TMnT

Piedmont Pride

2010-07-01T20:37:00.000-07:00

My parents came up for a quick visit recently, and I had my dad haul up his Piedmont High Football jacket, from when he played there as a sophomore.

I dragged my folks and Matt up and down Piedmont Avenue in the early evening, just so I could proudly flaunt the jacket my dad let me borrow. I would like to say I imagined a few looks of admiration, but as the walk proved mostly uneventful, I then marched us into the very crowded Fenton's for burgers and ice cream, just in case the Piedmont locals were hiding out inside.

For the most part, nobody gave a hoot about me and my dad's jacket except for me and my dad. And that was actually just fine.

Also, I had a huge glass of chocolate milk with my dinner, because I was thinking of Susannah. So thanks for that, my darling niece!! You are totally right; chocolate milk rules.

I think wearing this jacket is one of my own personal princess costumes. Thanks pops!! I'll take good care of it!

Trekkie Time! Let's Bake

2010-06-16T08:50:00.000-07:00

Enterprise

Comm Badge

Vulcan hand sign:
"Live Long and Prosper"

Made these for an awesome lady in Florida, who is surprising her hubby for Father's Day. This qualifies as my very first custom sale through etsy. She put up the request, I responded, and I got to bend these babies into shape last week. I am hoping to see pictures of baked results from her!! Was very verrrrry tempted to keep them for myself... Any other cookie cutter requests? Hit me up, lovelies!

Here's to Summer

2010-06-03T11:46:00.001-07:00

a boy called Jack from chase burns on Vimeo.

Once Upon A Time

2010-05-14T15:25:00.000-07:00

This was once also me, on the inside...too shy to be this articulate about it.

Love you Frank, thanks for the ladies!

2010-05-12T21:04:00.000-07:00

An artist I really like died. I own a copy of the only film he ever helped work on, and I own an animation cell from that film, thanks to my wonderful husband. I will not try to wax intelligent explaining Mr. Frazetta's work. I'll just stick some pics I love that I stole off of one my favorite blogs ever. The Golden Age of Comics is worth a visit from time to time, if you dig illustration in any form. (The dude is a blogging hero of mine; the volume of visuals he shares is staggering to me, and his posts are my most favorite ones to pour over when they pop up in my google reader list.)

Anyways, onto the ladies... All of whom I would love to dress up as, at some point in my life.

P.S., I Love You.

2010-05-05T09:40:00.000-07:00

Let the desert wind
cool your aching head
Let the weight of the world
drift away instead.
-Beck

Much to my surprise, Palm Springs is a new favorite place in the world for me. It's super surreal to land in the dry Cali desert, take 3 steps off the plane into AC, and then take 3 more steps back outside into what feels like the entrance to a California Beach theme park...without the beach. What can I say? A little San Diegan like myself felt at home; like Sea World, without the smell.

The Ace Hotel there is Uh MAZE ing!! I cannot recommend a stay there enough. The decor and layout inspires the joy and energy of being at camp as a kid, but comes with the Ace typical mattresses of luxury for our old bones. It felt so much like camp with so many of our friends there, I think Matt and I collectively got enough sleep for only one of us. But we didn't care. I am so full of sun and love I must be radiating, and quite bloated.

I cannot possibly post all that was wonderful about this past weekend; Jarrett and Andy getting married, was of course, the pinnacle, but before that, and even greater than that for me, was watching my husband uncurl from the the inside out and enjoy life moment by moment by moment. So I'll focus on that in this first post; our entry into P.S., and a peek at the conclusion of it.

Can't wait to get back, both to the desert, and our peeps. Happy, blessed, in wonder, to have the joy and privilege of having this dude by my side, wherever we go in the world.

nuthn says luvin like

2010-02-15T11:43:00.000-08:00

Thanks to Ms. Rachel Shott for the Valentine breakfast inspiration. Matt was showered with a weekend of forbidden foods, starting with Friday night tacos de tripe y cabeza from street carts (DELICIOUS!) and carrying into chocolate chip cookies to take to work today. My personal favorite contribution was in the form of heart attack breakfast: Bacon and French Toast. The French Toast was sliced from a loaf of bread I baked earlier this week, and soaked in the bacon grease it was frying in. And then I put butter on it before Matt was allowed to drown it in syrup.

Matt bought me the BEST V Day "card" I've ever gotten:

The "haiku" on it reads something like:

Cherry Blossom speaks to Destro
"Tell Baroness
You love her..."

I guess we will have to make our Destro and Baroness Halloween/comic-con costumes after all.

My other surprise from Matt was Ika, this little orange squid, who was my kitchen helper. Ika will be traveling faithfully with me all week through my errands.

Ghost Arts by Clarke

2010-01-23T10:02:00.000-08:00

for Matt

for me

More of Clarke here.

Oh Alyse, sWeet Alice

2009-12-18T13:14:00.000-08:00

I have never seriously attempted cosplay before. Well, perhaps exempting my Evangelion's Rei costume from Halloween back in the good old college days, and maybe my little stab at being April O'Neill at this year's Comic-Con, I have never attempted to dress up as a favorite character from television, movies, or comics. In all seriousness, I cannot regard those dress-up moments of mine as serious cosplay attempts, because the true costuming fanatics are BRILLIANT about details...they geek out, creative problem solve, and generally turn up at nerdy conventions decked out in their Sci-fi/Fantasy/comic, etc. character of choice's garb, making on lookers all different shades of jealous (aroused, dismayed, disgusted, explosively excited).

As to why? Partly, I cannot dress myself up as a character I haven't the features for. I feel it somehow taints the integrity of that character in my mind. Also, when it comes to details, I generally don't have the time available to even set aside in my year to detail out a costume ala the best costumers and cosplayers do. Another factor might be my thinking, "why spend all this time on an outfit I probably won't wear out in public more than a few times a year?".

As I'm getting older, I feel more sure of what I want from life, and what I am happy to throw into the incinerator and burn away from myself and those that I love. I want to only invest my time, energy, and heart into the few people who have genuinely earned and retained my trust. I'm tired of being into cool crap, I'm getting tired of keeping up with what's hot in the music/fashion/scene/facebook/internets/art/politics ...which means I'm probably just "getting old"...which actually doesn't feel as bad as I imagined it would when I was 20... Another possibility is that I'm just plain tired. 2009 was a bit of a long course to stay for both Matt and I, and I want to retreat deep into the happy magical unicorn infested forests of my psyche, and daydream for long, long spells.

So, back to costuming/cosplaying: I present to you Alice, as seen in the sci-fi re-imagining of Alice in Wonderland 2 part miniseries on the SyFy channel!! (Love that place)

Much of the styling and costuming in this fun little wonderland visit is toned down cute, with lots of mod styling without being garish or humorously tacky (well, at least in my taste book). The story told has lots of nerdery within, and a super happy ending (*sigh, happy unicorn forest entrance!*), and the clothes are rather wearable. So, on my latest thrifting trip with Leigh, I dug up a few pieces for try on, just to see what it might be like to model myself a bit like this Alice.

