tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-58194698630317652622024-02-06T22:37:04.326-05:00Courtney's Crafty CrapAnonymoushttp://www.blogger.com/profile/06304557600089738163noreply@blogger.comBlogger204125tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-5819469863031765262.post-73185748894233580112015-11-03T05:00:00.000-05:002015-11-03T05:00:01.011-05:00Rock 'n' Roll Philadelphia Half Marathon<div class="separator" style="clear: both; text-align: center;">
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This past Saturday I ran the Rock 'n' Roll Philadelphia Half Marathon with Lauren. Ever since I started running over two years ago, I've been wanting to participate in a Rock 'n' Roll race. Although slightly pricier, this race series seemed to be very well-designed with fun tech tees and awesome swag. Since I seek out races with cool souvenirs, this series obviously had to be on my bucket list. After moving to Philadelphia and finding out that the city is home to a Rock 'n' Roll event, I had to sign up for this race.<br />
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For the past three months, Lauren and I have been training consistently for the Philadelphia Marathon in late November. Our ultimate goal is to run well and PR at this event. However, we still wanted to run the Rock 'n' Roll half marathon a month prior. Because our true goal race is actually the marathon, we agreed that we would push ourselves to PR, but not kill ourselves trying to finish this half marathon in under 2 hours. Leading up to this half marathon, our PR was 2:13:47. Before the race, we decided that we would be content if we just PR'ed, but perfectly happy if we finished in under 2:10.<br />
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During races (and most training runs), I like to run without knowing my pace. Since I train and race with intervals (run 10 minutes, walk 1 minute) and my watch shows my distance, I have a good idea about my overall pace, but I do my best to ignore it and not do the math in my head. I've found that I have a much better run (both time-wise and emotionally) if I run without this added stress. I encouraged Lauren to do the same, and instead find a comfortable pace with our legs versus our brains.<br />
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At the <a href="http://chinneus.blogspot.com/2015/08/san-francisco-marathon-part-ii.html">San Francisco Marathon</a> I went out a little too fast and wasn't able to keep that initial pace up throughout the rest of the race. For this half marathon though, Lauren had to keep reminding me that it would be better for us to not be "crazy legs" the first few miles, but rather keep a consistent pace throughout the entire race. I did my best to not take off at the start, but it's pretty hard when you don't know your pace. I started at running at a fast-comfortable pace and hoped that we could keep it up. When we signed up for the race in February, we listed our expected finish time slower than what we were now actually trying to achieve. Because of this, we ended up needing to weave in and out of other runners in our assigned wave group. Luckily there were so many wave groups that there were only a small amount of people in each group, so bobbing in and out of people wasn't too hard. Combined with trying to find that perfect comfortable pace, we chose to skip our first walk break.<br />
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Even running in California you'll often find me wearing long sleeves and pants when most others are dressed for warmer weather. Bring me to the East Coast in the middle of Fall, and I'm even colder. Even though I made sure to wear warm clothing, I was still freezing the first several miles of the race. Not once did I regret wearing pants, a long sleeved tee, and gloves. In fact, I couldn't feel my legs or feet at all the entire race because they were so cold. That actually probably helped though! Since this race was held on Halloween Day, we <i>had</i> to dress up. Neither of us have ever dressed up for a race before, and we didn't want our outfits to get in the way of running, so we found the most minimal Halloween costumes. Earlier in the year my mom sent us M&M t-shirts from her trip to Las Vegas, so we put our shirts to good use and dressed up as orange and green M&M's! </div>
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The first three miles of the race took us out into Center City, around City Hall, and back to the Art Museum. We used these miles to find and settle into a comfortable pace. Miles 3-5 were essentially an out and back route. This was personally our first Gatorade stop. Since we both carried handheld water bottles, we didn't stop at any aid stations for water. However, we did pick up a cup of Gatorade at about every other aid station. At mile 5 City Fit Girls, the run club we joined a few months back, had their own little cheer section. They handed out candy to us, and those Swedish Fish for me and Peanut Chews for Lauren, gave us that boost of energy we needed to make it through the next section of the race. Seriously, that was a game changer! Miles 5-9 were run along the eastern side of the Schuylkill River. Lauren and I run all of our long runs on this part of the course, so we were very familiar with it. Lauren commented on how boring this section was while pretty much everyone else was praising its beauty. While I completely agree with Lauren, I think being so familiar with the route actually helps us have a better race. Because we've trained so much in this area, we know exactly where all the twists and turns are, and had a good idea of how much further we needed to run to make it to the next section of the race. This section was slightly curvy, and knowing the layout of the road helped us run the tangents a tiny bit better. </div>
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Reaching mile 9 meant that it was time to cross the bridge! This
was a huge sign of relief because I knew that as soon as I crossed the
bridge, it was time to run back to the Art Museum on the western side of
the river. Mile 9 was also the only aid station with fuel, so I grabbed the first Gu I could reach- strawberry banana. Not my favorite, but definitely not the worst either. Although I wasn't hungry, I knew I needed to eat something (I had two other Gu's of my own with me, just in case). I gulped that Gu down like a champ, trying to distract myself from the banana flavor, and kept moving. Miles 9-12.5 weren't so bad. I heard lots of people encouraging their friends to keep running, and saw several people completely burnt out and walking to the end. Both Lauren and I were still running and following our intervals, so I took this as a good sign. Apparently around mile 12 Lauren told me she needed to go to the bathroom and I didn't say anything which she took as, 'I'd be mad at her if she stopped'. I honestly never heard her though, so she kept powering along, waiting to use the bathroom at the finish. I still had absolutely no idea what our pace was at this point. We passed the 2:15 pace sign around mile 10, and since they started at least one wave group before us, I knew we were on track to run under 2:15. I was still hoping to finish in under 2:10, but I really didn't know what to expect. The final mile of the race dragged us across the MLK Bridge. I was so excited at this point! There were so many people cheering all the runners and walkers on, we saw the City Fit Girls cheerers again, and the finish line was in sight! Lauren suggested we skip our last walk interval and just run to the end. Literally right before the finish line was a little hill, but we powered up that hill and sprinted to the finish line. As soon as we stopped our watches, Lauren turned to me and asked if I looked at our overall time yet. I hadn't, but I quickly did and couldn't believe it! </div>
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Our official time was 2:02:23, that's a 9:21 overall pace! As I was looking at the official race results, I looked at my splits,
and it turns out that we ran a pretty consistent race. Our first two
5k's, and the 5k between mile 10 to the finish line were all run in 29
minutes each. A race doesn't get much better than this! Although we didn't finish in under 2 hours, we still met both of our spoken race goals. We PR'ed (by 11 minutes!), and finished in under 2:10. This race proved to us that a sub-2 hour finish is definitely possible, and that will be our next half marathon goal! Anonymoushttp://www.blogger.com/profile/06304557600089738163noreply@blogger.com0tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-5819469863031765262.post-83036665445954307982015-10-30T05:00:00.000-04:002015-10-30T05:00:00.532-04:00Slow Fashion October ThoughtsEven though I didn't really participate in Slow Fashion October nor have I completed any of the unofficial prompts, this whole movement has made me think a lot about me personally, as a consumer: what I choose to wear, buy, and make help define who I am. While I'm not anywhere close to having a closet full of handmade clothing, I like the idea of being conscious about the quality of the items I own.<br />
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I should begin by mentioning how full my closest is, it's stuffed actually. Because of my lack of space and in an effort to watch my spending, I haven't gone "shopping" in over a year. That is to say I haven't gone on a shopping spree in a long time. I have definitely bought new clothing over the past year, but I can guarantee that most months I didn't buy any apparel or accessories. There have been times where I truly needed new things, and times where I really, <i>really</i> wanted a particular item that I have gone shopping with specific articles in mind. In the past, I would go shopping to cure boredom, find a top that I liked, and purchase it in several different colors just because I could. This worked alright for awhile because my size was always changing which gave me a good reason to clean out my closest often. But now that my measurements are pretty consistent, going on shopping sprees isn't the best way to spend my time or money.<br />
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I don't mind the idea of frivolous shopping like that if I was able to afford new clothes all the time and if I had the space to store said items. However, currently my budget doesn't allow me to go wild while shopping, and I have an insanely difficult time saying goodbye to my beloved belongings so I never free up closest space for new clothes. A few months ago I did go through my closest and got rid of a few items, but I still have a long way to go.<br />
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Although my shopping habits have significantly decreased throughout the past year, I did sew for myself a lot more than I ever have. Over the year, I sewed myself several tops and dresses mostly out of fabrics I already had stashed. Some of these tops and dresses are made a lot better than others and therefore get worn more often, and others I refer to as practice pieces which are okay too. I like the idea of making things for myself to get the best fit possible, so that it's essentially tailored to my own body. I also (usually) enjoy sewing; create a garment out of a flat piece of fabric is just amazing to think about. Choosing the exact shape, adding details, and just fine-tuning pieces are things I really appreciate in handmade clothing that it makes me want to have a completely me-made wardrobe.<br />
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Scrolling through my Instagram feed, I love looking at all of the hand knit items. It makes me so giddy just thinking about how people wear complete outfits made solely by them. I want to be that person! I have tons of scarves and shawls that I've knit for myself in the past, and they get worn a lot during the winter. I also have several pairs of socks that either I or Lauren knit for me, that I appreciate a lot more than I had before. This summer I knit my first sweater and I received a hand knit sweater from Lauren recently, both of which will be worn a lot in the next few months. I feel like I'm really starting to understand the joy handmade items bring to people, and I'm loving it. I now want to knit tons of socks in the prettiest (neutral colored) yarn to keep my feet warm and pretty!<br />
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Even though I sadly haven't sewn at all this month, I've thought a lot about what I want my overall wardrobe to look like. What if some random person were to come over to my apartment and look inside my closest, what would they think? Does what I own and wear successfully reflect the real me? Probably not. In the past I would buy clothes (and yarn and fabric) because the colors were so bright and pretty, but in reality I much prefer to adorn myself in grays, white, navy, browns, and black clothing. Although sometimes boring to look at, I love wearing neutral colors and I need to remember that for future clothing items.<br />
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Although shopping and spending lots of money is fun, I rather have a smaller wardrobe where I absolutely love everything in it, than one full to the brim with so-so items. Quality over quantity. Because I still have tons of fabric and yarn, I don't plan on buying anymore soon, even though the majority of what I have doesn't adhere to my style. I want to use a lot of what I have before I go and store more stuff into my already crammed apartment. Whether I use what I already own to make stuff for myself or friends/family, I want to make a good dent in what I have in an effort not to hoard anymore stuff that goes unused. Additionally, I don't have any grand plans to buy much ready-to-wear clothing in the near future. I know there will be times where I see something I love that I can't stop thinking about that I just need to buy, but for the most part, I have everything I need already.<br />
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Months ago the capsule wardrobe idea seemed like something that I would like to incorporate. But I never moved past the idea stage, mainly because of the storage issue. Although I have a long way to go, I want to work towards having the perfect (for me) wardrobe. I know the first step is letting go of many items I already own, and I'm very slowly working on that. Achieving that perfect, mostly me-made wardrobe truly excites me though and motivates me to make changes. As the girl who considered shopping a hobby in high school and spent many weekends hanging at the mall with friends, greatly cutting back on this habit already seems like so much progress. Right now for me, the concept of slow fashion means creating special items for myself that I love to look at and wear, while honing in on what exactly it is that I need/want to complete this wardrobe. Eventually, perhaps I may get so good at this that I take it one step further and want only fabrics/yarn produced in socially responsible places, but for right now I want to focus on the garments themselves.<br />
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I have a running list of what I want to sew out of each fabric I have, and what I want to knit out of many of the yarn skeins I own. While I want everything to already be done, I know that part of the excitement in having a handmade wardrobe is in the making itself. I'll take my time and make each item perfect for me instead of adding yet another okay garment to my closest. It feels great to get all these thoughts out of my head and onto something a little more tangible!<br />
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<i>All of the pictures in this post are of my <a href="http://chinneus.blogspot.com/2015/06/tribal-print-pretty-blouse.html">Tribal Print Pretty Blouse</a>. The first half are in-progress photos, and last two are of my completely finished top. I started sewing this blouse at least five years ago and never finished. Earlier this year I picked this project back up, unpicked all the seams, and started over from the very beginning. I wasn't happy with what my original top was going to look like, so I began again. It's all a process.</i>Anonymoushttp://www.blogger.com/profile/06304557600089738163noreply@blogger.com0tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-5819469863031765262.post-46468097574493492282015-10-28T05:00:00.000-04:002015-10-28T12:05:54.607-04:00Rhinebeck Sheep and Wool Festival: Sunday<div class="separator" style="clear: both; text-align: center;">
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We arrived back at the fairgrounds Sunday morning around 8:30, unsure of whether the gates were going to open at 9 or 10. You would think the Sheep and Wool Festival's website would clearly announce the times of the event, but even on Ravelry, I found that many people were having this same issue as me. Anyway, we showed up hoping to be able to enter at 9, but soon realized the gates didn't open till 10. Instead of being miserable in the cold, we camped out in the car for another half hour before braving the chilly line. While we were passing time, we looked at the program we received on Saturday which come to find out, clearly states on the front cover that the fairgrounds don't open till 10 on Sunday. Go figure!<br />
