February 28th

The last of the month, a time to update on my new year’s goals! My last update was January 31st.

1. Putting my laundry away: still doing this. I also rearranged some of my drawers so things fit better, and started going through my tank tops (90% of what I wear is tank tops) and tossing the raggedy ones. Maybe next I’ll get rid of all my leggings with holes in the crotch? LOL YA RITE.

2. Growing out my hair: STILL GROWING. I think that once it gets a bit longer (like in six months or so) it’ll be long enough to have bangs again. If I have bangs then I won’t have to grow out the front of my hair, and I’ll be able to tie the rest back earlier, without having to use a thousand bobby pins and clips to capture all the short front pieces. I figure six months from now, the end of the summer is the perfect time to cut bangs. It’s still so short that if I cut them now I’d probably look like a disheveled Romulan or something. No one needs that.

When I was trying to decide between bangs-or-no bangs I found these two pictures from just before I cut bangs and just after.
Working Husband
Bangs???
I found it very inspiring because these are from just 3 years ago (the bangs pic was actually taken February 28th, 2011), and look at how short Taylor’s hair was then! And mine is longer now than his was then, so in just 2 1/2 years I’ll have hair as stupidly long as his is now. Seriously, he’s like a Disney princess with his long perfect hair. I keep checking it for split ends so I can force him to cut it but it’s just too healthy! UGH, MEN.

3. Stop eating potato chips during the week: I had potato chips once on a weekend, and idk, they weren’t that great. I haven’t craved them since. I’M FINALLY FREE YOU GUYS. I kind of feel like I should quit some other kind of unhealthy food now but idk what.

4. Be consistent with wearing sunscreen (especially on my feet): still pretty irrelevant, I’ve been wearing my little slip-on shoes sometimes but not for any extended periods of time. ACtually I had to throw away my fave little slip-ons because they finally had too many holes, and switch to the back-up pair, which are black and I don’t like them as much. RIP, favourite little shoes.
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to continue the flashback Friday-ness of this post, here’s Georgie & her lil friend Lucy the Pug as tween dogs:
Georgie & Lucy
Have a good weekend, everyone!

February 24th

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the snow on Saturday // new boots (see below for details) // dressing up in my shirt // Sadie’s disguise // little monster // bundled up (this may seem like overkill but she fell over in horrible mud & slush 1000+ times) // speckled dog // a snowy walk // crocus babies // the path // Wingdust in I Ain’t No Angel (see below for details) // the faces of dinner, 1 2 3 // a patient scavenger // tiny toes // the lion returns

idk about you, but this month has been d r a g g i n g for me. It’s weird because I had two 4-day weeks (when I took a day off sick & the week of Family Day) and somehow those seemed to make the month longer. It makes no sense! I am so ready for February to be over, once my birthday and Valentine’s Day have past it’s like what is even the point of this month???
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It’s Monday morning as I type this and it’s been snowing for the past 48 hours AT LEAST. It was snowing when I woke up on Saturday and it’s still snowing now. The weird thing is there’s barely any snow on the ground; it started sticking a little yesterday but there isn’t really any more snow on the ground now than there was then? Who knows; maybe today it’ll REALLY start sticking. Good thing I didn’t throw away my handy DO NOT SALT THE STAIRS sign (I wonder if anyone will actually read it though).
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If you follow me on instagram you might have seen the genesis of Gwen’s new boots. I got this gorgeous, buttery-soft dark brown leather in a bag of scraps a few months ago and as soon as I saw it I knew it had to be made into boots. On Wednesday night I started drafting a pattern and made a wearable fleece (like a wearable muslin in dressmaking but out of fleece and also it’s a boot, so it functions as a slipper or bootliner, although I only made one so to really be wearable I’d need to make a second). On Thursday I scanned and enlarged the pattern (it was a little small, like it worked as a fleece but leather is less forgiving), and worked out how to make the boots able to open on one side and accommodate some sort of fastening apparatus to make them easier to get on and off. In the afternoon I cut out all the pieces and in the evening I started sewing; I got everything done except attaching the soles, which I did on Friday.

