fidzu : Crafts

I have a big crush on these pre-punched Sew-in-Love Notecards from Bird and Banner, which come with embroidery floss and an upholstery needle for your DIY stitching pleasure. Who wouldn't enjoy opening their mailbox to find one of these?

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24 Jul 2008 1:00am GMT

These would be easy to recreate or customize, of course, but I'm totally digging these crafty storage containers currently on clearance at West Elm. They're made from cotton canvas, with acid-free interiors to protect your supplies.

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24 Jul 2008 12:00am GMT

Spotted in the CRAFT Flickr pool: Hine wows us again with this simple but extremely effective embroidery hoop turned sculpture, featuring a needle-felted kitty hungering after a friendly fish. (Or possibly asking the fish to dance--your call.)

Related:
• Camera-Shaped Camera Case
• Stop-Motion TMBG Video

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23 Jul 2008 11:00pm GMT

Simone from Crafty Daisies tips us off to this great guest entry by Bree of Hot Tea Apparel, who shows us how to build a floor loom for weaving. I love the idea of using this to make rugs from recycled, cut-up fabrics, t-shirts, plastic bags, and more.

Related:
• HOW TO - Make a PVC Pipe Loom
• DIY Weaving Loom
• DIY Knitting Loom

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23 Jul 2008 10:00pm GMT

Fabric designer extraordinaire Heather Bailey has a spanking-new retail website, where you can purchase fabric, sewing patterns, and more. The site's official "Grand Opening" happens August 12, but "Early Bird" site visitors will receive 10% off their orders when using coupon code AQV14760.

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23 Jul 2008 9:00pm GMT

Autum at Sew, Mama, Sew! shows us how to make these handy-dandy portable cushions, perfect for scattering on a patio or bringing to your next picnic.

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23 Jul 2008 8:00pm GMT

Evil Mad Scientists on sci-fi fruit modding:

One cantaloupe, a knife, and five minutes. Your very own (and very tasty) planet-killing superweapon.

"That's no melon!"

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23 Jul 2008 8:00pm GMT

Jenn at Indie Fixx kicks starts her new column "What's so Indie About Food?" with this delicious looking recipe for Downside-Up Spiced Peach Pots by her friend Laura Cochran.

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23 Jul 2008 7:00pm GMT

The gals of Pimp Stitch now have Pimp Stitch Embroidery Kits ($10) in their Etsy shop. Each kit includes: one fat quarter of Osnaburg (linen-like) fabric, four colors of embroidery floss (colors may vary), needle, and pattern sheet featuring designs from all 4 designers.

Also if you love their free patterns, just note that they will be expiring on July 29th. You can find the free embroidery patterns from the left side bar of the Pimp Stitch Blog, where you can find out more news on their upcoming projects.

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23 Jul 2008 6:00pm GMT

Check out these clever bracelets and earrings made from stranded steel cables, usually used for hanging things. I became familiar with it through a computer lab tech job in college, where we used it to lock down computers and monitors. I never thought to make cute bangles with it! I like the little crimpers as accents. Via Cool Hunting and Core77.

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23 Jul 2008 5:00pm GMT

These stuffed animal headphones by instructables user WurlitzerGirl have Japanese schoolgirl chic, for sure. She made a neat how-to for making your own. This could be the perfect use for those old beanie babies.

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23 Jul 2008 4:00pm GMT

Mithi, a cancer researcher turned illustrator, created hand-sewn illustrations of hand sewing in embroidery hoops. via Whipup.

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23 Jul 2008 3:00pm GMT

Craftster crazydavises made these Cookie Monster baby booties from a thrifted sweater, thrifted socks and quilting cotton for a Craftster challenge. I am not sure they look quite like Cookie Monster, but I love them anyway.

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23 Jul 2008 2:00pm GMT

Today the CRAFT Flickr pool reached over 80,000 images. High fives, everybody! Not familiar with the group? Add photos (and short videos) of your projects and other crafty things to share them with the CRAFT community! It's free and fun. If you're already an active member, thank you! We've also made some updates to the group rules.

