look, posting photos before someone had time to ask for some
Not surprisingly, this week has been quiet at work as more and more people leave early for their winter holidays. Since lord_kjar had to work all week, including today, my plan was to spend the week working myself (though today is only meant to be a half day for uni employees, which is why so many just take the day off--they need only take off a half day to get a longer holiday weekend).
Monday-Thursday the plan went very well, and I managed to accomplish some things, despite getting my new work phone (a Sony Ericsson Xperia and losing many hours playing with it learning to use it. I even managed to finish re-doing calculations in Perplex for one of the Tassie samples (this involved having to figure out what thermodynamic model I should use for one of the phases in the calculations now that the one I used back in 2008 isn't in the solution set anymore--a several day process which sparked some interesting conversations on an email list when I asked for the opinions of others). I finally finished that around 15:00 on Thursday, so I sent it to my erstwhile adviser in Tassie and went home early to bake pizza from the left over bread dough in the fridge before sitting down to make a paper pattern for a case for the new phone.
Backing up a bit--it has been a week of late nights--we were up late Monday for no reason in particular. I was up too late Tuesday playing with the new phone (which I got that morning), Wednesday we went to the local SCA potluck holiday celebration (which started early enough that I actually got to eat some food!), and Thursday I was working on that pattern (all of the evenings we were home lord_kjar happily worked on a programming project of his while I did my tasks).
I was pleased with the timing on Wednesday. Before I went to work I mixed up a bread sponge. Then I came home (10 min walk) for lunch just long enough to mix up and knead a bread dough and set it rising. I left work around 16:45, which gave me just long enough to roll out the dough, fill it with a mix of frozen blueberries and raspberry jam, put it in the oven, and get changed for the event and gather feast gear while it baked. We took the bread out of the oven, wrapped it in aluminum foil and a towel, and left for the feast--arriving just as people were ready to eat.
Thursday evening I did the paper pattern, which took ages because often the little holes I cut to get to a button, or let the camera see, were just slightly offset from where they should be, so I filled it with paper and tape and then cut a new hole in the correct place. Once I was happy with the pattern I then cut it out of leather and stitched it together. Sadly, the leather stretched way more than I had thought it would, so I wound up having to really shorten the parts that go across the front of the phone to hold things on. I also didn't much like the way it gaped at the sides (a certain amount of gap is inevitable when doing a case for a phone that is open to show the screen). But at least I had a nice texture case that I could trust to stay in a pocket, rather than easily sliding out as a plastic phone would. I wanted some sort of leash, but hadn't decided how to attach it, since there are buttons on the side of the phone that probably shouldn't be covered.
So I decided to just go to bed (it was 01:30) and worry about perfecting the case later. I fully expected to go to work this morning, but when I woke up I did so with an inspiration as to how to do the leash--fingerloop braid attached as reinforcement along the opening in the front, and wrapping around to the back edge too. I also realized that the orientation I did yesterday was wrong--the end of the phone case which should be sewn shut ought to be the top of the phone, and the end that opens should be the bottom. Why? Because it it is hanging from a leash around my neck it will be far more convenient to pick it up, leaving the ends of the leash hanging down, rather than twisting it around to see/use it. (That wasn't very clear--I will try again. When hanging from the leash like a necklace the bottom of the phone is up, but when I grab it and lift it to look it crosses through horizontal and rotates until the bottom of the phone moves to down with respect to the world.)
Since I had the option to take the day off, and the day was only meant to be a half day of work if I didn't, I decided to start my morning changing the pattern to make it work with the new design, thinking I would do phone case in the morning, and perhaps I could go in to work later in the day. Had--why do I always thus underestimate how long a project will take?
I did stop for food a couple of times, but even so I was not done with the project till 16:00! (16:30 if you think that "done" includes cleaning up the mess made during the project). So much for work. But I think the case will work fairly well.
Here is the pattern, in case anyone wants to make one for their phone:
The finished case:
Now that I have the case I am less worried about damaging or losing the phone--the wool is thick enough to protect it, there is a pocket on the back side to hold my work id card (which opens some of the doors at uni), my library card, and my uni gym card (why do I need three different cards for these things--shouldn't just the uni id card be enough?), and the leash means that when I finish a call I can simply let go and let it hang from my neck again. The little metal hook means that if it is not convenient to hang it from my neck I can put it into my pocket and hook the loop onto a belt loop, so if it falls out it won't get very far.
Later this evening, or tomorrow morning, depending on when we finish up today's projects, we will head down to his parent's house for the weekend. It will be just he and I and his folks on Saturday and Sunday, but on Monday one of his brothers that brother's wife will join us (they go to her family for Christmas this year, as do his other siblings--last year they all gathered at their parents house, this year they all head to the other families, save for lord_kjar and I--we couldn't afford a trip to the US this winter--too soon after my job starting, and we would like to build up a savings account so that we can buy a house).
