Scribbles & Bits

Short and Sweet

I've completed the card!  I'm happy to say that it turned out just as I imagined, which is happening a lot more now that I've been crafting with more regularity.  This is the first time I've mounted a cross stitch like this so that was an experience.  I used double-sided tape because that's what I've read your supposed to do.  It worked really well and I ended up using double-sided tape for the other elements.  Why mess with a good thing?  And, in case I didn't already mention it, this card also worked for my New Year's Resolution since it came out of a book I had yet t craft from, so double yay!!!!

Doing Things is what I Like to Do

It's always nice when I manage to do the things I've talked about and yesterday I started accomplishing two goals I've talked about before.  The card is inspired by the book Paper Quilts.  I saw the picture and, to be honest, didn't read the instructions so I have no idea if my way of creating it was according to the instructions or not, but I really like how it came out!  This one is destined for the card box at work.  They have a box of cards handy for birthdays, sympathy, etc. Sound familiar? Yeah, I've talked about that idea, too.  Anyway, the last time we went hunting through, one of my coworkers made the comment that everybody's gotten a version of the cards in the box.  I couldn't help it: it sounded like a plea for a refresher.  And I liked how the card came out so much, I decided to make 6 more: 3 as Thank You cards and 3 more of the "Just for You" cards.  I'm keeping one of each and sending the duplicates to my grandfather and aunt.  I think they'd like a backstock, too.  I'll definitely hold off and make a bundle so it doubles as a gift, though (another idea I mentioned a while back) So yay for fulfilling a New Year's resolution by doing something crafty out of a craft book, and yay for starting my backstock and double yay for actually starting to plan ahead for the next gift-giving occassion!

I know I mentioned a cross stitch piece I'm working on (Frank Lloyd Wright again).  I figured I'd post a progress pic as well as an image of what it's supposed to look like when it's finished!  I'ts going to be great and I'm not going to stress that I probably won't be posting again until Monday.  Hopefully I'll have tons more pictures (and maybe even a before/after of the train wreck of my craft room: the one room that hasn't received ANY attention since the move.  Well, except for the amazing adding of more boxes while I pretend the walls of that room are made of elastic.  You say they're not?  La la la!  I can't hear you!)

The Good, the Not-So-Good, and the Stacked

  First, the good!  I made this thank you card for the Technical Director.  She stayed late and took some of the staff for a tour backstage.  I've had this card envisioned for a while, so I was really pleased when it came out just like I pictured it!

My grandmother always had a back stock of cards for all occasions.  Forget a birthday?  Check the box.  Need to say thanks?  Check the box.  Forgot to mail a Christmas card?  Forgot an anniversary?  Friend get an ingrown toenail?  The most I've ever been able to stockpile are Christmas cards and that's just because they come in a big box already.  So, long story short, I've always felt bad that I don't have some sort of card stash.  And really, there isn't a reason.  I love making cards and I've talked about making that as a gift for people before so maybe I need to practice on myself.

Now the not-so-good: at first glance, these look like great-looking, problem-free socks.  Sadly, In every way possible, I went completely mental with these.  Let's start with the vastly different toes.  When I started working the toe decrease the first time, I decided to just switch to stockinette every row instead of staying in pattern (like the pattern said to).  I got a not-unwelcome substantial toe.  The second time, I listened to the pattern and now I have a lovely, but lacy, toe. 

Also, as this next picture demonstrates, I must have measured my foot on a crazy swollen day because I decided my feet were 10 inches in circumference which has made for an incredibly, ahem, roomy fit.  But only on one foot. 

Because on the other one, I started the gusset decrease and forgot that I was only supposed to decrease every other row.  That actually worked out in my favor, except I forgot that I turned the sock right side out to try it on so I have a couple of rows of reverse stockinette.  In the end, though, it doesn't really matter because I can totally wear these to bed and maybe the next time I try this pattern (crosshatch lace from More Sensational Socks to Knit) I'll get it right!  The two final details I left out: the color is Kalamata by Yarn Pirate and I knit them on #2 DPNs.

