tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-51671113742528523532012-01-26T15:58:01.700-05:00robin mg lawrenzhttp://www.blogger.com/profile/07962256480648887116noreply@blogger.comBlogger971100tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-5167111374252852353.post-72876142098431255462012-01-26T15:57:00.000-05:002012-01-26T15:58:01.708-05:00

I don't know if little Sadie has a stocking or not, but I decided that she should have a handmade ornament for her first Christmas just the same.  She came up to visit me this fall (along with her parents, sister, and Gramby--the grandkids' name for my mom), and while she was here, Megan bought her Halloween costume so that come Halloween, she could be a little Sadiebug. Get it?  It sounds

robin mg lawrenzhttp://www.blogger.com/profile/07962256480648887116noreply@blogger.com0tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-5167111374252852353.post-73090517200325767752012-01-19T14:40:00.000-05:002012-01-19T14:41:02.812-05:00

Another important part of the stocking is an ornament.  When I got married, I had a huge box of ornaments to take with me to decorate my own tree.  (Thank you, Santa.)  And now that Judah has a stocking of his own, I plan on continuing the tradition...because that's what I do. So this year, I went out and bought the mandatory "Baby's First Christmas" ornament.  It is currently hanging on the

robin mg lawrenzhttp://www.blogger.com/profile/07962256480648887116noreply@blogger.com0tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-5167111374252852353.post-80421928786691712122012-01-15T14:44:00.000-05:002012-01-15T14:45:02.217-05:00

Being the youngest of three, I never remember believing in Santa Claus.  Older sisters tend to do that for you.  They pave the way in school so your teachers love you before they know you.  They look out for you and give you hard-earned advice.  They take the brunt of your parents' discipline leaving you to coast through your adolescence.  But they also tend to ever so slightly tarnish the magic

robin mg lawrenzhttp://www.blogger.com/profile/07962256480648887116noreply@blogger.com2tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-5167111374252852353.post-6527548310832031922012-01-13T17:50:00.000-05:002012-01-13T17:50:51.890-05:00

Jason and I have a friend from church named Price who has been down on his luck the past few years.  Since we moved to the area four and a half years ago, he lost his job, was displaced from several apartments, and has had enough car trouble to fill a lifetime quota.  But through it all, he has continued to be one of the most compassionate, generous, encouraging, and optimistic people I

robin mg lawrenzhttp://www.blogger.com/profile/07962256480648887116noreply@blogger.com1tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-5167111374252852353.post-65315710217482235712012-01-11T22:10:00.000-05:002012-01-11T22:10:42.152-05:00

This project has been in the works for three years.  The first year, I decided to do it, but it stopped at the decision.  The second year, I made pipe-cleaner forms but that's as far as it got.  The project was beginning to feel like Narnia in the reign of the White Witch: always winter and never Christmas...an everlasting advent with no baby Jesus to culminate the season.  But this year, I was

robin mg lawrenzhttp://www.blogger.com/profile/07962256480648887116noreply@blogger.com0tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-5167111374252852353.post-67858144628847119242012-01-07T21:21:00.016-05:002012-01-07T21:34:40.875-05:00

And to finish out my mom's handmade Christmas goodies... You may remember that a few years ago, my sisters and I collaborated to make my mom a felted nativity.  My job was the wise men.  I made one from China, one from Russia, and one from Morocco.  (Now, I realize that the wise men came from the East, and Morocco is technically west of Israel, but it was just way too tempting to make a jaunty

robin mg lawrenzhttp://www.blogger.com/profile/07962256480648887116noreply@blogger.com0tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-5167111374252852353.post-41391190512191487712012-01-06T22:17:00.001-05:002012-01-06T22:19:07.054-05:00

Another present I made for my mom this year was a mini crazy quilt project....well, 5 mini crazy quilt projects, really.  I was going to post a link to a tutorial on crazy quilt piecing, but in a [cursory] search, I was disappointed with the lack of a good tutorial with fabrics that you wouldn't associate with your great Aunt Tessie.  (subtle HP reference there for those of you who are HP

robin mg lawrenzhttp://www.blogger.com/profile/07962256480648887116noreply@blogger.com0tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-5167111374252852353.post-64868981929460143272012-01-05T15:10:00.007-05:002012-01-05T15:13:58.371-05:00

In addition to Miss Sadie Joy, my family drew my mom and dad in our Giberson Christmas lottery.  You'll have to wait to see what I gave my dad because it's one of the more impressive and extensive things I've ever made.  For my mom, I did a sampling of littler presents...nothing very grand but all given much thought and made with love. At the beginning of November, my mom had knee surgery.  I'll

robin mg lawrenzhttp://www.blogger.com/profile/07962256480648887116noreply@blogger.com0tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-5167111374252852353.post-25365151823252822632012-01-04T14:32:00.000-05:002012-01-04T14:32:18.880-05:00

2011 was the Christmas of a ridiculous amount of felting.  I had several very large, time-consuming projects to complete, so it was nice to be able to mix it up here and there with something little and not quite as time-consuming.  One such little project was for Jason.  One of Jason's new favorite movies is Despicable Me.  It's about a villain named Gru who is trying to pull the biggest heist of

robin mg lawrenzhttp://www.blogger.com/profile/07962256480648887116noreply@blogger.com1tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-5167111374252852353.post-75938528140030290142012-01-03T22:00:00.004-05:002012-01-08T17:52:30.504-05:00

The Giberson clan has grown to quite an impressive number.  In the past three years, the number of third generationers has gone from 0 to 5.  So add parents, siblings, and husbands, and Christmas had gotten very expensive.  So this year, we decided to draw names for present giving, and each person had a $50 limit.  As it happened, Jason and Sadie drew each other.  Sadie joined the family just 6

robin mg lawrenzhttp://www.blogger.com/profile/07962256480648887116noreply@blogger.com0tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-5167111374252852353.post-86877651862236427132012-01-02T22:57:00.003-05:002012-01-08T17:53:04.583-05:00

When I first found out I was pregnant, I couldn't wait to start making things for my baby.  I was thoroughly impatient to find out if the baby was a boy or a girl so I would know what color yarn to buy.  At 18 weeks, I saw Judah for the first time and instantly fell in love.  But Jason and I had only agreed on girls' names.  So right after the ultrasound, we went to Panera, and I said we weren't

robin mg lawrenzhttp://www.blogger.com/profile/07962256480648887116noreply@blogger.com5tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-5167111374252852353.post-22604909109213065652012-01-01T21:30:00.001-05:002012-01-01T21:31:06.285-05:00

