Ink Inspiration #5

Happy Monday! I'm enjoying my spring break this week and getting some more unpacking done. 

Ink Inspiration #3

I have quite a few flower tattoos already and as I was making this weeks list I realized I probably will end up getting a few more!

The moth above the knee!

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The above was found at Inked Mag. 

I may have to add to my leg tattoos too! Can you spot the Descendants tat??

Beginner Sewing - Baby Clothes

Back in 2009 when I lived in Guam I bought myself a really nice Brother XL2600i sewing machine. When I came back to the states to live in San Diego I had a bunch of my stuff shipped by boat, including the machine. Let's just say that Guam shipping stores don't have the same standards as a UPS here in the states, so it wasn't packed as well as I would have hoped. When it finally arrived there were some pieces broken off. I completely thought it was busted! It ended up in storage while I lived in Missouri and Alaska for four whole years. When I finally got it back it stayed in a closet until my mom got here. I don't know the first thing about fixing sewing machines so I had my her check it out for me. It turns out it was totally fine and works like normal! Sweet.

I used the tutorial for the knot baby hat below. I love it! I didn't use a tutorial for the leggings, which is why they came out a little wrinkled between the legs. I was hoping for a harem pant look, but I think I still need to work on it.

Upcycled Leggings - Useful if you already own a pair of baby leggings in the right size.

Baby Headband - I've been in love with these forever but I didn't want to pay $13 for just one little headband, especially considering how easy they are to make.

Top Knot Baby Hat - This pattern by Pretty Pruden is awesome!

Onesie Dress - From Smile and Wave. If I weren't saving those plain white onesies for the next baby I would have made a bunch of these!

Fitted Cloth Diaper - This looks like a pretty decent tutorial for a cloth diaper, but this is supposed to be only a liner. I wouldn't spend the time sewing a liner like this when I can just fold up a flat cloth diaper and put it into the cover. I think you could still use this idea for a diaper cover if you made the inner layer with waterproof fabric or with wool.

Toddler Yoga Pants - I'm in love with these!

I'm also in love with this:

Have fun sewing!

DIY Inspiration Links

I've been so anxious to start getting our home together but there is nothing I can do until we get our house and furniture. This means I've been spending a LOT of time on Pinterest and Google maps, seeing how far away Babies R Us and Ikea are from us. Turns out it will be a good three hour trip to Texas if we want to shop in-store! I think it still beats paying for shipping, but it looks like shopping will take up quite a bit of time.

Here are some pretty sweet links I found:

I've got some jeggings that have a broken button and I think I might use them to make these DIY Maternity Jeans.

This Painted Dresser Inspiration is some of the best painting jobs I've seen on dressers!

27 DIY Ways to Hide the Litter Box led me to a website I feel like a FAILURE for not knowing about before, Ikea Hackers. This FAKTUM Kitty Loo looks easy to customize!

Speaking of home improvements for Mrs. Peacock, I've been thinking of installing kitty shelves so she can have a place up high to hang out. Since we are going to get a dog soon I think she would be pretty happy having a safe place to hang out where the dog won't be able to reach her.

Not only am I thinking about giving her a sweet kitty play space and a hidden litter box, but her bad breath is just about driving me crazy! I really want to improve her diet. Poor kitty had really bad teeth when we got her and the vet wanted over a thousand dollars to clean them. There is just no way we could ever afford that, so I checked out feeding cats a raw diet with a supplement from Felines Pride. The thought of getting a meat grinder is a little ridiculous since we eat a pescatarian diet ourselves, but I think I can use my food processor just as easily. I hope it can improve her teeth, poor baby!

Balloons and Halloween Costumes!

Once again I got to spend my work day figuring out and also teaching everyone else how to make balloon animals. Tomorrow is the Halloween party and I'm excited about dressing up! Joe and I are going as Agent Scully and Mulder from the X-Files. Joe is a big Sci-Fi fan and while we were long distance we watched almost every episode of the X-Files together over Skype. Just not season nine... season nine was terrible. I think we are happy with the costume choice. Maybe I can get him to take some really cheesy photos like this and this!

It was a little difficult to convince Joe to dress up, as he wanted me to make a really elaborate Ludo costume from Labyrinth for him so I could be Sarah. Perhaps in the future we can do Labyrinth and make the bear cub dress as Toby! Of course it would be SO AWESOME if I could make Joe dress like the Goblin King instead, but I think that's asking too much!

I took some little iPhone shots of all the balloons we experimented with since there usually isn't much color happening in the office on a day to day basis. It's usually, you know, green. I was also very proud of my duck which I made especially for my husband.

Dinner with Julia, Ru, Andy and Sylvia

Oct 5: If you could have dinner with any 3 people, living or dead, who would they be?

