Crafting in Wonderland: Monster bookmarks for young readers

Aren't these super cute? 

They're bookmarks I made for my nephew, Kane.  He just turned 7 and he is amazing. 

He is a great reader!  :)  So I thought these would be fun for him.

I learned to make them from this tutorial on You Tube.

Life in Wonderland: Viva & Merlot

The tourism industry on Guam has been hard hit for a while and it's not looking like it's getting any better.  In fact my hours, at work,  have been cut.  At first I was a bit worried, but I figure the best way to look at it is that I'll have more time to spend with family and friends and maybe even more time to sew.  Maybe this is the universe pushing me to do something more with my sewing.  People do ask me if I sell stuff, but up until now I haven't had the time to make enough for an inventory.  So from all of this Viva & Merlot was born.  Of course Viva and Merlot are my furbabies but now it is the name of my new blog, that is strictly for my sewing.  Hopefully it will be turned into a little business too, soon - I'm probably going to need the money.

All dressed up in Wonderland: Originals

My first semester back at school is nearly over.  Yay!  As you can see I've been busy with more than just the day job and school work.  I've been spending a lot of time in the art room sewing.  I wish I could say I've been painting, but lately my medium has been thread and  t-shirts.  I'm actually really proud of these two dresses because these are all me.  I didn't use tutorials or online patterns.  I didn't even draw these out first.  I just went with it and made it up as I went.  They turned out pretty good too.  

I can't wait for school to end and summer to begin.  I want to make more dresses and hope fully start building an inventory to sell some pieces.  ;)  I need to pay for school somehow.

Crafting in Wonderland: Peace Love Charity

A couple weeks ago, Nel and I were going to the $1.50 store and we spotted a new thrift store.  This shop was really nicely put together.  Unlike the other thrift shops on island it was not dusty and crowded.  They didn't have as many items as the other thrift shops, but what they did have was in excellent condition.  I saw a Le Sportsac Toki Doki bag and even a Harajuku Lovers clutch.  I bought this cute t-shirt for only $3 with the intention to turn it in to a tube top.  It sat in the art room until finally last night I decided to work on it.  I thought about maybe doing a halter instead, but finally decided to add some scrap tulle and this cute piece is what I came up with.  I'm not usually a big fan of one shoulder tops, but I like the way this turned out.

Here is the info on the thrift store if anyone on Guam is interested.

Peace Love Charity, a vintage store, features a collection of gently used, vintage, brand name and previously owned apparel, accessories, and shoes for men, women and children plus house wares, toys, books, and other items in good condition at great prices. The best part of shopping at Peace Love Charity is that 100% of the proceeds from the store benefit the Edward M. Calvo Cancer Foundation. Peace Love Charity is located in the Calvo Commercial Center, 600 Harmon Loop Road, Suite 101 in Harmon (next to KUAM). The store will be open every Thursday, Friday, and Saturday in December (excluding holidays) from 10am-5pm. For more information, please call 632-4PLC (4752) or emailpeaceloveandcharity@gmail.com. 

Crafting in Wonderland: I've got a double!

I was off from work today and decided to finally make a duct tape double of myself.  I've been wanting a dress form for a while, but shipping a dress form to Guam would be so expensive.  After seeing all the great DIY dress form tutorials on You Tube, I decided this would be the next best thing.  So I enlisted the help of Allan. He did a really good job and I managed to not pass out.  She isn't an exact double, but she fits my t-shirts okay so I can't complain.

I could've really used that double a couple weeks ago when I was making this top.  Instead I was forced to try it on, take it off, sew adjustments, try it on, take it off, sew adjustments . . .   Oh well.

Life in Wonderland: another breather

Lately I've been really caught up in school, work, and the DEIS/Build up.  Well as far as school is concerned I'm back in the zone.  I got a 100% on my first Nihongo test and an A on my first math test.  So I think I'll be OK in the studies department.  Work is work.  Not much else to say on that topic.  And as for the build up, the DEIS comment period has been over for a while.  It's amazing what was accomplished in such a short amount of time. The people at We Are Guahan did an amazing job getting information out to the public.  And it's nice to know that many of our concerns were also reflected in the EPA's comments.  For such a major move from a very powerful and important department of American government, it is really sad that the DOD didn't put the effort in to make the DEIS, and their plan in general, safer for the environment and people of Guahan.  They shouldn't be surprised that the DEIS received the lowest possible score.  It's not over yet, but I think we all deserve a moment to breathe.

