our apartment on rearranged design

steven & i were interviewed by ana at rearraged design for a house tour about our apartment! this happened a couple of months ago, and we kind of both forgot about it until it popped up on monday!

he answered most of the questions, while i looked over his shoulder and made him take out any parts that i didn't like. our home has changed a bit since these pictures were taken and the interview was done. it's always changing; we love it, but we also love rearranging.

go look

wednesday playlist #25

listen to all of these songs on a new page at olivetti studio: wednesday playlist #25.

1. twin peaks theme by angelo badalamenti
2. those girls (song for nico) by low
3. dearly departed by devotchka
4. love letters straight from your heart by ketty lester
5. when you're gone by the cranberries
6. neutral ground by sea wolf
7. vincent o'brien by m. ward
8. hanging high by lykke li
9. your ex-lover is dead by stars
10. distortions by clinic

wednesday playlist #24

listen to all of these songs on a new page at olivetti studio: wednesday playlist #24.

1. lost in the supermarket by the clash
2. venus by television
3. oh! you pretty things by david bowie
4. yer so bad by tom petty
5. tonight i have to leave it by shout out louds
6. sunny afternoon by the kinks
7. in the city by the jam
8. under my thumb by the rolling stones
9. little mascara by the replacements
10. gates of steel by devo

bloomington

we spent the weekend in bloomington, indiana visiting my brother and his girlfriend, erin, for her birthday.  trips like this used to be out of the question because we were without a car, but now they are possible and hopefully we do more of them. it was short, because steven had to work yesterday, but it was relaxing and we both needed it.

steven's birthday presents

boys i know are hard to gift. my brother and my dad are notoriously impossible, but what for my boyfriend who doesn't drink, smoke, wear leather, or eat meat/animal products? he has expensive taste, to top it off, but he always appreciates something handmade and thoughtful.

well, steven has to wear a tie to work, and he normally folds it up and keeps it in his pocket until he gets there. it has his company's logo on it. it's ugly and cheesy and he finds it embarrassing. however, he is not a sloppy man, and he enjoys dressing up and looking very put together. his everyday attire includes a shirt with a collar, and usually the shirt is plaid. in the colder months, a v-neck sweater goes on top and he is done (i wish getting dressed was that easy for me).

i thought he would enjoy a casual, solid colored tie to incorporate into his look. i was right! i picked out three colors that are common in his plaid shirts, in lightweight cotton fabrics.

it took a lot of trial and error and looking at other ties for reference, but i finally figured out how to make them. i referenced a couple of patterns that turned out to be pretty useless, and eventually ended up starting from scratch and making my own pattern. this was also the first time i had done a project that required cutting on the bias (not that scary).

the rust one was my first, and my whipstitch is not so neat (or invisible) on that one. the green was second, and my handsewing greatly improved. i gave him those two on the day of his birthday with an I.O.U. for the gray one, which i didn't finish until tuesday night. i am, obviously, still struggling with the "perfect point", but his ties will normally be hiding under his sweaters.  i've since made another for a friend, and it turned out much more even & pointy.

i did some personalized embroidery on the little tail keeper, and the tipping is just some fun scraps i had around. he enjoys those details. he didn't even mind that it took me two weeks to finish his birthday present.

wednesday playlist #23

listen to all of these songs on a new page at olivetti studio: wednesday playlist #23.

1. indiana by cymbals eat guitars
2. west coast by coconut records
3. ashamed by deer tick
4. time by supergrass
5. buildings and mountains by republic tigers
6. kingdom of rust by the doves
7. a picture of our torn up praise by phosphorescent
8. new romantic by laura marling
9. when u love somebody by fruit bats
10. also ran by french kicks

puddleduck

today was the day to finally drag these out from the back of the closet. it's been raining for weeks, it seems, and after stepping in an ankle-deep puddle last night, i decided it was time.

steven gave these to me for christmas a couple of years ago, at a time when i never would have been able to afford them for myself.  it was also a time when my feet were freezing cold all the time, and i was taking two buses to work and waiting outside for them, standing on the ice for a long time every morning.  they get me through cold, dirty, and slushy chicago days. they're great.  i love them.

but, that is what i associate them with now - - slushy chicago days, which are so disgusting and awful.  i feel like the sooner i pull these boots out, the sooner that weather will be here.

rain on the pumpkin parade

steven and i carved our pumpkin on tuesday night. we really labored over it - i scraped the guts out (my favorite part) and steven did about 90% of the actual carving. our pumpkin had unusually tough skin! i'm glad we didn't pick a tougher design. it took forever (about 2 full loops of the misfits discography, to be more exact) until steven finally took it outside to light it up.

then, on wednesday morning, he sent me this image while i was at work:

squirrels (hopefully nothing worse)!

what a bummer.

and it's not even halloween yet.