Era Vera

Photo 2

2009-07-26T18:44:00.001-07:00

I posted these on my fashion blog, but they also seem relevant for a crafting blog. Art is kind of like crafting, right? They are from my Photo 2 class winter quarter.

Assignment One:
didn't scan because they're terrible. I was stuck in Duvall when it flooded with only color film and tried to print the color film in black and white which resulted in boring, flat pictures with no contrast. Eventually I'll probably get them printed in color and show them to you.

Assignment Two:
focus on blacks/dark tones
(antique typewriter)

focus on whites/light tones
(taken while snowshoeing in the mountains)

widest range of tones possible
(sign on the path while snowshoeing "Snoqualmie Pass" with the "p" worn off)

Assignment Three:
time & memory
(old truck in the woods)

(goatshed at my old house)

(fallen down barn and still standing but old shed)

Assignment Four:
image altered at the print level
(photo of newly built townhouses printed over photo of the woods around my house)

image altered at the negative level
(three negatives of me sewn together)

image altered in the camera
(double exposure of my friend in the car beside me and traffic out the window, my least favorite of this group)

image created without a camera
(van dyke print of cheesecloth, kale leaves, and bamboo leaves)

(cyanotype of a silk scarf and a chinese bone necklace that my dad gave to my mom)

(cyanotype of cheesecloth, a washer, and a twig)

Final Project:
photos of roadside memorials

I would love to hear your feedback on these. Some of my work from this class I am very happy with and some I feel that I didn't push myself hard enough to get to something interesting. I sort of feel like I did better work creatively in photo 1, and was just a little bit better technically in photo 2. I wish I'd pushed myself harder and devoted more time to the class. Oh, and like last time, my scanner washed out some of the more subtle tones, in none of them do they simply fade off the edge into the paper like that. Also, fiber paper attracts dust like crazy which can be rather annoying on the darker photos.

stuff I want to make

2009-07-03T01:55:00.000-07:00

I have this old hand-me-down dress that I think is pretty cute, however, the length is a bit of a problem. I think I need to shorten it, but I'm not sure how short. It's rayon and from Banana Republic. I'm thinking just over the knee, but I also sort of like the length it is now. There's something a little 30s/40s about it to me, by way of the 90s. However, I think it'll be a lot more wearable if I shorten it. Advice?

I want to use this pattern soon, but I need to find some good fabric for it. It should be made in a fabric with a bit of body, something like a light weight denim. But I really like the striped version shown and would like to make something like that. I haven't really looked yet, but I think I might have trouble finding something I like in the right weight.

cards and presents

2009-07-02T01:48:00.000-07:00

Last month was my friend Amanda's birthday, and I made her this card.

I've been really into kraft paper and yarn for wrapping presents.

I also made this card for my friend Alex when she was in the hospital.

new blog

2009-05-03T12:32:00.000-07:00

Hi everyone, I have decided to continue my blogging on a new blog. This was originally a crafting/cooking blog and I feel like my fashion bloggin needs its own place. The new blog is moda veloce and I have imported all the fashion related posts from this over there. Hope you all will continue to read at the new address.

projectssss

2009-02-11T23:23:00.000-08:00

I have bunches of things on my mind that I want to make or do.

I want to knit a slouchy grey wool cable knit hat. Something sort of like this:

but I think I'll do different cables. I'm planning on just making up the pattern as I go. I've never knit a hat and I've never knit cables but it really dousn't seem like it'll be too hard.

I want to finish this painting:

You may recognize it from one of my pictures from photo 1, in which my friend was pretending to paint it. I started it ages ago but haven't gotten around to finishing it up.

I want to make some slouchy menswear style pants using this pattern:

I'm thinking of finding some giant men's pants at the thrift store, made of a nice fabric and big enough that I have plenty of room to work with and turning them into lovely pants like those. There were also some Anthropologie pants I loved a few years ago that were high waisted trousers with a big sash and bow and I wish I could find a picture of those.

I need to get my hair cut. I want it cut like Linda Ronstadt:

So so adorable. My mom promised she'd pay for me to get my hair cut for Christmas, but we haven't done that yet. She's going to make me an appointment at the salon my friend goes to (they use all organic products and are really cool) on Friday, so hopefully my hair will be gorgeous soon! I was considering dreading it, which I have always wanted to do and definitely will do some day, but I decided I want pretty hair right now. Locks don't really go with a lot of styles I'm interested in wearing and I don't feel like limiting myself right now.