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23 Jul 2008 10:00am GMT

This cute little ninja was made from a pattern in Creepy Cute Crochet, just like the monkey in a fez. I made it for another a co-worker's birthday. Instead of making a card* for the ninja, I had everyone write their birthday message on a 2"x3" piece of card stock. Then I taped each one on a pin (the ones with the flat flower heads on them) and stuck the pin in the ninja.

He looked super hilarious with about 12 messages sticking out of him. Look at this macro shot! I love seeing all the details that I can't see with my own eyes. That felt is so cool looking. The shiny, deadly shuriken is a large silver sequin I cut with my cuticle scissors. The tie on his head is crocheted in the pattern, but I could not, for the life of me, figure out what the pattern said. Mine came out looking like a big knot of black yarn. The felt was much, much easier.

* I considered finding a photo of a dojo to print on card stock and use as a backdrop/card for the ninja ... but I ended up liking the pincushion idea better.

23 Jul 2008 4:06am GMT

The Long Thread shows you how to make these stylish and useful pinwheel coasters.

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23 Jul 2008 1:00am GMT

Over at instructables, user cokecola has an interesting technique for slicing up a watermelon which results in easy seed removal. Warning: you may come away from the site with melon on the mind.

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23 Jul 2008 12:00am GMT

I've been excited about the forthcoming 1000 Journals documentary. In case you don't know about the 1000 Journals project and documentary, here's a synopsis:

1000 Journals is a film about people whose lives are touched by 1000 traveling journals. These blank journals were released into the world in the summer of 2000, by Someguy, a San Francisco based artist. Some people found a journal, or got it from a friend or stranger. Some signed up on the web and received it in the mail. Some wrote in them, others doodled, pasted in photographs, or added artworks. Some kept them. Some passed them on. There are no rules, and no one really monitors these journals and their movements. And yet, they are connecting tens of thousands of people worldwide, provoking and inspiring them.

In September 2003, one of the 1000, number 526, returned to Someguy, filled. What happened to the other 999? This film tells their stories. 1000 Journals shares the experience of their worldwide journeys, and chronicles the self-governed collaboration of thousands of random people who have added to this global "message in a bottle." Directed by Andrea Kreuzhage. USA. Running time: 88 mins.

"Someguy" was at the Bay Area Maker Faire. I never saw him, but I came back to the Maker's Notebook Modding Station in the Maker Shed after a break, opened up a notebook on the table, and like a visit from the Tooth Fairy or Santa Claus, a bunch of pages had been magically altered in my absence. Here are a few:

The 1000 Journals documentary will be running at the Roxie Theater in San Francisco from Aug. 1 - 7. Check the film's website for more upcoming screenings.

The 1000 Journals Project

More:

• Maker's Notebook Home Page

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22 Jul 2008 11:10pm GMT

I'm always amazed with how needlefelted creatures come to life. Here's a great step-by-step tutorial for making a sheep pincushion. (Thanks, Patti!)

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22 Jul 2008 10:00pm GMT

Lovely Delft ceramic style cross-stitch mantle clock. Bohus writes -

I've never been into ornate and elaborate clocks - and that's not just because I'm always late. Even though I'm clearly fond of crazy mechanical stuff, I've never really been a fan of Grandfather clocks for example. I've seen them most when awarded to alarmed frat boys on The Price Is Right, but even in person they just strike me as a just little too much.

Delftclock There's an unusual brand of white Delft porcelain clock that some folks have on their mantles. Delft porcelain is a Dutch specialty - blazing white porcelain with art brushed on in a deep blue. Clearly this is what the above craft project is meant to evoke... but in cross-stitch! This is such a weird collision of ideas that I just don't know how to feel.

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22 Jul 2008 4:00pm GMT

Mister Jalopy of Dinosaurs and Robots points us to the amazing automata and kinetic sculptures of Tom Haney (Atlanta, GA).

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21 Jul 2008 11:32pm GMT

This is a birthday card I made for a coworker. She's into squirrels, and this stuffie pattern turned out awesome before, so I used it again.

The tree is a photo Andrew took that I Photoshopped. Everyone signed the card under the tree.

It all came out even better than I had hoped. I just adore that tree branch font! And this time I gave the squirrel a little shock of hair. Is it wrong to love cute this much?!

