Glitter and Lace

Hi, guys! I didn't mean to not post in so long, but the new job is more than I expected. I'm now doing housekeeping in a small hotel, mostly second shift. It's very physical - I can feel lots of new muscle tone in my back and legs. It's kind of fun, though, too, in a way. I spend most of my shift doing laundry and listening to my ipod and dancing around because no one can see me. Well, no people, anyway. There's a shadow that everyone has seen and most of my coworkers think it's the man who built the hotel but died before it opened. It freaked me out the first time I saw it. He's probably laughing at me dancing around the laundry room. While I haven't finished any big projects, I have done some small things. I glittered some sneakers

because I needed more purple sparkle in my life. I've also been embellishing my book bag, inspired by so many ideas I've seen on pinterest and around on blogs:

My button skull is still a bit wonky, but I really like how it's all looking so far. I have a few more ideas, too. It's amazing how many things are in my big stash of stuff that lead to inspiring my imagination. I wish I had a Spirograph, though. A few years ago I saw where someone had used one to make an embroidery design. Wouldn't that be great on a bag? Maybe with some zentangles! That's all for today. Try to stay cool outside.

Readjusting!

It's been a while since I've posted. The change from stay-at-home mom to working full time has been exhausting. Having to be awake at 4:30 and be thinking and learning for eight hours has taken some getting used to. I'm still in training for two more weeks, which is good. The company I'm working for makes medical equipment and it's all very, very tiny and exact. It's also a clean environment, so I've had to wash my hands nearly a dozen times a day - and my cuticles look horrible. We can't wear makeup or nail polish (contamination issues) and wear hair nets, so there's not much getting ready time in the mornings. I tried to dye my hair purple for some color but it didn't show much over my brown hair. Next time there will be bleach first so the purple really pops. I only have one picture for you - a project that I worked on slowly over a couple of weeks. I was inspired by button art on Pinterest and can't wait to get more canvases to make more. What do you think?

Well, that's all for tonight. Bedtime is approaching fast and I'm looking forward to it!

Button Cuff

You know I have a love for buttons. I've spent more than a little time on pinterest looking at beautiful things that people have made out of them and have seen an amazing array of cuffs. I decided to give it a try.

The large main buttons were made into a bracelet before but the string broke - these are rather heavy and I shouldn't have just threaded anything through them. I placed them first and added the rest a couple at a time. The larger red ones are the extras from a Halston III blouse, his line for J C Penney in the early 80s. I was surprised to find them in one of the jars that I got for Christmas. My original plan was to only use red but the fabric, silk from a vintage tie, is very colorful so I decided to add the white and blue.

It fastens with two loops made from a pony tail holder. They are perfect for use as a fastener since the skinny elastics don't work for my thick hair at all. I wore it today and it's really comfortable. Tomorrow I'll be going through my buttons again to start on another one (or more!) in some other colors. This first one isn't great since I didn't really know what I was doing, but it has really sparked my creativity. I should really get to work on some new dresses to go with my bracelets!