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Once we entered the festival, despite the freezing temperatures, I could already feel like this was going to be a much better day. Don't get me wrong, I loved being there on Saturday, but there were easily half the amount of people there than there were on Saturday. It was so much easier getting around and we were able to spend a lot more time in all the booths without getting pushed out of the way. This made for a much better experience.<br />
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Since we really didn't see any of the animals on Saturday, we spent all of Sunday morning petting and taking selfies with the sheep. I surprised myself by enjoying this so much. The barn wasn't that crowded, and the sheep had such big personalities! A lot of the sheep came right up to us, begging to petted.<br />
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Even though we loved the falafel the previous day, we decided to try something different for lunch on Sunday. Another vendor offered a grilled tofu banh mi and pumpkin soup that were both labelled vegan. I knew that if I didn't at least try the sandwich, I would regret it. At this point it was snowing a tiny bit and we could no longer stand sitting in the cold. We thankfully found a small bench right inside the entrance to one of the warehouses and ate our lunch there to stay warm. The sandwich was pretty good, although the pickled fixings should've been drained more before being added; the bread was a little too soggy for me. I could've done without the pumpkin soup as I was expecting it to be savory, and was really surprised when I tasted my first spoonful of sweet soup. In my opinion, the falafel was the best vegan meal at the festival, but I really appreciate having multiple options.<br />
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After lunch, we did some shopping. We spent the previous night going through our Ravelry queues figuring out exactly what we wanted to knit so that we could purchase yarn for specific projects. I knew I wanted to get enough yarn to knit a sweater, and after seeing everything at the festival on Saturday, I decided that I wanted to knit a cabled, loose-fitted pullover sweater. I had a pretty good idea of where I wanted to buy my sweater quantity of yarn, it was just a matter of choosing the color. I really liked the "Twist of Fate Spinnery" booth because their yarn offerings seemed simple, in a very good way. I was into their natural colored yarns, which made picking out my exact skeins even more difficult. For most weights of yarn, you had the option between 100% wool, or 50/50% wool/alpaca. Per Lauren's advice, I picked the worsted weight 50/50 blend in a medium gray colorway. Even though they don't raise their own sheep (which would've been awesome!), their yarn was super soft, clearly labelled, and relatively affordable. I don't have a specific pattern picked out yet, but I'm really excited to knit a true Rhinebeck sweater!<br />
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On Saturday I also found sparkly sock yarn that I was pretty sure I wanted to buy, I just needed to decide on the color. I've been skeptical of sparkly knit-ware, but I figured socks are the best way to get a good feel for the trend. I picked a skein from the Starry Skies Collection in the Purple Dancer colorway from the Carodan Farm Wool Shop and was even happier when they added a free mini wooden ruler with my purchase. It's the little things in life!<br />
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For the entire weekend I had been contemplating buying a pen and ink print from Gene Matras to add to my slowly growing art wall. I loved his work, but my favorite prints were those of sheep. Although I like sheep, I love pigs even more and he just happened to have one pig print. Then again, I also really loved his Winter landscape prints. There were just so many good things to choose from. After going back and forth for so long, I finally decided to go with the pig print and I'm so glad I did! I've already framed the beautiful print and I'm anxiously waiting to hang it up!<br />
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We planned on leaving by 3 PM to make sure we returned the rental car on time. Since it was so cold and we saw and bought everything we wanted, we left even a little earlier than that. Thankfully there weren't many cars leaving at this time, and we were able to quickly exit the parking lot. Driving in the daylight was much more scenic than the previous morning's dusk experience. I loved seeing all the red and yellow leaves!<br />
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I had an amazing weekend in Rhinebeck and truly loved every moment. Since it was so cold, I even got to wear both of my sweaters at the same time, fingerless mitts, and a shawl! I hope that I'm able to attend the festival sometime again in the future, and thanks to this trip, Lauren and I unanimously decided that we want to go to the Maryland Sheep and Wool event in the Spring!<br />
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Anonymoushttp://www.blogger.com/profile/06304557600089738163noreply@blogger.com0tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-5819469863031765262.post-5530931677524815942015-10-27T05:00:00.000-04:002015-10-27T05:00:02.680-04:00Rhinebeck Sheep and Wool Festival: Saturday<div class="separator" style="clear: both; text-align: center;">
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Last weekend I finally got to experience all the glory of Rhinebeck! Lauren and I decided that for our birthdays this year, we would gift each other a trip to the Sheep and Wool Festival. I didn't do much research about the event prior to our trip, but I had been to Stitches West in the <a href="http://chinneus.blogspot.com/2014/02/stitches-west-2014.html">past</a>, so I thought I had a pretty good idea how this yarn festival would be. All throughout the summer I had been looking forward to embarking on this trip, and the actual event definitely held up to my expectations and then some!<br />
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Basically, there were really only two big things we needed to figure out before our trip: transportation and lodging. Since neither of us brought our cars when we moved back East, we typically rely on public transportation or simply walking to get around everywhere. Obviously we couldn't walk to New York, and we didn't want to have to deal with multiple forms of public transportation and not having a way to get around once we actually made it to Rhinebeck. So, we decided to celebrate turning 25 and rent a car for the first time. As for the lodging issue, by the time we finalized this trip, all of the hotels in the area had been filled for months. Kind of as a last resort, we tried Airbnb and rented a room from a very nice lady in Hyde Park. Since we would only be there to sleep and shower (we arrived at 9 PM on Saturday and left Saturday at 8 AM), I was able to put most of the fear of staying in a stranger's house <i>with</i> the stranger there mostly behind me. As far as our stay there went, everything went well and I had very little contact with the hostess which was just fine by me.<br />
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Anyway, we showed up at the car rental place at 4:30 in the morning on Saturday. We wanted to get an early start with the hope of making it up to Rhinebeck before the gates opened. I was shocked at how many tolls there are in New Jersey, and stressed out about not having exact change. Luckily between Lauren and me, we managed to successfully pay all the tolls. We made a bathroom stop as soon as we crossed into New York, and loaded up on quarters for future tolls as well. Even though we had plenty of snacks in the car already(!), we just <i>had</i> to try Dunkin Donuts' hash browns at 6 AM. They were really delicious, by the way!<br />
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We made it up to Rhinebeck with plenty of time to spare. Our parking spot was even super close to the entrance, and we were easily two of the first 50 people in line. Although we still had to wait in line in the cold for an hour, it was worth it. Even tough we were some of the first people who entered, the festival grounds quickly became swarmed with people everywhere. Since we didn't have anything specific we <i>needed</i> to buy, we chose to start in the middle, and work our way back to the front. This worked well for the first half hour, but then there were people <i>everywhere</i>. It was so busy the entire day that it was difficult to get a good look at the booths. However, being the stubborn people we are, we made it through all the barns to complete our first look. I was in search of pretty, yet neutral colored sock yarn and a sweater quantity of yarn. Since nothing really jumped out at me, I wanted to look at everything first before deciding exactly what to buy. I set a budget for myself and I really wanted to stick to it.<br />
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Before going to Rhinebeck one thing I did research were the food options. Both Lauren and I were really excited to try Aba's Falafel, so it made choosing falafel platters for lunch a no-brainer. Although the line looked really long and many people weren't happy about that, the line actually moved relatively fast. Plus, I really don't mind waiting in line if I'm about to be rewarded with an amazing meal. The falafel was amazing as expected! Unfortunately, there wasn't any inside seating so we had to sit in the cold, shivering while polishing off our lunch. Honestly, the worst part of the entire trip was the weather. I wanted to show off my hand knit sweaters while I was there so I didn't bring a jacket. Although hand knits are warm, they aren't warm enough in 40 degree temperatures! Right after lunch we warmed ourselves up with hot apple cider which helped for awhile.<br />
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Afterward, we headed to the remainder of the buildings, which were basically warehouses. The first one housed random food/wine/non-fiber handmade items for sale. Reading reviews on Ravelry, I wanted to try maple candy. So as soon as I saw that booth, I made Lauren stop. They sold little packets with three tiny maple candy pieces. We each bought a little bag and immediately sampled one. We were hooked. If you ever get the chance to try them, you must! They melt in your mouth and are incredibly sweet, in a good way. Obviously I had to buy more for Christmas presents.<br />
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It was in the last warehouse that I purchased my first skein of yarn for the weekend! We walked by "Into the Whirled" and Lauren started talking about how cool their yarn is. I was easily persuaded, and had to find the perfect colorway. I picked the "Quoth the Raven" colorway in the Pakokku Sock base because I loved neutral black with little pops of blues and purples.<br />
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Lauren found the Amity Batik Farm booth that makes various sheep themed batik fabric and prints. Since she loves all things sheep, I picked up a note card to give to her for a future present with the cutest sheep on the front. <br />
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We stayed till closing as we wanted to soak in as much as we could on our short weekend trip. It was a mad house getting out of the parking lot though. Thankfully we had plenty of snacks to entertain ourselves while we waited. We also decided to grab dinner in Rhinebeck in the hope that most of the traffic would be gone, before heading over to Hyde Park for the remainder of the night. I never even thought to make reservations anywhere, and after being turned away from Aroi (Thai food), I was worried that this would be common at all the other restaurants in the area too. Lauren suggested that we go to the Japanese restaurant close by, so we quickly scanned their menu and headed in. I had high hopes for Momiji, but I wasn't that pleased with the service. The food was good; I ordered a cucumber roll and a sweet potato roll, and both were great. However, it took way too long for our order to be taken, and even longer for them to bring out our food. They weren't that busy, so it was frustrating having to wait so long.<br />
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After dinner we made the half hour drive to Hyde Park. I had a hard time finding the house in the dark, but once we were sure we made it to the correct address, we became acquainted with the landlady and went to sleep soon after. We wanted to wake up early enough to be back at the fairgrounds before the gates opened again. We had a lot more shopping we wanted to do, and we wanted to make sure we would plenty of time to see the animals. Anonymoushttp://www.blogger.com/profile/06304557600089738163noreply@blogger.com0tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-5819469863031765262.post-52865859900386885692015-09-07T08:00:00.000-04:002015-09-07T08:00:16.408-04:00Mermaid Cross Stitch<div style="text-align: left;">
In addition to the <a href="http://chinneus.blogspot.com/2015/09/striped-knit-nightgown.html">nightgown</a> I sewed Marissa for her birthday, I also made her a cross stitched mermaid picture. </div>
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For the past few years, Marissa has liked all things mermaid. Hopefully that still holds true, since I bought her a mermaid card too. Anyway, this year I wanted to cross stitch something for her since I've knit and sewn her multiple things in the past. I figured it was about time she add a cross stitched mermaid to her collection of Courtney-made items. What are sisters for? Side note: for my birthday this year, she sewed an apron for me! Marissa has never really been into sewing before, but I'm excited she's taking an interest in it now.<br />
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I wanted this to be a more modern looking mermaid, but I had trouble finding a suitable pattern. So I went rogue, and attempted to write my own. Using graph paper I sketched out a mermaid, and let each square box represent 3 rows and 3 columns. I cross stitched the majority of the mermaid using this rough pattern, until I got to the mermaid's torso. At that point, I lightly penciled in the rest of the mermaid. I realize that this isn't how cross stitching is supposed to be, but it's what worked for me. I had a hard time figuring out how to cross stitch the hair. I wanted the mermaid to have a head full of beautiful flowing hair, which is a lot easier to achieve on paper than it is when you're constricted to square boxes. So continuing my rebellious streak, I used elongated straight stitches to create a head full of hair. It turned out better than it would've had I stuck to traditional cross stitches, but I still wasn't able to achieve that long flowing hair I imagined.<br />
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I thought the mermaid needed more texture. So, to add some pop, I added a tiny flower to her hair. To the mermaid's bust, I added back stitches to create a simple seashell pattern. I also wanted to mimic the look of scales on her tail, and so I used more back stitches here. I think these little details added a lot of depth to the overall picture, and I'm really glad I took the time to do this. </div>
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In my mind, the rock is significantly smaller in relation to the mermaid, but I rolled with it and made it work by adding boats and a whale on the side. I was hesitant to include them as I thought they would take away from the mermaid, but I think they make the picture a lot better. How cool is that shiny gold boat, by the way?<br />
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I was intending for the mermaid to fit easily into a 5x7 inch picture frame, but soon realized that wasn't going to be possible. However, it fits wonderfully into an 8.5x11 inch frame. Normally I would've gone with a light brown or white frame, but since her new(!) bedroom has black accents, I stuck with that color scheme. <br />
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I'm glad I went ahead and tried making up my own pattern because I had a very specific vision for how I wanted this mermaid to look. For now though, I think I'll stick to published patterns that other people have already created. It's a lot less stressful, and so much more relaxing to work on a tried and true chart. Even though it's not perfect, I hope Marissa enjoys it! Anonymoushttp://www.blogger.com/profile/06304557600089738163noreply@blogger.com0tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-5819469863031765262.post-59872500283999292452015-09-04T08:00:00.000-04:002015-09-04T08:00:13.949-04:00Striped Knit NightgownFirst off, happy 24th birthday to my favorite sister in the world! 24 is a good number, Marissa! Since it's her birthday and she should've received her presents by now, I
thought it was perfect to share her first handmade item on her actual
