Graduate
Graduate with Grandparents
Class of 2015
Master’s degree
From Houzz: Far out!
16 Dec
Last weekend, conversation drifted to dreams of log cabin mountain resorts. Rustic ski lodges are especially dreamy. However, the notions of log cabins seemed too conventional. Coincidence?
This week’s newsletter from Houzz.com has this article on shelters, modular living, huts and pods designed and prototyped in Denmark, Columbia, Japan and Scotland. Check it out! Atten-hut! My favorite is the hut designed by Fukusawa and built by Muji in Tokyo.
Which design is your favorite?
Friday Photo: I Ching No. 27 Providing Nourishment
11 Dec
Birthday cake from the Hummingbird Bakery, London
Well….cake may not be the best nourishment for the body, but it is essential for celebrations. I also highly recommend the Cake Bake Shop in Indianapolis.
Love these three projects from Shutterfly
8 Dec
2015 Holiday cards and 2016 Calendar
Yes, office assistant “Eve” even appears on my holiday cards. (She is “Eve” because she was found abandoned in a cattle trailer Christmas Eve of 2006).
The second project is a very special calendar for a WWII veteran featuring photos from two trips to the memorial in Washington D.C. (2008 Reunion and 2014 Honor Flight). I discovered last year (don’t know how long the feature has been available) that photos of family members can be dropped in on their birth dates with text! @92 years young, it helps! This 2016 calendar was a quick update of what I prepared for 2015 and saved as a project on the Shutterfly site.
“My Life as an Artist” by Mary Ann Boysen
My cousin Mary Ann Boysen’s career as an artist spans 40 years. She prepared this book as a legacy for her grandsons. She shared her book with me on Shutterfly. Yes, I wanted to have my own copy to “tell the story” of my own 20+ collection of her watercolor originals (plus a few prints). The book format is 11″X14″ and 93 pages is hardly enough to do justice to her life’s work.
Oh! and Shutterfly included with the shipments 40% off discounts thru the end of the year. There may be an update 🙂
Friday Photo: I Ching No.35 Prospering
4 Dec
Neuschwanstein Castle, Bavaria, March 2012
Wikipedia sites the design of Neuschwanstein inspired both Walt Disney’s Sleeping Beauty and Cinderella’s castles.
Love this from Spoonflower
1 Dec
2016 Lemon
2016 Peacock
Linen-Cotton Canvas Ultra: Fat Quarter with 2016 calendar. There are dozens of designs available @ spoonflower.com
Finish the edges with rolled hem. Easy, beautiful, dual purpose (tea towel and calendar).
I may prepare my own design for 2017.
Friday Photo: I Ching No. 42 Augmenting or Increase
27 Nov
From the kitchen of Neuscwhanstein, Bavaria 2012
Better than a Scavenger Hunt
24 Nov
Office assistant Eve: “Don’t you have something better to do?”
We support Days for Girls International with donations of items for kits.
Lessons learned from preparing 4 shipments of feminine hygiene reversible, tri-fold flannel pads and liners with wings, pockets, PUL and snaps.
In order to make hundreds of pads and dozens of liners from dozens of yards of flannel and cotton print at home on a single sewing machine: STAGING is essential for sanity in my attic sewing room.
Notion 1: DfGI suggested purchasing flannel in 2.5 yard increments.
Problems: Shrinkage after washing. Fabric twist. Variations in width of 4″ (bolt to bolt).
Consequence: Enough remnant strips and blocks to make two twin size coverlets.
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- Stripe 1
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- Stripe 2
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- Blocks
Lesson 1: Buy flannel in 4.12-4.25 yard increments.
Beautiful flannel (left) plus batik cotton (right)
Lesson 2: After wash & dry, cut one yard at a time, then cut (4) 9″ strips, then cut strips into usually 8″ blocks.
Lesson 3: Stack flannel 8″X9″ blocks right sides together. Bag 8 pairs of blocks in gallon size ziplock bags for easy counts, grab to sew and go… (Plus the ziplock bags are available for the finished kit.)
WIP Flannel blocks staged to cut corners
Notion 2: Pack shipping boxes when sewing complete.
Lesson 4: Use shipping boxes for Work In Progress! Saves a LOT of space, especially since the boxes fit in closet.
Shipping box first used for Work In Process (WIP)
Just like all elves this time of year, Elfcroft is completing the items needed for kits delivered all around the world (over 70 countries).
Follow up Friday Photos: IChing No. 63 and 64
20 NovI Ching No. 63 After Completion
The Elf in Elfcroft has the sewing machine humming making functional gift bags. These gift bags are also known as shower caddies to be given to the women residents of Wheeler Mission this Christmas. I used outdoor fabric (water and mildew resistant) from www.fabricguru.com. Four outer pockets surround the center opening. 25 yards (54″width) made 75 shower caddies.
Ready for delivery
I Ching No. 64 Before Completion
The last two years we filled back packs with socks, gloves, scarves, etc. Several years before that we filled tote bags. Our choice this year are these homemade bags. Bath products to fill the shower caddies will be provided by friends and coworkers.
I read a comment that there was an error with the I Ching translation. “Before Completion” should be 63 and “After Completion” should be 64. This is not an error. Completion in this case refers to work. The interesting concept is that work-in-process (WIP) has multiple completions. I could have chosen to show rolls of fabric for “Before” and the finished shower caddies as “After”. BOLO for a future post with the empty caddies as the “Before” and filled with gifts “After.
And here you have it! I Ching No. 63 Another After Completion
Our leader Kathy
Gloves, socks, etc with great friends
Jennifer directs
Mission accomplished: 72 shower caddy gift bags for the women at Wheeler Mission
Scavenger Hunt
18 Nov
As I read “20 ways to organize your craft space”by Laura Gaskill, I kept thinking “scavenger hunt” because I knew I could find these concepts here at home. One thing leads to another….I turned it into a quiz of sorts and scored myself at 85 of 100.
- Sort yarn by color X
- Stand paper rolls in basket (with yoga mats)
- Place loose paper in drawers
- Tools/supplies in clear bins w/lids
- For large paper: art portfolio
- Stack fabric on shelf by color
- WIP in totes or baskets
- Stash fabric in wire drawers (discarded wine rack)
- Hang fabric in closet (standing towel rack)
- Arrange spools on thread rack
- Hang tools on peg board X
- Attach scissors to magnetic rail (store in case)
- Small items in lidded glass jars
- Paint brushes in open container
- Handled baskets for frequently used material
- Tiered cake stand as portable caddy X
- Pop-up sewing corner (permanent)
- Put storage on wheels (moving men sliders)
- Desk/dining table double duty (coffee table)
- To do list chalkboard wall (bulletin board)
Office assistant Eve: “Don’t you have something better to do?”
elfcroft 