Friday, July 30, 2010

book review: sewing for dummies

If you ever sew, or think about sewing, at any level from 
beginner to advanced, you've got to read Sewing for 
Dummies, by Jan Saunders Maresh. Twice.
I checked it out from the library, read the whole thing,
and when I started my next sewing project, I checked it
out again as a reference. It covers all the basics of 
sewing, from creating a buttonhole to reading a pattern.
There are also lots of pointers for making various 
sewing tasks easier, many of which include the temporary 
use of (who would have guessed?) invisible tape.
Then there's stuff I had never heard of, like the 
difference between pressing and ironing, the fact that
pressing stitches can secure the stitching in place, 
and how/when to hand-tie instead of backstitching threads.
With lots of tips, descriptions, and illustrations, this book
is a must-read for anyone in any way interested in sewing!

Monday, July 26, 2010

checking in

Hi, Everybody!
Sorry about going silent there for so long!
I've been busy working on a big project. 
It's a surprise for someone who reads this
blog, so I've been keeping quiet about it.
All my spare time has been headed in that
direction lately, but pretty soon I'll be back
to my old shenanigans! And after the unveiling,
I'll let you know what I've been up to lately.

Saturday, July 17, 2010

Thursday, July 15, 2010

summer reading


My latest reading has been The Power of Less, by Leo Babauta.
Time management is one of my major weaknesses, so I found
it very interesting. I especially like his ideas about single-tasking
instead of multi-tasking. After all, I'm a notoriously lousy
multi-tasker; but I have yet to become a super-effective single-
tasker! I also think his ways of dealing with home paperwork
have some good potential, as well as his fluid but prioritized
way of attacking the daily schedule. Now to try it out!

Sunday, July 11, 2010

leafy seadragon, take 3

I felt like the first version of this, with the white background,
was a bit stark, so I tried out some different options. 
Which one's your favorite?!?

Saturday, July 10, 2010

Friday, July 9, 2010

Wednesday, July 7, 2010

Tuesday, July 6, 2010

clownfish

Whew! I'm back to painting again! It's been a long time, 
and I must say I've been distracted by all things bag related. 
I've been researching interfacing, soaking up sewing books 
(Sewing For Dummies is definitely a worthwhile read!), 
cutting out patterns, and reading up on tax codes. 
I have no intention of losing the habit I started this blog out for 
in the first place, however. So the painting will go on!


Here's one of the clownfish we saw at the Birch Aquarium.
I have loved clownfish ever since Finding Nemo.
Did you know that all clownfish start out as males,
and when the female member of the breeding pair dies,
the dominant male changes gender and becomes a female?!?
Fascinating.

I believe this means that Nemo's dad should have become his mom.