the noise of many waters."

Psalm 93:4

He can bring you peace in the worst of times, and if this is you right now, I pray He does. Night! And God Bless!

When Much is asked of you...

2010-01-07T09:16:00.000-08:00

I received the best advice today and I needed to share it...

"Remember, just because the world is asked of you, does not mean you’d be wrong not to deliver the world.

Deliver what you can, within reason, don’t let what doesn’t get done be your burden, because it’s not."

~Donald WH Pearson

Thank you DH for your words of wisdom and speaking into my life like the counselor you are. I love you.

Amigurumi Totoro Pattern for you :)

2009-12-13T15:10:00.000-08:00

Sharing! :)

this is really a rough pattern - so you'll have to work with me on it -
here goes nothin...
Body:1) sc 7 in magic ring (7)2) sc1 & inc 1 in each sc around (14)3) sc2, inc1 repeat around (21)4) sc3, inc1 repeat around (28)5) sc4, inc1 repeat around (35)6&7) sc around in each (35)8) sc 14, dec 2, sc 14 dec 29) dec1, sc2, dec1, sc1,dec1, sc3, dec1, sc1, dec1, sc5, dec1 sc5, dec110) sc3, dec1, sc2, dec1, sc2, dec1, sc3, dec1, dec1, 3scstart of 11th row to end - dec1, sc3, dec1, sc30, inc1, sc11, dec1, sc8, dec1 sc38
here's where the ears come into play - dec next 4, sc1, sc1 into the sc on the OTHER side of the circle in the chain right before the 4 dec sc.
you are making the first ear at this point - *sc next 7, inc1, sc1, inc1, sc2, dec1, dec to end.
next ear you work the remaining stitches left on the body so by the end of the first row around you have 4dec and 2sc then continue from *
the tail you will be crocheting directly onto totoros bum -
row one pick up 5 stiches in a circle row two sc twice into each sc ending the 2nd row with a total of 10 stitchesrow three dec 5 knot and your done!
now the arms - they were tricky for me - so tricky in fact I just realized per my notes I didn't write them down...
I do remember I added the arms sinmilar to the way I crocheted on the tail...
Row 1 - crochet 3 stitches into the totoro's side wherever you'd like his arm to be - chain 3 without inserting into the body - sc around inc on the sides of the arms only each time you sc around. work in this way until you have reached your desired length and width. the arms may be loose so feel free to thread the upper part of the arm back into the body if you dont' want him to flap too much.
and the circles on the bellies - are just that - work rows 1 - 5 on the body and keep increasing 7 per row until desired size is reached. Sew onto totoro.
Hope most of you foudn this helpful - I've never shared pattern of my own before so as mentioned you'll have to bear with me - would love to see some of your completed work if you brave this pattern! :D
Best of luck all! Hugs, Dawn

***This is a free pattern of my design, so please do not sell it. Otherwise, use as you like, but if you make this Totoro to sell you must include a link to this pattern. Thank you!***

The Bobblehead Stand

2009-12-09T20:03:00.000-08:00

... is finished - and he is now "complete" my mister said it was pretty much imperative that I make a stand to go with him - so while it took longer to do and my fingers hurt :S the mister was right :) . Mr. Bobblehead can stand on his own now too without much coaxing so its good stuff ;). Here are updated pics - enjoy! :)

Amigurumi Bobblehead of Fallout 3

2009-12-07T20:18:00.000-08:00

Oh yes, this was a custom order! A brilliant one I might add! How many husbands out there play this game and wish the Bobblehead were real?? Well my friends, this lil beaut is the kind he can take to bed and remember what it's like to be a kid! :D Or... have at his desk as a conversation piece - the skies the limit really :). Bobblehead stands from top of his hair to the heel of his boots - 7 inches tall. Bobblehead is complete with safety eyes and everything else is thread or poly filled! Your husband or boyfriend is wondering why you haven't purchased him yet... ;)

So that was my sales pitch :) and here he is....

Minus the first pic of course as that's the real deal plastic bobble head I was going for. I am my selves worst critic its true, I think his eyes should be oval, his smile more horizontal - his blue legs longer and his black boots a bit shorter, oh yes and his head more of a sphere than an oval. Le sigh... all things tolled, making this man out of thin air and going to town with a thread and a hook, it's pretty impressive. :) I thought I was finished with him last night when my husband informed me that he needs to have a stand - that's part of the bobble head, and he's right. I don't play the game so I didn't know. It was a bummer to hear that though - in that I wanted to be done with him - I'd spent all Sunday working on this guy (and honestly my fingers are sore) so to ask me to keep going when I thought I was done was really a taller order than anything else.

