I have returneth

I won't sit around and whine about why I've been more absent lately. I'll just say, sorry, and show you the few good, happy things surrounding me right now!



Look at what my amazing mom sent me as a surprise! She searched online for the perfect pair of scissors for me. I asked her, why, you know I have like 10 pairs of scissors? and she said, yeah, but now you have a pair from me! I love her so much. They're beautiful. I'm almost afraid to use them.



Working on quilt bee blocks. I was pretty impressed when I thought to use clips to keep my strips together.



Really need to force myself to finish the binding on this little baby quilt. It's a surprise gift for a friend, and I probably need to get it to her before the baby is born! :)



My bruise from Courtney vs The Guy On the Bike in which Courtney Totally Wins has almost healed! Can you differentiate between bruise and freckle?



My little hexagon pincushion was featured in this amazing teal-and-red treasury in honor of Sewing Machine Day (September 10th)! I'm so honored, it's full of beautiful items. You can check it out here. I really hope it makes it to the front page, I would just die!


p.s. You may have noticed I just enabled Google AdSense ads. I hate how vague they are with how much they pay, so I'm really just trying it out until I see if it's worth it. If it's going to make like $5 a year, no thanks. It would be nice if it could at least cover my monthly etsy fees, though. Anyway, I mention this because I'd like to hear your (honest) opinions on it. Super tacky? Moderate annoyance? Don't even notice? A few people on my feed use it, I've noticed. It doesn't really bother me, I just think, huh...weird. Have you used it? What was your experience?

whewww

via flickr

A few more hours and the week will official be over. We ended it with a surprise visit from a couple of out-of-town friends who needed a place to sleep, a yummy breakfast at our favorite diner, a laid-back Sunday, and some really good steaks. Still to come, Mad Men, and some well deserved sleep.

Tonight's the last chance to sign up for Home Ec, I'll be taking the sign-up box off my blog before I leave for work tomorrow morning. Also coming tomorrow morning is my first lesson! I'm pretty excited/terrified. :) We're already having a lot of fun so I'd love if you could join in!

xo
Goodbye rotten week!

Very Superstitious

via weheartit

Wow, what a week-of-Friday the 13th!



Had to take my car to the mechanic because it was shuddering/dying.


via weheartit

Went to the salon to get my hair dyed (for the last time!), I was super excited because I was going to have it matched to my roots and be able to grow out my natural color.

The stylist fought with me the entire time, constantly trying to talk me into everything I didn't want, and it turned out awful. My 2" roots were still brown, except now they were zebra striped brown. The rest of my hair was still a weird dark red. What?! I even asked her if she needed to lighten it first! Who puts light brown over dark red and expects that to work?

So, I called the next morning and asked what I should do. They had me come in immediately to get it fixed (really, would have loved to just had my money back). She bleached, and bleached, and dyed, and well, it's a lot better! All told I spent 5 hours at the salon. Not fun.

Got home from the salon feeling a bit less perturbed, and realized my brake lights were stuck on. How is that even possible?? I thought. After some Googling, I learned to crawl underneath the dashboard, on my back, in 100 degree heat, to unplug the break lights and save my battery.

Went in to the mechanic Friday and they were too busy to get to me, so I still have to go back on Monday. Went back to work thinking, what else could go wrong?



And then I got a nose bleed. Okay, it totally wasn't as bad as this picture! But it was just so random, I really didn't think I could be an unluckier. I started to think I should probably stay home for the night.

Despite my worries, Mark and I left to go to a concert downtown. You usually have to park a few blocks away from the bar, no big deal. We entered the cross walk at a four-way stop we've walked through hundreds of times it seems. And then, to my left, I hear a man's voice going "whoa whoa whoa...." (and he wasn't cat calling me!)...


via weheartit

It was a guy on a bike coming right for us. I really didn't have any time to react. Mark says I tightened my grip on him and leaned into the dude on the bike! Yikes! I don't remember that, but I do remember thinking "not my ankles!" (I don't know, it's some weird phobia). I guess it's totally possible, though, that my reaction was to 'fight' rather than 'flight', eep! He hit me really hard, but luckily with the stance I took, I didn't even end up on the ground...he only got my left forearm. Of course, he took a pretty nasty spill, and I helped him get his bike out of the street and everything. But...yeah! Not to be insensitive to bike-riders, I know they have it tough...but he didn't stop at the four-way-stop, and he was riding fast through downtown on a busy Friday night. Not a smart decision! And by the looks of the previous cuts and bandages he was sporting, it wasn't the first he had made. So we moved on.

