Etsy Terrarium Workshop

My lovely Etsy terrarium, in a fishbowl I found in the giveaway bin at work

Making a terrarium is one of those things that's been on my to-do list for a while, but for various reasons (money, laziness) I never got around to it. A few weeks ago, Etsy Labs hosted Hands-On: Dirt, where Etsians like my friend Lynn and I could talk to CSA representatives, check out a vertical garden system, create seed bombs, and make terrariums.

I have a traumatic history with plants (see last summer's blog post dedicated to dead plants), so I'm excited to have a low-maintenance terrarium hanging out in my apartment.

As soon as I got home from the Etsy workshop, I signed up for the CSA (community-supported agriculture) in my neighborhood. This summer's gonna be all about fresh fruits and veggies, plus plants that will not die!



Lynn, showing her terrarium who's boss

 

The workstation, full of moss and other fun greenery. Is it weird that I wanted to roll around in it?



Lynn's terrarium in a cup

The photo booth is a must at every Etsy event!

Do you have any planting planned for summer?

Colette Patterns Spring/Summer Palette Challenge

I'm a huge fan of Colette Patterns. I own several of their patterns (one being the Peony pattern I made my owl dress from) and love browsing their blog for sewing ideas. So when the gals at Colette proposed a palette challenge, I said ooookay!

I created a Pinterest palette board to collect all my ideas. The palette that sparked my inspiration was a beach-themed fashion spread in Marie Claire, which is ironic because the beach is a very scary place for me during summer. It features a redheaded model in colors that I never really considered before, like melon and white. And they didn't eve airbrush her freckles out of the photos!

I'd like to make some skirts and shorts in these colors that I can pair with simple tops. I also like the idea of adding a taupe accessory, like the photo above with the mint green skirt, white top, and taupe belt. I don't have the confidence to wear colors like melon and taupe in clothing, but I could definitely try to pull it in with things like belts.

What colors are you going to wear this season? And do you think pale-skinned people like me can pull off colors like white and melon? I'm nervous!

Peony Owl Dress

At the beginning of the year I joined Sew Weekly's contributors to encourage myself to complete a few sewing projects this year. It took me 3 months to do it, but I finally posted a project. It's up on Sew Weekly now.

You might remember the owl dress from when I finally figured out how to properly install an invisible zipper. I did a lot more than install a zipper on this little baby. Gathers? Check. Facings? Yep.

I've worn this dress a few times since sewing it and always get a lot of compliments on it. It's not without its flaws, of course. (The back waist seams don't exactly meet...) But I'm really proud of it and definitely plan on using the Colette Peony pattern again several times.

I'm such a flake when it comes to finishing my sewing. What pushes you to complete projects?