crafty lil' thing

In response to the absolutely shocking lack of holly shaped dishcloths on the interwebs.

2012-01-13T11:14:00.000-08:00

During K's Youth Orchestra rehearsal I sit with Mr. Man and a friend of mine, on the floor, in the back, behind the timpani. Sometimes we are offical chaperones, but most of the time we just sit and listen.

Mr. Man works on his computer, and my friend and I play with sticks and string. She's completing a cross stitch that she has been working on for a few years, and I spent December crocheting dishcloths for friends. One day she saw me crocheting one of the wreath dishcloths and she said "Have you ever tried to make a holy leaf dishcloth. I just love holly." No, but hey, what a good idea. I searched the web, couldn't find what I had in mind, quite frankly there is a shocking lack of holly shaped dishcloths. Loads with holly motifs on a square cloth, but you know, I like cute little things, that look like... well cute little things. So I decided to design my own. Took a few tries, but tadaaaaa...... Holly Dishcloth, with a scrubbie berry!

This is actually the second complete one I made, the first was a little longer and thinner. I'm really rather happy with how it turned out. I haven't heard if my friend liked it yet, I was wrapped when I gave it too her and we had to run.

I'm very much in a dishcloth mood at the moment. Toying with the idea of organizing dishcloth swap. Anyone interested?

Santa brought K six new arrows.

2012-01-12T06:26:00.001-08:00

She loved how he delivered them.

Thank you!!!!

2011-12-27T11:05:00.000-08:00

I received my two Custom-made Felt Matryoshka Doll Ornaments, made by the ever so talented clumsy_chord, the day before Christmas. AND THEY ARE BRILLIANT!!!! #11 and River! I asked for her to make them traditional, but if you look close, you can see the fandom, and they couldn't be more perfect. She even added a fez!!!!

The squeeeing was deafening when I opened them Christmas Morning and they are hanging on the tree, to the right of the Plushie Tardis, just above the fez and bow tie, to the left of the Helter Skelter (Not really, what is a Helter Skelter anyway??)

Thank you clumsy_chord! We love them!!!

Spreading the love!!!

2011-12-26T09:19:00.000-08:00

In keeping with our continuing mission to spread the love of all things Harry, we made two young friends Gryffindor scarves for Christmas.

Each scarf took about 2 hours to machine knit on my Bond Fashion Knitter. I used Red Heart Super saver yarn in Burgundy and gold. It isn't the softest yarn, but it works very well in the machine. 50 stitches wide, 304 rows long, with 6 inch tassels. They feel wonderfully thick and are about 60" long, just right for little people who still have to wait a few years to board the Hogwarts Express.

K and I wrapped them in brown paper and strings and covered the packages with Owl post and Madam Malkins stickers. "Harry" started to bounce as soon as he saw the package. He wouldn't take his scarf off, even during church that night. "Hermione" danced around the house and told me about how when they play Hogwarts, sometimes she's Hermione, and sometimes she's Ginny, but sometimes she's herself and that is so much fun!!!! But they aren't allowed to cast unforgivable curses, cause then they have to go to Azkaban, and that's the basement and that's scary. She didn't wear hers to church, because it clashed with her dress.

Happy Christmas!

Tardis Pillows have been gifted!!

2011-12-22T09:14:00.003-08:00

A tardis pillow fight broke out the moment after I took this picture. The fez, bow tie and suspenders came out this morning.

Mission Accomplished!!!!

2011-12-21T15:21:00.000-08:00

Tardis Pillows!!!!!

The original Tardis plushie is on the right. K made the very first for a friend and then made one for herself, I can't remember how long ago. She's slept with it ever since. Today, I helped her make 2 more for her New Whovian friends. Machine stitched, not hand sewn, but we only had a few hours.

The girls are in the living room as I type, emitting high pitched noises. I guess they're a hit.

Guess WHat We're making!!!

2011-12-21T09:16:00.001-08:00

Wanted: Good home for sweet little Angel.

2011-12-18T13:42:00.000-08:00

I put this sweet little angel up on ebay last week.

I bought her for K a few years ago, but K was never really into dolls. I found her the other day, carefully packed in a box, and decided she needed a new home. She really is soft and cuddly and cute as a bug, I'm sure some little girl or boy would just love her.

If you're interested, you can visit the ebay listing here.

Spiral Christmas Tree Earrings for Grammie

2011-12-14T06:11:00.000-08:00

Every year, K and I try to make something special for K's Grannie. We've made her all kinds of things: hats, cookies, scarves, pillows, ornaments,... but we think her favorite is always the jewelry we've made her over the years. She wears it all, and enjoys calling and telling us what she wore where.

This year, we decided to make her some earrings based on a pair we saw at a craft fair here in town. I bought the supplies, K worked on the prototype, and I helped her make the finished pair.

