Just for the next week or so, while I pack for school and move in. Believe me, packing eight months' of craft supplies is no joke! As well as the usual cloths, school supplies... I will miss you all dearly!
-Cristy
Wednesday, August 19, 2009
Thursday, August 13, 2009
Glass Etching
So I finally got around to making Harry's birthday gift! Only the day before he came to visit, too... I alluded to this gift way back in April, and nothing's changed since then except the designs. I know he'll like these the most because he basically picked them out himself withough knowing! I knew he'd been considering getting a tattoo for the last several years, so I told him that my brother and I had been talking about tattoos and asked him to give me his favorites (in order, no less!). My theory: If he likes something enough to get it permanently inked on him body, he can't complain if it shows up a few other places too!
Here's the set! I wanted single shot glasses, but Walmart wasn't cooperating with me... Also, I read somewhere in the depths of Craftster that tinted water helps etched designs show up, and I have to agree.
A Boo, from Mario (right? I didn't play video games until this year..)
A Bob-omb, also from Mario
Pi, fairly obvious. I also wanted to get the first few numbers down the back of the glass, but it wasn't possible with the fabric paint method I was using. Next time, I'm definitely trying the painter's tape version.
Finally, the Bohr model of the atom. Again, I had difficulties with smaller detail. And the really geeky among you (I love you all, really) can protest that the model isn't even accurate, but the atomic orbitals aren't as aethetically pleasing!
We're nerds, aren't we? His birthday is tomorrow, so we'll see how he likes them! I also bought some cookies from an Asian market in Charlotte, but I already gift wrapped those.
And would you like the world's shortest tutorial? Buy glass, wash glass, tape design to the inside of the glass, outline with fabric paint, fill in blank places with more paint or masking tape, let dry overnight, coat in Armor Etch, wait 5 minutes, rinse off Armor Etch, peel off paint and tape, and wash your newly prettified glass! If you look on Craftster.org, you can find several tutorials (as well as some spectacular examples), which is where I drew from. I was originally inspired by ladypie's StarTrek Glasses.
Would "Live long and Prosper" be an appropriate sign off? I don't know the Mario equivalent...
-Cristy
Currently Listening to: "Angels" - Within Temptation (Pandora.com)
Here's the set! I wanted single shot glasses, but Walmart wasn't cooperating with me... Also, I read somewhere in the depths of Craftster that tinted water helps etched designs show up, and I have to agree.
A Boo, from Mario (right? I didn't play video games until this year..)
A Bob-omb, also from Mario
Pi, fairly obvious. I also wanted to get the first few numbers down the back of the glass, but it wasn't possible with the fabric paint method I was using. Next time, I'm definitely trying the painter's tape version.
Finally, the Bohr model of the atom. Again, I had difficulties with smaller detail. And the really geeky among you (I love you all, really) can protest that the model isn't even accurate, but the atomic orbitals aren't as aethetically pleasing!
We're nerds, aren't we? His birthday is tomorrow, so we'll see how he likes them! I also bought some cookies from an Asian market in Charlotte, but I already gift wrapped those.
And would you like the world's shortest tutorial? Buy glass, wash glass, tape design to the inside of the glass, outline with fabric paint, fill in blank places with more paint or masking tape, let dry overnight, coat in Armor Etch, wait 5 minutes, rinse off Armor Etch, peel off paint and tape, and wash your newly prettified glass! If you look on Craftster.org, you can find several tutorials (as well as some spectacular examples), which is where I drew from. I was originally inspired by ladypie's StarTrek Glasses.
Would "Live long and Prosper" be an appropriate sign off? I don't know the Mario equivalent...
-Cristy
Currently Listening to: "Angels" - Within Temptation (Pandora.com)
Wednesday, August 5, 2009
Spinning!!
Bwahaha, my upcoming domination of the world through fiber is almost complete! Seriously, I've wanted a sheep since I was three and once I found out about the whole sheep -> yarn process, that desire wasn't going anywhere. Although I realized that I'm learning the whole process backwards...
Through my parents' office, I met a woman who's president of the local fiber guild, has a few patterns published, etc and she agreed to meet with me last night to talk about fiber! I think she spins more than knits and, before I realized what was going on, she handed me a drop spindle and taught me the basics! She's an amazing teacher and is extremely British, which I've missed very much. I'd give you a link or something, but I don't know if she has a site and I forgot to ask permission... But we might be taking a trip to a fiber fair together! I believe it's the SouthEastern Animal Fiber Fair.
But look! It's my first bit of spinning and it's fabulously lumpy! It's wool, rather heavy on the lanolin (wool oil) and very, very sticky, but my teacher says it should felt nicely. I'm thinking about making that Dumpling Bag from Interweave Knits everyone lusts over if I can get any kind of consistence going.
And this is what I've got now. It looks a little bit better, but I still have no idea how tightly I should be spinning this. I knit and crochet with a deathgrip, so I'm assuming I'll likely overspin. I think I have two pounds of this stuff, but I have no idea how that would translate to yardage. Also, the very best part, the sheep this came from has the same name as my mother! Were I superstitious, I'd say it was meant to be.
