The Beautiful Blogger Award!

I was nominated for this ages ago by Taran at Tanit-Isis Sews, during the final rush of the wardrobe contest. I've been feeling guilty about never doing the post write up for it ever since. And then Patty at The Snug Bug nominated me for it again this evening, so I guess I'd better get on with it! :D Thank you so much, both of you (and sorry for the long wait, Taran)! It's awfully sweet of you guys to think of me for this!

The rules for this blog award is to write out 10 things you all don't know about me. I find this sort of thing hard to do, but I'll give it a shot!

1. I'm a geologist who is studying aqueous geochemistry. Which I find hilarious because I've barely passed every single chemistry class I've ever taken before starting my Masters. I though I was coming to do a environmental geology degree, and Didn't Ask Questions. And then 4 months into the degree I discovered I'd graduate as a geochemist. Cue panic attack. But I've learned to love it, and frankly, it's just a required hoop to jump through to do the type of work I want to do, which is cleaning up old abandoned mine sites.

2. There's quite a few accomplished sewers in my family. My Mom, while disliking the skill, had been known to sew spectacular Halloween costumes for my brother and I when we were younger (I suspect with some help from my grandmothers). One memorable year I wore this awesome Rainbow Brite costume (complete with a home made wool wig), and my bro wore a strong man costume with lots of bulging muscles, all made on her early 80's Kenmore (yay!). My Grandma on my Dad's side used to sew all of her kids clothing when they were growing up (much to my Aunts horror), and she taught me to sew when I was young. She still has her Mom's Singer treadle, that she learned to sew on. Maybe one of these days I'll ask her if her grandmother was a seamstress too!

3. I've been crafting nearly my entire life, in one form or another. I've dabbled in everything. I've learned to knit, crotchet, paint (various things including canvases, ceramics, wood, paper, walls, anything that holds still long enough), tree-top angels and various Christmas decorations, wood carving, dream catchers, metal working (that didn't last long), gluing things to other things (and general crafting - particularly with kids), candle making, sculpting, origami and probably much more. I usually just get it in my head that I can do something, and then I do it. It's only been in the last year that I've gotten into sewing (beyond learning the basics from my Grandma when I was younger), since last October when I decided that I could sew my Mom a scrabble quilt, and I think I've finally found my niche.

For now, anyways.

4. I used to be a voracious reader. I'd read anything you put into my hands, although I loved SciFi and apocalyptic books the best. I had a long time love affair with the Star Wars book series before they killed off a few characters in the New Jedi Order series. Since starting university, I've lost that appetite for books almost completely, and it's only since I started grad school that I'm reading for pleasure again. I just reread Fahrenheit 451, and was blown away again. Why hello there, love of apocalyptic genre, very glad to see you again after all this time.

5. I hate doing laundry. Seriously, it's the worst household chore in the entire history of household chores. I'd prefer to clean out the containers that's been hiding in the back of my fridge for months than fold and put away the laundry. Because of this, my wardrobe is usually empty, with laundry, both clean and dirty, in semi tidy piles on the floor or in a series of laundry baskets/hung over things/piled on a table in my room. HATE LAUNDRY.

(Cartoon from We Blog Cartoons)

6. I look just like my Mom. Well, mostly. It hit home not long after my 18th birthday though, when we were sifting through a bunch of old photos, and came across a picture of my Mom when she was about 16. In it, she looked exactly like me in a picture taken at my 18th. See for yourself! I swear it's not the same person.


















(My, was I ever tiny back then!)

7. I've always had an active imagination, and spent most of my childhood (and honestly, most down time as an adult) daydreaming. My best friend and I used to run all over the neighbourhood acting out adventures we made up, usually as Robin Hood and Maid Marion. She was the only one I ever shared the stories in my head with. I wish I had the writing skills to put onto page all these stories and ideas!

8. Despite today's world and the Way Of The Future, I'm a total technophobe. I like my computer for playing on the internet, but I hate learning and dealing with any new programs and features that come along with computer and thesis work. I refuse to own a cell phone (although sadly that may have to change once I start working), especially now with all their crazy, so unnecessary features that people can't live without. My home phone, while a cordless, does not have a display to show who's calling, and my answering machine is a separate piece of equipment that has a big flashing red light when I have a message. In a couple years, I'm so going to be that grumpy old man waving my fist at those disrespecting young'uns and their new-fangled electronic thingers.

9. I love coffee. No seriously, I love coffee. I think the bean and I are soul mates. And my local fair trade coffee shop (which is my new thesis-writing office, btw) makes the best and prettiest coffee in southern Ontario.

10. I love to try new things. I once had a prof ask me why I was applying to work with a bunch of kids teaching them about geology, and I told him I thought it'd be interesting, and that's kind of how I live my life. I've worked in an underground gold mine because "I thought it'd be interesting", I took on a MSc project in the Northwest Territories because "I thought it'd be interesting" (and I'd been dying to go up there my entire life), I went back packing around Europe - well, for various reasons, but it was very interesting. I've recently taken up swing dancing, and I'll pretty much try anything that I find - you got it! - interesting!

And now I guess I need to nominate some people for this award, eh? It's getting hard since this award has been around for a while now. I'm sorry if there's some double nominations here (but maybe this'll help encourage others to stop putting it off like I did). So I choose:

• Emma Jane at Snuzal Sews is, I swear, the Queen of Jeans! She has inspired me to tackle a pair myself (once things settle down a bit with the thesis). You should go check out the amazing little back dress she made for a contest on PR.
  
• Quietandsmall over at quiet and small adventures in ph.d-land. She is a woman after my own heart, with her sassy creations and thrifty finds, and fellow sufferer working on a graduate degree in science (but of course we secretly love it).
  
• Schey at Scheryka Sews 41. She creates such stylish and flattering pieces for herself and adorable clothes for her kids, and I just think she's lovely overall.
• Jenna at Seamstress In Training is just starting up her sewing blog within the last month, but is jumping right in and has posted some lovely garments that she'd made for her "living doll" and an apron for herself. She's hoping to get into garment making for herself soon, too. I'd love to learn more about you, Jenna!

ETA: I wrote this up incredibly late last night or incredibly early this morning, and I forgot to nominate someone that I've been planning to nominate since I got the award myself. So edited to add:

• Liz at Lizards Little Luxuries! I'm actually jealous of her because she had success at making her first pair of fitted pants this past summer. *fistshake* As I'm sure you've noticed by now from my whining, my first pair of pants were awful. She also makes cute and unique things for her kids, and great casual garments for herself. TAG LIZ, YOU'RE IT!
  

Thanks again, Taran and Patty!