I actually ended up taking home the boots and tights for a total of under $3, to makeover, and use for a real version of the Alice costume. The dress was a bit pricey and crappy to wear home, even though it was my beloved robin egg blue color, so I left it there with mad plans to sew myself up a more periwinkle toned version of Alice's little blue mini-dress, complete with rick-rackish details, pockets and back pleats. (As you can see, I've already done my homework)

I will TOTALLY wear this sucker in public OFTEN when I finish it; it's too obscure to reference offhand by the masses, and it's super cute! Well, the boots will look better when I finish hacking them up, I hope... If anyone wants a version of the dress when I'm done, I always save my drafted patterns when I complete them. I could even make myself up a gingham version, and maybe have a Dorothy version of myself as well.

YES YES YES

2009-12-13T10:14:00.000-08:00

I thought I was over dressing like this...like a cartoon version of the 80's glam rock queen...I thought Matt was finally safely in the clear of my thrifting spandex, garish chiffon, lace, taffeta and acid wash, and neon colors...I thought I had purged myself of these remnants of my childhood, and was about to plunge headlong into a mature approach to my fashion sense, collecting lovely vintage pieces and refining my sense of goth.

Too bad so sad, all bets are off after watching this magic dance back into what Jem was in my head at age 9. And actually, I'm rather happy about it. Bring on the hot pink pumps Synergy, I've got a bad pink perm to wear tonight.

I've got alot to learn still

2009-12-10T12:22:00.000-08:00

Flu ghosts

2009-11-30T23:27:00.001-08:00

Shot with my iPhone, editted in photogene. 5 day flu run. Matthew was still wrapped in sheets when I took these. I'm the only one who took it in the lungs though; still have a sometimes disgusting chest cough. And we're both tired. That's all though.

GO WEST HAM!!!!

2009-11-19T11:50:00.000-08:00

A new way to cheer my team on, thanks to Katy Perry. I had no idea she was awesome of any kind. Happy to learn she is. Apparently, football in Europe is way hipper than in the States...and has a larger fan base for fundage; because they plan to produce her little corset for sale off the team site for about 300 pounds, which, if you know anything about corset pricing, is spot on affordable, especially considering how CUTE and AWESOME this one is!!!! I'm sooo jealous, in such a good way... Note the "collar"... Sigh. It's truly perfect. She can even wear it with a team scarf in winter.

My Imaginary Friends: part 1 - Wil Wheaton

2009-11-17T22:30:00.000-08:00

Why Wil Wheaton is my [imaginary] friend
by Stephanie Thompson

1) Likes Batman, acid wash, Swatch

2) Knows what this card is

3) Goes to great 80's parties that play games like pin the sunglasses at night on Corey Hart

4) Plays games I want to learn to play

5) Has good art of himself

6) duh

More of him here. All of these photos stolen from his Flickr.

Without My Tan

2009-11-12T21:07:00.000-08:00

I found a "vintage" Rampage dress, the exact color and style, the
exact same dress that was one of my first grown-up dresses I owned
in my early awkward adolescent years. This dress, back in the day,
made me feel both beautiful, and incredibly self-conscious..."Who
was I to try and look like this?" Ahh, Confidence, how you've eluded
me all these years.

Of course, this was larger sized version of the dress than I wore at
age 11. And, of course it did not look nearly as good on me now as it
did then. I remember how I used to love the way fluorescent colors
set off my tan skin; they loved each other. The sallow excuse for
coloring I have now is like the uncomfortable stranger on the bus;
the coral in this dress and it looked at each other, faked a smile,
and then looked away, hoping to avoid eye contact again.

It was a nice little skip down memory lane. I left this dress there
and brought home a bright belted floral number I plan to take up the
hem up on. Winter shortness, here we go.

warm fuzzy time

2009-11-05T20:19:00.000-08:00

Love to lots of you in the wishes above...all things I want to say, do, or be. Preferably sometime this weekend. All at once.

Cuties By Judy...and the lawsuits and ramblings that follow

2009-11-04T09:18:00.000-08:00

On my quest to thrift for cute, gender neutral clothing items for expected new little niece/nephew, I found this little green onesie with an awesome embroidered dinosaur on it (a la Polo, Lacoste, Le Tigre, and the like). In thrifting, I'm always intrigued by 1)alternate/unknown brand names 2)bright color combinations from a different decade 3)the history behind how any object came to be. Finding this puppy satisfied numbers 1 and 2 for me; upon bringing it home, I set out to indulge in number 3.

Upon first insertion of the name in the Google search engine, I got a few of the usual listings of the same brand up on eBay auctions, but these did not lead me anywhere of interest. So I researched...

If you follow the link circled, like I did, you would be lead here, which is a web page describing the legal dispute over copyright infringement involving the parent company of Cuties By Judy and Wal-Mart, whom, it seems, had no qualms with knocking off designs to sell at cheaper rates than their competitors could at JCPenny's. My intrigue bar peaked vibrant red at this little find.

Reading about the dirt on a corporation always tells you soooo much more than anything that dribbled out of their PR department (which is usually all my searches lead me to; tiny paragraphs about the nice merchandise that company made and for Who, and How Long). This particular piece is interesting to me because of the details within the dispute. As I read it, it seems that Judy-Phillipine, Inc. shook hands with Wal-Mart in 1996, and the two skipped off to sell their knock off garments, whose designs were taken primarily from Samsara Brother, Inc. (which were being sold at JCPenny's). Wal-Mart made $1.5 mil off of those garments. The court said "No-no!" and awarded Samsara $1 mil in damages.

Wal-Mart's fabulous lawyers invoked their magic lawyer wizardry to dispute the claims further (and defend their company's thieving arses). There were 4 charges; they pursued reversal of only one of those. The argument and discussion which followed was interesting to me to see written up in legal jargon.

The parts of design in question in the repeal in the Wal-Mart Stores vs. Samsara Brothers case were " familiar objects, such as the hearts, daisies, and strawberries". The end argument basically stated, "You Can't Copyright A Circle, Idiot". Justice Antonin Scalia wrote "the Court has held ' 'that no mark can ever be inherently distinctive.'" But...you can maybe copyright the circle if you made it special enough. So...how special-enough is "enough"?... Nike Swoosh special? Klein blue special?

What was it that separated My Little Ponies from their knock off counterparts? I was not privy to experiencing the Cabbage Patch doll mayhem that tormented the parents of the 80's. I'm pretty sure my parents avoided the obscene lines and overwhelming price mark-ups ($100? In the 80's? For a DOLL??), and my brother was even presented with a fabulous hand sewn CPK fakie, whom he adored for the 1 year his 5 year old devotional attention span would allow.

The U.S. Supreme Court decided to rethink the case, and ultimately reversed its decision, but only on the 1 count that was appealed. All other charges remained, as I believe Wal-mart and ms.Judy-whats-her-face were in fact, in error, and should not be rewarded for copying popular design to sell cheaper. However, I am glad that copyright law also protects the masses; people who cannot afford the mark up of Exclusivity, as well as the rights of someone that sees something, and believes, "I Can Do That Better!". It would be a crime for the image of a strawberry to be copyrighted forever, or even for 10, 20, or 50 years.

