domesticity » Bored & Crafty

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Feb 2010

crafter’s block?

One of my foolproof methods on conquering crafter’s block is rearranging my craft area. Not only is it a great workout, the adrenaline is enough to keep you pumped up to finish a project or two even after you do the heavy lifting.

Yesterday, after finishing at least 5200 words of work, I moved my table against the window. Now I got myself great light even at night because the ceiling light is located right above the fabric shelf. The corner to the left is where the wall socket is located and I will no longer have to twist and crawl whenever I need to use it. It’s a perfect little spot for the LED lamp I bought just last week.

And while I was rearranging my stuff, I unearthed this bag organizer (a National Bookstore free item) from my mess. What do you know, it’s the perfect craft supplies organizer. I can now move my sewing machine to any part of the table whenever I need space to pin or cut stuff without using the floor.

My table is truly the saddest thing. I have had it for close to ten years now, I think. Let’s see…we got this together with a computer when I was a college sophomore. I was 17. I’m turning 27 in 3 months…YEP, A DECADE OLD. It’s wobbly and creaky and all things ugly. If it were made of real wood I’d have redesigned it a long time ago. But it’s wood laminate, gundemmit.

Category: domesticity, this crafty life 10 Comments

Feb 2010

sushi break

By Meream

When the boyfriend was still in art school, I could spend hours watching him paint. These days, it is easy for me to forget work, Facebook, and online shopping when I watch him draw stuff for his clients.

He’s talented, this guy. Most of his designs these days are of the bloody-guts hanging out-zombie variety. But he whipped this one up several nights ago:

I really really REALLY hope Design by Humans print this. I would so wear this. In fact, I already have an outfit in mind that beautifully incorporates this shirt. I’m thinking black leggings (the zipped one would be awesome), silver accessories, and booties.

OR gray skinnies and a cropped blazer for a bit of a Lorelai vibe.

Category: domesticity Tags: design by humans, sushi print shirt, uzi art 12 Comments

Jan 2010

all the sweet and sad things

By Meream

You know what’s weird? Weird is going to the number 1 school supply store in the country and finding out that they don’t have scissors. Weird is not finding boring brown suede cord in any of the craft supply stores in the city.

Weird is finding that your leggings fit like second skin on a day that you feel fat.

Weird is missing the days when I chased sadness like it gave me life. Because I was under the impression that sadness made me write better, made the words I spewed out more heartfelt.

Weird is having a crush on Holden Caulfield after all these years.

RIP J.D. Salinger.

Your stories, much like dessert, are sustenance to me.

Category: bored & thrifty, domesticity, inspirations 8 Comments

Jan 2010

if my love were framed in silver

By Meream

When I met the boyfriend, I was a girl who I ate cynicism for breakfast. I nibbled on things that slowly withered fairy tales like pages of a century-old book exposed to the rain and snow. I watched people from my little coffee-stained corner and smirked at how they openly succumbed to the false promises of emotions and fantasies. My old blog was the very definition of snarky (and foul-mouthed). I am fairly certain that I was not the best person to be with, despite the aforementioned blog’s steady following.

The boyfriend admitted that he liked my cynicism. So it was only natural for us to ignore the big hoopla that is Valentine’s Day every year.

Several years into this adventure and I now have a great companion in my coffee-stained corner. I am still a big cynic. I have also realized that the monsters and witches of fairy tales have got nothing on the real troubles that can plague a relationship.

This year, however, I want to mark Valentine’s Day like all love-drunk couple I used to smirk at. How? With something crafty, of course. But I had one condition: I promised not to make something typically girly and red and Hallmark-y.

Here is what I came up with:

more…

Category: domesticity, tutorials & tools Tags: skeleton key heart, valentine's day gift 26 Comments

Jan 2010

model pupil

By Meream

Another week, another tag. This one came from Krissy.

The rules:

1. Post a picture from your childhood (less than 13 years old).
2. Write something about the picture.

3. Tag your friends and readers.

I have to admit that I was hesitant to do this. As you can see, the earliest photo of me is a wee bit embarrassing.

FACTS

Age: 5

Hair: Still straight

Height / Weight: I don’t remember

Occasion: Kindergarten 1 graduation

Embarrassing factor: This is proof that I have always been a big ol’ nerd.

All right, I will try to get over the embarrassment because this photo actually comes with wonderful memories. You see, before this event, I only have a handful of memories from when I was younger than five. For example, I clearly remember crying like it was the end of the world on the first day of kindergarten because I did not want to go. I climbed up the classroom window, bawling and begging my mother to take me home. Up until now, I still carry hints of that false sense of abandonment.

Fast forward the end of the school year and I was the top student of the class. It’s funny to think that the whiny momma’s girl actually became Model Pupil.

If I remember correctly, one of my awards was Reading Readiness. I also remember that a beauty pageant of some sorts was conducted as part of the graduation ceremony. I was eliminated right away. That’s right, at a young age, I was already showing bookworm potential and I already knew that I’m not cut out for the pageant world.

= 0 =

I tag Gene, Bethany, Jodi, Denise, and Katrina.

Category: domesticity, this crafty life 12 Comments

Jan 2010

patterns-patterns

By Meream

January has officially stolen the weather that December was supposed to have.

I love rainy days for many reasons. Growing up in a part of the country that sits along the typhoon belt, I have nothing but great memories about stormy days.

While still in school, rain, depending on the intensity, either meant no classes or leisurely walks with classmates from the campus to the terminal where we part ways. In college, it meant more time in the library. When I started working, it meant another excuse to gaze out of the window and not work for a few minutes.

These days, rain means longer naps and getting use for my growing collection of coats and boots. The gray skies have also made me more aware of the lovely patterns in our little home.