Tuesday, July 31, 2012

yer a wizard

Today is Harry Potter's birthday. If he were a real person he would be turning 32. He managed to defeat Voldemort and therefore most of the wizarding worlds' source of evil before his 18th birthday.  I am 22 years old and have only managed to move around the country five times, attend a bunch of different schools and rack up a hefty amount of college loans. You win, Harry.

For anyone who is unaware, I love Harry Potter. I've read all the books, several times, and seen all the movies, many times (only the last one not in theatres). I own all of the books and movies but until recently it never occurred to me to have any other Potter merchandise. I can't believe what a bad fan I am! A few days ago at work a girl came in wearing he deathly hallows necklace and I told her how much I liked it and then kicked myself for not having one of my own. When I got home I decided that I would make one for myself which I did using jewelry wire and assorted tools. I've tried a couple different gauges and ways about making it look good and not like a six year old slapped it together. In my mind, however, it looks fantastic and I'm already planning a matching earring set.

Shortly after realizing hat I needed more HP "merchandise" I remembered seeing a picture online that I loved of Harry's glasses with the scar right above. I needed one which meant I had to make it. Yay I love projects! I used this tutorial except I couldn't seem to find freezer paper and had to pin my paper to he shirt so it wouldn't move while I was painting. I love the way it came out and I can't wait to wear it! I'm getting all these ideas for different shirts I can make. I think my next one will be Jimmy Neutron inspired (I love that show!).




Friday, July 27, 2012

time together

As I've mentioned before, many times, Tanner and I rarely seem to have matching schedules and he always works late while I tend to skip around in shifts. Aside from days off together, we find some usable time when I don't work until 4pm or later. This time Tanner went in at four and I followed at six. We didn't have too much time but the weather was fairy nice and I wanted to get some fresh air before heading to work myself. There's a whole bunch of stores on Congress Street that we haven't explored and there are two record and vintage shops right next door that I always want to go into and I finally had my chance! The first store had a variety of vintage records, cassette tapes, VHS movies, DVDs, old video games, found photos, and odd 80s and 90s memorabilia. I really want to get a record player because I see so many records that I think we'd enjoy playing all the time and really, why not? They're inexpensive and more common than I'd realized. Someday! I didn't get anything but Tanner bought a couple found photos and an old book of folk songs. Then we went upstairs to the second vintage store where we found many more records and some clothes and shoes- some on consignment. We left there and went into a hat store even though we didn't have too much time left. Tanner has been looking for a straw hat for camp and as he searched for one I tried on a lovely grey floppy straw hat. If we had more time I would have loved to try on more hats and pretend to be British and on my way to a tea party. Next time.

As work approached for Tanner we started to make our way back and then he saw a pizza place and decided we were getting pizza for lunch. It's called Otto's and they have two locations in Portland, one on Congress and the other on Cumberland. We'd only been to the other one but I like the style of the one on Congress Street much better. You order in one side of the shop and then you go outside and through the other door (they're connected through the bar and kitchen) and there's seating! We sat right by the window at a counter but they were missing a second stool so we both sat in chairs feeling very small.

We had such a good time in our moment together and it makes me so happy when we can find the time for it. We're already planning a special day for Tuesday when we're both off!











in our kitchen








Thursday, July 26, 2012

right now

I am::

:: Sewing a pair of shorts for Tanner. Don't think I'm that sweet- he started them last week but I offered to finish them because I'm a faster sewer (I think) and he just wants them to be done already.

:: Loving the new shelf Tanner put up in the bathroom a few days ago. I can't stop staring at it!

:: Anxious to start a new embroidery project, make more clay charms, and braid a little friendship bracelet.

:: Remembering cool and rainy summer days when I would make jewelry or paint while watching The City of Lost Children and eating Teddy Grahams dipped in Nutella.

:: Wishing Tanner wasn't working so we could watch a movie together on our tiny couch or eat soup or maybe play a game.

:: Missing the Adirondacks very much and savoring every bit of New York I find.




in free time

Yesterday before I went to work Tanner and I decided to finally see Moonrise Kingdom at the theatre just across the street from my work in the Old Port. We saw the trailer sometime this past winter and in April when we saw Titanic in 3D. We'd be waiting for so long and then it came out and we forgot about it. Typical.

After the movie finished we had just over an hour before I had to be at work and I didn't want to go back to the apartment so we walked around the Old Port for a few minutes before deciding to get a psychic reading. Tanner had never done anything like that so I thought it would be fun for him. The lady let us ask two questions each and I think for the most part we liked what she said. She was a little/lot off on a couple things for one of Tanner's questions but we had fun. Then Tanner suggested that we go see some starfish in the marina but the tide was too high and we couldn't see to the bottom. We did see what we thought were anchovies. It was a little breezy and cool but the sun was so warm and we stood on the deck for a while just talking and soaking in the atmosphere. I love being at the marina so much. There weren't many people at all, only a harbor full of boats.




