My SJ Made Milestone

I originally had this post titled as "I Survived SJ Made" and realized that it was a little silly for me to have a title stating that I survived because it wasn't a life threatening event.  After some reflection I've decided that it was more of a milestone in my life.  With that said, this post might be a little bit longer and not like my previous blogpost, so I have to say thank you for putting up with me and continuing to read my posts.  I'm going to ramble a little bit in this post and talk about what I feel in my heart.  Jenna from White Rabbit Photography posted on her personal blog this week an open letter to her readers.  I guess you can say it inspired me, and this is my open letter so please bare with me while I speak/write what's been on my mind.

**Warning** This blog post is looooooooooooooooong.  I wanted to split the post into two, but I also didn't want to wait too long before posting my experience review so here it is all in one long post.

It's been 7 months since I was laid off from my corporate job and at the beginning I have taken a month or two off from actively searching for a job to enjoy the holiday season, but other than that I have always been searching job listings, twitter posts and utilizing any other career networking channel I have available to me.  And here I am still unemployed.  It is a very very very depressing feeling.  Don't get me wrong, I'm not depressed because I have such a wonderful support group made up of my family and friends (more on that later) but there are times when I can't but help feel a little saddened by the fact that I still cannot find a job with my experience in today's job market.  When I originally started blogging it was to keep myself distracted and busy learning new things.  An opportunity to find myself and work on becoming a better happier me.  I had the opportunity for continued learning/education but I didn't gravitate in that direction. Instead I gravitated towards building my crafting and creative skills.  This is what made me happier.  Right before my event at SJ Made I read a guest post on Blogging it Forward by Anita Boeira about some tips from Peter Shankman.  One quote in particular caught my eye:

My last job had things I loved about it, but also more things I hated than loved.  I never imaged myself at a  desk job doing the mundane things in life.  I love communicating and working with others.  I also had a knack at being organized and putting all the puzzle pieces together as a project manager.  But I wasn't doing what I was passionate about and I wasn't having fun at work every day.  I worked hard at that company for 5 years and there were multiple times at the early stages with that company when I would call my mom and sister to cry and complain about how unhappy I was and I just wanted to quit.  Every time I got the same response from them telling me a job is a job and you have to just deal with it, so I dealt with it and in the end the job was the one that let me down.  So when I saw the quote I felt like it was talking directly at me.  It made me understand that things happen for a reason.  You always read it in books, hear it on TV, but let me tell you, when you experience a moment like this for yourself it has a lot more meaning.  

SJ Made

Photo Credit: SJ Made

I have some great news everyone! I didn't get myself a full time job, but I did manage to line up an exciting job opportunity. I'm going to have a merchant's table at a little event called SJ Made Start Up Shop. SJ Made is a fairly new organization/business that I am absolutely in love with. They organize vendor fairs for local brands,  small businesses, and artist showcasing current projects and goods.

I was a little nervous about applying at first, but after the encouragement from my friends I decided to take the leap of faith. I originally applied for 2 nights, but they only had 1 night available and I was ecstatic to have any opportunity I could get, so I took it. I'm nowhere near being an expert at the crafts I make, but I'm going to apply the things I've learned to make during these past few months and hope for the best. :)

I'll be skipping my regular blog post for this week and next so that I can concentrate on making my crafts which I will be selling at the event. However, I plan to be updating my Facebook page/Instagram/Twitter accounts with project progress and sneak peeks of what I am making and going to be selling at SJ Made.  So make sure to connect with me through those channels if you haven't already done so. And for those in the San Jose area, I hope to see you there!

Thanks!

Twitter: @pinspirational

Instagram: http://instagram.com/simplypinspirational

Facebook: www.facebook.com/simplypinspirational

(Sorry, I don't have nifty little icons for my social media site...yet :))

Schweetz blog post!

Have you picked up your copy of Disney's Wreck-It Ralph yet?  The movie came out today and I'm sitting in bed writing this blog post while watching the behind the scene material right now.  It's such a great movie and I really feel connected to it because of my love for Disney and video games. 

On a somewhat related note, my Vanellope Von Schweetz Halloween costume blog post  is my top viewed post.  So I just found it fitting today for me to say thank you to my readers and followers for making that possible.  Thanks for pinning it on pintrest!

And if you don't know who Vanellope it's time for you to go watch the movie already. =D

DIY My Little Pony Plush - Part 2

Here's part 2 of the DIY My Little Pony Plush post.  (Click here for Part 1)  Don't forget that the full instructions/tutorial can be found at the original source here.