birthday. I decided to sew Marissa a nightgown, something pretty basic and comfortable to sleep in.<br />
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I approached this nightgown as if it were a simple empire waist dress with a fun bust and a simple skirt. I loosely designed the top of this dress made up of two separate breast/cup pieces attached to two straps, with an elastic casing on the bottom. I have no experience in bra making and so had no idea what the cups for the bust should look like. I sketched out a very rough idea and went with it. Because the fabric I chose is a little bit sheer, I decided to line the top with the same fabric, basically making that part reversible. I cut the straps extra long, and since I had plenty of fabric to work with, I attached the straps so that they criss-cross in the back; I won't tell you how many times I had to redo this because I kept sewing them on twisted! Criss-crossing the straps also makes the top more supportive, I think.<br />
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I made a casing for the elastic 1 inch from the bottom of the bust piece, using 2/8 inch elastic. Surprisingly, this was my first time making a casing like this and although it was time consuming, it was so simple. Once the bust portion of the dress was "done", I tried it on and it was huge. Even though Marissa's bust measurement is larger than mine, there was no way she would be able to fill out the cups. Not only were the cups too big, but there was too much fabric under the arms, and the straps were way too long.<br />
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To fix all of these problems without having to start completely over while still making a finished garment that I'm proud of, I decided to rethink my original design. While wearing the bust piece, I played around with the excess fabric, and came up with a good solution. Twisting the the bust pieces several times, where they meet the straps, made the cups slimmer at the top. The resulting gathers at the top of the bust pieces were extra bonus details. The only problem now was the massive unsightly seam where the bust pieces meet the straps. I wanted this "fix" to look intentional. Instead of cutting off the excess fabric from the straps, I wrapped the extra fabric around the large seam several times. I folded down the raw edge on the back side, and hand stitched it in place so that it wouldn't be visible on the front. Although time consuming, I love how this turned out!<br />
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For the skirt, I cut two pieces of fabric- each 20.5 in. wide x 25 in. long. To make sure the skirt would be long enough, I had to piece the skirt together with the stripes going vertically. This contrast (the stripes on the top are horizontal) has really grown on me since. I sewed the two side seams, and then gathered the top of the skirt with basting stitches. I then sewed the skirt to the top with a 1/2 inch seam allowance, later cut down to 1/4 inch. I hemmed the dress so that it hits several inches above my knee; Marissa is an inch shorter than me so I think this will be a good length for her.<br />
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The nightgown is so soft! I hope Marissa enjoys wearing it to sleep, and even more so, I desperately hope that it fits her well. Happy birthday! Anonymoushttp://www.blogger.com/profile/06304557600089738163noreply@blogger.com0tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-5819469863031765262.post-4662862236956136642015-08-27T08:00:00.000-04:002015-08-27T08:00:08.016-04:00Laylow Shawl KAL<div class="separator" style="clear: both; text-align: center;">
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I say this all the time and here I go announcing it yet again: I love meeting up with my knitting circle every Sunday afternoon. I look forward to it all week! This knitting group started out as simply a knit along for a shawl. The KAL was open to everyone, but for those that are local to Loop, they were welcome to meet at the yarn shop every Sunday afternoon to knit with other yarn enthusiasts. For our first KAL I made the <a href="http://chinneus.blogspot.com/2015/06/melodia-shawl.html">Melodia shawl</a>. Most people wanted to stick with the flat shawl/scarf patterns, so the <a href="http://www.ravelry.com/projects/chinner24/laylow">Laylow</a> pattern was selected for the second round of the KAL.<br />
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The shawl is designed to use two different colors of yarn: a large main color, and a small border of another color. Because the border section is narrow, it doesn't require much yardage. I wanted to use leftover yarn from a previous project in attempt to clear out my tub of yarn. Because I had plenty to work with, I selected the remainder of the green yarn from the <a href="http://chinneus.blogspot.com/2015/05/laurens-three-color-cowl.html">Three Color Cowl</a> I knit earlier in the year. I went through my stashed yarn to find a complementary color for the main body portion of the shawl. Unfortunately, most of my stashed skeins are sport weight, and since this patterns calls for fingering, I didn't have what I needed on hand. I wanted to pair this dull green with a light brown neutral, and Loop had exactly what I was looking for. I went with Tosh Merino Light in Antique Lace- Lauren thinks that it is more gray, I think it's brown. Whatever the color though, both of us chose this colorway for the body of ours shawls, and it works well with my dull green and her rich purple.<br />
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This was my first time knitting dropped stitches, and I was really hesitant to do so at first. I wasn't sure I liked the look of them, thinking the loose stitches just weren't my style. I went ahead and included them like the pattern requested, and I'm happy I did. The dropped stitches add depth and texture to the otherwise simple garter shawl. It's still not my most favorite look ever, but I definitely don't hate it either.<br />
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I tend to like larger scarves/cowls/shawls, and I didn't want small yet significant amounts of yarn leftover. So, I decided to extend the pattern and added three extra 6-row repeats to the body. Since I knit the body larger, I also increased the border section by 7 rows. Doing this, I was able to use up the majority of both colors instead of wasting significant yardage. I also love how much larger and fuller my finished shawl is. I can easily wear my shawl wrapped around my neck like a scarf- my favorite look! Wearing my shawl this way, it's a lot fuller in the front which I think I'll really appreciate in the winter.<br />
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The pattern suggested and gave instructions for the lace bind off. I didn't question the pattern and went ahead using this method, although I wish I hadn't. At least for me, this bind off isn't stretchy at all so I had a difficult time blocking my shawl. The bind off has no give whereas the rest of the garter shawl does.<br />
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Loop has taken a break from hosting KALs, but Lauren and I keep coming back every Sunday to knit and enjoy company with our established knitting circle. They've recently received shipments of <a href="http://www.loopyarn.com/collections/yarn/products/knitterly-things-vesper-sock">Knitterly Things Vesper Sock yarn</a>, and many people in the group have taken a huge interest in the self-striping colorways. I'll be working on <a href="https://instagram.com/p/6bmBeyIYIJ/?taken-by=chinnersaurus">my socks</a> (knit two-at-a-time, magic looped) in the Crossroads colorway for awhile! <br />
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Yarn used: Tosh Merino Light in Antique Lace, and Dream in Color Jilly in Bitter<br />
Needles: Size 3 Knitter's Pride Cubics circular needles with a 40 inch cable Anonymoushttp://www.blogger.com/profile/06304557600089738163noreply@blogger.com0tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-5819469863031765262.post-37723552267685542662015-08-26T08:00:00.000-04:002015-08-26T08:00:01.027-04:00Striped Plantain Tee<div class="separator" style="clear: both; text-align: center;">
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A few years ago I bought a bunch of cute knit fabric thinking that I wouldn't have any issues sewing with it. I felt pretty confident sewing with quilting cottons, and I didn't think knits would be much different. However, after my first attempt at sewing with knits without a serger, I gave up. My pretty knit fabric sat in a large tub, waiting for me to work up the courage to try again.<br />
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I recently started to love wearing knits again. I used to think they clung too much to my body, and I refused to wear garments made out of knits, unless they were super loose. I no longer have that issue, and want to wear comfortable knits all the time. So, I decided to give sewing with knits another try.<br />
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My first knit fabric attempt was a <a href="http://chinneus.blogspot.com/2015/05/striped-knit-scout-tee.html">Scout Tee</a> which is okay. I was just impressed that I managed to make something wearable. I knew I needed to figure out a better way to hem knits after reassessing that first top. I sewed the hems of that tee with a simple zig-zag stitch, but overall, it just looked funny to me.<br />
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I had been on the mission to find the perfect pattern to sew simple knit tees, and I honestly thought the Scout Tee was going to be the winner. I love the pattern, but it's not drafted specifically for knits, so I continued my search. The Plantain Tee was offered as a free pattern, so I figured I had nothing to lose trying it. To my surprise, as of now, I've found that perfect knit tee pattern I had been searching for. The pattern is written for knits, and my top fits perfectly.<br />
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This time, I used a regular straight stitch for all of my hems and I love the way that turned out. The hems turned out smooth without any waves or irregularities. I folded the fabric up at 1/2 inch and sewed as close to the raw edge as possible. I also attached the neck binding with a straight stitch, but zig-zag stitched that seam shut. Doing this made it much easier to top stitch the seam down, and also gives makes it look more finished. Like all of my newly sewn tops and dresses, I included a tag with the garment's size stamped on, made from twill tape. I sewed the side and shoulder seams also with a straight stitch, but left them unfinished since fraying won't be an issue with knits. <br />
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The pattern offers both long and short sleeve versions. I opted for the later, but I'll definitely be sewing several long sleeved tops this fall/winter. I didn't need to make any changes to the pattern pieces or instructions because I love the way this tee fits as written! It's not super flow-y (like how my Scout Tee turned out), but gradually flares out below the waist. <br />
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Even though I'm trying to work up the courage to go through my entire closest and purge clothing, I'm already thinking about what I want to sew for myself to add to my fall/winter wardrobe. Like I said before, more Plantain Tees (with elbow patches!) will definitely be included!<br />
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<a href="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEgT2R2gDSjg9MJ7td2Oe75iig0QL_hhUq9iOUWFfJzw4sYlUUMNPdOkjvbLL7_Pr9Vh-w4vmDGSx8LqtFptoKuFA4L_ki0qPxNQZjMH5-RMgu6BWCSAsZHu4H23LrBrNPa2nniy8OK0a88/s1600/081.JPG" imageanchor="1" style="margin-left: 1em; margin-right: 1em;"><img border="0" height="640" src="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEgT2R2gDSjg9MJ7td2Oe75iig0QL_hhUq9iOUWFfJzw4sYlUUMNPdOkjvbLL7_Pr9Vh-w4vmDGSx8LqtFptoKuFA4L_ki0qPxNQZjMH5-RMgu6BWCSAsZHu4H23LrBrNPa2nniy8OK0a88/s640/081.JPG" width="424" /></a></div>
Pattern: <a href="http://boutique.deer-and-doe.fr/29-tops-plantain-t-shirt.html">Plantain Tee</a><br />
Size: 38Anonymoushttp://www.blogger.com/profile/06304557600089738163noreply@blogger.com0tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-5819469863031765262.post-49344763501619772132015-08-25T08:00:00.000-04:002015-08-25T08:00:05.053-04:00What Running Looks like Now<div class="separator" style="clear: both; text-align: center;">
<a href="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEinfpVNJpkNZDr1309iNyfdTJNQMIijDDGQPODvQkN22YmSVx977AUshlHMWrtT6wFzd5_gh2B3slhQG7x7Pf2ua1rp586E62plj3RpxZ9bPs0w8lTE9DiKfrXYDlk__iFK1jh_srIp-uU/s1600/IMG_4157.JPG" imageanchor="1" style="margin-left: 1em; margin-right: 1em;"><img border="0" height="640" src="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEinfpVNJpkNZDr1309iNyfdTJNQMIijDDGQPODvQkN22YmSVx977AUshlHMWrtT6wFzd5_gh2B3slhQG7x7Pf2ua1rp586E62plj3RpxZ9bPs0w8lTE9DiKfrXYDlk__iFK1jh_srIp-uU/s640/IMG_4157.JPG" width="640" /></a></div>
After finishing the <a href="http://chinneus.blogspot.com/2015/08/san-francisco-marathon-part-ii.html">San Francisco Marathon</a> at the end of July, I planned to take a week off from running entirely. Well as it goes, one week turned into two, and then I made excuses to skip my next long run. From personal experience, I knew that I needed to start running again, if only a few miles at a time, otherwise I'd stop running completely, and with several races coming up that really wouldn't be a good idea.<br />
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I flew back to Philadelphia the first week of August, expecting to easily fall back into my normal daily routine. However, that transition was so hard and didn't go as planned. I needed more than a few days to readjust to the time change, and my body was out of whack from the huge coffee and no water the day of travel. But knowing how I am, I had to make myself run in order to get back into the habit of doing it. I didn't want to lose all of the endurance and speed I built, and have to start all over from square one again.<br />
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Being gone for almost a month, I quickly forgot how humid and muggy the East Coast is in the summer. I much prefer running outside, but the weather conditions were doing more harm than good to me. Sure I was getting all of my midweek runs in, but my legs felt like they were being shredded. My muscles were constantly sore and tired, so I started going to the gym instead. For the past two weeks I've been doing almost all of my midweek runs on the indoor track where there is good airflow and air conditioning. Once the midweek miles start picking up though, I'm going to have to move over to the treadmill because running dozens of circles around a 1/12 mile track makes me pretty dizzy. Thankfully though, the weather should be better towards the middle of September. I'm really looking forward to not having to wake up at the crack of dawn when I want to run outside.<br />
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While I've been struggling to get back into the routine of running five times a week, I'm still really motivated. Having races on my calendar that I've signed up for months ago motivates me to get to the gym. I've run a half marathon before without any proper training, and it sucks! I never want to be in that much pain during and after a race again, so I use that horrible experience as inspiration to adhere to a training schedule.<br />
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I love participating in races, who doesn't? The race swag and expo are so fun, and I wear the novelty tech tees all the time. But this year, I decided to do less races and instead focus more on the few that I do sign up for. I've been concentrating on training for specific races rather than just running random half marathons because I can. So far this year, I've run a <a href="http://chinneus.blogspot.com/2015/01/resolution-run-10-miler.html">10 mile trail race</a> and a full marathon. At the end of October I'll be running the Rock 'n Roll Philadelphia half marathon (on Halloween!), and the Philadelphia full marathon at the end of November. Although I'm missing out on adding more shirts to my growing collection of race tees, I've never been more excited for all the fanfare for one specific race at a time. And just like always, I've set time goals for these next two races that I hope to achieve! Anonymoushttp://www.blogger.com/profile/06304557600089738163noreply@blogger.com0tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-5819469863031765262.post-16052472428203230602015-08-24T08:00:00.000-04:002015-08-24T08:00:13.122-04:00Floral Tiny Pocket Tank<div class="separator" style="clear: both; text-align: center;">
