On to more impressive stuff ...

I mentioned before, I'm sure, that Nitro tends to build way more well thought out and complicated and useful things than I. What? You don't think my crocheted hats are as useful, or impressive as the back deck? Whatever. I'm over it.
This next project of his is FANtastic. I'm really excited. He's making a hot tub. Out of a water trough and a beer keg. I kid you not. The water trough (pictured) is big enough for us both to sit in, legs straight out ahead, water up to our necks. And there will be some sort of a tube at the top and at the bottom, and cold water will go out one tube, get warmed by a fire (that will be in the modified beer keg) and then the now hot water will go back into the hot tub. Apparently, through the magic that is physics, this whole circulation of the water will happen automatically.
Don't ask me how.
It's magic.
The basic concept is presented in Mother Earth News, a favorite publication around here. But I'm rather fond of the beer keg boiler creation that Nitro came up with. That's a class act right there. Oh, and the stovepipe? Why, it's made of the old exhaust pipes from his Chevelle of course. Pictures to come, I'm sure.

Lesson Learned

So, as a sufferer of projectitis, I generally plow into a project, full steam ahead, without the proper planning. Or even without the proper knowledge necessary to successfully accomplish the project. This generally results untold hours of frustration, of re-working and oftentimes abandonment of projects altogether.
I mention this because today I decided to look through a book I have here on my bookshelf. The book is titled Embellished Bras: Basic Techniques. I've had it for quite some time ... a friend gave it to me when I mentioned I wanted to make my own covered bra for bellydancing. Well, the covered bra is now done, and done poorly. It's definitely wearable, and a casual viewer wouldn't notice that it is poorly constructed, and will probably last through only a couple performances. But anyone who looks at it from less than 5 feet away will know that it's just mangled. And I think back to how many times I had to re-do every part of the process. How many pieces of fabric I wasted because it wasn't working. Ugh. I feel like such an idiot, because now I flip through this book and it explains how to do EVERYTHING. It's perfectly illustrated, and explains every step of the process in a way that any novice sewer would find totally clear. But did I read this book before jumping in to my bra project? Oh heck no! That would require forethought!
Sigh.
I guess it just means I need to make another one!

while the cat's away ...

Nitro's out of town, so I have the house to myself this week. It's also raining (!) so I am somewhat stuck indoors. I had visions of all sorts of spare time in the evenings where I'd be a whirlwind of creativity and then be a cleaning dervish as well! No such luck on either count.
The "real" workload has been really intense, leaving me pretty well burnt out by the end of the day, and no time for the rejuvenating workouts that usually kick my creative drive into gear.
The original plan was to spend some time on my painting. I got a book from the library called Microcosmos that I'd hoped to paint an interpretation of one of the pages onto my big 5' canvas (used to be the 'mares' painting but the mares are long gone and now have been through several phases of birds and then a swamp, and now just swirly doodles). But I haven't gotten into it. I just can't.
But then yesterday I had to start pawing through my fabric in order to finish up a project that I've been working on for belly dancing -- I had only a small scrap of my harem pant fabric left to make a vest out of, but not quite enough, so I was looking for another coordinating fabric that would complete the vest. Sure enough I found, a dusty rose colored silk that I'd been hanging onto for a long, long time, that came from great grandma's, I believe. But I also found lots of goofy little scraps. Some no bigger than my hand, some only a few inches wide but several yards long. Totally worthless for making anything out of, so why am I saving? That's when I decided I'll try my hand at a quilt.


This is something I've always wanted to do, but I lack the dedication. The stick-to-it-ness. Also, I know for a fact that as soon as this project gets put away (which it will need to do, since it's set up on the dining table and eventually I'll have to eat), I'll forget about it and it will never be finished. But, I really do want to try to make something beautiful with all these pretty little scraps. And so, inspired by the book Quilter's Playtime I've decided to just start sewing. Nothing quite as "planned" or organized and definitely not well-done, because I have no idea how to do this, but at least I'm getting started, and trying to figure out how to make these things come together.

At first I thought I'd create one big radiating "sun" of fabric strips, but then after playing around I decided that I'd need several big suns, and then come up with pieces that fit into the gaps. So, I've got one sun started, and another coming along.
Looking through that book, though, has me really wishing I understood how to make some of the gorgeous patterns, how to sew the pieces together so they lay flat and smooth. I really want to get together with my amazing friend Luna Sea who is not only an incredible artist, but has made some of the most beautiful, creative quilts I've ever seen. I'd really like to spend a day working with her to learn from her. Plus, she's just nice to be around. :)