I left with more pressies too! First, some small bundles I can play with, even though I really just want to keep them as is and pet them... From left to right, top to bottom: hand carded wool batt, salt and pepper-colored wool roving, gorgeously deep red alpaca, creamy alpaca ball, earthy alpaca. I'm not positive on all the fiber types, but I think they're right. (This is like a pop quiz the day after a lesson...)
And finally this beautiful wool that's threatening to eat the bottle in the background is special to me. My teacher is good friends with the curator at the local Schiele Museum (worth a visit, if you're in the area) that I loved going to for school field trips, summer camp, and short hikes. Anyways, I'd always try to spend some time in their pilgrim village, talking to the sheep, and this is from my favorite of them (Sarah).
Now that I've shown off my new toys, I'm going to get some much needed practice! Bye, guys.
-Cristy
Currently Listening to: "No Surprise" - Daughtry (Slacker.com)
Through my parents' office, I met a woman who's president of the local fiber guild, has a few patterns published, etc and she agreed to meet with me last night to talk about fiber! I think she spins more than knits and, before I realized what was going on, she handed me a drop spindle and taught me the basics! She's an amazing teacher and is extremely British, which I've missed very much. I'd give you a link or something, but I don't know if she has a site and I forgot to ask permission... But we might be taking a trip to a fiber fair together! I believe it's the SouthEastern Animal Fiber Fair.
But look! It's my first bit of spinning and it's fabulously lumpy! It's wool, rather heavy on the lanolin (wool oil) and very, very sticky, but my teacher says it should felt nicely. I'm thinking about making that Dumpling Bag from Interweave Knits everyone lusts over if I can get any kind of consistence going.
And this is what I've got now. It looks a little bit better, but I still have no idea how tightly I should be spinning this. I knit and crochet with a deathgrip, so I'm assuming I'll likely overspin. I think I have two pounds of this stuff, but I have no idea how that would translate to yardage. Also, the very best part, the sheep this came from has the same name as my mother! Were I superstitious, I'd say it was meant to be.
I left with more pressies too! First, some small bundles I can play with, even though I really just want to keep them as is and pet them... From left to right, top to bottom: hand carded wool batt, salt and pepper-colored wool roving, gorgeously deep red alpaca, creamy alpaca ball, earthy alpaca. I'm not positive on all the fiber types, but I think they're right. (This is like a pop quiz the day after a lesson...)
And finally this beautiful wool that's threatening to eat the bottle in the background is special to me. My teacher is good friends with the curator at the local Schiele Museum (worth a visit, if you're in the area) that I loved going to for school field trips, summer camp, and short hikes. Anyways, I'd always try to spend some time in their pilgrim village, talking to the sheep, and this is from my favorite of them (Sarah).
Now that I've shown off my new toys, I'm going to get some much needed practice! Bye, guys.
-Cristy
Currently Listening to: "No Surprise" - Daughtry (Slacker.com)
Just because I'm an atheist, doesn't mean I'm a bad person!
I've also been looking more into paper cutting. Most paper crafts aren't really my thing (Glue and I haven't gotten along since pre-K and a fateful macaroni noodle portrait), but something about paper cutting gets me interested. I think it's the permanence of every cut. With yarn, mistakes can be fixed with a few careful pulls, but paper cutting mistakes have to be worked into the image or you get to restart.
Anyways, this was my test/practice piece. I'm thinking about extending this to Etsy (interested?) with a few fixes like bolder letters and maybe some border decoration. I'm also very undecided about the crescent and whether it looks better completely open or merely outlined. I rather like the dictionary page, but I could be crazy. As to Etsy, I probably wouldn't be able to offer framing, unfortunately... grr.
A closeup of the virgin:
A quick word on the political rammifications of this piece: Yes, I was raised atheist/agnostic but I've been known to pray when the situation calls for it, although I call it "extremely ferverent wishing" since you aren't supposed to pray only when you want something. I also love religious art and writings and my life goal is to view at least one service of every religion and its various denominations. Probably because I'm a bit of a feminist, I cherish the Virgin and chose to highlight her, but I have another version, which is only a template so far, that includes a border with various religious icons (cross, wheel of dharma, star of david, fsm, om, swastica, star and crescent, and yin yang). Basically, I'm not trying to be inflamatory or anything.
Love,
-Cristy
Anyways, this was my test/practice piece. I'm thinking about extending this to Etsy (interested?) with a few fixes like bolder letters and maybe some border decoration. I'm also very undecided about the crescent and whether it looks better completely open or merely outlined. I rather like the dictionary page, but I could be crazy. As to Etsy, I probably wouldn't be able to offer framing, unfortunately... grr.
