enJOY it

an archived personal and craft blog from Elise Blaha Cripe.

project 10 of 26 / tye-dye!

July 11, 2011

I'm just cruising through all the old school crafts I can find this year apparently. I saw a rad tye-dye project here a few months ago and then patiently counted the days until I was visiting my parents and had full access to a garage and a utility sink. Some folks dream about beautiful backyards and kitchen renovations. I dream about unfinished cement floors and a sink I can stain.

Someday Paul and I will have a house and I'll spend all my time in the garage just because it's there.

Anyway.

This project was sitting in the dream box for a long while and finally I got to try it out. And the results were even more exciting than expected. My sister-in-law Kristen and I dyed three shirts each in just a few hours (which included a trip to Michael's, Old Navy and Target for supplies). We bought Rit Dye at Michael's in teal and navy, clearance tank tops at Old Navy and rubber bands at Target. We mixed the dye with hot water in old garbage cans and let the tops soak for about 10 minutes.

For the record : the tank tops are both from Old Navy. The one on the right started out a lime green and now thanks to the teal dye looks yellow and kelly green. As mentioned, we used NAVY Rit Dye but it turned out purple-ish. I would use the DENIM one if you are looking for a blue. The white v-neck is American Apparel and I chose to dye it because it already had paint on the sleeve from when I redid the kitchen chairs. The pattern shown on the left tanktop was picked up from the honestly wtf blog post.

To summarize the tutorial : I started at the bottom and folded the shirt accordion style then secured it between two wooden pieces (shown in the background above). I wrapped rubber bands around the whole thing to keep it tight. Then I followed steps 7-10 below.

The spiral pattern is the "traditional" tye-dye pattern that I remember from grade school. I took a few step-by-step photos of most of that process, if you're curious.

1. lay your shirt flat.

2. pinch a bit of the shirt between two fingers. This is going to be the center of the spiral so you want to make sure it isn't right on top of your chest (awkward) or right in the middle of the shirt (looks too deliberate).

3. begin twisting up the shirt clockwise by holding the pinched piece.

4. keep twisting.

5. you should have a snail or cinnamon roll shape at the end. Secure with a rubber band.

6. and then lots of rubber bands. Make them as tight as possible.

7. dunk the shirt in the dye (make the dye bath according to instructions on the box). Wear plastic gloves to avoid staining your hands! Be sure it is fully submerged. (We had to flip the shirts held in the wood halfway through to be sure they got full coverage.)

8. remove shirt from the dye and rinse under cool water with the rubber bands still in place until the water runs clear. This step takes awhile.

9. remove rubber bands and lay your shirt to dry in the sun.

10. wash your shirt in the washing machine on cold to be sure all remaining dye is out. Dry as you usually would.

And that's it! So fun. I want about six more colors but I'm going to hold off. Check back tomorrow to see how I plan on wearing these without looking like I belong in another decade.

This is project 10 of 26.

I am attempting to tackle 26 personal craft projects before I turn 27 on 02.22.12. You can follow my progress here on the blog, on pinterest or on flickr.

See project 1, 2, 3, 4, 5, 6, 7, 8 & 9.
taking photos.

July 8, 2011

On Wednesday evening, I met with The Goodness photographers, Geoff and Lisa Bardot. They're the same couple that shot our engagement photos in July '09 and our wedding in April '10. (If we have a baby in '12, we'll have booked them every year for four years. Which has got to be some kind of record.)

I contacted them a few months ago about having some "portraits" taken to be used here on the blog and for business purposes. I've been making due with one of our wedding photos (top left sidebar) for whenever I need to provide a picture of me and it was clearly time for an update. While Paul and I trying to get good shots is sometimes fun awkward, I figured it was worth it to hire professionals.

We met up in Downtown Sacramento and took a lot of photos in front of different walls (brick, painted teal, white, yellow) and a gray trailer that we stumbled upon. We found a sunlight alley and shot there. We walked by a yellow staircase in a parking garage and shot there. Then we drove to some sort of field/levy in West Sac and took photos as the sun was setting.

It was a pretty packed two and a half hours and as always, Geoff and Lisa made it fly by like it was nothing. They are quite a team and so positive to be around. I cannot wait to see the photos in the next couple weeks. In the meantime, I have a few polaroids (above) that Geoff shot with an awesome camera and handed me on the spot.