Anywhoo, I survived, albeit with some pretty nasty bruises, and a sore scalp/neck. I was pretty glad for midnight to come yesterday.



What about you, are you superstitious? Have any interesting Friday the 13th stories? Know a good source for rabbit feet or four leaf clovers?

Home Ec Last Call (yay!)

Home Ec officially starts today with our first sewing project and we have good news! To accommodate those waiting on their payday, we will be accepting Home Ec registrations until this Sunday, August 15th! You can register using the Home Ec 'Buy Now' button in the right sidebar of my blog and find full class details here :)

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Frequently Asked Home Ec Questions

1. How does this class work?

We will post a new sewing  project on the private blog, Monday through Friday (sometimes Saturdays) but this is a take it at your own pace class, there is no pressure to do the projects in line with our posting schedule and the private Home Ec blog will stay up for one full year so that you can continue accessing the class content, working at your own pace with your schedule in mind. We will be available through the entire class to answer your questions and support you as you learn to sew (and up to one month by email after the class ends). We write our tutorials with demonstrative photos and step-by-step written instructions; they are pretty and very easy to understand and follow (plus the class has 2 video guides). You can visit the blog and work on your projects any time you want, as much as you want :)
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*2. I registered for the class and have not received access to the private class blog...

Access Emails have been sent to all registered Home Ec students (sent daily). If you have not received your Home Ec access email, please check your spam folder (email from FreckledNest@gmail.com) or email Leigh-Ann to have it resent :)
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3. If I sign-up between August 10-15, will I still be able to access the Earlybird Guides?

Yes, the Earlybird Guides are available to all students for the full year (we just posted them early).
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4. I'm an International Student and I'm concerned about time differences. Will it interfere?
We welcome International students and have many from around the world! :) The only time-sensitive part of the class is the live chats (See Question 1 above for the pace of the class.). IF you are unable to attend a live chat, you can leave your questions ahead of time and read the chat transcript afterwards, at a time that works for you. We do try to make at least one chats' time earlier so that International Students can attend :]

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5. I'm a total beginner... don't even know how to turn on a sewing machine. Is this class good for me?

If you're willing to learn, this class will teach you everything you need to know :) The first earlybird guide in our class is called "How to Work your Sewing Machine" and it's a guided video tour of your Sewing Machine (using mine as an example). The video includes turning a sewing machine on, filling & loading your bobbin, threading your machine, adjusting stitch length, needle alignment, using the presser foot, back-stitching and sewing with your machine. It will help if you have your sewing machines user manual for reference, but (even without it) you will be able to figure out your machine with the help of this video :) And that's just day 1! We think this class would be a great help to you and we've written it step-by-step so that the earliest beginner will understand and excel!

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6. BUSY: I may be away during part of the class... will I fall behind?

If you will be away for part of the class (or busy), no need to worry-- you can take it from where you left off when you return from your time away. This is a ‘take it at your own pace class’, there is no pressure to do the projects in line with our posting schedule and the private Home Ec blog will stay up for one full year so that you can continue accessing the material, working at your own pace with your schedule in mind. You can visit the blog and work on your projects any time you want, as much as you want :)

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7. If I want to make some of the projects, but not all of them... is that okay?

We have planned each project with a specific skill and/or technique in mind (easiest to hardest), taking you from beginner to confident! Each project builds on the techniques from the last and grows in difficulty so we encourage you to do them in order and not skip any. However, if you feel comfortable with the skills and would just like to learn some fun sewing projects, you can pick and choose as you like :)

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8. When will you offer Home Ec again?

