procrastination Archives • Jessica Smith Creates

July 17, 2013August 25, 2022

The reason I can’t finish projects

Is because I’ve got too many going at once.

Much too many.

Because I love to start projects.

The satisfaction I get at the end, when I finish them, can barely compare. Except in some cases. Rarely.

I can’t think of an example right now…

So, here are some examples of projects I’d like to start.

kog link

One that I’m going to start soon is a dress inspired by Kaylee’s origin story dress, in the episode “Out of Gas” and “The Message” of the show Firefly.

I’ve got the fabric I’ll use for it, but I haven’t done the proper research yet, but I’m going to start soon. Hopefully.

link

I’m also a big fan right now of Amy Pond’s red hoodie that she wears in a few of the early episodes of Doctor Who 2005’s fifth series.

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And I love Kaylee’s turquoise brocade mandarin jacket in the first episode of Firefly.

But I also am interesting in working on: Jayne’s blue sun shirt (Firefly), Amy’s black and yellow sleeveless shirt (Doctor Who), HG Well’s vest in the rocket episode (Warehouse 13). Enough of the frosting. I’m also interested in making some culottes, and some nice trousers. I’m also planning a high waisted skirt for a stealth steampunk look. And I am musing over the idea of creating a ballroom dance dress. I really enjoy dancing, and the waltz is my absolute favorite. But I don’t have anything to dance in for competitions!

I’ve got more ideas, but I’m going to continue on in another direction.

This past June I happened to find this awesome pennanular brooch at a medieval craft fair, and I have almost nothing to use it with. It’s quite heavy, made of iron I think, so I need something substantial to wear it with. I only have one item that fits this bill, but I’d like to be able to use it with a shawl for when I don’t quite need a sweater.

IMG_2596_medium2 link

I’d also like to work on some lacy hats. I’ve never liked wearing hats, but with the amount of bad hair days I seem to attract, I’m willing to give them a try. And lacy and slouchy hats can look quite cute. The one above is the first in my queue.

There are some other types of projects I’d like to work on as well.

link

I’m bringing my sewing things with me to college this upcoming year, but I’ll need an ironing board to go with my iron. I have been seeing a pin go around on Pinterest the past few weeks about an ironing board tv tray table. That sounds like fun!

link

I’m also planning on making myself a dressform. Likely out of duct tape, but I also have hopes for a form like this one. Being as I’m unwilling to pay damages for drilling a hole in the ceiling I’m also planning to make a stand for these to lie on and unless I find an awesome coat rack, I’ll probably make it out of pvc, like in this link! Or perhaps I’ll buy an umbrella stand, like this post suggests, to support a slightly smaller stand!

Whew. This is an awful long post, but I’ve saved my biggest project ideas for last.

I already have a ~~thriving~~ jewelry business called BeadsAndQuotes up on Etsy, though its on vacation until mid-August or so. I’m hoping to begin making my own clasps and earring wires, and expand some of my stock. Don’t even get me started on my project ideas for that.

As part of my jewelry business, I’ve also made illustrated quotes, like the one above, which I love to do but doesn’t quite fit in with a jewelry business. So I’ve been considering opening up a different shop to sell geeky cards and my illustrated quotes.

I’ve also really enjoyed my work with leather. It’s such an interesting and totally different kind of medium, and I would love to continue working with it, but I wouldn’t feel right selling it in either my current shop, or my proposed card shop.

And this isn’t even taking into account my job… or my schooling… or having a life.

Do you have any advice or suggestions?

May 31, 2013August 19, 2018

A’collaring we go!

So it’s been a while since I’ve given you an update on my crocheted sweater. It’s moving along, but I took a break during exams and the past week.

Two weeks and a half a week of extra study time was loads of time to procrastinate. I’m an equal opportunity procrastinator, to be honest. Actually studying and crocheting the sweater.

So here’s what I’ve got so far! I’ve finished the vest part of the sweater, and I sewed up the shoulder seams after blocking. It fits well enough around the arms, so I moved on to creating the collar.

I’ve completed 21 whole blocks out of 36, and I’ll then have 10 triangles to make.

I’m hoping to add at least two blocks a day for a while. Then it’ll just be waist ribbing, and arm and collar edging, and then the sweater will be done! Still a lot, but progress is important nevertheless!