Now for the Stacked: I'm working on the Short Row Hat by Veronik Avery.  It was a pattern in one of the Interweave Knits, but they also offered it on line for a while (which is how I got it b/c I am new to Interweave, but I digress.  Anyway, I have started this hat probably 6 times now and managed to mess it up somehow every time.  The biggest way I manage to mess it up is by running out of stitches.  The last time, I just started adding stitches and that might be how I knit a pair of breast-like protrusions into the hat.  They are the most obvious in the last picture.  I gave up and unraveled it after that.  About the time you starting knitting bust shaping into hats, it's time to call it quits. 

I Guess the Best Way...

... to jump back into this is with pictures.

The painting I finished!  I think she's a cute little flapper.  I was originally thinking of a set of four (a man to accompany her and some accessories), but I just can't quite draw out what I want.  What I can draw is another one like her, but dressed for the evening so that's what I'll work on. 

On the knitting front, I'm still working on a pair of socks (well, actually, I'm still on sock number one).  Does the knitting community have a fun name for can't-seem-to-get-through-the first-sock syndrome?  The yarn is lovely, the pattern is lovely, my concentration is out the window. 

On the quilting front (ha! Bet you didn't even know there WAS a quilting front), I finished a quilt top back in May for my friends who bought a house.  I have not done the actual quilting part yet.  I'm a little scared to.  After all the work, I'm worried I'm going to botch it up.  Either way, I should at least take pictures of the top.  They've already seen it and heard my promise that I will finish it (and I will!). 

On the embroidery front, I've made a lot more progress on this piece (the Frank Lloyd Wright one).  I can't believe I've been working on it since Feb. 2007.  Whoopsie!  I put it down for a while, got distracted by lots of other things, picked it up randomly, got distracted, and put it back down again, and now I'm back to it.  Now I'm really glad I made this entry.  I needed that mental kick in the butt to finish it. 

2 Posts in 2 Days! Both With Finished Objects! What Are the Odds? Oh Look! There's Satan and He's Wearing a Parka!

I finally did it!  After talking about it ages ago, I've finally put the bareback rider on a shirt!  The first picture is a) one of the best ones I'll ever take of myself, I think and B) what it actually looks like on me.  The second, shadowy picture (sorry) is the shirt spread flat on the counter.  The shadows are from me trying to get an angle that keeps it in perspective.  So, over a year after officially yakking about it, the shirt is complete!!!!

The Pictures That Almost Weren't

These pictures almost didn't make it off my camera, but the Camera Gods kindly let me (maybe after an epic battle involving winged horses, togas, and marble pillars with USB cables trailing from Corinthian pedestals).  So now I present pictures I took on Wednesday.  The first is Rosemary's Baby's Bread.  A demonic little loaf to bake.  As you can see, it was not very keen on rising.  Not sure why, but I'm thinking the yeast touched the liquid too soon and maybe the water was the wrong temp, and the olive oil might have been too old, and maybe the Bread Gods were against me or lost their heroic battle or something.  Anyway, it's a very dense 1 pound loaf but, despite its appearance, it's actually quite tasty slightly warm.  It definitely benefits from being dipped in melted butter or olive oil (I think I just heard my pants groan.  "Woman!  Stop with the carbs in melted butter!"La la la.  I can't hear them!).

So the other thing I did Wednesday was carve this rubber stamp (and watch America's Next Top Model, but it's probably best to not speak of that.  Well, except to speak of the crazy Vivienne Westwood shoes they made the girls walk in!  How tall were those?  I have some 8 inch platforms so I think I could have totally rocked that challenge.  But those shoes!  Why do I not own those shoes?  Maybe because I'm not a Victorian dominatrix (but boy I can't wait to see what my stats show in terms of hits now that I've put that phrase in there!).  But now we will never speak of this again.  We shall now resume our regularly-scheduled ramblings concerning the rubber stamp.)  It is, of course, an antique bicycle.  The image is somewhere around 2 and 2 1/2 inches tall.  I wish I knew from whence the clip art came, but it was just in my files with no sort of credit.  I did modify it a bit.  The inking was done with a marker.  I'm really pleased with how it came out!  The wider cuts were done with a #2 V cutter, while the detail work was done with a #1 V cutter. 

