monster chunks

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I am one of those people who is 'project oriented'...I'm sure I've put that on more than one job application.  That's such vague terminology though...for example, projects at my day job can go on and on for years and years and even though you work on something all day and actually accomplish quite a lot you wonder why you're doing it at all because the project will NEVER BE DONE. Seriously. I know that's very vague...I don't claim to be a good storyteller.  The point is, at home lately I've been trying to pick quick crafty projects to get some finished product satisfaction.  For example, I downloaded a free pattern from knitting genius Rebecca Danger...Monster Chunks!

My first chunk took awhile because I had to teach myself to knit in the round. And then I gave her some terrible button eyes that made me shove her into a drawer because she wasn't right. And then the feet were tricky. And so on and so forth.  But the last week I dropped 79 cents on two pairs of googly eyes and away I went...

Madame Monster

Mister Monster

This was a great project if you want something quick and have little bits of yarn leftover from other projects. Also, we live next door to the cutest 3 year old twin brother and sister  in the whole world, which gave me a good excuse to whip up a handmade  little prezzie for them. I delivered the wrapped up little monsters to the cuties next door and got big hugs, so I hope they like them when they unwrap them!

where wednesday [the dew drop inn]

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[For Where Wednesday this week I bring you Diane from the dew drop inn.  Diane shares such interesting and thoughtful ideas and projects on her blog (remember her word project ?), do pay it a visit. I met Diane online through Indie Biz 2.0 and immediately connected over books, art, and life...the expression 'fast friends' comes to mind. Just a few days ago I finally had the pleasure of spending a splendid afternoon with this lovely lady, in person, in her little corner of the world...can't wait to do it again! Without further ado, welcome to the dew drop inn on the sagebrush coast...]

the space i am sharing with you today is my beloved sky chair...

it is my space for relaxing...

meditating...

reading...

hanging out with my pup...

and gazing out at the beautiful trees and hills of sonoma county...

i first sat in a sky chair at a renaissance fair over a decade ago.  i fell instantly in love with the feeling of being in an upright hammock.  it completely relaxed me and brought me such simple joy.  i made a wish then and there that i would someday own one.

in order to have a sky chair, one must have a tree, a strong ceiling beam, or a frame on which to hang it.  because my gypsy lifestyle and various domiciles did not provide any of those things for many years, it took over a decade for my wish to come true.

when my husband and i moved into our current home, we finally had a space where a sky chair could live.  i was surprised and deeply grateful when he gave me the sky chair as a gift.  his thoughtful offering has now become an amazing part of my everyday life.

although there are plenty of trees on the hill where i could have placed the sky chair, my wonderful friend miles built me a frame so that the chair could live on our deck and be used more easily every day.

in my chair, i love to:

* feel calm and at rest.

* meditate...sitting and swinging keeps me awake, alert, and relaxed.

* read while gently swaying in the breeze.

* take spontaneous naps.

* wrap myself in a warm blanket on a foggy morning with a cup of hot coffee.

* drape tapestries overhead in the summer to make shade, read, and sip iced tea.

* cuddle with my best friend's twin babies.

* gaze at my garden and at twinkly star-filled skies.

* engage in deep heartfelt conversations with my sweet love while my pup snoozes next to me.

the sky chair is my place of peace and one of my favorite spaces on earth.

xo

Where Wednesdays are    a  regular feature where I and a series of guest bloggers talk  about    places that are  important to us, be they work spaces, outdoor    spaces,    sleeping spaces,  places we visit, places we live, places  we  drink    coffee, etc. etc.

[do you want to talk about a place or space that's important  to you? let me know and I'll set you up with a Wednesday!]

where wednesday [andrea]

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Where Wednesdays are    a  regular feature where I and a series of guest bloggers talk  about    places that are  important to us, be they work spaces, outdoor  spaces,    sleeping spaces,  places we visit, places we live, places we  drink    coffee, etc. etc.

[do you want to talk about a place or space that's important  to you? let me know and I'll set you up with a Wednesday!]

[Where Wednesday this week features the stylish Andrea from Style Pie, a darling newish fashion and style blog you should definitely check out. Andrea always has a handful of creative and stylish projects up her sleeve. Oh, and she's my beautiful sister-in-law. Please welcome her to Sagebrush Coast!]

My Where Wednesday is a place I have always loved to play in, fill up, clean out, and put my morning creativity to the test: my closet. As a little girl, my basket of dress up clothes was a space I loved digging in for just the right combination of tulle and plastic high heels. The tulle may be long gone, but the thrill of finding just the right outfit for the day ahead fills my mornings.

My closet is a little place of refuge for me. I enjoy standing in front of my closet each morning seeing new possibilities in things I have worn a hundred times. Since I am a girl on a budget, finding those new possibilities makes it a little game testing my creativity with renewing the old. Some of my favorite items were found on sale or in a second-hand shop. Second-hand shops bring about the same feeling I get hunting through my closet, a place so full of possibility where I create the trend or style I want in that moment.

My favorite part of my closet is the jewelry collection hanging inside. I have always loved the look of solid colors and basic t-shirts paired with bold necklaces or large earrings. There is something about making a statement with jewelry that never gets old, pieces just waiting for that right occasion. Sometimes that occasion is buying groceries, but that’s what makes it fun!

