So I Sewed and...

I finished it: a very plain and very comfy light bluish grayish shirt!!! Thanks to Mikalah from Posy the Porcelain Pig for all the inspiring project posts on fashion. And also to my dearest sister Candace from Curlly Willow who blogged on this very topic not so many blogs ago.

And now on to my little sewing story: I started this very plain and very comfy light bluish grayish shirt project waaaayyyyy back in January? February? Not sure anymore. And I had very good intentions but no follow through.

I thought with all the dreary weather lately, I might as well put the "indoor" time to good use so back to my good intentions I went. It wasn't easy or fun at first. I got fed up with the pattern about halfway through (mostly because I couldn't find steps 3 and 4). And also because the "recipe" called for puffed sleeves and I didn't want puffed sleeves at which point I took my scissors and improvised.

I had a lot more fun when finally I decided to wing it and hope for the best. Following of course a few guidelines from steps 1 2 and 5...! I'm not so sure this sewing thing is going to be my cup of tea because my patience runs a wee bit (short? thin?) most days but I'm not quitting yet. Maybe just maybe next time I will pick a more interesting fabric, throw the pattern altogether out the window, and have a lot more fun from start to finish. I'll let you know. In the mean time. What do you think?

Muffins or Cookies?

I thought I was making muffins the other day when to my great surprise and slight chagrin they came out of the oven looking very much like a batch of cookies. I got it right the second time around by not filling the muffin cups so full, but you gotta love the look of these: 

The Original Morning Glory Muffin of Pam McKinstry

Needless to say, the taste was delicious and I would recommend the recipe to anyone who wishes to know it. My other cooking experiments of late have been...

Farm Stand Greek Salad with (homemade) Classic Red Wine Vinaigrette

And...

Fresh Tomato Pizza with Pesto, Goat Cheese, and Arugula

And, last but not least...

Grilled Shrimp with Tropical Salsa

All these recipes are taken from The Earthbound Farm Organic Cookbook: Food to Live By. The authors are Myra Goodman, Linda Holland, and Pamela McKinstry. Of course it would be nice if we lived in an area where organic produce was a little less expensive and little more accessible but we're making due with the goodies we can afford at the present and as far as the recipes, we're loving them so far.

Death Valley

Fear not, the title of this blog has absolutely nothing to do with my current state of mind. In fact, I feel mountainously happy at the moment. I just returned from a fantastic vacation, part of which was spent camping in the Death Valley National Park of California. My favorite sight was the sand dunes at dusk...

Second favorite was the Badwater salt flats...

God's creation is so vast and that speaks only of what is visible...I cannot begin to imagine what heaven will be like. 

P.S. Props to my hubby James for his fine photography skills. 

I Love Fridays

Today I had one thing scheduled, a recital performance of the 3rd movement of Beethoven's Appassionata Sonata. It went alright, not great, not awful, but alright. I'm reminded yet again to be patient and accept myself as a work in progress...

I love Fridays because it is the start of my weekend. I usually have time to practice, clean, rest, blog, and start work on hobbies that have been collecting dust. My latest venture is to design clothing for myself.  James of course has thrown in a request for some cool pants, but I'm not confident "cool" would be the result. My forte is definitely NOT men's clothing.

I'm borrowing a sewing machine from a friend, and I bought an inexpensive pattern for a knit top so I can begin this process of teaching myself how to sew. The next step will be learning how to improvise by modifying patterns to fit my design. We'll see how this goes. I'll keep you posted as best I can. Just keep in mind that my hobbies tend to get a little dusty when I find myself busy with other things.

The Light at the End of the Tunnel

My recital program is finally memorized though a little shaky in a few spots. I've been recording my playing and always get excited when I hear improvement but I can't honestly say I'm loving every moment of the process. Is it possible for a person to be passionate about something and some days not feel like doing the very thing they are supposed to be passionate about?