Summer!

Every time I go to update this blog, the first thing I think to say is "Wow, I haven't updated in a while..."

So many things have changed since I last wrote, and believe me, they have been for the better. I finally officially graduated (With Honor, at that) and moved out of East Lansing for good! I wouldn't even say it was bitter sweet...in fact, I was long ready to go. I didn't really have anyone to say goodbye to except my coworkers and my mentor.

It feels so good to be home. I never thought I would be so excited to be in Muskegon. Work keeps me busy (I transferred my job location, so now I work in Grand Rapids),  and because I commute for 40 minutes each way, it makes the day long! I can't complain though - I love my job and there are always plenty of things to keep me busy. Other than that, I've had lots of time to declutter and relax.
As far as crochet goes, I haven't started a lot of new projects. I have my hooks, but my supplies and yarn are between my dad's, mom's and uncle's. I did begin a bright yellow doily, and I am hoping to make quite a bit of progress on that next time I visit my mom (I left it there).

BUT I did start a new craft - cross stitching!! I have been working on an embroidery website for work, and knowing nothing about embroidery at the start (yes, I know how that sounds, but long story) I decided I should learn how to do it! My mom used to cross stitch, so she was a great resource. It was so incredibly easy to learn and I found more than half the supplies I needed at the Goodwill for SUPER cheap.

For my first project, I naturally chose a more difficult pattern that I found on Etsy. Still, it was easy to do, just time consuming. I LOVE the way it turned out and I LOVE the frame I found for it at the thrift store - the frame was only $1 and just happened to be the right size! The little things make me so happy.

I did purchase a magnet board at JoAnns with a 40% off coupon, and it was well worth the money. It makes it really easy to keep track of the areas you've completed.

My wonderful mother also found me a TON of floss at a yard sale for $1.50!! I categorized it all by number (and thankfully whoever owned it before I kept track of the numbers), and now I have this pretty little box full of all sorts of lovely colors.

My last completion was this cute little Boba Fett - I found a pixel picture which was easy to follow as a cross stitch pattern and I added the ground and heart (that's hard to see). I found this frame thrifting as well, and it was worth the $1.50 I paid. It is now sitting on my work desk.

My current project is a girl in a rain jacket holding an umbrella. I went thrifting for pattern books and hit the jackpot (especially when the sticker colors on them made them 50% off that day). The pattern for her was in one of those books. The great thing about cross stitch, like crochet, is that the patterns and supplies are easy to find at thrift stores. I've found hoops, thread, needles, TONS of books, fabric, and more for next to nothing.

Now that I don't have classes, I want to get into the habit of updating more often! Hope all is well with the rest of you!

Chewy!

I have been bad with updating, so here I am, apologizing again. I'm a bit under the weather today, mostly due to allergies, so since I am relaxing in bed watching Netflix I decided to post an update. I haven't done much in the craft world lately...I made more picture mats and did crochet a Chewbacca.

I liked the yarn I used for this one a lot better than the yarn I used for the first Chewbacca I made. I believe the one I chose this time was called Angel Hair. He is unbrushed, as I left that option up to Jerod.

I did start a viking helmet and beard, but I left that at home to finish later on. I would like to start some new projects soon, I just need to find the motivation. My two condensed summer classes have kept me pretty busy and a lot of my focus is on those. On weekends, I travel as much as possible.

A couple weeks ago I went to the local art fair to look for one booth, and I found it! A few years ago my mom bought me a painted coin necklace at a local art fair (I had wanted one after seeing them before), and it is a necklace I wear almost everyday. I wanted another one, and I was so happy to find one I liked. On the left is my first one (an old Italian coin), and on the right is the new one (an old German coin).

This is a pretty exclusive craft and it takes a lot of time and precision. The folks that make these are absolutely wonderful and I would recommend their products any day. They have money clips, earrings, etc. Their website is here.

As far as shoes go, I had a $10 reward to DSW and I was DELIGHTED to find a pair of Sam Edelman shoes on clearance in my size (he is my favorite designer). I thought they were so adorable and a woman at the store who also was trying on shoes told me I should get them. They were a little pricy, but comfy and a good deal. They also are not too high.

I'm really excited to move and get more chances to wear such cute shoes! One month from today I will be out of here for good with my degree. I'll do my best to post more often.

