Cleaned up, cleaned out, and rearranged

New use! Old thing!

Discovered today that a traditional bone folder is brilliant at parting seams as a guide during the ironing of a quilt top!

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Halloween via Martha Stewart

Finito: Halloween Quilt

FIVE years later, I finally finished it. A Halloween quilt, of my own design, for my sister... It's a nice throw-size, and now that I have THIS one finished, I may actually get motivated to do another.

Maker's Faire - A recap

Craft Magazine and Make Magazine, together, resulted in about 8000 Anthony Michael Hall's from Weird Science, and about 500 Martha Stewarts. My hope would be that the 'faire' would split, but that probably won't happen for a WHILE, so I'll be positive and just chalk it up to the humor that is the humanity in a festival situation.

Travis County Fairgrounds: abysmal. Please hold it somewhere else next time, where we don't have to trample through the 'livestock' area, in dirt, dust and I'm sure much worse.

Best thing I saw:
Lacemakers of Austin's demonstration on the traditional method of "bone lacing," an art form from 1350ad, weaving lace with wood bobbins adorned with "spangles."


Also good:
Capital City Scribes calligraphy association.

In attendance:
StitchAustin.com
Studio3 screen printing
Austincraftorama.com
Jenny Hart ofSublime Stitching

Weirdest thing:
Avalon research center, not sure if this is actually the name of the group or if it was just what was on their jackets, but this is where Weird Science truly came to life. Men in white lab coats, a couple wearing antennas, computer-generated music that spawned lightning effects from glass orbs. This exhibit drew a couple hundred observers. I'm still kind of speechless.

The "Make" side of things had your requisite Popular Science followers, DIY robots, LED clocks, make your own lamps, motorize your own bike, etc. etc.

Lion Brand Yarn had a display, as did Bernina, where I got to try out an embroidery machine, a serger and a quilting machine. I want a serger now, BAD.

Best-looking exhibitor: GoodMagazine.com HOT guys work for them.

Patricia Zapata's junkmail art was great, also did a demo.


Finally: a man missing his right arm, wearing a t-shirt that said "I'd give my right arm to be ambidextrous." It's almost too obvious to be ironic.

All in all, good time, definitely would go again.

Reading about, chair rehabbing

My own recent project was turning my grandmother's rocking chair from turquoise woven wood, with a navy canvas cushion, to a glossy black with white silk seat and dark red pillow... Didn't even occur to me to take a before picture, but here are some notes for the process...

So much good information here...
About the process reader's DIY suggestions in comments

Reupholstery/Rehabbing supplies

Foam cushions, cut to order

A wingback chair, start to finish, (this site is also evidence of the complete overuse of adding "chic" at the end of a phrase to create a brand)

Simpler directions, for just covering a seat

Choosing your upholstery fabric

Fun Site: Day-Lab

Day-Lab.com, kitschy cute, fun art stuff, vintage stuff, very fun. Also keeps up a blog

Sweet Potato Prints

Totally adorable project for kids, from Sweet Potato Prints, featured on Martha yesterday. Use a potato as a stamp, and embellish t-shirts, onesies, what-have-you. Not sure about the business implications of explaining your core method, even though they said it was inspired by the Martha Kids magazine, but nonetheless, a fun project, and could easily be done with kids.

Bookmark

Via Not Martha, a tutorial from CraftyDaisies for squaring the bottom of a handbag.

Thrifting for fabric

I haven't decided about thrifting for fabric yet. Seems a little like buying bed sheets at a garage sale, but a zillion crafters can't be wrong, and this post from whipup.net seems interesting. I may check a couple places and see what it's really like. My fancy hands will report back.

Crafting through depression

Interesting post (and goal) about crafts helping those afflicted with depression and mental illness. ahem. http://pierretheyarnsnob.blogspot.com

Freezer Paper Applique

Took a great class (back at Suzy's Quilt Shop) in applique, this time the freezer paper technique. It's relatively simple, and though it can be time consuming, the results are exactly what you want. Basically, you cut the freezer paper in the shape desired, iron on to your fabric, cut the fabric around the paper with a scant 1/4" seam allowance, fold the seam allowance over the paper, baste it down, then using the applique stitch, apply to your project, when you're about an inch from finishing, you pull out the basting and the paper, fold back under and finish... It seems like a lot of steps, but the points I can get now on a leaf are worth it. Will post pictures as soon as I've made enough progress to warrant.

Did you say letterboxing?

So i've spent the last month and a half not blogging but actually working.

First on the house, where we've almost finished our living and dining rooms. Just hanging art, replacing one piece of furniture and refinishing the floors and they'll be just about complete, at least until I grow restless and want to do them over again. We've installed ceiling fans, replaced light fixtures, just done a TON of stuff. Thanks and props to my brother who said "Look, you can either be doing the cool thing, living in a historical area, renovating a fixer-upper, or else you just have to admit that you live in a dump." Husband and I decided we didn't want to cop the dump, so we started working. And big yay for the difference, pics soon.

Second, the craft room. I have been painting, for myself, and for commission. I have been framing, to hang said art in the house. I have been crafting. I made jewelry for my best girlfriends for Christmas and have been doing the holiday thing. Cooking, cleaning, decorating, undecorating, etc.

I have also been hibernating. And in that time, just researching, reading, stewing, meditating and learning about all sorts of wonderful crafty things, all of which will wind up here at some point. Not the least of which, is stamping. Which i've never done, although printmaking was one of my concentrations in college and it's pretty similar. So i've been looking around, seeing what I want to do and I came across letterboxing. It's stamping meets Indiana Jones... Read on... Letterboxing.org

Etsy.com Sellers...

I can already tell i'll be addicted to Etsy.com like I was to Ebay. I've started buying Christmas presents, so far from these two 'vendors' and they're both GREAT.

Catholic Guilt


Souly Stones

Knitting for Psychopaths

a friend sent me this... snicker...Knitting for Psychopaths