Tuesday, June 23, 2009

not so inspiring



so right before vacation (which i'm on, as of today, by the way), i was inspired to attempt several creative projects.

and then i started packing for vacation, which i am now on, and i am not very inspired to share them with you.

but then if i don't share them now, i will never share them...

so here they are. even though i have been advised by my dear hubby to spread them out into different blog posts, i am going to just blow your mind and give them to you all at once. :)


1. i made these strawberry shortcake cookies from martha stewart. i was initially impressed (as i was sampling the dough straight from the bowl). however, after baking them and eating one, i didn't have that overwhelming urge to eat another, and another, and another, like what happens when i bake most cookies. so, all in all, i think i would not make these again. oh, and i saw that several blogs posted about these cookies, and a few even ripped off the picture posted with the link i provide here. however, i would like you to note that i took these pictures MYSELF. ;)





2. i made this skirt, and it looks horrible. at least on me it does. maybe if i were 6 feet tall and 100 pounds it would look incredible. but since i'm 10 inches shorter than that (and a few pounds heavier, since we're being honest about stuff), it just makes me look about 15 inches shorter and about 30 pounds heavier. SO, i will not be wearing this. the upside is it took me about 30 minutes to make. so if you fit the body shape or just want to wear a giant cheering skirt, because maybe you are feeling reminiscent about your school days cheering on those hot football players, then this is a very gratifying project.

3. i bought this dress from target (in a different color, obviously) a while back, after being inspired by this one, which i could just not bring myself to buy, even though it's incredible. i was just worried it wouldn't fit, or wouldn't look as cool on me, or both, or whatever...anyway, after i bought the target version and tried it on again at home (after i had already pulled off the tags and thrown the receipt away, kristi style), i felt like it was too stuffy. and then the hem was weird. it went up on the sides, and i just don't like showing that much of my legs. i have issues. but then again, if you are not new here, you know that already. so i cut the hem higher to make it a shirt dress and then ripped off the seams and used a zigzag stitch (with this yellow jean thread i am currently hooked on; if you are a super sewer please don't tell me how wrong it might be to use that thread on a shirt dress...!) to finish the sleeves. it already had beltloops (with a same-colored belt to tie on the side that, in my opinion, made it look maternity), so i cut off the strings and used my own (skinny leather) belt. i really like it. unfortunately, that particular day i was having an "ugly" day, so these pictures aren't great...but i think the dress turned out really cute!


4. for some reason, i came home with an extra yard of the fabric from IKEA that i just used for the kids' curtains, so i decided to cut it in half and hang it in the kitchen. i love it! now i can still see the trees in the top half of the window but can have privacy on the bottom half at night.


5. unrelated to inspiring, and perhaps the highlight of my week (besides looking forward to vacation!) is that we got a new car! we had been driving a 1999 volvo wagon that was quickly compiling its own list of projects to be done to it, and the cost was far outweighing the value of this old yet reliable car. so we opted to get a new one, which can seat 7 and can be taken on long and short trips without fear that the wheels might fall off (our volvo needed new front axles and tie rod ends, whatever those are...). and the best part? it's been almost 100 degrees here lately, and the A/C in this car ROCKS (unlike the volvo's A/C, which was intermittent at best...ugh).


i will have picture posts soon to update you on vacation. for now, i need to start another movie for the kids and maybe sneak a nap, since we were up a.l.l.n.i.g.h.t. last night with our oldest, who did not like the sleeping arrangements... :(

happy tuesday!

3 comments:

Amelia Plum said...

hope you're enjoying your vacation. those strawberry shortcake cookies look very yummy the sleeveless tunic that you made out of the shirtdress was a very clever idea. love your new car, that must be very nice to have a new car with quality A/C blasting on demand instead of at whim

christine said...

Kristi,
Okay, first of all I don't want you to think I'm stalking you just b/c I comment on your posted stuff (blog, photos, etc.) a lot. ;)

...but I just looked at the Target dress and what you transformed it into and I am so VERY VERY impressed. You look great in the finished project! I think it looks much cooler than the original dress. I wish I knew how to sew more than a straight line!

love,
christine

Hannah said...

Nice car! Wow, we really have been out of touch! I cant wait to see it in person...