When we last left off I just completed the head of the pony.  Next step is to complete the body.

You want to start by attaching the hoof (circle) to the underbody.  You will start by attaching the circle hoof at two points.  I took a little short cut because I didn't want to attach 2 points.

I pinned a needled into the 2nd point to hold it in place and started sewing at the first point.  That way I can have more flexibility to the half circle.

DIY My Little Pony Plush - Part 1

Pin Rating: 4

Difficulty: Intermediate to difficult

I LOVE My Little Pony.  I love the fact that they rebooted the series and I enjoy it just as much as I did while I was a kid.  When a friend posted a blog post featured on OffBeat Families on my Facebook page for a My Little Pony: Friendship is Magic plush tutorial, I knew I had to make one for myself.  Despite there being a template and instructions - provided by Voodoo Tiki over at DeviantArt this project is more difficult than I expected.  I had made my R2D2 plushie a couple of months ago and didn't have too much difficulty so I thought since this one had a pattern it would be even easier - I was so wrong.  I think the most difficult part of this was being patient.  There are a lot of little details but it's well worth it as it all comes together in the end.  I decided to make my own DJ Pon3 with the fleece I had left over from the R2D2 plush.

Still up for the challenge?  Here's what you'll need.

• Sewing items (Scissors, needle, thread)
• Fleece 
• 2 shades of blue fleece
• White fleece
• Small piece of Black
• Small piece of purple
• Voodoo Tiki Template
• Polyester Fiber Fill
• Knowledge of how to do a backstitch - it's more secured compared to a single stitch when you flip the plush inside out.

Home made Valentine's Chocolates!

Valentine's day is tomorrow!  Do you need a last minute idea for a valentine's gift?  Why not some home made chocolates?  They're quick and easy to make and gives a personalized touch to each piece of chocolate.  So I don't normally make or give out Valentine's gifts but I was watching an anime a couple of months ago (Fruits Basket) and there was an episode about Valentine's Day and White Day and I was determined to make my own chocolates to hand out for Valentines to hand out to my friends.  

So for those who don't know here's a quick recap from the wiki page on White Day.  In Japan Valentine's is typically observed by females to present chocolates and gifts to males to show their affection - in my case friendship.  Handmade chocolates are usually preferred because it shows sincerity    and emotion put into the home made item.  On White Day, March 15th, the reverse happens where the recipient of the gift returns a gift that is typically something white.  It's silly, but I also secretly hope for something in return on White day ^_^.  I blame it on me watching so much Japanese anime although I live in America.   

So here's how I made the Valentine's day chocolates.

• 2-3 different colored candy melts (candy waffers)
• Chocolate Waffers of your choice (I used dark chocolates)
• Peanut Butter Filling and/or nuts for fillings
• Note: I don't have step by step instructions for this but check out the link.  They have to chill for 1 hour so be sure to do this step first.
• Requires: Butter, Pb, powdered sugar
• Zip lock bags
• 1-2 candy trays
• I used the Roses & Hearts from Hobby Lobby

Big thanks for my friend A for the chocolates in bulk and showing me the PB Filling recipe.

Cheesy Au Gratin Potatoes

Pin Rating: 4.5

Duration: 15-20 minute prep, 30 min bake

When asked to bring a side dish to a friend's house for a weeknight dinner I of course turned to Pintrest.  I was looking for some sort of potato side (something starchy) to go with the protein and I came across some Cheesy Au Gratin Potatoes by The Farm Girl and they were delicious and easy to make. 

For this reciepe I only wanted to make a 8 x 8 dish versus the 9 x 13 that they made on the original blog, so I modified it a bit.  I also didn't have corn flakes on hand so I used chex mix.  :)

Potatoes

• 1 1/2 Tbsp butter
• 1/2 small yellow onion chopped
• 1/8 cup all purpose flour
• 3/4 cup low-sodium chicken broth
• 1/2 cup of milk
• 1/2 tsp salt
• 1/4 pepper
• 1/4 tsp dried thyme
• 1 cup shredded cheddar cheese
• 14-16 oz bag of frozen shredded hash brown (I got it on sale for $1 at Safeway!)
• 1/4 cup safeway

Topping

• 1 1/2 cup chex mix
• 1 Tbsp butter melted

 Preheat the oven to 350°F.