Monday, July 23, 2012

a new craft

A few days ago I taught myself how to embroider. [Really it's exactly like sewing, but with different stitches to get  different effects.] About a month ago I came across a blog that I have since lost, and this girl talked about how she just taught herself to embroider and already she was loving it. That's the short of it. I'll have to find her link again. I was so inspired and couldn't believe that I'd never thought of it before! I grabbed a bunch of supplies and they sat on top of my sewing basket for a few days before I did anything with them. I originally wanted to make something cute for when Tanner came home but he had to go back to work sooner than planned and I ran out of time. Too many projects going on. The other day when he was at work I felt inspired and wanted to see what I could do with it so I started embroidering! I made a few mistakes and I'm not quite sure what stitch I did but I like the way it turned out. And for my first self-taught embroidery project, I'd say I did a great job. Tanner thinks it's cute. Now I just need to find a place to hang it. For now it's propped against the wall on a kitchen counter. I have one more hoop with me, a little smaller, that I'll have to find something to embroider. So many ideas, so little time.




Sunday, July 22, 2012

ribbon (verb)

I've been so preoccupied since Tanner got back Wednesday night! With both of us working and trying to do fun things with our little bits of time together, attempting to read my seventh book of the summer, and so many bites from the craft bug! Then last night we made a trip to Mercy Hospital because Tanner hurt himself (not badly) at work and wanted to get checked out. Whew.

Before Tanner came home last week I started to ribbon a plain pair of dark shorts (like how I changed 'ribbon' into a verb?). I got half way through and realized I would need a few more inches of ribbon so I stopped until my next trip to A.C. Moore which wasn't until the day Tanner came back. I originally got the ribbon for decorating my plant pots but I fell in love with the fabric of it and knew it was too good for a pot but perfect for shorts. I'm so happy with the way they came out! I'm sure it wouldn't been much quicker if I had a sewing machine and knew how to use it. By hand it took about an hour and a half (I was distracted by The Phantom of the Opera). I have another pair of shorts but I'm not sure if I should embroider them or add a printed ribbon to them. Or maybe I should just leave them be. Hm, what to do?



Wednesday, July 18, 2012

the return

Tanner's coming back tonight! He found out a few days ago that he wasn't able to get the next two days off and he has to work tomorrow afternoon. He's pretty bummed about that and that he can't finish the week at camp but he's also happy to be coming back to Portland. And I am too! He'll be here a little after midnight though but I'll wait up and we'll probably have a late dinner together.

Since Tanner's coming back I need to go over my to-do list during his absence. I didn't read four books, only one and a half. And 25 pages of another. But it's the intention that counts! I was super crafty though. I decorated all those pots and a pair of shorts I'll post about later. I have another pair of shorts I'm either going to add ribbon to or embroider and I'm planning on teaching myself how to embroider very soon. I went to the farmer's market last week and bought some yummy food (those cherry tomatoes were so delicious!) and I've been trying to make good and healthy meals and snacks for myself. I did have a dinner planned for tonight when Tanner gets back but I think it'll be too late for it. And then the last thing, I wasn't able to get a piece of furniture to hold our games and such but I'm looking. Hopefully soon I'll find something that will work.

The sooner Tanner gets back the sooner we can go on more summery adventures together. I can't wait!

Tuesday, July 17, 2012

doing!

I first want to say how happy I am with myself in all of my reading and crafting and before-next-birthday accomplishments I've achieved since moving to Portland. Especially before I had a job and Tanner was at work and now when Tanner's been gone for so long in New York. I've really pushed myself to keep doing crafts and making good meals and reading (although I'm only on book seven and it's the middle of July). So a few nights ago at work I discovered this book, The Book of Doing, and it made so much sense in my life! I might need to get a copy or maybe start my own. The point of the book is to inspire you to do or start something everyday. I wasn't able to look through very much of it's a great book, especially for those who need a little push in doing something (and it's not all creative either). The one page that caught my eye was about reading a biography of someone who you admire. It gave a list of examples and then the author included a little story about how she once limited herself to reading only biographies for a whole year. Woah. That really struck me as something I should do. I just finished reading  Luncheon of the Boating Party which is a historical fiction novel about Renoir's famous painting and the people in it. I loved every page and it makes me want to read more about him. So I decided that once I finish my summer reading I'm only going to read biographies and historical fiction for the rest of the year. I couldn't do a whole year but I think the remaining four months will be great.

I can't wait to get back to the library!

Saturday, July 14, 2012

with clay

Last winter I had the brilliant idea that I need to be making jewelry with polymer clay. I grabbed a bunch of colors and they sat in my craft box for almost five months before I touched them. I've never worked with clay before. I've never made beads out of anything before. I'm in new territory. This past weekend I decided to break out my clay, for the second time, and try to make some earrings for myself and carve little designs in them. Sounds simple, right? Well, not for me. In my head they looked fabulous but in my hands, not so much.

