christmas in july

How great would these look on a red sweater?! Even in a non-Christmas way. Probably I will buy them. Look at them.



campari

 I really want to like Campari. It's such a pretty color, and classy people from the past drink it. I want to like it so much that I bought a bottle of it the other day. I figured, I've grown into being able to sip a little glass of Frenet Branca, and that stuff tastes like toothpaste and wood. Unfortunately, Campari still tastes pretty much like poison to me. I've been experimenting and the most I can handle is just a mere dash thrown into a glass of iced sparkling water with lemon. How do people drink Negronis with such relish? Blarf! Alas, I fear I will never be so fancy. Here are a couple of cocktails that sound so appealing, except for the fact that they contain Campari.

Harry Pottaaaaahh!

 I adore Harry Potter (and the smart little actor who plays him, of course! Swoon.), so I was super-stoked to help create a HP-themed craft for Wikia Easy Crafts! Christina and I put together this awesome banner and made a lil' video in my funky home studio; please check it out, leave a comment over at Wikia, and just maybe you can win that Golden Snitch necklace I'm wearing! Here's the link; I'm really enjoying making these videos; I think there's more of this kind of thing in my future fo sho!

mind = blown

Every time I think Kokka has made the best fabric of all time, they go ahead and do it again. This is BRUTAL, I tell you! I think they are out to destroy me. Available at Fabricworm.

LALALA

Although I spent most of my Los Angeles time underneath a steamy tent, I did have a few opportunites to get out and about with my beloved friend Crystal, who knows just what I want from a vacation. So many of my friends are living far away from me, so in lieu of tourist activities, I would much rather chill out with a loved one, eat ice cream sandwiches with homemade Nutella ice cream (!!) and watch approximately 35 episodes of Say Yes to the Dress interspersed with a few doses of Pawn Stars and My Strange Addiction. (MY strange addiction: watching cable at other people's houses!)

I didn't eat any KFC, but I found myself stuffed with chicken strips constantly thanks to the Ludo truck, a magical rolling chicken machine that was stationed at Renegade. So darn good! The below is a choice bit of Crystal and Scott's home decor.

 

We took a little journey to LACMA in the evening to see the Urban Light exhibit; it was so pretty. Here are a bunch of pictures that are way better than any I took. I felt that on this particular trip, my eyes were open to more of LA's charms than its gross qualities, which was really refreshing and made me want to spend more time there!

A fancy Manhattan at the outdoor museum bar. This was my high-rollin' night and we did it up right. 

 image from space15twenty

Crystal took me to the famous Umami Burger, where I couldn't resist ordering something called the Stinkburger. Now I can say I've eaten a hamburger with fried anchovies on it. It was a little much, even for me, but I'm glad I took the salty plunge. Their burgers are just the right size; look how puffy the bun is!

LA! Foods, friends, fried anchovies. I will be returning soon. 

RENEGADES! ROUNDUP!

Wow. I did it. Two weekends, two craft shows, two of California's best cities, three servings of fried chicken, and lots of friends. I was lucky enough to be next to Two Rabbits Studios, a crew of dudes who bring the party wherever they go (as well as a much-needed dose of male energy to a field dominated by the ladies). They made the above bingo card--awesome.

This dolly is from Hillery Spoat of Specks and Keepings; since my birthday is usually near Renegade, I often get to pick out a present from Peter there, and this year I chose one of these. So incredibly beautiful and strange!

Here's me, my stuff, and my boothmates in SF!

Picked up some sweet shirts; kind of out of my usual fashion range but these were just too good. The first: J'aime Tacos from MNKR

Eternal Pizza Party by SEIBEI

I fell in love with this print; it's already framed and above my bed: Best Friends by Nan Lawson.

I got a handful of great postcards from Catlin, but this was by far the best: Inspiration by Caitlin Holcomb of Nice.

 The best part of doing these shows was meeting new friends, seeing people I haven't seen in years, and getting to say hello to Internet amigos that I adore but hadn't yet met IRL. (yeah, I said it.) I got to meet the most wonderful Becky Haycox, a true soul sistah, and the awesome Jenny Ryan, who even bought one of my California necklaces!

Yay for shows, and yay for the relaxation when they're over!

WIPED OUT.

Rejected!

 My internet friend Erika Kern linked to her friend Nik's genius piece of embroidery on Facebook this morning. It was based on the actual text of a bonafide fool. This takes me back to my most delicious rejection, the time I asked a guy out and he said he was "really busy" reading The Two Towers (this was right around the time the movie came out). It was amazing. Men are a true mystery.

Renegade LA

It's been a crazy week! I'd like to think that by the end of it I will be pretty proud of myself for keeping it together. I'm at my parents' house right now celebrating my birthday (yesterday) and just sewed a bunsload of stuff for Renegade LA this weekend. I can't wait to see my friends, and also can't wait to meet some new friends who I've only known on the internetz thus far.

Heaven Can Wait....Forever!

Oddly enough, I waited a really long time to see this one (Get it? Waited? Like in the title?! Blam.). It wasn't heaven, though; it was just okay. Kind of a stinker, actually. The Lubitsch Touch usually leaves me feeling like a little bit o' charm could conquer the world, but aside from the sassy grampa, I wasn't charmed by any of the characters in this movie. Also, I think I kind of hate the 1890's. While trying to find out if anyone else on the internets felt this way, I found my new favorite film blog, Feminema, written by the kind of lady I aspire to be, which has a great discussion of why Heaven Can Wait is such a drag.

The most exciting thing about this movie is that my friend and genius illustrator Caitlin Kuhwald created the Criterion cover shown above. Isn't it purty?

Psychedelic Sunday: my year is a day

This video is notable for its amazing composition of humans; the four dudes really know how to stand nonchalantly in the most choreographed ways imaginable! Also, racecars!

Yeah, I'll have one of those...

I don't have $38 for these, but I do love a good children's tea set. I wonder if this is still a fun thing for kids; I know it was for me. That may have had something to do with the fact that my mom/grandmother let me have tea parties that involved serving SUGAR WATER to my compatriots. So delicious.

Renegade!

 All of a sudden, it's almost time for my Renegade adventure. Next weekend I'm selling in SF, then I'll drive down to LA for their fair the weekend after that. Eek! I'm having a pretty good time making tons of new stuff; I hope folks like it. Around this time before a show, things start to get pretty messy and it looks even more like a rainbow barfed in this tiny house.

This is what the dining table looks like today. I'm pretty happy about it.

Gnomes, Tulips, and a Lawnmower

Short and sweet. This is pretty much my ideal afternoon; placing four gnomes in a garden, messing with a scarecrow, casually riding around on a lawnmower, and calling it a day.