bubbledog blog

experiments in crafting

I tried to step out of my crafting comfort zone this week and do some different things.  One thing that I have never been really good at is painting.  Both of my parents were painters and my younger brother is an exceptionally talented painter, so it is kind of irritating that the painting gene was not handed down to me ;)  My brother came over on Friday night and we did some painting together.  While painting, he was measuring horizon lines, checking perspectives, working on creating layers of complimetary colors, mixing paint color, applying washes and I was essentially finger painting.  Though it was like Picasso painting next to a 10 year old, I had a great time and it was a lot of fun!  I don't think realistic portraits or beautiful landscapes are in my future, but I do enjoy painting cute Easter chicks and cartoony things like that!

In a second craft project for this past week, I made a three dimensional ice cream cone pillow... did I say a LARGE three dimensional ice cream cone pillow?  It stands 18" tall and was all sewn by hand.  I wanted to make a soft ice cream swirl and that took a lot of time, stitching, and patience.  I'm pretty happy with the pillow, but now it is time to anthropomorphize it... because everything I make needs to have a face, right?  I'm just trying to figure out the best place for the eyes and mouth - in the ice cream, on the upper part of the cone, the lower cone?  Any suggestions?

 

great contest to enter

I was just checking one of the blogs that I regularly cruise when I noticed an awesome contest.  Noticle, the blog run by the artist of Smeeta, is hosting a contest that will have three winners.  There are many ways to enter, so go check out her blog to find out how.  I'm in love with these bears in her shop... maybe I will win one!

photo from smeeta.etsy.com

new cat purr-ses

I've been needing to restock my etsy shop with cat wallets for the last two months.  They have been one of my best sellers over the last year and this past holiday season almost wiped me completely out.  I've just finished sewing a few and now I just need to photograph them and get the listings done.  These are the larger version of my design that measure eight inches wide by five inches tall.  I tried out some new color combinations this time and I have a couple more that are still in the works.  I'll be listing these new wallets over the next couple of weeks in my esty shop. 

trip to disney world

I just got back from a work related trip to Orlando where I got to spend some time at the Walt Disney World theme parks.  It was actually a lot of fun and I really enjoyed myself.  Though it is probably what most would consider the most boring of the four parks at Disney World, my favorite time was the day I got to spend at EPCOT.  The buildings made me feel like I was in some sort of 70's movie about the future (remember that movie Futureworld). I forgot how good all of the attractions are at these parks... they aren't like any other amusement park you could ever go to.  They have a ride called Soarin' which was amazing and another called Mission Space which was reall cool (though a little vommit inducing). 

The little trip around the fake countries was also a lot of fun.  It's really amazing the amount of work and detail they put into planning each section.  I remember going there as a kid in 1982 and being bored out of my mind... as an adult, it was a lot of fun!  My favorite part of the country attractions was the gift shop in the Japan section.  I picked up a few items there including the spinning head owl clock and the little critter (cat, hamster, dog?) next to it in the pic.  They had a lot of really cute stuff, but it was EXPENSIVE! 

lime in the coconut

My job is taking me to Orlando until Tuesday.  I will be getting to spend a lot of time in the Disney World theme parks for the next few days.  I haven't been there in a while, so I am looking forward to it.  I really enjoy going to EPCOT (though I know that is the "boring" park) and I'm also looking forward to some of the 3D adventures that the various parks have to offer.  In particular, I am looking forward to Muppet Vision 3D at Dinsey's Hollywood Studios. 

Speaking of Muppets, I miss the Muppet Show.  I was searching through youtube for a Raquel Welch clip with the Muppets and I never found the particular clip I was searching for...  I did, however, find this old gem...

gnomes unite!

Gnomes unite!, originally uploaded by cutesypoo.

I love these cloth gnomes made by cutesypoo (cutesypoo.etsy.com). Unfortunately, they are all sold out now, but I'm going to keep checking back. I think they are amazing and I can definitely see one of these guys hiding out amongst the house plants in my living room.

pups in cups

   

Though I've been doing lots of crafty things over the last two months, I've been on some sort of subconcious sewing strike since Christmas.  I think the massive amount of sewing I did from October through November of 2008 wore me out.  I've been trying to jump start my interest in sitting hunched over my sewing machine for the last couple of weeks.  I finally got the bug back and I'm currently working on a bunch of new cat wallets and some teacup chihuahua pillows.  The cat wallets are still in the works, but the teacup chihuahua pillows are almost all done.  They're small pillows (about 7.5" by 7.5") and are made of brightly colored felt swatches that I have screen printed with my chihuahua design.  As soon as I get some good pics, I will be listing these little guys in my etsy shop.

amazing lego photo by mike stimpson

Lunch Atop a Skyscraper - Widescreen, originally uploaded by Balakov.

After seeing the pic in my snowday post from two days ago, my brother Christian directed me to this photographer on flickr that does these amazing reproductions of classic photos, but all with Lego's.

His flickr ID is balako and you should definitely check out his "Classics in Lego" set... they are awesome! He also offers prints for sale and you can find out more about that in his flickr profile.

I picked the "Lunch Atop a Skyscraper" pic to blog about because there used to be a print of it (the original) hanging at a local pizza place that I occassionally stop at for lunch. It sat right above the booth that I usually sit in and I spent a lot of time looking at that print. I can't do that anymore because the owner removed all the prints that used to be up and replaced them with hideous pictures of his children in diapers and chef hats sitting in soup pots and mixing bowls... yuck!

snow day / spring break

 

Well, it looks like a blizzard outside right now and there is already about eight inches of snow on the ground. The snow is supposed to stop later this afternoon and I am dreading going outside and clearing the driveway.  This is my sixth snow day at work and our calendar year only budgets for four.  So after already losing a day off for President's Day, today is costing me one day of my precious spring break.  NO MORE SNOW PLEASE!

Since I have the time, I spent the morning working on some projects for my etsy shop.  I always enjoy the crafting, but I think I need some lazy me time.  After finishing this post, I am heading directly to my couch to cuddle up with my dogs, eat some homemade chicken soup, and watch The Empire Strikes Back.  Something about the snow just always puts me in the mood for a little Hoth action. 

craving cupcakes

   

After spotting a mouth-watering picture of some cupcakes on my friend Laura's flickr account, I gradually became more and more obsessed with getting those very same cupcakes into my belly.  It was a kind of mind numbing compulsion that had me in my car heading to the town of Easton without remembering to take the name or address of the bakery in question... I just thought my need for cupcakes would lead me to the correct address.  Well, I was wrong and found myself lost in Easton, PA.   Thanks to my trusty cellphone, my futile search became a successful venture with a phone call to Laura (name = Easton Baking Company) and some google address seaching courtesy of my parents (address = 34 North 7th Street).  For what it lacks in ambience, the Easton Baking Company makes up for in taste and price.  It's a little place in the middle of an old residential neighborhood that looks like it could have been there since the 1950s (and without much modification).  The workers were greeting most of the customers by name and I was overwhelmed with the choices of baked goodness.  I ended up getting three cupcakes, two cannolis, a loaf of Italian bread, and some cookies for $5.65!  I am definitely going back to this place... everything was really good!

...and speaking of cupcakes, I just noticed that my friend Amy is sponsoring a contest on her blog for one of her amazing cupcake bracelets.  You should definitely go check it out because all you have to do is post a comment on the giveaway post to be entered in a contest to win one of these beauties!