Music Monday:::SWEETER

Okay, I'm a little late to the party. But I LOVE Gavin DeGraw. I vaguely knew who he was before Dancing With The Stars. (DWTS is my guilty pleasure---the ONLY reality TV show I watch.) Cue premier night of DWTS---Gavin was completely endearing. His smile *swoon*. The week he performed the Rumba I became absolutely smitten. No, he wasn't the best dancer and he knew it, but I enjoyed watching him nonetheless. 

So of course I had to look him up on Spotify. Wait? He is a singer AND songwriter? MAJOR talent. If I could have my dream job it would be a MUSICIAN. But FIRST I would need some talent and SECOND I'd need to overcome my incredible shyness. 

Imagine my excitement when I found out he was coming to perform on Jimmy Kimmel Live! Free concert? Perfect for my budget! Premium tickets? Even better.

This is Gavin arriving. There was a crack in the fence right where I was standing. After I took one picture I felt  little like a stalking paparazzi, so I didn't take any more. Speaking of stalking, Mr. DeGraw has some crazy stalker fans. Those girls are CRAZY.

Sound check was AWESOME! We saw the whole thing thru the fence. Then we got a front row place right in front of the stage. This guy is AMAZING live! That gravel in his voice is so sexy. And so appreciative of his fans and his band. What a sweetie!

Did you catch me behind Jimmy Kimmel in the beginning? Lower right corner. D.D. was next to me, but got cut out of the shot. Gavin DeGraw is touring this Summer. Check him out. Or check out his newest album Sweeter if you haven't already.

Animal Folks

INTRODUCING: 

ANIMAL FOLKS!

Adorable, right? I've had this idea for awhile---combining my love of crochet and sewing. And I would be lying if I didn't say this project wasn't a little like playing paper dolls---another of my major loves.

Mr. Fox was the first. I combined a few of my crochet patterns to make the doll part. Then I sat down with some paper to sketch out shirt, vest, and jacket patterns. After making sample clothes out of scrap fabric, I was ready to choose his wardrobe. DASHING!

Mr. Elephant came next. D.D. has always loved elephants. I had to pretty much create his body making up my own pattern. I don't know if you can tell, but he has a little belly paunch---D's idea. 

I couldn't find gray yarn in the same brand I made the fox out of, so the elephant is a little smaller. That means I also had to tailor his clothes to be smaller. I LOVE his jacket! My Mom used this corduroy to make matching outfits for us girls when we were small.

Mr. Rabbit came third. His blue velvet jacket is so soft! (I have a Sylvia-Louise handbag made out of it!) I have other animals in mind to try. I'm not sure if I will be making these to sell or not. Much of the clothing is hand stitched due to the nature of it being so small. And these are not child safe toys. (Plastic eyes, small buttons)

So far I've only made gentlemen. I'm not sure if I could make ladies outfits to equal those of the men. We'll see!

Be Your Best

This is something I've been thinking about a lot lately. I didn't have a blog post in mind, but then I came across this quote. I won't go into specifics, but it's sad to see people you've looked up to most of your life get caught up in the appearance of doing right while demonstrating by their actions almost the complete opposite.

I'm not perfect. 

I don't profess to be.

In a world that most people feel the need to hide their true selves or put on a false front, I hope that I consistently display honest and genuine behavior. I try to be the best person I can be. When I stumble and make mistakes I recognize them as life's lessons learned and move on. 

We're all human. We all struggle. Let's try to be there for each other and help one another. Imagine how much better things could be if we all lived the best we could and helped each other be a little better everyday.