21 Jul 2008 1:32pm GMT

Here are some of my favorite posts from the CRAFT blog this week:

• Heath Ceramics Factory Tour
• Bicycle Wheel Pot Rack
• HOW TO - Make a Wood Clock
• Knitted Resistor
• Creativity 350 Contest - Entries Now Open!

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20 Jul 2008 9:00pm GMT

Download the MP4 Video or HD Version | Subscribe to CRAFT in iTunes

While at Maker Faire in May, I got a chance to get a terrific demo from Vivian Lavinskas of Singer Sewing Company on their Singer Futura line of computerized embroidery machines. Having one myself and being a techie, I can vouch for how amazingly cool these machines are. They connect easily to a PC and allow you to embroider from pre-set designs or in the CE-250 and CE-350 models, you can also use your own images for embroidery!

As mentioned in the podcast, each month a new embroidery motif is available for free download from the projects section of the Singer web site. You can also check out the many great sewing and embroidery projects as well.

My first project with the Singer Futura CE-250 embroidery machine was to test out the CRAFT logo above. The software was really simple to use and imports lots of file formats, then coverts it over to embroidery stitches that the sewing machine reads. Then I used that design template to embroider the logo onto vintage tablecloths which were used at our booth at the recent ICE Atlanta craft fair.

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19 Jul 2008 9:00am GMT

Oh, look at how big number 34 is getting! Some differences are starting to show up in the spikes of the cacti. This one's spikes are all white. Some have dark spikes along with the white.

And number 45 has *red* spikes. Right now they are all still basically all the same shape, but if the spikes are any indication, it seems as though we have a nice mix of cactus types.

The little puff of spikes in the dirt is number 3. He and number 85 died since last month. They just shriveled up one day. I suspect I was over watering, so I've cut back. To see a whole family photo with numbered notes, check out my Flickr.

The City Folk Go Carless

We've been talking about getting rid of our car for a while. You know, to simplify. Apparently, we weren't moving fast enough for the car, so it decided to take matters into it's own hands. I'll spare you the gory details, but most of last weekend and a huge portion of this week was spent dealing with the car and the aftermath of the car. Excluding the gory details and the ass-kicking week that left me no time to craft-blog, we're happily carless now! Yay!

19 Jul 2008 2:23am GMT

Dale Dougherty and Sherry Huss of MAKE/CRAFT and Maker Faire will be in Chicago this week. If you're a Chicago-area maker, drop by Flapjaws Cafe on Thursday, July 17 at 7pm or so. Thanks to Brian Fitzpatrick of Google in Chicago who helped us organize this meeting.

Come by and join us for a beer. We'd love to meet you and learn more about the things you make and craft.

Flapjaws Cafe, 840 N Wabash Ave., Chicago, IL (312) 255-1122. If you have any questions, email Dale at dale@oreilly.com.

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16 Jul 2008 1:00am GMT

Syuzi Pakhchyan, the author of our first Craft: Projects title, Fashioning Technology, has created a nice site for the book with a community discussion area. If you're interested in the book and the types of projects it covers, please register in the forums and share your experiences building the projects.

Fashioning Technology

Buy Fashioning Technology by Syuzi Pakhchyan in the Maker Shed today!
This book demonstrates how to blend sewing and assembly techniques with traditional electronics to assemble simple circuits using conductive thread, solder joints for snaps, and switches for buttons. With the sewing machine as a viable substitute for the soldering iron, you can craft a new generation of objects that are interactive, quirky, and fashion-conscious.

Look for Fashioning Technology Kits soon this Summer in the Maker Shed! For now, check out the rest of our CRAFT Kits.

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15 Jul 2008 12:00am GMT

Here are some of my favorite posts from the CRAFT blog this week:

• HOW TO - Attract Bees to Your Garden
• Inlaid Wood Paintings by Alison Elizabeth Taylor
• HOW TO - Pan d'Epi (Wheatstalk Bread)
• Hoodie Laptop Sleeve
• Mosaic Bicycle

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13 Jul 2008 9:00pm GMT

And now for the reason I was thinking about the tape on the presser foot trick ...