We used glass beads, and green jewelry wire, which we shaped into a cone by twisting it tightly around a pen. It was just the right size, and had a rubber grip, very handy.

I'm mailing them today!

Gifts for Grannie.

2011-12-13T12:42:00.000-08:00

Just finishing up some gifts for my MIL.

I made her some Christmas dishcloths.

I really wasn't impressed with the wreath when I saw a picture in the pattern, but it turned out really well. I had to try a couple of patterns before I found the The starpattern I liked, though I just sc around the outside edge, I wanted it kind of simple. The rest I just looked at the pictures and made it up as I went.

And a tawahsi scrubbie.

K and I made her a pair of earrings.

Mr. Man got us some Trappist jam from Monastery Gifts last year and we have had such a wonderful time tasting it over the year. The quince is wonderful and the burgundy wine is amazingly bizarre. So this year we sent her some Trappist jam and preserves and a fruitcake made by monks that is fabulous. I also made her some oatmeal raison cookies, chocolate chip cookies and rum drops. No picks yet, I'm washing tins.

And I'm making some CDs of K. I think that covers it.

One down, 2,606,300 people to go!

When holidays collide.

2011-12-05T06:27:00.000-08:00

Yesterday we took down our Thanksgiving decorations, started baking Christmas goodies, and carved our pumpkins.

Tardis Pumpkin!

2011-10-28T07:51:00.000-07:00

More goodies!

2011-10-25T12:20:00.000-07:00

If you would like to see the etzy listing, just click on a picture.

Etsy fun!

2011-10-24T12:36:00.000-07:00

My friend Tracy and I are starting to put a few things on ETSY. Tracy is a talented potter and she's starting make a few pins and pots for sale. I'll be putting up a few little oddments from time to time.

Just a few of our bits and bobs.

These are available on our ETSY.

These are coming soon!

My kitties have chosen their costumes.

2011-10-21T06:28:00.000-07:00

Miss. Kitty is going to be a mandrake.

Susan is going with a more general potions theme.

Oh dear, someone seems to have changed her mind.

Silly Kitties.

Finally!!!!!

2011-10-18T08:07:00.000-07:00

I finally, finally, FINALLY finished "The Hat!!!!"

This hat has been on the needles for decades!!! OK,... no, only about 5 months, but it feels like forever!!!!

K takes piano from a wonderful woman, Mrs. J. She not only plays piano, but also drums and I think something else, maybe trumpet, not sure. She is also a painter. I love Mrs. J, she can take a grumpy teenager and in 1 short hour, using only a piano, paints and paper, send home a cheerful kid. K loves her too.

Well, Mrs. J has seen some of the little things I make and wanted to make something of her own. She was a first time knitter and chose this pattern, Cable Newsboy Cap. Yes, she likes a challenge.

Unfortunately, she had a bit of trouble starting; she cast on and then twisted about 4 times before joining. She made it almost to the first cable before she realized something was very, very wrong.

When she showed it to me, I gently explained what had happened, and worse yet, what had to be done. She just just laughed and decided to give up the sticks and string. I offered to take it home, and get her back to the same point, without the twisting, and she regained her will to craft.

She did an amazing job from that point on. The first time I tried cables, it didn't go nearly as well. She made it all the way to the top and then she realized the pattern she had chosen switched to crochet. O.o

She didn't let it phase her. 30 years of teaching piano to small children prepared her to stay positive, think on her feet, and keep kleenex handy. So she just looked for a similar pattern, found Cabled Chapeau, with only knitting, and went on.

Unfortunately, the patterns weren't perfectly compatible, and she got to a point where she just couldn't finish. So I said I'd finish it for her.

And then things got ugly. Turns out she is a very tight knitter, and I am a very loose knitter, so when I added the ribbing on the bottom, it was not pretty. It took me three attempts, but I finally got it to look right. I don't even want to talk about the brim. Nightmare!

In the end it worked out, and looks very nice, but what a process.

As always, Kitty approved.

Guess who K wants to be for Halloween?

2011-10-17T09:25:00.000-07:00

I found them at Target. They aren't patent leather, burgundy or >200$, but they are close enough for Halloween. K was over the moon!

Until she put them on and realized she would not look even remotely tough teetering around with Mr. Man holding one arm and me holding the other. She couldn't even stand let alone walk without us. And she figured the trip to the ER would be no fun at all, though at least this time she would probably get a boot, instead of a cast.

She wisely decided against the killer platform pumps.

We are now in the process of figuring out how to make an eye patch. Polymer clay and wire to attach to her glasses. Yeah, that'll do.

What to give the fan WHO has everything.

2011-09-14T08:08:00.000-07:00

A Tardis Snuggie of course.