The past two months have been a frenzy of making...a veritable smorgasbord of craft.  My apartment was in a constant state of creative chaos.  Every waking moment that Judah was kind enough to spare me, I was sewing, felting, quilting, crocheting, painting, or embroidering.  It was by far my most handmade Christmas ever, and even in the midst of the constant stress of the ticking calendar and

robin mg lawrenzhttp://www.blogger.com/profile/07962256480648887116noreply@blogger.com0tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-5167111374252852353.post-9151654218347496232011-11-09T11:02:00.001-05:002011-11-09T11:07:35.137-05:00

I've REALLY been wanting to get back into blogging.  We moved into our new apartment over a month ago.  It's a rental, but I love it anyway...despite our really noisy upstairs neighbors, who are listening to Christmas music this morning...not cool, people.  It's November 9th. I admit that I've been thinking about Christmas and trying to get into Christmas production since August.  I wanted to go

robin mg lawrenzhttp://www.blogger.com/profile/07962256480648887116noreply@blogger.com4tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-5167111374252852353.post-18601853742778961382011-08-29T22:44:00.000-04:002011-08-29T22:44:47.528-04:00

This is my 6th attempt to write a blog post worthy of displacing Judah's birthday.  This won't be that blog post, but maybe it will take the pressure off a bit to just give a quick update to what's going on around here: 1)  Judah is awesome.  He's really the best ever...best baby, best person, best thing to ever happen to me.  He's just the best.  See?  Isn't he the best?  Yes.  Yes, he

robin mg lawrenzhttp://www.blogger.com/profile/07962256480648887116noreply@blogger.com3tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-5167111374252852353.post-44703018831698129972011-03-24T19:15:00.006-04:002011-03-24T20:02:45.286-04:00

The very hardest and one of the very best days of my life. Enjoy!My water broke at 2:15am. About an hour and a half of repacking hospital bags, and we were off!We got to the hospital around 4am, which is when my contractions started to be more regular. As you can tell, this picture was taken very early on.And this picture was taken much later. After about 10 hours of labor (including about 2

robin mg lawrenzhttp://www.blogger.com/profile/07962256480648887116noreply@blogger.com4tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-5167111374252852353.post-18371512031336917382010-10-26T15:20:00.001-04:002010-10-26T15:23:54.048-04:00

I did it! Friday night when I signed off, when I was sure I would fritter away hours playing bejeweled, I actually popped in a Christmas movie and made something. I made this little guy:And here he is with the new birdfeeder we just put up.Keep in mind that he is a prototype. His mouth coals are too big, and his button coals should all be on his middle bump. But otherwise, I'm pretty happy

robin mg lawrenzhttp://www.blogger.com/profile/07962256480648887116noreply@blogger.com4tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-5167111374252852353.post-12807500999188474002010-10-22T19:45:00.000-04:002010-10-22T19:49:21.107-04:00

Well, so much for consistency. I guess it's just not in my nature. For instance, Jason and I were talking a few weeks back about scheduling. Jason is a teaching assistant for Greek this year, which means he has to be at an 8am class every Monday, Wednesday, Friday. So he's been waking up early every single morning so as to have a consistent sleep routine. This does not seem at all logical to

robin mg lawrenzhttp://www.blogger.com/profile/07962256480648887116noreply@blogger.com3tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-5167111374252852353.post-33657782872777481202010-10-08T11:30:00.000-04:002010-10-08T11:37:07.875-04:00

In which Robin welcomes herself back with a grand announcement...I'm pregnant.And the long and short of it is that that is the reason I haven't been blogging.I quit my job back in May, and my last day was July 6th. And very shortly thereafter, I got pregnant, spent three weeks traveling up and down the eastern seaboard and the following weeks feeling very ill indeed. So here I am, in the middle

robin mg lawrenzhttp://www.blogger.com/profile/07962256480648887116noreply@blogger.com5tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-5167111374252852353.post-13487901463438037622010-05-21T10:46:00.002-04:002010-05-26T15:59:21.994-04:00

Once upon a time, two of my very good friends were getting married. It was an evening wedding, and I knew that the bridesmaids dresses were floor length, so I figured it would be on the formal side. I scoured by closet and could not find a single thing to wear. It seemed that every dress I owned was either white or not formal enough or too tight or lacking an appropriate accompanying cardigan

robin mg lawrenzhttp://www.blogger.com/profile/07962256480648887116noreply@blogger.com2tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-5167111374252852353.post-73499771018904772752010-05-15T10:12:00.005-04:002010-05-26T15:20:54.652-04:00

Remember the Great Goat Vote from back in September? Of course you do. Well, as you know, my mom did not win the goats. But that little contest did get me reading the blog that sponsored the contest, and I still read it to this very day. No hard feelings. Okay...a few hard feelings, but I read it nevertheless. Every once in a while, the blog author posts posts called "Probably Something You

robin mg lawrenzhttp://www.blogger.com/profile/07962256480648887116noreply@blogger.com2tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-5167111374252852353.post-52692159345270289672010-05-05T11:56:00.003-04:002010-06-04T10:16:24.937-04:00

It had been a lonely 4 weeks. Jason took the youth group for a week-long missions trip to New York City. This meant he was missing the last week of his semester, so the week before and the week after the trip included heavy paper-writing. He finally finished everything, and then we had 3 evenings together before he went to Wheaton for his brother's graduation. So between all of that and

robin mg lawrenzhttp://www.blogger.com/profile/07962256480648887116noreply@blogger.com0tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-5167111374252852353.post-91595454224152976442010-04-10T12:35:00.003-04:002010-05-26T12:12:21.272-04:00

I have a friend named Lexi who I love. She is fun and creative and just a lovely person. One of our most favorite things to do together is to paint pottery. You may remember the Harry Potter pitcher and the pear plate. Both of those were done at Glazed pottery painting studio in Gloucester with my dear friend Lexi. It had been ages since we'd gotten together, so we finally set another

robin mg lawrenzhttp://www.blogger.com/profile/07962256480648887116noreply@blogger.com2tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-5167111374252852353.post-27493747148385801982010-03-31T00:06:00.000-04:002010-05-26T10:07:11.986-04:00

I have quite a bit of catch up to do since we're approaching May's midpoint, and I left my blog dormant through most of April. I think for now, I'll just plod along and leave the posts up on the day I post them for a bit, and I'll backlog them later. Here's a post I actually wrote back around Easter weekend but never posted because I couldn't get a camera and a cord and a computer all in the

robin mg lawrenzhttp://www.blogger.com/profile/07962256480648887116noreply@blogger.com3tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-5167111374252852353.post-10957382295470600522010-03-30T13:00:00.000-04:002010-05-26T10:07:28.313-04:00

Now that I'm all caught up, I figure it would be good to not wait a month before posting again. Consistency...that's the goal...Two weeks ago was was Holy Week. Church wise, Holy Week is my favorite week of the year. It is power-packed with goodness. Sure, I love the Christmas pageant, the Christmas Eve service, the general spirit of Advent, the deep mystery of the Incarnation, the Christmas

robin mg lawrenzhttp://www.blogger.com/profile/07962256480648887116noreply@blogger.com4tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-5167111374252852353.post-7678846712246393692010-03-29T08:00:00.000-04:002010-05-26T10:07:45.828-04:00

