Love:

Mewithjuliandjosh

- I organized all my trim this week, now my lace and ribbons and zippers and whatnot are all organized, now maybe I can get to some x-mas crafting.  lol.

- Free and delicious coffee from my new and wonderful credit union.  using the Keurig machine is half the fun, but getting FREE, GOOD, chocolate cake flavored coffee is the other half.

- Playing with my niece and nephew.  It's one of the few times I can actually let go, cut loose and just have fun.  those two are so cute it's just unbelievable.

Hate:
- New Moon movie.  ok, I can forgive them for fucking up the vampire lore, I can even forgive them for being a disgusting teen romance series.  What I can't forgive is sending the WRONG message to young girls about relationships, healthy break up behavior, and how to treat your family and friends and boys who have feelings for you.  Bella Swan is a piece of shit, she is selfish and self centered and treats her the people in her life like garbage.  wake up!  these boys aren't the life/death of your universe, get some self respect, Edward is emotionally abusive (he hates himself to much to ever really love bella, and bella is too insecure to know better thus pressuring him into huge commitments like marriage and changing her into a vamp) and Jacob practically threatens physical violence that he has "no control" over.  this is a VERY POOR role model for young girls to find appealing or romantic.  As a feminist I am beyond appalled.

- The cold weather making my bones hurt and living with someone who had a natural body temp of like 103F who never needs the heater who says to me just as I'm getting warm, "it's so hot in here, do we really need this on?"

- Not hearing back (it's been 3 weeks now) from the school district where I applied to be a substitute teacher after they basically told me that I would have a job because I was needed so desperately.  I've come in and talked to them twice now and both times they told me the paperwork just hasn't gone through yet.  so by the time I start working for them I'll be starving and on the streets and the kids will be like, "oh god no, not the homeless sub, she's the worst!"

- I just want to bold one thing and now the bold wont turn off. guh.

Originally posted on velvetavalon.vox.com

Homesweethome

Despite fake neighbors, I'm sticking with VOX.  Tumblr was terrible.  The content quality of the majority of the users was lame.  commenting wasn't an integral part of their structure, "hearting" and re-posting were what you did if you liked something.  not the connection and conversation i was looking for in a larger community.  The posting interface just re-affirmed my suspicion that tumblr is not interested in blog style content, just pictures that you can heart and repost.  it all seemed really superficial and shallow.  not that anything that i say here is epic or deep, but it's me and it's real and if people can't interact with it and have a conversation, what is the point?  So for now, Vox is home sweet home.

Originally posted on velvetavalon.vox.com

If Ikea and Anthropology had a baby it would be Car Mobel.  A German company that carries several interiors lines that are popular in Germany and Scandinavia.  I found them on decor8, which is a blog I read religiously, if pretty things and nice houses were a religion.  subscribe to them if you haven't already!

I want the thread holder on the left!!  <3 <3 <3  Tragically they only ship to Germany.

I just love finding things like this, it really helps to inspire my thrift shopping and polish up my ideas about aesthetic. 

Originally posted on velvetavalon.vox.com

So after watching a few episodes of the shows I thought I was going to like this fall I have to admit that I'm not so in love with all of them.  so here is an updated schedule of my TV watching.

Monday:

House on FOX @ 8pm

+Trauma on NBC @ 9pm (shot in SF, watching for nostalgia factor)

Castle on ABC @ 10pm

Tuesday:

Nothing

Wednesday:

Mercy on NBC @ 8pm (lame, I think I'm over medical dramas)

+Modern Family on ABC @ 9pm (pretty funny, might watch this instead of glee)

Glee on FOX @ 9pm (catching this one on HULU so I can fast forward through the musical numbers)

Eastwick on ABC @ 10pm

Thursday:

SNL Weekend Update Thursday on NBC @ 8pm (easier to catch on HULU)

+/- Parks and Recreation on NBC @ 8:30pm (still not sure about this one)

The Office on NBC @ 9pm

Fringe on FOX @ 9pm

Grey’s Anatomy on ABC @ 9pm (this just isn’t the same show it was last season)

It’s Always Sunny in Philadelphia on FX @10pm

Friday:

Ugly Betty on ABC @ 9pm

Originally posted on velvetavalon.vox.com

I'm so glad fall programming is back on!  I feel like I can get back to some regularly scheduled entertainment, this summer wasn't exactly brimming with choices.  However what it lacked in quantity it made up for in quality, True blood and Weeds were absolutely primo, bar none, some of the best television I have seen ever.

Without further ado, this is what I'll be watching this fall.  What about you, what are you watching?

