Category Archives: Crafts

May 13, 2012 · 11:07 pm

Sunday Spotlight Eighteen – New Blog Love

I had a few ideas for the opening sentence to this post and I just couldn’t choose, so instead of choosing, I’m going to list them all:

1. Has it become cliché to use a noun such as ‘blog’ and add ‘love’ after it to create a new noun phrase? Something tells me this relatively new phenomenon has already passed into the ‘mainstream’ phase.

2. I’m so glad both the days of the weekend begin with an S so I can post my spotlight a day late and not feel guilty.

3. Ironically enough, I actually spent Sunday hiding in the shade of my room, avoiding the sun at all costs – this is because my Fry-day, on the other hand, did live up to its name and I’m nursing the worst burn I’ve ever had. Who forgets to lotion their back during a SIX-HOUR beach trip?!

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May 5, 2012 · 5:28 pm

Saturday Spotlight Seventeen – 5k on 5/5!

Welcome, readers, and happy 5,000-page-views day!

Yes, today I passed the milestone of 5,000 page views on my blog. Hooray! That’s not all that impressive for a 2-year-old blog, but I’m proud of it, and since probably about 500 of those come from the entire first year, I’m staying positive :P Who knows, I may even start getting big-headed and feel qualified to post some blogging tips on here soon. Haha.

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April 21, 2012 · 11:09 pm

Saturday Spotlight Fifteen – Care Package Incoming!

That’s right, I did just reference Call of Duty in my post title. Why? Because I’m one heck of a BAMF, that’s why. And also because I actually did receive a care package, and I want to tell you about it. No, it’s not from either of my parents, actually: it’s from Jenny, a.k.a. Pearlswirl jewellery on Etsy (or ‘jewelry’ as she likes to spell it – silly Americans).

So I was still trying to bring my heart rate down to normal levels after my oral exam on ‘La crise moderne de la fin du XIX siècle’… when I stumbled through my door and found a small parcel sitting on my bed waiting for me. Aside from feeling weirded out by the fact that my room was different from how I’d left it (it happened again yesterday when I came home from another exam to find a smoke alarm installed on my ceiling); I was giddy with excitement too. Who doesn’t love getting mail? And when I recognised the handwriting and confirmed the sender by the return address, my heart did a little flip. This was going to be special. Continue reading →

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March 5, 2012 · 11:16 pm

PinAddicts Challenge, March 2012

I’m baaaaaaaaaaaaaack!!!!!

Did you miss me?! I missed you. All of you. A lot.

So I went to Italy for a week and it was totally crazy. We were so busy all the time, seeing things and doing things and eating things and photographing things… Then yesterday morning we arrived on our international bus at 4:30 am and the trams hadn’t started yet because it was a Sunday and it was kind of awful. Plus, from all that close proximity with other people, I have developed a nasty cold. It really is very unfortunate.

BUT! Glad tidings, my friends! I am proud (and relieved) to announce that today I completed the most appropriate project possible for this sad news I just recounted to you. It’s the first Monday of the month again, which means #PinAddicts  is go! So I made a big push to finish this Grecian Rib scarf I’ve been working on forever. I will now be warm and toasty even in this cold, miserable Strasbourg weather. :) (It’s actually a fair bit warmer than it was before I left, but Italy was scorching so I’ve been spoiled).

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February 18, 2012 · 11:33 pm

Saturday Spotlight Ten – Apps That Made Me A Better Person

Hello readers! Have you all had excellent weeks?

I had a very busy day today: my Tarot group met at midday and I had to teach the complicated rules, in French, to two new joueurs; then I cooked soupe à l’ognon and ganache for some friends, after which Nicole and I were so sick of French food that we had to book a week-long trip to Italy to escape it all. Yes, it’s February, but I have a week off classes and I intend to make good use of it!

Now, here’s something about me you might not know because I haven’t had cause to mention it: I love apps. It amazes me how they can be so cheap yet sophisticated, simple to use yet intricately designed. There are probably millions of apps out there and I’m sure half of them are useless, but these ones in particular deserve a spotlight because they go beyond ‘useful to have around’: these apps have truly enabled me in many ways to be the sort of person I want to be. Does it reflect badly on me that I need an app in order to grow and evolve as a human being? Possibly. But the apps really are great.

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February 12, 2012 · 2:00 pm

Saturday Spotlight Nine: My Crafty Valentine

From one holiday to another: today I’m going to play right into your hands with a predictable Valentine-themed post. Grant has pinky-promised me (over Skype, of course, but I’m holding him to it!) that he won’t read this, so I’m free to share with all my other devoted readers what I would love to have waiting for him when he comes to visit. Bear in mind that this is totally all for me. Grant’s not a mushy guy, but I am certainly mushy enough for both of us. I can’t help it – I’m going overboard this year.

Plus, maybe by setting a good example I can train him to do such lovely mooshy things for me somewhere down the line :P

This great combination of wire and embroidery techniques comes from Camilla Fabbri at Family Chic.

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February 6, 2012 · 6:33 pm

PinAddicts Challenge, February 2012

Hi everyone. Good weekend?

 

A few weeks back I came across this blog post about the PinAddicts challenge, and I thought “Fantastic! I’m not the only one out there who bookmarks dozens of cool craft projects and never realizes any of them!” So I signed up on the spot.

The basic idea is super simple, although I’m not all that clear on the ins and outs of the blogging part of it. You just pick one thing that you’ve pinned, every month, and make it. Then I think you blog about it and link to the original post. Which is what I’m doing now! I’d already made my geometric shape garland when I moved in, but it was about time to cross something else off the list. Continue reading →

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January 21, 2012 · 11:42 am

Saturday Spotlight Six – Sprucing Up Strasbourg!

Hello, hello, hello.

I’m in a very good mood because today I am off to Germany! That’s right, this place is so near the border that I can actually go to one small town on the other side using my public transport pass for Strasbourg! So, we’re going to pop over to Germany for some cake and coffee, maybe wander around a little, and then come back all in time for dinner. And I have a Skype date tonight with my favourite man, so I’m feeling pretty upbeat.

CRAFTzine does it again! This would be perfect to spruce up my new Strasbourg place.

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November 26, 2011 · 9:37 am

Saturday Spotlight Three – Christmas Card Inspirations

Hi everyone!

I mentioned that I was considering taking a trip to the Río Celeste or even the Osa Peninsula weekend; but it looks like I’ve gouged out a good portion of my left cornea and will instead be nursing that back to health (somehow..?). I can’t wear my contacts like this anyway, so I’d miss out on all the natural beauty even if I did suck it up and go. Continue reading →

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November 19, 2011 · 7:00 am

Saturday Spotlight Two – 5 Festive Wreaths

So, remember last week when I strongly suggested you get yourself over to Pinterest and set up an account?

Well, that was good counsel. However, there is some dosage advice to go along with it. And here it comes, along with my list of five festive wreaths for all tastes.

I said last week that I have all these different ways of bookmarking things to come back to later – Liking, Thumbs-Upping, Plus-1-ing, Pinning, Starring, and all manner of other things. It’s great – I can file these things neatly away with titles and tags and get them back out again when I have the time/money/patience/know-how (delete as appropriate). Isn’t that fantastic?

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