a wee blog break

The posts have been trickling to a halt around here, so I think it's time to put the blog down for a little nap. I've had so much to say, but no motivation to sit and write. There are changes going on in my life, and in periods of transition I tend to need much more time for internal processing. And conserving my energy for all the shiny newness of all the new things coming my way.

But don't worry, it's all good changes! Exciting changes. Twin and I, after living in New York for several years, are heading south again. We're moving to Chapel Hill, NC. Cool town, close to family, slower pace of life. [We are, in fact, 83-year-old little ladies disguised within 28-year-old bodies, doncha know.]

I'll be spending the next couple weeks packing and saying good-bye to the city—cramming all the things I always meant to do and see here into 2 short weeks. Then settling into Chapel Hill and the wicked cool job I've already landed. Finding the grocery store. Locating the nearest fabric shop. And, of course, re-reading the entire Harry Potter series in preparation for this summer's Harry Potter-palooza. I am a Harry Potter fangirl and not too proud to admit it. You can admit it too, I won't tell.

Anybody got tips about the Chapel Hill/Raleigh/Durham area, bring em on!

Enjoy your early summers and eat lots of ice cream. I'll be doing the same. While packing boxes. I LOVE packing boxes. You can call me crazy. There is really nothing more satisfying than a perfectly packed box.

xo, take care everyone!
I'll probably be back before you've even started missing me. : )

mama and the grandmamas

Moms are great! Moms are good! Moms love you even when you are ungrateful, needy, full of attitude, just plain stupid, and/or annoyingly self-sufficient. Why? I don't know. Not being a mother, at times I can not comprehend the depth of a mama's patience. They're like glue, you know? Sticky. Holds us all together. For which I am incredibly grateful.

Happy Mother's Day to my beautiful mama and all you other mamas out there!

luck be a lady shirt

This shirt is made from the same pattern I used for my His Girl Friday shirt. (I think I might name all my homemade garments after classic movies or broadway tunes. Because that's just fun.) The pattern is Built By Wendy/Simplicity 4112. The fabric is a Heather Ross for FreeSpirit. I love her scraggly sweet flowers. They are so endearing. And I just noticed this print also comes in brown. Oh, must order some of that.

I had some sleeve issues with this shirt. I'm finding that short sleeves are tricky. The short sleeves that Wendy included in this pattern are large and bell-shaped. They are cut on the bias, and hemmed with an itty-bitty baby hem.
I made one of these sleeves, sewed it in, and promptly decided it looked ridiculous on me. I wasn't able to cut the sleeve on the bias as the pattern instructs because I didn't want my flowers growing diagonally. Instead I cut it straight on the fabric, and the resulting drape of the fabric was less than elegant. Fugly, in fact.

I ripped out the monster bell sleeve and set in small cap sleeves from a different pattern. Much better. I finished the sleeve with a bias binding, which gives it a nice shape as well as durability. I do want to try the bell sleeves again. They do look interesting and I think with a lighter-weight fabric they would be beautifully fluttery.

Twin, being my own best critic, thinks I look a little tight-laced in this shirt. She didn't use the words "prim" or "old-maidish," but I could tell she was thinking it. I'm not bothered. As Sky Masterson would tell you, prudishness can have its own brand of appeal.

retail therapy

Twin and I braved Macy's last night in search of shoes. We need to remember that the Macy's shoe department is not for the faint-hearted on a Friday night. I have never seen so many women and so many shoes together in one place before in my life. Shoes and boxes were scattered everywhere. The poor sales clerks traveled around the department surrounded by a perpetual swarm of women, all of them clamoring to thrust shoes into the clerks' hands and shout their size at them. I didn't find any shoes that were worth the trouble of jumping into the fray until I saw these red ones in the juniors department. They are Dr. Scholl's. I didn't even know Dr. Scholl's makes shoes, much less incredibly cute shoes. I also tried on these Keds, though they didn't have my size. I think I'm going to have to order them online, because they have owls on them. Owls! Hoot.
And look what came in the mail! My pin+pocket from Sally. Eeee! Friends, these are as carefully constructed, beautifully designed, and thoughtfully presented and packaged as you might expect from the genius that is Shim. And there was also a sneak peek of the stationery goodness that is to come, and I have to tell you it is gorgeous. I'll be stalking her shop relentlessly from now on.

