Cristy's Blog
Chihuahua Escape
September 5, 2010 - 12:37pm | CristyI am sharing this because it made me laugh out loud. You'll see.
Black Cat Pillow
September 1, 2010 - 7:34pm | Cristy
I wanted to make a pillow/soft sculpture and decided an homage to our dearly departed Frank Black was the perfect subject. I added his scar from his compulsive self-mutilating and captured him in his goofy, relaxed state--with tongue out.
Lessons to be learned from winging the creation of a pillow creature:
- The sewing machine does not register speed. You are allowed to sew slowly and precisely. In fact, going slowly and accurately is recommended.
- They are called seam allowances. Remember that.
- If you sew wicked fast with no seam allowances drawn on, you will definitely end up with a different shape than you planned. Totally.
- Making a pattern requires more planning than just doing a sketch. No super sharp curves or angles, add room for seam allowance, etc. You have to draw and translate into an executable pattern.
- Do not wad all the stuffing in there speedily or you will have a lumpy blob of a creature. Small puffs of stuffing, if you please!
- But, it is all good if you ultimately capture the vibe you were shooting for. This pillow makes me go, "Aww" so it worked out OK.
Now, I have not looked online. Something tells me that there is an awesome cat pattern PDF out there. But, I like making it up as I go along. And I learned a lot. I would compare it to my driving philosophy. I am always telling Dagwood, as he uses his imaginary brakes, that I have to drive like I feel it. So you feel the joy of it, whipping around curves, going really fast downhill. I would say this rule is even more critical when you are making things. Do it. Find the joy. Make mistakes, learn, and get better and better at it. And, enjoy the ride.
Praying Mantis: Garden 2010
August 15, 2010 - 5:21pm | Cristy
Mr. DeMille, I am ready for my close-up.
The praying mantis was kind enough to pose on a red rose with a neutral background.
another cartoon from Alberto Montt
August 15, 2010 - 3:45pm | Cristy
...and, because we are a nation that respects the highest laws but at the same time wants to respect human rights, we decided to begin using pumice for stonings.
NOTE: I am going to practice my Spanish and I will subject you to translations of the cartoons I find amusing. Deal? Great.
Anchorage in the 70s, Photos by Stephen Cysewski
August 1, 2010 - 3:40pm | Cristy
Photo by Stephen Cysewski
I am afraid of monkeys
July 29, 2010 - 9:27pm | CristyI am afraid of monkeys. It started when I saw a photo of a monkey climbing up a woman in order to grab for the lunch bag she was holding above her head. She was screaming. If you are worried, here is an article to help you avoid monkey attack.
Just keep this in mind--they are smart, strong and can smell your fear.
They steal your lunch.
They abuse goats.
Bike Tour Grub
July 27, 2010 - 4:43pm | CristyOn our bike tour we needed calories and this was a great justification for eating whatever we wanted. Beer. Cinnamon rolls. Beer. Seafood.
We had decided that we would not even attempt to eat our "largely vegan diet" on the road which was smart. There were times when even vegetarian options were few and far between and making do with the vegan options from a convenience store would not have sustained us. I am aware that French Fries can be vegan, but I don't think French Fries and Cokes is the diet recommended by cycling champions. There were a few times that I scoured the menu for a popular item that was ordered a lot--meaning food turnover and freshness in the kitchen-- and hopefully avoiding stuff that had been moldering in the walk-in all week. Just thinking it through to figure what would be least likely to cause food poisoning. In those cases, all dietary restrictions rules are out the window. Safety first, people, safety first.
We started out eating breakfast and lunch in restaurants. But, it took too long, cost too much and was too heavy. It made for stomach aches and leaden legs. So, we started eating smaller meals and snacks all day and then going out to dinner once we stopped for the day and got settled. We started carrying cereal with us and buying milk when we hit town since it seems that even the smallest, saddest motels have refrigerators in the room. We would stop for a second breakfast around 11am and get the gooiest, most decadent pastry we could find. (We really miss being able to eat pastries.) We made sure to always have food with us for those afternoon carb rich snacks like bagels with peanut butter and honey, Lara Bars, raisins and almonds. We would hit town around 4pm, get settled and search out the best dinner option that included beer. After a day on the road, a beer tastes pretty darn good. And, you have totally earned it even accounting for your giant cinnamon roll.
Some culinary highlights: delicious steamed mussels at Toby's Bar in Coupeville, WA; a free potato pancake in Lincoln City, OR; pan fried geoduck in Caste Rock, WA; berry pie after the ferry ride into Oregon; berry pancakes across from the Trees of Mystery in CA; and a berry milkshake in Fort Dick, CA.
Craft twist: you can illustrate any food story with felt/knitted foods. Crazy!
Awesome Family Photo including Bayonet...and Parrot
July 26, 2010 - 9:27am | Cristy
Did she carry that through the mall for the photo shoot? Those were simpler times.