Mr. Man and Mr. D have been friends since high school. Both are huge Doctor Who fans, and Mr. D was mostly responsible for K becoming a fanatical Who fangirl.

We wanted to make something special for Mr. D and it had to be something Doctor Who realted and unique. We had a friend make him a ceramic dalek a few years ago and we made him fez and bow tie ornaments for his Christmas tree. He, of course, put them on his ceramic dalek.

After Christmas last year, we were in Kroger and saw Tardis blue snuggies on sale and it just hit us. It took almost 6 months to figure out all the bits, but last July, K and I put it together.

I did the machine work and K did all the hand sewing

Yes, it is Miss Kitty approved.

And Teenager approved as well.

For the signage, I typed up the words and found the St. John Ambulance symbol online. Irons and fleece do not mix, so I ironed T-shirt transfers onto cotton panels. Turned out rather well.

Mr. D was,... surprised.

The white hat was a last minute addition. We thought it added the perfect finishing touch.

Thanks Mr. D, for everything. And you won't mind if I submit this picture to Doctor Who Insider, do you? Nah, you won't mind.

Only 25 to go!

2011-08-27T10:28:00.000-07:00

I'm a late player in the Project of Doom!

2011-08-23T11:14:00.000-07:00

I know, Jennifer has been posting blocks since January, I am so behind. Being so new to quilting, it takes me forever to even finish a block. I've started and given up quite a few times. Well, I really want this quilt, so, better late than never, I'm giving it another try.

So far, I've finished block 1 and 2.

2 down, 28 to go! And then all the embroidery. Mercy.

I threw my first pot yesterday!

2011-07-19T15:38:00.000-07:00

I had a rough morning yesterday, nothing really horrible, just not a fun morning, so I had lunch with a friend. After lunch, she took me to a pottery studio and had a lady teach me how to throw a pot on a wheel. It was such fun, I managed to make three pots, only messed up 3 in the process, and was told I'm a natural, to which I laughed and said thank you.

When we got in the car after cleaning up my massive mess, I asked my friend two questions.

1) It's like crack right, The first one is free? She said absolutely. Though it turns out the first couple are free.

2) She tells everyone they are a natural? No! The teacher is very nice, encourages everyone, but my friend has never heard the teacher say that to anyone. Turns out, making a pot, that looks like a pot on ones first try, let alone three that actually look like pots, is unheard of.

We are going back to trim our pots on Thursday. Might even take a class in August.

Mandrakes Rule!

2011-07-15T14:33:00.000-07:00

We attended the Goodbye Harry party at Barnes and Noble last night. Haven't seen the movie yet, we're not late night people, so we're going on Saturday afternoon. The party was great! Really Well done! K wasn't sure she wanted to dress up, so she wore her Lovegood GOF t-shirt, but brought her mandrake costume just in case. We arrived early and we got in line for sorting, K chose Ravenclaw and was given a badge, acceptance letter and a Marauder's map. All very nicely done.

K held out about 10 minutes and then wanted to change into her mandrake costume. We updated the costume to a teenage mandrake. K wore a green t-shirt and jeans under her pot and I added the sign.

It was huge hit, the moment she walked in the door people started saying, "She's a Mandrake!" Loads of people said Hi and asked to have their picture taken with her. Turns out a mandrake costume is a great conversation starter.

The party was so well done. They had Potter Puppet Pals!

The puppeteer had a doctor who related shirt on, so of course, they had to talk to him.

A few thestrals, K did try to feed them, bit tricky,

Madame Trelaney read tea leaves and told your fortune

They gave away Hedwig and Snitch ballons.

We didn't get any, but we are going to make a bunch, cause, that's what we do.

The cauldron Koolaid (Koolaid powder, water and dry ice) was cool, but not something one would want to drink. Luckily, they sold Butterbeer that was really good! The local astronomy society brought a bunch of telescopes, totally useless indoors of course, but they let you play bean bag toss and gave out candy, so fun. They had wizard trivia, Potions ring toss, and loads of give aways. The Fat Lady wandered around and every so often, without warning, tried to break a glass with her voice. She went off right next to us once. That got your attention.

And a costume contest. K took second place! Won her second hardback copy of DH. Xenophilious and six year old Luna Lovegood took first and deservedly so.

Little Luna even handed out Quibblers!!! They did a victory dance that was the cutest thing ever, twirling and hand flapping and everything. Didn't get a picture, so wish I had.

All the winners were really good. I love Hedwig. That took a lot of work and was really well done. And the voldemort, sorry Lord Voldemort, was brilliant. She put a few strips of tape over her face and then white and red highlights. Really well done.

All in all it was a wonderful night.

Goodbye Harry and Thanks for everything!

Summer, music and sewing. Perfect.

