Scotland Photos

I guess it's been a while since I've posted anything (a whole month, really???)  So I'll start with a different castle this time.  This is Blair castle on the edge of the Scottish highlands.  My grandmother's name was Blair before she married my grandfather, so I've decided (with no genealogical proof whatsoever) that this castle is part of my heritage.  We toured the inside, but no photos were allowed (browse here if you're interested).  Blair castle is home to the last private army in all of Europe (well, the last legal one anyway).  It was originally formed to fight off the highlanders and keep them from heading South to attack the townsfolk, but continues to exist to this day.

We stopped at Blair castle on the way to Inverness to visit Loch Ness.  I was really hoping to tour the grounds (they had ponies!  and gardens!) but when we finished touring the inside of the castle it was pouring rain.  So we got back in the car and drove on instead.

We took a boat cruise on Loch Ness and even though it was foggy and drizzly, the landscape was absolutely gorgeous.  And perfectly mysterious for our boat cruise and Nessie watching.

No signs of Nessie from the dock when we set off on the boat.

Our boat cruise included admission tickets to wander around Urquhart castle, which was blown up in 1692 to keep it from falling into the hands of the Jacobites.  While the highlands were gorgeous, the history was extremely gruesome.

And, just so you don't think it was rainy and dreary the whole time, here's a beautiful sunset from the cottage in the fishing village of Crail where my colleague and his wife have their weekend home:

And here's a nice panorama showing some of the medieval buildings of St. Andrews (where we spent most of our time because I was working with my colleague at the university there).

Incidentally, the beach in the foreground was used in the filming of Chariots of Fire.

Maybe it won't be a whole month before my next post!  We can always hope...

Scotland, here we come!

It's been a mad rush around here to get stuff done before leaving the country again. I had a giant, 47-page proposal that I submitted to the National Science Foundation on Wednesday. And many additional things to work on to get ready for this trip. There hasn't been much time for sewing, although I do have one small knitting project for which I need photos. And now, James and I head for the airport in only 3 hours to spend the next 2.5 weeks in Scotland!

Last time I was there (2 years ago, when the above photo of Edinburgh castle was taken), I was there by myself and James had just arrived in Afghanistan. Many things have changed since then, and I'm very glad he'll be coming with me this time! I will be working most of the trip, but I won't be working such long hours as I have been lately and we have some time planned for fun too.

More fun pictures soon! Hooray for Scotland!

I love every cat...

I've been a bit slow with my sewing lately. I got halfway through sewing a skirt yesterday and am hoping to finish it soon. But until then, enjoy this very silly video with the catchy tune that is now stuck in my head.

And in case you missed the original version (without the song), you can find it here.

Happy Birthday to me!

Source

Today was my 31st birthday. We spent the weekend with family and drove home this afternoon to enjoy a quiet evening at home. We had thunderstorms all weekend, so this was a quieter 4th of July than I've had in a few years, but it was nice to just get some rest.

I finally finished that baby blanket I've been working on. It's going in the mail tomorrow to welcome the new little bundle. She arrived almost 2 weeks ago, so I'm glad that I'm not too late.


Now that I've finished the blanket, I'm trying to decide what to sew next. I have too many choices! I think I'll make the knee-length a-line version of Simplicity 5914 in gray linen next, since that will be a nice versatile piece.

And I'd like to make another Pendrell blouse and tweak it to fit me a bit better this next time. The shoulders were too wide last time and I didn't get the bottom hem quite right; I'll probably put some small side slits at the waist. I have some red bubble gauze that might work and I'll try the sleeveless version again. I need some simple but dressier shells to wear with skirts to work since my office resembles a sauna in the summer.

Here's how Cal spent most of her time over the weekend:

Ah, the life of a kitty!

Wow, I won!

I was just catching up on today's blog posts while half-watching MasterChef with James and Cal, and I was shocked to see the following on Gertie's blog:

The Giveaway Winner Is . . . Misty!

That's right, apparently I am the proud winner of a vintage 60s pattern from The Blue Gardenia, some raspberry red linen-blend fabric, a fantastic MAC lipstick, and a vintage sewing book (see here). I had to follow the link to the Google profile to be sure it was me!

I'm super excited to win! The pattern is rated easy and with the empire waist should be really flattering for my not-so-curvy figure. And the fabric should be perfect for the hot weather I was just complaining about. Looks like I'll be all set for my first vintage sewing experience. I can't wait!

Thanks again Gertie and Denise! You are both awesome, and Gertie, you're one of the reasons I decided to start sewing. You make it look so easy, and your dresses are always gorgeous!

And hello to all of you who are visiting here from Gertie's blog! It's fun to see all the traffic my blog has been getting since Gertie's post. Welcome!

FO: The Vintage 3-Hour Sweater

I needed a quickly-finished knitting project to work on, so I decided to try the popular vintage pattern for a 3-hour sweater. It took me closer to 8 hours than 3, but even that is pretty quick for a knitted sweater. I knit most of it while I was in Copenhagen, but finished it after I got back home. The sleeves are just a little bit too tight, and I'd like if it was just a tiny bit longer, but overall I'm pretty happy with how it turned out.

I wore a nude cami underneath it today. It's rather loosely knit, and since I wore it to work, I wanted to make sure I was covered up. I'd like to make another version in white, and I'll probably make it slightly longer with smaller cap sleeves (and I'd make sure they weren't quite so tight around my arms next time).

I used just under two skeins of Cascade Sierra cotton yarn and followed the modifications found here. Rav project page is here.

No new sewing projects right now. I've been working on that baby blanket in my spare time. I'm over halfway and hoping to finish it by this weekend if at all possible so I can mail it off to the proud new mama and papa.

It's been hot lately. I've felt like this most days over the past few weeks. If only eating ice cream for dinner was a valid option. Guess I need to get used to summer in the South.

Re-finished FO: Aqua Circle Skirt

This isn't actually a new project. This is my first sewing project from about a year ago, actually. I was annoyed that I couldn't find any knee-length full skirts (they were all very short and/or very tight), and asked myself "how hard can it be to make one?" Turns out the answer is "not very hard at all" if you can cut two circles out of a piece of fabric. So I hand-sewed a circle skirt and put in an elastic waist band (sexy, I know!). I pulled it out of my closet over the weekend, ripped out my terrible hand-stitched hem, and re-hemmed it with my machine.

I really like the color, but unfortunately, I don't have many tops that match so I haven't worn it much over the past year. With such a full skirt, I need a tighter-fitting top (otherwise I look like I'm 5 and playing dress up in my mommy's clothes). And I need more tops in basic colors, especially neutrals. But I did find last night while I was digging through my clothes that this darker peacock blue shirt (from Charlotte Russe) looks nice with the lighter aqua of the skirt (a rayon-linen blend from JoAnn's).

James was making me laugh while taking pictures. I had to remind him to get one with my new shoes:
I found these at Kohl's for $20 over the weekend. I bought 4 pairs of shoes for about $85, and I think I can stop looking for shoes for a while now. I found that I was wearing the same pair of sandals to work every single day and realized I needed a few more that I could wear with my expanding handmade wardrobe and the ridiculous heat and humidity here. I thought these were cute and surprisingly comfy. James wasn't so sure, but I figured if I liked them and they were only $20 I might as well get them. Here's a better pic from the Kohl's website (the SO Dima Wedge, only a few sizes left):
I have a few more recently finished projects to show over the next few days, but I've mainly been knitting up a storm, trying to finish a baby blanket for one of my good college friends who is due any day now. The blanket will probably be late, but hopefully not too late! And now, back to my knitting...