After considering using velcro, elastic and/or some sort of buttons I decided the best way to fasten the boots would be with snaps. I figured they would be the most durable and also I wouldn’t have to sew any more leather because by the time I finished the boots my hands were MURDERED. On Saturday morning I picked up a little snaps & snap setter kit at Michaels, but when I got it home I realized the leather of the boots was too thin to use those snaps. It was pretty disappointing because I really wanted to finish the boots, but the too-big snaps were a nickel finish and I actually wanted an antique brass so I guess it’s for the best? I found snaps online and ordered two different smaller sizes, as well as some that are shaped like cute teddy bear faces because WHY NOT. Oh and a bag of fifty neon pink dome rivets because DOUBLE WHY NOT I mean it was $3.50 + $1 shipping. I was also very tempted to buy some sides of metallic leather in pink and green and turquoise but I didn’t and tbh I think I should be commended for my self control here.

The pattern I came up with is pretty simple- I re-used the sole & vamp pieces from my scallop moccasins (without the scallop) and made a two-piece pattern for the shaft (that is the part of the boot that goes up the leg fyi). It was pretty easy to make although DEFINITELY more sewing than the moccs, although I did enlarge the pattern significantly so that also contributed. It was kind of a learning experience as there are a few things I would change if I were to make another pair (the way I sewed the vamp to the front of the shaft and the seam up the back of the shaft) but for a first attempt I’d saw they are a huge success (or will be, if I ever get THOSE DAMN SNAPS). Gwen has been very happy to wear them around the house without the snaps, plus put them on her hands and chew them.

If I do perfect the pattern I might put up a diy for these, and I’m also planning on making a video (FUN) showing my handsewing leather technique, since one of the most common questions I get about my moccs diy is “DO YOU SERIOUSLY SEW THESE BY HAND LIKE OMG HOW??????
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I’ve now had these fake nails for a month and I’m really happy with them. I barely even remember what it was like to have sad, weak, brittle, peel-y nails that disintegrated if you looked at them funny. I had them filled again on Saturday and the white tips redone, although I painted them that day so I could have skipped that part. I came up with a plan in January to turn all my polishes backwards in the shelf and anything that was still backwards in six months would get the ol’ heave-ho, so I’m determined to use all my faves at least once. This week I tried the second of my Wingdust polishes, I Ain’t No Angel and I seriously can’t recommend this indie brand enough. Again, the polish is gorgeous, with tons of multi-size glitters that are easy to get out of the bottle and onto your nail- no weird digging around in the bottle & dabbing glitters on technique required. The polish dries quickly and is opaque after two coats.
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a couple links for this cruddy Monday:

Sara M Lyons did some AMAZING Beyonce nail decals for Emerging Thoughts, you can preorder them here.

The Disaster Life collaborated with Stay Home Club to make t-shirts, prints, totes and patches, and she’s also doing a giveaway on instagram if you like to win things.

I finally listed my black & white gem sticker set, you can see all my stickers here.

Finally, check out this SERIOUSLY amazing Palentine’s Day party, featuring a custom banner by yours truly.

February 18th

What's up, sky, lookin good ;)
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my fuzzy valentines
I went overboard on Valentine's dinner, like what kinda dumdum cuts out onion hearts????
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Little green frog & I out for a walk
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beautiful sky // always running somewhere // a tiny smile// Elke, abandoned // good ol’ Honey Paws // my funny-haired Valentine // Gwen’s Valentine outfit, top from Joe Fresh & leggings from Old Navy // I sort of went overboard on the heart-shaped food for Valentine’s Day // am I a lion? // out for a walk in her green Newt Suit // new stickers that I haven’t put up for sale yet (although the full-colour version is available) // hello, kitty // baby eats: cereal& crackers for snack // it’s cold outside but it’s cozy in here // Quo by Orly in Twinkle Twinkle + Essie in A Cut Above // seriously, help me put my lion suit!

Gwen is really in to dress-up recently. She is obsessed (OBSESSED) with the lion costume and insists on wearing it pretty much all the time. She’ll take any clothing item she finds lying around (or plucks from the laundry hamper) and drape it around her shoulders like a shawl, and she’s very good at putting hats (or hat-like objects, baskets, etc) on her head.

She has some baby friends that she plays with now, and it’s so rewarding seeing her interact with them. When she first met another baby she actually thought she was a dog and would pat her on the head and put toys in her mouth. Now they actually PLAY, either with toys or, more often than not, chasing each other around the house and screaming with laughter. It’s one of my favourite things to watch, they just have so much fun.

