Some Tidbits

Please... don't ask... I haven't started the bag (Pleated Tote from Bend the Rules Sewing)yet :( I'm up to my eyeballs in baby gifts and wetbag orders lately, but hopefully I'll make some free time this weekend to cut it out. I am torn between 2 different ideas - I've got some scraps of the adorable Heather Ross Gnome material that I think would be perfect for this project (along with some of the fun coordinating dot fabric and some of Joel Dewberry's gorgeous orange fabrics). And then there's still the idea of the spring colors with embroidered flowers with yo-yo's. Hmmm....

Anyways, I didn't forget Adrienne-thanks for tagging me! This kind of stuff is fun :)
So... here's 7 things that you (probably) don't know about me...

1) I *LOVE* Barry Manilow and Neil Diamond - Mom used to listen to them all the time while I was growing up and I think that they are permanently embedded in my DNA.

2) I am somewhat of a recycling freak. When I lived in the dorms at UNC-Chapel Hill, they didn't recycle plastic containers at the time (they did do cans, glass and paper though) so I'd ask everyone on the floor to leave their plastic containers with me and I had my parents bring bags and bags of garbage back home to NJ to recycle. Mom and Dad were such sports!

3) When I was in high school, I kept an "outfit journal" so I knew what I wore, when. I was generally on a 2 week cycle and never wore the same outfit in a week. Now, I'll wear the same thing 3 days in a row, or at least until I get spit-up or food on it :)

4) I was Drum Major in high school and voted most musical for Senior award night. I feel badly about that last part b/c I'm really not very musical... I just loved being Drum Major and I think people voted for me based on that.

This was my outfit for football games and competitions... seriously...

(I did mention that I grew up in NJ, right? COOOOOOOOLD!!!!!)

5) I went to my senior high school prom with 2 girlfriends. We weren't planning on going at all (I didn't have a boyfriend and there wasn't anyone I wanted to go with - ditto for my pals), and instead were going to head to the shore early to start the festivities. The weather turned out to be rainy and cold, so we decided to go - we went to the mall, bought $40 dresses and showed up on time. We didn't have tickets, so administration thought we were crashing the prom - everyone knew we were "in trouble" before we did... too funny! (that's me on the right - back in the days when I had crazy natural curls... where did those days go?!)



6) I'm one of those "cold spot" on the pillow people. Gotta have it, or I can't fall asleep too easily. Sue (sis-in-law) bought me this neat product for my birthday last year - it's called THE CHILLOW and I LOVE IT! And yes, it does work !

7) I love all "mini" food. I cut my sandwiches into 4 triangles, eat my yogurt with a condiment spoon, cut my brownies into ~ 1 1/2" squares, etc. I am especially fond of the Reese's mini Peanut Butter cups - the *perfect* chocolate to peanut butter ratio :) I don't tend to buy many pre-packaged mini foods though b/c the packaging waste bugs me.

As for who I am tagging..... it's JOY! Joy's blog is one of my latest fun reads - she too is into naturafying (just made that word up... another weird thing I do all the time) her family, and we have similar tastes in fabrics and projects. She inspired me to get some of this fabric to make a quilt and hopefully some placemats - thanks again Joy!

***Hope everyone's having a great week! ~ Kris

We're back!

We're back from our travels! The kids and I spent the bulk of the week in PA with my brother and sister-in-law and their 2 kids. Had a fantastic time and was happy to see that their house is just as chaotic as ours :) We finished the week at my parents house in NJ and then made a trip to NYC to see some high school friends on our way back north. It was a busy week, but fun!

Thanks again Sue & Ken for having us!

(Me & Sue after a fun morning with the kiddos at Jungle Jerry's)

The reason for our trip was two-fold: (1) the kids and I really needed to see my family and (2) we couldn't be home while the construction workers were removing the wall downstairs between the kitchen and the living room. Hubby had to stay home to work and tend to the dogs - not the ideal set-up, but it had to happen. I'll post pics of the downstairs once they are actually finished with everything. I thought it would all be done by the time we came back, but they still have to install the propane stove and wrap the new beam with pine. Then we have to get the walls and ceilings painted. I didn't realize that this was going to be so involved...

Anyways, while we were down there we finally got to exchange x-mas gifts! I'll post pics of some of the handmade goodies that I received once I get my camera back (I left it at my friend's place in NYC - URGH!). Here's pics of 2 gifts that I had made (for Sue and my dad, respectively).

