Thursday, December 31, 2009

Tuesday, December 29, 2009

i want one! (or many)


how to make your own knitted pouf apartment therapy points us over to

The pouf pattern is available from Pickles, a Norwegian site that offers free patterns for knitting, crochet and sewing. Be sure to read the project's comments. We learned some great tips, such as rather than hunt for a thick enough yarn create the pouf, you can make your own by plying — take many different yarns and hold them together as it they were one, cast on and knit carefully. If you start now, you should have a nice cozy pouf by fall! (There's a smaller version too!)



pic from pickles puff daddy knitted stool

if you've not stopped by
pickles in the past, i implore you to do so now. it's GREAT

here's a link to the pickles shop as well (NICE yarns

i LOVE this circular vest


minimal sewing and it appears to be wicked easy too. if you made it out of fleece, well then VERY minimal sewing

circular vest from threads
Nicole Smith, contributor


pic from threads

Thursday, December 24, 2009

Wednesday, December 23, 2009

martha (YES, THAT MARTHA)


has THE most wicked cool felt slippers!!!

i'll bet you can make them in one night too (quick, i'd like a pair under MY tree)


pic from martha's tutorial

Monday, December 21, 2009

this is cute and easy


plus you get to DRINK while you do it!

photo snow blog ornaments from photojojo

pic from photojojo linked above

wicked cool



modern gingerbread houses

they were auctioned off for charity (bidding is closed) but you can click the link above to see ALL of the neat structures!


top:

Nick Milkovich Architects Inc.

  • TITLE:

    Sugar Shack
bottom:

Eastside Design & Solus Decor

  • TITLE:

    The Earthship Lollipop

via

Sunday, December 20, 2009

look at this pattern at berroco!



a wonderful JELLYFISH

made out of lumina. it just so happens i have some lumina. i bought it because it was cool yarn. i didn't have anything in particular i was going to use it for

pics from the berroco website

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Friday, December 18, 2009

a felted purse i crocheted





for myself (my old one i made has seen better days). i just use it to stuff my debit card, my phone, my mp3 player my kindle and perhaps a SMALL knitting project into

usually i knit the purses i felt but crocheting is much quicker and i needed it in a hurry. i PREFER knitting mind you

i just used some leftover wool - hence the odd color combos. ah then again, i'm rather ODD my own darn self!

(p.s. the pink yarn is just some white yarn i dyed with kool aid a while ago.


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ohhhhhhhh look look look


what is on design sponge

we like it wild: bits and bits wreath

i am ADDICTED to succulents (i have some in my father's garden). hmmmmmm i think i'll order a bunch more this year (i don't think you can get them until april-ish) and use them in a winter wreath NEXT year


pic from the tutorial at design sponge linked above

spectacular!

y'all know how much i love everything MUSHROOMS


well

bitter betty blogs

gives us:


Sweet Sugar 'Shroomies: The Tutorial


pic from the tutorial at bitter betty blogs linked above

so festive!


On the 9th Day of Christmas: Holly Lariat





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Thursday, December 17, 2009

the nyt goes all etsy on us!


etsy IS one of my favorite places on the interwebs. i've even toyed with opening a shop online. that just means i'd have to get a bunch of stuff done and on hand (when i make things i usually give them away right away. i always make a FIRST one for me just to test the waters and correct any mistakes i may have made). i cannot make 'on demand'. just can't do it.

that said, i LOVE to support people who hand craft (or craft in general). i have been MORE than satisfied with ALL of my etsy purchases (and i've made a TON)

if you've never etsy-ed i'm telling you to do so right now.

That Hobby Looks Like a Lot of Work






QUIT your day job?

To some craft enthusiasts that is just the name of a popular blog on Etsy, the fast-growing Web site that serves as a marketplace for crafts and vintage goods.

But to Yokoo Gibran, it was an epiphany.

Ms. Gibran, who is in her 30s, had been selling her hand-knit scarves and accessories on the site for less than a year when she decided last November to quit her day job at a copy center in Atlanta. Thirteen months later, she would seem to be living the Etsy dream: running a one-woman knitwear operation, Yokoo, from her home and earning more than $140,000 a year, more than many law associates.

Jealous? How could you not be? Her hobby is her job. But consider this before you quit your day job: at the pace she’s working, she might as well be a law associate.

“I have to wake up around 8, get coffee or tea, and knit for hours and hours and hours and hours,” said Ms. Gibran, who leveraged the exposure she got on the site to forge a deal with Urban Outfitters. “I’m like an old lady in a chair, catching up on podcasts, watching old Hitchcock shows. I will do it for 13 hours a day.” And even after all those hours knitting, she is constantly sketching new designs or trading e-mail messages with 50 or more customers a day...........


i may have posted this before


but since our windchill is supposed to be about zero i think it appropriate to post again (and i can HEAR that wind too. i dread the thought of leaving for work in a bit)

this is a quick crafted item as well

how to make hand warming gloves by

Diane Gilleland, contributor

pic from diane's tutorial at the link above

there's a bit of sewing involved BUT it's all hand sewing and it's not much and will go quickly.