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I’m finally finally finally starting to get better after over a month and a half of this terrible cold. My sinuses have cleared up enough to allow me to be able to tell when the baby has a dirty diaper. Perhaps a mixed blessing? Anyway now I just need to be rid of this STUPID ENDLESS COUGH. Gwen is also improving. Her nose is much less runny and I assume her ear infection has cleared up. I really hope so because getting antibiotics in her 3 times a day was worse than giving medication to a cat.

February 11th

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trying to get over the gate // I bought these little powdered donuts for a Flowers in the Attic viewing with some friends but I was too sick so I had to cancel, I guess I’ll have to eat them all myself // Georgie & Harley trying to convince my neighbor to let Harley off the leash so they could wrassle // my other neighbor’s cat watched from the roof, disapprovingly // cool baby at lunch // baby eats: rotini carbonara // always always always making “What Is The Point” banners, I think these are my 3rd-best sellers // always nice to see that I’ve managed to keep my pathetic hydrangea alive // after years of my trying & failing to cultivate it, the moss is finally coming back in my “””garden””” (more like garbage-den tbh)

I think a witch has put a hex on me. No, really. I just keep stupidly injuring myself/being injured in the stupidest ways through no fault of my own. First I leaned my arm on that little plastic toy bowl while it was supporting all my weight PLUS the baby, then I dropped that huge block of wood on my foot. The whole slipping in mud & crash-landing on gravel while pranking incident happened, and then this weekend my cat jumped into my lap while I was wearing a short dress and jammed all her claws into my thigh and I screamed and woke Taylor up. PLUS I’ve had this shitty cold for SIX WEEKS and everyone else who had it already got better but I have a sinus infection still!

WHAT THE HELL, UNIVERSE. CUT THE SHIT.

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Ever since I watched the Evgeni Plushenko “Pony” video last night I’ve had that stuck in my head, and I’m reminded of the time I made some reference to it to Taylor and he was like “I’m not familiar.” It was literally this, except he was Ann & I was Tom. Some other funny things about Taylor:

Once we were watching one of the Harry Potter movies and he called Voldemort “That Ralph Fiennes-lookin’ motherfucker.” THAT IS RALPH FIENNES OMG.

When we watched Magic Mike (HIS PICK, BTW) afterwards he was like “That was like some…. Steven Soderbergh movie!” Guess what, IT IS A STEVEN SODERBERGH MOVIE.

He also claims to have never heard Ignition (Remix) OR know the words to Rudolph the Red-Nosed Reindeer. Idk about him, you guys.

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I want to take a minute to thank everyone who bought a pack of the Symmichi stickers Sym designed. I told her she could have 100% of the money and as predicted, she’s spending it on lip gloss and sour gummi candies. On Friday she bought herself a bag of sour gummi worms and saved all the red & blue striped ones for me. For about 1 minute I was all mushy about it because they are my favourites but then she told me she doesn’t like that colour. TWEENS. No but really, she’s just about the coolest kid in the world, and so funnyyyyyyyy omg. Hanging out with her is great.

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February 5th

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morning light // perched on the pouffe // blue sky & alders // digging through the dress-up box // the scene of last weeks prank: the compost bin I was hiding behind is just to the left of the picnic table, and when I finally fell I was almost at the bench on the right, so you can imagine how far I flailed // out for a stroll // walk-in clinic exam room mirror selfie // ginger ale & lozenges forever and ever amen

I was finally able to go to the doctor this morning and YAY I have a sinus & ear infection, which is exactly what I thought. I actually felt a bit better when I woke up but I guess all the otc meds I took last night must not have worn off yet because I felt steadily worse as the morning wore on. Since I had to take Gwen with me anyway I decided to have her checked out as well and she also has an ear infection which is GREAT JUST GREAT. Her second in six months, I guess she’s going to be as ear infection-prone as Sym was as a small child. Did you know that if an ear infection is bad enough it can rupture the eardrum and all the pus that was locked away will come streaming and/or oozing out over the course of several days? I do, because it happened to Sym, MULTIPLE TIMES. Ugh, I hope it doesn’t happen to Gwen, it’s so horrible :/

Anyway now that I’ve talked about pus let’s end this post with some positivity…
– a very sweet & generous friend sent me the money it would have cost me to take today off
– it’s gorgeous out, cold but sunny
– all the bras I ordered came in the mail today and actually fit
– even with an ear infection, Gwen is sweet and fun to be around
– it’s my birthday 🙂
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