So do stay tuned - he will rightfully have his stand and I will post pics. :)

Thank you as always for reading folks - I appreciate the support! All C&C welcome :D M-wah!

My Friend Totoro and HIS Friends :)

2009-12-03T20:15:00.000-08:00

Hey Hey! :D

Not sure who is into Anime or not and even then there are many many different types of anime shows so if TOTORO rings a bell - then have I got something for you! :D

I'm doing a trade on Etsy with glamasaurus for some awesome cufflinks for the brother in law and the hubby - Wee! :) I made the pattern up and used different thickness of thread to make them bigger or smaller. The pattern is my own as I said, and I think this one will be the first I share with everyone. Including Crafster and Ravelry cause they have been so good to me - yay for community. The Frog Prince and New Chick on the Block will remain a secret to everyone but me :oo. So stay tuned for (my) Totoro's pattern in an upcoming post that will out live me - so freaky... ;)

I really dig the custom orders cause they challenge me - but I'll be honest in saying I have a backlog of orders to finish - so yay this is one done! :D Now onto the bobble head doll! :D I will post pics of him when I am done. For now - enjoy Totoro and his friends ;) Until next time - all the best loves! :D M-wah!

PS - the original cartoon sketch I was "trying" to emulate with the fabric and pics of my own :D is at the very top - enjoy this too ;)

Fall OUT Bobble - No? Yes?? Oh I do think so!:D

2009-11-19T09:54:00.000-08:00

Hello! Hello!

I thought I would break my unannounced long silence of a pause (yes that made sense ;)) and say hello! :D

I have been busy, busy, busy like nobodies business! WHEW! Between an apartment flood, emergency moving into our not yet cleaned house, our vehicles breaking down the same time - which was hilarious and my post about later lol ;) - as we tried to move, not having a refrigerator for a week due to the untimely move(I'm a planner, what can I say? ;)) switching jobs (again) in the midst and the husband having health issues and calling 911 due to them - the doc's are still doing tests on him. I'm just glad I have my youth ;) ha! Anyone please tell me when you hit "old" and how you know you got there - anyone. I just want opinions. :D

Alright so that was the life side :) onto the CRAFT side! Wee! :D I've been absent from telling you what I've been up to and have been trading with fellow etsians. What a wonderful experience! :D I've traded with people from Ireland, Italy, the UK, Australia, and many many stateside :). What a great way to holiday shop! No breaking my bank you hear!?! ;)

Trading has been awesome and with that come customization to some of the pieces in the shop and new ones being made. The most recent was a new colored bear - pink and blue :). I'll try and post pics later, just on lunch break right now ;). AND you've seen the goomba :D but the very brand newest is going to be... drum roll please ;) pldldldldlldldldldlldldldldldl! The bobble head dude from Fall OUT 3. What?!?! (looks at you with attitude) ?Yep, yep, someone wants to trade for it and my hubby wants one himself so it's going to happen! :D As far as selling him I'm on the fence right now. I know lots of wives, gf and others would be relieved to find one as it's an easy gift for the gamer ja! :D However, he'd have to at least be $50 cause I know he'll be some time and work. This one will be a pattern from scratch again - so the challenge is upon me! Wish me luck and I'll try (key word *try*) to not be gone so long this next time I post :)

As always, thank you for reading and would love your comments! :D Yay!

Goomba! In all his grumpy glory! :D

2009-10-01T18:34:00.000-07:00

Co-worker of mine is a mario fan and when she found out what amigurrumi was - she put my talent and her taste together and sent me to this blogspot where goomba was made amigurumi! I got the IDEA of how to make a goomba by looking at this pic (and many many others) and set to work! :D 2 nights later - here he is in all his grumpy glory! :D

He did not want pics by the way - especially the one where he was full frontal - he really gave me attitude! :s They were worth it ;) He's off to his new home tomorrow :D Whether he likes it or not! ;)

Comments always welcome! :D AND Custom orders -like this one!- welcome too! :D

New teddies ! :D

2009-09-19T08:18:00.000-07:00

introducing - PRECIOUS

and - SHOW STOPPER

3 NEW CLUTCHES !!!!

2009-09-01T18:42:00.001-07:00

Yup, and they are ON SALE!!!! - So please, tell your friends! ;)

MOVING SALE

2009-08-30T09:09:00.000-07:00

**** MOVING SALE ****
That's RIGHT! :) As you may already know I recently purchased a house and will be moving soon! To celebrate, I've decided to run a sale from now until the end of Labor Day Weekend, Monday September 7th!