We do not have plans to reteach Home Ec in the future. If you'd like to become a student in the Home Ec Sewing Class, you can register up until Sun, Aug 15 with access to the class & content for a full year so that you can take it at your own pace :)

Rachel, Leigh-Ann and I developed Home Ec intending for it to increase your confidence behind the sewing machine with usable techniques, projects you'll love and progressive development... and we're so excited to teach you how to sew!! :) If you have any questions, please email Leigh-Ann at FreckledNest@gmail.com

looooooove Courtney

best weekend ever

Okay, maybe not ever. But still up there.
Friday I worked (who me?!), my old job needs help indefinitely--a culmination of a string of crazy new-hires and the owner being on medical leave--so it's back to the grind for now.

Saturday I got to babysit my favorite little guy again...this time I was alone, which was really intimidating, I've never been alone with a baby in my life! But I kept him from eating things he wasn't supposed to, and got him to eat the things he was supposed to, and even got him to sleep through a few Star Trek episodes. Success :)

Sunday, after a lot of convincing, I got Mark to go to my favorite thrift store with me. I ended up with these...



another sheet for the stash, and a crazy cool brand new vintage guestbook.
Mark ended up with a Don't Spill the Beans shirt (seriously; he came up behind me in the store wearing it and I laughed so hard I choked).

Then, it got kind of crazy. It was around 7:30pm but I decided I didn't feel like going home yet. We joked that we should go mini golfing. Then Mark joked about going mini golfing in Branson (little over a half hour away). Then he called a friend who used to live there, to find out if a putt putt place would even be open that late on a Sunday. And before I knew it the three of us were on our way!

Long story short, it pays to know people who know people, because we each got a giant Starbucks drink, two go-kart rides, and a bumper boats ride for free (all told probably around $100 worth of fun)! I had only done go-karts one other time, years ago, so I was kind of terrified. Don't worry, I'm alright! But the bumper boats had water guns, so we got soaking wet.

Then we took these:

Awesome.

Played Ice Man, Deal or No Deal, and gave a nice family my 106 tickets at the arcade.
Ate the best BLT of my life.
Had a peaceful ride home a little after midnight.

Being spontaneous is pretty cool. I plan on doing it again soon. :)



p.s. Home Ec starts tomorrow, so if you were still thinking about signing up, better do it tonight!! I can't believe it's time, it snuck up on me like real for real back-to-school time. Whee!

boots. damn.

I had an etsy fail.



If this looks disproportionate, that's because thighs like these are meant to be paired with much larger shoes.

I love love these boots, but their measurements were totally misrepresented. And the worst part? The size is clearly marked on the inside, but wasn't included in the listing. Guh.

Before I write a whiny letter asking for a refund--which I really don't want to do--I'm offering them up here on the off chance someone with a tiny foot is looking for some cute boots for the fall.

Details:
size US 6.5 (probably fits up to a 7 considering I was able to fit my 8.5 in there)
asking $50 (less than what I paid, like I said, hate doing returns) plus $10 priority US shipping
email me at courtney.janelle.sews@gmail.com and I can give you condition details & more pics if you need them
I'll be writing the seller Saturday if I don't have any takers, thanks!

etsy crush: TsuruBride

Nope, this couldn't wait for Tuesday Treasury. See, I saw one of these clutches and though, oo, next treasury search term! and was going to pick one to build next Tuesday's treasury around. But I couldn't pick one. I love them all!

George Orwell's Space Age Animal Farm







I love the workmanship, the metallic leather, the simple (but slightly unique) shapes, the consistent and professional styling.

It's just one of those shops you see and say, damn, why didn't I think of that.

floral is in

Right?
I hope so.



I've learned, these past few days, what I should have known. On days that I only started up the computer once, and spent at most a half hour online, I truly enjoyed myself. I was anxious and a bit panicky about not being able to check my email every ten minutes.....but besides that it was good. :) On days where I slipped and spent most of my time, from waking to sleep, either online or watching tv...I didn't accomplish anything, I felt achey, I ate a lot, and it was hard to fall asleep.

Okay, I'm going to try to continue my break for the two days I have left. Hopefully after that I will be able to develop some better habits...

tuesday treasury: "sugar cookie"

Shhh, I'm still on break! Don't tell on me!







I'm kind of obsessed with looking at food on etsy. Have you ever bought any? It kind of scares me.

Okay I have to go to the store and get some cookies now. :) Dang it.