Wallet: Upgraded

Etsy: Your place to buy & sell all things handmade Annievict.etsy.com

Jobless.

M and I had a great weekend doing some fun and exciting things. We played poker on Friday and lost $20 and then I hung out with Cheryl on Saturday. Sunday M and I and two of our friends went on a Sunset Boat Cruise out into Lake Michigan and back again.
Monte picked up these cool books and box of safety pins!


I was also able to produce this super cute pincushion with a brand new pattern that I just made up! COOL!! Here's a photo of it.

Also, in my first day of unemployment, I have applied for it. Then at least I will have some support if times get harder. But in happy news, the sewing room is ready to rock! I have switched my bedroom and the sewing room so that I have more room, more light and more organization. AND, there's room for 3 to sew together. I can teach my friends how to sew, or sew projects with my Craft Sunday crew. I'll try to take a photo later this week when its all set up.

I took head shots for my friend Cameron Esposito THE helarious, pro-woman Chicago comedian. Doesn't she look amazing?!

Job Search...

So... its official. Funding for the project I was working on is now practically non-existent. This means that I'll be out of a job at the end of this week. I've been looking on Craigslist and "Simply Hired" and "Indeed" but I haven't really gotten any bites yet. I've probably sent about 30 resumes so far. Its a bit discouraging to know that the economy is on a downturn but I'll just have to roll with the punches.

Thank goodness I've been saving money for the last couple months and I've got a safety net; but I don't want to use the money I've saved for that. I just don't know if I have much of a choice. Thank goodness I'll have 2 more weeks of pay coming.

If it was up to me, I'd like to have a non-corporate job, but I'm worried that if I don't stay in the corporate world, I'll get push back if I decide to come back into the corporate world. I'd like to be an event planner/wedding planner or photographer or have my own crafting business. These ideas just seem very... fragile though. They don't seem to have a lot of stability or income. I guess I just dream to big.

Terrible Beauty

There is something beautiful about this photograph. Mary Ellen Mark has taken many photographs over the years and you can see some of her best work here. Here's the blurb about this photograph:

Amanda and Her Cousin Amy, Valdese, North Carolina, USA, 1990 (catalog number 214H-143-002) IN 1990, Peter Howe at Life magazine sent me to North Carolina to photograph a special school for children with problems. The school was a very strange place because all of the twenty or so children were in the same classroom and their problems ranged from mild behavior instability to severe schizophrenia. Nine-year-old Amanda was the most interesting child in the class. She was my favorite child. Amanda was very intelligent and very naughty. One day I followed her home on the school bus. When the bus stopped at her house, she dashed ahead of me and ran into a nearby wooded area. I continued to follow her into the woods and eventually found her sitting in an old stuffed chair having a cigarette. She thought that I would reprimand her since I was an adult. But I said nothing. The following Sunday, I spent the day at home with Amanda and her mother. Amanda totally controlled her mother. She constantly gave her orders and proceeded to put on her mother's nail polish and makeup. Amanda smoked openly in front of her. Her 8-year-old cousin Amy was coming over, and she was very excited. All day long, Amanda and her cousin played like children. Every forty-five minutes or so, Amanda would take a break to have a cigarette. Her mother could say nothing; Amanda was the boss. Just before I left, I looked for Amanda to say good-bye. I found her and Amy in the backyard. They were in a children's inflatable pool. Amanda was taking her regular cigarette break.

Blog Roll me over...

• Here is a great list of links to make practically anything!
• This little lamb is so cute and looks like it would be a fun quick project.
• Here's a great way to make sure your tummy doesn't peek out of the bottom of your shirts if your pregnant... or, well, if you've got a few extra lbs. :)
• This page tells you a couple different ways to appliqué.
• Cardboard doll house idea.
  
• Who hasn't wanted to know how to create never ending bias tape?
• Quilt coloring pages would be a great way to get kids involved in quilting.
• This has to be one of the cutest aprons I've ever seen. I so want to buy it... but alas, I have so many projects and so little time. :(
• Kath Eats Real Food: A blog about a girl who eats healthy and has/will never be/en as big as I am... but its nice to see healthy being done well.
• This is a fun place to check for crafty ideas.
• And last but not least, a great site tutorial that shows you how to make and bind your own books, here.
  

Craft Sunday Today

Today's "Craft Sunday" was such a blast. My mother, a friend of mine, and I went today, and I got to demo the wallet (as mentioned in a previous post). My mom started our meeting out with her cute skunk and raccoon appliqués that couldn't have been more perfect! She really is a master in her craft. Her stitches are even, tiny and practically invisible. Beautiful stuff. The picture above isn't my mother's it's just a pic I found on the net of the pattern.

It was great to see the familiar faces and a couple new ones. Oy, I'm the worst at names, so maybe next month we should sew little fabric name tags. Just an idea.

It was such a great time showing people how to make something that I enjoy making.

I used to attribute it to being a Gemini, but I find myself a Jack... err-- Jill-of-all-trades. I dabble here, dabble there. I try one thing, then the next. I love the first time that I create something new and it comes out right; it's an unbeatable feeling! But I also feel that because I can do a little of everything, I also can't do anything really really well. I feel like most people have something in which they excel... that they can think, "I am really good at [this thing]." My mother excels at a lot of stuff, but I don't usually excel at anything. I mean don't get me wrong, I know I can do things with a decent ability, but I don't really "hit it out of the park".

Well today was different. I mean there are always places for improvement when you teach anything from one time to the next, but I feel like today went great. [Grin] It was so fulfilling to work with people who really are doing something for the fun of it. We created a feeling of community in the little time we all spent together and we all were 100% successful. My friend, who I would guess was a little intimidated by the sewing machines being a newbie, created a beautiful wallet.

I've been reminiscing about when I used to teach the novice fencers the basics of fencing eppe. I was, to be sure, the WORST upperclassman fencer ON THE TEAM. Seriously. And you'd never guess it, but I was also the Women's Varsity Eppe Captain for my team. It was an honor that was only topped by the team leadership award I received at the end of the season.

I guess sometimes you don't need to be the best to be what's really needed.


After a day like today, the icing on the cake was the comment from a woman in the class:

Anonymous said...

This was great! Thanks so much for teaching the class and showing us how to make these. You are a natural. I really enjoyed it!
--green/blue walleter

May 18, 2008 5:58 PM

What a great time. Can't wait until next month.

For now I leave you with these bits:

• What a cute makeup bag here. And its a wonderful tutorial. I think I need to put this on my list of projects to try.
• She's also got a great pattern for a Towel Pool Bag.
  
• Paper Roses look so beautiful and fun to make. Why didn't I think of that?! :)
• If only I could get my craft room to look like this. Did I mention that M says he'd like everything in that room to be cleaned up by the end of next weekend? Eek... better get a move on.
• Here's a great place to look for fresh ideas. I usually don't miss a day without reading their blog. Oh yeah, and their magazine is pretty fun too.
  
• If you're looking to spruce up your house for the spring and summer, check this out!
• This looks like such a fun gift to give a little boy or girl... and the idea is genius!
• Beautiful Quilt.
• This is a way to create something that will keep you from using as many plastic sandwich bags.
• I made one of these for Jill's birthday present. Its a well laid out tutorial.
  
• Random Inspiring story.

Losing the Weight Battle

So today is the second day that I have woken up at 6, packed my lunch and went to the gym before work. I feel good about it, but I need to keep up the good eating and exercise at the same time.

In other news, my parents are coming into town tomorrow night, so that will be an interesting time. I still have a lot of cleaning to do before they get here.