<a href="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEg95BiklAS1V88adb8KFTDBI_ibPHfvX5VhPpP-ZapLn7YrnLkn8UnUT1UrmirZdBvnJrc1r73em2JQ9dCm_BY-r4VVJ11ipRO-UdZ_9XlmMt6HFEnNbCMWJAyCV7yXJloawlRvU0pDFlI/s1600/065.JPG" imageanchor="1" style="margin-left: 1em; margin-right: 1em;"><img border="0" height="424" src="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEg95BiklAS1V88adb8KFTDBI_ibPHfvX5VhPpP-ZapLn7YrnLkn8UnUT1UrmirZdBvnJrc1r73em2JQ9dCm_BY-r4VVJ11ipRO-UdZ_9XlmMt6HFEnNbCMWJAyCV7yXJloawlRvU0pDFlI/s640/065.JPG" width="640" /></a></div>
Perhaps you recognize this fabric from my <a href="http://chinneus.blogspot.com/2013/07/my-graduation-dress.html">graduation dress</a>? Well, I just had to use it again since it's the perfect weight fabric for this muggy, humid Philadelphia Summer. That, and my graduation dress no longer fits. So it seemed like a good idea to make a second garment with the same exact, leftover fabric.<br />
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<a href="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEg7ZlND7Qud8rChUXelPD3YufKriMUJIFpVTeLy6DBpoTxkaL9pPPa0vCK6HxmxsEhzUfWzmHDpLMlShdsd_EnCma0Q1ITquxc80Zoxpk4xmSb9ztJnWTzcVomUB1vDWbl17LmmSfSqcDs/s1600/028.JPG" imageanchor="1" style="margin-left: 1em; margin-right: 1em;"><img border="0" height="640" src="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEg7ZlND7Qud8rChUXelPD3YufKriMUJIFpVTeLy6DBpoTxkaL9pPPa0vCK6HxmxsEhzUfWzmHDpLMlShdsd_EnCma0Q1ITquxc80Zoxpk4xmSb9ztJnWTzcVomUB1vDWbl17LmmSfSqcDs/s640/028.JPG" width="424" /></a></div>
I bought this pattern over three years ago, but never actually finished a single top. I've been trying (slowly but surely) to work my way through my fabric stash. I had just enough of this floral print left to squeak out one of these tanks. I didn't have enough fabric left for the neck or arm hole bindings, but found some leftover gray linen instead. The sturdiness of the linen worked better anyway. <br />
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<a href="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEjNxd0WM8PAxl6PqdI7IQUW-zOTdQy-F_Gk14NK5CI3Al19a9VP59oUSoWEIEGBMRJHa65NRLJYmnR6DLEZ_yXGyaMta5niRitojKpuuj_ROAcowJ9AWQAEEMxncFZuy45GWlpwEkI028c/s1600/032.JPG" imageanchor="1" style="margin-left: 1em; margin-right: 1em;"><img border="0" height="640" src="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEjNxd0WM8PAxl6PqdI7IQUW-zOTdQy-F_Gk14NK5CI3Al19a9VP59oUSoWEIEGBMRJHa65NRLJYmnR6DLEZ_yXGyaMta5niRitojKpuuj_ROAcowJ9AWQAEEMxncFZuy45GWlpwEkI028c/s640/032.JPG" width="424" /></a></div>
This was a fairly simple pattern, and I didn't encounter any real problems. The only fit adjustment I made was cutting about an inch off from the bottom to take into account my short torso. Placing the pocket on straight definitely took effort, but I like that little added detail so it was worth the struggle. I haven't sewn bust darts in so long that I had to look up how to do this technique. I also decided to use French seams throughout the top for a more finished look. Otherwise, this tank was a quick sew. It took me about a week to finish with a lot of starting and stopping in between.<br />
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<a href="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEgYGu6m_XTR_esbwvFWIdn_7Bi4Feg3Et00qcBxyA8H12mUaSuSB9ck_hEjLHWDosLr-1nWdWpRW9qSTHUO1tzc_v8eDcjtBDzycXL_Ijc_PNtGRwUqvW36_4M9pzQmL57oM20OaAOTsq8/s1600/053.JPG" imageanchor="1" style="margin-left: 1em; margin-right: 1em;"><img border="0" height="640" src="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEgYGu6m_XTR_esbwvFWIdn_7Bi4Feg3Et00qcBxyA8H12mUaSuSB9ck_hEjLHWDosLr-1nWdWpRW9qSTHUO1tzc_v8eDcjtBDzycXL_Ijc_PNtGRwUqvW36_4M9pzQmL57oM20OaAOTsq8/s640/053.JPG" width="424" /></a></div>
Pattern: Grainline Studio's Tiny Pocket Tank<br />
Size: 4Anonymoushttp://www.blogger.com/profile/06304557600089738163noreply@blogger.com0tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-5819469863031765262.post-30066366592049636122015-08-21T08:00:00.000-04:002015-08-21T08:00:04.564-04:00San Francisco Marathon: Part II Yesterday I talked all about our <a href="http://chinneus.blogspot.com/2015/08/san-francisco-marathon-part-i-pre-race.html">pre-race fun</a>, including my favorite expo purchases and delicious dinner! Today I'm getting to the really good stuff- the actual race!<br />
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Since Lauren and I did all of the training together and we naturally run at very similar paces, we decided to run the entire marathon together. We had a big time goal (under 4 hours and 30 minutes), so we knew that we needed to run strong the entire 26.2 miles. From our past experiences, we decided that we weren't going to look at our pace but rather run entirely on feel alone. Obsessing on pace only makes us stressed and can be very discouraging if we fall behind. We did all of our training using 10:1 run:walk intervals, so we stuck to this for the marathon as well.<br />
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<b>Miles 0-4: Embarcadero </b><br />
- We took off much faster than originally planned, trying to weave in and out of people.<br />
- I was so in awe that I was actually embarking on this race that I didn't really look at my surroundings. I remember running by a few piers, but I was mostly reminding myself to keep moving and put one foot in front of the other. It sounds silly, but I was in shock that I was doing this.<br />
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<b>Miles 4-5.5: Presidio Part I</b><br />
- We were still weaving in and out of people, so we unfortunately missed a lot of good photo opportunities.<br />
- We encountered the first big hill of the race. Expecting it to be a pretty hilly course, we decided to continue running up the hills, but at an easier pace. I was afraid that if we chose to walk the hills, we would be doing a lot of walking which would put our time goal way out of reach. <br />
- This area was really foggy so it was hard to see stuff in the distance. But what was viewable, was stunning! I was able to spot the Golden Gate Bridge which was really motivating because I knew that was our next big landmark. <br />
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<b>Miles 5.5-9.5: Golden Gate Bridge</b><br />
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<a href="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEiddSywNPc35Pd5Ep_vLYWQYLM8STKbX5QXxLvRD8pb5rQiZ-XNy6FlbH4r-EgIjsiECmO-De2YweOF-geFWsDCKkkX5B_kha8flCsS7xX5vQI5US5c78KrYEsNunfenGW-Gk8nWKIVNeY/s1600/IMG_4286.JPG" imageanchor="1" style="margin-left: 1em; margin-right: 1em;"><img border="0" height="640" src="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEiddSywNPc35Pd5Ep_vLYWQYLM8STKbX5QXxLvRD8pb5rQiZ-XNy6FlbH4r-EgIjsiECmO-De2YweOF-geFWsDCKkkX5B_kha8flCsS7xX5vQI5US5c78KrYEsNunfenGW-Gk8nWKIVNeY/s640/IMG_4286.JPG" width="480" /></a></div>
- Prior to the race I was warned that the bridge should be thought of as a hill with the center of the bridge as the apex, even though it looks flat. Knowing this, I didn't push myself in an effort to save my legs.<br />
- The race runs from the SF side to the Sausalito side of the bridge, and then turns back around to spit you out where you started. The turn around point (mile 7.5) marked the first aid station with fuel. I grabbed a pack of black cherry Gu Chomps and ate all of them between miles 7.5-11. Sidenote: I loved how these tasted and will be buying them as soon as I need more running fuel.<br />
- As Lauren and I were heading back into SF, we crossed paths with Marissa, Heather, and Leti who were working their way up to the turn around point. This was the only time we saw them throughout the entire race, but they snapped some good photos of Lauren and me.<br />
- I was surprised at how moist and foggy the air was on the bridge. If I hadn't known better, I would've thought that it recently rained.<br />
- Although it was exciting and a once in a lifetime experience running across the GG Bridge, as a middle of the pack runner, it was tricky navigating my way through the herds of people. There were only two car lanes open to the runners across the bridge, one car lane for each running direction separated by cones. Because the path was so narrow, we ended up running on the opposite side, hugging the cones the majority of the time. <br />
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<b>Miles 9.5-12.5:</b><br />
- We finished running through the scenic areas of SF's coast. One moment we were running along the water, and the next we were on the street. I definitely preferred the former of the two. <br />
- Many people wore their race shirts during the run which contains an image of the course on the back. I started realizing that because I'm vaguely familiar with the SF area, I could easily figure out where I was on the map. It was oddly very motivating to be able to see how much I had already run and how much more I had to go. Whenever I started feeling like I wanted to be done, I would look for a race shirt to check my progress. I think all race shirts should have the course on the back!<br />
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<b>Miles 12.5-19: Golden Gate Park</b><br />
- <b> </b>Probably the most serene, yet boring parts of the entire race. If we had been in GG Park for half that distance, I would've enjoyed it a lot more.<br />
- The first half marathon finished here, and the second half marathon started. It was a little disheartening to see the big finish line knowing that I still had over 13 more miles to run.<br />
- We ran into Dan (SacFit running buddy) and talked/ran with him for a few minutes. I love seeing people I know! <br />
- I saw my parents right before exiting the park. I didn't know exactly where I would be seeing them, so it was a great surprise to see familiar faces. <br />
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<b>Miles 19-21: Haight St.</b><br />
- I was expecting a lot of fanfare and excitement here, but it was just another ordinary street to me.<br />
- Somehow I missed the aid station with fuel, but I had plenty with me so that wasn't a big deal.<br />
- By this time I was getting tired and zoned out for awhile. I turned my brain off and let my legs just carry me. <br />
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<b>Miles 21-23.5:</b><br />
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- The hardest part of the race for me, mentally. I never hit the wall (thank goodness!), but I really just wanted to be done at this point.<br />
- We took it easier on the hills, and walked a few extra minutes. <br />
- There were a handful of residents who were cheering outside of their houses which was really encouraging. One man even set out a table with cut up oranges for the runners; I took two slices! <br />
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<b>Miles 23.5-26.2: </b><br />
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<a href="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEgqdcI9xT-h1etn6TQjixnAleMl5yBem3pVLxfT9ATTBbnw69wHN83Y3COOIr8wArVwsegq6IE4bbYEv2glpON3X1ZBJemWwJAMktEjJjaUShR1Qj_CeRy55CSzbo9OUxsmSQITclxoX1o/s1600/race_1085_photo_22814996.jpg" imageanchor="1" style="margin-left: 1em; margin-right: 1em;"><img border="0" height="640" src="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEgqdcI9xT-h1etn6TQjixnAleMl5yBem3pVLxfT9ATTBbnw69wHN83Y3COOIr8wArVwsegq6IE4bbYEv2glpON3X1ZBJemWwJAMktEjJjaUShR1Qj_CeRy55CSzbo9OUxsmSQITclxoX1o/s640/race_1085_photo_22814996.jpg" width="424" /></a><b> </b></div>
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<a href="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEipStQ2P3f-UTLsfPJfOC7XaKs__j9bMHts-AlhC5g_1ARygl55kB2DlefhPMRfjpK5dgjoih48io5sRWxO6VlEAoEt30p2Qrqk86YY6FAzQMLw8uLiXAv2Lfhm4lmYaV_NLrEavYYV4KA/s1600/race_1085_photo_22497234.jpg" imageanchor="1" style="margin-left: 1em; margin-right: 1em;"><img border="0" height="640" src="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEipStQ2P3f-UTLsfPJfOC7XaKs__j9bMHts-AlhC5g_1ARygl55kB2DlefhPMRfjpK5dgjoih48io5sRWxO6VlEAoEt30p2Qrqk86YY6FAzQMLw8uLiXAv2Lfhm4lmYaV_NLrEavYYV4KA/s640/race_1085_photo_22497234.jpg" width="426" /></a></div>
- I was expecting to see AT&T Park a lot sooner than we did. I kept telling myself that as soon as I saw the baseball stadium I would be in the final stretch of the race. I should've studied the course route more so that I would've had a more accurate idea of where we were.<br />
- It just so happened that there was a Giants game the afternoon of the race so there were tons of people lined up all around AT&T Park. The baseball fans were pretty much contained so that didn't pose any problems, but it was a surprise to see so many people walking in the opposite direction of the race to get to the game.<br />
- At mile 26 we saw a few of our good running buddies from SacFit. The day before they mentioned to us that they were going to try to make it out to the finish, but their plans weren't definite. It was so nice to see them cheering us on! Thank you so much Tim and Kathleen for being there! As soon as I spotted them, I had a sudden burst of energy and wanted to sprint to the finish. Seeing people you know cheering you on really is a great feeling, especially after 26 miles!<br />
- Lauren and I sprinted the last .2 miles to the finish line to receive our finishers' medals and post race treats!<br />
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<a href="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEiovNwMKfXtsatIYV14qjBi31M1T1KDZeNgYdAkfz3f8Hr4FunktVedrncCAcYRUl8aM6UkDA1ST_PYbLqk966S2X9kcf0hEUMbOwvfY-1sVPVhyv5MLl0YSo1ug_u9sZ8T8n34UEkDJNs/s1600/race_1085_photo_22566307.jpg" imageanchor="1" style="margin-left: 1em; margin-right: 1em;"><img border="0" height="640" src="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEiovNwMKfXtsatIYV14qjBi31M1T1KDZeNgYdAkfz3f8Hr4FunktVedrncCAcYRUl8aM6UkDA1ST_PYbLqk966S2X9kcf0hEUMbOwvfY-1sVPVhyv5MLl0YSo1ug_u9sZ8T8n34UEkDJNs/s640/race_1085_photo_22566307.jpg" width="424" /></a></div>
We completed the SF Marathon in 4:33:29! Although I didn't reach my biggest time goal, I easily surpassed my initial challenge and even PR'ed by over an hour. Of course I wish I would've been able to run just a little bit faster, but I'm still so proud of Lauren and myself for improving so much. This just means that we'll have to run another marathon to accomplish that goal time!<br />
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<a href="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEiVU1htIRxdyFWnyaQmXX39yAMogmr_ypDFM8wV3vpdChkT3ZD1a0gGwgti73WbpKzoydRz3VcDw5LiEMCtwmKYIGMzD7BMDqPgyzKXlaVOI2KidYCrZGFyPrgO5aT8bgfsCJG31A0u3Ds/s1600/SFMarathon.jpg" imageanchor="1" style="margin-left: 1em; margin-right: 1em;"><img border="0" height="640" src="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEiVU1htIRxdyFWnyaQmXX39yAMogmr_ypDFM8wV3vpdChkT3ZD1a0gGwgti73WbpKzoydRz3VcDw5LiEMCtwmKYIGMzD7BMDqPgyzKXlaVOI2KidYCrZGFyPrgO5aT8bgfsCJG31A0u3Ds/s640/SFMarathon.jpg" width="360" /></a></div>
Right after we finished we ran into another SacFit friend, Jenny who had also just completed the marathon. We chatted with her about our race experiences for a little bit before leaving the finishers' area. Then we made our way back to mile 26 to catch up with Tim, Kathleen, and Brad. We figured that would be a good spot to wait for Marissa, Heather, and Leti. Soon after, we realized that we should've picked up our drop bags right after finishing since they were in the completely opposite direction. My only real complaint for the entire marathon is that the drop bag pick up location should've been much closer to the finish line. After having run over 26 miles, most people don't want to have to walk that far to get their belongings. Once we picked up our stuff, we walked all the way back to mile 26. We had no idea when Marissa, Heather, and Leti were going to finish, or if they decided to drop. My parents were back at the hotel checking out of the rooms for us, so we wouldn't be able to meet up with them for awhile either.<br />
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Leti came in an hour and a half after us. Since Marissa and Heather started the race with Leti, I figured they weren't far behind if they hadn't dropped. I called Heather, expecting her to not answer, but was pleasantly surprised when she did. I found out that she was still on the course with Marissa, around mile 25. Since the official allotted time was up, all of the aid stations and course support were gone. Wanting to encourage Marissa and Heather, I decided to run back to meet them, and run the last bit with them. Lauren and Leti stayed near the finish and watched all of our stuff, including my phone. I jogged all the way back to mile 25.75, expecting that they should've completed at least .75 miles within the last 15 minutes of talking to Heather. I saw a few runners making their way to the finish, but Marissa and Heather weren't in sight. I waited another 5 minutes for them, before realizing that they probably already finished and I must've somehow missed them. I was thinking that everyone was now waiting for me, and since I didn't have my phone, I went ahead and walked all the way back to the finish line to look for Lauren and Leti who I knew would be there. Still without a phone, I wasn't able to find them. Luckily I randomly ran into my dad who was searching for my mom. I was then able to use my dad's phone to call Lauren. So much time had passed since I left to find Marissa and Heather, that when I was able to contact Lauren, she was already walking in my direction with Heather and Marissa. I was bummed that I missed them crossing the finish line, but luckily Lauren recorded it.<br />
