Marvelous Monday is coming, Woot Woot!!

Just FYI hon, tee-hee!

I have review for my Craftsy class on that sought after Serger, dum dum dummmm.   LOL.

I'm looking forward to sharing how this class has help me so much with learning things like threading the serger, figuring out tensions and all the cool things one can do with this awesome machine.

Stay tuned for Marvelous Monday!!

Love and Shimmies,

 P.S.  I mistakenly bought the same pattern twice (no suprise, did same thing with stamps, lol) soooo I was thinking of reviewing it and giving one away.  What do you think??

Monday Love

Well,well...

Is it Monday already?  O_o

Brianna and I have been trying to touch base all weekend but have missed each other at every end.  I will post her OOTD as soon as our paths connect.

Sooooooo, what's been on my heart today?  Excitement AND terror.  Due to this new program being offered by our church there is now a super affordable way to get a college degree, woohoo, right?  So, brace yourself, or at least I had to brace myself, I signed up at the information meeting Sunday night.  Now I have to wait for to see if enough people will sign up for the program between our two stakes.  We only need 15 people so I am sure that between the two we should be able to get it.  

I've been out of school a lonnnngggggggg time and remember very little from when I was there, high school nor college,sigh.  That's where the terror comes in.  Out of most of the certifications I've taken in the last few years I have had to take twice.  I just don't remember large amounts of information quickly.  My mother would say, "You've been out of school too long."  Bear in mind she was what I called a 'professional student'.  Always learning always growing.  Me?  I love learning new things but, not reading it all.  I love learning by doing, putting my hands on it.  I'm a visual learner and learn best by remembering quirky things like what color shirt the teacher had on that I didn't like when she said... or how a loud thunder clap echoed in the room when I was highlighting the answer to this question.   I just have a weird memory to locking information in.  Sigh, but the best thing I've learned about myself these last few years is that when I get an idea of 'oh, I wanna do that', I know no matter how terrified I am I am going to do EXACTLY that.  

So it's off to school I go, if it all works out with enough people.  The next step while waiting was to figure out what to take.  There are only a select few degrees being offered with on-line degrees through the church's school.  Since none were in the area of fitness and health, which I thought I'd be interested in persueing being that I have a primary group fitness instructor certification and all, bellydancer (although not much lately), it seemed a perfect fit.  However, that is not one of the programs being offered in this on-line opportunity right now.  So, narrowed it down after talking with dh to two.  Then one.  Since I have an Associates Degree in Applied Technology for Business Computer Programing, we decided it would be best for me to take the bachelor program (well, I figured if I was gonna do it it must be for bachelors degree) for Computer Information Technology. Ok, ummmmmmmmm, yeah.  LOL, well in for a penny in for a pound.  Especially since dh told his second club he was done because his wife would be going back to come this September.  Well, I am certainly committed now, lol. Yikes! 

Once it settled in I had to put in a little Balance Essential Oil, from my wonderful doTerra oils.  Ahhhh, fell much calmer.  

Nothing to do but wait now.

This posting what's going on is much easier than posting the intended Monday posts.  But, not as exciting to me as tutorial or recipes and certainly not as much as posting sewing reviews or how-to's.  So my assignment for the next week (you know before school starts, lol) I will have to get ahead of the game.  I need to line up the intended post weeks in advance so we have much more interesting posts to share and you have more interesting things to read about.

Sigh, better get busy then.

Love and shimmies, 

P.S.  Typing this from IPad so can't make all colorful and pretty.  Also, sorry if any misspelled words.

Missed it by that much...Monday

Monday, argh, Tuesday, rats, 'Missed it by that much chief!'

This blogging thing is serious business.  When things don't go right you gotta be prepared, you gotta have backups.

I have to admit, I am feeling some kind of way and have been for the last few months.  I have not studied, have not written speeches, have not cooked much, have not practiced my Zumba or Bellydance, and last but not least have not sewn...in weeks.  All of which I truly love! 

Major mental and emotional issues going on over here. 

If you'll just hang in there with me for a little longer, I promise to get my act together.   I must, this is not working for me!

Good news alert! Our beautiful and youngest daughter, Brianna, has volunteered to take over most of the OOTD tab on the blog.  Brianna is a young woman working hard to make her life move in the direction of her long time dream of becoming a fashion designer.  She has a great flare for putting stylish outfits together with great statement accessories and an amazing talent at mixing colors and different patterns together (she always has, even as a young scrapbooker I marveled at her ability to mix patterns, I never could [and still can't]).  I pretty much only dress to go out in public (outside of going to the mailbox, which does not require any sass or style) twice a week.  That's for a meeting and for church.  Which I hav'nt been dolling up for.  Hey don't judge me, I am a stay at home mom, there is no reason to doll up every day for a 16 year old.  I'm sure it won't help with convincing him to do his school work.  So, anywhooo, as a result I have neglected the OOTD tab (even more so than not consistently posting the weekly blog posts).