It is a beautiful saturday here—we're headed to the park. And I actually have been at my sewing machine today, which puts me in a most happy frame of mind. A capital mood, as my friend Pip says. Must be something about spring. Or maybe it's the new shoes. :)

more from the cherry blossom festival

happy friday!!

brooklyn botanical garden

The Cherry Blossom Festival last weekend was just beautiful, though many of the trees had not reached their peak yet thanks to the cool spring we've had. But oh, look, they're in full bloom now. Might be worth a repeat visit this weekend.

Busy busy week here, nothing of interest to share except for this lovely flower display. I took over a hundred pictures, I will post a few more tomorrow.

spring cleaning

I've been turning our little apartment upside down with spring cleaning. Pulling junk out of closets, sorting clothes for the Goodwill, purging all the accumulated stuff out of the nooks and storage spaces. It feels good. Although not having a car, I have no way to get the enormous box of stuff to the Goodwill. I have to wait until they come pick it up. So it sits in the middle of my bedroom floor. That, in addition to the mountain of recycling which has accumulated because I am too lazy to drag it all out to the curb on the appropriate evening, as well as the mountain of laundry awaiting a trip to the laundromat, all together has had the effect of making the apartment look less, rather than more, clean. But at least it's organized, which makes me feel better despite the fact that you can barely move for all the piles of stuff.

In my cleaning I ran across some items that I don't want to keep, but can't bear to just give away to Goodwill. Things I've made over the past year, but don't have a good use for. Would you care to take any of it off my hands? Consider it a little mini yard (blog) sale. I've listed a price that will cover the postage. I really just want to get this stuff out of the house. Some of the items are gently used. Some are a little wonky in their construction.

Email me at juliemarieblog@yahoo.com if you want an item. Let's limit it to one thing per person, please. So here's the goods. Click the item's name to go back and read the original post about the item, and get the details.

Lady Doll ($8) sold!

Hans and Felix Pennant ($4) sold!

Patchwork pincushion ($4) sold!

Quilted tote ($6) sold!

Patchwork Placemats ($6) sold!

Snot Rag ($2) sold!


Ah, I feel better already. I am a purger at heart. I have a friend whose Mom took out all their baby memorabilia, like the little baby hand imprints in clay and the first grade crafts, took pictures of it, and then chucked it all in the garbage. I'm not sure I'm quite that ruthless, but I have to admire her for it.

Happy Sunday all--I am off to the Cherry Blossom Festival. (Fellow Brooklyners it's open today til 6:00 you should check it out!)

Edited to add: Thanks so much everybody! It's all going out in the mail this week!

bermuda bag

This awesome Bermuda Bag is a treasured hand-me-down from my Mom. I can remember playing with it when I was little and thinking I was incredibly chic while carrying it. And of course being able to unbutton its little cover and replace it with a different one was just hours of fun. Mom gave the bag to us last year and I have been meaning to make a new cover for it for a while. This weekend the sunny weather inspired me to make this crazy tropical cover for it. Quite summery, no?

The lining is attached to the wooden handles, and then you just button the cover to the outside with the little pearl buttons. So cool.

Here's my cover with two of the ones my Mom made years ago. She made the one on the left for my Aunt and Uncle's wedding, over 30 years ago. (for the rehearsal dinner, right Mom? And it matched your dress too? *swoon*) And I love the floral on the top right. Isn't it funny how all that late 70s stuff is in style again? So often when my Mom and I are fabric-shopping I'll pull out a "retro" print and say I like it and she'll just look at me. Like I've grown a second head. And then she will shudder. But I dig it anyway. ;)

brooklyn spring

It was that weekend in New York. You know, the one we've been waiting for. When suddenly the trees are blooming and the sun is hot and the streets are full of playing children.










