Tah Dah!

for a couple of weeks now, i've been neglecting my scrap challenge project. at first i wanted to make a plush out of the scraps that i got, but i felt uninspired. i checked out the Flickr pool and felt completely overwhelmed by all of the great things people had already made. i felt like i needed to branch out and do something that was out of the ordinary for me...thus, this idea was born...


i got this great idea to use the scraps and embellish them onto my shirt! so first, i thought up of a shape, then cut out a bunch of those shapes in different sizes (this took a while) and came up with this design. after individually cutting the fabrics out to match the shape and design (this also took a while), i placed them on the shirt (after i had traced around the template to mark where each pieces went) and used a dab of fabric glue to hold it in place. i only used a little bit of glue on the center of each piece so i didn't have to pin them down because i don't like the way pins put tiny holes in fabric sometimes.

the sewing process was a pain. having to move the shirt around without sewing the back and the front together took a bit of time and manipulation (i had to break out the seam ripper a couple of times). but here's the finished product...

after i finished it, i threw it in the wash to get the frilly effect at the edges of the fabric. Voila!


i really love the way this shirt turned out! i'd like to blow a huge raspberry in the face of my skeptic (J) for not believing in me and thinking that it wasn't going to turn out well. HUH! he said "i bet you're never going to wear it"...but took it back after seeing me model it...double HUH! i'm going to wear to tomorrow!

i also want to thank Jennifer Casa from JC Handmade for organizing this swap and challenging me to look beyond plush. i'm so proud of myself, thanks!

what's for breakfast?

i woke up early this morning and caught the baking bug! so what's for breakfast? ...

fresh pineapples and chocolate chip muffins. i got the really simple recipe from Jennifer at Bake or Break, one of my favorite food blogs, where she had reposted the same recipe from McCormick.com. there are always tons of great recipes and the pictures of the goodies she and her husband takes are gorgeous.

of course, no baking project of mine is ever perfect. i thought i had this one in the bag since it was so simple, but i used mini chips instead of regular (mainly cause i only had the minis) and i ended up over cooking them a bit. darn that oven! but all in all i did enjoy them and i love the slight hint of cinnamon. tomorrow i'm taking some over to the co-workers to see if it passes their taste test.

oh! and guess what came in the mail! my package of scrap goodies from JC Handmade. there are some beautiful pieces of fabric in there, but i didn't realize they were going to be so small...duh! what was i thinking, it's called a scrap challenge for a reason! now i have to see what i will be inspired to make. i'm a little curious myself. i guess we will see...and i'll definitely keep you posted. goodnight all!

Scrap challenge

alright, so in usual Pang fashion, i've added more to my plate than necessary. i've just recently joined a scrap challenge, where you send in a 12 x12 scrap, and then the hostess (in this case, JCasa from JC Handmade) will cut and mix up different patterns and send 10 squares back to you. and that's where the challenge comes in. after receiving the squares, you get to make whatever you want from them, but! you have to use all 10 squares. get it?...heck, just read this!

so on top of everything, i've piled on one more. do i have a problem? probably. i think i like to wind myself up so tight and work like a mad woman at the last minute. that's what i do! i can't wait to see what i come up with. i might even surprise myself!

ps - sorry Lacey! i was going to ask you to join, but i had a total brainfart! next time.

Mr. Roboto

a sneak peek y'all...

i think i stayed pretty close to the sketch. don't you?

a Robottie from dearest Lottie

i got my swap goodies! Lottie is a doll for being so early. she even added a few extra goodies!

the loot.

robot keychain and magnets also by Lottie.

hmm...what shall i do this these buttons?

funny story: i had the package sent to Inwood, WV to J's parent's P.O box cause we seem to be having problems with our packages not arriving here. J's mom called me the other day when the package arrived and told me that the fine people at the post office were so confused over the package (the fact that it was in my name...weird to them, and that it was from the U.K), they almost turned it in to the feds as a suspicious package. we would have been thought of as terrorists! OH LORDY!

here's what he looks like on our bookshelf! perfect!

Thanks Lottie! and a big thanks to Claire for organizing the swap!

here's a sketch of my robot. i should be finished soon, but i'm still waiting for a couple of surprises for my partner. hehe.

my interpretation of a robot. funky.

Robo Swap!

fun with light and robots, originally uploaded by tdub303.

yours truly is at it again! and this time it a Robot Swap organized by the super talented Claire P. i'm super stoked about this swap because i've never mad a robot before and i'm curious to see how it would turn out. the sign up is closed and we have till September to mail out our robots, and so far things are looking good. remember when i talked about the toadstool swap? well, i made/mailed my toadstool, but never got a swap! i was/ have been bummed (i understand these things happen cause people get busy), but it looks like i might be more lucky with this one. my partner is Lottie (how cute is that name anyway?!?) and she's from the UK! you can check out her blog here.

i plan on starting my robot after finishing my submission for the art show. i'll be keeping you updated everyone!

ps - how cool is this picture?

what's up?

here's what has been happening...

- i spent most of the day yesterday with Meg doing girly thangs...lunch, shopping, talking, reading and taking naps in the middle of the evening, AND! i got to watch an Army Wives marathon...now i'm hooked!

- i just signed up for a summer postcard swap, organized by Andrea from Hula Seventy. (what a pretty blog huh?)...anyway, i just realized that i really like swaps, so when i found out about this (sorry i forgot how i found out), i had to be a part of it. you can too cause the deadline isn't till June 15th!

- J & I went to a Mustache and Lipstick party last night...

my lovely friend Audrey artfully drew this stache on me with liquid eyeliner.

...i would show you J's REAL mustache, but it's way too creepy for the internet.