2011-06-20T07:45:00.000-07:00

Can you believe we're already 2 1/2 weeks into summer, it's going so fast.

K went to Orchestra Camp the first full week. She had a wonderful time, playing some really cool music and having the bass teacher all to herself. She was the only bass at the whole camp, about 200 kids, so he just followed her around. Luckily, he is a wonderful young man, always smiling and a wonderful teacher, so she loved every minute. And she got to hang with the percussion crew, cause the bass is kinda percussion too, (in a just string orchestra the bass sets the tempo and the tone. The conductor is forever yelling "Follow the bass!!!!" When she gets off, they all go with her, it's really kinda funny to hear, but only at rehearsal.) K's fingers were red and blistered by the end, but she loved it and can't wait till band camp in July. Did I mention the purple Fedora. It's a band/orchestra geek thing. Not sure she's ever taking it off.

Last week K was sick so we just hung out at home and did a bit of sewing. We finished out handkerchief skirts, which we have been wearing ever since. I followed Cyndee Kromminga tutorial on eHow. Super easy. We made ours drop waists, just cause. K's is almost square and mine is a rectangle. Very fun.

They are very twirly.

We are going to make more, but first we have to finish a super secret project for our friend Mr. D. Wibbly wobbly timey wimey!

Last Day of School!!!

2011-06-01T13:09:00.000-07:00

And we are crafting!!!! K made these stained glass note cards to use as thank you notes for her teacher gifts.

And she made two crosses for her homeroom teacher, Mr. S who is leaving this year.

K came up with the idea and the design, and Mr. Man and I helped her assembly line the cards. She really doesn't need our help anymore, but I'm glad she likes our company.

We took last day of school pictures today, same spot as the day she started kindergarten. Tiny K then

And now

Her backpack was bigger than she was, and weighted more. And now I'm off to watch her step up to 8th grade. *sniff* Crying already.

Post script: I'm back, school is over.

The 7th grade class steps up at mass on the last day. The seventh grade teacher was asked if his class was ready, he said yes and they crossed the isle to take their new place as 8th graders. I cried. K said she teared up too. The 8th grade teacher, Mrs. C, immediately started whipping them into shape, no more slouching and daydreaming for them. Stand up straight, sing loud, pay attention! It is just funny to watch.

Summer is here. Life is good.

Tales from life in a disaster area.

2011-05-26T12:47:00.000-07:00

Still here, just too busy to spend much time online. I'm reading a post here and there, but with the aftermath of the tornados, the end of school and a wicked stomach bug going around, life is a little bit surreal at the moment. The tornados really didn't impact us much. The power grid is still fragile, so the fridge is clean and mostly empty and there is almost nothing in the freezer but ice. The cars are always full of gas now, because full tanks of gas mean when power goes out and the gas stations can't pump, we can drive to a hotel with air conditioning and hot water. Cause hot showers are the most wonderful thing ever. And the air is set to 76. Now to some, 76 might seem cool enough, but in the deep south, it's not the heat, it's the humidity that's the problem. 76 is just barely cool enough to keep the walls from molding, let alone the people. And once that starts, it almost can't be stopped.

We spent some more quality time in the basement last night. We bolted out of bed around midnight, grabbed clothes and cats and ran for cover. Pretty sure the circulation was directly overhead before the sirens went off, but it never descended, so no damage. We knew what was coming so most everything necessary had already been moved to the basement. Getting kinda sick of the whole process. This will slow down a bit soon, right?

Last night got me thinking about April 27th. I found this map with all the warnings from the day.

Tornado Warnings.............................92
Severe Thunderstorm Warnings...31
Flash Flood Warnings..........................7

We were in the basement off, but mostly on, from about 5am to well after 7pm, three waves, each one did damage somewhere. Even the National Weather Service people here in town took shelter for a while. Man, I do not want to live through that again.

And here is the latest tornado track map.

We watched the EF5 go past. It was dark green and calm at our house, but we could see the intense lightening move across the horizon to the north. It was rain wrapped, but you could tell where it was. All our friends in that area survived, but a lot of people didn't. And loads more are homeless, living in tents and under tarps next to the rubble of their homes. It's surreal how life goes on for us, while so many so close are in such pain.

That EF5 is the one that took out all the feeder lines from the Browns Ferry Nuclear Power Plant, which then caused the plant to lose load and perform an emergency shut down, just like it was supposed to, no problems. Right now we are still our getting power via a couple of big orange extension cords from Tennessee. All I can think of is A Christmas Story, the extension cord with all the cords plugged in, and all the sparks. We are buying a gas grill and three solar showers. Oh yeah, not doing the charcoal grill thing again.