The argument seems pretty obvious in bigger cases. A lightning bolt, with specific proportions, cannot be drawn down the center of a surfboard stringer any longer without referencing the Lightning Bolt brand. A certain stretch and styling to the bat shape will always reference Gotham. The part of interest, where the question of an icon/image/design having a "secondary meaning" to qualify as Special Enough for copyright protection, is as how it applies to DIY-ers, and the myriads of small companies springing up today. Particularly as visually, we as an audience are in an age well beyond over-saturation; we are in an age of visual schizophrenia. Icons are so ingrained, that they overlap.

And we dream of them. MacDonald's arches and Mickey mouse ears (to use, for example, 2 of the-most-obvious) resonate out from dual circle shapes everywhere we go. We notice-but-don't-notice. They become redundant over time. Redundancy means complacency; we are bored with them; they are not telling us anything new. What's more interesting than those mouse ears, once seen over and over tens of thousands of times? Mouse ears on Godzilla, climbing the buildings of our dreamworlds in our sleep. What's even better than that? Making that Godzilla figure on our desk at work wear those Mouse ears in real life. Now paint him neon, like those colors you liked when you first went to Disneyland and listened to DeLaSoul. Now print that image on a t-shirt, so your co-workers can join in on the fabulous inspiring fun/joke/wit/event. Now create variant colorways; reggae Godzilla-Mickey-Marley, metal Godzilla-Mickey-Dethklok. The neighbor's kids want some...so does some guy in Japan for his shop... The best thing any over-saturated brand has going for themselves today is the ability to harness reinvention. At some point, too much becomes unbearably too much once again, but at what point is it legally too much?

Disney has ever-so-smartly licensed out and allowed all kinds of visual artists to use their imagery. The result feels spectacular to me; a dialogue has re-ensued between me and the big D; I am in love again, like when I was a kid, but as an adult. I feel I am a part of the conversation; not simply being spoken to from a corporation's soap box of money. In part, this could simply be the result of my generation growing up and taking on the marketing and designing jobs of the previous generation; my peers "get me", etc., so unavoidably, I laugh at the jokes on commercials today that, perhaps, my children will stare blankly at and think are inane.

Another side of it, though, is that before the rights were granted by Mega-Corp to Tiny Artist, Tiny Artist made the art with stolen imagery, to redefine, to comment on that icon and what it means to them, or maybe simply, to purge that Mickey Ears wearing Godzilla from their dream world. Whatever the reason, Disney corporation did not take Tiny Artist to court. They instead decided, after the infraction, to shake hands and do business. Obviously, a large reason behind this choice working for Disney is that Tiny Artist made art with stolen imagery that had a secondary meaning behind it...it wasn't simply knock off mouse ears, or strawberries or hearts or stars, as in the Wal-Mart case, in which, it seems, a vendor simply went after a cheaper design solution, with minimal creative contribution.

I have to care about this distinction, for myself, both as an artist and as a consumer; my right to create something better and profit from it financially, and my right to defend that creation. I am almost ALWAYS thinking about reinventing something that I see. My current re-creation is a process in which I will hand sew a new version of the beloved plaid Porter wallet I just lost 3 days after Matt bought it for me in Japan. I will also hand make the Moogle charm I attached to it (which was also bought in Japan, sold out in the US for sometime). The purpose of this recreating is to pour all of my emotional attachments and respects to the lost objects into the vessel of the new; a small homage to the love and hard earned money my beloved husband used in purchasing them for me. The Moogle character is trademarked by Square-Enix, and the Porter wallet brand is famous; I am glad I live somewhere I won't get sued for recreating these images with pride for my own pleasure, use, and economy. I am also glad I live somewhere that assists in protecting the integrity and quality of the brands that I like, so that should I choose to purchase another Moogle charm, it won't be a competitor's shoddy knock off design, with a crappy mismatched off-white instead of cream paint job.

I am mostly glad that the integrity and worth of any design/creation must be thought through, discussed and questioned. That alone gives value and purpose to the process of creating and selling, and though it must be a head-ache at times, and a legal nightmare in the worst cases, I believe, fundamentally, that there is such value, is always a joy.

And that, Melody, is the story behind your new onesie.

Giraffe + Octopus = HappyBirthdayLeigh

2009-10-28T15:55:00.000-07:00

Birthday presents I made for Leigh. The giraffe was pretty long; her legs were at least 2.33 feet maybe more, same with her neck. All materials were sourced out of the fabric stash I've got crammed into the nooks of my loft. I saved the pattern I made and think I'll use it again to make a couple more giraffeys out of different fabrics to put up for sale on etsy.

This octopus was cross-stitched by Matt back in college. I stitched him onto some wool fabric from a repurposed/thrifted blazer and one of the horse ribbons Leigh and I gathered a year ago. Now he is a brooch. The end.

Back from travels, time to make some more stuff!!!! And watch a lot of Halloween movies.

Pink Jumpsuit

2009-10-26T20:49:00.000-07:00

Halloween comes to VeryHappyEverything

2009-10-16T10:14:00.000-07:00

Pssst, spread the word: VeryHappyEverything is now hosting my first ever halloween line. 7 masks with 7 caps for 7 lucky dolls...a necklace for each, 7 little hand-drawn icons, the only tell-tale clue as to Whom will appear at the party.

A teal and black colorway set of 7 will be posted on our etsy upon my return from Japan. These were so freaking fun to make, I've already got new designs underway for November and December. I think the dolly-sewing seal inside me broke... I'm looking forward to long wintery days ahead of craft-a-sauring.

Stayed tuned for updates!! In-progress pics to come.

Very Happy Everything

2009-09-03T08:48:00.000-07:00

Soo....I've been super quiet about my little joint etsy shop. My plan was to announce once I posted my own handmade goods in it, but that has not happened yet this summer. Miss Leigh Poindexter has been a busy little bee, and has been hard at work making uber-cute stuffs for it (such as shark, octopus and cupcake necklaces, horse ribbon brooches, and pins in the charming shapes of beers, bows and band-aids) since its launch in March. Yes, I've been a super slacker since March. It has been a somewhat busy and unexpected year, but I won't make any more excuses. Time to join this game, if, for no other reason, than because it's FUN!!

A recap of how I spent my fabulous 32nd birthday:

The photo shoot was staged at the lovely Blanche's (dark haired beauty above) home in Los Altos. Her kitten Alice attempted to debut in the shots, and we got to enjoy her mother's gorgeous doll paintings as we trekked around the house for good lighting. I loved the props we found to use, especially the trike I got to pose on. Below are some shots taken of garments not yet listed (but will be soon!):

I'll post again once the other clothes are up. In the meantime, spread the word: VeryHappyEverything is where it's at.

The Great Storage Clean Out Part1/Salida thrifting time

2009-08-26T13:10:00.000-07:00

Let me start out with a big, heartfelt thank you to my Carson cuzzins, who saved my butt and made a day of drudgery into a day of fun. If you read this, I hope you're up for round 2.