Monday:

House on FOX @ 8pm

Castle on ABC @ 10pm

Tuesday:

Nothing looks good on Tuesday for any of the major networks!

Guess I’ll just read a book.

Wednesday:

These shows are all maybes pending on me really liking the first 3 episodes

Mercy on NBC @ 8pm

Glee on FOX @ 9pm

Eastwick on ABC @ 10pm

Thursday:

This is the big night where 3 shows I want to watch air at the same time, and I don’t have TiVo.  The office is easy to watch on hulu the next day (thanks NBC!) and I'm not positive I'm going to like this season of grey’s, the plot line is kind of fizzling out., and I'm loving fringe, so it may all work out in the end.

SNL Weekend Update Thursday on NBC @ 8pm

Parks and Recreation on NBC @ 8:30pm

The Office on NBC @ 9pm

Fringe on FOX @ 9pm

Grey’s Anatomy on ABC @ 9pm

It’s Always Sunny in Philadelphia on FX @10pm

Friday:

Ugly Betty on ABC @ 9pm

Originally posted on velvetavalon.vox.com

I love this girl.  she makes me want to draw.  her etsy store also has some sweet stuff.

Originally posted on velvetavalon.vox.com

So, being the silly girl I am, I bought a whole bunch of really cool melamine (melmac) plates not realizing that they are not microwave safe.  Turns out, that when you microwave them the waves go into the dish and heat it instead of the food causing the dish to degrade over time.  So I was on the hunt to find some dishes that weren't too heavy, and would fit with my eclectic, vintage, collection.  I wasn't seeing anything in the stores that I loved or could afford, since I'm broke and still not working.  I'd also been scanning the thrift stores looking for something cool that wasn't too beat up.  I wasn't finding anything that was meeting my criteria, until this week. 

Here is a set of four dishes, not too heavy, not too beat up, at the low, low price of 4 for $2.99 plus 20% off for making a donation of gently used clothing and household goods, earlier in the week.  On top of all that they are decorated with 22KT gold! 

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I like them, for now.  Since I got such a super deal on them I won't feel bad if I find something else that I like better down the road.

Originally posted on velvetavalon.vox.com

As the weather gets cooler and life begins to change here in the desert, we take notice of some visitors who have decided to make our "fake lake" their vacation home.  These giant birds are brazen and not to be fooled around with.  I can't scare these guys off like I do the ducks.  Even then the ducks aren't scared they are simply disinterested because I have no donation of food.  Look at these two, on a second floor balcony trying to bum cigarettes!

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I love getting to watch the geese and the ducks have turf wars over the pond.  However getting woken up by their animal antics just reaffirms why I also love to eat these creatures, they are obnoxious and delicious and should be eaten.  If they would just be cute like cows I could see abstaining.

Originally posted on velvetavalon.vox.com

As promised a photo update on our new (new to us) place.

Here is the awesome vinyl covering on all the closet doors in the apartment, including the entry closet, so it's the first thing you see when you come in.

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Lovely right?  I almost wish they were more colorful so i wouldn't have to decorate as much, ha ha!  The good news is they are scuff and scratch resistant, unlike paint and easy to wipe off.  Next up we have the rich sumptuous dark hard wood cabinets in the kitchen that hold my very eclectic collection of cute dishes.

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I've also found places to display some of my favorite things around the house

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The apartments have yellow and red rose buses by our mailboxes, so Ihelped myself to a few today and finally used my glass top hats for what they were always intended to be, a bud vase!

The last step is usually to put things upon the wall, but these three pieces are my favorite so they went up first.

This is a new to me duvet cover that I have put on a smaller down blanket.  Matt and i use it for sunggling on the couch while we watch movies and TV.

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One of the things we have loved the most about living in our new place is the "fake lake" that surrounds the apartment buildings in the complex.  It's nice to see the wildlife it attracts, giant carp, hundreds of ducks, and now geese.  This goose has been our favorite so far, cause he is a Boss, check it.

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He sits on that rock for hours.  I don't know if he is on lookout patrol or if he is supervising, or just letting everyone know that he is The Boss.

That's all for now my darlings, I hope you enjoyed my mini-update.  More as it comes.

Originally posted on velvetavalon.vox.com

And by we I mean Matt and I, and by moved I mean to Kennewick, WA (which is across the river from my parents and is the town where Matt grew up).   So I've been terribly busy moving and unpacking and looking for work.  I've got some pictures of our new place, and by new I mean new to us I think the building was built the year my parents graduated from high school (1972), and only the flooring has been updated since then.  it's not rundown or anything, it's just very retro, which I absolutely adore because it means all my kitschy vintage stuff fits in great! 

