Orange + Gold + Purple

While I was home for the holidays I got to visit my friend and mentor, Viola. Not only did she cook a delicious dinner for my mom and me, she also gave me me a beautiful gift.

Would you just look at this notebook? It's handmade, and I believe the paper (for the pages and the cover) is salvaged from scraps that were going to be thrown away. The binding is particularly nice; when the book is open it lays flat, no matter which page your on. Cool, huh?

And it's orange. She knows me so well. ★

Vermont Weekend

We spent the weekend in Vermont on an HBS Section retreat. What on Earth does that even mean? Let me try to explain. Eric is in the HBS graduating class of 2011. There are about 1000 people in his class. Those people are divided up into lettered sections (Eric is in Section B) of about 90 people each. The 90 people in each section attended classes together for a few hours every day.

The weekend retreat to VT was a trip with just Section B. It was an opportunity for the students to spend more time together outside of the classroom, and for partners (like me) to meet and get to know other students and partners. Most of the people in Eric's section are single, but there were about 20 partners who were able to make it this weekend (we heard somebody flew in from Paris!).

We left Boston around 4 on Friday afternoon, and I finished my work in the car. I think we checked into the Hawk Inn & Mountain Resort around 7:30 that night. The resort was a little weird because we stayed in condos that weren't really near each other. The main parties were in a house which was at least a mile drive from our house. Walking wasn't really an option because we were basically on a mountain, it was pitch black at night (no street lights), and it was raining (sometimes pouring).

It rained all day Saturday, so outdoor activities weren't very appealing, but we still filled the day. In the morning we went to a breakfast that was arranged for students with partners. That was very nice, and I enjoyed meeting people in a quiet, comfortable place (there was a very loud party on Friday night). Eric and I set out on our own after that to go to the Simon Pearce glass blowing facility. We watched them make a fancy martini glass and a decorative pear. It was sort of magical. Saturday afternoon we played board games and at night there was a BBQ for the whole group.

We left pretty early Sunday morning, and I took pictures during the drive because it had finally stopped raining. You can see more on flickr.

This Is What Happens

This is what happens when you don't have enough flour for the recipe. My Gramma always says that baking is like chemistry and the proportions are crucial. She's right.

I noticed that I didn't have much flower before I started mixing the ingredients, but I decided to give it a go anyway. It doesn't look great, but it still tasted pretty good. Worth the risk, I'd say. I made them last Sunday (and ate the very last one last night).

What's your latest cooking mess (or success!)?

*Speaking of cooking, yesterday's Lost In Thoughts is all about cupcakes. YUM!

A New Vase

My sister recently went to Alaska. She had a wonderful time and she definitely wants to return at some point. I'm super lucky, because she brought back a beautiful, blue glass vase for me.

Today I made some paper flowers, so the vase wouldn't be so lonesome. I had fun making them, and I was guided by a Zakka Life tutorial (via iDiY). If you want to make your own flowers, don't be afraid to try some variations (I did!). I also added old twisty ties as stems.

Family Weekend

Yesterday Eric and I drove out to UMass to see my sister, Emily, dance. We met my parents and brother there. This is her first semester as a member of the Stage Crew Dance Team, and my family's first time seeing her dance with this team. It's not easy to become a member of the Stage Crew team, and I'm so proud of her. She was wonderful and beautiful. The whole team was great, and you can tell the girls work hard. 

They performed in the Mullins Center as part of the 22nd annual Color in the Cage event. Stage Crew was really only one of 3 dance acts. The other performers were members of color guard or baton twirling teams. I've never been to anything like that, but some of the stunts (is that the right word?) were very impressive. A lot of it made me giggle, I'll be honest, but I appreciate these people putting themselves out there and participating. It certainly doesn't look easy. 

While we were at UMass we also got to see Eric's youngest brother, Will. We took him to lunch at Antonio's (yum) and before we left he got us soft serve ice cream from the dining hall. That was a mistake. While he was getting the ice cream, it started to rain. And by rain I definitely mean downpour, torrentially. We had to wait a bit before we could actually get to the car, and even then we had to make a mad dash. It was fun, but sort of ruined our good-bye.  

Since we got to see my parents, I brought the Mother's Day gift I made for my mom. Yep, more cranes. I made her a mobile of 100 cranes. There are 5 strands, and each has 20 different colored cranes (the same 20 colors on each strand, but no duplicates per strand). I folded all of the cranes on Tuesday, and I strung them all together on Thursday. 

Right now Eric is out with his mom, just spending the day with her in Boston. He's taking her out to lunch and anywhere she wants to go. I'm going to go enjoy the sunshine.

Happy Mother's Day & happy weekend! 

My Mobile

I folded about 57 paper cranes today, so I could finish my mobile project. 

I've been thinking about putting together a mobile for years. I saw a crane mobile in Oh Joy on the 17th, and I was motivated to finally make my own. Now you know why I started making cranes last week. 

I woke up this morning and knew this project couldn't wait any longer. As soon as Paper Source opened I ran over (literally, because I figured I could get some exercise in while I was doing my errands) to pick up more origami paper. When I got home I sat down and folded and folded and folded and folded and folded. When I used up all of my paper, new and old, I had to string them together. I'm in love with the outcome. 

Woo hoo! Another project complete. 

Little Miss

Remember that project I mentioned awhile ago? Well, here are the results! It's the doll from the header of Everything Little Miss. Isn't she sweet?

After I posted about my project, it was put on hold because I was getting frustrated. But this weekend my mom visited and gave me the motivation (and a little sewing help) that I needed to finish this project. I spent all day yesteday -- seriously, like 8 hours -- adding the hair and face, and making the dress and shoes. My fingers still hurt from playing tug-of-war with the needle, but it's so worth it. I'm really proud of myself, and she looks a lot like my drawing.