They are a fun teaser! I am so excited to re-launch this blog and my website.

Tomorrow is the absolute last day to sign up for this round of the BLOG 2.0 workshop which starts on Monday. I have a few seats left, so if you're on the fence, now is the time! If you have already signed up, you'll receive and email from me by 5pm EST today with site password and details.

THANK YOU!
project 9 of 26 / a striped dress.

July 7, 2011

A while back, I pinned this skirt tutorial and decided right away to try and make a maxi skirt. I picked up two yards of silk striped fabric sewed the edges together, added elastic at the top and hemmed the bottom. Super simple.

Then I pulled it on and realized that horizontal stripes + too much fabric = fail.

As a skirt, not very flattering. But pulled up to chest high and belted? It worked!

I wore it to dinner our last night in Palm Desert and had Paul snap these photos. All the standing-still ones looked terrible because I am awkward and the sunlight was so harsh. So what you are seeing here are the twirling ones. Once again, it appears that people look their best non-staged.

additional outfit details : j.crew belt, martin & osa sandals, kate spade sunglasses.

This is project 9 of 26.

I am attempting to tackle 26 personal craft projects before I turn 27 on 02.22.12. You can follow my progress here on the blog, on pinterest or on flickr.

See project 1, 2, 3, 4, 5, 6, 7 & 8.
summer book update #10 + bonus paper packs.

July 6, 2011

Still working…

I ended up adding most of these travel updates after we got home. As always, the end of the trip got away from me. It worked out though because I was able to add some printed photos. I put together a video tutorial for creating photo grids like the one above awhile back. You can see it in this post. That little flamingo card is the front of a folded greeting card from Linda & Harriett.

To the back of the flamingo card, I added a photo of the resort at night. On the right side, I first stuck down a bunch of letter stickers, but they didn't properly fill the page and it didn't look right. It was "fixed" by adding a polaroid photo right on top with staples. Now the letters look more like pattern, which I don't mind at all. The pen I used to write on the polaroid is an American Crafts Slickwriter.

To the back of the white card, I added a dark orange paper, some stickers and some text about driving up the five freeway with my parents on Monday. That piece of map tape is very old and from Heidi Swapp.

Both the orange paper and the sun stamped chipboard are part of the summer bonus paper pack that I am making available today. I have a limited number of these packs so grab them while you can using the button below. SOLD OUT! THANK YOU!!

I am going to continue working on my album using the bonus pack and the few original pages I have left.

Questions? Holler in the comments. Still need a summer book? Get one here. Want to see more of this album? Go here. Are you working on your own summer book? Add photos to the flickr group!
palm desert.

July 6, 2011

On Tuesday we drove over to Palm Desert to stay at Paul's parent's time share. We were there for a few days on our own and did nothing really but lay by the pool, drink good drinks and BBQ. On Thursday we got the bad news that Paul was going to have to fly out of LA on Monday for training and the good news that I had reached my sales goal. It was a crazy morning, but we made the decision to chill and enjoy what was left of our vacation.

Paul's family popped into town on Thursday night and my parents came the next night. We did more of the same + played Pinochle. Hang out and do nothing vacations are my most favorite ever.

ps. the final travel updates to my summer book will be up this afternoon.
palm springs.

July 5, 2011

I wish I could remember exactly how the trip to Palm Springs / Palm Desert came about. But I know a huge part of it was I wanted to finally check out Ace Hotel which I have seen highlighted on blogs and online magazines over and over for the past few years. When we realized how quick the drive over would be, we were totally sold.

Because of Paul's schedule, we obviously ended up going in June. And this June there was a heat wave to end all heat waves apparently. It worked out for the best though. I LOVE hot weather and it felt like we had the town to ourselves.

The photos above are mostly from our one night stay at Ace. I'd describe it as a budget hotel with style. They had clearly made "budget" choices when designing the rooms. Artwork was pinned to the wall with binder clips instead of framed. The shower had large dispensers of shampoo, conditioner and soap instead of individual little bottles. (Which BTW, was a great idea. Every hotel should do this to save money and plastic.) Furniture was minimal and the bed rested just a bit above the ground (no bedframe). But on the things that mattered, like quality of the mattress, cleanliness and even the quality of the TV (Sony Bravia) they nailed it.