The two of us with work the natural hair tab together, with tips, techiques, product recipes, protective hairstyles, and hair product reviews (that'll be her, lol, I'm strictly a make my own hair products kind a girl...except for my backup which is Shea Moisture line).

I have decided in order to help me be more consistent at least, I have committed to posting a post every Monday as stated, no matter what.  Even if what I had planned to post doesn't work then I commit myself to posting how I honestly feel at the time of posting.  So that means I need to quickly get my act together, or openly admit things in my head that I don't generally speak out loud.  Good heavens, you may learn wayyyyyy more about me than you wanted to if that happened.

So, a few hours overdue but here it is chief.  Unfiltered and raw feelings!

Love and still Broken Shimmies,

P.S. Aren't IPads great, I stayed up to type this on my IPad! Okay, okay, yes I was on Facebook clicking other links for a minute, zeesh, cut me a little slack.  When was the last time you posted your raw feelings for the world to review and moc.

Evening Gown Into Bellydance Bra and Hips Scarf Set!

Never miss an opportunity to dance!

I got this dress for $10.00 at our local Goodwill.

The moment I saw it I knew what it's future would be.  I'm a Bellydancer and have long wanted to do some refashioning for a costume.  So, I snatched this little darling up and quickly ran home with it.  I was sewwww very excited. 

Got started...rip rip...

Remove arms...Separate more parts...

Make a few snips...connect a few pieces...

And walla...

Yes I am a bellydancer, no I don't show my tummy, lol, so I have one a spaghetti top cami underneath the bra.  It's super long so it goes into my bottoms.  The two black lines on the butt are actually the ties from the bra hanging down.  Sorry we did not have good light in the room (so happy I have a new camera).  Oh, and the pants are just regular yoga pants, I'm making black tribal pants to go with the set!

A wonderfully dreamy little bra and hip scarf costume perfect for dance class practice, solo in small show for caberet.  It's even suitable for a hot little tribal fushion number.  I love it.

You can see full details and step by step pictures at Shimmy and More Blogspot.

Thanks for reading!

Love and Shimmies, 

Yes It's a Brokenhearted Monday...

Hello Honey,

Yes I know it's Monday.  A crazy one it has been too.

My project for today is a miserable fail!  But, I am still working on it.  It's sooooo cute and I want to make it sooooo bad.  And when I do I will show it to you lovelies.

This coming Sunday I have to prepare lunch for our presidency, the wives and the missionaries in our branch so I will do a Mystery Meat Monday on the next Monday. Then the following Monday I will do a McCall pattern review, one of my favorites for this summer, you're gonna love 'em!  I have to make some in a few more colors.  The last Monday of the month I will review one of my marvelous Craftsy classes like I promised earlier this month.

There is so much to look forward to in July, it's our anniversary it will be 4 years since God showed me that he indeed knew better than I did, who I needed to spend the rest of my life and all of eternity with.  My husband is the kindest  most loving and sometimes enabling, lol, man that I know.  I will also be receiving my 2nd Stitch Fix box, of course I will do another review on my YouTube channel so you can see all the wonderful things they sent for my anniversary.  I can't wait, I am soooo stoked!

I guess I should mention some of the issues of why I did not post in May.  I had been kinda blue coming into May and most all of the month.  Don't know why, not sleeping much either, again.  May is also a hard month for me due to not having my own mother here to celebrate Mother's Day with.  My mother was murdered in 1994 by my father (step).  The brutal way in which in did so, in front of my 3 year old daughter, is hard enough to have to remember.  Then this May right after the Shimmy Mob weekend, which is on World Bellydance Day.  If you don't know about this it is an event where belly dancers around the world join together in one accord to raise funds for their local women and children shelters and raise awareness about domestic violence to the world.  If you didn't know, yes it is very much a problem in this world.  In addition to fund raising we all join together on the actual day and perform the same routine all over the world all wearing the same T-shirts and black pants.  It's a wonderful event.  Well, right after that weekend, while dealing with my own personal loss, I hear that one of my favorite YouTube guru, Tamisha E. Ridge, had been murdered in her home in the wee hours of the morning by an old boyfriend, father of one of her children who had stalked her for years, while she slept.  Again a woman I thought highly of as just a person was taken by some idiot in the dark, again children were losing a very important person in their lives.  I was just heartbroken for her, her children and the rest of her family.  I just didn't want to do anything, I was just at a loss and in pain.  My own pain and in pain for her family, for her young children.  Their mother, gone, just gone...  It aches my heart still to even think about.