So, as soon as I get a moment to catch my breath and take a few pics you will get a full photo update!

Originally posted on velvetavalon.vox.com

Today while checking out some local antique stores i found this little (6"x6"x2") cutie casserole dish in the Amish Butterprint for $7.00.  Not as cheap as when I'm thrifting but, not a bad price for an antique store.

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Originally posted on velvetavalon.vox.com

          As many of you may or may not know, i love all things vintage.  In most cases I prefer older better made things to newer poorly made/designed things.  One of the consolations of moving home are the amazing thrift stores, second hand stores and moderately priced antique stores that haven't been picked over by hipsters (cause there aren't any!).  While i have been here these last 7 months i have been stocking up on the great collectibles.  and since i couldn't possibly show you all of them, let me show you what i've gotten this weekend.

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This is an incomplete set of Pyrex nesting bowls in the Amish Butterprint.  I have a full set of these bowls in the white on blue color way, so i thought these blue on white would be nice and the big blue one here is actually in better condition than the one i had so i thought i would replace it.  yeah right, I'm going to keep both, you know me!
 

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The three books on the left are part of a Time Life series from 1975 called "The Art of Sewing".  I have three others in the series that i picked up in Walla Walla back in March, so i was very excited to see others that i had yet to collect.  These books are GREAT references for simple pattern making, fit techniques, primers on all sorts of needle work, knitting, crocheting,  and patterns for super 70's awesome outfits.  the book on the far left called "exotic styling"  actually has a  pattern for a kimono, a caftan, a dashiki and long asian style dress with a mandarin collar.  The book on the far right is a book by Claire Sheaffer.  Any book by that woman is an absolute treasure for dressmakers, this book costs $29.95 new and i got it for $3.00.  Serious treasure.

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These are the textiles I got today!  Everything on the left is a sheet or a pillow case and the red floral and the black floral on the right is actual yardage of fabric. 

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Now to some of my true loves: glass, the virgin of guadelupe, and tin canisters.  The glass on the top right i think are actually those candles you get at the grocery in the mexican isle but, without the candle in them they look really awesome and i haven't quite decided what i want to do with them but i knew i absolutely needed them($.60 ea).  On the top right we have a lovely rectangular tin with blue flowers, what kind of flowers i don't know, but they are pretty.      I saw this exact tin on one of my favorite etsy stores, "ricrac and buttons" for like $7.85 and was very close to buying it, because well it seemed kinda reasonable and it's really damn cute.  So didn't i feel like a champ when i found it at Shop CI in Kennewick for $.49!  Bottom left, hobnail milk glass, no idea ho made it or how old it is but it's the pretty factor that makes mehappy($.99).  On the bottom right is my growing collection of bud vases, or whimsies as they are some times called.  The big ones in back are 3.65" tall and 4.75" across and the two smaller ones in the front are 3.5" tall and 4" across.  There are smaller ones that look like this but they are toothpick holders and not bud vases ( and i don't like them because they don't function enough).  These happen to be in the shape of a top hat, and have a daisy and button pattern on the outside.   They are from the 1950's and

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1960's and were made by a ton of companies, most notably Fenton glass company.  sadly fenton didn't start marking their pieces until the 1970's so i have no idea who they are made by.  Lots of them out there, I don't know how many different colors are out there but I'm hoping to find one in all the colors.  The green one was my first one and i paid the most for it because i had no idea what it was, so all these pieces range from $1.00 - $10.00.

And last but not least my slightly used Umbra sneakers.  $1.00, perfect for gym shoes.

Originally posted on velvetavalon.vox.com

This week I am learning to quilt. While Mama Hughes and Co. are on holiday I have gone to her sister, "Aunt Lou", to learn how to quilt and help reorganize. Aunt Lou is an amazing quilter with decades of experience, I am very lucky to get this kind of instruction!

So far, I have found the whole process to be very interesting in its approach and its methodology. This craft my be a good one to soothe those OCD moments, in that everything is designed to be very precise and exact. Everything has a template and you use a rotary cutter. All the tools I have encountered are to assist in accuracy.

I've found in garment sewing there is a lot of ambiguity, mostly because fit and style are intended to be variable in the design process. I can't tell you how many times in the process of making a garment it morphs into something different, not that I can't make things look how I intend but that it isn't the nature of the process. At least it's not for me, and I realize that may come from general inexperience, but I'm okay with that.

