much success! a guide for goal achievement and such

So lately I've been hitting some of the goals I set out for myself, like paying off my student loans, making fun stuff for people, and .... that might be the entire list. (high five ya'll)  People have been asking me "DAMN JILL, how you be doing that?"** So I thought I'd share some tips on how to, you know... accomplish goals.

Here are my thoughts:
1. Believe in yourself, damnit. You have no idea what you're capable of, so go ahead and try something new. I was asked this weekend to run a 10k race with a friend. I have never run that far in my entire life. But I had two choices: Yes or no. If I said yes, I'd either fail or succeed. So why not try? And guess what, I did it! Here's another example: I wanted to go to dental hygiene school. But as a nine-fingered 30 year old, I put the doubt in my mind that I would most likely fail. But I also promised myself that I'd do whatever it took to reach my goal. True, I sacrificed a lot. But now I'm a full-time dental hygienist and part time educator. Who would have thought two years ago that I would be where I am today? Honestly, not me. There's no reason why you can't try something new, so stop making excuses!

2. You'll fail sometimes. But who gives a shit if you fail? Most likely, you'll be the only person who gives a shit. But instead of being all pissed off at yourself, just remember: You didn't have to go out on a limb and try. But you did! Be proud of trying something new. It takes balls, and now my friend, you've got balls. Be proud of those balls! Do you think I woke up one day and was like I'M GOING TO SEW A MOTHERF****** QUILT AND MAKE A SHIT TON OF STUFF OUT OF TIES!!!? Nope. Friends, I've been sewing since before I could drive. I've had MANY MANY sewing fails, including a shirt that LITERALLY split open at the seams while I was at a party. I've even machine sewed my thumb by accident. But did I give up? Naaah.

3. If you fail, then don't beat yourself up. You're human, not a damn robot. Life is full of ups and downs. You know the expression when it rains, it pours? Guess what: THAT EXPRESSION IS PURE BULLSHIT. It makes you think that when one shitty thing happens, then other shitty things will pile right on top of it until you're covered in shit. Here's what people don't tell you: The rain brings out the beautiful colors in life, like the brightness of the leaves on trees after a rainstorm. Which means, sure: Bad shit is going to happen. But take a look at everything  around you. When you take a minute to realize how fortunate you really are, the one shitty thing happening can't ruin your day like it use to. 

4. If you want to feel like shit, then go right ahead and feel like shit. Or be happy if you want to be happy. The lesson is, don't let anyone tell you how to feel. You're your own person. Don't let others dictate your feelings or make you feel small.

5. Treat others how you want to be treated. You know how I go around being nice to everyone? Guess what? It's because I'd also like people to be nice to me.  I have a real problem with people that are shitty to others, either because they judge a book by their cover, they are prejudice against their race, religion, sexual orientation, or hell, because they're nerdy, overweight, skinny or whatever the case is. We're all human, damnit: Nothing makes you superior to the person you're judging.

So, that's my life advice. Technically I'm allowed to give advice now that I'm in my thirties. But hey, just remember: You're taking advice from a person who has zits, twirls, wears children's hats, gets nose bleeds, hangs out with butterflies and mimics a child eating ravioli. You're welcome.

**More like, "good for you", and no mention of a question asking me how I did these things. 

projects, projects!

I'm happy to say that I've been busy: Not the same type of busy when I was in school, thank goodness. But busy like, "hey I'm busy with stuff that I actually want to do instead of stuff that I'm being forced to do while being silently judged by everyone!".

FJÄDRAR: A soft pillow that sounds like slang for vagina.

A couple weeks ago, a co-worker of mine mentioned that she had a friend, who in turn, had a bag of ties. They were her late husband's ties, and she was looking for someone to make pillows with them for herself, her mother-in-law, and her three children. I haven't made pillows in YEARS, nor have I ever made tie pillows. But of course I'd do it. Soon after, I received the bag of 32 ties and began thinking about what I would want to do. The easiest way for me to make pillows is, of course, buying a pre-made pillow. So off to IKEA I went, and I purchased 5 FJÄDRAR, 20x20" feather pillows.
 
So to make 5 pillows, I'd need to use ALL of the ties twice. And there was no way to make them double sided: I'd need WAY more ties to do that. So I found a nice black velour fabric (on sale, naturally!) to be the back of the pillows. Since the pillows were 20x20" I cut the ties into two, 22" pieces. With the ties cut down, it was time to assemble them into "sheets" of ties. Using a zigzag stitch, I alternated big pieces of tie with little pieces of tie until I had a sheet that was again, about 22" long. For the veloooour, I cut 10, 14x22" pieces. Why? So I could make the pillow covers into envelopes. That way if they ever get soiled, you can throw them into the washing machine without the inner pillow part. I know... you can high-five me, it was a great idea that I celebrated by eating copious amounts of Campbell's Chunky Soups. (not pictured.)