Last Saturday morning, I woke up early. Not on purpose. The one day I get to sleep in...but no such luck. There really is no good explanation for why I was so wide awake on a Saturday morning. I am never ever wide awake. Ever. The only reason I can conjure is that I was having a dream that would not allow me to sleep any more. In my dream I was crocheting. But I wasn't crocheting the

robin mg lawrenzhttp://www.blogger.com/profile/07962256480648887116noreply@blogger.com3tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-5167111374252852353.post-61754914200031411382010-03-28T12:17:00.000-04:002010-05-26T10:08:15.910-04:00

When I get in a food slump, I like to read the recipes that come on the back of food packaging. I hardly ever actually try them, but they often inspire me to use that food item for something other than the specific purpose for which I bought it.Cooking is something I want to be really good at. And to be really good at anything, first you have to learn to follow the rules, and then once you've

robin mg lawrenzhttp://www.blogger.com/profile/07962256480648887116noreply@blogger.com6tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-5167111374252852353.post-49772365483143310292010-03-27T12:30:00.000-04:002010-05-26T10:08:31.554-04:00

Last year for my birthday, Jason took me out to tea. We went to a little tea shop in Salem next to Rita's Water Ice, and he diligently sat with me and ate scones and tea sandwiches because that is my ideal meal and one of my most favorite things to do. He drew the line at cucumber sandwiches, so I ate all of those. It was a lovely time. He also gave me a "coupon" to be taken out to tea

robin mg lawrenzhttp://www.blogger.com/profile/07962256480648887116noreply@blogger.com0tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-5167111374252852353.post-57829175838013082722010-03-26T23:59:00.000-04:002010-05-26T10:09:22.148-04:00

Let the catching up begin. Bring on March! Contrary to what you may think given the pleasantness of the warming up of the world, I really do not like March. I find it absurd that a 31 day month does not include a single holiday. And by the time March rolls around, I have no patience for its flip-floppy weather. Just be warm! What is so hard about that?? Okay, enough ranting. Now we can

robin mg lawrenzhttp://www.blogger.com/profile/07962256480648887116noreply@blogger.com3tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-5167111374252852353.post-23538051182978431782010-03-25T16:13:00.001-04:002010-03-29T17:04:36.656-04:00

So back at the end of February, there was another Kalos coffee house. This one was to celebrate the 2nd issue of the arts journal put out by the seminary community. The theme was "Light." Here is the post about my submission to the journal. I had both of my cathedral window wall-hangings on display:The night before the coffee house, I still didn't have any way to hang either wall-hanging, so

robin mg lawrenzhttp://www.blogger.com/profile/07962256480648887116noreply@blogger.com3tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-5167111374252852353.post-33215235924498102092010-03-15T15:00:00.000-04:002010-03-15T15:08:01.422-04:00

February was a long and dreary month. One day, I decided that the cure would be a nice mug of hot chocolate. So I mixed up my little powder and milk and hot water...and it just did not do the trick. It was simply not chocolatey enough. So I spent my final weekly make of the month trying to figure out the ultimate recipe for hot chocolate. I determined that I could only use ingredients I

robin mg lawrenzhttp://www.blogger.com/profile/07962256480648887116noreply@blogger.com4tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-5167111374252852353.post-38263933652490190682010-03-09T11:15:00.000-05:002010-03-09T11:17:49.327-05:00

Alright, so it's been forever since I've posted anything. The reasons for this are many-fold. And although very few of them are resolved, I thought I'd do a little secret-unraveling today to get myself back in the game here.1) My blog hates me. Literally. It was perfectly content being all conventional and dotty in its basic template. And then I got bored and spent hours and hours and hours

robin mg lawrenzhttp://www.blogger.com/profile/07962256480648887116noreply@blogger.com1tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-5167111374252852353.post-44756924721602148692010-02-23T14:25:00.002-05:002010-05-11T11:38:15.829-04:00

Two weeks ago was was my first make of my new year. (It seems that I'm not starting off the year with great timeliness in posting.) With that in mind, I felt a little pressure to be grandiose in what I chose to make. I wanted it to set the tone for a new year in which I would do bigger and better things that the year before. I also thought I should probably make something Valentine's Day

robin mg lawrenzhttp://www.blogger.com/profile/07962256480648887116noreply@blogger.com5tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-5167111374252852353.post-71201626938119424852010-02-10T11:45:00.010-05:002010-02-22T11:38:31.704-05:00

In order to be eligible for this giveaway, all you need to do is to leave a comment on this post by February 20th. On the 21st, I will use a random number generator to determine the winner. And the winner will receive...one custom Robin-made somethingcrafted especially for you!!!If you'd like to direct my little project, feel free to tell me your favorite project from this past year, something

robin mg lawrenzhttp://www.blogger.com/profile/07962256480648887116noreply@blogger.com14tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-5167111374252852353.post-17695073644364231032010-02-09T09:57:00.000-05:002010-02-12T09:59:09.101-05:00

This past week marks the 52nd week of The Weekly Make. That's right. A full year of intentional creativity. An entire 365 days when I have thought about putting my creative resources to good use and actually followed through to the completion of much creative goodness.At the risk of sounding a little over-inflated (although this is my blog, so I guess I'm allowed a little pride now and then), let

robin mg lawrenzhttp://www.blogger.com/profile/07962256480648887116noreply@blogger.com7tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-5167111374252852353.post-66115873681322029542010-02-08T12:49:00.002-05:002010-02-12T12:37:10.896-05:00

If there is any hope for me recovering from how much I hate the number 4, that hope is the granny square. Because until very recently, the very sight of a square (the physical manifestation of that unpleasant digit) was odious in my sight. It's okay if it's turned on its edge because then it's more like a diamond. In fact, when Jason and I were talking about engagement rings, I told him I

robin mg lawrenzhttp://www.blogger.com/profile/07962256480648887116noreply@blogger.com3tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-5167111374252852353.post-87466503581548884272010-01-29T11:35:00.008-05:002010-02-15T10:43:39.060-05:00

It is no secret that I love me some pancakes. But this one really takes the [pan]cake. A few years ago, I was introduced by my sister Amy to the Dutch Apple Pancake at the Pancake House in Savannah, Georgia. It's basically a pancake that you bake in the oven, and it puffs up all gloriously and has apples baked into it and drizzly sweet goodness all over it. Heaven. One lovely Saturday on a

robin mg lawrenzhttp://www.blogger.com/profile/07962256480648887116noreply@blogger.com6tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-5167111374252852353.post-9861182414600414132010-01-19T14:31:00.004-05:002010-02-10T11:14:29.515-05:00

