Erica is making more clothes...

...wait...does an apron count as clothing? LOL

For the Indie Trunk Show, I joined a Facebook group for local vendors. It was a great resource for all of the participating artists and especially for first timers like myself. One vendor made herself a personalized apron to help advertise her shop (I think she was an embroiderer) and some other vendors started commenting on how useful aprons are. I never thought about it but I'm glad I saw that post! Wes helped with the set-up and clean-up of my booth and my mom and Mike booth-sat for me for an hour so I could go to lunch and take a potty break but other than that, I was on my own. *cue independent women music!* Since I'm neither an octopus or a 2000s sk8r boi with those crazy baggy pants, I am no good at holding tons of stuff on my person. I had my phone, Square reader, loose cash, pen, business cards and lip gloss all stowed away in my little apron. Oh, what a life saver!!

I Googled some DIY apron tutorials but like always, in the end, I never really followed a tutorial. I researched some tutorials and then decided to do my own. So, here we go...

Half apron tutorial:
     I used a sewing machine for this (once you go with a sewing machine, you'll never go back to hand stitching) but if you don't have one, its an easy enough project that you can sew by hand.

1. Measure:
            (according to your body structure and size of apron you want; I have my pieces on a large bath towel for comparison)
     I'm between 5'2 and '3 height and ~110lb and these are my apron measurements-
Back piece A: 12.5 x 27 inches
Front piece B: 7.5 x 24 inches
Waist band C: 3.5 x 68.5 inches
Pocket D: 6 x 6.5 inches

2. Fold the top and bottom ends of piece C horizontally into the middle and pin together; basically a hem along the top and bottom. Sew along the middle.

3. Piece A will be the main piece for the apron. Pin a small hem along three sides, then sew. Set aside.

4. Piece B will be the front pockets. Fold two pleats into the piece, thus dividing piece B into three sections.

5. Then fold along all four edges, pin a hem and sew. Set aside.

6. Fold, pin, and sew a hem around piece D for a little decorative pocket. Set aside.

7. Now you have all your pieces hemmed and sewn. Time to put them together. Pin piece B onto piece A. Sew around the edges and pleated pocket lines.

8. Pin and sew on the pocket (piece D) to the apron.

9. Your apron is done!! Lastly, we need to sew on the waist band. Place the waist band a little bit underneath the top of your apron. Fold top of apron over, pin and sew.

Done! I was hoping I could get this under 10 steps and I did : )

Musings from the recliner...

This isn't meant to be a bitter or angry blog post... I am married and know tons of married and pregnant friends...I just saw this and had to laugh. 

I am home bound for the next couple of days and the couch has become my new favorite piece of furniture. Sounds relaxing (and it was at first) but I've already been cooped up at home for 3 days recovering from my womanly surgery. I am ready to be in any other position besides sitting and laying down. But alas, I cannot move about until Wednesday...doctor's orders.
       In the meantime, I have...
 1. learned how to play Grand Theft Auto V (which I am not good at);
    2. made jewelry--blog post on that to come soon;
 3. mastered the phone game "Cookie Run";
      4. written to old friends (but I can't mail any of the letters I wrote since I can't physically make the journey to the post office);
 5. finished my book for book club;
      6. and taken way too many pictures of Sadie.

Sadie is giving me healing cuddles.

Today, I decided that I should do something useful, so now I am blogging. But what to blog about? Being stuck at home makes one (or at least, me) depressed. I don't want to blog about my depressing shit so I started thinking about my friends and family and their hobbies and added the two up to discover how many future movers and shakers I know (and am related to).

But before I get to that, I guess I can talk about my surgery for a bit. Everyone loved my infertility blog post so here's a "part 2" follow up.
        (P.S. I find it a tad bit amusing that no one gives a flying flip about my DIY crafts, recipes or RagsReborn posts but as soon as I share something personal and painful, I'm an instant sensation. Crazy how the world works, huh?) 
Anyway, a  couple of weeks ago, my OB/GYN decided that it was time to remove the cysts from my left ovary because they are getting too big. (x_x) So this past Friday morning, Wes and I went to surgery. I was completely knocked out but my doctor told Wes the results:

• My OB/GYN said that she didn't have to remove the cysts after all (which is so weird to me because that was the main reason why I went in... we'll need to talk about that during my post-op appointment...) They weren't as big or bad as she initially thought. 
• Instead she removed some bad endometriosis lesions. I've always suspected mild to severe endometriosis and the diagnostic laproscopy confirmed my hunches. 
• She also said she understands why I am always complaining about painful periods (so yeah, it's not just me being a wimp!!!) and I am pretty much 100% infertile.  C'mon, like, duh, what else is new? 
• Anyway, she wants me to either get on birth control or get a shot that mimics menopause. Pretty much my body needs to stop my reproductive system from performing its functions because it's all out of whack. I've been on birth control briefly many many moons ago and I absolutely hated it. I pretty much experienced every side effect and it was bad. Not sure which I should choose. I could choose neither and continue on with super painful cramps and abdominal discomfort; I've lived with that for this long, suppose I don't need to change anything now. Hmmm...decisions, decisions...I guess I have a few weeks to think about it...