TOTES, PURSES, SCARVES n' BLANKET are 25% off!

JEWELRY is 60% off!

Totes and purses:http://www.etsy.com/shop.php?user_id=5978635&section_id=6093850
SCARVES:http://www.etsy.com/shop.php?user_id=5978635&section_id=6107220
BABY BLANKET:http://www.etsy.com/shop.php?user_id=5978635&section_id=6149299
Jewelry sets:http://www.etsy.com/shop.php?user_id=5978635&section_id=6093984
Vintage earrings:http://www.etsy.com/shop.php?user_id=5978635&section_id=6205026

BUT WAIT - that's not ALL - since I really appreciate my followers on this blog, I want to also give you the chance to save EVEN more !:)

So - that piece of mine you may have had your eye on for a bit - convo me and tell me which one you want and **I'll take an extra 10% off for you from the sale price!**

PS - while the moving sale does NOT include the amigurumi's - this is your chance to save 10% on one just for being a follower of my blog! :)

Thank you everyone!

Alice...

2009-08-28T08:52:00.001-07:00

in wonder land of course! :)

I recently made a comment on fellow blogger Creative Coquette's blog (which you MUST check out! she find the most amazing pics! :) eye candy for your imagination!) and wanted to share it with you! :)

She asked a good question - what Alice in wonderland character is your favorite. And in the journey of sharing a bit about myself with complete strangers - LOL - I decided to share my response with you ...

~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~
I have heard that whomever wrote Alice in wonderland was high when doing it lol - hard to know though - since quotes like that of the Mad Hatter:

"If I had a world of my own, everything would be nonsense. Nothing would be what it is, because everything would be what it isn't. And contrary wise, what is, it wouldn't be. And what it wouldn't be, it would. You see?"

- are upside down and all around yet make sense... so were they were really high or just genius? ;)

My favorite character would be Alice of them all before seeing Tim Burton's take on the story - because she is just SO curious (like me ;)) and she is all assuming (like me) that people (things, creatures, the like - lol) are all for each others greater good... and then of course (like me) get upset when they prove otherwise - and then yes, sometimes the words will come out asking why they'd do such a thing!

I think of when the cards painted the roses red. Honest mistake to have planted the wrong color ;) - so yes (like me) Alice helped them. And when the queen found out and said off with their heads Alice protested,

Alice: Oh, please, please! They were only trying to..

albeit with only a few words... ;)

If you'd like a quick trip down memory lane of the Disney scene where Alice first comes in contact with the cards I tried to get the clip on the post but it failed. :S

Here is the link from YouTube

What is your favorite Alice in wonderland character?? Hmm?? :D

uh... recipe on my blog! Stranger things have happened! O.o

2009-08-18T17:48:00.000-07:00

And one for GROUND VEAL?!?! Really? Um... yes, 'fraid so!

Here's the story folks - the low carb way of eating is working wonders for my husband and I - and well, veal is on the list of acceptable things to eat! :D. There was a pound of ground veal on sale a bit ago and I grabbed it -why not? Mix it up a bit with the other meats.

Later on - I'm scratching my head every time I think about that ground pound of veal in the freezer. "What am I gonna do with that?!"

*think, think, think*

Patties? No - might as well just have a burger. Not even sure we're too keen on the taste of veal yet :s.

Brown it? With seasonings?? Uh... okay but what seasonings?? Again, we sure we'll like the taste?

Hmmm...

Not knowing a great deal about veal - I put off using that ground pound for a bit.

Funny enough, tonight I wanted to go out and get a meatlovers omelet from a diner but know to spend money right now, just isn't a great idea... so.. internets here I come!

I'm a searchin' and a huntin' for a recipe for ground veal, low carb. Com'n google don't let me down! :D

Up came a few websites and after a good bit of time I found a Veal Loaf recipe. Hrm, hrm, hrm... not low carb.

*scratches head*

I can work with this, yes, yes I can. It may call for bread crumbs, but instead I! - have cheddar cheese! It may call for margarine, but no! I have real butter! and oh you non low carb recipe - you may call for ricotta cheese but I have none! I will use cream cheese and you WILL taste yummy! I declare it! SO let it be written, so let it be done ;0) tee hee....