I've been carrying this small notebook in my purse with my to do list written in it. For important, persistent information I was using post-it notes on the inside cover. But with rough daily use in my over-stuffed bag, the post-its were getting all mangled. I was afraid I was going to end up losing them.

While I was trying to come up with a solution, I noticed that the front cover was just larger than a 3" x 5" card (my favorite!) and I decided to add a see-through pocket. I have a bunch of clear vinyl I bought years ago that I've always wanted to use. I cut a piece the size of the notebook cover, taped it to the notebook, put the whole thing in the sewing machine, and then IT WOULDN'T MOVE.

Hey, look! I found the macro mode on Andrew's little camera! This is the mangled mess of threads that happens when you try to sew something that doesn't glide under your presser foot.

That's when I remembered the tape trick. Disaster averted! Plus, now I can carry around several 3" x 5" cards with important info on them to keep them separate from my ever-changing, often completed, and occasionally ripped out pages of to do items.

I'm on a super-simplify kick recently (always?). I've tossed the big, fancy to do list templates, although I've kept the web application where I'm keeping all the lists of things to do ... someday. :) My little notebook is strictly for things that absolutely must get done. If something is still on the list when I get to the bottom of the page, I usually don't carry it over - it gets put on a 'someday' list.

"Lean and mean," that's my new motto. OK, maybe not so much the "mean" part, but "lean and kinda nice" doesn't rhyme.

(I left for a moment to consult a rhyming dictionary ...)

OK! How about "lean and routine"?! I think that works. Some people hate routines and find them stifling. I love them. If I don't have to think about all the mundane crap, then I have more brain power for the things that really interest me. Bring on the monotony!

12 Jul 2008 7:11pm GMT

So, how *did* I come up with the tape over the presser foot trick for sewing vinyl? Well, here's the story:

In the 90's, the goth/industrial dance club I frequented started hosting a fetish night once a month on the Saturday closest to the full moon. To encourage fetishiness, they offered a hugely discounted cover charge if you came in "fetish" attire, which included vinyl clothes.

Being the thrifty soul I am, I became determined to get myself a fetish outfit. I found a kick-ass, hand made vinyl dress in a shop on upper Haight. I almost swallowed my tongue when I saw the price tag -- $110! It sort of negates the whole cover charge savings to buy a super expensive dress to wear once a month ... plus, did I mention I was thrifty?

So, as I always do, I thought, "Hey, I can make one myself!" I went to my favorite fabric store in a basement on Mission Street and bought a simple sundress pattern, a zipper, and some black vinyl. I bet I didn't spend more than $8.

Once I got home, I learned that you can't pin vinyl because pins leave permanent puncture marks. Either I taped the pattern pieces to the vinyl or I traced them on the fabric-y inside of the vinyl to cut them out ... I can't remember which. Problem Number Two was that I was very intimidated by the zipper. And, knowing what I know now, I think I would have totally bungled it with all those bulky layers of vinyl. I probably wouldn't have thought to just leave all the edges raw and unfolded ... which would have worked great. Luckily the vinyl I bought was very stretchy, so I decided to skip the zipper. I was able to slink it on and still have it be tight where it was supposed to be tight. Problem Number Three was that when I put the vinyl in the sewing machine IT WOULD NOT MOVE.

By this time, I'd spent hours on this project and I was a little panicked. I don't remember exactly how I came upon the tape solution, but I probably started rubbing everything in the apartment on the vinyl to see if it stuck or not. How wonderful that the one thing that doesn't stick to vinyl is also sticky on the other side so it'll stay on the presser foot?!

I apologize for the headless photo. I wanted to show you the dress, but OMG the only photos I have of it suck so bad. The white haze on the right is the camera strap for crying out loud. This one at least shows some of the details of the dress. And ... isn't that pose embarrassing enough? Do I have to show you my terrible looking head? Well? That's what I thought. Thank you for understanding.