My breather

Since the beginning of the year I've barely ventured in to the art room, except to get some supplies to make protest signs or to stash Allan's gig equipment.  Last week I decided it was time to clean up the art room and start a project.  I saw an episode on Thread Banger, a while ago, where she made a shirred dress.  After watching that I went out in search of elastic thread and found some at Rhadi's.  I never got around to making anything though, until last week.  I made this blouse out of some fabric that Shauna had given me.  It ended up being a bit loose on me so I decided to give it to Nella.  I seriously need a dress form.  I'm going to try to make one using one of the many duct tape dress form tutorials online, as soon as I can find the time and money to buy the supplies.  Then maybe I'll be able to actually wear some of the clothes I sew.  :P

Crafting in Wonderland: This one was a Christmas hit

Allan got the hang of bottle cutting just in time for Christmas! We gave out some Corona and Guinness glasses as gifts. Allan even made one out of a wine bottle for my mom.

We're hoping to perfect this and get into etching and painting so we can produce a bunch. I need to get rid of my glass bottle collection. I'm running out of space, but feel guilty throwing them away.

Celebrating in Wonderland: Oh, Christmas tree . . .

Our tree!!!

Complete with an Archie comic chain and Betty Boop ornaments.

Life in Wonderland: Oh Christmas Tree

I keep having to remind myself, this holiday season, to relax and not expect so much. If I could just slow down maybe I could actually enjoy the holidays rather than spending it worrying about budgeting for presents, fitting a stupid skirt, and the big one . . . the perfect tree.

I'm not sure why I'm so caught up in this tree thing. I struggle with it every once in a while though. I'm not really interested in buying a real tree. Christmas trees don't grow here so any tree I would buy would've had to have been shipped thousands of miles and could possibly be harboring a stowaway species. I don't judge people who do buy real Christmas trees though. They smell so good and a lot of the time the profits from the trees go to a good cause.

So why not just purchase a fake tree, that can be used year after year? I'm not really in to those either. I want something completely funky! I want something different. We own a wicker tree that I spray painted black. That one is in our bedroom this year. I need a new tree for the living room. I thought that making a tree out of plastic bag garland would be fun and funky. So in early October I started working on it. Then early November I realized that would take forever and was no longer fun. So early December we tried making a tree with aluminum cans. Then we ran out of cans and realized that wasn't the best idea ever. So last week we bought a bunch of green balloons and I attempted to make a balloon tree. I got frustrated after a couple hours so Allan took over. But by then I had already decided, out of disappointment in myself, that I didn't want a silly balloon tree.

I'm pretty sure we will just end up getting an artificial tree. Maybe I'll spray paint it some funky color. I'm not sure yet. I'll be sure to post pics once we finally get a tree up in the living room. In the mean time I'll continue cursing the contents of my closet and kitchen cabinets, for not getting along. Hopefully I'll find some time between to just breath and soak up the spirit of the holidays.

Crafting in Wonderland: Throw pillows

I Had some left over fabric from previous projects and decided to make some throw pillows for the couch. They're funky and match our curtains and foot stool, but they also have the red and Japanese vibe from the kitchen. :) I love them.

I made 2, but this is a pic of the first one.

Crafting in Wonderland: almost cute

I made this tutu-ish skirt today so that I can practice cutting out fabric for circle skirts. Cutting was easy, but sewing a curved seam is crazy. And it only got harder when I started pinning the elastic the the inner circle. I'm considering taking sewing lessons. lol.

It didn't turn out too bad though. I definitely need more practice, but it could have been worse. :P At least I got the formula down for cutting out the circle.

