Riot and Frolic

a mostly ballroom dance, but also a bunch of other stuff, blog

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about

I own and rock people’s faces off teaching ballroom dancing at Dancers Studio in St. Paul, MN. My husband and I compete professionally in American style and wrangle eight children in our spare time. I’ve been teaching and competing in ballroom dancing for over 25 years and have lots of opinions on it. I am an expert by any means, but there are quite a few dancers who are better than me and I have a solid knowledge of basic technique, so suck it.

Category: Craftacular

  • I’m So Proud of Myself

    I followed a pattern.   Well, 90% of the pattern. And it turned out so well that I'm going to do the pattern AGAIN.  And again and again and again. Dana, over at Made, has a GREAT tutorial on how to make a girl's dress out of a man's shirt.  And while going through our…

  • Unpaid Programming – Shutterfly

    HOW MUCH DO I LOVE SHUTTERFLY? A LOT! My grams got Zoo a Cabbage Patch Kid doll for Christmas this year and it came with a coupon for a  free 8×8" Shutterfly book.  (Shutterfly makes custom photo albums, prints, stationary, and the like.) After hemming and hawing whether I had the time/energy to find enough…

  • Getting High Pays Off

    Last week, I spent my late nights getting high. On glue. Accidentally. I NEEDED to make a statement necklace since I WANTED something to dress up my daily tee shirt and jeans routine.  I'm trying to look like an adult these days and in my mind, grown-ups wear jewelry.   I had stalked a couple premade ones…

  • Big, Fluffy Skirts

    Dude, I made something AGAIN! I feel like I've been slacking on the craftacular front, but whoa, Nelly.  Circle your wagons, 'cause I got some projects to show you. Long time followers might remember these crazy cats from last year's Easter festivities: Since these damn children keep growing, the adorable Easter dresses (with the kick…

  • Trying To Look Cool While Not Getting Hit In The Face

    I was recently lamenting my lack of accessories.   False. I was recently lamenting my lack of accessories I like. And am allowed to wear. You see, I banned myself from wearing bracelets because I am obnoxious when I wear them.  Similarily to when I have fake nails on, I use my hands to talk…

  • DPN, WTF

    Okay, so I knit that thing.  And then I thought I could knit all the things.   Because if I can go in a straight line and in a circle, I can just go right ahead and make a knit catsuit, right? No.   In fact, trying out DPNs (Double Pointed Needles, or The Devil,…

  • The Finisher – Craftastic Edition

    I finished something.  Which, on one hand, is not surprising.  But, on the other hand, it is very surprising. Like several talented people I know, I start a hobby and then Ooooh, what's that shiny thing over there… Right.   Remember when I was all high on Vitamin B and caffeine early this week?  Well,…

  • The Get Smart Book Club – Anna Karenina

    Besides the obvious anxiety I have over reading books translated from their original language, I'm quite excited to read Anna Karenina by Leo Tolstoy.     so many translations, so few nuances   I sincerely chose this book before I even knew of a newly released movie.   In my first draft of 91 Books…

  • The Get Smart Book Club Does The Princess Bride

    On November 1, I threw out a book club idea suitable for lazy people, persons under house arrest, and anti-socialites based on my list of 91 books to make me smarter.   Because there's no actual book club meetings, you can read at your leisure, not go outside, or actually discuss anything.   That's right.  It's…

  • Smooky 2

    Halloween was like any other holiday around our house: I had too much makeup on, The G was wearing my clothes, and 2 out of 3 little ladies were crying. the sleeping beauty cast I kid.  Sort of. Back story: Sleeping Beauty, of the Disney variety, is obviously the best princess movie.  The music is…