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After everyone was found, the seven of us walked back to my dad's car together. Thankfully my dad loaded up all of our luggage and checked out of our hotel room for us, so we didn't have to worry about any of that. My dad dropped Lauren, Leti, and I back off at my car, and we started our short journey back to Sacramento. We stopped in Berkeley to pick up Chipotle for lunch which ended up being the best post-race meal.<br />
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As far as fuel and hydration go, I started the race with a single 22oz handheld bottle filled with Nuun and had my
bottle refilled with water one time once it was empty. In addition, I
drank several ounces of Nuun at many of the aid stations, about every five
miles. Throughout the entire race, I ate a package of Gu Chomps and
three Gu Gels. This combination of hydration and fuel worked really well
for me. I had plenty of energy throughout the entire race without
feeling weighed down or sick. I find that eating a larger breakfast
before and small amounts during the run is best for my body. <br />
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I had an amazing weekend in San Francisco with my closest friends and family. I felt so proud of myself for finishing that marathon because I trained so hard for it and dedicated so much time towards it. Even though it was a difficult course at times, it was one of the most scenic areas I've run in. Unfortunately the timing doesn't work out, otherwise I would've already signed up to run this marathon again next year. Luckily though, Lauren, Leti, Marissa, Heather, and I are already signed up to run another marathon in November. We signed up months ago so we wouldn't back out after the SF Marathon which was such a smart idea. I'm already looking forward to them coming out to Philadelphia in the next few months. It was hard to start back up, but I've already started training for this next race, and again am hoping for another big PR!<br />
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Lauren also wrote a great post on <a href="http://www.markslauren.blogspot.com/2015/07/the-san-francisco-marathon-2015.html">her perspective</a> of the SF Marathon! Anonymoushttp://www.blogger.com/profile/06304557600089738163noreply@blogger.com0tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-5819469863031765262.post-30168379352024384162015-08-20T08:00:00.000-04:002015-08-20T12:57:05.966-04:00San Francisco Marathon: Part I (Pre-race)I originally intended to tell my experience of running the San Francisco Marathon in one post, but with so much to share and talk about, that one post grew way too long. So, I decided to break my recap up into two separate posts. I'm sharing all of the pre-race fun today, and will detail the actual run/post-run craziness tomorrow! <br />
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Beginning January 1, I started training for the San Francisco Marathon. One of my big <a href="http://chinneus.blogspot.com/2015/01/2015-resolutions.html">New Year's resolutions</a> was to finish a marathon in under 5 hours. I only had one official marathon race under my belt, and I was determined to achieve an enormous PR. Month by month, I filled in my daily workouts and rest days so that I knew exactly what I needed to do in the upcoming days and weeks. I found that this method really worked at holding me accountable and allowed me to be successful in completing my training program. After a few months of getting back into the habit of running regularly again, I realized that I was capable of more than my initial goal. I wanted to PR by over an hour for a time of under 4 hours and 45 minutes. Again, after many more exciting long training runs, I challenged myself to finish the SF Marathon in under 4 hours and 30 minutes. I knew this final goal would be tricky, but based on my pace and how good I felt after my long runs, I was pretty sure I could accomplish this big feat.<br />
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Lauren, Marissa, Heather, and Leti also signed up for the marathon. We were all looking for a way to get back into running after having been out of shape for awhile. Since Lauren and I both live in Philadelphia, it was easy for us to train together and follow the same running schedule. The two of us completed all of our long runs and most midweek runs together. <br />
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I flew out to California with Lauren in the middle of July, leaving plenty of time for us to adapt to the time and environmental changes in preparation for the July 26 marathon. Being in California completely threw off my normal daily routine I had grown accustomed to in Philadelphia. I tried to be strict about my midweek runs the two weeks leading up to the big race, but when I did manage to go running, my runs were all pretty casual and lax. I'm not sure how this affected the actual race, but such a big change must've had some effect.<br />
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The day before the marathon, the five of us drove to San Francisco and eagerly went to the race expo ready to check out all the vendors. Our first stop was the SF Marathon pop up shop. I had been eying the souvenir zip up hoodies online, so I quickly purchased a green one! Heather and I now have matching sweatshirts, and Marissa and Lauren have dark gray ones. While waiting in line to buy our sweatshirts, Marissa and I ran into our second cousin Carey who signed up to run the second half marathon. We hadn't seen her in years, so that was fun!<br />
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Lauren and I are known as the "sparkle twins" throughout our SacFit running group because we always wear sparkly headbands when we run. Obviously you can never have enough sparkle, so of course we needed to stop by the <a href="http://www.sparklysoul.com/">Sparkly Soul</a> booth to add a few more headbands to our collections. This was my first time trying this specific brand of headbands, and after trying multiple other ones, I can honestly say that I'm going to be a longtime customer of Sparkly Soul. I picked two glittered headbands: a pastel rainbow and pewter; and a solid shiny brown one to wear when I'm not running. <br />
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After spending a few hours at the expo and dealing with the "parking situation", it was time for dinner! We were planning to go to Source since Lauren, Leti, and I loved the food when we were there <a href="http://chinneus.blogspot.com/2014/03/san-francisco.html">last year</a>. After trying to look up directions, we discovered the restaurant closed. Luckily though, we quickly agreed on Gracias Madre for our pre-race meal. Being an all vegan menu, Lauren and I found ourselves not knowing what to order since everything sounded so good. We order lots of appetizers and a few entrees, and decided to share everything amongst the five of us. Everything tasted delicious, just as we remembered, but all of our favorites were the potatoes and cauliflower appetizers. Their cashew cream sauce is to die for.<br />
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After dinner, we made our way to the Hilton in the Financial District to check in. Originally, the five of us were going to share one room to save money. I went ahead and booked two rooms, just in case we ended up changing our minds and needed more personal space. I was planning on cancelling one room, but my parents decided they wanted to come and watch us all run! So in the end, Lauren, Leti, and I shared one room, and Marissa and Heather shared a room with my parents. The rooms were on the pricier side, but being in SF that's to be expected. Our rooms were very clean, large, and had amazing views- well worth the price.<br />
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Once we checked in, we spent the entire evening resting. I packed my water bottle and drop bag, set out my clothes, and showered so that I wouldn't have to worry about doing anything the morning of the race. Planning works wonders! When I woke up at 4 o'clock race day morning, I wasn't stressed at all. As soon as I woke up, I sat in bed and made myself finish my entire breakfast. I made and froze pancakes two days before to bring with me. I also brought a single serving pouch of Justin's almond butter. Since I had been eating these same exact pancakes with almond butter the morning of every long run, I knew that this breakfast would work well for me. I gave myself plenty of digestion time to prevent any stomach issues during the race. After my fancy breakfast in bed, I finished getting ready in not time at all.<br />
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We met my parents, Marissa, and Heather in the hotel lobby around 5 o'clock and walked less than a mile to the start line with them. I was afraid that walking that far before the race would tire us all out, but fortunately this was the perfect little warmup. I threw on extra layers expecting it to be really cold on the walk to the start. Luckily though, we were blessed with the perfect weather! We dropped off of our drop bags and had just enough time for one last port-a-potty stop. None of us realized how much further the actual entrance to the corral was. We were expecting to be able to walk into the start gate right after the port-a-potties, but in actuality we had to jog another quarter of a mile to get there on time. Lauren and I have had bad experiences missing our designated corral, so we wanted to be able to start at our correct time. This caused a lot of stress for our group, but we made it there right on time and had a few minutes to take a group shot before crossing the start line. Anonymoushttp://www.blogger.com/profile/06304557600089738163noreply@blogger.com0tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-5819469863031765262.post-56672201828922627962015-08-19T08:00:00.000-04:002015-08-19T08:00:05.776-04:0007.15 Goals RoundupA few weeks ago I discussed my efforts in <a href="http://chinneus.blogspot.com/2015/07/24-goals-finished.html">finishing my 24 goals</a> as part of my 24th birthday challenge. Last year when I first came up with this list of 24 items to accomplish, I made a separate list of 10 tasks each month, hoping these smaller goals would make my larger goals list seem much more manageable. Long story short, coming up with just a few things to focus on each month really did help me tackle most items on my big yearlong list.<br />
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Even though I already posted about my successes and shortcomings regarding my 24 goals, I still wanted to talk about my progress during the final month of this yearlong challenge. So without further ado, let's discus my July goals!<br />
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1. Read a book: I read several books this past month. First, I completed <i>Z: Zelda Fitzgerald</i> by Fowler. A few years ago I randomly picked up a biography about the Fitzgeralds, and I surprised myself by being so interested in the dynamics of the duo and their relationships with their peers. I've read a few other novels based on them, and just like those, this loosely based biography of Zelda kept me hooked the whole way through. I also quickly finished <i>Autobiography of Us</i> by Sloss. I found this novel very entertaining, although thinking about it now, very cliche. This is a story of two high school best friends and how the choices they made in college changed their futures and relationships. Lastly, I brought <i>Banished</i> by Drain along with me on my trip to California. The theme of this memoir was the only thing that kept me from quitting after the first chapter. This book was on my "must read" list because it's written by an ex-member of the Westboro Baptist Church and details her firsthand experience with this radical group. Drain had a lot of great insight into the cult-like nature of this church, but the writing wasn't as great.<br />
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2. Ride my bike: I had big plans to ride my bike while I was home in California, but those grand ideas never took off. I did manage to bring my helmet back to Philadelphia with me, so I'm hoping to try out Philly's new bike share program, Indego soon.<br />
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3. Use my big camera a lot while I'm in California to capture "people pictures": I'm ashamed to admit that I didn't take a single photo with my big camera the entire month I was home. I lugged my camera with me (carry on, of course) with the intention of taking hundreds of photos. It was pure laziness that held me back.<br />
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4. Go through all of my clothes back home: As always, there's still a lot more items I could've gone through. But since I did go through a large portion of my boxed clothes, I'm considering this goal complete. When we moved to Philadelphia last year, Lauren and I stored a bunch of clothing that we hardly wore in cardboard boxes at her dad's house. Going through the boxes this past month, I'm not sure why I needed to keep all of those items. I obviously haven't worn them in over a year and I actually forgot I owned a lot of them. Together we filled several large bags full of clothes to donate. I still have a long ways to go, but surely I'll have a normal sized wardrobe one day!<br />
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5. Take a day trip to somewhere fun: Lauren, Marissa, Heather, Leti, and I drove to San Francisco one weekend and had tons of fun. However, the entire purpose of the trip was to run the SF Marathon. So, I'm going to be strict and not allow this trip to count. I was planning on taking a trip to the beach and a separate day trip to the Bay area to visit my brother, but those plans changed.<br />
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6. Make lots of progress on my knit sweater: Basically, in July I started my sweater, and that's about it. The whole sweater knitting really didn't take off until August when I returned to Philadelphia. Although I didn't get much knitting done in July, I'm flying now and will most likely meet the September deadline!<br />
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7. Set up my new iPod: Again out of laziness, I didn't set up my iPod. I just need to make myself sit down in front of my computer and do this one afternoon so that I can have some good tunes to listen to while I exercise. The whole "why do today what you can do tomorrow?" mantra has really taken over my productivity.<br />
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8. Tie Dye: My siblings, Lauren, Heather, and I tie dyed twice while I was home! We had so much fun the first round that everyone wanted to tie dye again the following week. Because I trying to get rid of clothes, I decided to tie dye several yards of cotton fabric. I'm not exactly sure what I'm going to make with the fabric, but I'm so glad I opted to dye fabric instead of clothes.<br />
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9. Make something with beads: I brought my little bag of beads home with me, hoping to use pliers and other tools that I don't have in Philadelphia. But spending time with friends and family was way more important, so I didn't make any jewelry. There's always next time though.<br />
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10. Make two dresses: YES! I mentioned a few weeks ago, but I'll happily say it again. I sewed a knit dress and a woven one. Both have been worn several times already. Although neither are near perfect, I've learned what I need to change to sew more-perfect dresses in the future.<br />
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Score for July: 4 out of 10.<br />
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Well, my 24 birthday goals are really complete now. I still haven't come up with the perfect birthday challenge for this year, but I have a few ideas stewing around in my head!Anonymoushttp://www.blogger.com/profile/06304557600089738163noreply@blogger.com0tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-5819469863031765262.post-27029557796858084142015-07-28T12:20:00.003-04:002015-07-29T17:49:26.309-04:0024 Goals: FinishedLast year for my 24th birthday I came up with <a href="http://chinneus.blogspot.com/2014/07/the-big-2-4.html">24 goals</a> that I wanted to accomplish by my next birthday. Now that my golden birthday year has come to an end, it's time to evaluate my success. On my <a href="http://chinneus.blogspot.com/2015/01/birthday-goals-update.html">half birthday</a> in January, I did a quick run through of the status of my goals at the time, but now that I've turned yet another year older, here's my final assessment. <br />
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<b>1. Run another marathon and ultra marathon.</b><br />