May 3, 2013

Yummies! Pancakes!

I’m taking exams for the next two weeks.

There is nothing like finals to make me hungry. I mean, I’m pretty sure I’m hungry all the time, anyway. But I feel that making delicious food is the best way to procrastinate on studying.

My first exam isn’t until Tuesday. Whyever should I start studying now! That’s four days early? Because I should, but… well, I’m not. At least not so far.

Last night I cooked up some chicken. My friends and I have been ordering large quantities of groceries, and predominately freezing the meat so we can use it later, so I have a freezer drawer filled with chicken and casserole steaks. So I used some of the chicken, but because I was defrosting it, I first immersed it in a soy sauce and brown sugar mixture, then filled the rest of the bowl up with water around the chicken. Maybe not the best way of marinading, but I was trying to avoid freezer burn! Because the living space I’m in doesn’t have an oven, just a hob/stove, I “fryed” the chicken, but it was just a frying pan with a lid. I forgot to flip the chicken, and it still cooked through deliciously! I ate it too fast to get a picture.

This morning I made couscous. I’ve never done so before, and I can’t imagine why I haven’t! If all I have to do is pour boiling water over the stuff and some butter and salt, why don’t I do so all the time? I can’t imagine. I have certainly been a couscous lover forever, but if I knew it was this easy to make, I would have started to make it when I was seven and first introduced.

And now I’m cooking that wonderful breakfast, or really every meal food, pancakes!

Because I’m running on low supplies, finishing up my last weeks studying abroad, I’m out of eggs, butter, and I’m almost out of milk. But that doesn’t stop me from my pancakes!

I’m tweaking a recipe I found through a Google search. Because Google is awesome!

My eggless pancake recipe, tweaked for the ingredients I have on hand!

Here’s the original: courtesy of Rak’s Kitchen

1 cup of flour

Dash of brown sugar, but definitely less than a tablespoon, because I’m a bad guesstimator

Dash of salt, about half a teaspoon

About one third of a teaspoon of bicarbonate of soda, because I don’t have baking soda

1 cup of milk – I had just enough!

About 1 tablespoon of oil.

(I also included some leftover loose tea I had. More on that later.)

Because I know how to follow a recipe, but choose to ignore it, I started with the milk. I then added the tea. It was apple flavored, and gave the milk a wonderful smell!

Then I added all of the dry ingredients, and finally the oil.

I let it rest for about ten minutes, as instructed. I used this time to whip up another batch of the dry mix, without the tea, for the next time I need pancakes, which may or may not be in a few hours. Hopefully tomorrow, but the convenience store around the corner is kinda open until midnight. Because I’ll need more milk.

Then I heated up the frypan with the most non-stick coating still present, and the least amount of metal scores, and then added some oil. Honestly too much oil, so temper yourself newbies. In fact, I really don’t like to oil my pancake pan, but because there is no real nonstick coating in this kitchen (it runs away with its coating tail between its legs in fear), I can’t do anything without it.

I cooked ’em up like normal pancakes, and then enjoyed them with my warm chocolate drink!

My first few didn’t come out all that good looking, but they still tasted good!

I say warm chocolate drink, because honestly, its not chocolatey or milky enough to be hot chocolate, and its not cold or chocolatey enough to be chocolate milk, so I have decided on warm chocolate drink.

And in regards to tea. I love tea. I tend to have more tea than other drinks. But sometimes a tea just doesn’t end up getting drunk. Or I’m in a non-loose tea friendly environment. The last time I used a reusable tea bag for my loose tea, my roommate threw it out. And that was mostly the end of my loose tea escapades this semester. I’m trying to use up some of my tea that isn’t my favorite. I’ve been trying to use up as much tea as possible before buying more, but that doesn’t always work out…

In hindsight, my tea idea was good, but I should hydrate the tea first, so I’m not trying to bite down on an overly dried apple chunk. Beware

And now I’m going to enjoy my pancakes and hopefully study!

Oh, and my obligatory costume update. These used to be dangles from some earrings my grandmother had given me, and they are going to end up on the shoulders of my miniature jacket for my TARDIS costume, as inspired by last week’s episode of Doctor Who. The machine making contraption… thing.

Anyway… Bye!