Last night I harnessed the power of my one step button hole function on my new sewing machine! Amazing feature. Maybe I should have used buttons instead of elastic.

Oh well. I'm off to find some tips on sewing curved seams.

Wish me luck.

Crafting in Wonderland: Purses to Germany

I made these a couple weeks ago for my cousin Ana. She lives in Germany and the last and only time we saw each other was when we both were in Florida visiting our grandparents. That was about 7 years ago. Hopefully in a couple years I can go visit her or she can come here and visit us. It's funny because my brother, her, and I are the only grandchildren and we all turned out pretty different from what the grandparents would've generally hoped for. :P

Crafting in Wonderland: Cow print mania!!!

I made this bunny for my nephew, Kane.

Hope he likes it!!!

Allan helped me reupholster this old foot stool. And you can see a little bit of Viva's toy in the bottom of the pic.

Crafting in Wonderland: Art room clean up!

As you can see I'm super proud that I finally cleaned my art room. It's all organized and user friendly now!!

Update in Wonderland: My computer is broken. :(

Suprisingly enough, Allan and I have been getting along pretty well considering our computer has been down for the past 3 days. I have been working long shifts though and he's been skating a lot. lol.

Not having the computer working at home has given me some time to work on craft and sewing projects though. Allan and I reupholstered our foot stool. It is now an awesome cow print with extra cushion. Cow print? Yes, Allan's mom sent some fabric back from Hawaii. Lots of fabric!!! I've also almost finished my Craftster swap package. I should be sending in a couple days. And I'm making plushies for Kane, Andrew, and Viva. Kane's is a super sized plushie though! I also cut up some sheer gray fabric for new living room curtains. I even started writing out my Christmas list! I want to be prepared and have a no stress holiday season. I've been busy busy busy.

I'm also trying to decide on a sewing machine to purchase. Recently my mom was asking if I could make her something. I was explaining to her and my dad about how my sewing machine is hard to work with. It's bobbin winder is not working. I need a zipper foot and other stuff, but haven't found any place that sells compatible attachments. So it is time to invest in a new machine! I found some on Ebay and Overstock that are factory refurbished. I figure that is the only way I'll be able to find one I really want in my budget. I found a really nice Janome on Overstock for only $99. I also saw a good Brother sewing machine on Overstock for the same price. So any and all suggestions are welcome!!! please help me!

Anyways I should be posting pictures of my completed projects as soon as our comp is fixed. :P

Life in Wonderland: Another well thought gift!

Look what I got!!! My friend, Luke dropped it off tonight. He was picking up some books he ordered at Bestseller and saw it. So he decided to get it for me!!! Another early birthday pres! My friends rock. They are soooo thoughtful!

Crafting in Wonderland: Handmade gift

I have a friend who owns a tattoo shop and her birthday was just a few days ago. So I decided to make her a pair of pajama pants, like the one I posted yesterday. But instead of using just any t-shirt I asked Allan if I could use one of his from the tattoo shop. I also found out how to make it so that the image is not cut off so much. For her's I added a drawstring, too. Hope she likes it!!!

This is from the front of the shirt.

Check out the Hope 4 Pain website!!

Crafting in Wonderland: T-shirt into sweat pants

I was watching the latest episode of Thread Banger and decided I'd try to make one of Allan's old t-shirts into sweat pants!  It turned out better than I expected it to.  I think Viva likes them!! :P

Want to try too?  Check out ThreadBanger.com!  This tutorial is featured in the viewer takeover episode.

Recieved in Wonderland: Wayward Victorian swap package!

I am a very lucky swapper.  Look at the amazing goodies I recieved today.  I absolutely love the mirror and frame.  I'm completly amazed at my partner's knitting skills.  And look at the lovely hand illustrated cards!  I was completely spoiled!!!  And look how well the items fit in my room! 

Crafting in Wonderland: May sewing

My Tweet Tweet mini tote.  :)

Day of the Dead skirt.

Midnight snack apron.  I also made a matching fabric collar for Viva.  She follows me around in the kitchen.  ;P

I got all this beautiful fabric and more from Rainbow Fabrics!!!