Notice how my makes have gone from varied and grandiose in December to sweet and simple in January? One of January's weekly makes was a crayon drawing. It had been a long time since I've colored. It seemed like I was due. So I picked up my pad of paper and my box of crayons and set out to color something abstract, something to capture how I was feeling. And here it is:Each color and shape

robin mg lawrenzhttp://www.blogger.com/profile/07962256480648887116noreply@blogger.com2tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-5167111374252852353.post-73685687125432196532010-01-18T14:25:00.000-05:002010-02-09T11:31:43.140-05:00

Two of my January weekly makes have come out of Beyond-the-Square Crochet Motifs. Jason got me this book for Christmas, and let me tell you, it was a challenge to finish up those granny square slippers when I had this puppy lying around. This book gives charts and patterns for 144 different squares, circles, triangles, hexagons, and other crocheted shapes as well as inspirations for projects

robin mg lawrenzhttp://www.blogger.com/profile/07962256480648887116noreply@blogger.com0tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-5167111374252852353.post-57013532571905058942010-01-02T13:20:00.002-05:002010-02-10T12:15:52.133-05:00

Disclaimer: I did not make either of the things highlighted in this post. But I can't help sharing them with you. They are just too cool. And they are handmade. So they still fit the genre of my blog, even if I didn't make them. End disclaimer.This year, my favorite two Christmas presents came from my parents. One was such a happy reminder of where I've come from. The other, a wonderful

robin mg lawrenzhttp://www.blogger.com/profile/07962256480648887116noreply@blogger.com6tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-5167111374252852353.post-37580608229663048132009-12-29T12:51:00.003-05:002010-02-09T11:09:39.631-05:00

I tried very, very hard to get everything done in time for Christmas. And I had some big plans. And almost everything got finished or substituted so that I was on top of everything come Christmas morning. The exception was an apron for my mom. It's true that this is the 4th apron I've made for my mom this year. (A Mother's Day gardening apron and two utility aprons account for the other

robin mg lawrenzhttp://www.blogger.com/profile/07962256480648887116noreply@blogger.com3tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-5167111374252852353.post-81022023368223588862009-12-28T11:41:00.003-05:002010-02-09T11:07:48.690-05:00

For my sisters this year, in addition to a few other little odds and ends presents (pencil supplies for Megan, vintage buttons and crocheted doilies for Amy, gLee soundtracks for both), I made each of them a headband and a pair of slippers.I'm pretty excited about these headbands I've learned to make. They are reversible, comfortable, and in all other ways awesome. And I have them down to a

robin mg lawrenzhttp://www.blogger.com/profile/07962256480648887116noreply@blogger.com2tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-5167111374252852353.post-12186466333404306522009-12-20T12:11:00.002-05:002012-01-07T20:32:23.904-05:00

Last year, my sisters and I collaborated on a present for my mom. I can't remember if Amy or Megan initiated it, but they decided to felt a nativity scene for her. Amy is the best felter of the three of us, so she got "the big show," (Mary, Joseph, and Jesus). Megan did the shepherds. And I did the wise men. This year, we added to the set. Well, I think my mom is still waiting on a sheep or

robin mg lawrenzhttp://www.blogger.com/profile/07962256480648887116noreply@blogger.com4tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-5167111374252852353.post-9288283011933111502009-12-19T17:00:00.001-05:002010-02-09T11:20:14.693-05:00

So remember how I said I wouldn't be making any more cathedral window projects in December because I could not be easily convinced to part with something so awesome? Well, here's the thing. My dad really likes cathedral window quilts. And he is particularly difficult to shop for. And I knew he would appreciate the work that went into this, so, I made him a cathedral window wall-hanging for

robin mg lawrenzhttp://www.blogger.com/profile/07962256480648887116noreply@blogger.com0tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-5167111374252852353.post-7101947704211205342009-12-18T10:58:00.001-05:002010-02-09T10:16:33.034-05:00

In the daunting task of catching you up on my Christmas makings, I thought I would start with presents for the little ones. First of all, I need to offer up the confession that I did not make a present for Jesse. I labored over many very good ideas but nothing that was quite perfect. I was also a little stretched because I wanted to make sure he got to open his present on Christmas morning (

robin mg lawrenzhttp://www.blogger.com/profile/07962256480648887116noreply@blogger.com5tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-5167111374252852353.post-12700060029198433442009-12-17T14:40:00.000-05:002010-02-09T10:16:19.161-05:00

Man oh man, do I have a lot to tell you! I'm a little miffed that my archives will only show 2 posts for December 2009 when that was my busiest making month yet. I'm tempted to fix the posting dates of these next few posts to put them where they belong, but that feels a little like cheating since it's taken me so long to post them. Maybe I'll do it retroactively when I'm not concerned about

robin mg lawrenzhttp://www.blogger.com/profile/07962256480648887116noreply@blogger.com2tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-5167111374252852353.post-56426160473237368802009-12-14T09:35:00.001-05:002009-12-14T09:39:35.683-05:00

The due date came and went for another issue of Kalos. In my preparations for the Christmas bazaar, I completely missed it. Thankfully, the editors are gracious, and they gave me a little extension, so I was able to submit something for possible inclusion in the journal.The theme for this issue is "Light," which I was really excited about. I'm a big fan of light in all its forms: sunshine,

robin mg lawrenzhttp://www.blogger.com/profile/07962256480648887116noreply@blogger.com5tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-5167111374252852353.post-63056392729773093072009-12-13T22:30:00.001-05:002009-12-13T22:40:29.643-05:00

Those of you who know me well will know that I am not happy that show #4 is my final show of the year. I hate the number 4. I don't eat things in 4s. I don't arrange things in 4s. And if 4 is forced upon me, I usually find some way to rationalize it another way, as in: 2 + 2 or 3 + 1 or 25 cents (the last one is instead of 1/4). There you have it. All that to say, I had my 4th show (3 craft

robin mg lawrenzhttp://www.blogger.com/profile/07962256480648887116noreply@blogger.com5tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-5167111374252852353.post-56998491771604402632009-11-24T10:15:00.001-05:002010-02-09T09:41:55.876-05:00

Two weekends ago, Jason's parents came for a short weekend visit. It was lovely to get to spend some good, quality time with them, relaxing and reconnecting before we go to visit for Christmas. Coming down from the crafting craziness leading up to the Bazaar and a bit tired from the thorough scrub down of my apartment, I resigned myself to taking a week off from crafting and catching up the

robin mg lawrenzhttp://www.blogger.com/profile/07962256480648887116noreply@blogger.com4tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-5167111374252852353.post-5597754191457867502009-11-11T10:00:00.000-05:002009-11-11T10:05:38.367-05:00