So there's that. : /  I have been told that I cannot perform the most basic of female functions... I cannot reproduce. That's the essential reason why both males and females were put on this earth, right? To procreate. And now, I literally 100% medically proven cannot.  That is some heavy news I've just been dealt.
       Luckily, Wes fell in love young and had a child earlier in life. At least his genes will live on. As for me and my family tree, well, its DEAD. I have no siblings. I will never be an aunt, my mom will never be a grandmother and I will never be a mother. It sucks. But what do you do? Wes doesn't want to adopt and we're both against scientific intervention in the baby making department. So we accept this blow and move on.

Back to non-depressing blog topics...
       I studied business in college and always wanted to start one of my own. I started RagsReborn last year (admittedly a little late in life but I've always been a late bloomer). My business venture is coming along rather nicely. I can talk about it all day but I want to talk about some other people who are working toward self-made fame. I know so many:
        my cousin, Jan, is the future of the kuk sool won school of martial arts; 
      another cousin of mine, young lil cutie Michelle, is going to win So You Think You Can Dance as soon as she turns 18;
      one of my besties, Michelle (must be a popular name), is going to get famous from making jewelry. And I own one of her first pieces.

Instead of listing out everyone I know, I settled on a top three list.

EMMA-
aka LittleBennet.  My cousin's wife, Emma, is an award nominated blogger. Her blog http://littlebennet.com/ is a wonderful read. She travels, has DIY projects, fashion advice and amazing photography.  Basically, it's what I want my blog to become when it grows up. LOL

My favorites of her posts are the ones about travel. (I love to travel and don't do enough of it.) Another one of my cousins, Winnie, got married in Norway this past spring. Emma and her husband, Kent, took an amazing trip all over Europe. They hit 7 cities in about a month. They did everything from hiking in Iceland to afternoon tea in London. I followed her blog & Instagram religiously and became more and more envious of her pictures, especially the ones about food.

LACEY-
I've known this lady for decades (yes, I can say decades--plural--because I met her in junior high school and we're both 30 now!). Lacey has always been artsy and creative. Now she makes soap. I'm trying to convince her to jump into the world of Etsy and craft shows with me.

Here's her men's line that she made for Wes last Christmas. The mustache soap is for shaving.

She started out by making her own scents and color to add to pre-made soap. She made this apricot scent that smells sooooo good! I got so many samples but I used them all before I thought to take any pictures. They're really pretty--she used pastels and glitter and formed some really neat patterns. There was a swirly purple & white one and a pink, yellow and white plaid one that were my two favorites. Oh, she also has this gardenia scent that also smells really good.

She's branched out to making lip balm and bath bombs, too. Her newest venture is curing her own soap...like from scratch using lye and stuff. She is on vacation now, but says she has a batch at home that will be ready for me when she returns. 

TREVOR-

aka lightningshinobi.  My cousin Trevor draws & writes manga. I'm not too into the anime culture so I can't be a fair judge (and I'm biased toward his work) but what I've seen of his stuff is pretty good. He started with one boy character a few years ago and has really developed him and given him a good story arc and some interesting compadres. I visit Trevor annually and he is always happy to show me his newest drawings. He's come a long way in the few years he's been doing it. Here's is DeviantArt account: http://lightningshinobi.deviantart.com/

I know this blog is kinda all over the place but 1. I just had surgery two days ago and I'm still letting the results sink in...its a lot to fully comprehend and accept; 2. Sadie is distracting me with her cuddly cuteness and 3. I'm watching Wes play Grand Theft Auto V. I started blogging with this grand idea of highlighting all the future small business owners and entertainers I know and I don't think I organized it very well. It was mostly just a ploy to get myself to be not so depressed. Anyway, its time for lunch and then another nap...

Erica is growing a mustache...

...did I say "growing"? I meant sewing.

Elizabeth (pink octopus) won first. Chastity (Sherlock Holmes) won second. Reba (Fourth of July) won third. I think Pam (bacon) should have won. That was hilarious!

Last week was employee appreciation week at my job. Delta Dental of Oklahoma has been voted one of the Best Places to Work in OKC and I completely understand why. The working environment is great, they hire some amazing people and they really go all out to show employee appreciation. This was my third employee appreciation experience. We get a theme each year and this year's theme was 2015 Delta Dental County Fair. We even had a "fair/carnival" at the end of the week. So much fun :D

The only ride I went on was the giant trampoline with bungee cords. It was pretty fun. I'd like to think I work out and am moderately in shape but that thing wore me out. My poor little legs!!