I drool over the well-styled pages of Anthropologie and J. Crew when they arrive. I use those bursts of inspiration with my own closet by trying more prints, new textures, and bolder color combinations. My style is best described as bohemian chic. I am not afraid of a thousand layers as long as the fit is great and I look pulled together.

Thanks for having me! Maybe next time I will show you around my favorite street that also happens to have the best second-hand and vintage shops in Portland. xoxo, Andrea

flashback

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Stop what you're doing and get ready for a fabulous trip to parallel universes. Photographer Irina Werning's Back To the Future project takes old photos and recreates them with the same people...from wardrobe, to poses, to lighting.  It's a fun gallery to look through...check it out HERE.

It's hard to choose a favorite, but this one was the most hilarious:

Flashback bonus:

Today sfgirlbybay paired vintage+modern fashions in a great post HERE.

where wednesday [craftyMSP]

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Where Wednesdays are    a regular feature where I and a series of guest bloggers talk  about    places that are  important to us, be they work spaces, outdoor  spaces,  sleeping spaces,  places we visit, places we live, places we  drink  coffee, etc. etc.

[do you want to talk about a place or space that's important  to you? let me know and I'll set you up with a Wednesday!]

craftyMSP

[For today's Where Wednesday I'm excited to present Marie...aka CraftyMSP.  Marie was a fellow IndieBiz2.0 student last year and I immediately admired her quilts and crafts, built with great shape and color. Check out her crisp and refreshing guest post here, then head over to her BLOG to see what crafty-ness you can find. Do visit her ETSY shop...she's got some great embroidery art for Valentine's Day ♥]    

Even though I work during the day as a designer of buildings, my most  favorite places in the world aren’t usually the structures that I find  myself in. Instead, I’m drawn to the outdoors. To the magical places  that stop my breath, slow me down and remind me of the beauty of nature.  One of these natural locations is right in the backyard of my home town  - the greatest Great Lake of them all.

I grew up in a tiny town in Northeastern Minnesota and I always go back  to inhale the fresh air and get a glimpse of Lake Superior. And in my  opinion, the best view of this giant body of water in the winter is on  the ski hill – flying down the slopes in a winter wonderland.

So – fresh from the slopes (a most perfect day of skiing last weekend) –  here are some images from one of my favorite places.   

where wednesday [sam]

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Where Wednesdays are  a regular feature where I and a series of guest bloggers talk  about  places that are  important to us, be they work spaces, outdoor  spaces,  sleeping spaces,  places we visit, places we live, places we  drink  coffee, etc. etc.

[do you want to talk about a place or space that's important  to you? let me know and I'll set you up with a Wednesday!]

[This  week's Where Wednesday is from Sam, my awesome mama-in-law. I'm pretty darn lucky in the Mother In Law department because we get along great and have a great time hanging out together.  Among other things, Sam is a published scrapbooker & a savvy crafter...it's always fun to see what projects she's up to! Read about Sam's space below, then check out Sam's blog HERE  ]

Where Wednesday? A dozen places come to mind - pick one she asks? Knowing I can change my mind 5 minutes from now, I’ll go with my “all mine space” - my craft/scrapbook/computer studio. I’m Sam and to some known as ScrappySam, Sam’s Amusing World or Sam’Studio. My space is located on the top floor of my home with large windows overlooking the forest we live in on the side of a mountain. I’ve surrounded myself with a desk, a drafting table, a wall of counters, a bulletin board wall, a stuffed closet and family photos.

It’s quiet (except for the headphones I wear listening to the radio or tunes), it’s organized (well, at least I know where everything is or where it’s suppose to be), it’s filled with paper, pens, pencils, die cutting machines, a tall cabinet of die cut forms, buttons, ribbons & string, embellishments, rulers, stamps, inks, punches, glue pot, scissors and other paper cutting devices all within reach.  And my connection to the world - my computer.

If it’s a craft that requires paper - I’m on it. Scrapbooking pages, cards, altered book journals, origami boxes, notecards & more. Give me a photograph and it’ll become a scrapbook page. Give me a holiday and it’ll be a present or card. Give me a booth and it’ll be filled with paper products for sale. Give me an idea and I’ll run with it.

I’m an early riser and head to my space around 4:00 am. I usually know what I want to work on for the day and get started after checking my emails and my daily blog spot visits. Once I get my fingers in the glue pot, I get lost in design & ideas. Being creative is a must for me - to let the artist in me come out to play.  Getting the creative juices flowing is an euphoric sense of freedom. To get messy, try new things, make mistakes, and sometimes get it right. Except for my scrapbooking pages, I either sell or give my creations away. I share. I’ll invite others to come play - but, I admit I’ll hover like the mother I am, letting others play with my toys that I’ve collected for over 10 years.  I love playing in my craft studio - I come alive - I create - I let the artist in me come out to play.  And the best thing is knowing that at 4:00 am tomorrow morning I get to go play in my very own - all mine - crafty studio.

focus

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Diane, the lovely keeper of The Dew Drop Inn, has a creative and thoughtful tradition that starts off her new year. She dispenses words to friends and strangers to do with what they will [click HERE to let her explain it].  This year she expanded her tradition to include the interwebs, and my word is:

It's a good word for a distract-able procrastinator who piles a lot of stuff on her plate, don't you think? I love it and I love the orangey squares in the background. 

This week I'm focusing on good memories of my grandma ♥

Check out all the beautifully presented words HERE at The Dew Drop Inn and check with Diane to see if she's got a word left for you!