I wanted little discs and flattened out the clay and carved out a circle. The thing I'm still working on is getting the surface smooth and free of fingerprints. Then I carved out my designs and tried to smooth the edges of the carvings but again, I'm still working on that. After they dried I fixed them to the earring findings and that was that! Simple, aside from the lack of smoothness. I guess I'll just have to practice.


Friday, July 13, 2012

crafty

Much to the dismay of my summer reading goals, I've been online a lot looking at crafty things and getting oh so very inspired. I can't help it! I need to create things. I've decided that I will be taking on more goals this summer by  doing crafts as often as possible. Well I've been so inspired that in the last few days I've started about five projects and today I was able to finish a couple of them. I'm so excited!

Tanner and I are proud owners of two lovely house plants, Addie and Yoshi, but I realized that I wanted more. I wanted little green babies. So I went out and got them. Mostly because I read this article and then this one and decided that my life would be incomplete without decorated plant pots. Pastels and lace. What a wonderful combination. It took me a few days because of work and waiting for the paint/glue to dry but today I finally finished decorating all seven of my green babies' pots!











































And while I was doing all this painting I was struck with an idea to switch out our writing utensil jar with a bigger one and decorate it with paint and lace! I must be a genius.


Wednesday, July 11, 2012

will read for books

This morning before I adventured my way into the farmer's market I stopped by the library to drop off two of the three books I recently took out. Unfortunately, I haven't been keeping to my scheduled two books a week so I'll need to renew this last one since I don't see myself finishing the remaining 350 pages by Monday. (It seems like an easy feat but it's not the kind of book I can just fly through-I need time to absorb what I'm reading; I've also been bitten by the craft bug.) I don't think I've had to renew a book in at least eight years. Mostly because I've only been reading my own books or ones I've borrowed from other people. But regardless of all that, when I dropped off my two books I finished my adult summer reading card and was qualified to get a prize! There's a major prize at the end of the summer but in the meantime there are little baby prizes which are so great! I chose a free lemon or limeade from Kamasouptra because, why not? It's summer, right? The other prizes were a $2 off ticket for the Portland Museum of Art, something I forgot, or a beautiful little fabric doll. For some reason I was drawn to the doll but I couldn't rationalize my need for it. I also discovered that I can get a free day pass to the Portland Museum from the library just by having a library card! Rest assured, I will absolutely be taking advantage of that as soon as I can. I think it's good for two adults and six children.

What a wonderful life I have.


farmer's market

I love Monument Square. Art Walk is held there on the first Friday of every month, the library is there, and every Wednesday (but sometimes Tuesday or Thursday) the farmer's market is there. Tanner and I had been planning on going but it never worked out with our schedules but I've been through it several times on my way to work. Today I planned, got up earlyish and walked the very short distance to Monument Square. It starts at 7am and it's obvious that I was late (it was about 11am when I got there). Maybe next week I'll become an early riser. Most of the stalls held flowers. Beautiful sunflowers and potted arrangements and hanging flowers; there were herbs and spices and lilies and many other flowers that I had no idea what their names were. And then of course there were vegetables! So many veggies! Fruit, too. Blueberries, carrots, spinach, garlic scapes, and so much more. Pretty much anything you would want was there. And then there were jewelry and candle and art vendors, too. There were so many people and dogs and it was very warm. I decided I would only spend $20 because if I spent more, I probably wouldn't eat it. For $19.50 I got a quart of apple cider, a dozen free-range eggs, a bag of apples, a quart of cherry tomatoes, and a quart of blueberries. The only thing I was looking for but probably missed due to my lateness, was celery. I already have the peanut butter and raisins!

Overall I'd say it was a good day at the farmer's market. I can't wait to go next week and I really can't wait to start growing my own food!




Tuesday, July 10, 2012

23 before 23

As I've mentioned before, I made another list of things I want to accomplish before my next birthday. This one was hard for me while I was writing it but lately I've been thinking of so many things I could've added. I put the finished list on the fridge in hopes that I would look at it everyday and remind myself not to slack off. While reading it over I've realized how many things need to be made: 1) learn how to embroider; 16) make a summer hat; 21) bake a dessert/pastry from scratch; and so on. Oh, and then I want to crochet everything. But I really think this is a reasonable list and I'm excited to calm down in the excitement of summer and starting a new job to get started on my list. I also added a couple things that will really put me outside of my social comfort zone- 8) join a social group of sorts; 10) volunteer at an animal shelter. But I have faith in myself!

A few days ago I finished reading my fifth book of the summer (only fifteen more to go). I was really lagging on that last book but I'm already hooked into this new one so I think I'll fly through these next two. I feel so silly but I really can't wait to read twenty books by the end of August. 

And, I'm proud to say, I've already crossed one thing off my list- 14) make a stop-motion movie [I've actually made two!]. I'm super excited to sharpen my skills and make my little movies better and possibly add some music. 

Nineteen left to go and eleven and a half more months!