10 Jul 2008 10:55pm GMT

Here's a wallet/cover Richard Bryan made for his Moleskine sketchbook. It's made out of duck cloth and elastic banding material bought at a fabric store. There are two pockets on the front, one for cash, one for credit cards. The material is taut enough to hold everything securely in place. The second picture shows how the inside front cover is sewn. The back cover has a single strip of elastic banding and is used to hold Moo Cards. The fourth image shows how the inside back cover is constructed. You could easily modify this design for use on a Maker's Notebook.

Moleskine Wallet Hack

More:

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10 Jul 2008 10:00pm GMT

A link to this was posted in the comments to yesterday's cigar box guitar post, but I thought it was cool enough to get its own item. Be sure to check out the builder's Flickr sets for his cookie tin banjo and his cigar box guitar.

Lunch Box Guitar

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10 Jul 2008 8:00pm GMT

Here's one you don't see everyday - instructions for making your own giant-sized polygonally modelled Mahatma Gandhi -

After walking with Gandhi in Second Life for 240 miles I decided it would be interesting to extract my avatar from this online world and recreate him in monumental scale. This instructable takes you through the process of creating the 17' tall cardboard Gandhi using a variety of readily accessible (mostly free!) software tools, cardboard and a hot glue gun. The production of this sculpture took a total of 4 weeks, 6 days a week, 9-11 hour days with the assistance of an intern for two-three days of each week.

I created all the Gandhi work as part of my residency at Eyebeam Art and Technology in New York City in the spring of 2008.

Even if your planned subject matter differs, the instructable is still a great starting point - Gandhi: 17' Tall Cardboard Avatar (Thanks, Randy!)

(Oddly enough I produced a 6-foot cardboard chair back in my college sculpture course - probably would have been a nice seat for the above mega-Gadhi)

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10 Jul 2008 2:00pm GMT

If you've ever tried to sew vinyl or plastic, you've discovered that the metal presser foot on your sewing machine STICKS to it like nobody's business.

What can you do? The solution is simple: just put a piece of tape over the bottom of the presser foot. Really, that's it. I used an xacto knife to cut out the bit where the needle and thread go through. When you're done sewing the vinyl, just peel off the tape. Ta da!

I used this technique to sew a vinyl dress and to add a pocket to the inside cover of a small notebook.

10 Jul 2008 2:50am GMT

Matrixsynth posted this printable/foldable pattern for a papercraft KORG MS20 synthesizer for imaginary sonic enjoyment - KORG MS20 and MMV papercraft

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08 Jul 2008 10:00pm GMT

Michelle @ CRAFT writes:

Custom cake master, Beth from Cloth and Fodder, created a wasp cake for a friend. She used lemon loaf cake and made toffee wings.

This grosses me out almost as much as the thorax cake I saw on BoingBoing the other day. I think I just thew up in my mouth a little.

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05 Jul 2008 8:00pm GMT

Here is the progress on the purple peacock cardigan. OK, so I thought I could make a rectangle and put a button (or something) where my hand is and have the front just sort of hang open, but that totally won't work and these pictures show you why. In the side view, you can see that the front points of the rectangle point down and look stretched out . The vertical lines of the pattern bend around from the back in an unflattering way: along my back, they curve from top to bottom (looks good), but in the front they point down and back as if being wrapped around a bulging barrel (not so good).

In the front view, you can see that the vertical lines of the pattern are pointing out in an upside down V from my hands, which gives the illusion that my gut is bursting forth and rending the the sweater in two.

The back view of the sweater looks pretty good. Here you can see how the pattern should flare a little at the bottom edge. There should be about two extra lines of motifs on both sides. The flare should be mirrored in the front so the garment would hang correctly.

I knew before I made the rectangle that if I wanted it to look fitted I needed to make it hourglass-shaped, but a combination of (a) laziness and (b) hope that the pattern stitch would be super stretchy let me take the easy way. Isn't it funny how taking the "easy way" usually ends up as more work in the long run.

This time, though, I'm sort of saved from the extra work because I realized after making this rectangle that I don't have nearly enough of the purple yarn to make the cardigan I want to make ... unless I change it to a spaghetti strap cardigan.

This won't be the end of the peacock cardigan ... or the purple yarn. I posted the pictures to my Flickr account so I could make notes about the things I'm pointing out in this post.