We went out to dinner (at a place called the Grind, it was fine, I wouldn't super recommend though) and then came back to lay by the pool until it was dark out. Night swimming might be #6801 why I love summer more than any other season. Then the next morning we had breakfast at the resturant in the hotel called King's Highway. The service was slooooow but the coffee was strong and food was fantastic.

And of course, I have to mention the REAL photobooth in the lobby. It reminded me of summers at the state fair in high school where I couldn't leave until I had a fist full of old school photobooth strips.

After Ace, we packed up and drove one city over to Palm Desert to finish out the week. I am so glad we kept that first night different and made time to check it out. Seriously. LOVE.

ps. my striped swimsuit and denim romper are both recent Target purchases. My sunglasses are Kate Spade.
on the road again.

July 4, 2011

Per usual, our plans and Paul's orders have changed. We did a bit of scrambling on Thursday, and there may have been some tears, but now it's all good. One thing is for sure, I'm learning to roll. Not very well, of course, (it's like a giant boulder going up hill) but I'm improving.

We spent yesterday in San Diego and instead of driving up to Sacramento today, we're driving to LAX so Paul can fly out for a month of training (state-side). Then I am going to keep going north to stay with my parents for a week or so. I'm looking forward to seeing them, building some frames out of fence wood that my Dad recently took down and taking photos for my new blog/site launch with The Goodness.

It's going to be nice and packed and then I'll be ready to be back in San Diego solo for a bit (until Paul gets back and we have a week together before deployment).

All orders placed last week will go out tomorrow and most of my inventory is with me, so if you place one this week, it should make it to you soon.

Check back over the next few days for a project post as well as lots of travel photos. Our trip was cut short, but it was still amazing and second-honeymoon-esque. Seriously just what we needed.

Happy Fourth.
color week / red.

July 3, 2011

Little late to the party, but these were all taken on Friday. Happy Sunday!
color week / rainbow.

July 1, 2011

Rainbow was hard. And I know for a fact I creeped some people out when I took a photo of their beach ball.

Today is RED. Hopefully I'll do it justice.
business goals progress in quarter two.

July 1, 2011
As I was gearing up to start writing this post last week, I stumbled on this blog post from April 2007. I was a senior in college and graduating in a month with a business major. I was jobless, but clearly hopeful.

I wish I could go back to that Elise from four years ago and give her a high five. She had no idea what she was doing. It was rough to stay calm and focused that final year of college. But Elise from four years ago, you did it. You now have a job that brings in less money, but more joy than you knew was possible. You carved it out slowly and made it yours. Check plus.

I'm halfway through my first year of working for myself. I set a financial goal at the beginning of the year and then came up with four measurable goals to help hit that number.

I'm overjoyed to say that halfway through the year, I'm halfway to my financial goal. There may or may not have been a big highlighted goal chart on my wall the past month and there certainly was a happy dance when that final sale popped up on my iPhone at the pool yesterday. (It was so happy, Paul hopped up to our room to get champange and we promptly poured mimosas.)

(Yes, it was morning.)

(Yes, I am still pinching myself.)

(Yes, talk about cutting it close.)

As a recap, these are my goals / and their current status :
- Develop 50 new products / I'm currently at 15
- Sell at a live craft fair / done with hopefully more to come
- Streamline expenses / done and always working on it
- Turn the BIG mini class into a book / scratched, but it's available as a PDF
Obviously I have a lot to do on the products front, but things have progressed well in other areas.

My main goal for the rest of the year is to develop quality products and provide the support to help sell them (similar to what I have done with the videos and tutorials for the summer book).

Within the next few weeks I plan on relaunching both my blog and personal website. I am super excited about changing things up around here.

I am also going to be teaching an expanded BIG mini workshop IN REAL LIFE in November. I will share more details when I have them, but I am really excited about developing new material and teaching face to face. I'm hoping it succeeds and opens doors to more in person teaching opportunities.

So that's that! I can't wait to really get back to work and kick it all into high gear. The plus side of Paul being away is that I can really spend some time stretching my creative muscles and working. I might as well do it now, right?

PS : see my Quarter One business goal update here.

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