Thursday, January 9, 2014

Smooth Baby, Smooth

One thing that I absolutely love about Craftster is the fact there are so many talented people who are willing to share their recipes and crafty ideas. This month's video was just the case, MareMare shared her awesome recipe for lotion bars with me. They are fabulous!


The recipe is pretty easy to follow. You will use equal parts of the following items:

1 part shea butter
1 part cocoa butter (I used scented and the whole house smelled like a chocolate factory, you can buy unscented)
1 part olive oil
1 part bees wax

The molds I used were a combination of soap molds and candy molds. The fancy hearts and squirrels were candy molds.

Monday, January 6, 2014

Motivational Monday

Ugh! Mondays are the worst! Especially Mondays after a holiday. Can't we just skip today? I mean, c'mon...is today really necessary....yes it is! Every day of your life is necessary. Every second is necessary. 

I know what you are thinking...Pam, you are not the most chipper person in the world, you do not have rainbows shooting from your butt and you're right, at least in part, you don't know if I have rainbows shooting out of my butt, do you? The thing is, life is so worth living, even the crappy Monday mornings. Cherishing the good with the bad is what creating a life worth living is about. Making it through the rough patches in life allows you to really enjoy and embrace those smooth sailing times even more and who knows, you might learn something along the way. 


So remember, Mondays may make you grumpy, you may not want to get out of bed, but you need to. 



Sunday, January 5, 2014

Scrappy Dog Sunday

Can you believe Lola is still as feisty as ever? She is 90+ years old and is still going! She is the Bettie White of dogs!


She does need her sleep after attacking OMP and running around the backyard.

My little Lola
I really think we need to bottle Lola's energy and sell it. We would make a fortune. 

Friday, January 3, 2014

In Memory Of...

Today OMP and I lost a dear friend. OMP knew Mike from the comic and toy scene. They used to trade VHS tapes for toys. I remember meeting him for the first time and he was so excited about taking us to a pancake house that had pancakes the size of a large pizza. He was a dear friend to OMP. His wife, Lisa and his children are in our thoughts and prayers.
http://www.seattleweekly.com/home/950460-129/mike-vraney-founder-of-something-weird
In Memorium
MIKE VRANEY
Founder of Something Weird
December 29, 1957 to January 2, 2014

We regret to tell you that Something Weird’s founder, Mike Vraney, passed away on January 2, 2014 after a long heroic battle with lung cancer. He was 56 years old, way too young to leave this planet. There was still so much Mike wanted to do in his life, so many films to be found, and adventures to be embarked upon.

This sad news may come as a shock to most of you. Mike was a very private person and didn’t want anyone, except his closest friends, family and colleagues, to know about his illness. He went through aggressive chemotherapy and radiation treatments for over a year, but sadly the cancer spread and cruelly took him from us.

Mike had a larger-than-life personality and a genuine enthusiasm for movies. Something Weird was his heart and soul, he was obsessive in his pursuit of tracking down the weirdest, wildest movies out there. And it wasn’t enough to find a few forgotten films, he was always in search of the movie motherload. (Making 370 two-hour volumes of Nudie Cuties loops is a good example of this. Who does that?! Mike Vraney!) Even as a child, Mike loved movies. During his teenage years, he worked at the Bel-Kirk Drive-In, and then later as a projectionist at the Green Parrot and Apple Theaters in Seattle. Then around 1990, Mike went in search of as many old, unusual, obscure, and lost low budget exploitation movies as he could, and preserved them for prosperity. Mike amassed thousands of these rare movies and had them transferred to video so that people could relive the good old days of going to the drive-in or grindhouse theater, in their very own home. We have him to thank for introducing fandom to the wonderful world of sexploitation sinema, rescuing it from the dark recesses of forgotten film vaults and defunct movie theatres.

Some of you may know that prior to Something Weird, Mike was involved in the early Seattle punk rock music scene. He was a partner in Modern Productions, the group who started Seattle’s seminal rock venue, The Showbox, in 1979. Mike then went on to manage such well-known bands as The Dead Kennedys, TSOL, and Seattle’s own The Accused. Mike always seemed to be at the forefront of whatever was happening and cool.

Mike’s second greatest passion in life was collecting old comics, vintage toys, movie memorabilia, and pop cultural ephemera. He enjoyed going to the swap meet and always had a magical ability for finding great stuff. But when he wasn’t working, collecting, or telling great stories, Mike spent quality time with his beloved family. Mike adored his wife and business partner, Lisa, and two (now young adult) children, Mark and Danielle. These three were the center of his universe, and his reason for getting up each and every morning.

