How I Relax

One of the things Mike and I love to do to chill out is that I will work on crafts while I watch him play video games. I love games, but I'm not nearly as good at them as him. He is THE video game nerd. He and his friend will get together for video game marathons, and he's the one they pass the controller to if there are areas no one can get through. It's pretty amazing to watch sometimes, and it's nice to live vicariously through him. I have to admit, I also do a little "backseat gaming" from time to time, yelling at him when he goes the wrong way...

One of the advantages of borrowing his parents home for part of our vacation was their huge television. It's ginormous, really. We had purchased two games to bring with us on our vacation - Castlevania: Lords of Shadow, and Kirby's Epic Yarn. This game is amazing "Gabe" from Penny Arcade commented in a post that "If you have a Wii this is a must own game. It might even be reason enough to get a Wii if you don’t already have one", and I am in full agreement.

As either a gamer or a crafter, you would pretty much have to have been living under a rock to have not heard of this game, but here's the idea: Kirby has been turned into yarn and is making his way through a world of fabric, yarn, string, buttons and beads with his sidekick Prince Fluff to stitch Patchland back together. It is amazing!

The best part for us is that it is a two-player cooperative game. I am extremely competitive when I play games, and I think Mike gets tired of me trying so seriously to beat him at everything. The cooperation in this game is really fun, too. It's much better than in the new 4 player Super Mario Brothers, where you just end up getting in each other's way. Some have even nick-named it the "divorce game"...

In kirby, the enemies are fun, the items you collect are really funny, the graphics are total eye candy for any crafter, and even some of the music is really good. I loved it and recommend it for anyone out there.

The new Castlevania, Mike seems to like, but he's always been a fan of the series. I have a few issues with the graphics in some places, but it's otherwise entertaining to watch. I at least got a lot of crafting done. I finished a cowl I had been working on for a while with some amazing blue alpaca/silk blend yarn that was a Christmas present last year.

I also finished my first ever granny squares for a patchwork blanket swap. I love how much the textures change just by adding an extra row of each colour in the square!

We go out and enjoyed the temperate rain forests during one of the brief periods of sunshine we get this time of year. The paths were overgrown and beautiful, and there were mushrooms everywhere! I leave you with a couple of photos; I love the wet coast!

Jersey Jackets and the New Wardrobe

I have seen a lot of dress jackets made out of jersey knit fabric lately - like the Diane von Furstenberg one above - and I am loving this concept. Especially since I am trying to put together a wardrobe, especially for the office, that works for me. The reasons knit jackets are wonderful are many:

-They are machine washable (hallelujah!)
-If ever there was a dress jacket that is comfortable to wear, this is it.
-They are not too dressy - which I love. My office is fairly casual, and a dress jacket just seems like too much.
-There are lots of fun knit fabrics out there to add a little personality to your jacket.

All in all, I am dying to try my hands at making one. I have briefly looked online to see if there are any tutorials or posts on the subject, but so far have found none, so I think I'll just have to go it solo on this one. When I have a moment to sew, that is.

On the subject of new wardrobes, I found an interesting post on Associated Content about developing your personal style, and it got me thinking about some things to consider when building mine.

Obviously, body shape is important, and taking into account what you want to accentuate and what you want to hide. I have a fairly curvy body with a well-defined waist, so I like to wear fitted tops that go in at the waist. My waist is, however, fairly long, making my legs look proportionally short. Add to that the fact that I don't wear heels, and my legs can look pretty small, but if I wear items with a higher fitted waist and a wider skirt, it can make me look like I have legs up to my nipples. I also have sloping shoulders, which means I have to be careful with the necklines I wear and the shoulders of shirts and jackets.

Skin and hair colours are also important. Now that I've cut all my hair off, I'm not against the idea of dying it, and I think a slightly deeper, richer, brown may be in order. My skin tone is definitely on the pink side (rather than the yellow side), making reds, purples and blues a better choice for me than yellows or oranges - I've always preferred wearing those colours anyhow.

Of course, lifestyle plays a role. Unfortunately for me, I currently have about 4 different wardrobes, and all of them are half-assed. I have my ratty, practical field work clothes, full of holes and stains. I have my work clothes, chosen because they were office appropriate, not necessarily because they looked good on me or were comfortable, so I don't wear most of them anywhere else. I have my jeans and roller derby T-shirts that have become my every-day wear, then I have some party dresses that I wear once in a blue moon. What I'd like to do is find some items that can be appropriate for several of these places. Jeans are good for field work and every day wear. The right dress can be worn one way at work, and another at a party.

I don't wear make-up. Some outfits might be great on my body, and be the perfect colour for my skin and hair, but would require some bold make-up to pull it off without my face being washed out. Generally, this means I have to go in the direction of simple, less bold and outrageous styles.

Also, here are a couple of random links for the day:

I have to make this knit Jack Russel from Best in Show.

And Good Life Eats has some tips on freezing cookie dough that I think we all can appreciate.