Last night, before the storms hit, the guy on the radio read the weather and then said., "OK. Seriously, do you have batteries in your radio? Are your flashlights powered up? Lets all stop and get some batteries on the way home. And get some gas while you're at it." Yeah, good advice.

We are still here.

2011-05-02T13:34:00.000-07:00

We all survived and the house is fine, just leaking a little. One friend broke a hip clearing debris off his roof and a few friends homes sustained damage, one lost everything. We now have power, water and phone so life is good. Our elderly neighbor is confused, but we kept her fed and safe. Friends are on their way to share our power and hot water. And spaghetti!!!

Life is good for us, but so bad for so many. K and I are starting to make quilts and blankets to give to the Red Cross. Take care all.

Duct Tape Easter Eggs,... Yup!

2011-04-26T05:45:00.000-07:00

We had an idea. Well, actually Mr. Man had the idea.

Mr. Man posed the question "Could we decorate Eggs with Duct Tape?" And of course our answer was,... YES!.

K was all about stars and moons...

And the sun shining through.

And then triangles. This isn't a great picture, but it looks like a bird wrapped around te egg. Very cool.

I like the way K's thin strips of duct tape turned out. We might try dying egs using the tape as a resist. Seen it on the interwebs, looks like fun. I first went with covering the egg with trapazoids, duct tape decoupage. They need to be small to keep from wrinkling. Though I kinda like the wrinkled effect.

Then I wanted to do something Doctor Who and I was thinking about Sarah Jane Smith, and plain ole duct tape seemed just the thing.

I call it K-9 in Duct Tape on Easter Egg. I may try to put a little Tardis on the other side, and then dye it all swirly blue and red.

We dyed regular eggs too,

And we made our Easter Egg Rolls, delicious.

K decorates them. We gave one batch to our neighbor D. All in all it was a lovely day.

And this is what I sent!

2011-04-06T16:21:00.000-07:00

And here are the goodies I sent to my partner in the Harry Potter Crafts 2011 March Swap. We both chose the Weasley family and my partner Jen, said she liked Ron best. So I decided to send a care package from Molly to Ron at Hogwarts.

Brown paper and strings of course.

Inside the larger package was Ron's Hogwarts trunk. If you look closely at the scene in Philosopher's Stone, just when Harry meets the Weasley's, on platform 9 3/4, you can see that Ron's trunk is very weathered and shabby.

Inside his box, there were two packages.

Of course, I had to send a little Weasley sweater. She sent me one too, funny! And Jen said she liked my Tunisian crochet book scarf, so I made her one of those too. I tried to fit Susan in the box, she's been climbing the drapes of late, but she wouldn't fit.

The inside of Ron's trunk has taken quite a beating. Ink spilled in the corner and I don't want to think about what else. Poor Ron, all his things are so shabby. But he got Hermione in the end, so I imagine he's got no complaints.

This was such a fun swap. K wants me to teach her how to paint a trunk. I think I'll get her all the bits for Easter. Shh... don't tell her.

And I almost forgot my favorite part! Jen is a scrapbooker, so I wanted to send her something scrapbookish, is that a word,... is now. Anyway, I wanted to make her Molly Weasley's wonderful clock, so Photoshop Elements away!

I found some images of the clock and removed all the hands, then I found images of silver spoons and cut them out. Printed them all on photo paper and there you go, a DIT Weasley clock! Just add your own Family Photos, a background page, I can't wait to see if she can use it.

I've done some reading and I think a real Weasley clock, using a twitter feed and robotic drive, might not be all that hard. Hum...

Swappity Goodness!

2011-04-06T09:52:00.000-07:00

I just finished a Swap on Harry Potter Crafts on Yahoo and I lookie what I got!!!!

Brown paper packages, tied up with strings!

Our theme was the Weasley Family. The little package one contained a tiny Weasley sweater, with a P for pj.

And the big package...

And let me tell you, it is beautifully made!!! My partner is a scrapbooker and the pages are amazing, and detailed, just brilliant!!

I can't wait to try out the recipes!!! K is already planning what to make first. Butterbeer!

There are a gagillion pages and they are all absolutely wonderful! Thank you again Jen! We love it!!

AAAAAAHHHH!!!!! Run!!! They've attacked again!

2011-04-04T07:50:00.000-07:00

Snowleks!!!!! And they are bigger, badder and bluer than before!!!!!!

And green too.

Amelia found a beach bucket and 1 1\2 TBSP measure were perfect for the colorful new guys. She sprayed the body with colored water, took quite a bit of color. She sculpted the heads with a Corelle cereal bowl and used a Children's Tylenol measuring cap for the head bumps. Vicious yet adorable.

And they are everywhere!! I was visiting some of my followers pages, and Lynda Bunting is besieged!!!! The Doctors have it all well in hand. Love it!

Peep has a baby brother!!!!!