Okay, so I didn't run a marathon or any race longer than that during this birthday year. I actually only ran two 10 mile races- one <a href="http://chinneus.blogspot.com/2014/09/buffalo-stampede.html">road</a> and one <a href="http://chinneus.blogspot.com/2015/01/resolution-run-10-miler.html">trail</a>. That being said though, I have run a lot more than I have at any other point in my life, which I suppose was the real underlying goal here. I did however run the San Francisco Marathon this past weekend, just two days shy of my birthday! <b> </b><br />
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<b>2. Blog at least 5 times each month. </b><br />
I've easily accomplished this. This past year I've been so much better sharing recent news and projects on my blog, and I'm so happy about that. Initially, I needed to constantly remind myself of this goal in an effort to blog more. But now, thinking about blog topics is frequently on my mind and it's no longer a huge effort to get something ready enough to hit the "publish" button. <b> </b><br />
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<b>3. Sew every month.</b><br />
I'm not quite sure that I sewed <i>every</i> month, but I have sewn a lot more (especially garments) this past year!<b> </b>I even worked up the courage to sew with knits which is huge for me. My handmade wardrobe is slowly growing, but growing it is!<br />
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<b>4. Use up the majority of my stashed fabric (so I can buy more, of course) ;)</b><br />
While I have been sewing a lot more, especially lately, I still have a ton of stashed fabric. I don't see myself needing to go fabric shopping for awhile. In fact, Lauren and I agreed to continue working through our respective stashes, and if we make large dents, then we can go on a Christmas fabric shopping spree at our favorite fabric store in San Francisco this Winter!<b> </b><br />
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<b>5. Knit and finish at least one project. (I must get back into knitting!)</b><br />
I remember coming up with this goal and having a hard time wrapping my head around this one. Last year I was at the point where I didn't want to knit because everything I attempted wasn't working out. Luckily though, I needed to knit Marissa's birthday present. It turned out that I loved knitting that cowl so much that I couldn't stop knitting. Besides <a href="http://chinneus.blogspot.com/2014/11/marissas-orchid-cowl.html">Marissa's cowl</a>, I also knit: <a href="http://chinneus.blogspot.com/2015/05/laurens-three-color-cowl.html">a cowl for Lauren</a>; another <a href="http://chinneus.blogspot.com/2015/07/tubular-stockinette-cowl.html">cowl</a>; and a <a href="http://chinneus.blogspot.com/2015/06/melodia-shawl.html">shawl</a> for myself. I even joined my first knit along and am currently knitting my first sweater. There's been so much knitting progress for me this past birthday year!<br />
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<b>6. Mail at least one letter each month.</b><br />
I sent a letter to someone <i>most</i> months.<b> </b>There were a few months where I just completely forgot. I do love receiving snail mail though, so sending random letters (and ones with real purposes too) is something I want to do forever.<br />
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<b>7. Take lots of pictures with my big camera as a way of exploring my "neighborhood". </b><br />
I've gotten a little better at using my big camera more often, but there's still much more potential waiting to be had with this goal. I crave pictures with people in them, and now that I've moved across the country away from my family, taking people pictures with just Lauren and me can get a little redundant.<br />
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<b>8. Finish my Summer Sampler cross stitch pattern.</b><br />
I finished my first cross stitch pattern in February and<b> </b>have been anxiously awaiting this trip to California to stock on more supplies for the next samplers. I still need to get my Summer Sampler framed, but that will have to wait a bit longer. It took awhile for me to get into cross stitching, but once I found my groove, it was hard to stop. I find cross stitching so relaxing, but I can understand how it's a nuance for others.<br />
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<b>9. Read at least one book per month.</b><br />
Check! With the help of my local libraries and insanely inexpensive books on Amazon, I've easily been able to read more this past birthday year than I think I've ever done in this time frame in my entire life. I even compiled a list of books to read, and I'm almost completely through it.<br />
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<b>10. Sew at least two dresses, and actually wear them.</b><br />
I did, I did! I haven't taken photos of them yet, but I managed to squeak out a striped woven tunic and a knit dress right before heading out to California a few weeks ago. I've worn both of them twice so far and like them enough to keep them. But even more important, I figured out what changes I need to make so that I<i> love</i> my finished dresses next time.<br />
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<b>11. Try at least one new food item each month.</b><br />
I'll be honest, I really cared about this goal at first. But then after a few weeks, it wasn't something I wanted to strive for anymore. So no, I most likely didn't follow through with this plan, although I wasn't really keeping track either. I did find myself needing to eat lots of <a href="http://chinneus.blogspot.com/2015/06/best-friend-friday-no-38-story-of.html">garlic scapes</a> though, so there's always that.<br />
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<b>12. Read through all of the magazines I own to clear up some much needed space.</b><br />
I didn't even get halfway through my stack of magazines. It was pretty ridiculous how many I had. Last Summer I was trying to read two magazines a day to tackle this goal, but when it was time to move to Philadelphia, I tossed whatever I had left and called this task done.<br />
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<b>13. Catch up on all of the birthday presents I owe people.</b><br />
I caught up on all of the birthday presents I owe people. In my mind there were <i>so many</i> presents I needed to still make and gift, but in reality, I actually only had to knit cowls for Lauren and Marissa. Once I got my knitting mojo back, this was easy.<br />
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<b>14. Run under an eight minute mile.</b><br />
I haven't actually timed myself on a mile run. I bet I can accomplish this, but I haven't tried. <b> </b><br />
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<b>15. Go through and clean up my room at my parents' house.</b><br />
I mentioned this briefly before, but I tried pretty hard to tackle this while I was home for the holidays this past December. But, I soon realized this was never going to happen since my room has basically become a storage space for random family items and furniture. I did try though.<br />
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<b>16. Create an art/gallery wall.</b><br />
I was really excited about this one. I have all my frames and tons of ideas in my mind. But, I haven't managed to fill all my frames yet. I wanted to wait to hang art up until all of the frames are filled, so my wall doesn't have anything to show of my progress so far. I did create two pieces for my wall though: one out of <a href="http://chinneus.blogspot.com/2015/03/paint-chip-wall-art-tutorial.html">paint chips</a>, and an ode to my home state, <a href="http://chinneus.blogspot.com/2015/06/california-my-perspective.html">California</a>.<br />
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<b>17. Keep plants alive.</b><br />
I was doing great keeping several house plants alive while living in Sacramento. But when I moved, my plants had to stay back in California with Leti. I believe they're still alive though. Lauren and I also grew tomatoes and helped a lot with <a href="http://chinneus.blogspot.com/p/gardening.html">Leti's home garden</a>. Once we moved to Philadelphia, I bought two new house plants and they're still both thriving.<br />
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<b>18. Have at least one vegetable every night for dinner.</b><br />
Like trying a new food item every month, this quickly became something I no longer want to try for. I'll be honest, I don't eat at least one vegetable every night for dinner. That being said though, I've been eating a lot healthier than I have in a really long time, and that's the most important thing.<br />
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<b>19. Set a monthly budget and stick to it.</b><br />
When I moved to Philadelphia I knew this task would become very important. I set a budget and I've been able to stick with it every month, expect December. I only went over by a few dollars, and it was because I needed to buy Christmas presents for other people. All of the other months I "saved" money, so I was okay with over-spending a little bit once.<br />
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<b>20. Weed through my belongings and donate items I no longer need.</b><br />
With a big move comes lots of donations. Last Summer in preparation for my big move, I purged a lot of clothing items (the big hoarded culprit!). I still have a ton of clothes in California, and my closest in Philadelphia could use a good clear out too.<br />
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<b>21. Get a hair cut!</b><br />
I love getting my hair cut, but I hate it at the same time. I love how lightweight my hair feels afterwards, but I've only ever had one professional hair cut that I really loved. It usually takes a few weeks post cut for me to like my hair again. So, I always put off getting a hair cut until I can no longer live with unruly hair. Speaking of, it's about time for another hair cut soon!<br />
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<b>22. Make sure I get my daily 10,000 steps, but not make it a chore.</b><br />
I definitely haven't gotten 10,000 steps everyday. But, I did make this one of my New Year's <a href="http://chinneus.blogspot.com/2015/01/2015-resolutions.html">resolutions</a> and have been marking off the days when I am successful. I usually reach my step goal six days out of the week, Friday easily being the hardest.<br />
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<b>23. Try a new physical activity, like yoga.</b><br />
I tried both <a href="http://chinneus.blogspot.com/2014/11/my-thoughts-on-yoga-and-zumba.html">yoga and zumba</a>. Initially, I liked zumba a lot and would go several times a week. During the Winter though, I started having hip issues which were exasperated during zumba classes. So, I stopped going to zumba and started going to yoga a lot more often. It helped that Lauren worked at the gym. This gave me a reason to want to work out more, so it was easy to go to fitness classes. Now that Lauren no longer works there, I don't go to the gym nearly as much and haven't been to yoga in over a week. I should start going again when I get back to Philadelphia because it is a great way to get some stretching in.<b> </b><br />
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<b>24. Ride my bike often, while I have the opportunity.</b><br />
I don't think I rode my bike at all this entire year, which is a bummer. I like going on casual bike rides but never made the time to do it. <b> </b><br />
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Although I definitely didn't accomplish everything I set out to do this past year, these goals made me think about how I choose to spend my time and what's truly important to me. I'm still formulating ideas for my next birthday challenge, and I'm excited to try something different for this new year. <b> </b> Anonymoushttp://www.blogger.com/profile/06304557600089738163noreply@blogger.com0tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-5819469863031765262.post-60823275177134235202015-07-13T08:00:00.000-04:002015-07-13T08:00:03.219-04:00Best Friend Friday No. 40: Franklin FountainOn Saturday, July 11 Lauren and I treated ourselves to the best vegan ice cream in the world. Okay, so "in the world" may be a stretch as we haven't tried every single place that offers vegan ice cream (but hey, there's a bucket list item!), but this ice cream is by far the best vegan version we've had in our lives.<br />
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Back in May, we made a random visit to Franklin Fountain on our way home from a <a href="http://chinneus.blogspot.com/2015/05/best-friend-friday-no-31-art-star-craft.html">craft fair</a>. Ever since then, we've both been dreaming of those delicious flavors. In the months that have passed since then, we hadn't come up with a good enough reason as to why we <i>needed</i> to go back. But, after discovering that the oldest continually-running candy shop is located right next door, we had to go back. My brother's birthday is coming up, and I honestly thought he would enjoy Philadelphia-made goodies. So on our way to the candy shop, we made a little pit stop and treated ourselves as well. If there was anything to celebrate, it would be that we had just finished our last double-digit training run for our upcoming marathon earlier that morning. If that's not a good reason to seek out ice cream, I don't know what is!<br />
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Halfway to Franklin Fountain, the subway came to a sudden halt as it became "out of service". Everyone was forced to exit the train and wait for the next one. We had no idea how long this would take, as the train we were formerly on hadn't moved, preventing a new train to come and pick us up. All was okay though, we thought. We would wait patiently for the next train without complaining, just happy knowing that we would soon find ourselves overjoyed with ice cream. However, after several minutes had passed, there was a terrible smell that neither of us could stand. It was making us both feel sick, so we decided to just exit the subway station and make the long trek to Franklin Fountain by foot. This meant walking fifteen blocks (after having run 12 miles). Despite the heat, it was all worth it. <br />
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Franklin Fountain has dozens of flavors- dairy, sugar-free, non-dairy, and vegan ones. Last time we stuck to the officially labeled "vegan" flavors as we didn't know exactly what hindered the "non-dairy" ones from being "vegan". This time Lauren asked, and we figured out that all of the "non-dairy" flavors are made with only vegan ingredients, however they aren't made in a vegan kitchen. Considering most times we go out to eat our food isn't prepared in a vegan kitchen, the "non-dairy" options immediately became additional vegan choices for us.<br />
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As far as the vegan options go, there seems to always be at least one sorbet option. This time they offered mango and raspberry sorbets. Their non-dairy flavors were chocolate and vanilla, while the vegan options were strawberry and blueberry. All of the non-dairy and vegan choices are coconut based. I giddily selected chocolate, and Lauren opted for a mix of vanilla and blueberry. As always, we tried each others selections, and we both decided that while we enjoyed all three flavors, our favorite by far was the chocolate. We agreed that it tasted exactly like a Wendy's frosty. It was that good!<br />
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Afterwards, we walked next door to Shane Confectionery to pick out a few birthday treats for Nate. We filled up a box of assorted chocolates for him, and also picked out a fancy Liberty Bell lollipop. The colorful salt water taffies looked so cheerful, so we had to get those for him as well. Then we couldn't stop eying the fudge, so I chose the oreo-topped one to give to Nate. Hopefully he likes them!<br />
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We had been eagerly awaiting this little expedition for a few weeks now. As soon as Marissa, Heather, and Leti arrive in November, this will be one of the first places we'll throw their way. I'm hoping they love this old-fashioned ice cream parlor just as much as we do, which will give us even more reasons to get our share of vegan ice cream!<br />
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And with our bellies stuffed with ice cream, Lauren and I are flying home to California this afternoon to spend four nice, relaxing weeks with our families...and to run the San Francisco Marathon!Anonymoushttp://www.blogger.com/profile/06304557600089738163noreply@blogger.com0tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-5819469863031765262.post-52699204488246988582015-07-10T08:00:00.000-04:002015-07-10T08:00:09.498-04:00My First Knit Linden<div class="separator" style="clear: both; text-align: center;">