By the way, I just added a list of blogs I read to the sidebar over there. --> There's a lot of really great blogs on the list and I think they're all amazing. I am inspired by such a huge range of styles and I think you can see that in the blogs I love. They're all so wonderful in their own special ways.

Photo 1

2009-02-02T22:18:00.000-08:00

Yet again, no outfit pictures. I've been dressing really boring lately, and while I have taken a few pictures, they're really poor quality. I'm not sure I'll even post them.

In the meantime, I took a photography class last quarter and finally scanned some of my work. These were taken with a Minolta SR T-101 and printed in the darkroom at school. I scanned them with my scanner at home, which lost a lot of the subtle tones. Especially in the light tones, those have been completely washed out. So they look better in real life.

1st assignment - learning to use the camera and how to process and print

2nd assignment - street photography

3rd assignment - inspired by jerry uelsmann

4th assignment - portrait

random

final assignment - sustainability

I'm taking photo 2 this quarter and it's fantastic. I'm much more pleased with my work from this quarter so far. Although there was some stuff I liked last quarter.

Cases: suitcase, compucase, cardcase

2008-09-29T21:20:00.000-07:00

The week before school started I went to Texas (I got back the night before classes started) to see my cousins. Travel always seems to send me into a crafting frenzy. Maybe because it means I have new people to show off the awesome to? Anyways, I totally have a thing for painted suitcases, of the hardsided variety. Previously I've done a few with Lichtenstein paintings, but this time I was inspired by the japanese Rising Sun flag.

I also really needed something to carry my laptop in. I didn't want a whole laptop bag, something I could throw in whatever bag I was using instead. Originally the outside was going to be more interesting, with a stencil or applique or something, but I ended up simplifying it.

The lining is pretty sweet though.

Finally, I started using a new wallet that doesn't have a lot of room for cards (or any room really, I've just been shoving my license and debit card in with my cash, I need to fix that) so I needed something to carry buisness cards, giftcards, etc. I made this out of a Duran Duran tape that was damaged and didn't play right any more. And yes, I actually listen to tapes, and only craft with damaged ones. I'm oldschool.

It also has a pretty sweet lining.

Cheap, Quick, and Easy: Ramen with Peanut Sauce

2008-04-12T01:26:00.000-07:00

This is my favorite thing to make when I'm hungry and want something quick. It's seriously so easy and costs very little.

Ingredients:

Sriracha hot chili sauce, Tamarind paste, Milk, Peanut butter, Top Ramen, onion, shredded coconut.*

Start by throwing away the seasoning packet. Ew, that stuff is gross. Besides, the ramen noodles themselves aren't that bad for you, it's just the nastiness in the seasoning packet. Boil some water and toss the ramen noodles in. Boil 3 minutes.

While the noodles are cooking, start chopping your onion. You DEFINITELY don't need the whole onion, I chopped this much

but used maybe a third of that. Basically, not a whole lot but if you really like onion add a little extra. If it seems like way too little, remember that this is just for one person, so think of how much total onion you want to eat.

In your bowl, add some peanut butter, about this much

and some shredded coconut.

Add an amount of milk about equal to the peanut butter

and microwave it for about 30 seconds. Stir it, then microwave it for another 30 seconds. If necessary, repeat.

Mix it up well, and add tamarind paste and hot sauce to taste. I use about a tablespoon of tamarind and a squirt or two of sriracha. Keep messing with it until you like the taste. By this time, your ramen should be fully cooked. Drain the noodles and add them to your bowl, mixing well to coat.

*A note about ingredients: Tamarind paste is probably the least common ingredient on the list. If you don't have any, lemon juice works fine; I prefer the tamarind. I got mine at Uwajimaya. Any hot sauce would work or even chili powder, basically anything to make it a little spicy. Also, coconut extract might even work better than the shredded coconut, but that's just what I have in my cupboard all the time so that's what I use. AND, if you substitute soy milk for the regular milk, it's totally vegan and it doesn't affect the taste at all. I pretty much just use whichever we've got in our fridge and can't tell the difference when it's in the sauce.

