Saturday, October 31, 2009

blessed be



The Fairies
Up the airy mountain
Down the rushy glen,
We daren't go a-hunting,
For fear of little men;
Wee folk, good folk,
Trooping all together;
Green jacket, red cap,
And white owl's feather.
Down along the rocky shore
Some make their home,
They live on crispy pancakes
Of yellow tide-foam;
Some in the reeds
Of the black mountain-lake,
With frogs for their watch-dogs,
All night awake.

High on the hill-top
The old King sits;
He is now so old and gray
He's nigh lost his wits.
With a bridge of white mist
Columbkill he crosses,
On his stately journeys
From Slieveleague to Rosses;
Or going up with music,
On cold starry nights,
To sup with the Queen,
Of the gay Northern Lights.

They stole little Bridget
For seven years long;
When she came down again
Her friends were all gone.
They took her lightly back
Between the night and morrow;
They thought she was fast asleep,
But she was dead with sorrow.
They have kept her ever since
Deep within the lake,
On a bed of flag leaves,
Watching till she wake.

By the craggy hill-side,
Through the mosses bare,
They have planted thorn trees
For pleasure here and there.
Is any man so daring
As dig them up in spite?
He shall find the thornies set
In his bed at night.

Up the airy mountain
Down the rushy glen,
We daren't go a-hunting,
For fear of little men;
Wee folk, good folk,
Trooping all together;
Green jacket, red cap,
And white owl's feather.

-- William Allingham

Wednesday, October 28, 2009

margot potter



who is the impatient crafter

has asked us to read the

story of haiffaa ali

I don’t usually discuss politically minded things here. I have another blog where I rant freely and without filters, this is my craft blog and focuses on my craft career. Occasionally though, real life and my craft career intersect and today was one of those days. Several years back I found out about a group of refugee women in Denver who were assimilating into our culture and crafting as a way of making some pin money. Something about my first book struck a chord with them, perhaps it was the happy colors or the big pictures...I can’t say. I sent them some books and supplies and continued to follow their progress.

They began as The Bead Women of Denver and eventually they expanded from jewelry making into a variety of crafty endeavors. One woman in the group, Haiffaa Ali, was an exceptional talent and spokesperson. She had escaped Iraq, leaving absolutely everything behind to be faced with the squalor of a refugee camp. Eventually she and her family made their way to America. Recently Haiffaa returned to Iraq while staying in Jordan on vacation. She needed closure on her father’s death, a murder unrelated to the war, and she took a risk that proved deadly. While booking her return trip she was killed in a bombing.....................

pic from a little something
Haiffaa Ali, Denver, Colorado

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i have 24 hours-you do too!


evil mad scientist shows us how to make 24 hour tombstones

pic from evil mad

i love love love this little video

i love both



knitting AND claymation!

yarn city



musicid 2

Monday, October 26, 2009

the



get wacky and crafty with pattiewack blog has some halloween crafts up


i'm not even going to suggest how to make this necklace and another that is featured. nor am i going to suggest how EASY it is

stop by pattiewack! and find out for yourself


picture from her blog posting

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i'm making someone a christmas present




out of these dry (needle) felted discs. i have to make a TON more. when i'm done and my project is put together, i'll let y'all know what it is! deal?

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these are GREAT


Horace Behr and Mr Bunnyford

from the photostream of mrfoxy





via


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Saturday, October 24, 2009

want to make this braided/knotted belt?


(and who wouldn't???)

well threads has a GREAT tutorial on how

pic from the tutorial on threads

via blisstree


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absolutely adorable singing amigurumi



via zakka life

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i was in the mood for soba last night



i just made a simple dipping sauce of;

a bit of shoyu
a bit of miso
a bit of water
a bit of agave
some spices (ground ginger, pepper, etc)
a bit of cashew butter


mix all together and serve with the ICE COLD soba noodles

oh and look at my cool japanese bowls. isn't the monkey one grand?

(got them at a dong grocery (yeah, that's their real name). if you're in the hood and want GREAT asian groceries (indian, thai, chinese, japanese, korean, and so much more) DO stop


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Wednesday, October 21, 2009

if you use


something like earth balance margerine and soy or rice or coconut or almond milk, then this would be VEGAN


pumpkin pie oatmeal 0h YUM
By Katie Goodman

(pic from the recipe posting linked above by katie)

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Saturday, October 17, 2009

i'm all into metal work

as a matter of fact, i stopped at radio shack first thing this morning to pick up some etchant solution

i'm going to experiment with etching on copper and perhaps another soft metal or two. as i keep saying THE HOLIDAYS ARE RIGHT AROUND THE CORNER




i'm diggin' these


here's but one example of a cute

button and wire brooch
tutorial from craftypod (where the pic is from as well)