05 Jul 2008 6:01pm GMT

As long as you're still hanging around outside, esprit cabane has an easy tutorial for skeletonizing leaves. (I'd skip the bleach step.)

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05 Jul 2008 3:00pm GMT

Patrick Wilson made a template from his father's WWI aviation goggles and made from it generated his own pair. He shares the template and plans below.

Scale drawings of my father's aviation goggles (WW1)

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05 Jul 2008 12:00am GMT

Yesterday's post got me thinking. I'm not sure why I've always been a little snobby about doilies. Maybe it's the name, maybe it's the proper sitting-room vibe, maybe I'm just a snob. But lately I've been seeing some awesome doily action around the web, and I'm starting to reconsider my position on doilies:

beautiful necklaces

lace and doily lampshade

cute doily earrings

a covered tree

doily dolly hair

rock babies

crochet dog and chair and other stuff

everything at the Starch It Flickr Group

cow heads

and, of course the skull-a-day doily skull aka "skoily"

02 Jul 2008 1:25pm GMT

A while back I posted about starting a flower-themed granny square blanket ... and how I'd given up because there were too many ends to weave in ... and I was almost unanimously implored to keep going and just cover the ends as I changed colors.

Well, I didn't give the whole story in that post, so let's start at the beginning ...

A while back I ran across this article on decor8 about the Philadelphia Headquarters for Urban Outfitters. If you click through, that first photo made my heart start racing! Look at that HUGE crochet wall art! Look at those monter-big balls of yarn! Too cool.

Well, that image has never left my head. I want big crochet on the wall. YES I DO. Eventually I took my second-to-largest hook (it's labeled "N") and made this:

Big and floppy and disappointing. It was a round, granny square pattern from one of my books. It just didn't work big and it really wasn't *big* enough.

My next idea was to do granny squares with flower shapes in the middle that way I could just hang the mini-blanket on the wall from a dowel. That's when I made the square in the original post. And, as you know, I complained about all the ends to weave in.

So, at everyone's urging, I tried again and covered my ends as I went ...

But I didn't remember what hook I used for the first one and this one came out much smaller ... plus I stared with 11 petals instead of 12 (I swear I can count, really) ... so the whole thing was a bust ... EXCEPT that covering your ends as you go *totally* works. Too cool. Although it doesn't work so well when you have a row like the outside green row which doesn't have a lot of stitches where your ends are.

So then I went on a hunt to find a flowery pattern that would let me easily cover my ends as I go. This Irish crochet flower was just the thing...

The green bits on the outer row are yarn threaded through the picots where you'd join them to other flowers. The petals are very 3-D and really look nice. There's also a detailed article on different kinds of joining techniques in the Summer 2008 Interweave Crochet that shows how to join motifs like this.

BUT, because the petals are only attached at the base, if I hung this up on the wall, all the top petals would flop down. Argh!!! I feel like I've drifted *way* too far from my original inspiration. I'm thinking I might try to find some super-huge cording and create a super huge crochet hook and make a super huge motifs like in the original photo. If I find cord big enough, I could just use my arm as a hook, right?

And, my gift to you, since you waded through this whole post, is an Alex-style beauty shot ... not that my photography skills come anywhere close to hers.

01 Jul 2008 12:01pm GMT

Yay! It's always so much fun to have a giveaway. I loved reading about all the super-creative stuff you guys do with your printers. You are totally ingenious!

Well, no reason to make you wait ... let's announce the winner:

Sequana

Congratulations! Thanks again, everyone, for all your kind words and enthusiasm. You guys are awesome!

Sorry about the premature "xxx" winner announcement this morning. I set up the dummy post a couple of days ago, but I didn't realize I set it to publish automatically. Oops!

When I type, I use "xxx" as a place holder. When I talk I use "xyz" as a placeholder. I'd use "xyz" for both, but it's a little harder to type "xyz" than just "xxx." It is weird to use verbal variables in my sentences? Probably.

28 Jun 2008 7:00pm GMT

Oh, yes! There *is* something better than a monkey. A monkey in a hat!

