Does this work??

Wow.  It’s an indication of how often I visit this site that it took me a few minutes just to figure out how to post. 

While Xanga itself is probably not going to shut down, this is the end of the site as it is.  To this day I still keep in touch with some of the people I met here and, really, it was such a fun place for my friends to be before friendster, myspace, facebook and the like.  Xanga truly was the stepping stone and really the first place you could build a relationship with other people through content.  I still consider ‘eprops’ the first like/+1.

I’ve been reading old entries and their comments and I realized something that I never noticed or believed when I was here: there were people who really did read the things that I wrote, and really did care, and really gave me support.  I was crappy at reciprocating and very under-appreciative towards my readership.  I also wish that there had been a ‘reply’ function on here when I was around. 

So, belated as it is, thank you so much to everyone who has ever come here and read anything I wrote and an even greater thank you to those of you who subscribed and commented.  I rarely responded properly, but I did read every comment and they really kept me  afloat in a very turbulent time in my life.  I’ve moved on, but this site will always hold a little place in my heart as a very public snapshot of my college self.

This was such a huge part of my life.  Who all is still out there?  Let me know so I can add you guys to my RSS feeds. 

I made this video for this site and if I get the most # of votes by Jan 1, I get a $5k gift certificate for Babies R Us! =] You don’t have to log in to vote so it’s easy! The guy who’s winning right now has 800 votes, but I think we can beat him.

http://www.myfirstbaby.com/video/detail/1408

 

If I win this, I won’t have to ask for a single thing at my baby showers!

I’m hoping to get some maternity photos taken sometime in January.  Have any of you had any experiences with maternity photos (either your own or friends)?  I’ve been looking for some examples of photos and poses I like for my photographer, but it seems like 90% of the photos I find are nudy!  I definitely don’t want to get naked, much less naked in the middle of winter — uber awkward!

If you have any examples of non-naked maternity photos please hook a sister up! 

Here are some examples of the type of photos I *do* like:

 

Made myself a desktop background with some chibi-ized arashi charas. =] It’s been a while since I did chibi art… I forgot how fun it is!

So excited! Just finished a costume. Can’t wait to wear it!

Outfit:

Ears (probably will attach them to a headband):

That’s a quarter there for reference.

It’s the girl version of this:

Konata dressed up as kaibutsu-kun, kaibutsu-kun figurine

Live action

Day 1:

Day 2

Day 3

I hope I never grow up. =]

The answer: quilts!

I’ve always been really intimidated by quilting… however, a friend of mine borrowed my sewing machine recently to make a quilt, and she made it seem so fun and easy that I just had to try myself!

So, here it is! They’re just 6×6 squares with a small bird applique on one square as the *point*.

Bird applique

After my first quilt, I became so enamored with quilting that I wanted to try out another one right away… So that same weekend, I took a trip to Joanns and bought this awesome fabric to make a quilt that would look good in my living room.

On the couch… I ended up making pillow covers to match with the quilt! It makes our apartment look really asian and pretty.

Full length

Close up of the pattern (I love this fabric SO MUCH)

So after making my first two quilts ever in one weekend you would think I would have wanted to take a break… But no! Instead I decided to up the ante and try to make an actual comforter sized blanket… And here it is! I’m really proud of it — I didn’t have to buy any fabric at all. This was all made from fabrics I had on hand at home. It was really challenging and I probably won’t do anything like it again in the near future — but it was a really great learning experience!

I kept seeing this “coinstack” pattern everywhere that looked oh-so-pretty, so I just took it by ear, and it came out pretty well, I think!

Close up: I never in a million years thought I would be using transformers, pirate and owl fabric in the same project.

Full length

Anyone who has played RockBand at our apartment knows that I have an obsession with eye patches and face masks. What better excuse to start making some masks than an epidemic?

Materials needed:
Fabric
Elastic
Fusible Interfacing (optional)

Cut 2 pieces of fabric, an inner lining and an outer lining (12.5″ x 5.5″)

OPTIONAL–
Cut 2 pieces of fusible interfacing (12″ x 5″)

Iron interfacing to back of each piece of fabric

END OPTIONAL–

Sew pieces of fabric right sides together along 3 sides (like a pillow case)

Trim corners

Turn inside out and sew opening closed

Pleat each side 1″ at the center part and sew or pin to secure

What it should look like so far:

Fold front side over to back side and sew down. This will make a tube on the side.

Cut 2 pieces of elastic (or you can use hair ties)

Thread elastic through the tube with your preferred method.

Tie elastic shut

OPTIONAL–
Sew a 1/2″ pleat at the bottom of the mask to shape to chin

END OPTIONAL–

Completed product front:

Completed product back:

And enjoy!!!