Tuesday, August 31, 2010

A Quick Blurb of Meaningless Mumbo Jumbo

I hate to fill my blog with random inane posts, but lately it seems that it is the only thing that I have time for.

I did go to a party over the weekend. The centerpieces were vases filled with flowers. I assumed that the vases were made of glass until my sister-in-law told me otherwise. It is actually made from a soft plastic that is held rigid when filled with water. I was sitting a foot away from it and thought that it was glass. Very convincing and quite innovative.


The best part about it is that it is collapsible and can be stored flat.


Thank you all for your lovely comments. I apologize for being so out of touch. Life seems to have knocked the wind out of my sails. I haven't done anything earth shattering or interesting lately. I am still stitching hexagons into ornaments and have started making puffy Sweetheart Suzy flower pins. Perhaps another random, inane post is in order about all that stuff. We'll see. Until then, take care, everyone!

Aloha!

Tuesday, August 24, 2010

'Sweetheart Suzy' Revisited

Every now and then I like to revisit old items that I have made and do a little tweaking. You may remember the Sweetheart Suzy Pin tutorial that I put together in early 2009. The folded petals are flat at the base and curve upward at the tips.


I decided to see what it would look like with a tiny bit of fiberfill added to the petals .


The petals now look like little puffy pointed pillows. I like it.


Instead of a tufted center, I went with a stack of coordinating buttons.


Although the method is similar to the original, the end product looks slightly different. It now has a really nice chunky feel to it. I hope that you give this a try.

It has been a very busy past couple of weeks for our family. My son is now settled in his dorm room and my hubby and I have become temporary empty nesters (if you exclude the fur and feathered babies that also call this place home). It has suddenly become very quiet around here and something that the hubs and I will need to get used to.

I hope you have a wonderful and creative day!

Aloha!

Sunday, August 22, 2010

Mundane Sunday

It is Sunday and I am in my craft room surrounded by, once again, piles of stuff. I like background noise while I work at putting my room back together. I sometimes listen to YouTube. Yep, you heard that right. I listen to YouTube. I have no time to watch YouTube, so I just listen to it while I am working.

Well, this morning, I came across this hilarious video. I stopped my cleaning and sat down to actually watch this video. Sometimes it does a body good to laugh a little and boy did I get a good chuckle out of this one.

Ten stars, Paul, for the laugh and for breaking the monotony of my day. I hope you all enjoy this as much as I did.


Hope that you are having a wonderful weekend.

Aloha,

Sunday, August 15, 2010

Hectic Weekend

Just a quick post while I take a few moments to catch my breath. It has been a very busy weekend with many things going on. Thank goodness these kinds of weekends are few and far between.

We just got back from a breathtaking wedding at the Halekulani Hotel in Waikiki. The wedding took place in the garden courtyard of the hotel under perfect azure skies. A wedding of a lifetime.

The reception was spectacular and elegant. I was happy to receive one of the twenty-five table centerpieces. It is so beautiful and stands a striking 3 feet tall. It is so huge that it dwarfs the lamps that sit next to it.


A close up of the vase, an art piece all by itself.




I anticipate the week ahead to be very busy as I prepare for my sons move into his college dorm. I'll be back soon. I promise.

Take care, everyone!

Aloha!

Tuesday, August 10, 2010

Recycled Desktop Organizer

I had a cheapo plastic lazy Susan sitting on my desk collecting dust and whatever else I was too lazy to put away. It had no useful function, was just taking up space, and became a catchall. I was holding onto it because I knew that one day I could use it as an organizer. Just how, I didn't know.

Ideally, I needed something with a good number of sections to keep items separated and organized. Having my frequently used tools close at hand would be my goal. It was becoming increasingly frustrating to have to dig through drawers to find the right tools for each project.

Recycling cans to organize tools is an excellent idea and nothing new, but this method hasn't always been practical for my needs. The cans would become top heavy when fully loaded and topple over. This became frustrating and would eventually lead to the abandonment of the cans-used-as-an-organizer idea.


Then the concept of using magnets to secure the cans came to mind. This would surely solve the toppling over problem. The cans would sit securely on the lazy Susan and remain upright as they spun around. If I needed to transport the items contained in a single can to another work space, I could easily pull it away and take it to where it was needed. This would be very practical because the entire organizer would not have to be moved along with it. When I was done, the can would easily and securely slip back into place. Perfect. I wouldn't even have to glue the magnets to the cans if I didn't want to. When the organizer was no longer practical for my needs, I could toss the cans and reuse the magnets on other projects.