Sunday Fun Day!

And a fun day it was indeed! I got to see my mom yesterday, so apart from a call to her today I spent the remainder of the day working on my thesis, running errands, and crafting. It felt great to sit down and relax for a while. I have wanted to try this craft for a while, and I had some coupons for Jo-Anns. I finally gathered all the supplied I needed (or so I thought) to make fancy picture mats. I got the idea here.

Welp, I forgot the spray glue and foam brush, but I was eager to craft and decided to make do with what I did have. I picked up a cutting board, x-acto knife, extra blades, three bits of fabric, and a mat for only $20! I was thrilled (thanks Jo-Anns app).

When I got home, I sat down with some snacks and began.

Instead of using actual picture mats for the end product, I have been collecting old cereal/cardboard boxes to use. I clamped the actual mats to the cereal boxes and used the knife to cut around them. Worked like a charm! Then I began the gluing.

Well, I don't have a picture of it, but I know why the spray glue is recommended. For thicker/dark fabrics Mod Podge works great, but for thin fabrics you can see glue spots through the fabric. I definitely will be picking up some spray glue for the future. The backs of mine did not end up perfect, either (but who really uses the backs, anyway) and I have yet to Mod Podge the corners because I need a foam brush (I ended up using an old makeup brush, ha!).

I'm really happy with the final products, however. I can't wait to make more in the future. I surely had to include some animal print. :)

I'll probably head to get my other needed materials this week sometime. I also want more fabric - it really doesn't take a lot! I always hit up the remnants bin, too.

Summer classes start tomorrow and only a little over the month until I am done! On a final note, I made a personal portfolio site for myself - yes, I bought my own domain name! You can find my site here:

Alyssa Zandi

Hope everyone has a wonderful week!

I'm Done!!

...with this semester!! Almost done with my undergrad studies. It felt like such a long few months. Final grades were posted and I'm a tad bit disappointed, as my 4.0 streak has sadly ended. I received my first 3.5 in five semesters. But, what can you do? The rest of my classes were 4.0s.

I still haven't been crocheting a lot. Finals week wore me out and I went home over the weekend. STILL recuperating. I did, however, get one easy craft in. A simple rainbow potholder (the pattern is memorized). I keep a spare J-Hook at home and random bits of yarn for easy crafts like this.

Other than that, I spend the weekend relaxing! It was rainy and cold everyday, so I lounged around, watched movies, and visited some of my old high school teachers yesterday. It was so nice catching up with them. I really want to be more involved with my HS because I love it to death and they always seem to have all sorts of problems (and they get a lot of bad press).

One of the highlights of my weekend was spending time with my beautiful dog, Kiya. I miss her so much when I am at college and she is the most adorable non-human ever. She always is so happy to see me and makes me smile as soon as I walk in the door.

Last but not least, OF COURSE I had a Kohl's coupon and HAD to spend my Kohl's cash. Surprisingly (not really), I got a loud pair of shoes. I love them and can't wait to wear them somewhere. They didn't get the best reviews online, but they seem fine to me!

Well, that's it for now. I did my grocery shopping earlier and after that, driving home today, working, and running errands, I am beat! Time to watch some Netflix and go to bed.

Finals, Schimnals.

I have a presentation tomorrow, two finals this week, and lots of studying to do, so naturally I spent this morning shopping. I got an email from Kohl's containing a coupon and a shirt I decided I had to have. I also had an exchange to make at another store.

Well, the shirt didn't work out (so sad), but I ended up browsing clearance racks (of course). As I'm sure I've said before, you can get great deals there for next to nothing. They have quality products and everything is always on sale. Some of my favorite clothing lines found at Kohl's are Hydraulic (capris/shorts), Vera Wang (jewelry, shoes, bags, and some clothing), Jennifer Lopez (clothing), and now Rock & Republic (everything).

I feel so great about my great deals I just have to share. Maybe it will even convince you to check Kohl's out. They redid their email database recently, so if you sign up you get a $5 coupon within 10 days. Pair that with a percentage off coupon and some in-store sales and you can really get a bargain!

1. Rock & Republic spiked flats - on clearance for $13.99 (originally $70), got them for about $11.

2. Vera Wang silver sandals - on clearance for, get this, $6 (originally $60), got them for $4.80 and Vera Wang blue and lime pumps - on clearance for $15 (originally $70), got them for about $12.