2011-04-04T07:32:00.000-07:00

Remember my little buddy Peep, cute, tough, tiny survivor, well she's home and happy and....... she has a baby brother!!!

He came really early and had some tough times, but he is home, healthy, and cute as a bug. I made him a little something to welcome him to his happy family.

I made up the pattern for the blanket, just a big granny square surrounded by smaller squares. I used Caron simply soft, cause I liked the baby blue. The baby baseball cap turned out so cute. I followed the newborn ballcap pattern I found on Crochetville.

I met the owner/operator of Crochetville a few months ago. We we sitting on a bench waiting for our children during All State Orchestra. We both pulled out our sticks and string and of course, started to chat. Crochet, officially bringing people together since the 1824.

It's All K's Fault or How Duct Tape Took Over the School.

2011-03-24T07:47:00.000-07:00

It all started last summer. K attends VBS at her friend S.G.'s church every summer, cause they have the best program. As K describes it, they talk about Jesus for a little while and then they do fun stuff for hours. K always chooses some kind of arts and crafts class. One year, K learned to weave baskets. Another, she did pottery, real pieces that they glazed and fired. One day last summer, they taught the kids to make duct tape purses.

K LOVED IT! Needless, to say, I bought her some Duct Tape.

To be continued.

I'm so proud.

2011-03-02T10:15:00.001-08:00

Last October, Muse Magazine ran a contest to compose a love poem to something unloved. They printed K's entry in the latest issue. Brevity is the soul of wit.

Yup, earwax. That's my girl.

We laughed till we cried at "A Free-Verse Poem to my Beloved Dandruff." She wants to meet Jo Z, Alaska. I think not.

Happy Valentine's Day!

2011-02-14T12:04:00.000-08:00

I've had a load of hits on my old Valentine's posts, so I thought I'd collect them all in one place. So if you're in need of a last minute valentine, here's three to choose from.

Last year, K and her class were suffering from a severe case of Percy Jackson Mania! K's Valentine's were greeted with near hysteria.

If you are similarly afflicted, you can make your own! You will need:

White pens, cause your labels are white.
Mailing labels, avery 5160
Card stock
Template for backing card
Template for labels
Clear tape

Here is the template for the labels:

Print the labels and put on one the side of each pen as shown, kinda high up, so the clear tape won't be over the label.

Here is the template for the card:

Just write your name, cut out the four cards, and tape your pen in place. You and your friends will have brains full of kelp in no time!

Two years ago we made the very cool, though really labor intensive Family Fun rock candy valentines.

These were really cute and the kids loved them. Want your own? Here is what you need for one iValentine.

Tape
1 14-inch piece of white yarn
1 9 inch piece of white yarn
2 Hersheys Kisses
1 (1-ounce) box of conversation hearts
4- by 8.5-inch strip of pink paper
Glue stick
Sheet of white printer paper
Template for playlist
Template for scroll wheel

The templates can each make at least 24, so if you want to make a bunch, just multiply everything by 24.

Cut one piece of yarn about 14" and the other about 9", tied them together so the ends were even and used low temp hot glue to glue the Kisses to the ends. Tape the other end of the yarn to the top of one small side of the candy box. Tape the pink paper around the candy box.

Print the two templates on the white paper, cut out the playlists and the scrolls, and glued them in place. Write your name on the back of the box and they'll be all done.

Last but not least, one year I crochets K and Mr. Man each a heart.

I found the pattern on Pepika. The pattern is free and calls for a size 1 hook and red cotton yarn. Not having a size 1 hook, I grabbed my size 4 hook and Red Heart yarn and they turned out great. Didn't take long either.

Happy Valentine's Day to all!

My lil' Seurat.

2011-02-07T10:36:00.000-08:00

K had a piece of her artwork displayed in a show here in town this weekend.

She didn't win a ribbon, but her piece was chosen to represent her class. There were some really amazing pieces.

Our favorite is the eye. There were also a few pinhole camera pictures that were really good. Might have to try that.

Snow = Scarves!

2011-01-27T07:22:00.000-08:00

K and I made this one with Red Heart on the Bond Fashion Knitter.

We knitted 50 stitches wide and then K dropped every other stitch. So instead of 14 stitches per inch, she ended up with 7. Cool huh.

The Great Snow: 9 inches of Snow, MST3K and Sticks and String.

2011-01-25T07:09:00.000-08:00

A few weeks ago Lisa, the Swap Elf on Harry Potter Crafts, you know the one on Yahoo Groups, of course you do. Well, Lisa asked for swap angels because Ann had made and sent something wonderful, really amazing, and received bupkis in return. Don't you hate that? So K and I, and a couple other people, volunteered to be angels. We were told Ann is a Gryffindor and likes Ron. She also likes Dobby, and I thought of making her a tiny tea cozy to hang on her Christmas Tree, wouldn't that be funny, maybe next year.

