Completed lily pad

Here's how the lily pad for a new Timmie parent turned out. The lily is removable and the pad is reversible with a lighter green on the other side.

Orange peel extraction experiment

On the left: orange peels lightly dusted with salt in white vinegar.
On the right: orange peels dusted with salt in vodka.

I'm doing this in hopes to extract the orange oil from the peels to make a cleaning solution for the home. It has only been a day but I can see that the vodka has started to turn orange so it appears to be extracting better. I might have packed in too many peels into the vinegar jar/ not enough vinegar.

I will leave it like this for 2-3 weeks and see what happens.

Timmie modeling a felt lily

Maple syrup medusa?

40% off coupon

with coupon code thanks40 @ SoSofties.etsy.com

Bunny head pattern

 

I ordered this mustard ~ yellow ochre bunny patterned fabric yesterday and am thinking about ideas of what I'd like to do with it when it arrives. One idea is to create a custom backpack to hold my mini paintbox for outdoor painting...

 

New Mini Satchel Added to the Shop

Available here.

Sewing project of the week: Hooded Poncho w/ pocket

 
Inspired by this design on Pinterest!

Here is what it looks like over my safari jacket: 

I added some leather straps and brass buckles to tighten it up a bit and for some visual interest. It was very "Juan Valdez a la druid" before I added anything, it still kinda is. I think it has something to do with this color material, very burlap sack-ish. If you want to try this I recommend sticking to darker tones like in the inspiration piece.

Work Apron Completed!

(click photo to enlarge)

It was on my to-do list for months.  I guess all the elements needed time to get together. I used the zipper from the hoodie that I recycled into the leggings to make a double pocket in the front and a pair of suspenders that I purchased in Italy made out of a cellulose material that has both the appearance of a paper bag and strangely, leather. Unforch I made the pattern before the storm/pre-halloween candy chewfest 2012 and it is a little snug on the hips. With some leggings underneath I think I can ease a little of the stress off those poor red snaps. I think a few laps around the block could help too. Also, I am very happy to finally use the cute red riding hood ribbon trim designed by Rosa Pomar that I had stored away from a few years ago.

Contemporary Currents Exhibit Status

The group show will be rescheduled due to power outages and flooding in lower Manhattan. I will let everyone know the new dates as soon as things start to recover from Hurricane Sandy. 

I'm in a group show. Coming up on Nov. 1st!

November 1-3, 2012

Opening Reception Nov. 1st, 6-8 pm

Chashama Gallery
303 10th Avenue
New York, NY

Between 27th and 28th street in Chelsea near the highline.

Free and open to the public.

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I will be exhibiting about 5 of my paintings ~ life studies.

Interesting Sunday sightings

Two interesting sightings yesterday- a lady casually walking her little black piglet in BK and New York Times fashion photographer Bill Cunningham in Manhattan.  Sal and I sucked in our stomachs and puffed out our chests in hopes of being photographed but to no avail, he took a photo of the lady next to us wearing neon shoes. If you haven't seen the documentary on him I highly recommend it. It was inspiring to see someone so passionate about their work and working well into their 80's doing what they love.

Cute tissue box

Cute tissue box, originally uploaded by m patrizio.

Sal found these monster face tissues, much more fun than a dainty flower pattern.

Tops

All my tops squished together. For Autumn I'm looking for a pair of warm medium brown leggings or slim cut pants and a couple of sweater tunics to try to even out my pear shape. 

Pink striped thermals

Why should baby girls have all the fun? I found these in Italy @ OVS

Hoodie -> Leggings

I tried it...converted one of my zip up hoodies into funky leggings! After disassembling my hoodie I started to build up the leggings with the arms first and then stitched all the pieces together until they looked like m.c. hammer pants.  A few hours of cutting stitching darting and gusseting and I have some wearable pantaloooons.

Under the tuscan sun (and clouds)

I'm back from a cooking class / tour in Italy. It was beautiful and I really didn't want to come back home this time! I've added a set on flickr with some of the photos from the trip.

My loot from the nyc honey festival

Pear Keychains back in stock!

In the So Softies Shop.

Slippermittz™ Prototype

Good news: My sewing machine didn't explode trying to sew together 9 layers of material.
Bad news: It looks like a house slipper for a one-legged primate.

Slippermittz?