Also, completely randomly, remember the horseback rider here?  I ordered a shirt to put her on!  Woohoo! 

Nothing of Substance but Dreams

No pictures of my progress today because so little progress was made, I just thought it would be a waste.  So instead, since I strive to have pictures in my post, I have provided the bareback stunt rider.  The image is from a book of circus-themed woodblock prints that my grandparents bought for me several years ago when we went to the Ringling Brothers Museum.  It's the first clip-art book I ever got and has really helped foster my love for them!  The image was black and white, but I remember the colorization process on the computer was very time-consuming and sort of frustrating.  I think all I had at the time was Paint, which found every incomplete line and every slight varience in the background color.  But int he end, it was worth it.  I love the result!  I keep meaning to put it on a T-shirt, but I've yet find the style I want to put it on within my acceptable I'm-willing-to-alter-this price range.  Maybe one of my New Year resolutions covers that.  I've wanted to make more time to complete all the projects in my head.  Maybe this one will get done this year!

Now For Something Completely Different

My first painting on canvas EVER!  It's acrylics on a 9x12 pre-prepared canvas.  And it's an abstract peacock.  I've had this picture inmy mind for a while.  I'm glad to finally have it committed.  Bonus: I feel like a real artist now!  Now on to the dog quilt.  Since she has to be outside while I'm at work, I wanted her to have something nice and warm and soft.  I looked at dog blankets in the store, but I knew I could make something equally sturdy (and quite a bit less expensive).  I found this fun fabric for $1/yard. I bought 2 yards (I really have a bad habit of overbuying on fabric) and ended up only using 1, so yay!  I have enhanced the fabric stash!  The 2 other pictures of it are just close-ups on the quilting.  I kept it simple on this - I just folded the fabric in half (right sides together) and sewed up two sides, turned it out, popped in the quilt batting, and seamed the last side.  Then I just did vertical quilt lines along the color columns (does that make sense?).  Anyway, this was a nice way to start to get back into the swing of things when it comes to quilting.  I haven't made a quilt since I was in elementary school (approx. 8x10).  That one was very simple - squares  hand-sewn together and stitch-in-the-ditch quilting.  I really enjoyed the process, but never made another one for some reason, I think largely because I have this "thing" about wasting supplies.  I'm pretty thrifty with mine, but if I'm using someone else's, I go into uber-thrifty mode to the point where I just sort of block up and can't do anything because I'd just feel terrible for wasting some else's money, essentially.  Yep, I've got issues.  Anyway, while I had all my sewing supplies out, I went ahead and made a cover for my serger!  I found this fabric when I purchased the other, so I picked up 2 yards of this as well.  I love the ice cream colors and retro feel.  Don't remember how much I paid for it (not much.  See "thrifty" above), but I have about a yard of that left as well.  It's basically just 5 squares sewn together to make a box without a bottom (thanks, Cap't. Obvious!). 

Of course, all of a sudden, I've really started having this problem focusing on one project at a time (holidays are not a good time for this to happen), so with the other projects I started the other day, I worked on these.  They are knitted squares of wire (currently on stitch holders).  I'm using 28 gauge artistic wire.  This will become a necklace this weekend.  The pattern is from Alterknits by Leigh Radford (ISBN 1584794550), another book I'm loving!  The photography is so lovely!  Well, the whole book is lovely, actually!  There's this thing with the binding - a wavy detail that I can't describe.  Maybe I just need to take a picture of it.  I don't know - I'm just charmed by this book!  And soon I will be working on some arm warmers from it.  I have the wool, I have the ribbon, I have the needles, now all I need is the time and my Bob Newhart episodes! 

A Day Off From Everything

Yesterday, the plague made me call in sick to work and then I realized I was just sort of sick of things in general.  I've wanted to try my hand at stamp carving for years and yesterday seemed like the perfect time.   My first attempt was the owl.  I think he came out pretty well for a first attempt!  I should have put a quarter or something there so you could get an idea of size, but he's not very big, maybe a quarter and 1/2 tall?  The acorn is about a quarter tall.  I was really happy with that as well.  Now I just want to carve all sorts of things!  I ended up kicking back for far too long just flipping through some clip art books to look for other ideas.  I drew the owl and the acorn, but something more sophisticated might be out of my grasp.  However, one thing I'm really keen on would be a set of nesting dolls.  I think that would look so cute along the bottom of a piece of stationery!

