Following Rabbits Blog

I was shopping downtown yesterday at the City Quilter and saw this book that I had to have. I often shop for fabric and end up buying a yard or two of a print that I love but have no plans for. I have piles of stray yards and leftovers all around my sewing table. This book has 101 different sewing projects, all made with 1 yard or less of fabric. Brilliant! It provides detailed instructions, an envelope of patterns, lots of photos, and a huge range of projects from handbags to home decor, and clothes for you and baby. Lately I've been left to my own devices, and have found myself frequently burrowing into my new studio space to whip up some creativity. Can't wait to dive into this book and my stacks of fabric and see what I come up with.

Do you sew? What are your favorite things to do with leftover fabric? Any fun projects you'd recommend that use fat quarters or quilting squares? I want to hear from you!

over the rainbow bag, snotty crowned bird cushion cover, petit critter wristlet, wanderlust passport sleeve, sleepy critters eye mask, stumpie seat/floor cushion

Trees, clouds, and woodland creatures- just in time for Earth Day. Inspired by fairytales and wanderlust, Lynda Lye of Little Odd Forest creates whimsical clothing and accessories in a rainbow of candy colors. Essentially a one-woman powerhouse of creativity (although she does have a few helper elves and her mum at the sewing machine from time to time) Lynda started LOF in 2004 and has been creating fun, smiley pieces ever since. I really love the bright colors and kitschy prints. Super cute for spring and summer!

I have a really weird kitchen set-up. My refrigerator stands alone in the middle of a raised tile floor. It's kind of an eyesore... I found this how-to on Martha Stewart Crafts and decided my fridge could use a little accessorizing. I bought different sized flat glass marbles at the dollar store, hit up Michael's Crafts on the UWS for Sobo glue and craft magnets, and sat in front of the TV tonight watching Lost and cutting little circles from my stack of magazines.

I alternated between cutting out numbers, zodiac signs, and mini Lady Gaga's and cursing the artist-formerly-known-as-John-Locke traipsing across my TV screen. (What a life I lead, huh?) They came out pretty cute!

It's looking like I'm going to be spending my birthday solo this year... but for the sake of pulling together all these fun items, let's pretend I'm going to have a fabulous birthday party with lots of friends and family there to help me celebrate! I turn the big 2-7 next Monday and these are some of the goodies from my most wanted list:

1. Some people refer to me as Alice, which I usually just go with, unless I’m planning on meeting them IRL. Survival of the Hippest makes necklaces with your Twitter name! I'd rock @FollowRabbits with style. They also do hashtags. #Brilliant

2. I've been flipping through Paris guidebooks at the library, but I could really use some of my own that I can mark up and keep. I'm also in desperate need of a new French-English dictionary so I can brush up on my francais! 

3. I start every day off with a cup of tea in my pajamas, usually in front of my computer. This heart teacup and saucer set is the cutest! Would make a cheery cup of tea to kick off a productive day.

4. I've been lamenting the demise of the Polaroid. This Fujifilm Instax Mini camera is pretty sweet. Spits out credit card sized instant photos and the film won't break the bank. Fun!

5. Last year I launched a clothing line, Loyalty II Royalty. I've sadly let the project go to the wayside a bit, but this past week I've been cooking up a new t-shirt design, hoodies, scarves, baby shirts, and tote bags. I need more Yudu screenprinting supplies to keep up with the creativity!

6. Alice's Tea Cup offers picnic boxes to take to nearby Central Park! The box is filled with their afternoon tea service: 2 scones, 2 sandwiches (cut into tea-sized thirds), a piece of cake and assorted cookies, along with 2 teas- hot or iced. A birthday picnic is almost as good as a mad tea party, no? (Don't forget a candle for the cake!)

7. I got a laptop for Christmas and have since become very attached to it. (I'm surprised I haven't named it yet...) With all of my projects, websites, blogs, twitter, fb, etsy- I like having it with me at all times! This AiW laptop bag is small enough to bring on the rush hour train without people giving me the stink-eye (trust me, it happens) but has space for my power cord and mouse. Extra pockets are nice since my laptop bag also doubles as my purse when I carry it.

8. At risk of having Mario make another Jersey Shore joke at my expense, I'm going to openly admit that I really want new Ed Hardy sneaks! I have a metallic pink pair that are so beat, and they're my fave for kicking around the city in. (And I don't have a spray-on orange tan or talk about myself in the third person, so it's okay, right?)

9. I'm lucky enough to have great big windows in my apartment that face the Manhattan skyline. I'm unlucky in that I suffer from frequent migraines and sunshine quickly becomes my enemy numero uno. I've been meaning to pick up a sleep mask for such instances, and this one is adorable!

Truthfully, what I'd really love is someone to spend my day with. I had friends and family around last year and we made a whole weekend of my birthday- Coney Island, beers and baseball at Professor Thom's, dinner at Sweetie Pie... was so great! A nice dinner at my fave Italian spot downtown and a trip to the top of the Empire State Building would be grand... alas, maybe next year.

An abbreviated list of favorites this week...  photo by Ronald Koster, part of the B&W collection below; see his flickr page here

SEE IT: photography I fell for this week I found a great collection of black and white photographs of all subject matter... the snails above is a great catch. A small girl taking a photo on a pier is another favorite. Collections like this one make me want to dust off my old 35mm and take photographs of things that inspire me.   Richard Sandler's collection of 1980's NYC is eye-opening. New York was a different world altogether in the 80's, and Sandler does a great job of capturing the grit and edge that defined that era in the city. Charles Maze has taken tons of great photos of Paris and New York. The colors and composition of all of his photos is beautiful. He also takes most of the photos on Check Your Paris- a lovely blog showcasing boutique hotels in Paris and things to do while you're there. (I've also been given a most exciting opportunity to guest blog for them while I'm in Paris!)
HEAR IT: songs I downloaded this week
1. Smoke Without Fire by Duffy 2. Stolen by Civil Twilight 3. The War by Brown Shoe 4. Cleaning Apartment by Clint Mansell & Kronos Quartet 5. For Marcia by Amplifier 6. No Time for Fears by Republic of Letters 7. Lux Aeterna by Clint Mansell & Kronos Quartet 8. Do No Wrong by Thirteen Senses 9. Cowboys, Engines by the Boxer Rebellion 10. Aquiline by Riddle of Steel