Finally...the North Shore Bazaar.I spent just about every free moment from Halloween to November 8th making inventory for this, my first ever craft show where I would be the main event of my own table. This past weekend, I kicked it into high gear. Jason and I were up until about 3:00 am on Friday night/Saturday morning felting pumpkins and acorns. Then I woke up at 8:00 on Saturday morning

robin mg lawrenzhttp://www.blogger.com/profile/07962256480648887116noreply@blogger.com5tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-5167111374252852353.post-91407041244623763952009-11-10T14:00:00.000-05:002009-11-11T10:04:58.378-05:00

Wow. Today is November 10th, and I have barely just begun telling you about all of the makings of October! Prepare for an onslaught of creativity here because I have been making like crazy to get ready for the North Shore Bazaar (which was kinda my first show, even though it was my 3rd. Does that make sense?). So here is the past month in pictures, documenting all of my preparations:Jason and

robin mg lawrenzhttp://www.blogger.com/profile/07962256480648887116noreply@blogger.com4tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-5167111374252852353.post-56178184819216506172009-11-09T10:00:00.000-05:002009-11-11T10:03:52.716-05:00

First of all, a little note... remember that Kalos journal that I submitted my tree wall-hanging to? Here's a link to the online version in case you want to see it. And now, I return you to our regularly scheduled programming:A few weekends ago, Jason and I headed down to Jersey to hang with the fam for a bit and to take part in the Cranberry Festival in Chatsworth with my mom and Amy, who came

robin mg lawrenzhttp://www.blogger.com/profile/07962256480648887116noreply@blogger.com0tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-5167111374252852353.post-35431261316253209312009-11-08T19:00:00.000-05:002009-11-11T10:03:32.480-05:00

Utility:1) The state or quality of being useful; usefulness.2) Something useful; a useful thing.I have been such a busy little bee.In previous posts, I lamented having just about nothing to sell at the craft show in Chatsworth back in October. (Yes, this is yet another catch-up post in an upcoming string of catch-up posts. Bear with me.) The panic did eventually turn to productivity, and I

robin mg lawrenzhttp://www.blogger.com/profile/07962256480648887116noreply@blogger.com4tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-5167111374252852353.post-72559203937032433432009-10-20T10:30:00.002-04:002009-10-20T10:41:57.529-04:00

Boy am I one lucky duck!A few weekends ago, Jason and I sang a couple of songs for a wedding of a girl whose parents go to our church. The wedding was held on Crane Beach and had about 20 people in attendance. It was a gorgeous day, perfect for a beach wedding...not too hot, not too cold, a gentle breeze blowing in the right direction for the bride's and bridemaids' hair, the whole beach to

robin mg lawrenzhttp://www.blogger.com/profile/07962256480648887116noreply@blogger.com5tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-5167111374252852353.post-75626419630329309722009-10-11T08:00:00.000-04:002009-10-11T08:00:02.083-04:00

Two weeks ago, I tried my hand at another preserving venture. This time on the menu: apple butter. I love love love apple butter. It makes me very happy. So Jason and I went to Russell Orchards, picked up some Gravenstein apples (a very good variety for sauces), found a tasty-looking recipe online, went out and bought a foley mill, and got down to work. Here are the lovely apples at the

robin mg lawrenzhttp://www.blogger.com/profile/07962256480648887116noreply@blogger.com7tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-5167111374252852353.post-70459957494642985332009-10-10T08:00:00.003-04:002010-03-29T17:04:58.590-04:00

And the updates keep on coming...2 Fridays ago, I had the Kalos coffee house. I brought my tree wall-hanging and a few embroidery hoop fabric collages (a name which I made up and am quite proud of because that's exactly what they are). Here is a picture of the hoops:You'll probably recognize the big one as the crazy quilt square I made a few weeks back. I'm planning to sell this set and more

robin mg lawrenzhttp://www.blogger.com/profile/07962256480648887116noreply@blogger.com4tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-5167111374252852353.post-77393315580940967512009-10-09T12:47:00.003-04:002009-10-11T22:35:51.318-04:00

Now that the Great Goat Vote is far behind us...I have SO MUCH to tell you...quite a bit of catch up to do. Although I've been thinking very few thoughts over the past few weeks other than "goats goats goats goats goats," I have gotten quite a bit done in September that I want to tell you about! So...here goes.A few weekends ago, Jason and I took a 24 hour trip down to South Jersey (aka the

robin mg lawrenzhttp://www.blogger.com/profile/07962256480648887116noreply@blogger.com0tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-5167111374252852353.post-82831147074231447712009-09-22T16:24:00.007-04:002009-10-05T11:03:31.589-04:00

The time has come for you to vote for my mom to win some angora goats! Hooray!!Just go to this link and click on the star under the pictures ONCE. Please vote only once. (I will get disqualified if people try to cheat, and yes, they can track that kind of thing via IP addresses.) Voting closes this Friday, September 25th at midnight eastern time. Once the voting ends, they will contact the

robin mg lawrenzhttp://www.blogger.com/profile/07962256480648887116noreply@blogger.com4tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-5167111374252852353.post-26609197965834211392009-09-17T15:00:00.002-04:002009-09-18T11:51:57.295-04:00

I found this Mighty Big Giveaway link on Soule Mama. It is for 5 angora goats and a little barn in which to house them. Now, the fact of the matter is that I would love to have 5 angora goats and a little barn in which to house them, but I'm not even allowed to have a goldfish on campus. Seriously. Not. Even. A. Goldfish. But this giveaway was much too cool to pass up. So I thought that my

robin mg lawrenzhttp://www.blogger.com/profile/07962256480648887116noreply@blogger.com4tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-5167111374252852353.post-51020538058222658022009-09-14T14:53:00.004-04:002009-10-09T14:01:01.510-04:00

So I've been reading this book called Craft Inc. It's all about turning your creative hobby into a business. It's a little overwhelming at times...copyrights, commercial zoning, marketing, etc., but for the most part, it seems pretty doable to me, and I've enjoyed thinking up collections I could make and how I would organize my files and what kind of logo and banners I would want. I've always

robin mg lawrenzhttp://www.blogger.com/profile/07962256480648887116noreply@blogger.com6tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-5167111374252852353.post-85499398591337651232009-09-09T22:55:00.003-04:002009-09-10T09:35:28.437-04:00

Yesterday at about 4:00, I got a call from Jason. He asked me if I could research recipes for striped bass, or striper. Scott, a friend of ours from church, had taken Jason fishing, and Jason caught a 29 inch striper! He sounded pretty excited on the phone, but truthfully, all I could think about was, "I have no idea how to clean and gut and de-bone and fillet a fish. Please don't make me do

robin mg lawrenzhttp://www.blogger.com/profile/07962256480648887116noreply@blogger.com7tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-5167111374252852353.post-21874815098060178682009-08-31T19:50:00.000-04:002009-08-31T19:51:14.762-04:00