I miss my mother. I miss her golden smile, I miss Meesha's happy go lucky smile, I miss my mother's little sayings, "There's more than one way to skin a cat", I miss Meesha's little sayings, "This is super easy you guys".  I miss how they both would help anyone they could.  They were both giving loving women with wonderful futures ahead of them.  Both murdered as they attempted to get on with their lives.  Both having just moved into new homes and beginning new lives.  I miss them both.  My mother I will always have in my heart and pictures, Meesha I will always have in my heart and hopefully her YouTube channel will remain.  I know that her FaceBook page will remain thanks to the fact that she had placed administrators on the site to help her before this hideous crime against her.  It has had a name change and we all want very much to stay connected to her.  Be aware as you surf the net that if you notice a lot of #MeeshaTaughtMe posts please know that this is not some small way to boost someone's business but it's a love and connection shared by many of this wonderful sewing teacher, mentor, designer, mother, daughter, friend, kindhearted, and loving young woman who is being missed by those whose lives she has touched around the world (this is not an exaggeration I assure you).  We love her, we miss her... although we can not ask her for her help anymore, remember, "Never throw away your scraps!"    

I just wanna add ladies (although rare, and gentlemen) if you are in an abusive relation just understand there is one thing you need to do - 'GET OUT'! Once you are out CUT ALL CONTACT.  You don't owe him (her) a darn thing.  You don't have to be nice to someone who is physically not nice to you.  All above all else, GET THE HECK OUT.  Don't wait TO BE CARRIED OUT IN A BLACK BAG! PLEASE, I BEG YOU, GET OUT AND STAY OUT!!  Don't continue to date the same kind of man again and again, because one of them is going to snap.  It you can't do it for yourself do it for your children, for your family, heck for the dog.  I don't care who, just do it!!  If you are not the one being abused then pay attention to the women you love, reach out to her, and above all believe her, HELP HER, GET HER OUT!!

I guess I'm starting to ramble as the tears are starting to flow so I will end with this, ladies know that God loves you.  You are his beautiful daughter and he DID NOT create you for some idiot to beat you down physically, mentally, nor emotionally.  Love yourself enough to know that, because that man that's beating you never will.

Love and broken Shimmies,

The Absentee Blogger, a Monday Madness.

Hello Hon,

May apology for being absent this past month.  It has just really been a hard month.  There we so many bad memories, new awful memories and deaths of people you care for, added to my own blues for this time of year...I just didn't have the strength to post or to take the required time to photograph and write for a post or recorded an video (truth is I thought I may break into uncontrollable sobs if I'd tried).  I didn't have the words to speak on what I wanted to talk about and no desire to really speak on nothing else.  I was in quite a funk!  I was mourning old loss combined with new loss (not DIRECTLY but still a valuable part of my life).  I still don't fell ready to cover it but I think I need to address it and let go of the feelings I have on this subject.  Ummm, next week, sigh, today still too fresh today.

I also have a review coming up on the classes available through Craftsy (if you don't know what that is I will explain in more details in coming weeks.  But basically it's an online site where you can not only purchase patterns for various things, it's also a great resource for learning.  You may also purchase classes from them.  This is the service that I will be reviewing in coming weeks, super convenient).  But for today I will just share with you how to sell patterns and make a little change if you have been creating your own patterns (or as I, plan to do so when you have a little more experience).  I have many classes with them so I will be reviewing my experiences with them from time to time.  I will do one of the reviews this month and the next maybe 2 months after that one, unless otherwise requested.  As far was what I am sewing this month.  I plan to do a pattern review with the awesome fabric I bought last month from my co-op fabric group.  I am supper e excited, I have wanted to make this outfit for a while now, I was just waiting to find the perfect fabric.  I will do the pattern review and probably add pictures of the process, maybe step by step also.  Or I may just do the pattern review and them a video of the step by step.  Ummm, which one would you like to see?

How to Add & Sell a Pattern on Craftsy
(This post contains affiliate links which means I will be compensated if you purchase after clicking these links.)

In addition to wonderful online courses and craft supplies, Craftsy also has an independent online pattern store that lets anyone upload and sell downloadable e-patterns with no fee!

How do you add a pattern to Craftsy and start your pattern store? It’s easy!

1. Make sure you have a Paypal account. All pattern transactions happen through Paypal, and Craftsy requires that you have a Student, Premier, or Business account in order to sell patterns.
2. Put your pattern in .pdf format. You can’t upload any patterns to the online pattern store unless they’re a .pdf file format, so if they’re currently saved as a Word doc, .jpg, or other file format, you must convert it to a .pdf before you upload it to Craftsy.
3. Include a photo. All patterns must have at least one photo to accompany them, but you can add up to five photos. Colorful, interesting photos tend to work the best for catching our members’ eyes!
4. Fill out the pattern description. We will ask you some basic questions around your pattern making it easier for Craftsy folk to find your pattern and know what your pattern is for. Make sure you have info about your pattern handy for this step.

For more information on how to sell a pattern through Craftsy, or to get started, visit Craftsy today!

Love and Shimmies,

P.S. This is another new love, making earrings, pendants and such! Oop-oop-a-doop!