boredom+guache=this

[notnancy.livejournal.com]

( I'm working on 4 paintings...these two are done...two more to go! )

why do I do this to myself?

[bratzdollbron.livejournal.com]

Okay some January goals
Again I have started way to many things this year...
I have a tendency to have different things going at different times.
Since I spend a ton of time driving to pick up children daily I often take crochet with me so I have it while I wait...
This allows me to get things done often.
This time I started this afghan... and I HATE it ...
I dunno I am kinda thinking about ... not doing it
It is one of those patterns that you really have to do a lot of counting... and seems I have ripped out a ton...
as I have missed parts.... and added parts... it is like a long chain of flowers... that has a border ...
You make 9 strips then put them together.
It looked simple in the book ... and that is why I went with it....and because each of the little flower points has a little popcorn thingy on the end... but man it sucks ... and I may not ever get the border right.
I am going to pick it back up today and try again to read and work the border... and if I can get it then I will work on it ...
if not I don't know. It may end up being a scarf... and never an afghan. *sigh*

I have also been working with polyclay... wow do my hands hurt.
some of the clay I had and it is rather stiff... so hard to get worked soft.
We bought a ton more to use and I made some "turquoise" beads
They are darker and look REAL ... and I made some lighter ones last night... and not so much real but still nice.
I will post some after I string them.
I also made a ton of little owls ... it amazes me how different they all turned out

I want to go out and buy some t-shirt transfer paper ... as I have that liquid poly bond stuff... to put paper images on clay
like from the printer and magazines... I did a couple with regular paper... but I can't tell you how many I messed up.
I made one of an owl on some vellum paper ... and that worked fairly well just the vellum on the clay with a bit of border holding it down. If anyone has any tips on how to do the transfer image thingy on ploy clay ... I really could use the help.

I also and waiting for my photos to come in the mail from www.snapfish.com
I probably have another day or two before they get here
I haven't even started my scrapbook pages from Halloween Thanksgiving or Christmas...
Which to be honest... I am about all Traditional Holiday Paged out ... I really want to work on scrapping out side the box ...

Here are a couple of my ideas for pages
~What did we used to say  ... a page for my kids of the funny things they used to say ... words they made up and mispronounced.
~A page about all the places I have lived in since I have been in Ohio... I spent ages 4-12 in florida ... in many places ... so that is out
but since I am 43.... I have lived in a few houses and apartments here in Cincinnati.... I want to drive around and take photos of these places :O) \

I also want to finish this Littlest Pet Shop play mat I have made in painted felt...(never do that it sucks and felt sucks up the paint FAST) .... and the mat is huge I have on a bit more to do on it ... but I am just not inspired for what else to put on it ... it has a lake ,a beach, paths, gardens, bricked areas, a race track area... I wanted to do a play ground area ... but it is kinda hard to do swings and stuff ... when it is just a flat play mat. It is about 80% finished....but it has been sitting for months

online fabric resources?

[anairdna.livejournal.com]

I'm lokoing for some good online fabric resources that won't charge me an arm, a leg, and my firstborn for a few cuts of fabric.
i'm specifically looking for tattoo art/pin-ups/skulls/etc(i know of the alexander henry stuff, but are there others as well?) for a quilt.

My local Jo-Anns and Hobby Lobby aren't panning out much, and the only fabric stores i know of in town are ungodly expensive.

Any suggestions for places to get fun/quirky fabrics?

Sorry for the pic-free post. Waiting on my sister to take pictures of the mixed media piece and magnet set i gave her for xmas so i can post them!

My first fleece quilt

[genericgirl.livejournal.com]

I know it's not as impressive as a cotton quilt, but this is the first time I've cut and pieced a blanket like this and wow was it a lot of work. Working on such a huge project was very time consuming, not that I didn't think it was going to be but very different from the mediums I usually work in.



Stack of fleece squares.

( finished quilt and other photos this way )

Greeting Cards to Gift Boxes

[elfie-elfie.livejournal.com]

I saw this idea a few years ago on a kids' craft show (can't remember which one, sorry), and adopted it to deal with my growing seed storage crisis: I grow heirloom vegetables, and until I saw the greeting card idea, I had trouble properly and NEATLY storing the big bean and corn seeds.  I also used them to give away handmilled soaps - they were the perfect size and shape, for the most part.

Then I saw the idea AGAIN in the last holiday issue of SewStylish, or something like that, with a different box shape.

These boxes can be created with any stiffer-than-construction paper and white glue.  My daughter makes pyramids with cereal boxes, and covers them with glitter paint.

( Pictures of greeting card boxes! (not really a tutorial) )

OK, I'm done my turn at Show-and-Tell.  I'll sit back down on the carpet.

Reindeer Webkinz Sleigh Bed - in fabric

[elfie-elfie.livejournal.com]

WARNING: this is a shameless "Proud Mom" post, and I make no apologies.

This isn't MY work.  (Mostly not my work.)  The hardest part of getting this thing done was for me to stand back after showing my 9yo daughter how to do the next step.  This is my daughter's completely my daughters, from start to finish.

Background: My daughter Tiger gets invited to an obscene number of birthday parties every year, and in this December birthday case, she got her friend EXACTLY what she'd asked for: a Webkinz reindeer.  But it "didn't cost enough".  (???)  So she had to add something to make the gift seem bigger and better.  And plushie reindeer require cushy digs.