I have a really awesome project in the works. It's for my mom's birthday, which was on August 13th. I would love to show it to you, but it's not finished...mostly because I'm making it up, and it includes some techniques that I don't know how to do. Referring back to my skirt post, I know that I decided that I needed to follow a few patterns instead of doing things I don't know how to do,

robin mg lawrenzhttp://www.blogger.com/profile/07962256480648887116noreply@blogger.com6tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-5167111374252852353.post-8052470336401482712009-08-30T19:45:00.000-04:002009-08-31T19:51:59.634-04:00

My mom is an excellent cook. I can only remember one thing in my entire life that she cooked that was not good. It was a crab casserole. I've also heard that her experiment with flan went badly. But other than that, her track record is unscathed. She cooks, she bakes, she preserves, she does it all, and she does it all well. Despite this, I didn't really learn to cook until my junior year

robin mg lawrenzhttp://www.blogger.com/profile/07962256480648887116noreply@blogger.com5tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-5167111374252852353.post-60287954779264275612009-08-24T14:18:00.005-04:002009-08-28T09:22:16.589-04:00

This is especially true when it comes to experimenting with natural dyes.My mom and I each had some wool that we had spun, and we wanted to dye it while I was home. We started by tying our wool into skeins and soaking it in a bath of water and cream of tarter, which helps seal the color into the wool once it's been dyed. While it was soaking, we went out into my mom's new jungle--I mean,

robin mg lawrenzhttp://www.blogger.com/profile/07962256480648887116noreply@blogger.com12tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-5167111374252852353.post-60854010883605859332009-08-19T14:35:00.004-04:002012-01-03T11:06:47.079-05:00

The final week in July brought a very celebratory make. My sister Megan is pregnant with a little girl named Molly. Everything is progressing very well. Megan and Molly are both healthy and steadily growing (Molly growing all around and Megan growing...round). I love you, Megan. You're beautiful in all your pregnant roundness. :o) When I was home (in Jersey) for the first week of August,

robin mg lawrenzhttp://www.blogger.com/profile/07962256480648887116noreply@blogger.com6tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-5167111374252852353.post-7861470391275226642009-07-29T16:26:00.001-04:002009-08-28T09:21:54.810-04:00

Last week held an even more important event in my life. If you're finding it hard to imagine what could be more important than Harry Potter, I understand your difficulty. But it's true. Because last week, Jason and I celebrated our 2nd anniversary! [hooray! streamers! confetti!] Goodness, I love that man. He is the very best husband in the whole wide world, and I am one very lucky girl.But enough

robin mg lawrenzhttp://www.blogger.com/profile/07962256480648887116noreply@blogger.com2tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-5167111374252852353.post-66644205826817082942009-07-28T12:15:00.001-04:002009-08-28T09:21:13.481-04:00

July has been a crazy month of celebrations, activities, and makes. And as you know, I am once again way behind on posting. Allow me to catch you up...When we left off, our heroine announced that she was giving out mass amounts of jam and marmalade and that she would be sending out/delivering that jam on July 6th. As it turns out, our heroine tends to over-complicate things and could not

robin mg lawrenzhttp://www.blogger.com/profile/07962256480648887116noreply@blogger.com6tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-5167111374252852353.post-2750945062882148172009-07-03T12:17:00.005-04:002009-08-28T09:19:47.108-04:00

For the holiday weekend, I am heading up to New Hampshire to hang out with some friends. Jason is staying behind and joining us on Sunday. I feel bad abandoning him, but he has a large exegesis paper to work on, and I'm leaving him with this week's make:a fresh loaf of banana bread (made from the recipe in the Better Homes & Gardens cookbook) and some chicken tortilla soup I made earlier. (

robin mg lawrenzhttp://www.blogger.com/profile/07962256480648887116noreply@blogger.com8tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-5167111374252852353.post-18561214314883994842009-07-02T13:45:00.001-04:002009-08-28T09:19:27.494-04:00

Last week, I was invited to a craft night at a new friend's apartment. (Well, technically we met about a year ago, but being that I was m.i.a. from seminary community last year, I think it's safe to say she's a new friend.) (Sidenote: you should check out her blog. I love love love it!!) So a bunch of woman came and hung out and worked on various projects: card-making, scrapbooking, knitting

robin mg lawrenzhttp://www.blogger.com/profile/07962256480648887116noreply@blogger.com4tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-5167111374252852353.post-19479447097644533522009-06-30T15:10:00.005-04:002009-08-28T09:19:00.840-04:00

Still catching up...two weekends ago (on one of the very few non-rainy days we've had this June), Jason and our neighbors and I went to Russell Orchards. They were having a strawberry festival with strawberry picking and strawberry shortcake and strawberry wine tasting and music and face painting and balloon animals, oh my! It was the perfect day to slave away in the strawberry fields...not too

robin mg lawrenzhttp://www.blogger.com/profile/07962256480648887116noreply@blogger.com10tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-5167111374252852353.post-61850733136814994842009-06-29T10:52:00.002-04:002009-08-28T09:18:47.077-04:00

Catching up again...here it is: my first ever project with Daisy Dressform. I raided my closet and found this skirt that I never wear anymore:I got it back in high school when dress code required me to wear skirts to the bottom of my knees (not the top or middle of the knee...the bottom) and when this length was the style. In fact, I got this skirt at American Eagle, before the era of

robin mg lawrenzhttp://www.blogger.com/profile/07962256480648887116noreply@blogger.com8tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-5167111374252852353.post-47924814671147280792009-06-25T16:33:00.002-04:002009-06-25T16:40:49.572-04:00

I realize I'm behind. It's been nothing but doom and gloom in the cold rainy north shore area, so I haven't felt like taking more dark pictures with zero natural light. I've still been making...just not picture-taking. I hope to be updating this weekend, so stay tuned.In other news, my wall-hanging was accepted into the first ever issue of Kalos! Woohoo! I'm super-duper excited. I'll let

robin mg lawrenzhttp://www.blogger.com/profile/07962256480648887116noreply@blogger.com0tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-5167111374252852353.post-79896183953034037322009-06-10T22:30:00.003-04:002009-08-28T09:18:12.696-04:00

This evening when I set dinner on the table, I was struck by how pretty it was, so I ran for the camera and decided to share this little beauty of a dinner with you:(Sidenote: I don't think my mom has ever brought a pot or a skillet to the dinner table. But my mom also has a dishwasher, and I just don't feel like washing an extra, unnecessary bowl for some chicken. However, I do look forward to

robin mg lawrenzhttp://www.blogger.com/profile/07962256480648887116noreply@blogger.com3tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-5167111374252852353.post-59331997065138880292009-06-10T09:24:00.002-04:002009-08-28T09:17:35.216-04:00

