Tuesday, August 28, 2007

Skirt #2!!

I'm pleased to announce that I have now made my second skirt ever! Behold:


Lol...I'm very excited, and I LOVE this one. It even has a zipper (my first zipper!), and some rick rack around the bottom for fun.


And the best part is, it's so cheap! I got this fabric on clearance at fabric.com for like $2.50 a yard, and with the zipper and binding tape and rick rack, my grand total comes to....about $9!! Woohoo!

I already have my fabric for the next skirt washed and ready to go, can't wait to do another one!

Wednesday, August 22, 2007

Sew What! Skirts

So I'm pretty much a beginning seamstress. I can do basic, basic stuff like pillows, curtains, aprons, etc. I also must admit that I HATE using patterns, I'd much rather make something up myself or copy something I have. So I was ecstatic when my sister (who is a mathematician, and loves using patterns, lol) pointed me in the direction of a book called Sew What! Skirts, which is basically a book that encourages and helps you to make your own skirts without patterns. I HAD to have it, so I went searching for it and ended up going to 2 different bookstores in order to find it last weekend, lol. But I was so glad I did!

There are so many great ideas in this book, and it's easy enough that even a beginner like me can do it. So, I pulled out a circle skirt panel that my sis had bought me when I got a sewing machine from hubby on my birthday a couple years ago. (Don't worry, I asked for it specifically, lol). Unfortunately, the circle skirt panel was a bit too small, so I decided to cut the waist a bit wider, but of course this had the result of shortening the skirt. I like to be comfy in my skirts and not have to worry that I'm flashing people, so after reading Sew What! Skirts, I took the idea of a layered skirt and decided to just add a longer layer underneath. It was a tad more difficult than the book because I had to make some changes here and there (because the book uses two A-line skirts, not a circle skirt and an A-line skirt). The result is below:



It's not the greatest skirt in the world, but it's my first! I'm proud. :-) I hope there are many more to come! And for anyone who needs inspiration or encouragement to do your own thing with the sewing machine, especially when it comes to skirts, I highly recommend this book!

Anti-Catholic Propaganda Disguised as a Children's Film to be Released Soon - Beware!

A movie coming out this coming December called The Golden Compass is being promoted and marketed to children, especially those who enjoy the fantasy genre, such as Lord of the Rings. The problem is, the movie, and the books upon which it is based, a series called His Dark Materials by Philip Pullman, are thoroughly anti-Catholic and anti-Christian.

Visit American Papist to see the trailor, and some reviews from amazon about the books, which are even worse it seems. Here are some of the highlights from his post, discussing the trailor:

Narrator: "[This] is a world dominated by the Magisterium, which seeks to control all humanity, and whose greatest threat, is the curiosity of a child." (oh darn, he's on to us!)

Scientist Good Guy: "... [there is a] parallel universe, where there is no Magisterium." Religious Evil Guy: "That is heresy." Scientist Good Guy: "That is the truth." (aw shucks, science proved us wrong again!)
.............
The official trailer begins with the line "In 2001 New Line Cinema opened the door to Middle-Earth. This December they take you on another epic journey", while the Golden Compass is falling through air and spinning around to look like the One Ring from the LOTR promotions. How cute, but also how wrong.

I don't think I'm being pedantic on this point. People love LOTR not just for its fantasy world, but for its philosophy. To say that LOTR and the Golden Compass are two epic journeys is to ignore what kind of epic journey the LOTR presents. While perhaps sharing a similar genre of fiction, these sound like two
very different tales.

Definitely sounds boycott-worthy to me!

Thursday, August 16, 2007

Another CoC-to-Catholic Journey Unfolds...

Erik, a now frequent poster on my board, has started a blog entitled Y Taith Cristnogol which is Welsh (Cymraeg) for “The Christian Journey,” to chronicle his journey through RCIA and, God willing, into the Catholic Church. Seeing as he's still a minor living under his CoC mother's roof, it should be interesting to say the least! It will take a lot of courage and conviction on his part, but I'm sure he's up to the challenge. Please keep him in your prayers, and visit his blog to follow him on his journey and offer him your support!

My Kind of Blog!

How cool is this?

A worldview anchored in faith, love and reason, and a voice articulating it in French and in English…Le Blog de la Bergerie.

Thanks to Michele for such a great site! I'll be adding a permanent link to it on my sidebar, and hope to visit often.

Wednesday, August 15, 2007

Salve Regina Sing Along!

As I was browsing for Marian videos, I came upon this Salve Regina with words, how neat!

Happy Feast of the Assumption of the Blessed Virgin Mary!

Don't forget to go to mass today!

Meanwhile, enjoy this video on Our Lady:

Friday, August 10, 2007

Cool Website!


For any francophiles out there, my husband found a neat website called French Friends. It includes lots of info about travelling and links to French radio and TV, etc. Check it out!

Tuesday, August 07, 2007

Back in Business!

Just wanted to let everyone know that the CoC-to-Catholic Board is up and running again. It was down for the last couple days due to some work being done on the server.

That is all! :-)