Anywho, We spent the first two days of the Great Snow building Snoleks, pelting each other with snowballs and tubing down our front yawn into the street. And drinking gallons of hot chocolate. Yum. On Day three the lovely fluffy snow turned to ice and we decided to stay inside for the duration. So...

The Great Snow: Day 3: MST3K and Sticks and String!

First, K decided Ann needed a hat. I had made K a red and white hat with wider stripes a few years ago and she has loved it. She wanted thinner stripes, just because it would be cool, so she set up the Bond Fashion Knitter, started Swamp Diamonds on Netflix. (Did I mention Mr. Man and I met Beverley Garland at the first MST3K convention. Lovely lady, she actually showed up! Unlike Kim Cattrall. I have a picture of us with her somewhere, and one with Nummy muffin Coocle Butter, have to find those.)

The hat turn out great! Love the big tassels. Then, of course, we decided she needed a matching scarf. So we started Special Agent Super Dragon. Finished putting on the last tassels during Future War.

School was canceled again the next day, so...

The Great Snow: Day 4: Mountain Climbing!!!!!!!

We decided Ann needed a tiny Weasley sweater with her initial. And a tiny hanger! And a tiny tunisian crochet scarf! We started The Beast of Yucca Flats, worked through the Crawling Eye, and finished during The Lost Continent. Mountain Climbing!!!!!. No More Mountain CLimbing!!!! I made this scarf a little different from the others I've made. Instead of running the yarns up the side without cutting, I cut and hid all the ends. It looks a bit better on the reverse side, but perhaps not enough to justify all that cutting and hiding.

Day 4 came to a close without even the hope of school the next day so...

The Great Snow: Day5: Cannibalism!!!

No not really, K hasn't played soccer for years. We wanted to include a cracker, cause what is a Harry Potter Christmas Swap without cracker for heavens sake. So we started Teenagers from Outerspace and worked through the Phantom Planet. Made a few tiny snow daleks in there too.

We opened the cracker very carefully and stuffed a tiny origami dragon inside, along with the pen and the paper hat. The one in the picture is about twice as big, I forgot to get a picture of the tiny one before I stuffed it in and tied it shut.

K finally went back to school on Monday, they never did plow our street, so I wrapped up our goodies in brown paper and strings and included an origami letter with a faux wax seal. I make the seals in batches now and just glue them on. Works like a charm. Charm! Get it!!! Harry Potter,... Charm! OK, moving on.

All packed and sent. She received her box last week! Hope she liked her goodies!

Did I mention, we still have snow in patches on the ground, and they are predicting 2 to 4 more inches tonight?

NO MORE MOUNTAIN CLIMBING!!!!!

The Great Snow: Day 5. The Daleks attack!

2011-01-18T06:46:00.000-08:00

We are besieged!

There are hundreds of them!

OK, well, a dozen. But they're evil! Pure evil! And they're huge!

Well, maybe not huge, but evil! Amelia has a plan.

Want to make an army of your own? Course you do. Here's what you need:

Packing snow, one Solo cup, twelve sweet gum twigs, twelve long needle pine bunches, one measuring cup, 1/3 cup worked perfectly, measuring spoon, 1/2 teaspoon, pair of scissors and a cat. Actually, the cat isn't really necessary, but we can't take a picture around here without one showing up.

Make your body and head, then add the bumps using the 1/2 teaspoon. Cut the sweet gum twigs in half and use the wide end for the eyestalk and the thin end for the plunger. Cut the pin needles bunches in half and add for the gun thingy. Use the teaspoon to add the blooby end to the plunger. And there you have it, you're own cute little destroyer of worlds.

Yep, we're stir crazy. :D

And I think I'm getting a season 18 for Valentines! SQUEEEEE

2011-01-12T11:28:00.000-08:00

K made Mr. Man an Everyday Tom Baker scarf for Christmas.

She made it on our Bond Fashion Knitter, a smaller version of the Ultimate Sweater Machine. She used all Red Heart Super Saver and a bit of "I Love This Yarn." It took her about 3 days, working a few hours a day. She did all the knitting, I was not allowed to help, and put on the fringe by herself. All I did was seam the long edges together.

Mr. Man has wanted a Doctor Who scarf that he could wear everyday for years. Something only true fans would recognize, and the muggles would think was just bit of nice knit wear. This scarf is just what he wanted. It's 1/4 size, about 4.5 feet long and the perfect size to wear everyday, and Mr. Man has done just that. And his office manager thought it was just beautiful. Perfect.

It made a high schooler we know drool and beg. He was on the edge of breaking his cool a few weeks ago when K showed him her sonic screwdriver. Needless to say he has abandoned he calm exterior and resorted to all out whining. Funny.

