Nelly Peg: Archive

2 tags

Out of respect for your dead turkey

…make soup! Millions of turkeys are murdered every year for Thanksgiving dinners. The least we could do is respectfully use as much of the turkey as we can. So after it’s been carved and the leftovers have been stored for the next week’s meals, use the carcass and make soup. Here’s what you’ll need: Lots of water Turkey carcass 3-6 carrots 4-8 celery stalks 2...

Nov 22nd

Nelly Peg Namesake

“Nelly Peg” is not my real name. If you can believe that. Nell (Ellen) and Peg (Margaret) are my grandmothers. Grandma Peg passed when I was 10, and Grandma Nell when I was 16, 7 years ago almost to the hour. Grandma Nell was a WWII bride. She married my grandfather, a New Yorker from a Sicilian family, while he was stationed in England. He had already returned to the states when she...

Nov 17th

3 tags

Happy Thanksboozeing!

Need a great drink for your Thanksgiving celebration? I came up with this seasonally appropriate toasted spice cider punch for a Halloween party and it was a hit. You’ll need: 8 oz bourbon 20-24 oz apple cider Brown sugar simple syrup (process below) 2 cinnamon sticks 8-10 whole cloves 6-8 allspice berries 2 star aniseeds ~1 L club soda or seltzer coffee filter or 5”x5”...

Nov 16th

1 note

2 tags

Nov 15th

8 notes

Nov 14th

215 notes

1 tag

cup o' jo...y

1 packet of hot chocolate mix + 1 peppermint teabag = mint chocolate bliss

Nov 7th

1 tag

lots of Good Things

- just came back from a brief visit with dear friends in Detroit. they are getting married soooo soon! - i have chocolate Silk in the fridge - i got a bunch of free green tomatoes from someone on my friend’s block - i have season premieres of good shows on the dvr waiting for me - i have an amazing new candle that smells like actual apple cider & makes fire noise - made it home...

Sep 21st

1 tag

Madam Librarian

Good things: - Went to the fitness center. Shooting to go at least 15 times this month. - Was semi-productive workwise. - Started taking baby steps towards actually using the recording equipment I invested in a long time ago. Can’t wait for someone else to help me with it anymore, lest it gather another inch of dust. It is scary and frustrating but hopefully it’ll pay off in the...

Sep 2nd

1 tag

Don't make me light my butt!

Good things for the past couple days: - Hung out with my friend Kevin today, whom I hadn’t seen in a couple weeks. We watched The Princess and the Frog. (see post title!) - Registered to try out a park district gym for September. While I dread it, it is a good thing…I guess. I really could use some help in the motivation/accountability department, ha. - Our still unnamed new fishy...

Sep 1st

1 tag

Thee Fish Bowl

Ha, already slacking! Been busy with relatives who were in town but now they’ve gone home to a slightly damp (thanks to Irene) Boston. Good things from the past few days: - Spent time with family. - Learned a little bit about my exciting geneology. - Free stuff from the conference my aunt was in town for. - Watched some hilarious hamsters (they didn’t even look real, they were...

Aug 30th

3 tags

One Good Thing

So, clearly, Create 365 2011 was a swing and a miss. Same goes for Project 365 2011. I lost momentum on blogging the projects when Spring started to show up. I think Create 365 was more demanding than I was prepared for and then, of course, my camera stopped working in March so I was without one for a month —after I promised myself I wouldn’t let camera malfunctions stop...

Aug 25th

1 tag

Typical Phone Call from my Dad

[cell phone rings] Me: Hello? Dad: Hi, do you have a minute? Me: Yeah. Dad: I have a question for you. Me: Okay. [phone ringing in Dad’s background] Dad: Can you hold on a second? Me: Um, okay…

Mar 14th

Anonymous asked: Remember when we decided to get rich and buy a recording studio? How did the rest of that bit go? And when I used to sleep at my desk and hide behind my hair? I wish that worked now...

Mar 3rd

4 tags

Create 61/365 Photographs - Rihanna feat....

Mar 3rd

7 tags

Create 46/365 - 60/365

I’ve been really slow on projects lately. Can’t really explain why. I’ve been slightly busier recently than before because I started a new job, but it’s part time, it really shouldn’t be so complicated. Anyway. Create 46/365 February 15, 2011 Haiku: Stomach My stomach has gotten a lot more sensitive over the past couple years than it ever was. It’s...

Mar 2nd

3 notes

9 tags

Create 34/365 - 45/365

Create 34/365 Oil paint practice, oil paint on “canvas paper” I’ve never used oil paints before, so I really had no idea what I was doing. I’ve mentioned before that I really like mixing colors more than I actually like painting. So that’s how this happened. I can’t believe how long oil paints take to dry. And even when they’re “dry” it...

Feb 15th

4 tags

Create 33/365

Seeds and trees, Lumocolor marker on drawing paper The scanner cut off the right edge of the paper, but you get the point. Inspired by the heartbreaking violence in Egypt. I was really involved with my university’s anti-war organization and related groups in college. In terms of global issues, specifically war, poverty, and their related injustices (since injustices are all related), my...

Feb 3rd

7 tags

Create 30/365 - 32/365

The end of January means the end of the Create 365 Number ___/365 isn’t just the date anymore. Snowballs. Ah well. Create 30/365 Lou mess, watercolor More playing around with my budget watercolors. I really really like them a lot. Even if the things I paint with them come out totally crazy, I still love playing with them. I’ve always liked the process of mixing colors with paint...

