goodies!

it's a good thing i don't obsessively collect things, because stamps would be next on the list. what's that you say? i am delusional and am already a hoarder of whatever tickles my fancy? oh, alright.


my swap from emilykate arrived today (all the way from australia!) and i am so excited... this awesome pattern is one size too small for me, but i am hoping to make some adjustments and have a clone of this:


see mom? i didn't cut it! i love this dress. it was swiped from my parents' magical attic closet which always seemed to produce some new retro item every time i'd come over and get everyone drunk enough to not mind me rummaging through their things. so that i might collect them. ah, this post's tiny circle is complete.

(ps: if you'd like some swap goodies of your own, come join our flickr swap group!)

because i said scout's honor:

i would like to provide evidence that i did indeed sew this weekend. though not until the very last minutes of sunlight of said weekend. i spent most of it at, god, yahweh and yoda save me, THE MALL. nothing was fully accomplished, and now it is time to have a little wine and nachos. (i'm not sure where i got this attachment to the honor of a scout needing to be upheld. i was a brownie for about ten minutes when i was a little girl ((the precursor to a girl scout on the east coast)). i think my mom & i were supposed to bring cookies to the first meeting, and we brought brownies instead-- you know, in honor of brownies. as i recall that was all the Powers That Be needed to oust us from the group. but on the other hand, i do remember being part of a weekend girls' camping trip, which had to be well into a scout's career, no? i cried about being away from home, i cried about our troop leader losing our way in the woods, i cried about peeing in the dirt, i cried about the tarantulas my fellow brownies promised me were clinging to every treetop...) (clarification, mom?)

eeeeewwwwwwwww...

 

i imagine us, one day, as parents, yelling at our kids: "dammit, drink your vegetables!" r has made this green drink for many years now, and has never been able to coax any guest into liking it. it consists of a bag of organic greens, lemon & lime juice, tart green apples, and amaranth grain, all blasted together in our industrial strength blender. it is actually quite tasty. no, really. hana, what was your tasty green treat? sewing is promised this weekend, scout's honor!

WHINY POST.

i hate my blog layout! it's too dark in our tree house apartment! there's nothing to eat! i don't like my fall clothing! i missed dress-a-day week!

waaaah, waah.

well, geri at sewable gave me this fancy dancy award (right before my computer's aneurysm) because i'm "overly entertaining"... when i'm not WHINING... i'm not sure where it originated, but the babelfish translation is "prize to the personal effort". (r has always called presents and awards prizes: for example, a birthday present is a Prize. i love that. not only do you get a gift, it's like you've won something.) thanks geri, you have given me the perfect opportunity to introduce some peeps who will probably be far more enjoyable than me right now.

rules:

1. put the prize & rules on your blog and indicate who gave it to you by identifying their blog.
2. select 6 bloggers to whom you would like to give this prize.
3. inform them by leaving a comment on their blog.
4. write 6 of your most important values and 6 negative points you condemn.

(whine alert) i don't WANNA choose 6 peeps! it's too HAaaaRD! dammit. okay. to make it easier on my whiny ass, i put my blogroll in a hat, left out anyone i've prized before & anyone who ain't peeped in awhile, and picked six.

flighty girl: yahoo pick! just had a baby (that makes three) and STILL blogging more than me...
secret cave of the sugar mama: how fortuitous... also has a house full (three), and cracks me up daily.
nikki shell: oooh, yay, i love her! and another house full. (three, i believe--seems to be the magic number for this hat)
elsie marley: just. so. pleasing.
cutting edges stitches & seams: yeah, mirela is the definition of personal effort.
weekend designer: okay, i think he may actually be a robot. a sewing robot.

if you happen to see this post here's your prize... i'm not informing anyone because god knows i just spent 40 minutes devising the whole hat plan.

i value:
honesty. kindness. respect. r. the ability to listen. a good bottle of blanton's.

i de-value:
lying. schmoozing. pretentiousness. the ability to ignore others. box wine.

oh, and speaking of wine, WHINING.

a la peanut butta SANDwiches...

first of all: big daddy, you will be pleased to know that, occasionally, macs get sick. mine's been sick since my last post. but don't get up on your PC pedestal yet; it was completely due to user error. i'm still working out the kinks, so no fresh food friday pic, just 5 words: peanut butter and banana sandwich. i've got a shit ton of stuff to post about (by the way, i curse a lot, i've decided it's time to share that): awards! home decorating! maxi dresses! (i missed wear a dress week, for god sake. i'm not sure i'll ever get over it.) see you sunday, fingers crossed.

fresh food fridays: figs.

 

two posts in one day? seriously? i know. i'm sorta psyched about something. here at balloona headquarters, we've decided to make some changes. for one, i'm working with a personal trainer. (i KNOW!) for two, we're eating... healthy. egads. it can't be true. what of ham tartes and cheesy poofs? howsa 'bout chocolate chip ice cream sandwiches? maybe a bottle of jack daniels to wash it down? well, i'm not saying nevermore, but i am saying we're eating healthier. and as i am a snacker of the most heinous brand, i am on a mission to find fresh, healthy treats that will trick my junk food brain into thinking it's getting sweet and/or crunchy salty goodness. which in fact, it WILL be getting... just of the more raw & unadulterated brand. every friday i'll post a new snack, in my quest to stay the course and find fun and healthy stuff to eat. i hope you play along & maybe try something new-- and suggestions are greatly appreciated! first up: fresh figs. not dried, and definitely not newtons (though paul's may make the cupboard cut). and they are more sugary than christmas in candyland, no lie. pick ones that have a bit of give to them, and a nice deep color. this snacking recipe is simple: 1. slice each fig from stem to bum in half. 2. drizzle with warm honey. that easy. and if that's too much work, wash em and thow em down yer gullet like i did.

we set LA on fire!

the hollywood bowl, lit up by fireworks and a cacophony of tchaikovsky from the LA philharmonic and the USC trojans' marching band. fairly awesome. (you can see the the trojans' conductor in the pinspot, down the aisle in the audience. pics are courtesy of our wonderful friends who have now come and gone... sigh...)

just a quick note....

 

flighty girl is having a sweeeeet apron giveaway for her 500th post... stop by & try to win! (chicken little has nothing to do with it. but our friends from NY are coming to visit this weekend!!! chicken little doesn't have much to do with them, either. but i hate posts without pictures. and it's a NY picture. so there you have it.)

once i made a couch.

and called it a dress. if only computer screens had scratch n' sniff technology built in. well, not that this dress has an odor of any sort... but i wish you could feel the weight of this material. bad analogy, but you know what i mean. this fabric, in my opinion, was not meant for a dress. at least not a summer dress. and i'm not the type who likes to wear shirts under summer dresses so as to carry them into the next season. especially not when the dress looks like a couch in the first place. this burdastyle pattern (sabrina) was destined for a pregnant friend to flounce around town in after miraculously having brought a rather large baby into the world and showing no sign of ever having been pregnant. of course, after donning these 10 pounds of flowers, i'm pretty sure she would feel as if she were preggers again (and i've got the feeling she can do without that for awhile). so, its destiny has changed. it is now up at the brand new flickr swap group i created this holiday weekend! perhaps it will be stunning on someone else. perhaps someone who can pull off the "yes i know it's fall but doesn't this frock look fab with my turtle neck?" or maybe some adventurous sewist will make a loveseat out of it. are you that gal? head on over to flickr & request to join in the fun! (not that i've gone all LA snob on you, just keeping the flakes away.)