handmade

I like to make things. As long as I can remember, I've liked making things.

Way back in the 1970s when I was a young woman with a toddler, I was what we now call a stay-at-home mom. (We didn't call them stay-at-home moms back then. But, that's a story for another day.) Consequently, I had lots of time to make things. I crocheted edges on sheets and pillowcases, baby blankets and tea towels. I embroidered pillow tops for the sofa and dresses for my toddler. I sewed, too, on an old Singer portable sewing machine that came from my grandmother by way of my mother. One summer my neighbor taught me how to macramé and I made plant hangers galore! Another friend lead me to the discovery of  bargello and I simply loved making pillows using some variation of the flame stitch. I think it was the rhythm of the pattern that I found to be soothing. I must admit that there's something about the texture of fabric and thread in my hands that makes me feel at peace with the world.

As a doll collector, I have long been intrigued by those who make 1/6 scale things for their dolls. I drool over the photos of the finished products on Pinterest and shop on Etsy for dolly things. Then, one day not too long ago, quite by accident, I stumbled on Simplystella's Sketchbook about 1/6 scale magazine holders. The photos on her blog were really cute, so I downloaded the PDF, printed them on index stock, cut them out and made little 1/6 scale magazine holders. I was quite proud of myself. Then, I realized I needed 1/6 magazines to put in the holders!

I searched for 1/6 scale magazines on Pinterest, but didn't particularly like the few things that I found, so I did a Google search for VOGUE and Vanity Fair covers (as I am a faithful subscriber of both publications) and I created my own little magazines!

My little magazines, pictured here, have inside pages, but they are blank and for "show" only. All the cutting, gluing and assembling seemed challenging enough without inside printed pages, so that was the path I chose for this little project. And, I didn't finish them all in one sitting either; it took a few days, working on them here and there.

Today I finished my little 1/6 scale magazines, put them in the little 1/6 scale magazine holders and took a picture! And, I must say, I think they're pretty good for a beginner!

I'm thinking I'm going to need bookshelves for my magazine holders, so, I'll be poking around in my husband's workshop looking for scrap lumber. Maybe I can get him to help me with that part of it.

I've decided that I will make more of these, and, perhaps the next batch of magazines will have inside pages.  It'll take a little more time, but it just means the fun will last longer. And, that's really the best part of "handmade," isn't it? The doing?

a day without my cell phone ...

At 7:58 AM  I parked in the office lot and turned off the motor. As I reached across to the passenger's seat to grab my handbag, I realized I had forgotten my cell phone. Left it at home. My Galaxy S4. My "Life Companion."

I cannot just run back home and get it. It's a 25-minute drive under optimum conditions and conditions are not optimum today. I found myself thinking, "What kind of day will this be withOUT my phone? What in the world am I going to do?"

Then, I felt this emptiness in my chest for a brief moment. My big girl voice saying, "Cool it, chica. You'll be fine." My little girl voice saying, "I don't knooooww."

11:06 AM  THANK YOU, Google+!  I've had to look up 3 phone numbers so far this morning that I would have searched for on my phone. It just goes to show you that all the personal data we store on our phones has relevance to our daily lives. However, I appreciate Google+ even more than before. My camera phone photos are backed up. I have access, albeit, not mobile access. Still. I cannot say enough good things about Google+! If you've never used it, you're missing a great service. And, what's even better: IT'S FREE!

2:08 PM  A couple more hours and I can go home to my smart phone. What an awful thing to say, right?

Lunch time was a bore. I usually catch up on my reading and play a few rounds of Words With Friends. Today, I was relegated to reading the newspaper. Talk about a throwback to an earlier era! They're talking about moving the manatee from Endangered to Threatened status, an idea I do not endorse. Too many of them are still being killed by speeding boats. A 3-month-old baby is in intensive care and his mother has been arrested, and that was a sad story to read. And, last, but certainly not least, an investigation has revealed that former Sheriff Al Lamberti's staff destroyed his computer before the new sheriff took office, so I can't help but wonder what he's hiding. So, there's your local news for this afternoon, courtesy of the woman with no smart phone!

5:33 PM  I am finishing this at home on my smart phone. I survived. But, I did miss it. A lot. It's been a long time since I did that. I hope it's a long time until I do it again!