I must share this low carb yummy recipe with you - if only to keep a record of it for myself to refer back to in the future to recreate the tastiness! :D

For YOUR reference ;) HERE is the original recipe.

What to call my recipe now...

ah-ha! DUKE VEAL LOAF :D (such wit! ;0) lol)

2 teaspoons butter
1 stalk minced celery,
2 tablespoons minced onion,
1 lb ground veal
1/4 cup cream cheese (or ricotta cheese)
1 egg, beaten
3 tablespoons grated cheddar cheese
2 tablespoons parsley
1 tablespoon water (optional)
1 teaspoon Worcestershire sauce
1/4 teaspoon salt
Dash pepper

Topping: Mozzerella cheese, grated or sliced thinly and laid on top.

To Prepare Veal Mixture:

-In small skillet melt butter over medium heat, add celery, onion, and garlic.
-Saute until vegetables are tender.
-In medium bowl combine sauteed vegetables with remaining ingredients for veal mixture and shape into a loaf.
-Transfer to roasting pan and bake at 375°F until browned, 30 to 35 minutes.
-Lay Mozerrella cheese on top or sprinkle with grated.
-ENJOY! :D

IF any of you try this - would love to know if it was a hit for you or not! :)

As always thanks for reading!

Changes!

2009-08-17T09:22:00.001-07:00

Alrighty! I got a text today from my sister in law in South Africa who is rock sockin' awesome! :0) When she visited us a little over a year ago - her and I broke out the beads and went to town! Her name is Imogen and she has a lil shop of her own! If you visit her shop - she's the 2nd one down from the top on the left with the black and pink horns.

Imogen has done some pretty awesome things in her life if you ask me! :-) she's an artist all the way around! :0) She sings, writes music, acts (she did for coca-cola :-D), models, writes poetry, draws, the lot of it. Very gifted woman indeed! SO happy to call her sis! ;0) She's such an encourager!

you're probably thinking, "Okay Dawn, that's all well and good, but what's with the title :"Changes"? "

Well I'll tell you ;-). Besides us buying a house the last of July, I put in my two week notice last Thursday, (eek~ I'm excited and nervous!) Imogen (or Imo as we call her sometimes) is getting internets next week!;0) I'm SO much better at email than the text or writing people snail mail. I used to be really up on mailing letters, but not so anymore.

I'm very excited! :0) I also have a project I need to fulfill as a gift for her - that I don't know when I will get to - a pair of Bella's Mittens from Twilight, and the other is a design of my own I'm working on for her tastes. :-D I'll share as time goes on, still debating if I will sell it in the store or not.. We'll see! :0)

Thanks for letting me share! I'm hardly on blogspot anymore it seems. Been thinking of fasting from the Internets but not sure that that would really be the best for em right now either lol.

Sneak Peek - New Chickadee Design!

2009-08-09T19:32:00.000-07:00

Little background on this design - I actually designed this one before the Frog Prince. :0) I was in the check out line at Target and saw a gift card of a bear, a bird and a frog. The gift card only showed the head of each and they were smiling in their own way. As soon as I saw the card I had already had an idea to make a frog and it had yet to come to fruition - so adding the chick to it made the perfect trio in my mind. The eyes of the chick are the joyous ones I portrayed on my creation :0)

Before I add this lil one to my Etsy shop - I wanted to share her with the fellow bloggers! :) I'll most likely list this chick some time this week when I have more time to promote! ;-) Let me know what you think!

From top of head (minus "hair" ;-)) sits 3" tall! :)

Wingspan is 3" wide as well. :-)

Made with ivory acrylic yarn and stuffed with polyfil and colored thread for expression.

This lil chicadee is sure to win your heart! Just look at that face and the expression of glee! :0) May whomever lays eyes on 'er be inspired and may she light up your day! :0-)

S'more Lanyards for your viewing pleasure! :)

2009-08-07T19:20:00.001-07:00

I've been meaning to get more of these up - pictures that is ;-). I think I made at least 10 lanyards total. Maybe I'll get around to selling some on the etsy shop at some point. I'm not feeling too creative these days.

Here you go!

Silver & Gold

Amethyst & Green

The Closing

2009-08-04T17:39:00.000-07:00

Things happened so quickly I had no time to blog about it! lol. :0)

July 30th, 10:16PM I get a call from my husband, Donald who is out with his motorcycle friends and he tells me he has some good news and some bad news.