This was a tough choice, so I'm picking FOUR and you can't stop me! I would love to have a dinner party with Sylvia Plath, RuPaul, Andy Warhol and Julia Child.  Of course there are relatives that are passed away who I would love to have dinner with again, but I don't think that was really the purpose of the question. I picked this little group not only because I love and admire all of them, but also because I think that they would interact well. I'm sure Rupaul and Andy would get along famously right from the start, but I don't want to leave a traditional girl (by our standards) like Sylvia all alone feeling awkward. I think Julia would be just bubbly enough and not as eccentric, keeping Sylvia comfortable. Also for goodness sake, someone has to help me do the cooking!  

Sylvia Plath

RuPaul

Andy Warhol

Julia Child

The Sweet List - Baby Things!

I'm kind of at a loss right now. I feel like I should be so pumped to make baby things! I really don't know where to start... and boy do I wish I had my surger with me! Talk about an easy way to make receiving blankets and washcloths. I guess pinking shears and a zigzag stitch will have to do.

I found a ton of inspiration on Etsy:

Woodgrain Baby Bib - How cute is this bib and cloth? I saw this and it was immediately decided that I will be searching for a woodgrain print as soon as I have a chance to go to the fabric store!

Cotton Gauze Baby Wrap - It will be hot in Louisiana so I think this light wrap would be great to have!

Organic Baby Wipes - Are store bought disposable wipes unnecessary? Probably. Do I have time to wash reusable wipes all the time? It's worth a shot. I'm sure these would come in handy for a million and a half things anyway.

Felt Mobile - This inspires me to make my own mobile!

Baby Bear Hat and Cocoon Set - I'm for sure making one of these sets for our little bear cub.

The Sweet List - Vintage Vanity Table

Is there anything more fun than taking a Saturday evening to pamper yourself? I know when I've had a hard week at work I like to come home, take a bubble bath with a glass of wine in hand (or champagne if I really want to do it Marilyn Monroe style) and have some jazz playing in the background. This is usually followed by being wrapped up in a robe and putting on face cream, pin curling my hair and sometimes doing my makeup for that night if I plan to go out. Nights like that deserve a fancy dressing table, which I don't currently have. I found a couple of vintage jewelry boxes that match each other for my dressing table (if you can call it that) but I still lack a larger box for the bulk of my jewelry and I would love a cute place to store my makeup brushes!
I remember being a kid and having adorable little mirrors and perfume bottles that were so fancy. I always thought I would have a pretty vanity filled with makeup and jewelry when I got older. I guess it's something to look forward to doing once we get a bigger house with some real furniture!

Here are my picks for my dream vanity table:

1. 1940's Czech Glass Perfume Bottle - 2. Brass Mirror - 3. Floral Compact

4. Art Deco Czech Glass Perfume Bottle - 5. 1930's Vintage Silk Kimono Dressing Gown

6. Hollywood Regency Matson Vanity Tray with Hand Mirror and Brush

Favorite Posts

Day 21, Tuesday: A list of links to your favorite posts in your archives

Memories Mini Album - I gave this to my mom and it has cute pictures from when I was a baby.

Altered Book Tutorial - It's an old post but it's still a really cool way to recycle old books and make a fancy notebook or album.

Travel Scrapbook - This was the scrapbook I kept when I went to visit New York. I got engaged AND got married on that trip! I'm so happy I decided to keep a daily journal and kept a portable scrapbook kit with me the whole time.

Crochet Kitty Toy Pattern - Mrs. Peacock loves her toys! She plays with them all the time.

Wedding Photos - In the Details - Of course I love my wedding photos!

Chevron Painting - Paint one for yourself!

Lemon Curd Recipe - YUM!

Favorite Blogs

Day 19, Sunday: Five of your favorite blogs and what you love about them

Scathingly Brilliant - She loves cats, has awesome outfits and I love her pastel gallery wall.

The Dainty Squid - She reminds me of my friends back in San Francisco. She reads good books so I get some good reading recommendations from her posts (I just picked up Geek Love at the thrift shop.) Love her clothing style. She loves cats and prefers fungi to flowers. 

The Nearsighted Owl - I love her kitschy style! She seems like a fun, confident person.

Bubble My Licorice - These two sew some really nice dresses! I love their fun hair colors and posts about their kitty. They occasionally post about feminism as well, which is nice.

The Militant Baker - She bakes and talks about feminism! 

Cupcake Heaven

My new favorite recipe site for cupcakes is Ming Makes Cupcakes

I want to bake every single one of these!

Filled cupcakes just look so amazing, don't they? When I was making my recipe for Sweet Potato Cupcakes I was going to use Marshmallow Fluff as either a filling or as frosting. The grocery store unfortunately had none and I was working on a budget at that (I'm flat broke!)

Next week I'll be heading out to buy cupcake ingredients... If I don't have to work all weekend.

Fashion Inspiration

I had the urge to go out today and try my hand at an outfit post. I thought it would be fun and a nice way to get out of my room...BUT my body decided otherwise. Maybe in a little bit I'll feel better and I can go find a secluded place to take photos. Meanwhile I've been checking out Lookbook for inspiration. Among many awesome lookbooks I found Adeline Rapon from Paris. I love her style! Check out Lookbook if you haven't already and enjoy your weekend!