Next, let me share some advice:
BEWARE OF STORAGE!! Everyone reading this probably knew this long before Matt and I. Of course, in retrospect, given our tiny little 500 sq. ft. first apartment, storage actually was a necessity. Our main mistake was in choosing to keep it, instead of clean it out, once we relocated. Why condense now? Well, in keeping up with the current waning economic trends, we decided it would be a great cost cut monthly, as well as a load off of our minds...never mind the fact that we could hardly remember what-the-heck-was-in-there anyways.*(to be cont...)

Upon arrival, the first dilemma Amanda, Morgan and I faced was that the Masterlock key didn't work. The lock on our storage unit was brandless. Did I bring the wrong key? I called Matt; he confirmed, correct key. Not too difficult, we only have 1 storage unit after all. How did Mysterious Generic New Lock get placed on our unit? Morgan brainstormed plans of action to get inside. I brainstormed plans of action in asserting my rights to months of rental refund should the contents inside be otherwise than as we left them. After some tool shop run around and an incredibly generous purchase of some bolt cutters on my behalf but for Tyler's personal ownership, we arrived for Plan 1: Break In!! And replace worthless weird lock with new strong lock. The storage manager lady panicked, wanted to make sure I wasn't renter of unit 523 aka Matthew Thompson's crazy wife, sabotaging his junk without his knowledge. Cousins and I picnicked on Facebook, iPhones, and water in the shade while we waited for Matthew to fax his driver's license to worried manager. Smooth sailing after that. Storage was intact, Handyman on-hand used his own bolt cutters for us, and Morgan and Amanda helped me load up anything I wanted to sort through and keep at home.

After that, and a brief assessment of What Needs to Go Permanently (mostly furniture, a twin bed... speak up if you want any, you haul away!) we scooted off to playtime. We recouped at the Carson's, grabbed water, and our GTI's VW Golf cousin, and Morgan and Amanda introduced me to Bi-Rite thrift store. Below are the following delights that I enjoyed, but did not buy...

Day 2 will happen soon, and I think Amanda and I are hoping to spend some quality granddaughter time with Grandma and her new shiny blue scooter (excited to see!!!).

*A final note on what we found in storage when I brought it all home... Some sentimental things, my wedding planning album, an All Blacks patch, Matt's yearbooks and an awesome children's books. But wait...what is THIS I see?...

Yep. Trash. Trash, trash, and more trash. Sentimental trash and, well, just trash!! Bits of wrapping paper, strings, STRAW WITH OUR NAMES WRITTEN ON THEM FROM IN-N-OUT, school notes that prove more than half of our college life was spent doodling, TORN CAUTION TAPE, pieces of stickers, fake flowers, a giant Altoids tin (actually, really excited about that find, but that's for another post), and old old old ancient Comic-Con volunteer passes. I am currently empowered and inspired to THROW EVERYTHING AWAY! Our loft is getting an overhaul now was well. And it feels so very, very good.

Don't worry, I am keeping only my very favorites of the junk. Some sketches of my wedding dress, for example, before it was made, and cute photos, etc. But all in all, we were paying monthly dues to Keep Crap. Never again. Come mid-next month, we will be storage free, and hopefully our loft will be the cleanest it has ever been since we moved in. I feel certain I will not lose motivation on this project.

Maybe I'll also need to make a new dress for New Loft's debut.

Do You Wanna Date My Avatar?

2009-08-18T09:34:00.000-07:00

To follow up my first comic-con post, I'd like to share the following:

Found on Miss Geeky, one of my favorite blogs. Yes, I want all of their props, and my own line of costumes in my closet.

Adventures at Comic Con 2009

2009-08-14T06:25:00.000-07:00

First mission: stumbling through the waves of attendees, popping off shots in people's faces as they stumbled by us. The cuties I tried to stop and pose with.

Avatar boys
(kudos to Cool Dad who lets kid dye and shave his head for this event)

Princess Daisy

Princess Peach

Ken and Ryu
(and I maintain that it is NOT pronounced RAI-yoo. it's RiYOO...play down that "i" folks)

Juno

I have no idea. I just want to pinch his little MySpace zombie cheeks.

Optimus
(one of my earliest crushes)

V

from a video game I think I watched Jeremiah play

Some more of the standard attendees look like this:

Second mission:
It was in these aisles i met David Petersen and bought myself the only thing I planned on buying at the con this year, the new Mouse Guard hard cover graphic novel. He signed it to me and drew me a picture. *sigh of deeeeeep contentment*

Now we enter the Twilight Zone:

Twilight fan girls

In all of the years I have ever attended the comic-con, this is definitely the first I found amounts of suburbanite housewives strolling the aisles en force. Not everyone was for it:

Which leads me to...
Third mission:
Contemplating and experiencing how a comic convention has developed into a tv/film celebrity blitz. I spent about an hour or so one of the days, resting my tired con-trekking legs on the floor, pondering how much other media had made it into a convention whose major stars used to be uniquely, the artists, authors, and publishers of comics. I heard Elijah Woods was there?? Johnny Depp??? Among panels and panels of others promoting films and television? Since I haven't attended for a few years, I sort of missed out on the progression. I made up for it by jumping into the massive Lost panel with Pat. Press panels definitely work. I came out of that sitting 100% committed to watching Season 6 religiously. Still feel that way, actually. I left that experience concluding that everything that happens at the Comic-Con is completely and exclusively for the fans of what is at the heart of comics; dynamic visual tales of the fantastic.

And now, my favorites:

Do I even have to name them?? All 4 were represented, Ghostbusters keeping it clean.

Cloud
I got to pose with a fan portraying the character of one of my favorite video games, who was created by one of my favorite Japanese concept artists, while I was wearing my fan-girl outfit I created for that character.

And that is what it is all about. Moments of joy, shared by fans.

I think I want to go all 4 days next year, too.

A brief over view of A Few Days in Oakland

2009-07-01T20:04:00.000-07:00

Strawberry Shortcake Flaming locks outside of Bakesale Betty. Leigh
has a break in camp work, and Jon Whitmire is visiting for his
birthday week, so scones are on... Kind of almost a daily breakfast.

In other news, antique crowns are awesome, Leigh lent me a cute cart
to reorg a small piece of my kitchen, Aviva got a fixie to ride around
her new Oakland hood, and both standard poodles Hemi and Hadley like
Coco. And he is not freaked out by them hanging out. In short,
allgirlsummerfun is in the air... I need some pool access and we're
set!

J & K

2009-06-28T01:20:00.000-07:00

I just miss seeing them dance.

I Scream You Scream

2009-06-24T22:32:00.000-07:00

Try it, you'll like it. Matt wouldn't, but I did. It was friggin delicious. Some guy in Portland handmakes this stuff, and sells his ice creams out of a tiny, bright orange trailer, illuminated by his neon sign "Sweet Awesome". If you want pints of specific flavors, you need to order in advance.