- i also just joined in on a "meme". it's called "This is..." and every wednesday, someone posts an answer to the question, for example: this is...my favorite book...and i will have to post the my answer on the following sunday. get it? ...uh...here's a link explaining what i'll be doing...well, at least i think i'll be doing it. i'm still waiting for a reply...

- we bought a portable air conditioner today. thank goodness! i was burning up and could hardly stand it even with the fans going. imagine what Remy felt like, huh?

- tonight J and i went up to the Black Thorn Gallery in Mechanicsburg, Pa.

i tagged along as J was invited to a friends and family opening party of this art gallery/tattoo shop. they have a pretty cool set up going on...gallery in the front, shop in the back. it's located on the main street of Mechanicsburg, so the building's got a lot of character and a quirky layout.

- i had to whole weekend off without asking for the first time, and to be totally honest, it felt really good! essentially, i'm having a four day weekend cause i'm off tomorrow and tuesday. but i still have so much to do! my list (on a Red Robin napkin holder) is pretty hefty and i'm slowly crossing things off...starting tomorrow!!

what a day!

have i mentioned that Thursday is probably my favorite day of the week?!? well, it is...

we started off the with some manual labor...strawberry picking. we took Remy to a local farm and ended up with two and a half pounds of early bloomers (small but sweet little guys). we didn't stay long cause the sun was high and Remy was getting a little restless, jumping into the patch and snatching the berries out of my hand (she LOVES strawbabies!).



after leaving the farm, we stopped by Skyline to drop off a package for Ashley. i had finished the owl earlier and couldn't wait to show it off, plus i've been craving chai from there since last Thursday. we stayed for a while as Remy seemed to be enjoying the treats Ashley was giving her and all of the attention she was given from the customers. here's the finished product.
later in the evening we took my little sister to the annual Boonsboro carnival. as much as i'm embarrassed to admit it, i really enjoy going to the carnival ever since i was younger. funnel cakes, the "I Got It" game (very addicting), and the water gun game are some of my favorite things. since my family are going to Thailand for a while, i thought it would be nice to spend the little time that we have left to spend it with my sissy.

we were lucky to meet up with some family friends so B (my little sister) could have a partner in crime. we bought her a "ride all night" bracelet and she pretty much got our money's worth. J and i took turns going on some of the rides that they weren't tall enough to be alone for and it definitely made me feel young again...it just made J dizzy (cause i made him go on the ones that spins. haha.)

on the carousel...i didn't understand why they didn't ride on a horse

since i was wee enough to fit on a kiddy ride, i became the chaperon. our expressions are priceless.

oh! how could i almost forget. i got my package from Cary today...EXCITERS!!! not only was the print great, she even sneaked in a few extra things (some beautiful bird cards and stickers!)...i'm a little sad that i didn't have anything to surprise her with though...maybe next time. wink wink...i can't wait to frame my print. i might even frame the cards!

anyway, as usual, it's getting late. (i like to sprawl out on the couch at the end of the night and blog away in my pj's)...Friday awaits in the morning. hope you had/have a great day!

toadstools, caveman, and birdies...OH MY!

it's been a busy weekend. a lot of driving and visiting, but it was really nice to see some friends that we haven't seen in a while. i didn't have to work yesterday (yay! three day weekend for moi too!), so i spent some time checking off a few things on my do make list...like this toadstool...
a couple of weeks ago, i signed up for the Lucy Kate Crafts toadstool swap. although i have until mid June to make and mail mine, i decided to get it done early so i wouldn't forget about it. i thought i was going to have a hard time because it's 3D and i'm not used to that, but the tutorial was so good! it helped out so much!

now, it's not really my style to chose such light color combinations, but my swap partner likes muted colors...so what partner wants, partner gets... it still turned out really cute though. plus, i added a ladybug to it to spice it up a little, so that tops it off. i sure hope she likes it!

i also made this guy...
he's a caveman named Krog. J and the guys at the shop made him up way before we started dating, but i've heard so much about him (i was even his myspace friend once! i know, i know.), so i wanted to make my own version of him. he was so much fun to make!
i gave him a nice toothy smile (which reminds me of our friend Victor's...who was the live version of Krog at one point) and shaggy hair. i also made his arms extra long so that he could stand on his own.

this long weekend also gave me a chance to start on this new project. here's a sneak peak...my friend Ashley from Skyline is going to be an aunt soon, so she wanted me to make a plush for her niece. it's not quite done yet, but it's supposed to be very girly, can't you tell?
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anyway, i'm really excited to send this cutie off to my very first personal swap...Cary from La Vida Kitsch.
i love absolutely love her stuff! i still don't know where i got the courage to ask her to swap (thank goodness she agreed!). you can check out more of her stuff here. i can't wait to get the package in the post soon. i'll be sending out her's tomorrow!

aside from crafts and visitors, we also went to a couple of cookouts. J's parents had us over yesterday and their friends were in LOVE with Remy (she didn't want to leave and pouted the whole ride home!). i took a couple of pictures, so you can check them out here. although if you don't like meat you might not want to...

when i wasn't crafting or going to cookouts, i divided some time for cleaning. some "little friends" are visiting from the basement, so we had to find a nice and humane way to keep them away. because they are little smarty pants, the live traps aren't working as well as we had hoped, so i had to do some patching. i spent most of my morning cleaning and prepping, but ended up forgetting about the steal wool to plug the holes with (they can't chew through steal wool). so i guess we will see what happens. wish us luck!

yikes! i didn't realize i've almost written a short novel. i hope everyone has had a nice long weekend. (the weather was perfect!) i know i did! now it's back to the daily grind tomorrow. work and work. boo.