Working on a pattern for a smaller but thicker mitt.

Oven mitts

My first quilted oven mitts! Attempt 1 (on the left) I only used one layer of Insul-Bright in between the lining and outer material. After I stitched it up I realized it was too thin and wouldn't be enough heat protection. On my second attempt I added a layer of cotton batting along with the Insul-Bright thermal batting with more professional results. I am thinking of doing another version with 3 insulation layers... hopefully my sewing machine can take the thickness and won't explode. The "light-duty" mitt will still get some use though, I tested it this morning on an enamel cup with boiling water and it held up well.

Country livin'

Super simple felt mail holder

I finally got the guts to use some 4mm thick wool felt that I purchased in Iceland a while back. I embossed the leather rectangle by the opening with my house number and used recycled braided cotton shopping bag handles and wooden beads to hang. The holes were reinforced with nickel grommets.

My new hobby - decanting :)

polka dot raincoat with striped lining

 

my latest clothing purchase from a trip to Montreal this past weekend. I also picked up a an interesting faux peter pan collared sweater. When it gets cold enough to wear it, I will post a pic.

T.J.'s Mexican Night and Knit Chair Covers

We had a Trader Joe's fiesta last night. Mini beef tacos, guacamole, sour cream, baked beans, and salsa verde, total yums!

 
Here is a pic of my dad kinda-sorta modeling the knit chair covers I made last year. They came out a little wonky and weird looking so I never posted them. But since I was getting rid of the chairs I wanted to take a photo before they go. I added removable pillows as the stuffing, so they were super comfy. I think this was a fun way to change the look of the chairs without making any permanent changes/damage.

Goal of the week: Not look like a dirtbag

It has come to my attention that I look disgusting.

Exhibit A: Small group of 20 something girls uncontrollably staring at me and whispering from one foot away on the subway. Perhaps they were impressed with my hobo-like ability to carry 4 full tote bags of stuff or perhaps they were trying to figure out what type of smiling animals were patterned on my t-shirt. More likely it was that I smelled like turpenoid, had paint-splattered denim on, and was wearing a cardigan when it was 90 degrees out.


Exhibit B: Elderly woman looked like she was either going to barf on me or call security when I was looking at some trousers in Banana Republic. You think strangers would try to encourage the purchase of a new pair of khaki trousers by a woman wearing paint-splattered denim and a holey black t-shirt (when it was still 90 degrees out). Sal said I looked like a "biker chick", which I guess is fine for the Fall but not for the Summer.

Ok, so I gave in to the societal stares and bought some new t-shirts and a pair of new jeans, and will try to incorporate some skirts into the wardrobe this week.  I just find it hard to be practical (wearing something that I don't mind getting paint on) and be season appropriate.

BUT my clothing practicality did pay off this week though...

I experienced my first train evacuation! The train was unable to enter the station because of a "police investigation" which I strongly suspect means "dead body on the tracks" so the whole train was forced to evacuate the train through the last car.  As the girls in front of me were freaking out in their barely there strappy sandals and mini dresses I was pretty happy to have my comfortable shoes and dirty denim on. You never know when you will have to navigate train tracks with subway rats... but I am determined to find a happy medium this week.

Prescription fulfilled

My dentist prescribed the Storm King Art Center in upstate New York as a good day trip from the city.

Three legged Buddha by Zhang Huan

It is primarily an outdoor museum located in the scenic Hudson Valley.  They had a small exhibition going on in the visitor center/ museum building. My favorite piece from the indoor selection was this round bookshelf below.

Unfortunately we didn't come prepared, especially for a hot day in the summer. We envied the other visitors who were all geared up with picnic blankets, food, beverages and even art making materials.

Pyramidian by Mark Di Suvero

On the way back home we stopped at Palaia Vineyards for my first (pink) wine slushie and some bread and cheese!

We made another stop at the Woodbury Commons Outlets for a little bit of retail therapy.  Overall a good day, not recommended for the super hot days of summer, but still a good getaway.

Tip of the week!

Do not consume any pastilles/candy/mints with this warning label, *especially* in a you-can-hear-a-pin-drop classroom environment. Ungodly groans from your intestines are definitely a distraction from making sure the proportions of your painting are correct. Ugh.  So I will blame my lackluster painting this week on Phenylketonurics  Phenylalanine. You heard it here first :).