Here is my organizer in all it's recycled glory. Placing the cans in a flower-like configuration works great and fits well on the lazy Susan. A few paper flowers and a few other adornments and I was good to go. Quick and easy. Inexpensive to make. A bit of recycling involved. Functional. This is working out great and I couldn't have asked for anything more.


I used a Stampin' Up stamp set called Playful Petals to create the flowers.


I placed 3 magnets on each of the cans that sit around the perimeter. This provides a secure connection and keeps the cans from toppling over.


The center can (pink) does not require magnets as the cans on the perimeter all "kiss" up to it. I could easily say something about that, but I'll keep my comments to myself.


I realize that this may not be a practical organizational option for everyone but it works great for my needs. Well, at least for the time being anyway.


Have a fabulous day!

Aloha!

5 Points for Creativity

Lookie what I received from Mr. Ben Bernanke himself. Ha! This is a creative and new approach from the Nigerian scammers. Five points!!

Subject: Contract/Inherittance fund credit from bank federal reserve board New York
Priority: Normal Date: Monday, August 9, 2010 10:18 PM Size: 4 KB
Federal Reserve Bank New York.
33 LIBERTY STREET, NEW YORK , NY 10038
Attn: Beneficiary

Contract/Inherittance fund credit from bank federal reserve board New York, Final Notice

This is to let you know that we received a payment credit instruction from the federal government of Nigeria to credit your account with your full inheritance fund of us$10.5million from the Nigerian reserve account with our bank.

However, what we required from you is your banking particulars where you want your fund to be transferred.

{1}. Your full name and address:
{2}. Your telephone, and fax:
{3). Your bank name and address:
{4). Your a/c name and numbers:
(5). Your swift code / routing numbers:
(6). Your current occupation:

Be informed that transfer will commence immediately we hear from you with the account information. Once more, bank Federal Reserve board will not hesitates to credit your account within 24hours in accordance with fund release order regulations.

Your immediate response is highly needed to enable us commence for the transfer.

Thanks for banking with Federal Reserve Bank while we looking forward to serving you better.

Thanks and God bless you.

Mr. Ben S. Bernanke
Chairman,Federal Reserve Board New York.


Yeah, right. I wasn't born yesterday!

Aloha!

P.S. Sorry, what can I say. It's a slow day here at The Pineapple.

Friday, August 6, 2010

Rolled Felt Peppermint Pincushion

Rolled Felt Peppermint Pincushions would make cheap inexpensive table favors for your holiday get together with your quilt guild or sewing friends. You can whip up dozens of these in no time.


Toss a few buttons (Christmas themed would be really cute) near each pincushion and this could round out your table vignette.


I used a combination of the Sweet Sugarplums tutorial and the Rolled Felt Pincushion tutorial to create these playful pincushions.

I don't know if this is true for you, but the week has whizzed by very fast for me. This is about the time of year that I start thinking about Christmas. The holidays will be before us sooner than can be imagined and I feel the panic that this time of year usually brings. I have begun to think about holiday gift giving and what I will be making this year.

I think that a set of hexagon flower mug rugs would make a cute and useful gift.


I wish you a very creative and productive weekend. Just for the record, there are only 141 days until Christmas. Don't panic! Start working on those gifts today because handmade takes so much more time than store bought!

Aloha!

Tuesday, August 3, 2010

Attention Recent Giveaway Winners

I couldn't let myself send you just a Floor Buddy (you're all too special for that) so I delayed shipping by one day (hope you don't mind) and did a little fabric shopping. Along with a Floor Buddy, you will each be receiving 4 fat quarters of Hawaiian print fabric. Your packages have already been shipped. I hope that this sweetens your win!


Aloha,

Sunday, August 1, 2010

Giveaway Winners!

Happy Sunday, everyone! I hope that you are having a wonderful weekend. The following participants have been chosen by random number generator. Congratulations!!

Dee


Bonnita


Happy Valley Primitives


Jille


Arlette


Thank you to all who entered my giveaway. I appreciate that you took the time to enter and to offer your organizing ideas.

Take care!

Aloha!