Monday-Thursday the plan went very well, and I managed to accomplish some things, despite getting my new work phone (a Sony Ericsson Xperia and losing many hours playing with it learning to use it. I even managed to finish re-doing calculations in Perplex for one of the Tassie samples (this involved having to figure out what thermodynamic model I should use for one of the phases in the calculations now that the one I used back in 2008 isn't in the solution set anymore--a several day process which sparked some interesting conversations on an email list when I asked for the opinions of others). I finally finished that around 15:00 on Thursday, so I sent it to my erstwhile adviser in Tassie and went home early to bake pizza from the left over bread dough in the fridge before sitting down to make a paper pattern for a case for the new phone.
Backing up a bit--it has been a week of late nights--we were up late Monday for no reason in particular. I was up too late Tuesday playing with the new phone (which I got that morning), Wednesday we went to the local SCA potluck holiday celebration (which started early enough that I actually got to eat some food!), and Thursday I was working on that pattern (all of the evenings we were home lord_kjar happily worked on a programming project of his while I did my tasks).
I was pleased with the timing on Wednesday. Before I went to work I mixed up a bread sponge. Then I came home (10 min walk) for lunch just long enough to mix up and knead a bread dough and set it rising. I left work around 16:45, which gave me just long enough to roll out the dough, fill it with a mix of frozen blueberries and raspberry jam, put it in the oven, and get changed for the event and gather feast gear while it baked. We took the bread out of the oven, wrapped it in aluminum foil and a towel, and left for the feast--arriving just as people were ready to eat.
Thursday evening I did the paper pattern, which took ages because often the little holes I cut to get to a button, or let the camera see, were just slightly offset from where they should be, so I filled it with paper and tape and then cut a new hole in the correct place. Once I was happy with the pattern I then cut it out of leather and stitched it together. Sadly, the leather stretched way more than I had thought it would, so I wound up having to really shorten the parts that go across the front of the phone to hold things on. I also didn't much like the way it gaped at the sides (a certain amount of gap is inevitable when doing a case for a phone that is open to show the screen). But at least I had a nice texture case that I could trust to stay in a pocket, rather than easily sliding out as a plastic phone would. I wanted some sort of leash, but hadn't decided how to attach it, since there are buttons on the side of the phone that probably shouldn't be covered.
So I decided to just go to bed (it was 01:30) and worry about perfecting the case later. I fully expected to go to work this morning, but when I woke up I did so with an inspiration as to how to do the leash--fingerloop braid attached as reinforcement along the opening in the front, and wrapping around to the back edge too. I also realized that the orientation I did yesterday was wrong--the end of the phone case which should be sewn shut ought to be the top of the phone, and the end that opens should be the bottom. Why? Because it it is hanging from a leash around my neck it will be far more convenient to pick it up, leaving the ends of the leash hanging down, rather than twisting it around to see/use it. (That wasn't very clear--I will try again. When hanging from the leash like a necklace the bottom of the phone is up, but when I grab it and lift it to look it crosses through horizontal and rotates until the bottom of the phone moves to down with respect to the world.)
Since I had the option to take the day off, and the day was only meant to be a half day of work if I didn't, I decided to start my morning changing the pattern to make it work with the new design, thinking I would do phone case in the morning, and perhaps I could go in to work later in the day. Had--why do I always thus underestimate how long a project will take?
I did stop for food a couple of times, but even so I was not done with the project till 16:00! (16:30 if you think that "done" includes cleaning up the mess made during the project). So much for work. But I think the case will work fairly well.
Here is the pattern, in case anyone wants to make one for their phone:
The finished case:
Now that I have the case I am less worried about damaging or losing the phone--the wool is thick enough to protect it, there is a pocket on the back side to hold my work id card (which opens some of the doors at uni), my library card, and my uni gym card (why do I need three different cards for these things--shouldn't just the uni id card be enough?), and the leash means that when I finish a call I can simply let go and let it hang from my neck again. The little metal hook means that if it is not convenient to hang it from my neck I can put it into my pocket and hook the loop onto a belt loop, so if it falls out it won't get very far.
Later this evening, or tomorrow morning, depending on when we finish up today's projects, we will head down to his parent's house for the weekend. It will be just he and I and his folks on Saturday and Sunday, but on Monday one of his brothers that brother's wife will join us (they go to her family for Christmas this year, as do his other siblings--last year they all gathered at their parents house, this year they all head to the other families, save for lord_kjar and I--we couldn't afford a trip to the US this winter--too soon after my job starting, and we would like to build up a savings account so that we can buy a house).