It felt good to take a break from the cross stitch and I actually enjoyed it a whole lot more when I went ahead and worked on it some more.  One thing I'll say about this project: it's so consuming that it's sort of relaxed my perfectionist tendencies some.  I'm just letting some things slide if they look OK.  Right now I can spot 3 mistakes in the picture to the left, but I've decided I can spot them because I know they're there.  No one else seems to have noticed so I'm feeling much better.  I'm also trying to remember that sure, this is a gift, but it's also my hobby and shouldn't be a source of stress when I work on it.  I only seem to really have that problem when it's a gift.  Something for me?  No problem!  Giving it away?  Suddenly it has to be Smithsonian quality!  Anyone else like that?

I also made a yummy pasta dish, but I think I'll leave the recipe for that for another day. This entry has gone on long enough.

Welcome to the Broke Season

Every year right around this time is when I go broke.  It seems everyone I know was born in October, got married in November, and celebrates Christmas.  I developed a brilliant equation:

more craft=less broke

For the impending birthdays of 2 grandparents and an aunt, I am going the toiletries route: various liquids in bottles I've etched.

For those of you playing along at home, here's what you need to etch glass:

Some sort of glass (Thanks, Cap't. Obvious!) 

Stencil OR excellent drawing skills OR stickers OR sticker silhouettes          

Contact Paper (if not going the sticker route)                                              

exacto knife                                                                                          

Paintbrush (see picture above.  See?  Nothing fancy!)                                  

Armour Etch (Re: picture, again)                                                                                                

gloves (because Armour Etch is caustic)                                                                                  

timer                                                                                                                                    

paper towels

And, if your making bottles to fill:                                                                                        

funnel                                                                                                                                     

the liquid                                                                                                                              

ribbon to tie tags on and decorate

1. Grab your stencil and a pen (or just a pen, for the uber-artistic) and draw your design on the back of the contact paper.  If you're using stickers, then cut to step three.

2. Using your exacto knife, cut out the design you want etched.  Remember, wherever there's no contact paper, the Armour Etch will eat your glass's spicy brains.

3. Apply the contact paper/stickers to the glass.  See that pretty picture?  That's what it'll look like.

4. Put on your gloves, grab your paint brush and apply  the Armour Etch in an up/down, side/side motion.  Ooh!  The right side got a picture this time.  If you look close, you can see it's already a little etchy.  Do you feel tingly?  That means it's working!

5. Set the timer for 15 minutes.  Yeah, the bottle tells you 5 minutes, but I've never had any luck with 5 minutes.  Now go entertain yourself.  Go on.  Your glass will be fine.

6. *Ding*  Good!  Put on your gloves and go wash that glass off under running water.  It doesn't have to be too hard.  You don't want this stuff splattering.  Also, I suggest doing this in the bathroom. You really don't want this stuff where you prepare food/eat.  You may have to remove the contact paper/stickers to get the last bits of etching cream off.  If you work fast, this shouldn't pose a problem.

7. There you go!  Look at your handiwork!  Show it to everyone!  Let them ooh and aah!  You deserve it!  For the record, the one on the left is etched with a rosebud and is filled with rosewater.  The one on the right is filled with after shave. 

*Please note: These are guidelines.  While I consider this an easy craft, I would not recommend it for children due to the causticness (causticity?) of the cream. 

Want to see what else I'm working on?  Sure you do!  Here's the start of it.  Any guesses?  I'm not sure this one will go out as a gift when I'm done with it.  I may have to keep something for myself for a change. 

Also, just out of curiosity, is it wrong that, while watching the Kids Week of Jeopardy yesterday, my overwhelming thought was, "I know all these answers!  I could totally beat them!"  Of course, they do have that fast reaction time....