Last week's make was inspired by a new goal I have set for myself: to read all of Shakespeare's plays by the time Jason finishes seminary. I decided to do this for two reasons: 1) because my exposure to Shakespeare is embarrassingly thin and 2) to slow the intellectual atrophy that ensues from a job that is not intellectually challenging. So far, I've read The Tempest and The Two Gentlemen of

robin mg lawrenzhttp://www.blogger.com/profile/07962256480648887116noreply@blogger.com4tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-5167111374252852353.post-69350655770987682972009-06-03T11:35:00.009-04:002009-08-28T09:17:20.245-04:00

After many hours of sulking in my stumpedness, after dozens of ideas touched down upon and just as quickly discarded, after much frustrating and philosophical pondering on the question "what is beauty?", I finally have my submission for Kalos. I don't know how well it answers the question. In the end, I decided to do something that I could do well and that meant something to me. But before we

robin mg lawrenzhttp://www.blogger.com/profile/07962256480648887116noreply@blogger.com4tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-5167111374252852353.post-48506137007105617792009-05-29T16:00:00.006-04:002009-08-28T09:16:26.400-04:00

This past week, I deviated a bit from my goal of "one project, start to finish, every week." But some projects are worth an extra week or two, especially if you're starting from scratch. So last week, while Jason was out of the house for an evening of Ticket to Ride with some friends, I stayed home, put on Sisterhood of the Traveling Pants 2, and did some spinning. I got the tension on my

robin mg lawrenzhttp://www.blogger.com/profile/07962256480648887116noreply@blogger.com8tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-5167111374252852353.post-84082457621245490412009-05-26T10:00:00.003-04:002009-05-26T10:36:11.747-04:00

(Disclaimer: I have my post for last week's make drafted. I just need to get some pictures. So although I am looking ahead, I am not falling behind. End disclaimer.)In the mean time, I'm having some trouble with this week's make. A few people at Gordon-Conwell have started up a literary arts journal for (and by) our seminary community. It's called KALOS, which is the Greek word for

robin mg lawrenzhttp://www.blogger.com/profile/07962256480648887116noreply@blogger.com5tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-5167111374252852353.post-90053817235501010862009-05-25T10:24:00.001-04:002009-08-28T09:15:55.720-04:00

The Saturday after my menorah project was Jason's birthday! Remember? I said I was probably going to be baking something but that Jason wanted a confetti cake so I may have to try to find something else that didn't come from a box? Well, Jason was not about to be persuaded from his dessert of choice, so while he watched the final game of a very exciting Bulls-Celtics series, I set to work on

robin mg lawrenzhttp://www.blogger.com/profile/07962256480648887116noreply@blogger.com0tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-5167111374252852353.post-43614143022696208732009-05-24T10:07:00.001-04:002009-08-28T09:15:40.234-04:00

I know, I know. It's shameful that I'm so behind. But better late than never. April 19-25, I was on the youth group Philly trip, which did not leave much/any time for making anything. I believe before I left, I said I was going to "make the best of it," which I did, and in the long run, it's good that I went (even though I am still making up time at work for vacation days I didn't have and

robin mg lawrenzhttp://www.blogger.com/profile/07962256480648887116noreply@blogger.com0tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-5167111374252852353.post-32810449565292636302009-05-20T10:35:00.007-04:002009-06-30T15:25:55.505-04:00

Well, it has officially happened. I am a slacker. I haven't posted in over a week. And I didn't make anything last week. I spent most of my free time cleaning my apartment (which was an absolute pit), and Megan, Justin, and Josiah (aka cutest and best baby ever) came to visit for the weekend. It was so great having them here, showing them our little Port away from Port, and getting some face

robin mg lawrenzhttp://www.blogger.com/profile/07962256480648887116noreply@blogger.com7tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-5167111374252852353.post-30293401484591605912009-05-10T13:12:00.004-04:002009-08-28T09:15:08.613-04:00

I have the very best mother in the world. She's always been my best friend. She's full of life and energy and quippy one-liners of wisdom, which I frequently whip out on the youth group kids and I'm sure I'll use them on my own kids someday, too. Just about everything I know worth knowing, I learned from my mom.I also have the very best mother-in-law in the world. She is so kind and

robin mg lawrenzhttp://www.blogger.com/profile/07962256480648887116noreply@blogger.com9tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-5167111374252852353.post-16567246954364621882009-04-30T10:37:00.004-04:002009-05-01T10:23:32.240-04:00

Jason's birthday is tomorrow!! So there's a good chance that this week's make will have some sort of baking theme...although, he did ask for confetti cake this year, which means that I may have to find something else to make that doesn't come from a box. I'll keep you posted.Coming soon: last week's make, which took me back to my ethnic roots; exciting plans for makes that celebrate spring and

robin mg lawrenzhttp://www.blogger.com/profile/07962256480648887116noreply@blogger.com0tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-5167111374252852353.post-62381337461110363742009-04-28T11:04:00.002-04:002009-04-28T11:17:32.143-04:00

I saw this video on a friend's blog. (Okay, so we've never actually met, but that's inevitable, and I'm sure when we do finally meet, we will be friends.) Anyway, I wanted to share this video with you because I'm pretty sure watching this has shifted my whole paradigm of the creative process. I know it's on the long side, but when you get a chance, if you have any sort of creative leaning,

robin mg lawrenzhttp://www.blogger.com/profile/07962256480648887116noreply@blogger.com3tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-5167111374252852353.post-22745143396526187742009-04-18T23:48:00.005-04:002009-08-28T09:14:31.263-04:00

Meet Pigwidgeon. He is the owl who is given to Ron Weasley by Sirius Black after Ron "loses" his former pet, Scabbers the Rat. He is often described as fluttering around Hedwig being very excitable and quite a silly excuse for a post owl.Disclaimer: I realize that this is the 3rd Harry-Potter themed make of mine posted on this site. I really wish I had a good excuse for this. I tend to get

robin mg lawrenzhttp://www.blogger.com/profile/07962256480648887116noreply@blogger.com5tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-5167111374252852353.post-28814669891772429412009-04-13T16:27:00.007-04:002010-01-28T14:41:24.345-05:00

I have a friend named Steve O'Rear. He is magical. There's really no other way to put it. He has an amazing gift of writing pieces that are not only beautiful but also deeply insightful. He is a master wordsmith, people-watcher, friend, artist, immortal soul, who I am honored to know. This year, he sent me a message on my birthday that warrants publication. He gave me permission to post it

robin mg lawrenzhttp://www.blogger.com/profile/07962256480648887116noreply@blogger.com5tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-5167111374252852353.post-4071434631862378252009-04-07T10:13:00.014-04:002009-09-08T14:32:44.452-04:00

