What the Art Teacher Wore #90

Primary Colors Monday: Because I saw three of my four kindergarten classes back to back on this particular day and we were (re)learning about the primary colors, I decided to dress for the occasion. top and tights: Target; dress: I forget; shoes: Anthro; belt: thrifted; palette hair clip: made by me

Ya'll. Trust me when I saw I had much bigger plans for this here blog post. Howevers. I currently feel as though I'm carrying half my body weight in my head and nasal passages. Without getting too graphic (which is a ridiculous way to start a sentence as you know I'm about to get all sorts of graphic), I'm more snotty than a cheerleading squad. (Aw, former cheerleaders, don't hate. I speak from a sad 8th-grader-who-wanted-to-be-a-cheerleader-but-my-dad-made-me-play-basketball-instead place.) For that super snotty reason, I've only got the energy to share wit ya what I wore and what I drew this week. I'm hoping to be back again with you soon with a post on a vocabulary update and maybe a DIY...if I can manage to pull myself off the couch. Until then, enjoy your weekend!

There have been so many amazing drawings pouring into the Artsy Book Clubs facebook page that it continues to surprise and thrill me everyday! It's such a motivation and inspiration to see what these artists have created. If you'd like to join the fun, it's okay to begin drawing and sharing your work any time. You can go here for all the details.

Poodle-tastic Valentine Dress Tuesday: My plan had been to wear something Valentines-y all week...but I actually have so many heart-themed ensembles that I shoulda started the week before. Sad but true. Oh well, next year. poodle dress: made by me, DIY here; sweater: made by me; belt: Pin Up Girl Clothing; tights: Target; hair clips: DIY here; shoes: Sofft

I'll be honest with you, I don't always love the assignments in the One Drawing a Day book that we are using in our Artsy Book Club. And because I'm drawing for myself and the desire to get back to more fine arts work, I've decided to only take the drawing assignments as suggestions and then draw what I want. If I want. I don't want these drawings tasks to become just that, a task. So I'm enjoying the process if it speaks to me. On this day we were to draw a picture of someone in a variety of pens. I drew my grandpa from his senior high school photo.

Our First (and probably only) Snow Day Wednesday!: Well, what a happy surprise that turned out to be! Granted, it woulda been a whole lot more exciting if it had actually snowed but I try not to ask for too much. A day of sewing, drawing and blogging turned out to be exactly what I needed to make it through the rest of the week. dress: Betsy Johnson, used; sweater: Target; scarf: Urban Outfitters; leg warmers: I forget; boots: Frye, Journeys

This drawing I definitely wasn't feeling. The assignment was to just basically doodle a bunch of stuff, trace your hand, write words and numbers...I dunno. I wasn't into it. I found myself drawing things that I thought I should draw like a cupcake and other stuff. I think I'd actually have to create a couple of these drawings to really get to the root of what would inspire me. I was also not in love with drawing in crayon...but that has since changed after the last two assignments.

Dots and Leopard Print Thursday: We had a two hour delay on this day which basically means my day is gonna be jacked up. Sure I get to sleep in a pinch but then I spend the rest of my day runnin' like a crazy person trying to figure out just what in the world my jumbled schedule is gonna look like. But it was fine, we made it though and even created some masterpieces to boot. Looking forward to sharing them with you soonish. sweater: Old Navy; belt: thrifted; dress: I added the leopard to this too-short number that I bought at the thrift store; scarf: gift from a student

Self-portrait in crayon. I sketched it out first in yellow marker and then built it up with crayon. I enjoyed working on this a lot...even if the perspective is off and I have a super large side-forehead.

Happy Valentine's Day Friday: Our school has a tradition where the kids are allowed to spend about 10 minutes in the morning delivering Valentine's to their teachers. I love getting sweets, cards and gifties from the kids. My favorites are always the handmade cards with the personalized notes. Those I keep forever. dress and sweater: DIY here; shoes: Modcloth

Still life in crayon. Seriously, ya'll. I don't even use crayons in the art room because I'm kind of a snob about them. But I might be inclined to change my mind after working so much in crayon these last couple of days. 

And that's all I got, ya'll! I'm off to go take a Vick's Vapo-Rub bath and soak my head in a bucket of hot water!

