Vegging out in T-Town

Hello, friends!

I did something silly this week: I made a second (ok, like ninth) blog. I enjoy sharing recipes here sometimes, but occasionally I worry that my food talk doesn't fit the theme of this blog. So while I promise not to deprive this place completely of my recipes and eatings, most of it will now happen over at Vegging out in T-Town. I will crosspost tasty treats but leave the nutrition and restaurant talk at the new venue. If you have interest in keeping vegetarian in Tulsa or just like to think and read about food, check it out. I will keep Grey Eye Designs Studio more focused on creativity.

Thanks! I hope to see you at both places!

Romeo, o Romeo

So where has all my free time gone?

Right there, friends. We've been rehearsing Romeo & Juliet since approximately the beginning of time. Well, for nearly two months now, anyway. We go up on Saturday, and then I breathe.

So, if you're a local, come out and support this brand-new, awesome group of folks who want to bring more Shakespeare to Tulsa. And it's FREE! I play a couple of small parts, but the main folks are knock-your-socks-off good, so don't miss it.

Baby crafts

I know I promised sewing pictures, and I will deliver. I am a little embarrassed to admit, however, that I've only completed two things from the course, and they are cloth napkins. I've been too busy, sadly, to devote more time so far. However, that will soon change. Instead, I bring you a couple of baby gifts I made recently.

Two of my coworkers are expecting little girls this October, and last week was baby-shower time. Below is what I made for my more immediate coworker: a hat and booties!

If the booties and the color scheme look familiar, it's because they are borrowed from a gift I made for my friend Kayla last spring. The hat is based on a pattern I found (and have since lost) online, though I did it with my own color scheme and added the girly trim. The Mary Jane booties pattern is here. They are dead easy and lightning fast, so I recommend them for any crocheter in the mood for some instant gratification.

The second gift I did was technically a sewing project and heavily inspired from my sewing class. However, since it's all hand stitched, I can't really claim it towards my goal of learn to use my sewing machine. Nonetheless, I'm in love with it.

Bunting! Here's a close-up of the D:

And the A:

just so you can get a feel for it. Isn't it precious? The only supplies are felt, embroidery floss and grosgrain ribbon. It was quicker to put together than I expected and required WAY less felt than I expected, so if you are interested in bunting of your own in brown and pink, let me know. :)

I will be back into the swing of regular posting soon. Sorry for my absence!

Learning to sew

My goal for the summer was to make friends with my sewing machine before the end of August. A week or so ago, I realized I'd yet to make any progress. This made me sad and a little disappointed in myself. Then, about 10 minutes later, I stumbled across this link on FunkyFinds. What is it?, you may ask. Well, friends, it's an online sewing class. Yay!

The fun starts Tuesday, so if you're a novice like me who would like to improve her skills, then sign up. We can be sewing buddies.

I will post pictures of my projects, so be on the look out. In the meantime, I'll leave you with this photo (posted a while ago, too) of my most recently completed sewing project, which may or may not be from 2008:

Jeez, someone give that monkey a sandwich and remove his gag. The world needs more sock monkeys such as those made by the wonderful FriedOkra. Clearly I'm not there yet.

Theatrical ambition

I did something crazy today: I mailed a headshot, résumé, and cover letter to a highly renowned, incredibly awesome theatre company. I can’t believe it. I’m unlikely to hear anything ever, but I had to take a shot. You can’t win if you never try. Now I have the bug, so it’s time to start seeking new places to submit!

When was the last time you did something crazy and/or ambitious? And do you know of any professional theatre companies that accept submissions from non-Equity actors?

Oh, and here’s a crappy scan of my headshot:
Not the world’s greatest picture of me, I don’t think, but hopefully it’s not too frightening. :)

Inception

My taller half and I recently began doing video reviews of films. In case any of you are interested, here is our latest review of Inception, which we saw last night:

And in case you're curious, here is my love's take on the French film Micmacs:

And my take:

I hope you enjoy. :)

Anne Boleyn necklace

If you are my friend on Good Reads (and please become one here) or ever click over on my widget on the right, you've probably seen several Anne Boleyn and Tudor books. In fact, I have a whole category of them ("those crazy Tudors," with 11 completed in 2010 alone). Like many others, I'm sure, I got caught up in Tudor history by the Showtime series, which I added to my Netflix queue on a whim. While I enjoy the show, I was absolutely captivated by the character of Anne Boleyn. Natalie Dormer's portrayal of her remains my favorite and, I believe, the most honest. I've since watched Anne of the Thousand Days (which I also read) and The Other Boleyn Girl (which I will begrudgingly read at some point). I also read five different biographies on her as well as three novels and one book on all the queens. And my list is still growing.

So, as any good Anne fanatic and crafty chick, I decided I must possess her famous B necklace, and more importantly, I must make it myself. There are many portraits of Anna Bollina, but this one remains my favorite and the one I consider most likely to be representative of her:

See the lovely pearls and the B? Since my first name starts with a B, recreating it couldn't be more perfect. I decided to alter the color scheme lightly because I already have a string of (fake) creamy white pearls. Instead, I opted for this silvery grey color of glass pearls so they would still go with pretty much anything. Here is my attempt to copy her smile in the portrait whilst wearing the necklace:

A better shot of the entire thing:

And proof that I'm an Anne-loving goober:

I'm incredibly happy with the result. If anyone else out there is a Tudors fan -- or just wants a fancy-ish initials necklace -- I would be happy to recreate one for you. Hit me up to discuss pricing.

And if you are a Tudor-history buff, who is your favorite figure? I still have a lot of reading to do, but besides Anne, I'm intrigued by the evil Thomas Cromwell and Catherine Willoughby, Duchess of Suffolk, who married Henry VIII's best friend Charles Brandon, the Duke of Suffolk.