Tiger's Pattern:

( About 9 more pics, 600pixels wide max )

hand stamped silver frustration

[totalsikeout.livejournal.com]

this seems like one of the easiest craft projects i could think of, yet im having such difficulty with it.

hand stamped silver.
i found some steel stamps, got a sterling silver blank, and my end result looks absolutely dreadful.

ive got to be doing something wrong.

if anyone could send me to a tutorial on stamping silver, or link me to a website that sells blanks that actually work with this type of project, i would really appreciate it. im getting so bummed at my failures :(
google isnt proving to be a team player lately as well. i keep finding websites with crafters who sell their products and nowhere to teach me how the heck its done or where to buy decent blanks in a variety of shapes.

( nicely stamped silver under the cut )

two cats

[cutout.livejournal.com]

I made two little toy cats in the last few days, from fabric that I printed with a carved rubber stamp, felt, and a few other bits and bobs. One is little and flat, one is bigger and fat.



( more )

I like them and I like the printed fabric but I do worry that they probably look a bit weird and plain to most people. Do you reckon they'd be nice made from a plain coloured cotton? Say a red cat and then I could print a pattern on it in brown or black... Any suggestions would be really appreciated, I find it so hard to visualise them before I make them up, and then once I see what they're like it's too late!

On another note, if anybody is curious to see more of my work- mostly illustration- check out my blog, http://www.bleachingstream.blogspot.com . I post pretty much everyday! & I'd love to swap links if you've got a crafty or arty blog or website. Cheers!

First Post :)

[equality-rules.livejournal.com]

So I've lurked for a bit, but I haven't posted anything...Decided to start posting my crafts because I find this community so inspiring! (Also, working at Fabricland enables me to feed my craftsy/sewing urges much more often.

For my first post, here are some of the things I have made lately:

1. ( Advent Calendar: )

I made this as my first display for work. The little pictures under Santa's face are all individual ornaments, which you can take off the buttons and then hang one every day for the 25 days before Christmas.

2. ( Holiday Pine Stockings: )

I made these for a friend for her Christmas present. They came as a panel of the stockings (you have to cut out both sides and then sew them together) and I added the ribbon (around the tops) and lip-cord that is around the edges. They're kind of wonky because I had to accommodate for the fact that the panel wasn't cut right.

3. ( Pillow Covers: )

I made these with a weird drapery fabric. It's basically a broadcloth with a velvety design on it. They zip so that I can take them off the forms for washing if need be.

4. ( Pink Dress: )

I made this dress for my friend's 5-year old daughter (at the request of his girlfriend). Very proud with how it worked out because I'd never made a dress before. The hat matches both this dress and the not-pink one. Please excuse the blocking out of her face.

5. ( Not Pink Dress: )

This dress was made for the same friend's daughter. The hat matches this dress as well as the pink one.

6. ( Reversible Pink/Not Pink Hat: )

First hat I've ever made, very proud of how it worked :)

7. ( Pink/Not Pink Bag: )

I had crap-loads of left over fabric, so I ended up making this little matching purse! Both sides are semi-quilted (quilted onto batting but not inside) and the fabric inside was just a remnant I had kicking around. The boyfriend KINDLY displayed the use for my picture. :)

So I think that's enough pictures from me today! Hope you liked and I might post more soon!

the addict needs help

[sbilokonsky.livejournal.com]

i am turning into a spinning addict. therefore looking at the possiblity of buying a wheel. any suggestions??? i heard of babes and ashford...the prices scare my chickens, but i know i will have to pay sooner or later. right now i want to do the research. i do have questions about babes, the pvc sort of turns me off....sturdy/pvc do not seem to be in my brain.
anywho thoughts, suggestions are welcomed

hidey hidey hidey hiii.

[byrobinlynne.livejournal.com]

I think this is my first post (under this SN, at least.)

I'm sharing with you all: my new favorite earrings.
Featuring buttons that took me darn near two weeks to find and receive... a little e6000, red paint/modpodge and silver plated earring posts later. and BAM! cuteness ensues.

I also made ( matching hairpins. )

Thanks for looking :)

<3 Robin Lynne

brighten up!

[chellichanga.livejournal.com]

hey all!
i've been working on some various crafts over break and i thought i would share, since i post very infrequently. t-shirts, earrings, vintage dress, vinyl bag!
( dame dame mas... )

*sings*

[milkysea.livejournal.com]

Some new buttons & matching plushes I made. :D
Sorry for the washed out colours in the picture.. the sunlight has not showed itself for dayssssss around here. D:

<3
btw. I'm always happy to make new crafty friends. You can add my journal if you like! :D

Toothless Blanket Monster

[elfie-elfie.livejournal.com]

Inspired by medias_res' post with the monster blanket, my daughter "Needed" one of these for another friend's birthday gift.  However, with only two days' notice for THIS party, and it was a SLEEPOVER (very first for most of the girls), and given the difficulty working with the fluffy furry stuff at every turn (losing pins in it, having it slide all over the effing place, and especially wrestling the sheer size of the thing through the whole process, I made this one.  But the teeth had to go, my daughter insisted.

Let's start you off with a picture of the fleece backing.  (Sidenote: I couldn't use the flash on the camera, lest I awaken the blanket monster's first victim.  Sorry for the colour imbalance.  I corrected it as best I could in editing.)

( Four or five more pictures, max width 600pixels )