October Desktop Calendar

The other day, after I gave myself my Kaffe-esque Jamicure - not to be confused with Kafkaesque, as in: "pertaining to the literary work of Franz Kafka, i.e. marked by a senseless, disorienting, and menacing-like quality" which would be more like this:

Wouldn't these be awesome for the Zombie Apocalypse?? Just in time for Hallowe'en. 

You're welcome.

(comma... pause to think where I was going...)

Oh. So after I gave myself a Kaffe-icure, I got all hung up on that calendar from back in May and started to play with it again in EQ7. I used the Swap Tool to quickly change each of the original fabrics to a new palette of fabrics looking more fall-ish. That took all of 37 seconds. I've seen lots of  hexie quilts that have recognizable images in them, so I thought I'd try something simple like a pumpkin. With a vine. That took almost an hour. Good God. I'm beginning to hate one-patch quilts. I've never actually made one, but I have made about 3 dozen 1/4" hexies, mostly while traveling by air, accompanied by a Tanqueray & Tonic. 

See that bobbin and needle? I'm not lying! 1/4" hexies. Don't. Just don't.

Anyway - here's the quilt I came up with. If you squint real hard, you'll see the pumpkin. If you're lucky. Or if you've had enough to drink. Wait. Maybe that was my problem. Oh well.

Click to expand the image to full size, right-click and choose Set as Wallpaper or Background.

To really make the calendar "pop" right-click on your background and choose black. Your family and co-workers will be jealous of your awesome wallpaper! Be sure to tell them where you found it!

Nailed It!

I found myself with a few extra minutes today, so I gave myself a new Jamicure. You know - the vinyl nail wraps by Jamberry!

I hardly get to sew (much less quilt) anymore, so I thought I'd use my latest "quilty" Jams for my latest Kaffe-icure!

But first...this is why I don't just use polish. I am so not coordinated enough to not get it everywhere. No matter how careful I am, or how much time I take, I still end up looking like a 4 year old did it. And that's just embarrassing. Actually, I think a 4 year old could have done a better job.

I've never been a manicure-type girl. As a matter of fact, I've had two manicures in my entire life: when Megan got married, and once, when I was on a retreat at the Compass Center. I've always had super short nails, cuz I work hard, play hard (ok, on the piano), and I...I... well, I was going to say clean hard, but that'd be a lie. But I supervise! 

Since I don't have a lot of time to play the piano anymore, I've been attempting to let me nails grow... hahaha - typo - I sound Irish! I mean MY nails grow! Just so I could have some fun with wraps. They last much longer than polish ever did, and they actually keep my nails from chipping and splitting.

Anyway, where was I?  Oh yeah. Right on top of my hideously messy polish, I applied my new jams: Happy-Go-Lucky and Nepal Relief. Together, they look like they're straight out of a Kaffe Fassett quilt - and I love them! Here they are with a backdrop of Kaffes. I know, right?? (And Spoelker - I know you're jealous!)

And see the ones right above my hand? Those are the ones my daughter Megan had made from my May Desktop Calendar 

I designed it in EQ7 and when she saw it, she asked if she could use it for an exclusive Nail Art Studio design for Jamberry. They came out great! If you'd like your own set, they're only available through Megan - and tell her I sent you!

She also did a set of gradated teal chevrons to match this fabric - cool, right?

And she put these together, too, so you can only get them from her:

Jamberry also has quite a few wraps that look quilty or crafty like these:

Patchwork

Crash Art

Double Crossed

Paper Mache

Quilted

Renaissance

Or, for the Modern Quilter, how 'bout...

Ribbon Dance

 or 

Silver Chevron

Any of the wraps that are on a clear background (like the one above), can be layered over other wraps or nail polish, so you can have them be any color you want! Like these. I layered a black and clear design wrap over a gorgeous glittery one - and it's awesome - see?!

There's a ton more on the Jamberry website, so go take a look. We could start a whole movement of quilty nail wrappers! And if you have a design you'd like to see in a wrap, just ask Megan. She'll be happy to work with you to totally customize yours and make them truly one-of-a-kind!

And did I mention that each sheet of regular wraps are only $15 (and Megan gives a "Buy 3, Get 1 Free" deal) and there's enough on the sheet for two (2) manis and pedis. You can not get a better deal for your nails than that!

And tell Megan you heard about them here. Maybe she'll give me a discount next time!