DAIKIN Festival.

Every year the DAIKIN company in Huntsville puts on a huge festival. The company makes a variety of plastics, but the festival includes dances, balloons, and free food. Once again, I didn't get a balloon ride; the lines were literally over a hundred yards long for each balloon. I did however, dance some really ridiculous looking dances, and ate way too much yakisoba and ice cream....



I also made this sunflower Kanzashi today. Maggie wore it to the festival, and it was a good thing I sewed it to a hair elastic; she danced really hard^^

http://www.flickr.com/photos/morichansgarden/7284006306/in/photostream/

Handmade lace

Today I finished up over six feet of hand crocheted lace. Would you like the pattern? I made it up myself, though I'm sure there are similar ones out there. Let me know and I'll e-mail you my version^^ This batch will probably end up on Etsy; I was going to edge something with it, and than decided to do something else. It's become a regular habit for me. But since I almost never use patterns, I pay the price^^

Chinese food, the easy way^^

Today I made sweet and sour pork. You might think it would be hard, but the rice takes longer than anything else^^ Want to know how to make your own? Here's the recipe, according to me...


Pork, chicken, turkey, whatever you want. 1-1 1/2 pounds
1 egg
1/2 cup cornstarch

1 can pineapple
1 bell pepper
a couple carrots

Sauce
juice from can of pineapple
1/2 cup rice vinegar
several dashes soy sauce
a couple good squirts of ketchup (the secret ingredient ^^)
a couple tablespoons cornstarch

First up, cut the meat into 1 inch cubes. Dump the egg and the cornstarch into a bowl with the meat. Stir

Then, cut up the pineapple, carrots, and bell pepper. You are trying for pieces about half the size of the meat. Do not throw away the pineapple juice; you are using it later! Double the veggies, or add something else like broccoli, if you are feeling like being healthy^^ I've seen people substitute the meat with tofu, but I wouldn't suggest it. I like my meat to be meat, and my tofu to be tofu^^

Dump meat into cooking pan on high with a little oil. Stir every minute or so; don't want it to burn! While you are doing that, make the sauce. Just dump everything together, and mix.

When the meat is done (cut open a piece and inspect for pink. No pink? It's done)dump the veggies in and stir. Cook for a minute or two, then add the sauce. Once the sauce is thick and coating everything, it's done. Serve the whole mess over rice, and people will start telling you to open your own restaurant! Makes about eight servings, and it freezes well too^^

Pseudo Irish lace and bamboo dilemmas

I am working on this pseudo-Irish lace shawl/veil/hijab/shawl. I call it pseudo, because I am sewing the motifs to a open weave cotton fabric as opposed to making my own net. It's still taking forever; it took two days just to crochet the lace trim.



Also, I have these segments of bamboo William cut while he was here. Not sure what I'll do with them, but I'm sure they'll be cool^^



Also, who wants to play spot the wacky things on Heather's bookshelf?

William, The RA

So yesterday, I dropped William back off at Tech. What's this, I didn't post when I picked him up? Well, since he doesn't teleport that I know of, somebody had to have got him. And I did, two weeks ago, right between the tiny fish and Cinderella. He lurked the house for two weeks, and I didn't say a word on here.
So now he is getting his own post, for no other reason than he may just have the cushiest summer job he'll ever get; grand boss dude of the rich kid's dorm. Basically, he gets to keep an eye out on a dorm full of high-school cheerleaders and rich college students all summer. Obviously there's more to the job than that, but getting paid to stay in a HUGE dorm room and make sure mister "dad pays my tuition and dorm fees" doesn't have his rock music up too loud, or the cheerleader camp goers don't wander into the guys floor, doesn't sound like a bad job at all. He may say otherwise later, but right now he's pretty stoked.

His home away from home for the next couple months^^

Recycling and Other News Part 2

Today I finished the recycled yarn project. It ended up being a shawl/wrap, but Maggie still thinks it's a baby blanket. I guess you could use it as one, but since there are no babies here I don't see why we will.




Also, my pond is so cover in pond pads you could walk across it with out getting one's feet wet. To bad they don't have pretty flowers like lotus or water lilies. I'm not sure you can eat them either...



I'm also thinking about teaching a crochet class. What do you think?

Nashville Zoo + Boy Scouts =

So, yesterday I drove all the webelo scouts of the local den to the Nashville zoo in the Beast; the twelve passenger van. It rained. People wondered off, whined, and expected me to buy them snacks. Somehow 'boy scout outing' became every one is invited, including kindergarten aged girls. I almost got lost on the way home. But hey, no one died, got kidnapped, or caught pneumonia, so all in all, a successful trip.

Recycling, and other news.

I have been shamelessly working on something else instead of items for my shop. I found these two children's sweaters in my mending pile, and figured they were more or less unmendable. So I unraveled the yarn and started crocheting. Not sure what I'm making yet, but it's coming along;



I also taught Maggie a new crochet stitch; the slip stitch. She already knew the chain and single crochet stitches, so why not? She worked in rounds until she got this. It's a little messy, but;

Hard working little thing, isn't she?



I also sold the Angry Bird earrings, after adding some mustaches;

New Etsy store!

So, I finally decided to set up my Etsy store. I've already been favorited by people I don't know! Seriously though, I'm kinda exited about it. So go over to Mori-chan's Garden and check it out!



Maggie, my latest fashion model! Isn't she cute in her yukata?



Angry bird earrings are at my shop too!

Cinderella's dream

Yesterday, today, and tomorrow Holly is in her high school play. All told she acts in nine performances. She plays the Evil Stepmother in the retelling of Cinderella, titled Cinderella's dream. Basically it's a comedy, with the two stepsisters being played by boys and lots of funny stuff like setting skirts on fire. It's hard for Holly to play her part; she has to yell the entire 2+ hours of the play, and because she is shorter than most of the other actors she has to wear really high stiletto shoes. She has blisters and bloody spots all over her feet, and the first night she yelled herself hoarse. But the play was so good I went to see it again.

The Evil Step-family and Cinderella. Holly's the one in burgundy, playing Lady Nervosa Pigmentosa, also known as the Evil step-witch.



You can't see it, but the other stepsister just did something stupid. With names like Ecxema and Euphoria what did you expect? Also, I made the pumpkin, the most important prop^^



Speaking of crochet pumpkins, I made this for Holly. She can wear it as a necklace or a bracelet charm.

Tiny Fish Amigurumi

Today I finished this little fish. He's a cute little guy, right?





I also made Holly a bracelet, but she ran off with it before I could take a picture. Maybe tomorrow...