George has a thing for Maple and Bacon foods... It started with a bacon-maple bar at VooDoo Donuts (also a Portland specialty), and has grown. When he found this dude, he placed several orders from the comfort of his couch in Oakland, and picked up his pints when he arrived up the coast for the weekend of Tiki party birthday celebrations. Pretty stoked that his was one of the perks of me being there.

Wings n Things!

2009-06-24T22:25:00.001-07:00

Pretty sweet deal that my husband contemplates buying me art like this. It was definitely outside of our responsible price range, but the sentiment makes my heart flutter nontheless. Someone else bought it already, so I can't contemplate how many months of toilet scrubbing it would take to pay it off. So I put the image as Unico's wallpaper.

It's funny how images can covertly run a suggestion program in the back of your brain so that you can go about your daily business of surviving (making coffee, tripping over boxes you're organizing, feeding your noisy cat, uploading Facebook photos...) without noticing the secret thought life it's inspiring. Tonight, sometime after viewing this piece, I felt the urge to play a videogame I haven't touched in so long, I accidentally loaded the game disc into the wrong player, and couldn't remember how to access it through our media set up.

I was interested in re-playing the game storyline of Gwendolyn, a cute little feathered blonde Valkyrie, daughter of Odin. You see the connection? The spiral up begins...

With the Comic-Con fast approaching and Matt and I the proud holders of 4-day passes, I'm beginning to spin my wheels for What-to-Wear... I already have 1 T-shirt completed, and 1 dress project I need to make progress on. I think I've found inspiration for Day 3... I absolutely looooove that there is an event that I will be able to wear a feathered cape (if that's where this theme goes) complete with armored bustier and Thor helmet without batting an eye. Onto
sketching... Pencils away!!!

$2 bargain bin and Local Buys

2009-06-12T11:34:00.000-07:00

Not really. Thrift town doesn't have bargain bins, because it IS a bargain bin...one giant, organized bin of treasure... Anyways, some more lucky finds for my wardrobe tastes:

Granny Dress

Kaftan

Gunne Sax Skirt

Acid Washed Tote

Another place I would like to direct everyone's attention to is a little shop just up College a few blocks from us called The Pretty Penny. It's a very cute, incredibly reasonably priced vintage resale store, with stuff from the 40's to the 80's. I got me a new suit for the pool this summer there. Here's a peek at the face I chose for my belly:

Swim!!

Useful Norwegian Phrase of The Day: Luftputefartøyet mitt er fullt av ål (click link for pronunciation)
Translation: My hovercraft is full of eels
Found at Useful Norwegian phrases.

Dirty Toy finds...

2009-06-10T09:55:00.000-07:00

All scrubbed up and prettified, some details of my finds from Sunday.

Alameda county pony purse fair

2009-06-07T13:57:00.000-07:00

Guess who's coming home with me today? Gotta love the Dude at the
back with a pile of dirty toys and a sign saying "$1 each". Gotta love
friend George inviting me to go, and being okay with me ditching him
asap to venture on pony quest. Gotta love husband Matt for lending me
cash for today's outing.

P.s. Found another Polly Pocket for ya, Melody!

Need 2 Frenz Imeede-uht-lee!!!!!

2009-06-04T23:02:00.000-07:00

Ready? We're gonna make THIS!!!

Batwing aerobic wear

2009-05-22T12:41:00.000-07:00

Leigh scored someone's entire workout wardrobe from the 80's today. I
think she's more than willing to share. I think we'll be hosting
jazzercize workout tapes in our loft soon.

8 year old Stephanie Found @ Thrift Town

2009-05-19T13:54:00.000-07:00

Yeah, I'm beyond stoked. I found two baby pony nighties, a slew of pony hair ribbons (authentic!!), baby bottles, toys, diapers, a baby pony toothbrush and toothpaste, and myriads of hair accessories for MLPs and Lady Lovelylocks alike. 1 bag for a solid $4, thrifted @ San Leandro Thrift Town via the 99 bus route while I had a raging head cold and my car was getting 20k service at our friendly Hayward VW. WORTH IT.

The unicorn babies in their matching nighties takes me back to the BEST pony days of my life, when I was around 7 - 8 yers of age. My friend Michelle had a slumber party, and all of the friends gathered there were devoted My Little Pony fans. My first encounter with glow sticks was there (discovered if you break one open, you can make yourself and your sleeping bags glow from the contents).

Some part of me is still at that party, among a flock of little girls in flannel and cotton nighties, frolicking in the dark of her backyard with only the light of our glow stick horns to guide us. I was terrified of the dark as a child, envisioning all sorts of evils which were waiting to crawl forth from it and devour my mind, soul, and everything I loved. But I didn't remember to be afraid that night. 8 year old giggles have a way of illuminating.

Funny, I just remembered when I taught myself to not be terrorized by nightmares...I awoke from a horrible one, sweating and short of breath, and decided I would fall back asleep and have a happy dream. I began to tell myself a story about walking down the street on my block with my friends Michelle and Megan (my best MLP fan friends) and eating ice cream cones. Since then, I've been able to control my nightmares even while asleep. I've woken maybe once or twice since in the same manner all these years.

Kiwi Kate played ponies with me when she was here visiting with Tim and Kiwi Matt. She told me she had never had the oppportunity to play with her own as a girl, since she didn't really have anyone else to play with with them. Well, she knew one girl...but every play date involving ponies turned into a "I have more ponies than you" event. Guess I am super grateful for friends who played in the spirit of sharing. Thanks you Hasbro, as well, for making unicorns so fun and pretty. A million good memories and a vivid and colorful childhood.

If anyone wants to play with me, come on over! The drawer is getting bigger...

Low Low Low

2009-04-29T00:51:00.000-07:00

I post this mostly for Andy and Whitney. But please, everyone to enjoy!

P.S. Unico 2.0 is in service!!!!! Warranty replacement came through!!! And so did husband. Mwah baby.

Yes, we will be armor coating it, and avoiding open non-waterproof purses...or maybe just being out of my pocket at bars in general.

R.I.P. Unico

2009-04-17T22:19:00.000-07:00

Not to beat a dead horse but...yeah, my iPhone is dead. A friend knocked his ever so full beer glass over, and my purse with my phone in it was in the splash path. Drying it out lovingly could not revive it. Sooo...everyone wanting to reach me? Email or Matt's cell are the best ways for the time being.

In memory of Unico, who kept me connected, and provided me with solitaire through all my sleepless nights.

Today's Blog Dedication Goes To:

2009-04-03T14:10:00.000-07:00

Sexy People. Best Blog of Forever, Today. Please visit, it will make you very happy. Let's all have some warm fuzzies and a living room standing ovation for Diego:

Diego.

What Diego is wearing is what I aspired to in my high school days. I feel another space age coming on in my life... Pretty excited about it...

Gualala Alpaca

2009-03-26T14:55:00.001-07:00

Stolen Thought For Today

2009-03-24T09:12:00.000-07:00

Journey here for more mathematics.

My True Love

2009-03-19T13:41:00.000-07:00

Pony Hair!

