Rooftop Kitties

Keepin' it cute when it is chilly out.

The barbed wire makes this pic verge on sad, but don't worry, this is a top-notch humane rooftop kitty prison. These cuties get fed a fine selection of Italian people food scraps (imported cold cuts, Whole Foods rotisserie chicken carcasses, homemade wine, and artisanal cheeses).

My first loaf of bread

Next time I need to add more herbs.

...and a pair for me

Made out of a lightweight polka dot fleece fabric with a green wool lining and leather sole (sueded side out).  I used the sole of an unworn pair of flip flops my aunt gave me as "the filling".  Any part of my body + thong = not gonna happen.  I ripped out the thong part, trimmed the toe area a bit to make it rounder and then used it as a template for the rest of the pattern.

Although it feels good on the skin, I don't recommend using fleece for something like this. It already started to pile from just making it. [Insert "did I just waste 10 hours of my life?" sad face here] Even though I interfaced all the pieces I feel like it is not going to hold up that well and will collect dirt and dust easily.

For the top part I used the pattern piece from the other pair, but adjusted the pattern to make it longer lengthwise for more footsie coverage.

Lavender soda! Not bad.

Tip of the day: Smell your jeans before you buy them!

Especially if they are from Joe Fresh. Sal bought 2 pairs of jeans that became unwearable after the first wash. It definitely had a Not-so-FRESH feeling. It reeked of a metallic fishy chemical. 6-7-8 washes later and they still smelled like hell and "someone" washed them with my jeans and now they're all contaminated! Maybe it is the dye? We put the 2 pairs of toxic jeans out to pasture last night while I'm working on decontaminating the rest of the batch. I read a tip to soak them with borax and/or baking soda. After a quick online search I found that new clothes are often covered with formaldehyde to keep them from wrinkling or becoming mildewed during shipping. Oh, my friend formaldehyde. I wonder if this was the smell??

More info on chemicals on clothing: HERE

I feel like if we don't want to be poisoned we need to buy organic fabric and DIY. Which I still wonder if that fabric is sprayed with something too after manufacturing... That's it, I have to grow my own cotton in the backyard (when I get one) and spin and weave it myself! I will ask my guests to bring over their looms when they come over.

My first attempt at biscotti at home.

Based on a recipe from the bag of organic flour. I used almonds instead of hazelnuts, left out the anise seed and added extra vanilla. I was able to use a tip that I picked up from the cooking class in Italy- don't bother chopping up the nuts!

Missing blog pictures...ugh.

I just noticed some flickr pics are missing. Ugh flickr! Maybe I should just upload directly from now on. Feels like a waste of money to pay for them to host the photos sometimes. What to do....what to do...

Good re-use of bubble wrap/ air cushions

Other than recycling it for other packages, it works well to keep your boot legs in shape while not in use.

Does not work well for:

Skinny Jeans
 
Unless you want to creep yourself out.

I think I made a stromboli!

Salami, provolone, garlic, onions, olives, and spinach rolled up in homemade pizza dough.

My new baby

My new baby...ketchup. Isn't he cute?, originally uploaded by m patrizio.

...ketchup. Isn't he adorable?

Sal slippers 2.0. Didn't match up the pattern, whoopsie!

Recycled leather sole and foam padding from the last pair and used more of my shrunken wool sweater for the lining.

Hipster bookworm?

Hipster bookworm?, originally uploaded by m patrizio.

A gift for my cousin.