I put away all my winter clothes. I have some of those cool plastic bag things that you can suck all the air out of with the vacuum. Fun. I love reducing my pile of down coats and scarfs and mittens to a flat stanley pallet that fits under my bed.

I baked brownies which made my house smell like my mom's. I took an afternoon nap with all the windows open. I took a long walk with my camera. And then I ate a brownie sundae for dinner. In other words, a good good day.

long time no post

It's our first flip-flop day here in New York. My neighbor's daffodils are straining out onto the sidewalk. It is loverly.

I had no intention of being away from the blog so long. I am looking forward to catching up with all your blogs this afternoon, while a soft spring breeze floats in the window.



There has been precious little crafting done around here, though I did have a great time refurbishing this shirt for my friend Dorie. She had a button-up shirt from Old Navy that was several sizes too big for her. I don't have a before pic, but it was a long-sleeve shirt that looked like a tent on her. So we nipped in the side seams and reattached the sleeves at a three-quarter length. It's similar to this refurbed shirt I made last fall, using this tutorial. I'm glad it came out well—I was a bit nervous as I have never really sewn clothes for anyone but myself. And after the crafting we had late-night board games. Dorie decimated me and Twin at Scattergories. She said to us, "I thought you guys were smart." Apparently not at Scattergories.



I did manage to get my button swap off this week, several days late. My partner has been exceedingly kind about my tardiness--Aimee I hope you like your buttons!



One of our oldest family friends took this picture of the Appalachian Mountains in Virginia. When I think of Blacksburg, I think of soft blue mountains, proud stone buildings, and the exuberant faces of students with maroon- and orange-painted gameday faces. One day of violence cannot diminish such beauty or strength.

This post is all over the place. I guess that's what happens when I don't post for nearly two weeks. I won't let it happen again. ;)
I hope you are all having a beautiful Saturday afternoon. xo

"banking off of the northeast wind, sailin' on a southern breeze..."

"skippin' over the ocean like a stone." I've got that song, "Everybody's Talkin," in my head. Have you heard Madeleine Peyroux do this song? Quite good. My dad calls her a "chanteuse" which Twin laughingly repeats as "chartreuse." And now whenever I hear the album, I imagine the lovely lady Peyroux belting out her sultry singing with a sickly pea-green face.

We are off to Virginia for a few days. Looking forward to sunny warm weather, good home-cooked food, and a peaceful break.

Oh, and there's nothing like a straight skirt for getting your sewing mojo back. This awesome print is an Alexander Henry. And the pattern is from the Sew U book. Love it. Packing it in my bag in the hopes it'll be warm enough to wear it.

"going where the sun keeps shining through the pourin' rain. going where the weather suits my clothes..."

see you next week!

further cinematic adventures of Olive

over on Twin's blog. This one is even funnier.

Hope everyone is having a beautiful Easter/Spring day/Sunday!!

...and you lose some

In the spirit of celebrating my failures as well as my successes, I wanted to share with you this rather dreadful shirt I made last weekend. It's not a complete failure, I grant you, but it really does look awful on me. Maude carries it off a bit better. Sewing clothes can be so discouraging sometimes—there are so many factors to take into account: your own body shape; the type, weight, and drape of the material; the all-important pattern and your own ability to alter it as needed. Sewing a garment can be so time-consuming that to end up with a less-than-perfect result is very discouraging. But I guess it's the only way to learn, and I'm so stubborn that I am going to persevere.



I used a vintage pattern for this shirt, and it was several sizes too big. And that square neckline was just about impossible to get to lie flat. It puckers at the corners and you can see where it's already beginning to fray at one corner. Arg. I do like the crocheted trim, though I'm not certain this was the best use for it.

On a happier note, THANK YOU for all the birthday wishes! We had a lovely day and I'm happy to report that 28 feels about the same as 27. Except maybe a bit wiser, of course.



My wonderful coworkers know me so well—they got me a huge gift certificate to Purl. I had to go spend it immediately. The japanese print on the left is about to get cut up into a skirt. Which I know will turn out ok because it is a tried and true pattern. phew.