2009-03-06T15:51:00.000-08:00

Rachel's in town! All girl days for 3 days this week! Pics tbp from
home later.

Hey Barb...whatcha up to today?

2009-03-05T14:24:00.000-08:00

Gin rummy glasses

2009-03-05T14:14:00.001-08:00

Yes

2009-03-05T14:05:00.000-08:00

New Ambition

2009-03-01T22:43:00.000-08:00

Some of what I accomplished while waiting for our tire to be repaired. It took me several days of false starts before I got this far, so don't underestimate the accomplishment featured here. Since this post, I have achieved about 6 more rows... That lady wasn't joking when she mentioned weeks and months to completing a conceptual sweater...
Anyways, I have yet to see this flick... Hopefully this weekend.

Operation Miscarry Complete!

2009-02-22T10:49:00.000-08:00

Ta-da! Happy oversized thrifted teal sweatshirt, worn during survival of the main event. Yes, I did document the entire evening with my iphone, but this is the only photo anyone else will ever see. Taking pictures of pain faces makes making them a *tiny* bit more fun than normal.

Anyways, I love this sweatshirt. The worst is over, was worse than I could have imagined, and yet wasn't really a big deal either...(I learned after that my friend Leigh often has periods of such intensity that 4 vikes do nothing for the pain.) I can honestly say after this experience that I have no doubts that I am female. Anyone wanting details (I did! was SUPER pissed it was hard to find the gory and the nitty-gritty on the nets!!) is welcome to them anytime during a one on one.

Friend Joji from Japan was here visiting, (is still here, actually,) and thankfully, he and Matt were out at George's enjoying beers and sports on television for the worst of it. I was able to fake not being affected for the hour they were still here.

And done! Onwards! Let's get back to thrift finds...I have sooooo many to post...

Paleontologist Barbie

2009-01-25T15:11:00.000-08:00

Who knew? $5.99 @ Goodwill on San Pablo. Go get it fans.

Truly Outrageous Fashion Inspiration Part1

2009-01-16T10:05:00.000-08:00

Jem's heels

Jem's signature outfit
*doll and shoes courtesy of the fabulous Kristin

Someone who is a bigger and better fan than I.

more to come...

Fashuns that should be for reals

2009-01-13T19:38:00.000-08:00

Things I Like

2009-01-13T19:37:00.000-08:00

Fractal Teddy Bears.
Forgot where I found him from...

Twilight the Fan Art: series 1

2009-01-09T20:49:00.000-08:00

I don't know if anyone reading this knows about the PG-13 vampire romance book series written by Mormon housewife Stephanie Meyers, but I've read them. All of them. Including the pre-leaked 5th book transcript section, which may or may not develop into an actual 5th book. I saw the movie, too,...twice... the first time I went by myself after work, to celebrate a new paycheck. I skipped giddily in the theater lobby to the theater, and was one of 5 girls sitting in the dark before the film started. Several minutes into the previews, a few more swarmed in, including a girl towing one very unlucky boyfriend.

Anyways, I premise this post this way with a strong warning for those queasy towards this particular type of nerdery. If you are, if you felt your stomach lurch a little upon reading the first sentence, or if you cringed on recognition, move on. Skip this posting. Go outside, grab a sandwich and a cup of (insert beverage of choice) and soak in your day. I'm feeling kind towards you right now, otherwise, I would love to bind and gag you all and toss you into my little paddy wagon...heading, with the rest of us who LOOOOOOVE this type of stuff, to the freak show.

The first book is entitled "Twilight", followed by "New Moon", "Eclipse", and "Breaking Dawn"...getting the theme here? I don't want to spoil the story for any reader that might want to dive into these gems, so I won't attempt to summarize for you. I doubt I could do them justice. But in case you'd like a review of the film, check here, complimentary gift net-found and emailed to me from the wonderful Mr. G. C. (who will remain anonymous to protect him the wrath of any fan girls who might accidentally stray into my little blog).

Anyways, the point of my posting this is to share with you all the magical spawning of fan art items around the world, for sale for other fans, like me and you...

Presenting for reference, some of the cast:

sourced from my Flickr contact Cybermelli

And now, I present, my favorites:

Twilight main character Barbie dolls
available on ebay
along with some of the other characters...

Twilight Edward Cullen re-done old Rainbow Brite doll
available on etsy

Twilight My Little Pony
Twlight One-For-Each-Book My Little Ponies
*already sold. too bad for you.

That's all for now. I will post more gems as I find them. Oh! A final gift, if you sat through this post, is here for you!!

the future is ancient

2009-01-08T22:05:00.001-08:00

Thundercats. 1 of 7

2009-01-08T17:01:00.000-08:00

Whitney's claws

2008-12-28T11:39:00.000-08:00

Leroy Jenkins

2008-12-26T23:17:00.000-08:00

So we can all enjoy it, again and again and again and again...

My brother thought it was funny...

2008-12-26T10:18:00.000-08:00

...that he likes stuff like this, and I like stuff like this...

Yep, more creepy dolls for Christmas. Love them.

Kitties are awesome

2008-12-22T11:23:00.000-08:00

Thrifting in San diego. $3 at amvets for any takers.

this song made me cry

2008-12-16T10:00:00.000-08:00

My friend Tristan showed me this.

let's do this it looks fun

2008-12-13T21:50:00.000-08:00

Crafty Christmas Time

2008-12-07T02:05:00.000-08:00

My mom has outgrown all her old ornaments from when my brother and I were kids. I petitioned her for the use of them from now on. She hand made all of the Sesame Street ornaments here, as well as those holly striped placemats.

Apparently, the Cookie Monster ornament didn't make it into the box for mailing, so I'll have to hunt him down when we hit SD up this year in December. The only thing left I'm waiting to get my hands on is our Sesame Street stockings she made...I think they're pretty much rotting by now, but I can't let them go.

more on bread

2008-12-04T10:15:00.000-08:00

I LOVE making bread!!!! Kneading is another hobby Coco and I now share. I love that you start with 3 basic ingredients, water, yeast, and flour. When I began mixing yesterday, I felt like I had nothing in my bowl that should lead me to expect such a complete and perfect food at the end of the day. Gluten is AMAZING!!!! The entire transformation process happens from the heat of your working hands, and the patience you give to the reacting yeast. Baking bread in winter seems much more fruitful as well, especially in our loft. Lower temps = longer rise times = better bread. Miracle food. I'm so pumped, I think I need to invest in a flour sack, so I can bake at least once a week this winter. I'd like to try my hand at all sorts...but the husband insists I keep at least one loaf in simple homemade bread loaf form...his favorite.

In response to your comments, Cheryl, I guess what goes around comes around...it was you that taught me this lovely little joy!! I was actually thinking about the dough-rising-overnight trick when I pulled these out of the oven around midnight...I think I'll give it a go soon.

Oh, and Whitney, I'll email you that recipe today! I think it's copyrighted in a cookbook (dunno which, I suppose I should find out next week and give credit!), so posting it online would mean I threaten the sales of those who published it...and we wouldn't want that, this holiday season, would we?

my new best friends

2008-12-04T00:26:00.000-08:00

Bread at midnight

2008-12-04T00:23:00.000-08:00

Makes matt happy.

