The Great Critique

Subject: The Great Critique

The Great Critique - January 19, 2013

A chance for writers to be critiqued by a professional and their peers.

Location: TaborSpace, 5441 SE Belmont St, Portland, OR 97215

Time: 9:30 to noon.

Never been in a critique group? Wish you could be critiqued by someone who is ahead of you in the publishing game? Want to strengthen your work? Need a fresh set of eyes and ears on that oft-revised piece? Want to have your manuscript ready for the May conference? This is your chance. A published writer will lead each small group and critique your manuscript. You'll also hear others' work and get feedback from those writers too. Plus you'll learn from the comments by the critique leader about the work of others. Cost:

Early Bird Rate:

SCBWI members - $8.00 (That's less than the price of a Friday night movie!)

Nonmembers - $13.00 (If you bought any refreshments, your movie night would cost way more!)

After January 1, 2013: $10 and $15 for members and nonmembers respectively.

Tulle Cute Christmas Tree

I made one tabletop tree out of left over scraps of material I had used to make some tutus for the Shamrock Run. See the tutus below from our fun run.

 But there's always leftover scraps (because I'm not the best seamstress and I always buy a little bit extra in case of mistakes...which I usually make) - and I HATE to throw anything away, that comes from growing up in a family with nine kids and a Dad who worked in a plywood mill to support us all. I'm cheeeeeap.

Anyway, I have to find a way to use the leftovers. So, green tree...wah-lah!


Then a gfriend said she'd like a pink one and that got me thinking about a friend over in France who probably won't want to run out and buy a tree, stand, skirt, lights and ornaments. So, I thought why not send her a tabletop tree? Here's how I made it:

I laid out the tulle on a cutting board and then cut strips of material. 

I took a dowel and a piece of wood and painted them pink. Then I drilled (okay, actually my hubby drilled) a hole in the base and glued the dowel in place. Then I took the tulle strips and started making holes in the center of the strips.

Then I put the strip on the dowel and pulled it apart - repositioning it to form a fluffy base (this is kind of like making a bow).

Then I alternated colors (light pink - dark pink) and just keep adding volume to the tree.

You can shape the tree any way you want. Longer pieces at the bottom and shorter at the top.

You simply pull the ribbon/strips to make the tree look the way you want it to look.

I took a light-weight Christmas tree ornament (a snowflake) and put it at the top like a star. Then I still wanted to do more. So I plugged in my handy-dandy glue gun.

While it was heating up, I found some old beads and rhinestones and laid out a few.

Then I glued them on the tree.

I left one side unembellished, in case McKenzie thinks it's just too much. :D

Now I have to think of a way to mail it. Hummmmm.....

Doomsday 2012

Doomsday is just around the corner, December 21, 2012 to be exact. This is the end-date of a 5125-year-long cycle in the Mesoamerican Long Count calendar. But the Maya calendar is really a system of calendars used in pre-Columbian Mesoamerica,

One new age belief is that December 21st is the beginning of a new era marking the beginning of a positive physical or spiritual transformation.

Others say it will be the day of  a catastrophic catastrophe while scholars dismiss the idea of such cataclysmic events occurring in 2012 and say December 21st simply represents the end of one calendar.

I like to look on the positive side of things. So, I'm throwing an End-of-the-World Party. I figure if we're all going to die, we might as well enjoy margaritas, munchies and make a little of our own mayhem.

How 'bout you?

 

FUDGE - SUPER SIMPLE

I am a true chocoholic. So, with the holidays rolling (and I may be soon) around I thought why not make some homemade holiday goodies? So, I did.

Here's how I made it.

1 package of Nestle's semi-sweet morsels
1/2 cube of butter
1 can of sweetened condensed milk
1 teaspoon of orange extract
1 cup of chopped walnuts (optional)

(Just put it all together in a pyrex bowl and microwave until well-melted. Stir it up until it is smooth and glossy. Then pour it in a well-greased glass baking dish and chill) I cut little circular shapes and slipped them into mini-muffin tins to give as gifts.

This makes yummy fudge and it only takes a couple of minutes. A couple of important tips though for all you "new" bakers and creaters. You need to cut the chocolate when it's only lightly chilled and then let it chill over night before you remove the candy. If you don't do this step I'll show you what happens:

The top two pieces were pulled out before the fudge chilled all the way through. They look more like little turds than something you'd want to eat. So take my word for it and let the fudge chill thoroughly so you'll have candy like the bottom two examples.

You can get the mini muffin tins (candy papers) at your local grocery store. I use wax paper between the layers of goodies.

So happy baking, making and creating - the EZ way.

Hair Raising Experience

Okay. I admit it. I have some curl in my hair. Sometimes I even straighten my hair. But not very often. I don't like all that heat on my hair. So, when I went to get my hair done, at my local salon, and the hairdresser told me she had a cream I could put in my hair (after I shampooed it) that would leave my hair silky, shiny and straight (for one day), I thought, why not?

So, I used the product. And here's what happened:

Now, I don't know if it was a joke or not. I mean it's not April 1st. But, I did not curl my hair in this picture. Not at all.

My hair just went CRAAAAAAZEEEEEE! I even have bobby pins in this do to keep my hair down. It was about three times this size. And let me tell you, I already have some huge hair. I don't need to be turning up the volume when it comes to these locks.

So, what do you think? A prank? A mistake...? I don't know. But, this is a hairdresser that I've gone to for years. So maybe she handed me the wrong product. She simply gave me a small sample in a little plastic bag.

Perhaps it was a hair-raising joke? No big deal because it's supposed to wash right out...we'll see.

Tabletop Tree Made from Scrap Materials

It's so simple to make this homemade holiday tree. All it takes is a little tulle. I had some left over from the Shamrock run last year. Yeah, I made tutus for all us girls running in the race. So I had to think of some way to use this stuff up. And, here's how I did it.

First take a dowel and put it into a base. I used wood and drilled a hole in the platform and then glued the dowel in place. But you could use flower foam just as easily.

Then I cut the fabric into strips and started placing it on the dowel.

I did it haphazardly. You could be much more creative with the fabric but I simply pulled and twisted (kind of like making a bow for a present) and then I glued a star on the top.
I also glued some green fabric on the platform base to hide the wood. And, I think this would make a nice centerpiece for a dinner table or a nice gift for someone who can't have a large tree in the house.

Now I'm going to make a pink one then maybe white...I could get carried away with this.

Movie Review Monday - Breaking Dawn Part II

So to be honest Breaking Dawn wasn't my fav of the four books. Actually it was my least favorite. I just love my lore and I don't think vampires (you know they're undead) shouldn't be having babies especially since they have that blood-thirsty hunger and all.

Anyway (SPOILER ALERT) I wasn't so excited to go see the second half of Breaking Dawn. But, and it's a big one, I'd read all the books and seen the other movies so how could I not go?

And to be honest, it was much better than I expected. Still a little slow for me with them searching for witnesses to their cause for so long. But I LOVED the fight scene. Call me creepy, but I loved seeing them battle.

Unfortunately I was disappointed that (like in the Wizard of Oz) when it ends up being a dream, I hated this fight simply being one of Alice's visions.

How 'bout you, did you see the show? What did you think? Did you love it or could you leave it?