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This top may look a little familiar; I wore it while sharing my <a href="http://chinneus.blogspot.com/2015/06/melodia-shawl.html">Melodia shawl</a> and my <a href="http://chinneus.blogspot.com/2015/07/tubular-stockinette-cowl.html">tubular stockinette cowl</a>. It's my second Linden I've made, and I love the pattern even more than I did before. For this one, I decided to go with knit fabric to see how I'd like this combination.<br />
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I sewed up my regular Grainline size (4), and it ended up fitting perfectly. I typically like to wear looser tops, and using a knit, I was able to achieve this desired fit. <br />
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After sewing my <a href="http://chinneus.blogspot.com/2015/07/gray-fleece-linden.html">first Linden</a>, I knew I needed to make a few adjustments in order have more professionally finished seams. For all of the bindings (neck, cuffs, and bottom hem), I used a 1/2 inch seam allowance to ensure that I would have plenty of fabric to zig-zag together and then securely top stitch down. This easy change was a great solution. In the future, I'll probably add an extra inch to the width of the neck binding pattern piece to allow for this alteration. I may also add a 1/2 inch to the length of the neck binding as well, as I had to stretch the binding more than usual. </div>
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Unlike my first Linden, this time I made sure to have ample fabric to tack down with top stitching. I love how much more finished it makes my garment look. However, the neck and bottom hem bands became pretty wave-y after top stitching. I think the tension on my machine was too tight, causing the fabric to pull too much. Next time I'll change the tension on my machine during this step to see if that helps.<br />
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I chose this particular fabric mainly for its color and the simple fact that it's a knit. After sewing and ironing it a lot, I realize that the polyester content is too high for my liking. I'll definitely still wear this top a lot, but now I know which fabrics <i>not</i> to buy.<br />
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I love the Linden pattern, but I still need to work on perfecting it for my personal situation. This fit is spot on, but wanting finished seams without owning a serger can be tricky. I'm willing to keep trying though because this is the best fitting, quickly sewn, relaxed top I've made yet. Anonymoushttp://www.blogger.com/profile/06304557600089738163noreply@blogger.com0tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-5819469863031765262.post-390173637222694792015-07-09T08:00:00.000-04:002015-07-09T08:00:00.745-04:00Tubular Stockinette Cowl<div class="separator" style="clear: both; text-align: center;">
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Back in April, Loop hosted their 10th Anniversary Celebration and commemorated it by offering 10% off everything in store. Although I really didn't need anymore yarn (I am trying to use up my stash!), I can't pass up a sale. Plus, I love looking at all of the pretty, colorful skeins! As always, I made Lauren tag along with me; it's not like I had to drag her or anything.<br />
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I still hadn't learned my lesson from my previous yarn purchases. I showed up without any real plan as to what I wanted. This has messed me up in the past, which is why I now have dozens of single skeins of yarn. Don't get me wrong, they're beautiful and I love the colors and texture. However, I justified my shopping impulses by declaring, "Oh, I'll make a cowl out of this". Needless to say, those "plans" never came to fruition. If they had I would be swimming in dozens of brightly colored cowls, which still wouldn't make these random buys okay either. Basically, I came to Loop with this same game plan, or lack thereof.<br />
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After walking around the store several times and admiring everything, I finally realized that I could come up with a real plan right there in the store. Copying Lauren, I scrolled through my Ravelry queue on my phone in an attempt to find something I wanted to knit so that I could purchase yarn specifically for that project. I selected <a href="http://www.ravelry.com/patterns/library/fino-circle-scarf">this circle scarf</a>, but after further examination, I realized that it wasn't exactly what I wanted. I adore the simplicity of the stockinette stitches, but wanted to make it into a reversible cowl. I went ahead and bought yarn according to the suggested yardage of the Fino Circle Scarf with a good idea in mind of how I wanted to alter the pattern.<br />
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I made my way around the shop again, this time with a true purpose. I wanted fingering weight yarn in a neutral, yet still exciting color. I found the perfect yarn in Loop's sale section, and it felt like fate since I'd been wanting to try Spud & Chloe. I was debating between a dull brown and a burnt orange. After consulting Lauren, I quickly agreed with her and opted for the latter colorway. Yes, buying several skeins of a boring color of yarn is more expensive and not as exciting as picking out a single skein of brightly colored variegated yarn. But, at least I know it will actually be used and worn. <br />
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I decided to stick with the basic concept of the Fino Circle Scarf pattern, endless stockinette stitches. It took some frogging, but on my second attempt, I cast on 200 stitches via the provisional cast on, and knit in the round for 530 rows (thank goodness for row counters). This created the perfect sized cowl that I can comfortably wrap around my neck twice. Once I knit to my desired length, I blocked my super long tube of yarn, and then kitchener stitched it together. For added texture and detail, I added two twists in the cowl. I had a few issues using the kitchener stitch- the first time I completely missed a stitch, the second time two of my stitches were very loose and left large holes. But, I was able to macgyver my yarn and create a wonderful, <a href="http://www.ravelry.com/projects/chinner24/tubular-stockinette-cowl">simple cowl</a> which will get plenty of wear come late Fall and Winter! <br />
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Start Date: April 23, 2015<br />
Finish Date: June 15, 2015 <br />
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Yarn Used: Spud & Chloe Fine 3.75 skeins used (approx. 930 yards)<br />
Colorway: Orangutan <br />
Needles: Size 2 Boye circular needles on an 8-inch <a href="http://markslauren.blogspot.com/2015/06/boye-needlemaster-hack.html">ChiaoGoo cable</a> Anonymoushttp://www.blogger.com/profile/06304557600089738163noreply@blogger.com0tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-5819469863031765262.post-60748743993416370562015-07-08T08:52:00.002-04:002015-07-08T09:56:02.910-04:00WIP WednesdayI haven't been knitting as much this week as I normally do. Instead, I fired up my sewing machine and finished a few projects that have been on my to-do list for quite some time. However, I couldn't go too long without spending time with some precious yarn.<br />
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On the 4th of July, I spent over five hours sitting on a blanket in a baseball field, listening to a very long outdoor concert just to watch the fireworks at the end. You can bet I brought knitting with me to keep me entertained. Unfortunately, there was on and off rain which meant that I kept needing to putting my knitting away so it wouldn't get wet. Despite this, I managed to knit about ten rows on my Laylow shawl. The following day I went to my LYS and knit two more repeats (each repeat is six rows) at the KAL meet up. I actually finished the entire main section, but decided to continue working that same pattern until I run out of yarn. I tend to like larger shawls and I figured I mind as well use all of the yarn instead of saving a small bit that would most likely never get used. I can probably squeak out several more repeats with the remaining yarn, and then it's onto the border! I had hoped to have this shawl completely done by the end of this week, but that's definitely not going to happen. I'll be taking this with me when I travel to California on Monday and it will be my plane project!<br />
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This past week also marked the beginning of July, meaning the <i>Home & Away</i> Woolful KAL officially started. With plans to knit the Boothbay sweater, I eagerly started gauge swatching on July 1 only to realize that I would have to make two more swatches. I finally came very close to the correct gauge on my third attempt and hope to cast on tonight. This sweater will also be coming to California with me and will get a lot more attention once I finish Laylow.<br />
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I've been loving sharing my knitting works in progress via <a href="http://www.gsheller.com/2015/07/yarn-along-235.html">Ginny's yarn along</a>. It makes me motivated to knit even more!Anonymoushttp://www.blogger.com/profile/06304557600089738163noreply@blogger.com0tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-5819469863031765262.post-74978508332144712292015-07-07T08:00:00.000-04:002015-07-07T08:00:03.620-04:00Gray Fleece Linden<div class="separator" style="clear: both; text-align: center;">
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This past Fall Lauren surprised me and bought me a copy of the Linden sweatshirt just as a fun, random present. We quickly went fabric shopping with this pattern in mind. I picked up two fabrics specifically for the Linden pattern, one of them being this black and white (essentially gray) fleece. I had a few unfinished projects collecting dust on my shelves that I needed to complete before starting anything new. This took me a few months to accomplish, but as soon as I could, I cut right into this fleece, super excited to try my hand at the ever-popular Linden!<br />
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I actually cut my fabric out months ago, but it wasn't until recently when I became excited about sewing again. May was approaching and I really wanted to participate in Me Made May this year. Also, Lauren was eager to sew, which made me want to as well. Lauren had made a Linden before and kept telling me how easy and quick of a project it was. I doubted her a bit, but I still had high hopes of finishing it in a relatively short amount of time. After reading through the instructions and sewing the first two seams, I realized how correct Lauren was. She wasn't exaggerating when she said how quickly this sweatshirt basically sews itself up. After the first couple of seams, I essentially had a wearable top. Although I still had a decent amount of work to do, this really boosted my confidence and encouraged me to stick with this project.<br />
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I had all of the cuffs and bindings added to my bodice piece within a week of stop-and-go sewing. In actuality, the whole process only took me a few hours. However, my Linden sat uncompleted with the seams unfinished for two weeks because I was unsure exactly how I wanted to do this. In a perfect world I would own a serger and this wouldn't be a problem. In a semi-perfect world I would've used a larger seam allowance to either top stitch the seams down, or zig-zag them together for a more finished look. Needless to say, I don't live in either of those worlds. In reality, my sleeve cuffs, neck and bottom bindings aren't perfect. I was trying to adhere to a 1/4 inch seam allowance for my first time using this binding technique. At times this went very smoothly, but in more areas than not, I was a little shaky. In the end I decided to call this first Linden my very-wearable muslin. I just cut down the seam allowances to the shortest one so that they would be even throughout the garment. Since there wasn't much fabric left to work with at this point, I didn't finish the edges. I'm hoping the fabric won't fray (it shouldn't, it's fleece), but even if it does I know I'll still wear this piece a lot.</div>
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I sewed up a size 4 without any alterations, and this size fits me perfectly. There's plenty of ease to make this a comfortable, casual top to wear. Yet the Linden is still fitted just enough to make it appear more stylish than a normal sweatshirt, without losing any of that comfort. <br />
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Unfortunately I didn't finish my Linden until the end of Spring, so I don't expect to get much use out of it till later in the year. Hopefully by that time though, I'll have sewn up a slew of other Lindens and my closest will just be one huge Linden party! Anonymoushttp://www.blogger.com/profile/06304557600089738163noreply@blogger.com0tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-5819469863031765262.post-12159516965840678892015-07-06T11:46:00.004-04:002015-07-06T11:46:57.033-04:00Best Friend Friday No. 39: XFINITY LiveFor the past week or so, <a href="http://markslauren.blogspot.com/">Lauren</a> and I have been enjoying watching the Women's World Cup soccer games. Since we don't have cable, we've been able to live stream the games online and we were content with that. However, as we were watching the semi-final match, the game kept cutting out and then eventually we lost connection completely. We really wanted to watch the entire final since USA was playing, but didn't want to deal with any issues of the game cutting out or not working entirely. We knew that we needed to find somewhere else, with cable, so that we could watch the soccer final uninterrupted.<br />
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Lauren found several places hosting viewing parties for the game, all of them being bars or pubs. Neither of us fancy those scenes, but we wanted to watch the game so badly so we decided to give it a try. Yesterday, July 5 we found ourselves at XFINITY Live, mainly for their giant 32 foot television screen. I didn't really know what to expect, but I kept reminding myself that as long as I could watch the game, everything else would be okay.<br />
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XFINITY Live is located in the vicinity of all of Philadelphia's sporting arenas. I've never been to that area before, but after going there yesterday, I realized how easily accessible it is via public transportation.<br />
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Who knew that people make reservations for these type of events? Certainly, not me. All of the seats and booths in the bar area were already filled by the time we got there, but luckily we were able to still be seated towards the rear of the dining/bar complex. We still had a pretty good view of the huge television screen, so it worked out. There were dozens of people who weren't able to snag a seat anywhere and had to stand the entire time, so we lucked out.<br />
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Before going, we briefly looked up their menu online to make sure there was <i>something</i> that we'd be able to order. We decided to share the veggie pizza (sans cheese and mushrooms) and a side of fries. The pizza wasn't bad (the dough was really good), and the fries were amazing! I realize that most people don't seek out bars for their quality of food, but to each their own, right?<br />
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Obviously we were more than thrilled with the outcome of the game, although witnessing a more evenly matched final would've probably been a lot more exciting, yet a lot more nerve wracking. Regardless though, I'm glad both of us went out of our comfort zones so that we were able to do something we really wanted. Thankfully my best friend and I have pretty similar interests and almost always want to do the same things. Thanks for this great idea, Lauren!Anonymoushttp://www.blogger.com/profile/06304557600089738163noreply@blogger.com0tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-5819469863031765262.post-28353150519983652072015-07-03T08:00:00.000-04:002015-07-03T08:00:09.173-04:0007.15 Goals<i>In an effort to be more productive and accomplish my goals during my <a href="http://chinneus.blogspot.com/2014/07/the-big-2-4.html" target="_blank">24th year of life</a>,
I've decided to post a "to-do list" of sorts at the beginning of each
month. At the end of the month I'll go back over my list and talk about
what I was able to conquer and note the tasks I have yet to tackle.</i><br />
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1. Read a book. <br />
2. Ride my bike!<br />
3. Use my big camera a lot while I'm in California to capture "people pictures". <br />
4. Go through all of my clothes back home. <br />
5. Take a day trip to somewhere fun.<br />
6. Make lots of progress on my knit sweater.<br />
7. Set up my new iPod. <br />
8. Tie Dye.<br />
9. Make something with beads.<br />
10. Make two dresses.<i></i>Anonymoushttp://www.blogger.com/profile/06304557600089738163noreply@blogger.com0tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-5819469863031765262.post-44937204293125846222015-07-02T08:00:00.000-04:002015-07-02T08:00:09.129-04:0006.15 Goals Roundup<div class="separator" style="clear: both; text-align: center;">
