Is it Spring Break yet?

A week from today will be the first day of SPRING BREAK. It can't come soon enough.

• I made another batch of lemon meringue cupcakes this weekend (amid a batch of renderings in marker.) I learned a few things this time around:
  1. If you refridgerate the cupcakes after you've filled them with lemon, the marshmallow cream spreads a whole lot easier.
  2. Make sure the oven's broiler is totally heated before you put the cupcakes in to brown. If you are impatient like me you will just melt the marshmallow cream.
  
  
• I bought these sandals last week on 6pm.com. They are Borns and I got them for more than half off. I'm really excited to get them this week. Unfortunately, I probably won't be able to wear them until...June?
• I registered for the Intermountain Graduate Research Symposium at Utah State. I'm going to do a poster presentation on my costume designs from A Midsummer Night's Dream. I still have everything put together from ACTF so I figure I'm most of the way there. I'll add some more to the book, academic-wise. Probably a bibliography or something.
• In the costume shop we're working on Three Musketeers. My friend Brandee is the costume designer and it is going to be a beautiful show! I get to pattern some of the beautiful historic dresses and I am pleased to say that it is going well! (Knock on wood...)
• James is a great husband, no surprise there. He's been busy with school and helping out the missionaries as the ward mission leader. He's such a champ.
• Did I mention it's a week until Spring Break? I could use a break!

A Plethora of Pictures

I basically dumped a bunch of pictures I had on my phone, on to my blog. Most are from after ACTF but a few are from before. First up, Valentine's Day. My husband is amazing, wonderful, loving, thoughtful and funny. I think that his gifts show all of his sides. He bought new garments (I really needed them, mine were all gray!) risque candy hearts and a jewelry box.I was really surprised by the jewelry box but he pointed out that I usually complained about my necklaces getting tangled and lost earrings. It was extremely thoughtful and I really love it!

Next up: STAIRS. I'm taking set design this semester and although I feel pretty confident about it, I obviously still have a lot to learn.

Case in point, this photograph:
As you can see, there is the 1/8" stair section on the left in heavy paper followed by two failed attempts to replicate the same stairs in 1/4" scale. It took three tries to FINALLY get the stairs to be wider at the bottom than the top. And I'm in grad school....

The skirt that Amanda is holding up is the long-lost skirt from The Cripple of Inishmaan...from SEPTEMBER! It was lost during the build of the show, replaced with something else and, of course, found months later. I think Amanda's face says it all.

Also from the costume shop is a picture from the trim used on the officer's coats for Our Country's Good, in performance until next Saturday at the Morgan Theatre. It was my task to thread the serger in gold thread and then serge 160 strips for the coats.
I really hated that job. But, I finished it.

Yesterday morning, as I was making breakfast, I noticed that the pepper I had pulled from the fridge made a funny rattling noise. I half expected some scary bug or something to fly out when I cut it open. Not so!It was a baby pepper! Crazy!

I noticed on Thursday that our tailor's ham was looking particularly sad. It had a gash on the back and the plaid side was falling off. I took it upon myself to fix our sad little ham.

I think it is much improved:

What do you think?

Wednesday morning I saw this:
Yep, a horse and buggy. Technically I think it was pulled by shetland ponies but I'm probably wrong.

Last up (I'll bet you're glad) my "completed" set for The Goat or Who is Silvia? which is technically still in the white model format but that is all we had to do for the assignment.
I'm going to remake the window piece (the center piece) because the balsa wood just didn't look as nice in real life.

Next up: The Tragical History of Doctor Faustus in Design Studies and Grey Gardens for Set Design.

Oh! I forgot to mention what I gave James for Valentines: "Manly Mustache Mirror clings," guitar shaped ice cube molds and underthings (technically it's for both of us.)

ACTF!

Warning: there are a ba-jillion pictures in this post. I'll come up with captions so you can follow what happened.

#1 A photo with Avery. I stayed with Hil and Josh on the way down and the way back. Ave and I had a good time!

#2 Caroline couldn't drive with one hand during this stretch of road so Molly fed her cheeseball and crackers.
#3 Caroline's boards. She won the regional prize! Good job Kennedy!
#4 The winning designs, headed to the national competition at the Kennedy Center in DC.
#5 The ceiling of the Los Angeles Theatre Center. It used to be a bank.
#6 Caroline and her boards, the day we presented. She was much relieved.
#7 Me and my boards and book.
#8 Trying to get a jumping picture. We really did jump. Promise.
#9 Molly and Caroline at Babycakes NYC bakery. The banana cupcakes were the best- gluten, sugar, dairy and something else free. I can't remember, there was a big list. I'm glad Molly and I swapped halves of the red velvet cupcake because it tasted weird.
#10 The guest house in West Hollywood, it was built in 1928!
#11 Guest house, kitchen.
#12 Guest house, sun room.
#13 Guest house dining room.
#14 Guest house, view down the stairs.
#15 Bathroom (1 out of 4!)
#16 Annie's room, with really cute windows.
#17 A view from the landing...
#18 the front room.
#19 the entry way.
#20 Hollywood boulevard, Milinda and I went exploring.
#21 The Kodak Center
#22 Disney's El Capitan theatre
#23 A view down the Boulevard
#24 Milinda Weeks and me, at the Kodak Center, thank you camera timer
#25 Milinda and a Chinese statue at the Theatre
#26 Feeling the love at Sephora. Shocking news, I didn't even go in any Sephora store.
#27 Feeling confused at Cary Grant's shoe and hand impressions. We're about the same size.
#28 Bowie!
#29 Molly and Caroline at Max Factor's star, he was a make up pioneer
#30 The Hollywood sign as viewed from the Kodak Center
#31 Guest house, another view of the beautiful sun room
#32 Beautiful GREEN trees!
#33 The ferris wheel at the Santa Monica pier
#34 Annie and Milinda on the ferris wheel
#35 The beach at Santa Monica
#36 Milinda taking pictures...she did that a lot
#37 Caroline basking in the sun with her ukulele
To sum up: Brandee and Molly are going to Nationals in April for Set design and Make up, Milinda, Annie and Caroline won regional prizes in Lights, Set and Costume. Way to do USU proud!

ACTF here I come!

My boards are ready...

My book is together....
And my bag is mostly packed. I'm ready to go! I'm riding with some fellow USU costume designer students. We're stopping in Vegas which means I get to see HILARY!

(And Avery and Josh, of course!)

I'm really excited, this past week was horrendous. I don't think James and I went to sleep before 1 AM at all this week. Sick. Being so busy is really tiring.

Oh well.

ON TO LA!