This school year I have been working part time at an awesome fabric shop in Lawrence called Sarah's Fabrics.  I love working there because not only are my coworkers and our clients wonderful and friendly; I also get to cut and organize a huge array of lovely fabrics.  I always get excited when a favorite designer comes out with a new collection, and being around so many pretty pieces always makes me want to do some sewing. So, I've decided to share with you some of my recent sewing projects!

First, I made these cute little rice and lavender hand warmers with a piece from Kaffe Fassett's stripe collection. They're great for the 10 degree days we've been having here in Kansas.  All you have to do is pop them in the microwave for a few seconds :)

My latest project is to design a jewelry collection fabricated with the lost wax casting technique.  My partner and I decided that we wanted to design a unisex collection influenced by the minimalist movement for young people like ourselves. 

Our concept involves two parts: 
1. The arrow, which symbolizes the one-way direction and constant forward flow of life and time. 
2. Yin and yang, which will be embodied in our final collection because all of the pieces come in pairs (one silver and one black) that are stackable.  The silver pieces are yang - energetic and vibrant because of their polished silver finish.  The black pieces are yin - more subtle and withdrawn with a satin finish. 

Above, the rings from my partner's and my Doble V (Double V) jewelry collection are shown directly after casting in silver and brass, along with the original copper rings that we sculpted by hand and used to make the mold for the others.  All of the pieces will be polished and the brass ones given a black patina. 

This past semester I took my second design drawing class.  Here are the highlights of my work from the semester.
All drawings I did in this class were completely freehand (no ruler or tracing, except for logos). 

A few months ago I decided to try my hand at bookbinding!  I made two journals, one for each of my travels abroad this year.  The first one was for my summer in Kyoto, Japan.  I was extremely lucky to get the chance to continue my study of Japanese language in the U.S. Department of State's Critical Language Program.  Not only did I have an amazing opportunity to substantially improve my proficiency in Japanese, I also got to experience an unforgettable summer in Japan, which I recorded in my special sketchbook.  If you'd like to take a look inside the sketchbook, you can do so here.