Feb 3rd

5 tags

Create 29/365

Ozzie, five-minute sketch, Staedtler Lumocolor marker on sketch paper To try something different, I took a shot at a 5-minute sketch. I know this is something that actual art students do for a number of reasons, I was mainly trying it for something different. I did some googling and one thing I read recommended squinting at the object you’re trying to draw to help you get a sense of the...

Jan 31st

10 tags

Create 20/365 - 28/365

Here’s another giant post of stuff. Way too long. I prefer doing daily posts, but this past week has been really busy. My mom had a birthday, I had meetings, Shawn had surgery…crazy stuff. Also, exciting (to me), I finally brought my printer/scanner/copier from my parents’ house and installed it on my computer. So I don’t have to fiddle around with lighting to take...

Jan 29th

I wonder:

Is it better to post daily (more or less) in smaller posts or in the form of a weekly digest?

Jan 20th

7 tags

Create 14/365 - 19/365

Sorry I’ve been AWOL again! I have no excuse this time! Create 14/365 haiku: wish A friend is going through something really crummy, and I wish only good things for her. Create 15/365 This is not a crafty or artistic exercise. My sister had a Lia Sophia party (direct sales for Lia Sophia jewelry) and the Lia Sophia representative/advisor approached me about possibly becoming an...

Jan 20th

1 note

4 tags

Watch

Create 13/365 “Stop-Motion Soup” Soup I made, photos I took, and an introduction for me to Windows Movie Maker You’ll want to stop and start the video and let it load all the way, otherwise it’s just stupid. This morning I discovered that my friend and her roommate were sick, so I made them some chicken noodle soup to help them hurry up and get better. If she...

Jan 14th

4 tags

Create 12/365 “Weeknight Lullaby,”...

Jan 13th

4 tags

Create 9/365 - 11/365

Create 9/365 (January 9, 2011) Knitted cowl scarf, acrylic chunky yarn Finished this while watching “Public Enemies” with Shawn - a bedtime movie if ever there was one! This is ridiculously soft, I almost don’t want to give it away. Maybe I’ll make more and try them in my eventual Etsy shop? Create 10/365 (January 10, 2011) Wee whittled wadybug, basswood I thought...

Jan 12th

2 notes

Hi Hi Hi

Don’t worry, world, whoever you are! I’m still keeping up with Create 365 and Project 365, I’ve just been using Shawn’s camera the past few days so I’ll post tomorrow when I get out the cord. I promise!

Jan 12th

2 tags

Create 8/365

This is the first incidence of something that will probably happen a lot this year: I started a project that’s meant to take more than a day, so I figure I can count my progress as my project of the day…? I mean, this is my thing so I guess I can make the rules, but I’m not sure how I feel about this. What do you think? Anyway, I started this cowl scarf late tonight. In the...

Jan 9th

4 tags

Create 7/365

Cross that bridge when you get to it, pencil on drawing paper I should really needlepoint this on a pillow or get it tattooed on me or something. I have an unhealthy tendency to get ahead of myself and think about all the possible scenarios that could come out of one action or another, so I end up being so caught up in thinking about what might happen that I never make sure than anything...

Jan 8th

1 note

3 tags

Create 6/365

Two little birds, pen on drawing paper I’ve been at this 6 days and already have repeating motifs. Also, I’m not exactly sure why whatever they’re hanging out on is a loop. Ah well, I like my little birdies. I’ve been doing most of these as the last thing I do before I get ready for bed, but I really need to try and do them earlier in the day so I’m not scrambling...

Jan 7th

3 tags

Create 5/365

Haiku: Interview My wee-tiny offering today is but a humble haiku. I have a job interview tomorrow which I should already be in bed sleeparing for. (Maybe my creation for today should instead be the verb “to sleepare” def: to sleep-prepare.)

Jan 6th

4 tags

Create 4/365

Post-haircut self-portrait, pen on drawing paper This one makes me laugh because pen is so unforgiving for me. Last week I chopped off 16” of my hair (at the longest sections, pulled straight) to donate to Locks of Love. My uncontrollable curly hair takes a very long time to grow, so I alternated between feeling really attached to it and feeling really tired of it. Tired of it finally...

Jan 5th

4 tags

Create 3/365

Lou’s tail, crayons on drawing paper I originally tried drawing Lou, my giant fluffykins Maine Coon kitten, from the front. But her sister, Ozzie, kept climbing around and meowing like a crazy person and distracting my model. So here’s her tail, rendered in cheapo RoseArt crayon. Those are so not my favorite for coloring. I think they make my 4th grade art skills look like 3rd grade...

Jan 4th

4 tags

Create 2/365

Indigo bunting, pastels on drawing paper I love birds in art, jewelry, and nature. A couple years ago, my friend posted a photo of an indigo bunting she took during a fellowship with a forest preserve. I’ve loved them (or at least the idea of them, since I’ve never actually seen one) since then. The males’ song is pretty cheery. Also, bonus, while I’m listening to it my...

Jan 3rd

3 tags

Create 1/365

Day 1 of Create 365. crayon + watercolor - crayon on drawing paper I think it looks better in person. Made with watercolors a friend gave me. I like painting. I’m not good at it, but I like it.

Jan 2nd

2 tags

Create 365 and other resolutions

It’s January 1, so why not throw some resolutions out into the world. Here they are in no particular order: Do project 365 again Get a job Use the gym membership I got for Christmas Attempt Create 365 (see below) Open an Etsy shop I’m generally not one for resolutions because I tend to think I set myself up for failure by making them, but not making them hasn’t seemed to...

Jan 2nd