Cookies for Fall

2008-11-27T09:31:00.000-08:00

Made these last night, for cookies today.

I got the recipe from my boss, CW. They're really fun to make, though the dough is sensitive and sticky, and requires aLOT of fridge time. You get to grate fresh ginger into the dough, which makes me extremely happy for some reason.

dressing with thrifted kitties and playing with farting dogs

2008-11-26T22:01:00.000-08:00

Twin kitties necklace bought at the thrift store the day I did my dressing room photo shoot of Leigh. They made me feel kind of dressy and girly, so I obliged them with the outfit below.

I wore this out to help Maya with Day 2 Photo Shoot. So much fun doing projects again!!! I was mostly moral support on Day 2, so I played with the pups and wandered the lovely green yard while Maya diligently ground out the photo shoot. Both day I think we shot pics until dark.

Maya prepping Day 1

Abuelita hot chocolate brick and wooden whisk. Beautiful.

Maya prepping Day 2.

Lucas. Short Man's complex.

Tug O War.

Henry. Big Teddy Bear.

Fence with peepholes that Maya's neighbors USE to STARE at them. I'm making her a quilt for the summer, to hang over this fence.

Persimmons!!!

I stole a bundle, which I'm letting ripen, so I can make Grandma Ruth's Persimmon Cookies with. Wish me luck.

I also made the discovery that I may have in Maya a fellow Barbie painter/creator. Now I can't wait to rub those little dolly faces clean with acetone. Super Unhooker, M.I.A. Barbie, Carrie Mundane Skipper might actually come to exist in the near future. wOOt, or however you say that.

My friend Paris made this

2008-11-25T09:05:00.000-08:00

Thrifting finds on Sunday

2008-11-23T16:15:00.000-08:00

I haven't been for awhile, but today I made a venture with Leigh, my new Barbie. She let me dress her up for a dressing room photo shoot. And she found some gorgeous vintage luggage in shockingly fresh condition, whom I've named Harold and Tina on her behalf...until she learns their real names. Seriously, that phrase? Like a pig in sh**? That would be me. Observe my slouching satisfaction:

By the way, Harold, the larger luggage piece, is stuffed full with all her other finds, including a coffee mug with a ceramic spinal vertebrae for the handle. I. Love. ThriftTown.

I'll post my other treasures later...but that will be a Christmas decoration posting...

I made this

2008-11-21T16:39:00.000-08:00

For the new kitchen of Jen and Shane.

Jen picked the fabrics, I made sure they fit the windows. Ta -da!

Quilt glam

2008-11-21T14:35:00.000-08:00

More pulled form Cheryl T.'s magic trunk. Yummy.

More eats at WD

2008-11-21T12:25:00.000-08:00

Last hurrah at my old job, just for belated birthday celebrations. Emma, Chris's daughter was home as well, so it was a proper foursome for tea and cake. The letters on the wall behind Melissa there spell "eat", in case you wanted to know.

So long for now! or, The Beginning of my New Life of Unemployment

2008-11-16T14:15:00.000-08:00

Yes, my regular "full time" work with WD has come to a close. Sad, but not bitter or remorseful, I am. I always knew this job could not last forever, being at the very least the nature of freelance work. The economy has finally hit my boss, her clients, and little ol' me. While cheerfully moving into my new life phase of frugal creativity, I'd like to share a backwards glance of my work environment from 2008.

Pie Day and iphone Day

My room view from my desk.

My boss Chris, her bright sweater, and her striped post. Color play is incessant for her.

My desk clutter, which Chris let me stash. The uni isn't mine, but I got to borrow her.

WD's cafeteria shelves.

More cafeteria shelves, looking towards Emma's room.

Windowsill stuff.

These last two photos are of one of the last meals I had there with my co-worker Melissa. We grocery shopped supplies for the week and were whipping up things like this in the kitchen for meals. The above is our fig, goat cheese and spinach salad, with pomegranate seeds, pears, and dressing made from oil, honey, tangerine juice and rind, and sea salt and cracked pepper. So. much. fun.

I'll still get to help Chris out with cover illustrations when the client requires them, but other than that, I'm full of free time for all the projects I can dream up. The most exciting part about this all for me is that I'm actually desiring to draw and illustrate for myself, which, well...hasn't happened since early college years. If you should ever visit, look to having craft days at our place...and please, pardon the mess.

My pink mustache

2008-11-11T19:41:00.001-08:00

Nosebleed on my nightly run inspires new hair dyeing fashion... I
know, totally gross here, but I think there might be potential... Any
volunteers?

Quilty for Matthew

2008-11-07T23:04:00.001-08:00

Matt's childhood bedspread, handmade by the fabulous Cheryl T. I got
to meet this guy today. I love this so so much. I want to make a
gazillion of these now.

Didn't Thrift

2008-11-07T07:20:00.000-08:00

But I wanted them!

Brown Varsity jacket $15

Feathered hat, $4

Vintage ceramic covered quail baking dish $5

Vintage Pyrex bowls, $5 and $6

They could still be there, try the San Leandro Thrift Town.

Sadly, Maya, the sequined Christmas shoes were nowhere to be seen. Maybe we'll just craft some of our own! ;)

Thrift store boobs

2008-11-04T11:43:00.000-08:00

Enhancement for only $5.99!! Steal!!

November 1st

2008-11-02T09:00:00.000-08:00

Matt took pics for me in the cemetary. Such a freaking gorgeous day. Such a patient husband. Such a nerdy me. (*heart!*)

Halloween part 3: desserts

2008-11-01T16:35:00.001-07:00

I-s-cream for Matt.

Apple Pie loaf made for me by "Miel"*, my beautiful co-worker, as thanks for helping her with her Corpse Bride outfit for Halloween. We also stuffed ourselves on her amazing pumpkin cookies. I'm saving the pumpkin bread loaves for this coming gloomy week of November.

I'd watched the Corspe Bride so much this week, I saw its characters everywhere.

(Elder Gutknecht, as seen in my ice cream)

Sewing project while watching Sleepy Hollow, black floral head piece.

My stakes were mostly done, but we never got a chance to use them. Bummer. Such a safe, vampire-less Halloween.

Halloween part2 aka The Original Harry Potter

2008-11-01T15:56:00.000-07:00

Harry and Ron

Witch class

Professor Snape

Clumsy miscellaneous witch villains.

Quidditch flight instructor

Dumbledore

Draco Malfoy

The twist!: Voldemort is played by Tim Curry, and is a good guy.

This is still one of my childhood dreams, to fly with Tim Curry on his technicolor Grand Wizard cloak. It's only second to riding Falcor. Riding unicorns trumps everything though, duh.

And now, the best and worst song in the whole movie:

And, because I'm so thrilled Matt enjoyed this, I'm posting it as well:

And yes, I want that bat bowtie.