On a completely unrelated note, this is a big building just north of Penn Station on 8th Ave that they paint with advertisements. I have always wondered how they paint it. Don't the men look like little ants? Not a job I'd enjoy, I think.

birthdays all around

Hi! Those of you who wear glasses know there are certain things that look better if you take your glasses off before looking at them. Like christmas lights, which are way prettier and twinklier when viewed with your glasses off. Well, my face is apparently one of those things. Best viewed a little blurry and out of focus. That is my conclusion, anyway, since after a half-hour attempt at self-portraiture, this fuzzy one is my favorite.

But I wanted to pop in and say hellooooooo in celebration of the fact that this little blog of mine turns 1 year old today. And I turn 28 years old today. Twin turns 28 today too. (funny how that happens) 28 seems simultaneously very old and very young. But I think it will be a very very good year.

I get my birthday off work (yippeee!) so I'm going to do whatever I want. Not sure what yet, but that's half the fun.

It is a joy and an honor to be part of this crafty blog community. Thank you to all who visit and comment and motivate me off my lazy rumpus to create a bit of crafty beauty. It has meant so much to me.

All right, off to find me a birthday cake to plant my face in...

[Oh and you probably want to know where I got those awesome earrings. From the lovely Susan's etsy shop, of course. I love them, and I'm not even much of a jewelry person.]

eggy

cadbury milk eggs
i can eat bags and bags and
still want to eat more.



A haiku for Shari. I made this little felt box to hold our cadbury milk eggs. I was feeling the need to do itty-bitty handwork. Do you ever get that urge? I do, along with the urge to eat cadbury milk eggs. Good thing they only sell them at Easter, or I might begin to resemble a cadbury milk egg.



My neighbor's garden is waking up. Do you see his little daffodils in this shoddy picture I just snapped from my window? His garden fills me with such joy. Twin and I think he actually has fairies and/or gnomes who garden for him, though. Because despite his spectacular garden, we never see him working in it. It's a mystery.

I will leave you with a few links of some lovely crafty ladies I have discovered recently:
wiksten-made
nesty
onegirl
m. writes


onward.

cards and a spot of sun

What's up?! Friday's what's up, friends, and thank goodness for that. I have been trying to get these cards in the shop all week long. [because poor poor me, I had to go see a fantastic movie one evening, and go shopping, and get sucked into a great novel another evening. anyhoo...] These thank you cards were inspired by an old pyrex bowl. Love those dots. The registration on these cards was a bit challenging. Sometimes I forget to think through how I'm actually going to achieve a design before jumping in and starting. After a bit of quiet cursing, I got them all lined up and now I'm quite happy with how they turned out.



I designed these lady doll cards a couple weeks ago, intending to make more and sell them as sets, but I never got around to doing that. Maybe I will make more in the future? Dunno. I am really quite attached to these little dolls. Here are my original illustrations:




I'd originally drawn sixteen of them and I had so much fun giving them different outfits. You can laugh, but this is good good times for me. I think I could draw these things all day long.



And for all my whining and complaining about the cold weather last week, we have had two absolutely gorgeous spring days this week. Sunny and warm and heavenly. During my lunch break I wandered over to the flower district and the shops had filled up all the sidewalks with flowers. It reminded me of the opening scene of My Fair Lady. Well, I guess it wasn't that spectacular, but it was pretty darn nice. I rarely go over there even though it's only a few blocks from my office. That's a strange thing about NYC--it's so jam-packed that to go just one neighborhood over seems an unnecessary trek. We complain at my office that "there's no good food in our neighborhood." But what we really mean is that there is no good food within a 1-block radius. Because heaven forbid we have to walk more than 2 minutes to get exactly the food we are craving.



And if I walk in the opposite direction from the flower district, I'm smack-dab in the middle of the garment district where I am seized with a sudden and all-consuming need for crocheted lace. For a new shirt. wait for it. Twin thought I was crazy to buy the bobble fringe. It just looked so Easter-y to me I couldn't resist it.

Happy Friday!!!