I got a review copy of Creepy Cute Crochet from the publisher Quirk Books (which happens to be a Philly company just down the street from me ... hi, guys!). Within 24 hours I was holding this monkey in my hot little hands.

I'd totally been avoiding amigurumi. It seemed like a whole other skill to learn, so many other books to buy, and a time sucker for time I don't have. Plus, I'm totally intimidated by the awesome crochet animals people have sent to me.

But this book made it look so easy, that I couldn't stop myself. Most of the creatures/characters in this book are made from the same basic head and body pattern and customized with embellishments. Everything is laid out in detail and the patterns are simple and straight forward.

Don't be fooled into thinking that it's just the same old thing page after page, because it's not. Christen has achieved something that every designer strives for, a cohesive line of designs that work individually and as well as in a group. She is a master of boiling a character down to their essential parts. Just look at how she turns two black circles, two black triangles and a black yarn mouth in to the cutest and creepiest Nosferatu. It's sublime! (Please excuse my crap photo of the shiny book page.)

My monkey in a fez is maximum cute for minimum work. I'm especially proud of the fez tassel (it's braided!) and the felt eyes. I'll definitely be making many more of the characters in this book. And, with this AMAZING tutorial for making and attaching yarn hair on Christen's blog, the corporate zombie might be next.

27 Jun 2008 1:25pm GMT

I love my purple corduroy tote from the Strand ... but the sucker doesn't match a darn thing. I love using it though, and I thought, if I'm going to clash anyway, why not display the super-awesome patch I got a year and a half ago (!?) in Faun's patch swap. It's the handiwork of the wonderful Crafty McGee. There's probably other stuff around the house I could sew on there, too. I'll have to root around.

I'd put my pins on ... but I've lost pins off bags before (the night owl and a big square Ashley G). Actually, I think I lost them off of this bag. I love my pins too much to lose them.

25 Jun 2008 1:02pm GMT

I love this printer! Well, technically it's an all-in-one because the EasyShare 5300 is a fax, copier, scanner, and printer. The prints are nice, the interface is easy to use, and it quickly turns scans into nicely compressed pdf files. It's been a dream to use.

Prints
I'm very impressed with print quality. Text is crisp and the detail in photos is amazing. We did a 4" x 6" print of this photo. Just look at the tiny pencil lines on the wall ... not a hint of pixelization. In fact, I'd have a hard time guessing these photos were printed on a printer from digital files. They are that good.

(This is a close-up photo of the print. The graininess is from the photo of the print, not the print itself)

Some colors seem a little different in the prints than on my screen, but I'm sure there's some sort of color syncing I could do to make them closer. Skin tones look fine, it's just some blues and greens are a little more or less blue or green. Nothing I really notice unless I'm holding the print up to the screen.

Scans
Like I mentioned in my other post about the printer scanning is a snap. Last night I scanned my Interweave Crochet article to turn it into a pdf. The way it's printed in the magazine, I had to scan it upside down. Somehow, and don't ask me how, the printer knew it was upside down and flipped it for me when it made the pdf. I know! Freaky. Once the page was scanned in, using the printer's interface I was able to crop off the edges of the scan beyond the article and then make the pdf. The software keeps the scan available so I could keep cropping or making changes and keep making pdfs until I'm happy with it. No need to keep rescanning. So easy!

Other Stuff
The printer makes very robot-y noises, which I think are hilarious. Also, you totally have to pull out the paper catcher because, without it, prints get launched into the room. Which I also think is hilarious. We haven't given the printer a name yet, but it has such a distinct personality that I'm sure it will get one eventually.

GIVEAWAY
Kodak is generously offered to send one of my readers a free EasyShare 5300! Just leave a comment telling me how you use your printer in your crafting by June 27th at midnight Eastern Time (that's the midnight between the 27th and the 28th). To find out what time that is where you live, choose your time zone next to the heading "Select place to convert to" on this page at The World Clock. I'll announce the winner on Saturday June 28th.

23 Jun 2008 1:00pm GMT

I got curious about crocheting the peacock pattern seamlessly. It was actually much easier than I thought it would be. I kept going and going and it kept being easy. And now ... I have a fancy beginning for a water bottle holder. Ha!