Sunday, October 11, 2009

the anti-craft for


samhain 2009 is up and


here's only ONE of the choices

hoochie cozies

pic from the website above: Diana Troldahl (photo)

erin's belated birthday hat








size 9 needles, circular
cast on 90 stitches
place marker and join (of course making sure it's not twisted)
1X1 rib (k1, p1) for 1.5"
then knit for 3"
purl 1 row
knit for another 1.5"
start decreases
k8, k2 together (repeat for entire round)
purl the next row
k7, k2 together (repeat for entire round)
purl the next row
k6, k2 together (repeat for entire round)
purl the next row
k5, k2 together (repeat for entire round)
purl the next row
k4, k2 together (repeat for entire round)
purl the next row
k3, k2 together (repeat for entire round)
purl the next row
k2, k2 together (repeat for entire round)
purl the next row
k1, k2 together (repeat for entire round)
purl the next row
k2 together (repeat for entire round)
break yarn leaving a tail a few inches long. pull tail through the remaining stitches and tighten. weave in ends.


yarn: mirasol sport weight merino
i then attached a little icord to the top and needle felted (with roving) a few designs around the hat (i think i may take off the icord on top before i give it to erin. we'll see)

Friday, October 9, 2009

yarn city

by musicid 2



via

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this is unbelievably georgous


blisstree shows us this most kick arse wood nymph necklace

from bead artist Olga Romanenko at land of bead fantasies



pic from blisstree but they got it from ms romanenko's blog

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want to make a lovely stenciled pumpkin?


well i do AND

better homes and gardens shows you how

pic: from the bhg page linked above

via twig and thistle

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whip up has an


ultimate halloween knitting roundup

here's my absolute favorite out of the bunch (although they are ALL cool mind you), the spider shawl by Sharon Emery on ravelry (you have to be a member, BUT it's rather easy. there's a waiting list, but you don't have to wait THAT long. if you're NOT a member, SIGN UP NOW)

photo from the pattern page on ravelry by by idyllicchick

i'm going to make this for ME. however, it will have to wait until after the first of the new year. the holidays are fast approaching and i have to get busy on my gifts

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Thursday, October 8, 2009

breast cancer awareness

craftstylish has four projects up - pink projects. it's to remind us it's breast cancer awareness month (although i think EVERY month is breast cancer awareness month).


here's but one of those projects (pic from the craftstylish knit pink hat tutorial below)

knit a playful pink ribbon hat
by

Tina Hilton, contributor



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Tuesday, October 6, 2009

my lunch for today



recipes inspired by just bento

back row left to right; orange rice under red peppers and mushrooms, vegan yogurt with blueberries, tabbouleh, front: orange tomatoes and sprouts under turnip cakes.

i was just fooling around after being inspired by the just bento site linked above. i took 1 c of brown rice and cooked it with 1 c carrot juice and 1 c water for about 15 minutes. i then put in 1 c of white (sushi) rice another c of carrot juice and another c of water. i tossed in 2 vegan bouillon cubes too. i boiled on LOW (very low) stirring frequently for about 10 minutes. i put a lid on the pot, turned the heat off and let it steam for 45 more minutes. after that you can take the cover off and fluff. it really does come out well this way.

for the peppers and mushrooms, i took a bunch of red peppers and chopped roughly and added the mushrooms, sea salt and pepper. i put in a microwave safe bowl and added 1 T olive oil (sesame would be nice but i didn't have any) and 1T maple syrup. i nuked for 5 minutes and then stirred and nuked again for 5 and stirred then nuked one more time for 5 minutes (all the while the bowl was covered with a paper towel to prevent splattering).

the tabbouleh was store bought

for the turnip cakes i boiled peeled turnips. when done i mashed with a bit of earth balance and sea salt and pepper and a bit of cumin (use whatever spices YOU want). i mixed in a few T of rice flower and some leftover steamed spinach i had. i then pan fried in a TINY bit of oil in a non stick skillet

again, many of this was inspired by just bento

sorry for the sloppy photo. oh, this was all packed in my mr bento of course.  

Monday, October 5, 2009

i don't know if i would have the where-with-all to make these up

for a dinner party. but man, if i were a guest and saw one of these, i sure as heck would be wicked impressed

should YOU wish to make them, design sponge will show you how to

make these wedding menu wheels (but you could use them for a dinner party, which i would do)

pic from design sponge

and i believe the tutorial is from anna at rifle design

found via blisstree

lego for dead


from saber-scorpion's lair

lego (left) 4 dead

pic from the site linked above


via

Sunday, October 4, 2009

Saturday, October 3, 2009

i can't believe i haven't really started posting halloween crafts yet


well, we'll remedy that!


look at this CUTE cupcake stand. easy and fairly inexpensive to make. want to know how? well then hop on over to the artful crafter and they'll show you how!!!

pic from the tutorial at the artful crafter