A closeup of the virgin:
A quick word on the political rammifications of this piece: Yes, I was raised atheist/agnostic but I've been known to pray when the situation calls for it, although I call it "extremely ferverent wishing" since you aren't supposed to pray only when you want something. I also love religious art and writings and my life goal is to view at least one service of every religion and its various denominations. Probably because I'm a bit of a feminist, I cherish the Virgin and chose to highlight her, but I have another version, which is only a template so far, that includes a border with various religious icons (cross, wheel of dharma, star of david, fsm, om, swastica, star and crescent, and yin yang). Basically, I'm not trying to be inflamatory or anything.
Love,
-Cristy
Pucca and Garu
I though that switching houses every day to house sit for my mother and spend my evening with my father (it *is* his week, afterall) would severly limit my crafting this week, but it's actually been a boon! I have access to all my materials, and with all the guys working in the house, I don't feel right just sitting in front of the TV, so my hands are constantly working on something. The next few posts will be everything I've done since Monday! (In order, no less.)
I owe an old friend a gift, so I embroidered some of her favorite characters! Hopefully they're still her favorite, but we haven't talked much recently. The satin stitch is a bit spotty. I've never done it before and I was trying not to run out of black thread. Hopefully, I can hide the gaps whenever I frame it... The heart made me realize why metallic threads are so very hated, and I have to agree. Also, anyone know where I can find good, cute frames and batting? The piece is about 3x4 in.
Those of you who have been kicking around for a while might remember these guys from an early, early post. They were cross-stitched, but I haven't learned that yet.. ^.^
Hopefully I can get this framed and to her soon!
-Cristy
Currently Listening to: "Kiss Me Thru the Phone" - Soulja Boy (Slacker.com)
I owe an old friend a gift, so I embroidered some of her favorite characters! Hopefully they're still her favorite, but we haven't talked much recently. The satin stitch is a bit spotty. I've never done it before and I was trying not to run out of black thread. Hopefully, I can hide the gaps whenever I frame it... The heart made me realize why metallic threads are so very hated, and I have to agree. Also, anyone know where I can find good, cute frames and batting? The piece is about 3x4 in.
Those of you who have been kicking around for a while might remember these guys from an early, early post. They were cross-stitched, but I haven't learned that yet.. ^.^
Hopefully I can get this framed and to her soon!
-Cristy
Currently Listening to: "Kiss Me Thru the Phone" - Soulja Boy (Slacker.com)
Monday, August 3, 2009
Yet another craft?
Why yes, I am doing something new! I know, I really ought to be crocheting, developing patterns, etc, but hey, you're only young once and nobody should be closeted into just one niche! Yarn isn't very appealing during the summer, but I still have a tiny little yarn update.
Remember my yarn I dyed? I finally wound it up (by hand, no less) and meet my ball winder! It really is the midsection of an alto recorder. I was looking for something that had a decent circumference and would let me slide the ball off easily when I was done. What do real spinner/dyers use? (Besides a machine. I don't have that kind of cash.)
Also, I found this chart... Armed with merely a postal scale and and idea of the yardage, you too can find the correct name, gauge, and needle size of your yarn! (Thanks to Nancy's Knit Knacks.)
Anyways, here's the new craft! How do you feel about paper cutting? My mother and I, years ago, used to make them occasionally with scissors, but since I prefer the feel an exacto knife, I printed out a few templates for practice. I'm hoping to make my own soonish, and maybe Etsy them. (Yes, "to Etsy" is now a verb.) Think I could pull it off? I've got a few ideas, but ideas in my head don't always translate as well to paper. (har har) If you'd like to try, free templates are hard to find but I got mine here, here, here, and here.
Sorry about posting so sporadically. I'll be bumping between my parents three times this week (after having just recovered from unpacking after summer school!) and my mom's house is having the floor replaced after a leaky refridgerator destroyed it... Anywho, have a charming week and I love you all dearly!
-Cristy
Remember my yarn I dyed? I finally wound it up (by hand, no less) and meet my ball winder! It really is the midsection of an alto recorder. I was looking for something that had a decent circumference and would let me slide the ball off easily when I was done. What do real spinner/dyers use? (Besides a machine. I don't have that kind of cash.)
Also, I found this chart... Armed with merely a postal scale and and idea of the yardage, you too can find the correct name, gauge, and needle size of your yarn! (Thanks to Nancy's Knit Knacks.)
Anyways, here's the new craft! How do you feel about paper cutting? My mother and I, years ago, used to make them occasionally with scissors, but since I prefer the feel an exacto knife, I printed out a few templates for practice. I'm hoping to make my own soonish, and maybe Etsy them. (Yes, "to Etsy" is now a verb.) Think I could pull it off? I've got a few ideas, but ideas in my head don't always translate as well to paper. (har har) If you'd like to try, free templates are hard to find but I got mine here, here, here, and here.
Sorry about posting so sporadically. I'll be bumping between my parents three times this week (after having just recovered from unpacking after summer school!) and my mom's house is having the floor replaced after a leaky refridgerator destroyed it... Anywho, have a charming week and I love you all dearly!
-Cristy
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