"Which do you want first?" He asks.

Here I am thinking, if he got in an accident I really don't want to know - cause I don't know that I can handle it. I really thought he was going to tell me - bad news, I wrecked - good news, I'm alive. :s. That and I tend to get anxious awaiting inevitable bad news lol....

"bad news first.", I replied.

"okay, bad news is, you can't go into work tomorrow, you HAVE to get them off, you CANNOT go."

"ok" I said waiting....

"good news is" he continued, "we close on the house tomorrow"

I didn't have the same response to the closing as I did on the house because I know how my company feels about unscheduled days off. Though I will say my work ethic speaks for itself - there was one time I went to the Emergency room in the middle of the day and went back to work afterward. Who else does that?? Argh.. anyways, I digress - back to the story :0)

"okay, I'll call my supervisor - I want you home."

That was about it. My supervisor ended up being the one to reassure me that they would be okay sine the work was all caught up :0) But I heard about it from those above her that I didn't give notice.

"psssshhhhhh" is all I have to say about that. ;0)

SO Friday, July 31st, 2009 the hubby and I signed on the house :0). Our renting lease isn't up until mid November. There are tenants in the house until the end of August so that's helpful as far as payments go. I'm sure I'll be much more excited once the huge bill of rent/mortgage is behind us and we're out of renting. Then time to make a budget! lol :-)

Without further ado - here is a quick pic I got the day of the closing - we went by after the signing. :0)

WE GOT THE HOUSE!!!!

2009-07-24T09:55:00.000-07:00

It's true! :) My husband just called me about 10 minutes ago - asked me if I was sitting down! At the time I was standing and so I DID sit down.... curiously wondering what he was going to tell me next.... as I said, "No, but I am now."

*silence*

"We got the house." He said as I heard the smile in his voice.

:-) "NO!! Really??!?!?" I exclaimed.

"We got it for the price we asked for and they are taking care of ALL the closing costs."

"ALL the closing costs? ALL of them?!" I countered.

"Yep.", he said.

"Wow! No way! Wow! Yay! Oh that's great! :) Wow!" I said still in shock and getting whatever bearings I had left asked, "When can we close??"

"We can close in as soon as a week." He replied, still with a smile in his voice.

The rest of the conversation was me saying wow, really, this is great, wow. And Donald assuring me that all the bullshit (lol) was now behind us. :0)

I'll try to keep you up to date as things progress - but I'm certain it will be busy - so forgive the lapse of blogging - I do want to share it ALL! :D

YAY!!!!! Weee!! Hi Ho! HI HO! Hi ho, hi ho hi hi! :D

The Frog Prince - Giveaway! (on Facebook)

2009-07-19T18:44:00.000-07:00

Hello hello! :0) He's finished! ;) yay!

The frog prince was a labor of love to be sure - I wanted to have another pattern to call my own and a more realistic look to a frog than the kawai - just to mix things up a bit - ;0) Have a gander and let me know what you think!

***If you would like to participate in this giveaway you must be a fan of lostsentiments of facebook to enter***

The giveaway is in honor of the fans - having more than 115 fan following! :0) cool! :-D

Here are the pics and the description for your viewing and entertainment! ;0) Thank you for your support everyone! I truly appreciate your comments and often say "awe" out loud in reading them ;) Thank you!

working

2009-07-19T11:03:00.000-07:00

it's about 2pm and I have had to rework the whole pattern for my little critter - I think I'm on the home stretch now though, a few "garnishes" to add and *sigh* he'll be ready. :-) I think I'll make this guy custom order just cause he's tricky ;) but it's my 2nd pattern of my own :-D so that's exciting! I'll have to share the first lil creation I made from my own pattern before long - I'm behind on blogging! lol :-).

I'm giving myself a break, I've been working on this one for the giveaway for at least 5 hours today. Time to eat! ;-)

FIRST SALE!

2009-07-18T18:29:00.001-07:00

First sale to someone I don't know what they look like face to face! Very exciting for me indeed! I just finished packaging the earring set they purchased along with a few of my new business cards! :0) Very exciting. :0)

So, I'm unwinding and celebrating with a rather strong ( by accident :-s ) white russian and will be sending that little bundle out tomorrow. :-)

Up next (tomorrow) would be the revealing of the new item made from my own pattern on facebook! Be a fan if you can to take advantage! :0) I just hope I get the little guy together before tomorrow ;) Wish me luck! :0)