Employees were allowed--encouraged, actually--to have a table to display and sell crafts, goods and treats. OMG...mini show for RagsReborn!! I shared a table with Marie, owner of Glass Soldier Gifts. (Her stuff is quite amazing. Check out her Facebook!) I posted on the company intranet throughout the week to advertise. Look at my marketing skills go!

(above) I emailed this to my coworkers. (below) And check out this little gem on our intranet bulletin board. I tried crossing out the Delta Dental-ness...not like there's any HIPAA here but our Compliance department is rather strict and I fear. LOL 

My little table booth at the event did really well (almost as good as I did at the Indie Trunk Show!). I sold two totes (one was bought by our CEO's wife!), two pillows and a coworker brought me an old Elvis t-shirt for a custom order. Oh, Elvis! *swoon*

There were little events and competitions each day and Tuesday was the mustache and beard competition. We were all encouraged to put on a mustache--real or fake. I knew I had to do a fake one! I looked online for some ideas but none popped out at me. I was chatting with Vietfil and she suggested that I do a pillow mustache ... how perfect since I would be selling at the carnival later in the week. Give 'em a sample of my craft! (Thank you, Vietfil, for the idea...that girl should get into marketing!) RagsReborn can do freestyle pillows, right? I made a huge one for myself and some little ones for my coworkers. All made out of old t-shirt scraps so technically, they're still t-shirt pillows to fit my business theme. Since I can't give out my pillowing secrets, here's a tutorial for small prop mustaches.

Party mustache tutorial:
        Materials needed - cloth, cotton (not pictured), dowel rod, hot glue, scissors & a mustache pattern (I drew mine with paper and pencil). And any decorative materials, if desired.

Making these from leftover t-shirts! Yay for recycling :D

1. Find or draw a mustache pattern. I am not a good artist so I had to Google a picture to work from. It took a few tries but I finally drew one I liked.

2. Trace the pattern onto the cloth and cut out two pieces - one will be the front and the other will be the back. I used chalk to trace my pattern. It's not listed in the materials but you can use whatever you have... pencil and marker works, too. I attempted to cut one out without tracing first, which worked okay but was more difficult. I considered doing a different color cloth for the front and the back but I eventually decided against it. Its always still an option for you. The sky is the limit when it comes to crafting!

3. Hot glue the dowel rod in the center of the designated back mustache piece.

4. Hot glue a little bit of cotton onto the back mustache piece. Try to keep the cotton toward the center of the mustache. You want enough cotton for the mustache to be sturdy but not too much to where it's overflowing out the edges.

5. This is the hardest step and be forewarned that you will burn your fingers with hot glue. >.< You're basically making a sandwich with the cotton in the middle.
        Carefully glue the front piece of the mustache over the cotton.  Do this by slowly hot gluing around the edges. Move the cotton toward the middle as much as possible before you start gluing and continue to push toward the middle as you glue. I had to add more cotton to the middle as I glued. It needs to be stuffed pretty full in order for it to be sturdy.

6. Done!! I tied a ribbon on each of the dowels and glued initials on them (I have 4 team members in my department and had to do something to distinguish between which mustache belonged to whom). They look pretty cute without decorations, too. Again, its totally up to you!

Erica is throwing it back to Easter Sunday

Sadie and myself in our pretty Easter dresses : )

It is growing near my bedtime as I write this so I'll make it quick. I baked oatmeal raisin cookies to bring to my mom's for Easter. I also baked some for my coworkers. I didn't want to just package them in sandwich bags so I made some super quick Easter baskets. I made these in literally like three minutes. And they were free (as in I had to buy zero materials for them). They aren't the best quality but if you go with these basic instructions, you can add some pizzazz to them and turn them into something a lot nicer.

Paper sack Easter basket tutorial:

             Materials needed - paper sacks (I used the bags that liquor stores put your wine in), clear tape and scissors.

1. Cut the top 4 inches off the paper sack.

2. Cut two slits half way down the side of the paper sack.

3. Fold the paper sack in half. Fold the sides down where the slits are. Tape the sides together after they are folded down. The paper sack will now look like a basket. 

4. Cut the remaining part of the paper sack (the top half that we cut off in step #1) into three equal pieces. 

5. Crumple each piece until it looks like a piece of rope. Tape the ends of all three pieces together and braid them together. Now you have a handle to go on your basket. Tape the handle to the basket and you're all done. I didn't have much time for decorating but I bet you could make some really nice baskets if you spend some time on it. I would have loved to paint mine or glue floral arrangements on them. But, time and I don't get along and I am running late more often than I would like.