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1.<i> </i>Read a book: I read<i> Not that Kind of Girl </i>by Lena Dunham, and <i>her</i> by Christa Parravani. Both are memoirs that deal with serious issues; Dunham's about herself, and Parravani's about both herself and her sister. Even though both are interesting reads, they're completely different. <i>Not that Kind of Girl</i> is more comical and written in a light, "learn from my mistakes" type tone. The issues discussed are ones that most people seldom talk about, but it was nice to read someone speaking so openly and honestly about any and all topics. On the other hand, <i>her</i> is a lot more serious as it dives into the issues of how people cope in response to tragedy and the resulting consequences. I'd recommend both memoirs for different reasons. <i>Not that Kind of Girl</i> is essentially a memoir full of short stories, whereas <i>her</i> reads more like a novel.<br />
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2. Finish my art/gallery wall: I really wish I could say I finished this, but I didn't. This was one of my big <a href="http://chinneus.blogspot.com/2014/07/the-big-2-4.html">yearlong goals</a> for my 24th birthday, and since my birthday is in less than a month I was hoping to have my art wall complete by the end of June. I did manage to fill one more frame though with my handmade <a href="http://chinneus.blogspot.com/2015/06/california-my-perspective.html">California print</a>. However, I still have four more frames to fill before I can begin to hang everything up.<br />
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3. Figure out my exact plans for my first knit sweater: I'm super excited about this goal! My yearning to knit a sweater became even more dire when Lauren and I made plans to go to Rhinebeck this fall. And since we'll be attending this weekend full of yarn goodness, I of course need a handmade knit sweater to fit in. I'll be using Patons yarn in Mercury that I bought several years ago to knit Boothbay from Home & Away. This is also a fun way to knit down my yarn stash. The timing for this sweater is perfect too. Woolful recently announced their upcoming Home & Away KAL which started July 1. <br />
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4. Sew at least three wearable garments: Unfortunately, I wasn't able to make three garments. I did however make <i>almost</i> two that I'm proud of. I sewed a knit Linden and am so close to completing my first knit Plantain Tee that I'll be sharing here soon. I had plans for two other garments but never made time to make these a reality. <br />
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5. Go for a bike ride: I had big (okay, not that huge) plans to rent bikes from Indego and ride through Philadelphia with Lauren. But, Lauren wouldn't let us ride bikes without helmets. I almost bought a helmet just to go on a single bike ride, but realized how silly that seemed. I have a perfectly good helmet at home in California and I'll be flying there this month. It makes a lot more sense to just bring my helmet back to Philadelphia with me instead of buying a new one since I know it won't be used that often.<br />
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6. Finish Marissa's present for her upcoming birthday: While I didn't finish her present yet, I did make a lot of progress on it. Luckily, I still have several more months before I need it ready to gift.<br />
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7. Walk/run 10,000 steps every day: So, so close. I reached my step goal every day but three Fridays. The first Friday that I missed was so hot and humid outside that I refused to leave my apartment the entire day. Fridays are the hardest days to reach my step goal because Saturdays I go on early morning long runs. I feel like I should truly rest my body, especially my legs, the day before instead of going on hour-long walks. I'll have to start planning Friday outings to make sure I leave my apartment on those blazing hot days in an effort to get my steps!<br />
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8. Wake up earlier to go running first thing in the morning: I wish I could say I wake up super early every day of the week, go running, then start my day. But the truth is, I really only wake up super early (for me) on Saturdays. I've been waking up between 4-5 AM to make sure I finish my long runs (anywhere between 12-21 miles) before it gets too hot. Although I would like to get into the habit of waking up earlier during the weekdays as well, I'm calling this goal a win in my book as Saturday runs are the most important days to get an early start.<br />
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9. Start doing yoga again: I've recently been going to yoga at least once a week. Although it makes my legs sore to later run, I know that the little strength I'm gaining during yoga does help. I think it's important to mix things up every once in awhile to keep things interesting.<br />
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10. Reorganize my cut out sewing patterns: This was by far the easiest task. A few months ago I hung up a Command Strips hook to hang up my cut out sewing patterns. Almost all of my patterns are pdf print outs, so I didn't mind punching holes through each piece and securing all pieces of one pattern together with yarn. I then hung up each pattern set on the hook, making everything easily accessible. However, several weeks ago my hook fell off of the wall because I had too much weight on it, and I never hung it back up out of pure laziness. Seeing this mocking me on my list of goals for the month, I finally attached a new command strip to the back of the hook and rehung everything. It took less than a day, but made a huge difference in tidying up the room. <br />
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Score for June: 5 out of 10.<br />
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I started making these monthly goals to help me accomplish my 24th birthday feat where I carved out 24 separate goals for myself to complete in a year. Since July 24th marks the end of this challenge, my July goals will be the final goals list. Anonymoushttp://www.blogger.com/profile/06304557600089738163noreply@blogger.com0tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-5819469863031765262.post-16844064975615408802015-07-01T11:51:00.004-04:002015-07-01T11:51:53.582-04:00WIP WednesdayFirst off, happy July! It's my birthday month and there are so many good things in store throughout these next few weeks that I've been looking forward to for so long.<br />
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Getting back to knitting, I spent the first half of the week solely knitting my Color Affection shawl. I finished the first little section of the pattern, and am so excited to have added the second color! <br />
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The latter part of the week was spent working on my Laylow shawl for Loop's KAL. The KAL doesn't actually end till July 26, so technically I still have plenty of time left to finish it. However, since I'll be traveling during the last two weeks of that time period, I really would like to have Laylow completely done before I leave for my trip, but now I'm realizing that's it's a pretty lofty goal. I've been diligently working on this shawl for the last three days in the hope of being able to start the final border this coming Sunday. However, I want to make this shawl as big as possible and will most likely add additional repeats to the pattern until I run out of yarn. I feel like I still have a lot of my main color of yarn to work through, so I don't know that I'll actually be able to start the border by this weekend.<br />
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I also went through my yarn stash this week. I pulled out the yarn I'll most likely be using for Loop's next KAL, and yarn for my <a href="https://instagram.com/p/4hq7rsoYHw/?taken-by=chinnersaurus">first ever sweater</a> that will hopefully accompany me to Rhinebeck this fall! I've never loved knitting as much as I do now, and have so many plans for future projects that just thinking about all knitting related things makes me so giddy! I'm linking up with <a href="http://www.gsheller.com/2015/07/yarn-along-234.html">Ginny's YAL</a> again this week!Anonymoushttp://www.blogger.com/profile/06304557600089738163noreply@blogger.com0tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-5819469863031765262.post-34619469718265661002015-06-30T08:00:00.000-04:002015-06-30T08:00:12.319-04:00Best Friend Friday No. 38: The Story of the Garlic ScapesAlmost every Wednesday Lauren and I receive a CSA box full of fresh, local fruits and veggies. We've been <a href="http://phillyfoodworks.com/">Philly Foodworks</a> customers for several months now, and love the produce we've gotten. Although we end up paying slightly more than we would at our local grocery store, the freshness of the fruits and veggies is worth every penny we've spent. Most of the produce is also organic which is an added bonus! Typically, the Sunday leading up to our delivery we sign into our online account and select exactly what we want. This method of ordering has really worked for us as it's allowed us to successfully meal plan for the ensuing week. <br />
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However, one week ago we made a mistake thinking that if we didn't select anything from the online market we were thus opting not to receive a CSA shipment the coming week. Little did we know that by not selecting anything we were actually requesting the "mixed farmer's choice" box. Although it is fun and very important to try new foods, sometimes you just have no idea what to do with a particular item. In this case, that item was garlic scapes. I'll be honest, before this mishap I had never even heard of them, and when they arrived, I would've used them similarly to green onions. Luckily, they were a little more familiar to Lauren, though she had never tasted nor cooked with them before. She did know that a lot of people use them to make garlic scape pesto. Both of us enjoy the traditional basil pesto, but don't eat it often as it's usually not vegan. So, we decided to try our hands at garlic scape pesto. I followed <a href="https://frugalveganmom.wordpress.com/2011/07/19/vegan-garlic-scape-pesto/">this recipe</a>, but made a larger batch and added extra nutritional yeast.<br />
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After tasting the pesto, I couldn't get rid of the garlic flavor. I'm a huge garlic fan, and would pick garlic fries over regular fries any day. But even for me the garlic was so overpowering and the ensuing spiciness, overwhelming. I knew right away that Lauren wasn't going to be a fan of this spread, and that there was no way to doctor it up to her liking. As we were serving ourselves dinner that Thursday night, I warned her try the pesto before dousing her pasta in it. I was right. She ended up eating pasta with marinara sauce instead. On the other hand, once I got past my initial shock, I actually didn't mind the flavor. <br />
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Like every week, we were planning to have homemade pizza Friday night. Originally we were both going to add the leftover pesto to our pizzas, but after the previous night's pasta situation, I knew that wouldn't be happening. Lauren made her traditional Friday night pizza with marinara, cashew cheese sauce, olives, zucchini, onion, and potatoes. I added the tiniest bit of pesto to mine, and I surprisingly really loved it. This ended up being one of my favorite pizzas in a long time.<br />
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We happily ate our respective pizzas while watching the U.S. Women's soccer game versus China. Because we don't have cable, we had to live stream the game from Lauren's computer. Although a hassle, Lauren has the live stream set up down to a science, knowing exactly which books are needed to prop the computer up so that the screen is the perfect eye level height.<br />
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While I don't see us buying anymore garlic scapes in the future, I'm determined to polish off this pesto. I really don't mind that Lauren won't eat it (we all have certain foods that we won't put near our mouths). But, I've made it my unofficial duty to eat all of the garlic scape pesto. It's definitely not as good as traditional basil pesto, but it's not inedible either. A girl can only eat so much pesto though! Besides pasta and pizza, I've used the pesto as a dipping sauce for veggies and it will most likely become a sandwich spread in the very near future. I'm running out of ways to incorporate pesto into my meals though, but I won't fall victim to the garlic scapes! Anonymoushttp://www.blogger.com/profile/06304557600089738163noreply@blogger.com0tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-5819469863031765262.post-60026818904825596422015-06-29T08:59:00.003-04:002015-07-01T08:37:36.950-04:00Melodia Shawl KAL<div class="separator" style="clear: both; text-align: center;">
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At the end of May, my local yarn shop, Loop hosted a knit along (KAL) for the Melodia shawl. I had never participated in a KAL before, but I've been wanting to for a while. I didn't think I was good enough to knit amongst more experienced knitters. This time though, Lauren also wanted to join the KAL and encouraged me to do so as well. Wanting to make a tiny dent in my yarn stash, I decided to take the big leap and knit in front of other people. Walking to Loop that first Sunday I was so nervous that I was going to embarrass myself, needing help with every single step.<br />
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To ease my doubts, Lauren walked me through the pattern the night before the first meet up. We wound our yarn and made gauge swatches together. She helped me figure out which size needle I should use, and made sure I knew how to do all of the required stitches. Lauren taught me how to do 'kfb' and now I'm a pro at it ;) Most importantly though, she made sure I would be able to do the garter tab cast on all by myself at the meet up. I've always had a tough time determining where to insert my needle to pick up a stitch. It took a few tries and a lot of questions from me, but after studying <a href="http://westknits.com/index.php/2011/07/garter-tab-cast-on/">this tutorial</a>, I got the hang of it and felt confident that I'd be able to replicate this technique the following afternoon.<br />
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Lauren and I showed up at Loop with our Melodia supplies in tow the next day. I was a little shy at first, but quickly felt welcomed and comfortable. Although many of the people there already knew each other, they were very friendly and made us feel included.<br />
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Spending time learning the garter tab cast on really paid off. I cast on my shawl on my first attempt! This was a huge confidence booster, allowing me to relax and let go of my anxiety of being the "worst knitter" at the meet up. My actual experience was the complete opposite of what I was afraid might happen. Instead, a few ladies actually asked for my advice regarding color choices! People asked me questions about the pattern and I was able to give them full answers. Obviously, we had to come back the following Sunday.<br />
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There were a total of four Sunday meet ups for the Melodia KAL (they were closed Memorial Day weekend), and Lauren and I attended all of them. Even though there were about a dozen knitters at the initial meet up, only a few continued to keep coming back. I love knitting within a large group of people, but knitting in a smaller group definitely has its perks as well. By the end of the KAL I felt I had gotten to know three new people well enough that we would call each other by our first names. I have a good sense about their knitting preferences and feel comfortable carrying on conversations with them.<br />
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I made my <a href="http://www.ravelry.com/projects/chinner24/melodia">first shawl</a>, but even more important, I realized that I love this hobby. I look forward to bringing my supplies to my local yarn store every Sunday and interacting with others who also feel the same way about this craft. You can bet I want to participate in all of Loop's knit alongs now!<br />
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Start Date: May 17, 2015<br />
Finish Date: June 14, 2015 <br />
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Yarn: Rain City Fiber Arts Olympic Sock (465 yard); acquired in a swap<br />
Colorway: The label wasn't marked with a colorway, but it's a purple and blue variegated skein<br />
Needles: Size 8 Kollage Square Circulars (firm cable)Anonymoushttp://www.blogger.com/profile/06304557600089738163noreply@blogger.com0