Hallow's Eve part1

2008-11-01T15:25:00.000-07:00

Halloween pastas

My Lady Thriftess

2008-10-23T13:32:00.000-07:00

Leigh, in new gardening hat, which was soon after stolen by Lord
Hemingway, her standard boy poodle.

No no

2008-10-22T15:11:00.000-07:00

This photo was supposed to show how this dress's bodice made my
breasts look like prunes and wads of wet tissue paper stuffed into
potato sacks. Photo fail, but trust me, Matt will kiss me for not
bringing this home.

Still, I loved it.

Maya's choice

2008-10-22T14:18:00.000-07:00

Gorgeous and green...but it wouldn't fit either us. Available at the
San Leandro Thrift Town for $15.

Bicycles by Ruth Ann

2008-10-20T14:09:00.000-07:00

Thrifted at Thrift Town by Leigh.

I brought this home

2008-10-12T10:53:00.000-07:00

Thrifted at Thrift Town last week.

Birdies, as promised, and requested

2008-10-02T09:36:00.000-07:00

So, my mother-in-law may not mean to, but she down plays all of her amazing gifts and talents. She can't help it; one of her admirable traits is humility, afterall. She mentioned earlier this summer that she was making some curtains for her first granddaughter, Susannah's, room. "Oh cool!" I thought. Then I saw them in person:

Um, yes, she freaking appliqued all of these birds!!!!

AMAZING, ne?

My sister in law received many other handmade goods for Susannah's arrival all in pinks, greens, and birdie themes, including:

Birdcage with birdies, by a woman from church who threw her a shower:

Throw blankie made by a girl in her youth group:

Baby quilt made by a 4 year old from her class (with help from mom, a bit)

Art piece done by the students of her class:

Art made by dear friend Tara:

My little niece has quite a jump start into appreciating crafts and arts. I love it!!

I want this wig

2008-10-01T12:10:00.000-07:00

San Diego Thrifting

2008-09-22T22:03:00.000-07:00

Map Desk.

Clown Doll.
(E didn't want it to touch her face when I had her pose)

Big Hug.

Sheep.
(Some random woman in the store saw us taking photos of things, and asked us to take a pic of the sheep.)

Honey Bear Rides Again.
(I dedicate this one to Melody and Kevin.)

Snowball.

Dog candle.

Halloween cat.
(Matt actually likes this one...if I'd known, I might have bought. Oh well.)

and...my prize!!! The only thing I bought from this spread!!
She still needs a name, and an ear touch up. And yes, that is a southwest print prairie dress she's wearing.

Time with Optimus

2008-09-19T23:18:00.000-07:00

Check this off my list of heroes and idols to meet. Anyone got
Master Chief's address?

Not matt's cousin

2008-09-19T23:14:00.000-07:00

But Jon Whitmire wasn't sure until he asked.

Princina y Tina

2008-09-19T14:37:00.000-07:00

Look who found my mom today. We're still waiting to figure out who
they belong to.

Cell phone glue repair fail

2008-09-19T11:30:00.000-07:00

Matt, did you know about this?

2008-09-15T10:50:00.000-07:00

Did I show you these?...

2008-09-14T10:57:00.000-07:00

Good on the follow through I am not...
Pullip craft swap back in May? Here's some pics...

I made the boy clothes and camera, my craft partner made me the plushies and dolly jewelry. So freaking fun. I always post on Flickr...and then I guess I forget to post here. Once I did post on Flickr, a girl found my photos and wanted me to create a similar shirt for one of her dolls...I vagule remember discussing that here earlier... She, in turn, made me a pair of fairy wings for my doll. But I'll post the completion shots when they're taken.

Considered

2008-09-10T10:48:00.000-07:00

This one was actually really tempting to me. I have no idea what it's for. Fortunately, we have enough weird clutter at home already.

Homemade by some Harry Potter fan, this puff painted plaque is a steal. Get yours at the El Sobrante Thrift Town today! Just in time for Halloween!

No, I am Batman.

I love trying on hats. 99.9999% of them don't work out. The plaid one didn't quite, either. Most of them pretty much look like wigs on me; fake.

I've been into the idea of sticking Matt in cardigans lately. I haven't told him this yet. That's because it's not really a very good idea. But I passed this one up. He'd need some tight jeans to wear with it.

This one I passed up ONLY because it was too small. :( How happy would you be if Matt showed up in this, turtleneck tucked away underneath it, with either a side comb part or a military cut with eggnog and brandy to your Christmas party? With little snow flakes landing on his wispy wide brows? Big holiday cheer beaming out of his smile? Ahhh...I think I'd want that photo plastered on a tee shirt.

Okay, but the BEST part of the above sweater, is the tag...

Aaaaaand, the final irony of the day: these photos are a week or two old. Going to hit the thrift again today.

Final Fantasy VII: Crisis Core fangirl tee COMPLETION

2008-09-09T23:29:00.000-07:00

So, its about done. Another coat of glow-in-the-dark paint on the pupils and the word "Mako", and maybe a neckline trim, tuck, and stitch, and you'll find me showing this off like a good little geek at our local Gamestop. And yes, the lips are mine, and the paint tasted gross. Don't know what this shirt is about at all? Click the pic to read a bit more...

Coziness

2008-09-07T07:10:00.000-07:00

Please click on the picture to view more of this fantastic cozy.

Birthday thrifting

2008-09-02T15:30:00.000-07:00

Thanks to all for your love and birthday wishes. They made my day. Which, by the way, was a wonderful day. Having just gotten back from a very full weekend in Portland, I found myself in my quiet loft with my cat, with no obligations whatsoever. My husband gave me leave to go anywhere I wanted to go, and do whatever my heart desired. So I went to both of my favorite Thrift Towns. And I found birthday gold.

Amazing finds of the day: A Disney/Barbie Alice doll I've wanted for years and years, but for whom I was never willing to pay the $15 + shipping ebay fees to obtain. She was waiting for me, pristine and perfect, in a bag by her lonesome for $1.99. I also found Spike, the baby dragon from the The My Little Pony Castle from my childhood, and another baby pony, Baby Half Note.

Alice is only wanting a lost black slipper...I'm working to find a replacement already. Perhaps she's enjoying being another storybook character in the meantime...

And now, more Halloween finds!

I'm planning to make popcorn balls this year. Apparently I've missed out on these in my childhood, so I'm making up for that this year in October. The orangey bowl above will do nicely... I need some black cobweb lace, and to finish my felt bat and ghost cupcake toppers I'm making... My vision flows forward from here... I think I also definitely see orange M&M's...

Thoughtfulness

2008-09-01T16:26:00.000-07:00

Thank you Target.

Sent from my iPhone

My niece

2008-08-29T20:53:00.000-07:00

Can kick your niece's ass. Unless you're Melody, Kevin, Andy, or
Whitney.

Portland thrifting

2008-08-29T20:49:00.001-07:00

Rules. I did the McLoughlin strip with George on Saturday, and
brought back some spoils. Feautured is a dainty I left behind for
someone else with more wardrobe space and less bad denim in their
closet than me.