Just for kicks, here is me and Wes' Easter picture we took at my mom's.

Erica and Wes are growing a garden!

Indie Trunk Show kinda took over my life last month, so I have to apologize for not blogging about this... I GOT MARRIED!!!

ERICA AND WESLEY ARE HUSBAND AND WIFE \(^.^)/ WHOOT WHOOT

I'm going to be in another show in August so I'm pretty sure my life will be taken over by my sewing machine once more pretty soon. (Its a good kind of takeover, though.) I want to do a show each quarter. My spring show was Indie Trunk Show. My summer show will be (appropriately titled) The Summer Show in Yukon. I applied to be in Earlywine YMCA's Arts and Crafts Fair in south OKC for my fall show and The Santa Market in Edmond for my winter show. I also plan to apply for a show at the Cleveland County Fairgrounds (also for fall) but that hasn't happened, yet. I don't even remember what it's called so I can't shamelessly promote. LOL No word on my official acceptance into these shows but I feel pretty good about it. They were all referrals from vendors I met at the Indie Trunk Show who all had good things to say about RagsReborn. They are also smaller shows so they'll be a much better fit for me.

But before craft show insanity sets in, I want to blog about my wonderful domestic life with my husband. <3 I usually don't do mushy barf stuff but I figured I should at least once since I am married now. Wes and I are trying to get a little garden together on our balcony. We have a couple plants from last year and two new crops I started a few months ago. Look, progress!

I took some really awesome pictures in the daytime and got some action shots of Wes pruning the pepper plants but then I accidentally deleted them off my phone. So now we have "oh shit, I deleted the good pictures so here are some make up ones" pictures.

One thing Wes & I always do together is cook and eat our meals.  No matter how busy our individual schedules get, we try our darnedest to have dinner. Over the last year or so, I've gotten into the organic farm to market movement.  Last summer I decided that we should just grow our own herbs and some vegetables. (It's cheaper than shopping at Whole Foods!) We started with some mint sprigs a friend of ours gave us. Then we got some seeds for peppers. This year I got some more seeds and now, we have mint, basil (actually no real basil, yet, they're just tiny little sprouts now), green beans and banana peppers.

The basil has sprouts... even if you can't see them in this picture.

I can't say I'm an expert but there have been lessons learned from our two summers of gardening that I would like to share. This was actually Wes' idea. He goes, "You should blog about our plants since they're doing so well." I guess he wants me to diversify... crafts, recipes, infertility, shows... what don't I do?!?! LOL Anyway, back to this week's topic. Top three tips for home gardening:

1. Don't let the soil stay moist! 

Last year we experienced gnat-mageddon. It was TERRIBLE!  I didn't even water the plants that much. But it was just enough to get a few gnats and then those suckers laid eggs and then we could not get rid of them for months. I think we had gnats from March until November. The apartment supposedly came out and sprayed and we had fly strips all over and around the plants but nothing helped. 

So there we were with our little baby plants and an army of gnats... AND moldy soil. Since we let the soil get too moist, fuzzy patches of mold started showing up. We ended up having to stop watering the plants completely and then we pretty much re-potted the plants with new dry soil. We use a spray bottle for watering now. I spritz the indoor plants about every other day.

2. Take them outside. 

I didn't want to bring the plants out this spring because of all the rain we've been getting. I was afraid that our plants would all just drown. And all the seed packets say to start your plants indoors for x number of weeks. Wes pushed for them being taken outside so I finally gave in. They looked like they weren't going to make it after the first few storms. But then, our mint grew a lot fuller and our banana pepper grew into a really hardy stalk.  We had the spindliest banana pepper plant last summer and it barely had any buds on it. Took it outside for a month and it has improved tenfold. The only thing we still have indoors is our baby basil.

Our luscious mint.

3. Get multiple small pots.

Last year, we got two large pots and I crammed all our seeds into them. I had a packet of basil seeds, a packet of pepper seeds and the sprigs of mint from Kristin. At first they all grew... then they all died. The mint took over everything and the basil never made it.  Our peppers were looking more and more weak. I finally let the mint have their own pot and separated the peppers into two pots with one stalk each. This year, I got four Jiffy Strips. Two for basil and two for green beans. We only put one green bean seed in each and a few basil seeds in each. The beans are sprouting up a storm and the basil is starting to grow, too.

I want to grow other vegetables but I think planting season is over. I think we'll add to our garden each year. Maybe two new crops a year since that's what we've been doing. We are going to have tons of banana peppers this summer. Wes suggested pickling them. I've never pickled anything before and Wes made it sound like a difficult ordeal. Has anyone out there pickled peppers? And can you give us tips?