Birthday Cinnamon Roll

2008-04-10T00:27:00.000-07:00

My favorite cinnamon roll recipe is from this old restaurant in my town that hasn't been around since I was a little kid. They put out a cookbook with some of their most popular recipes and the cinnamon rolls were in it. They're sweetened with honey, and instead of thick white frosting, they have a honey butter glaze with is DELICIOUS. So much better, really.

A few years ago, I was making cinnamon rolls for breakfast for my friends (we got to go to school a few hours late because the sophomores had to take the WASL, so we met at someone's house for breakfast each morning) when I realized it was my friend Nicole's birthday the next day, the day we'd be eating the cinnamon rolls. I didn't have a present for her, so I decided to make a special cinnamon roll "the size of her face." It was deemed a success and I've made one every year since.

Since I was delivering the cinnamon roll this year, and since I've had bad luck getting cake pans back and such (not from her, but my friend's boyfriend totally stole my biggest cake pan) I decided using a disposable one would be the best idea. They even came with lids! And of course, I had to make a silly card. Yes, that is a greater than sign, signifying that the cinnamon roll is actually BIGGER than her face.

Like I said, this is a cake pan, I think a 9 inch one? So that gives you some idea of the size. But you definitely want to see it without the lid so you can see the delicious, shiny glaze.

Yum, right?

Political Paraphernalia and Process

2008-04-05T23:19:00.000-07:00

Awhile back, around Super Tuesday, I made these buttons to support Barack Obama.

Then, before the caucus, I stenciled this shirt.

I get pretty bored with the same old candidate shirts and don't think they're especially flattering/attractive, so I wanted to make my own, in colors I like. I've also been really into this style of shirts, with the giant lettering filling the shirt.

So why am I talking about this now? Wasn't the Washington state caucus and Super Tuesday ages ago? Well yeah, but my LD caucus was today, I wore the shirt again, and remember how I said I got a new button maker? It's super old but it works perfectly!

Anyways, I made some new buttons, as well as some more of the smaller ones. In the picture, it's just the one of Obama's face and the small one that I made. The other two were from other people.

The LD caucus was cool, but took a REALLY long time. We were there for over nine hours and I am totally exhausted now. But I actually was elected one of the 10 Obama delegates from my district to go on to the next level, the Congressional District caucus and the State Convention. It was really freaking cool, but I was sooooo nervous when I got up there to give my speech. My mom said you couldn't tell, but my hands were shaking for ten minutes afterward. A couple of my frinds and other people I know where there as well and they stayed the whole time because they wanted to support me as delegate. It was amazing having all that support and people rooting for me. I'm hoping to go on the the National Convention in Denver, I think that would be amazing! I'm so stoked about this, but also ridiculously tired and I've got to work in the morning.

FotC Swap

2008-03-25T22:13:00.000-07:00

I joined a Flight of the Conchords swap on craftster. It was really fun. I received some great stuff and also had a LOT of fun crafting.

I made a reusable grocery bag using queenofdiy's tute (http://www.craftster.org/forum/index.php?topic=177482.0).

It folds up into it's own little pocket, which is really neat.

The fabric is an old sheet I had lying around (used it to make a pillow last year) and picked it because it reminds me of the wallpaper in the show. I made my own stencil, using the picture from the DVD. Feel free to use it if you like.

My friend Amanda was over right after I made it, and couldn't resist the sexiness of Bret and Jemaine.

Who could?

I also made an Albi wallet. Random fat quarter and as a stencil I adapted some cartoon dragon I found on google. I used really stiff interfacing, which I really like. I need to make myself one now!

There's two card pockets on each side (usually I only do one).

This picture shows the cash pocket (obviously).

Also made a necklace and earrings using inkjet shrink film.

I wish I would have used a clear coat on these, it would have made them look a little nicer. But who wouldn't want these sexy faces next to their own all day??

I also made a ton of buttons. They're made using my 1 1/4 inch Badge-a-Minit.

I also just got a free 2 1/4 inch Badge-a-Matic! It belonged to the elementaryschool my mom works at but they didn't want it because it was jammed. She took a couple minutes when she got home and was able to fix it. I'd been wanting a larger button maker as well since I get bored with all the same size, so getting a free one was awesome!