Here's the trick with pillows: You want the covers to be snug as hell. If the pillow is 20", you want to cut your fabric down to 20". (I always allow for an extra inch or two when cutting down fabric, you never know if you'll need more, so it gives you a bit of a safety zone.) When you sew your pillow case together, it will be about 19": This will give the pillow a more plump look. Also, it's time to admit that I was lazy as hell with the camera for this project. I kept thinking "this is the moment I should take pictures! Look at the stitches and the glorious colors!" but then was all like "the camera is downstairs, f*** that." Even now, the camera is downstairs. I will go get it, but I will also get a piece of Halloween candy, thank you very much. Take that, motivation!

 Without further ado, here are the five pillows. In no particular order.

 

 

 

 

a new... something

Heads up: I've had wine! 

After I finished up the t-shirt quilts, I decided that it was finally time to focus in on one for myself. I found this AMAZING but complicated pattern in a quilting magazine that I purchased (YES, I buy quilting magazines. Thug life.) but there was a problem: It was a pattern for a twin quilt. I don't need no stinkin twin quilt. Another problem: I already had way too many scraps left over from my first quilt, I thought it'd be a waste not to use them... but how?

So... I just started sewing. I took out my box of scraps and basically just started machine stitching them together. Since all of the scraps were tapered, they started looking like colorful fans. I had another interesting thought. What if I sewed these fans into a wave? Then what if the wave became a column? And what if I sewed these columns together to form a sort-of-painting? 

 So many questions! One final product,  though.Once I finished sewing the columns together, I quilted it with gold thread. Then stapled the s*** outta it onto a canvas. Soon I'm going to frame it. SOON... SOON.

 

 

phl -> atl

Recently a good friend of mine departed the Philadelphia area to start life anew with his beautiful fiancé in Atlanta. As sad as I am when friends leave the area, it is always exciting knowing that they are literally embarking on a new phase of life. I always wanted the balls to pick up and move. I mean... I'm only an hour away from home home, but it's not like I moved to an area that's easier to get to by plane then by driving. How cool would it be one day to be like I'M SELLING EVERYTHING I HAVE AND MOVING TO A DAKOTA OR IDAHO BECAUSE WHY NOT.

Anywho, I wanted to give them a going away present. I failed miserably getting it to them on time. The thing was... I couldn't figure out what the f*** to do. He sent me some photos of things that they liked. Which I guess I pretty much ignored in the end. Sorry about that John.... just realized that.

I was like, if I were them, what would I want to remind me of home? That it's not too far away? So here's what I came up with: A painting that you could flip.

I started with blocks of color, which I haven't done in years. Truth is, my hands aren't as steady as they use to be, so some lines are wobbly. <--- that could be symbolic, like "just as these lines aren't straight, neither is the road in life... HA!

Then I decided to paint the skylines of Philadelphia and Atlanta. The area in between was a little harder. I originally wanted to put a couple walking hand-in-hand to both skylines, but there wasn't enough space. So I decided to paint a PHL-> and an ATL->. One day, if they're back in Philadelphia, they can always remember the home they made in a new city. I'm happy with the way it came out, and I'm hoping that it reminds my good friends that no matter how far, home isn't that far.

NOW I JUST HAVE TO FIGURE OUT HOW TO GET IT TO THEM.

t-shirt quilts, part DUEX

From where we last left off, I had finished stitching together all of the t-shirts into two lovely quilt tops. I hate to say but I barely documented part DUEX in pictures. I was sew busy. Heh. … ok, lame joke.

SO! Choosing a batting… You want to be sure that you find one that matches the project that you’re working on. A flatter, less puffy batting is great for quilts that you want to be… well, flat and less puffy. Especially ones with intricate designs. I chose a really nice medium puff batting, because of two reasons. 1) The t-shirts and backing material had a little stretch to them. The puffiness of the batting would help this irregularity when I stitched it together. 2) WHO DOESN’T LIKE PUFFY QUILTS? You? Well, you're un-American.

PUFFY!