The folks at Something Weird fully intend to honor Mike’s incredible legacy. Mike may be gone, but his remarkable achievements will live on. One of the happiest days of Mike’s life was when legendary David F. Friedman and Dan Sonney called him “the forty-first thief,” which to him was the ultimate compliment and recognition for his work. We’d like to think that Mike’s now hanging out with his old pals Dave and Dan, reminiscing and talking shop with Dwain Esper, Kroger Babb, Barry Mahon, Joe Sarno, Doris Wishman, Bob Cresse, Dale Berry, Michael Findlay and all the other exploiteers and smut peddlers who’ve gone to the great grindhouse in the sky.

We will miss Mike with all our hearts. Goodbye dear friend, husband, father, and fearless leader…
– Lisa Petrucci, Tim Lewis, Kendall Bechtel, Mark Vraney, Danielle Vraney of Something Weird Video

Wednesday, January 1, 2014

Happy New Year!

Has it really been since August that I've last visited with everyone? HOLY COW! How dare real life get in the way of my blog! OMP has a new job, Lola is still hanging in there, Jujube is just the bee and Pete has turned into the sweetest little man ever!

I have been hanging in there, doing what I do...ya know, the usual!

I want to thank everyone for hanging in there with me and I hope that 2014 is full of glitter, pink, champagne and cupcakes.  So much love and peace for everyone.
family picture

Happy New Year from me and the OMP!

Christmas 2013

Thursday, August 8, 2013

Shake Your Pom Poms!

Oh yeah, shake your pom poms! Okay, not really, but how about making a pom pom garland?
Aren't these great for birthday parties? They are so super easy to make!

The ice cream cones are my favorite.

Now I am totally addicted to pom poms. I want to make a whole room out of them!

Check out the video to make your own pom pom garland.

Wednesday, August 7, 2013

Craftster is Turning 10!



I can't believe it! My favorite crafty website is turning 10! How cool is that? I can't believe it has been that long. So many years of crafty goodness!

To celebrate 10 years, the wonderful folks at Craftster have put together an amazing Challenge. Entries are due August 7-13th  The grand prize includes:
  • A canvas Red Heart project bag/tote
  • 6 sheets of Phoomph! in both Stiff and Soft
  • The September/October 2013 edition of Crochet Today!
  • 3 skeins of Red Heart Boutique Unforgettable yarn
  • A 6mm Susan Bates Bamboo Handle Crochet Hook
  • Dubonnet Poncho crochet pattern from Red Heart
  • A stitchable iPhone 4/4s case

The theme for this challenge is "What Craftster means to me." Now, don't be scared of this theme! Craftster is made by YOU, Craftster can mean different things to different people so whatever it means to you, that's great!!

You can find the challenge threads for each specific category in this list! They will list the full rules and the prize for that category:

Bath and Beauty - http://www.craftster.org/forum/index.php?topic=424909.0
Clothing - http://www.craftster.org/forum/index.php?topic=424884.0
Cooking - http://www.craftster.org/forum/index.php?topic=424865.0
Crochet - http://www.craftster.org/forum/index.php?topic=424891.0
Fiber Arts - http://www.craftster.org/forum/index.php?topic=424850.0
Glass Crafts - http://www.craftster.org/forum/index.php?topic=424862.0
Home Sweet Home - http://www.craftster.org/forum/index.php?topic=424896.0
Image Reproduction Techniques - http://www.craftster.org/forum/index.php?topic=424912.0
Jewelry and Trinkets - http://www.craftster.org/forum/index.php?topic=424913.0
Knitting - http://www.craftster.org/forum/index.php?topic=424895.0
Miscellaneous Topics - http://www.craftster.org/forum/index.php?topic=424849.0
More Art, Less Craft - http://www.craftster.org/forum/index.php?topic=424893.0
Needlework - http://www.craftster.org/forum/index.php?topic=424885.0
Occasions and Holidays - http://www.craftster.org/forum/index.php?topic=424914.0
Paper Crafts, Scrapbooking & ATCs - http://www.craftster.org/forum/index.php?topic=424910.0
Pottery, Ceramics, Polymer Clay - http://www.craftster.org/forum/index.php?topic=424905.0
Purses, Bags, Wallets - http://www.craftster.org/forum/index.php?topic=424887.0
Quilting - http://www.craftster.org/forum/index.php?topic=424886.0
Reusing/Recycling/Recrafting - http://www.craftster.org/forum/index.php?topic=424851.0
Toys, Dolls and Playthings - http://www.craftster.org/forum/index.php?topic=424852.0

Read more: http://www.craftster.org/forum/index.php?topic=424917.0#ixzz2bIaQss3Y


If the challenge is a bit overwhelming, then check out this month's Hoopla Along or our Newbie Craftalong, both are great ways to get your feet wet. Who knows, you might make a new best friend or learn a new crafty skill.