7 Quick Takes Friday

1.  I got blood drawn today.  It was needlessly dramatic.  I say needlessly, because I should have insisted that I lie down, but given the fact that there was no where to lie except the floor, I decided to be brave.  Bad idea.  After the extra gentle tech couldn't get blood out of my left arm, she tried my right.  That is when my body (or psyche, perhaps) rebelled and my blood pressure plummeted.  I ended up lying down.  On the floor.  A more experienced, I presume, nurse, came over and got the blood out of my hand.  I'm fine now.  Next time I *will* insist.

2.  I'm rediscovering, as I do every year at about this time, the DIY movement.  It is great to reconnect with the less commercial aspect of holiday gift giving and reuse some things around the house.  I especially like this Threadbanger reader tutorial by Gracee (pictured at right) for an oversized beanie.  Great way to reuse an old shirt.  Here is another hat pattern, this time for those confusing fascinators so popular among the younger British royals.

3. If you are enamored with the pretty bows used in the beanie tutorial, here are some directions to make your own.  If you would rather use flowers, here  is a great tutorial on making some fabric flowers to decorate your hats with! 

4.  These Sarubobo plushy things are absolutely adorable!!  The possibilities are endless with this and they are very easy to do.

5.  Ok, I'm not going to make this, but I did think it was creative:  Remaking a men's t-shirt into a women's Star Fleet uniform!  In spite of my disapproval of the rather sexist female uniform style on Star Trek, I do think this is cute.

6.  For those of us who have trouble reading crocheting or knitting patterns, (I have never been able to crochet a decent cowl) here is an easier, sewed  cowl.

7.  And, in honor of Christmas and all things old fashioned, here is a tutorial on making a sock monkey.

7 Quick Takes Friday

1.  I got blood drawn today.  It was needlessly dramatic.  I say needlessly, because I should have insisted that I lie down, but given the fact that there was no where to lie except the floor, I decided to be brave.  Bad idea.  After the extra gentle tech couldn't get blood out of my left arm, she tried my right.  That is when my body (or psyche, perhaps) rebelled and my blood pressure plummeted.  I ended up lying down.  On the floor.  A more experienced, I presume, nurse, came over and got the blood out of my hand.  I'm fine now.  Next time I *will* insist.

2.  I'm rediscovering, as I do every year at about this time, the DIY movement.  It is great to reconnect with the less commercial aspect of holiday gift giving and reuse some things around the house.  I especially like this Threadbanger reader tutorial by Gracee (pictured at right) for an oversized beanie.  Great way to reuse an old shirt.  Here is another hat pattern, this time for those confusing fascinators so popular among the younger British royals.

3. If you are enamored with the pretty bows used in the beanie tutorial, here are some directions to make your own.  If you would rather use flowers, here  is a great tutorial on making some fabric flowers to decorate your hats with! 

4.  These Sarubobo plushy things are absolutely adorable!!  The possibilities are endless with this and they are very easy to do.

5.  Ok, I'm not going to make this, but I did think it was creative:  Remaking a men's t-shirt into a women's Star Fleet uniform!  In spite of my disapproval of the rather sexist female uniform style on Star Trek, I do think this is cute.

6.  For those of us who have trouble reading crocheting or knitting patterns, (I have never been able to crochet a decent cowl) here is an easier, sewed  cowl.

7.  And, in honor of Christmas and all things old fashioned, here is a tutorial on making a sock monkey.

God Will Send His Salvation

Send victory like a dew, you heavens, and let the clouds rain it down. Let the earth open for salvation to spring up. Let deliverance, too, bud forth which I, the Lord, shall create.

~Isaiah 45:8

From today's morning prayer.

God Will Send His Salvation

Send victory like a dew, you heavens, and let the clouds rain it down. Let the earth open for salvation to spring up. Let deliverance, too, bud forth which I, the Lord, shall create.

~Isaiah 45:8

From today's morning prayer.

Nativity Figure Painting

Last year I joined a nativity making group at Yahoo groups. The extent of the hobby then, was to purchase a Fontanini Rug Merchant figure to join my DiGiovanni Nativity and print out some Oriental rugs for him to sell. 

This year, I have been researching the possibility of painting the figures. The picture on the left shows how the Rug Merchant appears straight from the box. 

The picture on the right shows my painting; the rug went from pink to red, his turban went from pink to green, his vest changed from tan to light green, his pants from tan to terra cotta and the base went from tan to dark brown.

The second picture on the left shows the DiGiovanni figures that I painted, as they appear out of the box. This year, I painted Mary, Joseph and the Three Kings.

You see Mary and Joseph in their finished state to the right and the Three Kings below. Joseph got a robe in terra cotta and a cloak in brown with a dark brown base and Mary kept her pink robe and added a blue cloak with a white veil and dark brown base.

The Kings were quite fun to paint.  One got a purple cloak with a white collar and spring green robe, one got a pink cloak, dark green robe and navy pants and the third got a red cloak.  Each monarch got a base in medium brown. 

 Painting these figures makes them much easier to see against the dark stable that I have and gives them individual personalities. 

Nativity Figure Painting

Last year I joined a nativity making group at Yahoo groups. The extent of the hobby then, was to purchase a Fontanini Rug Merchant figure to join my DiGiovanni Nativity and print out some Oriental rugs for him to sell. 

This year, I have been researching the possibility of painting the figures. The picture on the left shows how the Rug Merchant appears straight from the box. 

The picture on the right shows my painting; the rug went from pink to red, his turban went from pink to green, his vest changed from tan to light green, his pants from tan to terra cotta and the base went from tan to dark brown.

The second picture on the left shows the DiGiovanni figures that I painted, as they appear out of the box. This year, I painted Mary, Joseph and the Three Kings.

You see Mary and Joseph in their finished state to the right and the Three Kings below. Joseph got a robe in terra cotta and a cloak in brown with a dark brown base and Mary kept her pink robe and added a blue cloak with a white veil and dark brown base.

The Kings were quite fun to paint.  One got a purple cloak with a white collar and spring green robe, one got a pink cloak, dark green robe and navy pants and the third got a red cloak.  Each monarch got a base in medium brown. 

 Painting these figures makes them much easier to see against the dark stable that I have and gives them individual personalities. 

Music Monday--O Come, O Come, Emmanuel

In honor of the first week of Advent, today's Music Monday will feature the all-male group Chanticleer singing O Come, O Come, Emmanuel.  The volume on this haunting piece is not very loud, but it is well worth listening to.