For my first small project we decided a pillowcase would be good. We also decided that a hexagon would be a good shape for me to start out on since I'm not a super noob who needs to do big squares. Here is it all cut and half way sewn.

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I have to tell you about the thing that it is hanging on, it's probably the most useful of all the tools I have encountered. It's called a flannel board, because it is exactly that. The little quilt pieces stick to the fuzzy flannel like nothin! You can move stuff around, play with placement, take a step back and look at it, and you don't have to poke your fabric. It's as easy as pinning a flannel sheet to your wall! (ok, I'm starting to feel like the billy mays of the craft world here!)  Pure genius!

More updates as the project progresses!

Originally posted on velvetavalon.vox.com

My sweetheart will be in japan for the next two weeks. 

Japanese Temple, Asakusa, Tokyo

So I'm a big jumble of emotions; jealous, excited, sad, nervous, worried, happy for him.  I really hope he finds what he is looking for and that things start making sense to him in his mind.  I feel stagnant and hungry for change, but I'm

Antique Sewing Machine

Originally posted on velvetavalon.vox.com

Here are some beautimus flowers that i found while in Seaside, OR.

Hydrangea

butterfly bush?

? anyone know?

anyone know?

Hollyhock

Fox glove

Originally posted on velvetavalon.vox.com

Yes I know, what a super lame thing to blog about but, sometimes I need this blog just to make sure I'm not crazy.

I hate overdraft fees.  I would rather be declined than pay $33.00.  I've asked my financial institution if I could turn off overdraft protection, they said no.  I know what your thinking, 'there are many simple solutions to this like watch your account, or keep more money in your checking account, switch banks.' .  I do watch my account, but i don't want to check it every morning like i do my e-mail or blog roll,  it would just depress me.  I usually do keep just enough in my account to cover the bills I have, however I haven't worked in 3 weeks, needless to say I'm as dry as nun's cunt on Sunday.  And about switching banks, I'm seriously *this* close. 

Originally posted on velvetavalon.vox.com

Matt and I were at a friends house watching a movie after having a lovely dinner with them and seeing their new apartment.  It was getting late and my contacts getting dry and, I of course don't carry eye drops.  So i go to the bathroom knowing that my friend also wears contacts and would have saline solution in her medicine cabinet.

 Now we all know the rules when it comes medicine cabinets at someone else's house, everyone looks but no one touches.  This particular friend and i are quite close so i felt like it would be okay if i borrowed some saline solution and that i didn't need to ask. 

So i squirted what i thought was solution on my contact and rubbed it around and proceeded to put the contact into my eye.  Instantaneously the burning fires of hell were all up in my looking ball, nearly bringing me to my knees, however my shame of breaking this cardinal rule of "ask first" i muffle my sobs.  My eye instinctively clams up to protect itself from further harm only it's trapping the infected contact in my socket.  I pry my eye open to pull the contact out and I am unsuccessful.  i keep trying and end up scratching my eye with my nails in the process only to find out i got it out the first time and it just fell on the counter.  i begin trying to rinse and my eye just wont open to get a good splash.  I try to clean off my contact with water and I manage to get it back into my eye. 

As soon as i can kind of see i grab the bottle of Aosept Brand Satan's Spit and it says 'cleaning solution for soft contact lenses'.  It has a picture of a contact lens on the front, one would assume that it was safe to put in your eyes, but no it's like soap for your contacts and contains 3% hydrogen peroxide.  bloody lovely.  so my eye was all red and bleary and shrunken.  that's right shrunken, it was visibly smaller than it was before. 

I rejoin the group quietly too ashamed to tell anyone what had happened.  We finish the movie and I still manage to drive us home.

Morale of the story:  Ask first and your friends will surely let you borrow the things you need.  If you don't, may your eyes be burned out by misleading products.

Originally posted on velvetavalon.vox.com

Originally posted on velvetavalon.vox.com

    Today was my first work out at Curves.  I loved it!  i felt amazing afterwords!  I felt like the strong, capable, woman i used to be.  What i didn't feel, was lost, alone, pain in my lungs and joints, and insurmountable fatigue/boredom.  This program was everything i wasn't getting in the past with regular gyms.  I'm going to go everyday this week on my free trial.  I'm kinda bummed that i can't afford the joining fee right now, but maybe when i get back from California.  

Originally posted on velvetavalon.vox.com

this is a Martha Washington Geranium, in a color called "Baroness".  We planted it at Mama H's house but this is a fleur i plucked a week ago.  i love the colors and the pattern inside.

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Originally posted on velvetavalon.vox.com