I also got a JLo shirt for about $25 (originally $52) and JLo sleeveless cardigan on clearance for about $15 (originally $70). Sorry, no pictures of those, but the shirt is here. I bought it in yellow.

Another nice thing about Kohl's is they offer damage discounts - the cardigan had some snags and I got another 10% off. It doesn't hurt to ask this at ANY store because often times they are happy to just get rid of the stuff.

Those were my awesome Kohl's deals for the day. I ALSO got $10 Kohl's Cash on my next purchase of $10 or more. For every $50 you spend, you get $10 when they're running that deal.

Lastly, a lovely woman I met there and chatted with about shoes and clothes for a while called me a fashionista. I'll take it.

Later on, I exchanged a tank at Express and decided to peek in The Gap. I saw they had 30% off all clearance and wanted to see if I could find a suit jacket. I got a grey one for cheap before at The Gap, and I really wanted a form-fitting black one with long sleeves (I have about 15 but surprisingly none of them fit that description). I'm not a big Gap shopper, but I will shop clearance racks anywhere.

To my extreme happiness, I found a jacket in my size on clearance for about $22! I was so excited about it. I usually wear between a 2 and 6 depending on the brand. This one was a 4, but it fit great! Even though I work at a casual place, I enjoy dressing up when I go in (and in general).

(One thing I do like about The Gap is they have GREAT lighting in their fitting rooms).

So what about crochet? I have a couple crochet projects I plan on finishing as soon as finals are over. I haven't felt much up to it lately - I've been sticking to more mindless activities such as watching old episodes of Steve Wilkos on YouTube (yes, guilty pleasure). I'll probably start posting more varied content on here because let's face it - I love shopping and shoes, and so do a lot of other people. :-)

Some Updates!

I'm taking a break from studying to update my blog. Espresso Royale has been my second home for the past couple weeks partly because it is never quiet at my apartment, and partly because I'm more productive when I go out someplace and study.

In one week and two days I will be done with this semester. My last final is Wednesday afternoon. It's such a great feeling when semesters are over - well, at least after the grades are posted. I'm always anxious to see those.

I did make some time last week to try crocheting a bikini top. I've heard it's easy, so I searched through free patterns until I found one that looked decent, which is here. It actually didn't take me very long, and I think it turned out pretty alright.

I definitely am going to explore more bikini top patterns in the future. There are some cute ones on Etsy I have my eye on.

Also, I have more Star Wars figures. I made these a while ago, but I am just now getting to uploading them. Darth Vader and an Ewok (cute, I know):

As a fun picture, I picked up these lovely shoes last night at Kohl's. They were on sale for $25 (originally $75) and I had a 30% off coupon plus $5 off. There's nothing to brighten a day like shoe shopping with mom.

For those of you who have never been to Kohl's, or don't go there often, I highly recommend it. I love shopping clearance and everything is ALWAYS on sale. You can get really nice clothes for next to nothing. I got a great pair of bermuda shorts for about $15 and a necklace and earrings set by Vera Wang for ~$15. Can't beat that.

Washcloths Galore!

Another post after a period of silence. I have approximately 14 days and 2 hours before my semester is over. Hallelujah! I have so much to do these next couple weeks, but I am trying to relax and not become overwhelmed. I've scheduled my week so I force myself to do a little a day - I will be all caught up in no time. I even got groceries tonight so I have some fresh food (if only I had more time to cook!).

I haven't been crocheting much, but I did do some easy dishcloths (or washcloths, whatever they will be used for). I needed something mindless and repetitive and I wanted to use up some of the extra yarn I've accumulated. The pattern is the Sandy Shore Washcloth Set from Lion Brand and it includes 4 extremely simple patterns. I'm really happy with the way these turned out.

This is some yarn I picked up over Christmas break at the GoodWill called Flutter. It was super cheap and the colors are quite lovely (my favorites). It's thin, about as thin as Knit Cro-Sheen. I really want to make something pretty with it, I just don't know what yet.

I plan on starting more projects after I graduate. The next couple weeks are going to be insane, but they will be over before I know it. A little over two months remain until I am a college graduate! Can't wait.