7752: That's how many stitches are in this scarf.64: That's how many inches long it is.3: That's the number of years this project has been on the needles.630: That's how many minutes it took me to make it.76.13: That's how much I would have to charge to break even on this scarf if I paid myself at minimum wage for the labor.I am not a very fast knitter. I'm decent at keeping a somewhat

robin mg lawrenzhttp://www.blogger.com/profile/07962256480648887116noreply@blogger.com2tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-5167111374252852353.post-91483875725786589212009-04-02T12:15:00.004-04:002009-10-09T14:02:17.479-04:00

Alright, so the Sorting Hat has very little to do with this post. It's called "Sorting Hat" 1) to give you a clue about the theme of this week's make and 2) because I was going to name this post "But what to call you." I heard that in my head in a very particular voice, and I could not figure out what movie it was from until I realized the line was "But where to put you." Ah yes...the Sorting

robin mg lawrenzhttp://www.blogger.com/profile/07962256480648887116noreply@blogger.com5tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-5167111374252852353.post-31234613893858226482009-03-30T14:03:00.009-04:002009-08-28T09:11:12.949-04:00

Jason and I are game people. We tend to go through phases. In the beginning of our relationship, it was Quiddler. Senior year, we moved on to Settlers of Catan with all its glorious variations and expansions. Once we got married and moved away from our gaming community, we had to find 2 player games. We went back to Quiddler for a while. We had a Mille Bornes phase, Phase 10, Backgammon,

robin mg lawrenzhttp://www.blogger.com/profile/07962256480648887116noreply@blogger.com5tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-5167111374252852353.post-70205207333602868622009-03-24T09:00:00.008-04:002010-01-28T14:41:56.424-05:00

Last week was a week of indecision. I knew that would come eventually...a week when I would jump from idea to idea, just to reject each one about 7 minutes into brainstorming because I wanted to use that fabric for something else, or I didn't have this tool that I needed...you get the point. So it came down to Saturday. And I hadn't done much of anything...and Twilight came out on DVD...so I

robin mg lawrenzhttp://www.blogger.com/profile/07962256480648887116noreply@blogger.com2tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-5167111374252852353.post-87765806376677190852009-03-19T11:26:00.010-04:002009-08-28T09:10:26.803-04:00

Essex, MA actually has the most antique shops per capita in the country, maybe in the world. You'd think that would be pretty awesome, but there are really only 2 or 3 worth going to. The rest are all "real antiques" for "serious antique people." But for people like me looking for a sweet deal and a little inspiration, there is The White Elephant Outlet.Last Saturday, Jason and I set out for

robin mg lawrenzhttp://www.blogger.com/profile/07962256480648887116noreply@blogger.com4tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-5167111374252852353.post-57744477686377731512009-03-19T11:07:00.007-04:002009-08-28T09:09:56.209-04:00

Here it is! Last week's make!20 wool felted balls in assorted colors, 17 made by me and 3 made by Jason. Here are two views of them in the vase:I loved the ideas that everyone gave. But in the end, this project was just what I needed. It was mindless, the sort of thing I could do in little doses, and since I already had all of the wool, it only cost about a dollar for a couple of bars of ivory

robin mg lawrenzhttp://www.blogger.com/profile/07962256480648887116noreply@blogger.com8tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-5167111374252852353.post-52249078476515192532009-03-17T12:24:00.001-04:002009-03-17T12:33:34.616-04:00

Man oh man, am I behind! I guess that's what happens when Spring Break is over, professors come back, and time that was happily--though maybe not ought-ly--devoted to blogging becomes devoted to work time again. And that leaves me with so much to share and so little time to share it in and the camera conveniently forgotten on the counter at home. Humph. I guess in the mean time, here is a

robin mg lawrenzhttp://www.blogger.com/profile/07962256480648887116noreply@blogger.com0tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-5167111374252852353.post-35418626371189517252009-03-11T15:06:00.001-04:002009-03-11T15:07:50.765-04:00

And now that I'm all caught up...let's get started with Week 5 Inspiration!! Readygo!One night in Disney World, Jason and I came back to a lovely surprise in our room. There were rose petals everywhere, a bunch of little goodies, chocolate Mickey Mouse ears, candles, and a beautiful bouquet of red roses! My mom had gotten it for us as a little "Happy Honeymoon" present. Yeah, she's pretty

robin mg lawrenzhttp://www.blogger.com/profile/07962256480648887116noreply@blogger.com7tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-5167111374252852353.post-80745952893255292122009-03-11T14:14:00.011-04:002009-08-28T09:09:06.294-04:00

That's me. But not country as in a musical genre. Country as in I grew up on a sheep farm in the middle of the woods. And I love that about myself. But as far as designing style, I tend to stay far away from those roots. However, I found myself inspired for Week 4 by some chickeny fabric and a ruffly apron pattern, and here was the result:The fabric is from my mom's unlimited supply. You

robin mg lawrenzhttp://www.blogger.com/profile/07962256480648887116noreply@blogger.com6tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-5167111374252852353.post-52213139491716492072009-03-11T11:09:00.011-04:002009-08-28T09:08:41.206-04:00

Week 3 brought several culinary treats to the Weekly Make. I was singed up to make dessert for our church's marriage group, which is called "Cheesecake and Chat." So naturally, I made cheesecake...well two actually...and one was a double batch...and my friend Rachel made a Kahlua Chocolate bundt cake. All told, it was a very yummy evening. The first cheesecake was a classic New York Style

robin mg lawrenzhttp://www.blogger.com/profile/07962256480648887116noreply@blogger.com7tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-5167111374252852353.post-52962632517483075622009-03-10T10:01:00.007-04:002010-01-28T14:42:18.041-05:00

For my second week of my Weekly Make, I was in Disney World. Which was awesome. Magic and inspiration were everywhere. But my time and supplies for making were limited. So this week lead to a make that was not quite so impressive or useful as a purse. But this little endeavor isn't about making impressive things. It's about being disciplined in creative action and doing something without so much

robin mg lawrenzhttp://www.blogger.com/profile/07962256480648887116noreply@blogger.com7tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-5167111374252852353.post-44161373302808026142009-03-09T14:53:00.011-04:002009-08-28T14:57:38.812-04:00

I was going to Disney World in 3 days, and I didn't have a purse that was quite the right size. So I decided to make one out of some fabric that had been in the running for my bridesmaids' favors (purses filled with lots of little goodies). That means I've had this sweet canvas fabric just sitting around for over a year and a half, just waiting for the perfect little project to be brought to

robin mg lawrenzhttp://www.blogger.com/profile/07962256480648887116noreply@blogger.com5tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-5167111374252852353.post-71822483351131213702009-03-05T10:23:00.003-05:002009-03-05T10:30:20.076-05:00

Alright, I am dying to get this blog up and running. But I have this issue with getting my projects, a camera, a cord, a computer, and working internet all together in one place at the same time. The past three weeks have held some exciting creative ventures that I can't wait to send flying into the blogosphere. (Maybe that word is dorky, but I don't care. I like it.) They've included a

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