I ♥ Tools

I visited the Talas shop in Brooklyn this past Friday and purchased this English paring knife. This tool is used to thin down edges of leather pieces. My main goal is to learn how to use this knife effectively *without* injuring myself.

From sweaty pig to guinea pig.

I've been trying out some Indian hair and body care products these last 2 weeks. This experiment all started with an online purchase of inexpensive ($.67) Chandrika herbal soap. This soap smelled so good, it filled up my whole apartment with a fresh incense-y scent. The hunt was on for some more, more, more. I couldn't afford to hop on a plane to India so instead I hopped on a train to "Curry Hill" located around 28th street and Lexington Ave. in Manhattan.

Here are some items I purchased to try out along with some info about the ingredients that I gathered from the internet:

1. Herbal shampoo - Amla & Shikakai with Reetha. Amla(Indian gooseberry) is known to nourish the hair and scalp and prevent premature grey hair, Reetha (Soapnut) is known to fight dandruff and keep hair tangle-free, and Shikakai (Acacia concinna) is an herb known to strengthen roots and detoxify the scalp.

2. Vatika - olive enriched hair oil with almond, cactus and lemon extracts. Massaged into the scalp and left in for a few hours it functions as a deep conditioner.

3. Aloe Vera soap - already finished this bar of soap (too small), made my skin feel nice and smooth while it lasted.

4. Mahabhringraj Oil - herbs in a base of sesame oil. This was recommended by the clerk to help with thinning hair. You massage it in your hair and leave it in overnight. The label says it encourages healthy hair growth and better sleep. zzzzz

5. Shikakai shampoo soap- this is the first bar soap I've ever used for my hair, it lathers up extremely well but it smells kinda funky, a bit like urine... lovely, right? It is known to strengthen hair and promote hair growth. You'll smell like pee-pee but your hair will look FANTABULOUS! Just joking, after you wash it out it smells fine. In theory you don't need to use conditioner with this because it doesn't strip your hair's natural oils like traditional shampoos.

6. Chandrika ayurvedic soap - smells like herbal awesomeness, like that hippie guy with the dreads and his dog begging for money on St. Mark's Place in the 90's. You know what I'm sayin'? Recommended!

7. Coconut shampoo- smells like the beach! From the label, "increases blood circulation of the scalp, ensures fast and luxuriant hair growth (ooh la la), checks falling of hair, prevents premature greying of hair". Sounds good to me.

Next month I'm sure I will have long, thick, fortified, lustrous, non-greying, dandruff-free, detoxified, luxurious hair and be the envy of the town. But seriously, if these work well this would be an excellent replacement for the chemical-filled shampoo and conditioners I've been using.

How awesome would it be to just use bar shampoo for your hair and be able to save all those plastic bottles from going into the landfill?

Guess what? I'm a sweaty pig!

Some lady at the post office just called me a sweaty pig because I wouldn't let her and another lady cut me off in line. I wish I had ninja skills at that moment so I could destroy her with my SWEATY PIG HOOVES!

recycled pants shoes

recycled pants shoes, originally uploaded by m patrizio.

Here are the shoes with the tongues put in. Definitely a mistake to try to put in the tongues after it is all stitched up.

Dear storage, stop tempting me. Thank you.

This storage cabinet from Target has been tempting me to buy it for at least the last 2 months. Sorry cabinet I have no monsies for you right now. If you have some extra monsies you can find it HERE.

recycled pants

Pants that no longer fit :( turned into a yoga mat carrier and shoesies awaiting their tongues. The idea for the yoga mat carrier was inspired by Lotta Jansdotter's book Simple Sewing.

morning routine

coffee prep

white mulberries

white mulberries , originally uploaded by m patrizio.

Picked these on the side of the highway with my momma. They taste pretty good, probably enriched with car exhaust. Carbon dioxide...yumm. If I get ill, you'll know from what.

Happy Bears & Peek-a- Boo Jellyfish fabric

For you DIY guys and gals- I've made a few of my fabric designs available through Spoonflower so you can make your own goodies out of them. Currently I have 3 designs available for purchase and another one (smiling apples) will be available within a few weeks. Here is a link to my design library - www.spoonflower.com/profiles/marilynpatrizio

Gregory

Available in my Etsy shop.

Mast Brothers Chocolate

Sal and I finally got a chance to stop into Mast Brothers Chocolate Factory in Williamsburg (BK). I love the old world look of the place and the classically patterned packaging. If you are in the area I recommend checking it out - 105A North 3rd St. Brooklyn, NY. We picked up a dark chocolate bar with almonds and sea salt. I would have taken a pic of the chocolate but we (mostly ME) scarfed it down fairly quickly. This makes me think... I would be a pretty lousy food photographer. I would end up having photos of plates with just crumbs on them. :)

Video from guardian.co.uk - A day at a bespoke shoemaker

rubber glove band

So I was Googling GIANT RUBBER BANDS, because that's how I like to enjoy my free time, don't judge, and I came across this awesome tip to recycle rubber gloves into large rubber bands by cutting them into strips. I just happened to have a rubber glove that became holey in the fingertips, so this was perfect timing. I originally kept the holey glove around because it was great for opening jar lids, but this is another great use! Yay to random internet finds!

On the work table

I started working on my next shoe project - Balmoral ankle boots. I thought I was clever mixing eyelet colors until after I finished up and realized I already owned a pair of sneakers that used the same idea (Converse RED). I didn't plan it out beforehand, I just happened to have a 6 red eyelets that were the same size as the antique bronze ones. I wanted to put 4 red on each boot but didn't have enough. Whenever I have a *super genius* idea (usually in the shower) I'm always paranoid that I picked it up from somewhere else. Does that ever happen to you?