DIY: Nautical I Love You!

DIY: Nautical I Love You!

Yay! I'm so happy you guys liked my sailor top I made. So to continue on with the trend here's a fun nautical inspired DIY Project! Creating hidden messages with the international maritime flags! Here's a print out you can cut out at home and hang up this for the one you love like a sailor loves the sea! C'mon everyone loves this whole nautical look!




Start out fist downloading this pdf https://docs.google.com/file/d/0B4oTVeyiNDfudUx1c20wSVlpREk/edit?usp=sharing. Cut between the g=flag shapes where the arrows tell you to cut. For best results use a ruler and xacto blade. Fold the 8 rectangles in half to make little squares. Then get a cute piece of ribbon, twine, or string around two feet in length and take the folded flags and put the string in the fold, like a hot dog into a bun! Try to space them evenly or into words like I did. Then take a glue stick and swipe some glue into the fold and shut the fold over the string. Let the glue dry then take the ends of the string and hang up your nautical flag pennant flag!!



I love my little flags hanging over my bed with my awesome California hanging to remind me of the adventures I've had out here and all the fun things I've done these past two years by the sea, on the sea and sailing. look up online for the whole International Maritime Flag alphabet, and make your own phrases! Here's the wikipedia article about these awesome flags (http://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/International_maritime_signal_flags)



Have fun making your sea loving message, and let me know how you like them!

Huggles,
Lauren

Sailor, Sailor

Sailor, Sailor

What's this?! Another post? In ONE week! Yep that's right! Summer's almost over, but I still have so much to share about it! I started sewing again and getting used to the machine that Mike got me two christmases ago. It's a super old machine that can only do a forward straight stitch, just the basics, all you need. I got this adorable pattern from etsy, and decided to make view 3.



It turned out really well, just a bit boxier than I'm used to and the most common issue I always have, a very loose bust. Oh well, never going to get boobs... deal with it. Anyway my mom sent me some amazing vintage fabric, and I used a mint light weight cotton. It's really comfy and I wear it all the time! I love it... and yes I've worn it on the sail boat... I could totally do an entire months of posts of Nautical design, clothes, and trips.... Should I do that?

Hey Strangers!!!

Hey Strangers!!!

 So.... You know it's been sometime since we last spoke, but I've been busy with life, you know! Since we last talked, I've wine to Ohio over Memorial Day for a quick trip, we went camping and tubing in Sonoma, been hanging out with an old CCS colleague and her doggy, more Michigan people moved here, Mike and I went to Philadelphia, the Jersey shore, and sailing on the Chesapeake bay, and as I type I'm sitting back in Ohio visiting family because unfortunately my Grandfather passed suddenly. I plan on discussing all this on this here blog, because there's been amazing trips, and my grandfather had some of the most wonderful 91 years anyone could wish for. To read a beautiful dedication to my gpa please head over to my sister's blog here, http://dayinthelifeofam.blogspot.com/. But I wanted to stop in and tell you about some changes here on the blog.

I know I've said this before, but I really plan on keeping this up. I've just updated my portfolio site (but still have so much more to update!!) go check it out and see some of the stuff I do for work (http://www.laurenmoyer.com) I'm also starting to do pet portraits again! Mainly to help go towards a moving fund for me, I just found out my landlord is selling the house I'm in (not good) but maybe I'll find my dream apartment (maybe good!). So tell one and all and go to laurenmoyer.etsy.com!

Now this website is going to incorporate my art and life more so, kinda like my old art blog, http://laurenmoyer.blogspot.com/. I've thought about changing the name away from Sparrow & Urchin, but for now it'll stay, it still feels like me, I'm sometimes a happy little sparrow and sometimes I feel like a little street urchin, a lone kid in a new city and life.

Anyway, how are all of you few followers I still have? I wanna here about your lives! Email or comment or whatever!

Missed you all,
Lauren


Pictures from Jersey shore and sailing on the Chesapeake.

Do: Caught some Crabs. Yum.

Do: Caught some Crabs. Yum.

A month or so ago Mike and I went crabbing under the Golden Gate Bridge. We got some good sized Rock Crabs, and lots of Dungeness Crabs we had to throw back :( And lots of starfish... they're really ugly... like creepy sea hand fingers. Ew.





Later Mike made the most amazing Crab bisque and I got us yummy gf rolls from the bakery and a white wine recommended from a wine store, both down the street from my house, it's great living by everything.... mmm.

Ladies Craft Night: DIY Terrariums!

Ladies Craft Night: DIY Terrariums!

A couple weeks ago I hosted a Ladies Craft Night at my house, and this time we made our own Terrariums!! It was so much fun! Look at everyone's terrariums!!! And I think everyone had a blast. My roommates invited some of their friends, friends of mine from work and college came over, and we all just ate yummy food and made little worlds! I suggest everyone do this with all their lady friends.





A couple weeks before the party I sent out email invites for the party, I asked everyone to bring their own containers and $5 and I would provide the rest. I went to Home Depot and bought tons of succulents, cactus soil, activated charcoal. At Michaels I got some rocks and decorative moss, which my mom   told be if you spritz it with water it starts growing again! Of course I got some little people to grace everyone's terrariums!

For the party's work space I set up our deck area as the creation center for the plant mania, for more light I set up some lamps on the tables which gave the backyard such a homey feel! It was perfect mix between indoors and outdoor fun! After eating we got to the planting, getting our hands dirty and using all types of random things to help us along, including spoons as mini shovels!



For desert I made a dirt cake of course!!! And i made it vegan and gluten free, with vanilla and chocolate pudding made with chocolate almond milk, raspberries and blueberries inside. For the top I grabbed some Nasturtium from my back yard to add some color, and spice ;) My roommate Alise made some incredible homemade bread, hummus, and pesto, while everyone else brought some drinks and wine, and everyone got stuffed on yumminess.







I really had an amazing time and have loved hosting these couple ones. It was awesome having people mingling and meeting and making new connections. After being out here for almost two years, and initially concentrating on finding a good job, I really now feel like I'm starting to get a hang of thing out here and making some great friends. I hope craft nights will keep continuing and become a regular thing at my house and hopefully other houses! Now I just need to figure out the theme of the next Ladies Craft Night!

And here's my tired, silly face with my terrarium. :)