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Wednesday, December 16, 2009

Tuesday, December 15, 2009

Monday, December 14, 2009

look what jennifer perkins of


naughty secretary club shows us how to make

parisian pinecone PEEPS!!!

pic from jennifer's tutorial

(p.s. diy network, I MISS JENNIFER AND I MISS VICKIE. GET THEM BACK ON YOUR STUPID NETWORK)

if you'd like to visit jennifer's store

naughty secretary club PLEASE do so!

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i made another QUICK simple beaded necklace




yesterday


here's the first one i made

they're quick gifts. you can use expensive beads or cheap beads. i used waxed linen in white this time. last time i used black. all you need is a bit of that, a donut bead for the central point and then a few other beads. as many or as few as you like

(the blog where i got the idea for this doesn't seem to exist any longer. i gave it credit in my first posting linked above, but as i said, it ain't there any more)

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Sunday, December 13, 2009

Friday, December 11, 2009

how about orange


has a listing of links to tutorials on how to make felt ornaments

(i'm ALL over these skate ones from better homes and gardens

here's a link to the howaboutorange etsy store


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this is a GREAT and a QUICK and an EASY*




gift for someone. male or female. cathie and steve are batiking their scarves. i have used fabric paint on mine. draw designs or a picture or squiggles. anything!

let dry, and there's your gift!

now, i get fairly inexpensive plain undyed silk scarves at jerry's art - o - rama. so if you have one in your hood, check 'em out


i also make silk beads out of the plain scarves. i've posted before how i did it (i'll link back when i have time to find it). basically, you just cut strips (or rip them) use fabric paints and mod podge and whatever else you have (i used some craft wire, yarn, beads, etc) wrap around straws and let dry. the necklace has one of the silk beads i made AND a resin bead i made

Quick and Easy Gift Idea: batik silk scarves
pic of the scarves: from cathie's blog tutorial linked above

other pics are mine

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Thursday, December 10, 2009

fly or hop on over to the crafty crow


and they'll direct you to a place you can see how to make these

pic from the link above




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cute holiday idea


and goddess knows i have a TON of green yarn (in my car even). my friend asked if he could borrow some green yarn (for halloween. don't know why, but i said sure). i filled a bag with some of the greens i had and tossed it in my car. he decided he wasn't going out for halloween so he never took any of the yarn. NOW i know what to do with it!

from craftstylish (pic by Photo: Zach Desart from there as well)

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make a yarn wrapped wreath

Tuesday, December 8, 2009

whipup points us on over to a new site

make & meaning creative community in conversation

About

Make & Meaning: Why We’re Here

Acts of making are important – whether they involve yarn and knitting needles, wood and tools, pots and pans, brushes and canvas or anything else.

When we make things, time and worry fall away. We’re more aware, engaged, and excited – and we find it easier to connect with others. In truth, making connects us to our best selves.

We believe in making, and we love the fact that the internet allows makers to meet and geek out together, regardless of geography. There are many, many websites that celebrate making in all its forms. We created Make & Meaning to celebrate all the ways making enhances our lives, and all the things it causes us think about.

from the whipup introduction

The bloggers are:
Sister Diane – http://www.craftypod.com
Paul Overton – http://www.dudecraft.com
Pip Lincolne – http://meetmeatmikes.com
Betsy Greer – http://www.craftivism.com
Alice Merlino – http://www.futuregirl.com
Kim Werker – http://www.kimwerker.com

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want



all of these and MORE from cardboard safari (all pics from their website)

via

Monday, December 7, 2009

this is amazingly beautiful



ruffly felt rosette wreath tutorial


(from domestifluff (pic from there as well)

found via whip up

oh wow



resurrection fern has published a link to a MESS o' her tutorials (great to make for holiday gifts). look at this HAT (made from her handspun. i have some beautiful handspun, which i didn't spin.... that's white with purple threads running through it. very bulky. will look GREAT knit up into this hat)

nahanni hand knit hat

and here's the link to gifts to make with your own two hands


pics from resurrection fern

and as i've mentioned before, not only is she (margaret) a crafter and a blogger, SHE A PRACTICING FAMILY PHYSICIAN

resurrection fern is a blog you should visit ALL OF THE TIME by the way.

really you should!

bet you could make a few cut things out of this


die cut santa

via

once again, WREATHS!

nifty!


customizable fleece hats

Author:ryzellon

pic from ryzellon's
instructable
(there's a bunch of great examples on the last page of the instructable)