Nappy Bag, using Etsuko Furuya ECHINO Dangling Spider Scene

Cell Phone Pouch

Dangling Spider

... and some matching key fobs

Dad loves squirrels, so this little bag was perfect!

And from the looks of the answers to my last post, I'll be making the Pleated Tote this month! I was kind of hoping that y'all would pick that one :) The winner of the drawing is...

Lynn C. from Saratoga, CA

Congratulations Lynn! I don't know how many of you have checked out her blog - Lynn knits the most amazing things, and made this drool-worthy bag (which is *still* on my to-do-list...hmmm... maybe it'll make the project list for next month!).

Please email me your address when you have a chance (kristen@monkeyfootdesigns.com) and the new Amy Butler Kimberly Bag pattern is yours!

While away, I was tagged by Adrienne to tell you 7 things that you don't know about me...stay tuned! ~ Kris

Wow - it's January 11th already! Sorry for the lack of posts - Christmas seems like it was just yesterday. It's been busier than usual around here as Syd is wavering on the line of nap/no nap (which in mommy terms really means "me time/no me time") and Ben, well, he hasn't quite figured out what to do with himself. One day he's a rock star and the next he's all over the place. Poor guy.

New Year's has come and gone and I really don't have a ton of new resolutions / "things that I'd like to improve on". We all have the same ones: sleep more, eat better, try to keep your cool around the kids even when they are dropping Goldfish (or groceries or themselves) from the cart at the store, blah, blah, blah. One thing that I've resolved to try to do is to make at least one new project a month from the myriad craft books that I've accumulated.

This is where you come in :)

I'll post 3 potential projects and have you all vote on which one I should make. I'll then pull one lucky answerer as the recipient of that months' giveaway. It might be a pattern (I'll check to see if you have it already), or some fat quarters, or something that I've made. Sound good? Let's start!

When you post your response, please start with your first name, the first initial of your last name and where you're from. Sounds a bit much, but I had 4 "Kate" responses to my last give-away and there was no way of telling who was who (so they all got free patterns!). I can't do that again, hence the guidelines. Thanks :)

Please post your response by Sat. January 19 to be included in the drawing.

This month I've chosen three projects from Amy Karol's fun book Bend-the-Rules Sewing: The Essential Guide to a Whole New Way to Sew. Haven't checked it out yet? You need to. And no, I don't get anything for telling you that :) Check out her Flickr group too!


First up is the fabulous Children's Smock: (maybe with some fun Wizard of Oz canvas fabric in white?):


Second is this darling pleated tote (would definitely use some linen, blues and pinks, and maybe even hand-embroider some flowers):


And Third is this cutie-pie Turtle Stuffie (the scanner blurred the photo for some reason):

Can't wait to see what you all pick!

As for the title of this post, I wanted to take a couple of minutes to answer some questions posted in responses. Blogger doesn't give me your email addresses, so there's no way to respond.

Courtney (aka Court): You can find the key fob hardware at Crafters Vision thru this link. I also use a crimping tool that I bought at a hardware store to pinch the clasps closed tightly. Works like a charm. Just be sure to glue some foam on the metal crimpers, or cover the key fob metal with cloth to prevent marking. I usually use webbing under the ribbon or fabric strip, but sometimes just make it with Peltex (thick interfacing you can find at Joanne's).

Knitting: A few people have asked how it's going and well... it's slow! I taught myself last year about this time and had wanted to make hats and sweaters and all sorts of fun goodies by this time this year. I'm still on scarves :) Not for lack of starting (I have actually made some slippers, started a hat and started a sweater)... come the end of the day I'm whooped and often can't fathom grasping a new skill. I'd rather go to my comfort zone and continue to outfit friends and family with scarves. My favorite one to make is the keyhole one - it's not super long and requires that you know some basics (knit, purl, casting on/off). I do hope to finish Syd's sweater before she turns 3.... (it's a size 2).

I'm off to print up a slew of labels - the Amy Butler Kimberly Bag and Anna Tunic Patterns came today, so if you ordered one they are shipping out tomorrow! Have a great weekend everyone! I'm off to NJ, PA and NYC tomorrow to spend a week visiting with family and friends - should be fun!