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What the Art Teacher Wore #55

Lovely Monday: In keeping with last week's WIW promise, I decided to go all Valentines-y again this week. Hubs and I hit a Goodwill in Jackson, Tennessee recently and I snagged this entire outfit there. I've been hitting the thrifting jackpot of late which is good because I practically have nothing to wear (yeah, that was some serious sarcasm. This here cloths horse could outfit an army or two. Given they're okay with wearing dresses and fishnets). dress: Talbots, thrifted; sweater: Express, thrifted; sparkly fishnets: TJMaxx; butterfly brooch: vintage; belt: Pin Up Girl Clothing; shoes: Fluevog; necklace: ancient, Target probably

 Greetings, lovelies! I do hope Valentines Day treated you nicely. I decided to get my sweetheart a box of Krispie Kremes fresh off the convertor belt while I received an assortment of trashy mags and dark chocolate bars. So I guess you know what I've been up to this weekend.

When not catching up on the lives of the Kardashians (dude, how do people so utterly lame become famous? Ah, yes, because equally utterly lame people like myself keep reading about them), I did do some research on an upcoming self-portrait project for my first grade artists. Since we are learning about the United Kingdom, I've decided they are going to portray themselves as royalty, complete with the Crown Jewels. Not to be confused with "family jewels" or "Royal Crown" which will find you in a google-y place you might not want to be.

So I share with you just a bit about the Crown Jewels and I bid you a royal week. Ta-tah!

The Queen holds the Orb and Sceptre used at her Coronation, 2 June 1953. Doesn't she look divine? And so...young! I love how her wide-eyes read "holy cray, I'm queen!" yet her firm lips say " and ya'll better recognize." They do say "ya'll" in the UK, right? So the Crown Jewels are treasures (like those shown above) used in ceremonies. They've been collected by English kings and queens since 1660.

Ketchup and Mustard Tuesday: Because that's what this outfit reminds me of. Both my second and fourth graders are currently weaving. Once they (finally) get the hang of it, I enjoy reading a chapter book to them. This keeps them focused on what they are doing and allows me to introduce the United Kingdom through fun fiction. I'm currently reading Dodsworth in London to the littles and Mary Poppins to the biggins. dress: vintage, Amsterdam; belt, sweater, boots: Anthro; flower brooch: vintage, thrifted; tights and hair clip: Target

The British Imperial State Crown. Okay, growing up in the 80's, all I know about the imperial crown is what I learned from those Imperial Butter commercials. Turns out there's a little more to the crown than that. This solid gold crown is covered in 3000 precious stones including diamonds, rubies and sapphires (you know, what you got on Valentines Day). A couple of the jewels on the crown were worn by royalty centuries ago. In fact, the oldest gem was worn by Edward the Confessor in 1042.

A Gnomey Valentine: I attended a meeting at school this particular morning and a parent, looking me up and down, said, "You know, you were made to teach art." Now this could either mean I look like a crazy person or an artsy one. I'm not kidding myself, I'm going with crazy. gnome dress: made by me; tights: Target; shoes: Miss L Fire; sweater: Ann Taylor, thrifted

When not worn, the Crown Jewels are kept on display in the Tower of London.

Oh, look, it's a Yeomen Warder of Her Majesty’s Royal Palace and Fortress the Tower of London, and Member of the Sovereign's Body Guard of the Yeoman Guard Extraordinary. Yeah, how 'bout we just call 'em Beefeaters, 'kay? These dapperly dressed dudes are the supposed guardians of the Tower of London but mostly they act as tour guides and attractions themselves. Why call 'em beefeaters? It seems they used to receive beef as a part of their wages. 

Happy Valentine's Day! Thursday: Oh the joys of teaching children jacked up on sugar. It was most def one of those "if you can't beat them (literally), join 'em." When you are as high on sugar as they are, it makes for a really fun time. Not. dress and sweater: DIY here; tights: Target; shoes: Fluevog; belt: Pin Up Girl Clothing

The Crown Jewels are the following objects: the crowns, sceptres (the long wand-like thing with either the cross or the dove on the end), orbs (that gold sphere with the cross on the top used to signify authority), swords, rings, spurs (think cowboy), colobium sindonis (this plain tunic worn to symbolize a shedding of vanity...worn under some pretty fab robes, of course), dalmatic (an even bigger plain tunic), armills (a bracelet), and the royal robe.

Freaky Face/Wrinkly Dress Friday: Yeah, it was one of those days. dress and belt: Supayana on etsy; tights: Target; shoes: Miss L Fire

Speaking of jewels, remember that thrift-score run I bragged about earlier? Well, lookie what I found this past weekend in Lewisburg, Tennessee? Holy moly, can you believe these finds!? I am so excited to welcome these crown jewels to my royal family of beaded cardis...