Then I got curious about edges ... like if I wanted to make a sweater or cardigan in the peacock pattern. Here I'm using the yarn from this sweater* to do some tests for vertical, horizontal, and diagonal edges. They were also easier than I expected. There's nothing like having experiments turn out right and feel easy. So nice. Hey, wouldn't a bead look really nice in the hole at the bottom of each feather?

While looking through 220 More Crochet Stitches: Volume 7 I found these great illustrations that help visualize how you can put askew edges in the middle of a design to suit your purposes. It's kind of a cool concept to stop a patterned stitch at some random straight line (that doesn't line up with the pattern) and have it still look OK. The whole thing really intrigues me.

I'm totally feeling a purple peacocky cardigan in my future. Wouldn't that be grand?

*I'm sorta sad about giving up on the Icelandic Turtleneck. It was one of the first crochet patterns for clothes that actually made me excited. But once I got a little past the armpits, I realized that I was going to need to frog it and take out some stitches in the back panel because it was floppy back there. The same kind of thing Kim needed to do. Which isn't a big deal, especially in view of how cute the sweater is (see Kim link), but it took the edge of excitement off the project just long enough that I lost my momentum. Well, I own the book, so I can always make it later. Or, who knows, after I work on this and give up on it, maybe I'll start the turtleneck again. Could happen.

21 Jun 2008 7:51pm GMT

I'm so excited to tell you about the article I wrote for Interweave Crochet Summer 2008 Issue! They have a reoccurring column called "Crochet Around Town" that focuses on the crafty/crochet/fun spots in a certain city. In the last issue Vickie Howell wrote a great piece about Austin. I almost exploded when Interweave emailed me and asked me to write a tour of crafty Philadelphia.

Andrew took this wonderful picture of me in MARCH. I knew it was going to be published in the summer issue, so I tried to look summery. It was 41 degrees outside when we did our photo shoot in the park, and I could barely feel my fingers. My winter coat is sitting on the bench just out of frame. Even so, the photo came out great! Thanks, Andrew!

Back in the lazy days of December, I was thinking that in 2008 I'd really like to write a book. Maybe finally publish some of my crochet patterns. I thought I could kick that out in my spare time. Well, writing this one-page article brought reality crashing down on my head. It was a lot of hard work to pick the places, scope them out, write the piece, and get everything just right. Do you have any idea how hard it is to write about a handful of yarn and craft stores and not say "yarn" every two words? Heavens to Betsy!*

If I remember correctly, this article took every spare moment I had for a week. (Which hopefully says more about my lack of free time than my writing abilities.) That means I could write a 52 page book in a year ... with no time off, no movies, no concerts, and no *crafting*. And 52 pages isn't much of a book, either. Writing a book is more daunting that it seemed back in December. Not un-doable, just daunting-er. And now I have even more respect for how much work goes into craft books. Well, any book, really.

So, if you feel like crafting it up in Philly, check out my article. Or, if you're like me, you can walk around with the magazine open to my article and periodically point at my picture and say, "Hey, I know her!" And, of course, the magazine rocks. I've been thinking of making a loopy bath mat forever, and there's a cute pattern for one with great tips for getting uniformly sized loops. And the Ocean Pearls Cardigan is way-adorable. I love the ribbon tie closure.

*I've been finding myself using my Grandmother's exclamations lately ... and I'm liking it. It's funny to see all the crazy looks people give you when they are used to you cursing all the time and you yell, "Oh, for Pete's sake!" instead of dropping the f-bomb. It's priceless. Not that I've stopped using the f-bomb ... I've just been mixing it up a little lately. And, for the record, I'm not 100% that Grandma said these things, but I'm 99% sure she did. My favorite expression I learned from her was "burr behind my eye" as in, "Well Grandpa couldn't stand that man. He was a burr behind Grandpa's eye." Oh, that Okie slang sings to my heart.

18 Jun 2008 1:54pm GMT

The second picture is tests for a mesh market bag ... which I'll probably never make. 2008 appears to be the year of *starting* projects. Well, sometimes I don't even start them ... I just think about starting them. Oh, well.

17 Jun 2008 1:30pm GMT