Luckily, the backing fabrics that I chose for both quilts were W-I-D-E as H-E-L-L. So I didn’t need to stitch two pieces of the backing together. To cut the backing and the batting to size, here is the easiest thing to do: Find a floor. Put the backing fabric on the floor, and secure it with masking tape so it stays put. Next, lay the batting on top, followed by the quilt top. Secure all that shiz together with long quilting pins or safety pins. (I use quilting pins... I have no tolerance for safety pins, plus they're too bulky.) Lastly, cut the backing and batting about 6” bigger than the quilt top. This gives you a safe zone in case you f*** up.

Here’s the tricky and painful part. You will now stick yourself with so many pins. SO. MANY. And not just on your hands. The quilt literally lays on your lap while you’re trying to machine stitch it. It’s like trying to lay down with a needle filled blanket. Very ouch. I start by machine stitching the long columns of the quilt. Then, stitch the rows. Since the rows are irregular, I usually will pick up the needle and foot, move to the beginning of the next row, and sew on. 

turns out, it's a real thing.

Next comes the binding… Binding is tricky, but once you get the hang of it, it’s… just less tricky I guess. I cut a continuous piece of fabric 2.25” wide, press it in half, then sew the raw edges to the edge of the quilt top. You then cut off any excess batting and backing fabric…. Then you have to hand stitch everything shut. It takes a LONG TIME. And your hands will not thank you. But it’s worth it, especially with wine that you CANNOT SPILL ON THE QUILT. If you're a spiller, then put your wine in one of those toddler sippy cups.

To add a personal touch, I asked my friend to send me (in her writing) a message for each of the quilts. I printed it out, then used graphite paper to transfer her message to white fabric. I then hand stitched her message and sewed this on to each quilt. So that’s it! Two quilts finished. I hope they surround their new owners in years of love and comfort. It was such a cool project, I’d be totally willing to do more of them in the future!!! 

 

t-shirt quilts, part 1

A friend of mine asked me to make two t-shirt quilts for her sons. One is in a Phillies motif, the other is Flyers. Quilts are fun to do, but they can be difficult if you don't choose the right materials. T-shirts: You cannot just sew them together. You have to use fusible interfacing to stabilize the stretchiness... if you don't, you'll end up with a bunch of stretched out-crazy looking t-shirts that you'll want to burn instead of cuddling up with.

The first thing you need to do with t-shirts is cut out the BS. So, that means cutting out the front of the shirt and the back, and tossing away the sleeves and seams. Then you have to measure the width of the actual design on the t-shirt... This will help you organize the shirts into columns. For the two quilts that I'm doing, each one has column widths of 11", 12", 13" and 14". Once you organize everything into columns, you have to determine what length each shirt will be... then you're ready to cut everything out. Straight edges are keeeeeeeeeey in this step! If you don't have a perfect right angle, your quilt will be wonky. Keep some of the excess shirt scraps... you might need some later on.

Once everything is cut out, set yourself up in front of the TV and pour yourself a glass (or two) of wine, because it's time to iron on the fusible interfacing. Like I said, it'll keep the fabric stabilized when you sew everything together! Then the fun begins... arrange allllll yo' shirts in their columns, and start sewing errrything together! Be sure to always press the seams open with a hot iron, this will ensure that the quilt lays flat n' lovely.

Remember some of those scraps you saved? If your quilt is too short in some areas, cut out scraps in that size and fuse the interfacing to it: Then stitch to the quilt so it's the correct length!

NEXT UP! Cutting out the backing fabric, choosing a batting and assembling everything together.

necktie tree skirt

Back in December I noticed that my tie collection was getting a wee-bit out of control. I needed to make something out of ties before I ran out of places to store them. Since it was Christmas, I decided to make a tree skirt out of neckties. It was a good project, all done by good ol'fashion trial and error. 

I shared my project with a few classmates and faculty members at the college I attended, and one person expressed interest in me making one for her. She came bearing a bag full of ties! HUZZAH!

Flash forward 6 months...I'm not good with directions. I mostly, like I said, do everything by trial and error. But I'll try to replicate my goings-on so you can follow what I did. 

I cut 36 ties to a length of 24" (the big fat ends) and saved the skinny ends... I arranged them into 6 groups of 6, then used a zigzag stitch to sew the 6 groups of 6 together. There are 5 ties that I cut to the length of 14". You know those skinny ends I saved? I zigzag stitched each of the 5 fat 14 inchers between two of of the skinny ends. Here comes the hard part.... assembling errrthing.

I arranged the 6 panels into a circle, and then placed those 5 smaller panels in between. Zigzag stitch the shiiiiiiiizzzzz outta that circle to form... you know... a tree skirt.

My gosh, even I'm not following how I did this.