I betcha the Queen of England ain't got nothin like this in the Tower of London. Poor thing.

 Until we chat again, enjoy your week!

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DIY: A Poodle-tastic Valentines Dress

Dude, that hair! The other day, I was having a "serious talk" with a student when I noticed her eyes kept wandering up, up and up to the top of my head. It's no small wonder these kids can focus on anything besides that giant 'do. (And by " 'do" I mean hairdo, not something I recommend you "do". Unless you are so inclined to backcombing and hair-hosing, er, spraying).

Well, Happy Almost-Valentine's Day to you! You got some big lovely-dovely plans in your future? Aw, ain't that sweet (gag). Me? Oh, you know, hubs and I will prob just do our usual: enjoy some delish Greek take-out, open cat-themed Valentines cards we both barely remembered to grab at the Walgreens on the corner and snuggle up next to the space heater to catch an episode of Dual Survival (does anyone else miss Dave besides us?) on our craptop. I know. Super sappy gaggy stuff. Don't hate.

I'm stoked to wear this dress on Thursday even if the kids won't be thrilled. Every dress I've created since that light-up number has been received with an, "Eh, that's neat. But does it do anything?" I'm thinking I might need one of those squirt-you-in-the-eye roses as a brooch. Too mean?

 But enough about my romance life, let's chat about this here dress. It was created on a miraculous gift sent straight from Teacher Heaven: A Snow Day. Or, as I decided to dub it, A Sew Day. When I heard the news that morning, I hopped right up and decided to make the most of it. The pieces of this dress had already been cut and I was so thrilled I had a day to put it together.

Yeah, yeah, I know I said I'd try out some new dress patterns this New Year but I just felt this fabric was meant to be this dress pattern. The fabric is from Alexander Henry, one of my fave fabric design companies. So much retro-y cuteness!

I felt pretty self-assured when starting the dress since I've made a Cuckoo Clock Frock, a Gnome-y Dress and that aforementioned light-up number from the same pattern. So I was a little annoyingly surprised when I struggled with the V at the neckline and the fit and finish around the bust line and waist. I did get mighty distracted catching up on episodes of Project Runway (there's a fellow Nashvillian in this season's lineup!) and a mid-day bubble bath (don't judge) so maybe that was part of the problem.

 Creepy Doubles Photo. Sorry, but am I the only one that finds side-by-sides creepy? Then why do it? Cuz I am creepy, yo! By the way, the photo on the right is how I'll most likely be wearing my V-Day dress. This sweater is a DIY from ages ago that gets little air time. I think it suits this dress nicely.

I think part of my struggle is: I DON'T REALLY KNOW HOW TO SEW. There, I said it. Whew! It's finally off my chest. And don't you go leavin' a comment saying otherwise because that's just like tellin' a buck-toothed, too-skinny, four-eyed girl she should model (here). I've known that I've been fakin' and fudgin' it for a while and when this dress just didn't come together as it should, I knew it to be true.

 Awkward Hands Photo.

However, that doesn't mean I'm going to give up. Oh no. I'm determined to get better. But this dress helped me realized that just going down the same sewing path over and over was not going to improve my sewing skills. I've got to learn how to sew the right way. Awkward hands and all.

 Hands in Awkward Place Photo. Really? I mean what pattern drafter decided that the pockets should be right there. Kinda awkward, right?

So I'm giving myself a sewing course. No, I'm not taking some local class, I'm gonna start by reading one of the many sewing books I've purchased over the years. In fact, I began reading Gertie's Book for Better Sewing this weekend and I've already learned so much...and come to realize how little I know. In fact, this book may be a little bit too advanced for me, but I'm goin' it anyway. I'll keep you posted.

In the meantime, I'm still wearing this dress regardless of my flubs. I'd show you a photo of the backside but that's where my problems seem to show the most (in more ways than one)...and I already shared one embarrassing photo within the last 24 hours, I don't think I'm ready for more.

Outfit details: hair clips: DIY here; dress: moi, of course!; belt: Pin Up Girl Clothing; red tights: Target; sparkly fishnets: TJMaxx; leopard print heels: Goodwill

All that blabbering aside, I do hope you have a lovely Valentine's Day! I know it'll be nothing as divine as my Greek Food/Cat Card/Space Heater/Survival Show affair, but what can you do? Not everyone can live la vida loca.

Until next time, xox!

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