Then I cut out 2 yards of black felt and stitched it into a big ol' circle. Then sewed that circle to the tie circle. Beeeelieeeeeve me... there's A LOT of fabric, and it takes A LOT of muscle to get this shizz through a sewing machine in one piece. If you're trying this one, do yourself a favor and get yo'self some extra needles for your machine. You'll need them! But the payoff is awesome-sauce.

Truth is, I could have taken better pictures. I kept forgetting. That's the way it is, dangit.

bears, squares, monty python reference.

So everyone knows I'm relentless artsy nutcase, and that I'm forever up for an artsy challenge. Harcum, my alma mater, is having a yearlong Centennial Art Celebration that encourages students, faculty, and staff to contribute art that can be auctioned off for their Centennial Scholarship Fund. I did three projects for the cause. Why THREE? Because THREE shall be the number thou shall count, and the number of the counting shall be THREE. Four, thou shall not count, neither count thou two, excepting that thou then proceed to THREE.

... That really wasn't the reason why, I just happened to have enough momentum to do THREE. The first project I did was for Bears and Squares. Basically, you get a 10x10" canvas and center your creation around the theme possibilities. Naturally, I started cutting out skeletons and brains from anatomy texts. WHY? I DON'T KNOW. I think my final creation came out pretty sweet. In typical Jill-fashion, I cut out text from magazines like a serial stalker to emphasize my message, The Possibilities Are Endless.

Next, I obtained a 12" solid plaster bear to paint. Again... I started cutting out s*** from the anatomy
text again. What's my deal, anyway? I'm noticing that this is a little creepy... yes? Anywho, I started looking for dental terms, and decided to paste them over the left side of the bear... the analytical side. The right side I gussied up in an artsy way. The right holds paint brushes, the left, dental instruments. WOULD YOU LOOK AT THAT IT'S LIKE A SELF PORTRAIT OF ME IN SCHOOL. The picture on the left is before the funk is added. The right... you got it. FUNK. ADDED.

The school still had some plaster bears left over, so I decided to take another one home. It's for scholarships, after all. I just completed it today.... to be honest, I also just started it today. I really couldn't think of anything original to do to be honest. So I thought HEY. Why not paint, you know, a famous painting on it? So I chose Vincent van Gogh's Starry Night. Because it's awesome sauce. I'm pretty proud with how it came out, yes? It's not 100% like the original. You know.. because it's painted on a bear. But hopefully my creations will help someone attend the college in the future!

tiny reminder, new beginning

It was over a year and a half ago that my beloved bun Moe Skeeto passed away. He was such a great companion, a true little joker and all around funny bunny. For the first few weeks after he passed, I was inconsolable. Every time I went up to the 3rd floor (his gigantic playroom and living area) I felt sad, and I eventually just began avoiding the space. Gradually the feelings of hurt were replaced by happy reminders and fond memories, but it took quite sometime. After my exams were finished in May, I decided to paint a little tribute to him in our garden. There is a large, flat rock surrounded by irises,  and I thought it would be the perfect place to paint his picture. I sketched his image, and used generic acrylics to paint his likeness. It's not perfect, but then again, who or what is? Tiger, our cat, wasn't his best friend, but I knew they had some sort of fuzzy connection. In the nice weather, she goes outside and rests right near his picture. It gives me the fuzzies, too.

In time, the heart can learn to love again. After about a year, I thought about adopting a new little one. After all, everybunny deserves a forever home, right? After school was finally finished, after I finally finished all of my board exams, and after we FINALLY went on vacation! the time was right. I took a trip to the SPCA, and indeed, they had fuzzy ones that needed a home. A small, black female rabbit. No name. Nowhere to go. So I went home, setup her room, went back and brought her home. It was immediately apparent that she was in fact a he. Ms. Toot C. Roll became Mr. Toot C. Roll. He is so different from Moe, yet so the same. It goes without saying that you can never replace a lost love one. But you can learn to love another!

who wears short-shorts?

The other day after m'board exam I did something rare. I WENT TO THE MALL! I'm not a huge mall person, but I really needed some summer shorts. The only ones I have are exercise shorts, or khakis, like Jake from State Farm. Anywho, I found a couple pairs but they were expensive! (NOTE: My current idea of expensive is $15.00... you know why? It would take me 2 HOURS of tutoring to earn a pair of shorts. Sad. ) So no, I did not buy them. But I decided to look up some patterns at home so I could sew some of my own! There's nothing like having a TON of time on your hands!

I came across this FANTASTIC BLOG called Melly Sews with the EASIEST patten for shorts. If you're looking for a fun project, sign up for her weekly newsletter, and she'll email you a link to print out the pattern. Not only that pattern, but all of her others, too! Sew simple! <---- sorry, a little sewing humor.

I downloaded the pattern, cut it out (one for the front, one for the back) and looked through my crazy collection of fabric and decided to make 6 new pairs for myself. That's right. Go big, or go home, right? Seeing that I'm already at home, it kinda contradicts itself.

Anywho, visit Melly's page for instructions... It wouldn't be nice of me to copy and paste instructions because simply, I didn't create it. Just a little reminder if you're sewing clothing: REINFORCE THOSE SEEMS PEOPLE. It takes an extra minute, but it's always worth it. The last thing you wanna do is jump around screaming yee-haw while your hoo-hah makes a break for it.

I always leave a 1" seam, and stitch over it twice. Then, I'll fold in the excess fabric, and stitch over that: This keeps the seam clean and free of frays. And remember: If you're making something, even if it's for yourself, put a tag in it! You don't want to end up like I did when someone ripped off my art as their own. This is an AWESOME project and it is simple, simple! Get this: Each pair of shorts, including the cost of fabric and elastic for the waistband.... COST ME A FRIGGIN' $1.99. WIN!!!

past project: bathroom remodel!

So there was one glorious week during the 2014-2015 winter break where I decided that it would be a GREAT idea to remodel our en-suite bathroom. This decision was based solely on my inability to stay still, and my lack of something constructive to do... or to study. So I figured I'd show you my little (HUGE) project so that you may too, redo your bathroom if you feel crazy inspired enough to do it!

DAY1
Step 1: Make a list of everything that you need from the hardware store. This won't stop you from having to go back a second, third and fourth time, though.
Step 2: Using a chisel and hammer, rip the foe-black marble tile off of the wall and wonder why someone put it on the wall sporadically in the first place.
Step 3: Drain the ol' toilet, disassemble and store it in the tub whilst you work. Put a rag in the hole, so no sewer gas comes'a wafting in! While your at it, take out the medicine cabinet, too. It sucks.
Step 4: Using a crowbar and hammer, rip up the old cracked tile flooring.
Step 5: Don't lay down on the couch, because if you do...
Step 6: You'll have to take a fist-full of ibuprofen because you now you can't get up. Sad.

 

DAY2
Step 6: Repair the walls! Joint compound, joint tape, lots of drying time, and elbow grease to sand it down smooth. A small mouse sander helps.
Step 7: Prime the walls. You forgot to buy primer, so check the basement. Look! You have grey primer! Let's use that and pretend like it was your plan!
Step 8: Then apply 2 coats of the paint color of your choice. Take another fist full of ibuprofen before you go to sleep.
Step 9: Realize that the medicine cabinet you threw out... they don't sell that size in the stores anymore. Custom purchase it and blow your budget! Cry a little.  


DAY3
Step 10: Ask your Dad for help.
Step 11: Rewire the electrical sockets. Be sure to SHUT THE BREAKERS OFF. (Twice now we thought they were off and then POP!)
Step 12: Along with him, cut all of the 9x12" tiles to size, mix the mortar and lay the tiles.

DAY4: 
Step 13: Grout the tiles. This is pretty much all you can do since you can't step on the floor, so...
Step 14: HAVE A BEER.

DAY5: 
Step 15: Reinstall the toilet with all new inner workings. Man, that's a nice flush.
Step 16: You know all that leftover glass tile you had from your kitchen? Why not make a back splash in the bathroom?
Step 17: Regret this decision, you just made more work for yourself.

DAY6: 
Step 18: Install that new custom medicine cabinet, and hope that it holds f***ing gold from the trouble you went through to find it.
Step 19: Make some minor adjustments to the decor, after all, why not have stuff look niiiiiiice?
Step 20: Marvel at your work and vow never to do it again, until, that is, you do it again.

over-over-overdue

Like the title says, over-over-overdue!

I'm taking my national board exams tomorrow. I already completed 4 of them (clinical exam, jurisprudence, local anesthesia and CDCA/NERB). Once I complete tomorrows 350 question grueling exam, I will be OFFICIALLY DONE with my understudies to become a dental hygienist. After that, alls I need is a license to practice! Which means...


I SHALL RETURN VALIANTLY TO THE WORLD OF ARTS, CRAFTS, FREE-TIME AND GENERAL RELAXATION! HUZZAH!

LOOK! Here I am contemplating things! Like, what kind of art project will I start on Wednesday? Do these glasses magically transport me to 1980 when I'm asleep? And, if I hold this pose long enough, will people think that I'm actually contemplating something?