I understand I might be getting something similar, in shades of burgundy and purple, for Valentines. Yes!

Ms. Pond and her latest creation.

2011-01-12T11:26:00.001-08:00

Think really high squeaky voice.

Snowed in,...Again!

2011-01-12T11:24:00.000-08:00

Twelve Jammie Dodgers and a Fez. Now you're talkin'!

2011-01-04T12:13:00.000-08:00

We made Jammie Dodgers!

K did most of the work, I mainly supervised. Heavens my counters are a mess. Martha Stewart, I am not.

We used strawberry jam. Yum!

I would point you to the recipe we used, but it was a complete and total fail. The recipe called for about half the flour required to make it even semi rollable. But we managed and they are goooood!

Aaaahhhhhhh! No! Bad Kitty. Susan literally launched herself at the table. Silly Fur baby.

I saved them!

What in the name of sanity have you got on your snowman?!?!

2011-01-02T11:09:00.000-08:00

K was building a snowman in our surprise, White Christmas snow. She made a lovely little guy.

Love the hat!

After she called it a day and came in for a long soak in the tub, Mr. Man decided the snowman was really number 11 in disguise. 30 minutes of cutting and taping and stapling later

K was quite pleased.

Happy New Year!

There was frosting on the floor, the table, the children,... fun was had!

2011-01-02T11:08:00.001-08:00

Some good friends invited us to spend Christmas Eve with them. The main kid activity was cookie decorating. K was the oldest child in attendance and helped keep the little ones from covering themselves, the furniture and the ceiling with frosting and colored sugar. Of course, she had to show her love of Doctor Who.

Miss Kitty gave it a sniff, but decided the cranberries were more fun.

What in the name of sanity have you got on your tree!

2010-12-27T08:27:00.000-08:00

Happy Holidays everyone! For Christmas, K and I gave Mr. Man a burgundy bow tie, braces and a Fez, cause, Fezzes are cool. So are bow ties. He has worn the fez for days, even to our neighbors for Boxing day lunch. DId I mention K's favorite shoes are red wellies. Oh yeah, the Doctor and little Amelia live in my house.

We also made our number 11 a little fez and bow tie to hang on the Christmas tree with his Tardis.

We made a few for friends too. :D

And because, every tree needs a fez and bow tie, cause they're cool, we wrote a pattern. Please feel free to make your own, and if you post it somewhere, please mention K and I and let us know, we would love to see!

Fez and Bow Tie On Every Christmas Tree.

You will need:

Burgundy or red yarn, whichever you like best. We used Red Heart Super Saver.
Size H Crochet Hook, our favorite size.

Fez Body:

1. Make a Magic ring and put 6 sc in the ring. Join with slst. (6)
2. Ch1. 2 sc in each sc. Join with slst. (12)
3. Ch1. (2 sc, sc) repeat. Join with slst. (18)
4. Ch1. 1 sc in the back loop of each sc. (18)
Continue working in continuous rounds without joining.
5. 2 sc in first sc. 1 sc in next 8 sc. 2sc in next sc, 1 sc in next 8sc. (20)
6. 1 sc in each sc. (20)
7. 1 sc in first 5sc. 2 sc in next sc. 1 sc in next 8sc. 2 sc in next sc. 1 sc in next 5 sc. (22)
8. 1 sc in each sc. (22)
9. 2 sc in first sc. 1 sc in next 10 sc, 2 sc in next sc, 1sc in next 10 sc. (24)
10. 1 sc in each sc. (24)
11. 1 sc in first 6sc. 2 sc in next sc. 1 sc in next 10 sc. 2 sc in next sc. 1 sc in next 6 sc. (26)
12. 1 sc in each sc. (26)
Fasten off bottom . Leave tail from magic loop to attach little thing on top of fez.

Little Thing on Top of Fez

1. Make a slip knot leaving a 6 inch tail.
2. Chain 4.
3. Slst in back of second chain from needle.
4. Slst in each remaining 2 chains.
5. Yarn over and pull both threads through last loop and cut leaving two 6 inch tails.
6. Pull both tails through hole in magic loop on top of fez. On inside, securely tie tails you just pulled through to the tail of the magic loop.
7. Cut three tails and turn fez right side out.

Bow Tie

1. Make a slip knot and chain 12. Turn
2. Sc in each chain across. Ch 1 .Turn.
3. Repeat row (2) until you have four rows Cut and weave in ends.
4. Wrap about 24 inches of yarn around the center, back and forth till you have a nice center. Tie off in the back leaving enough to make a 4 inch loop at the top for a hanger.

Did I mention, they are also the perfect size to dress up any fur baby.

Fezes are cool!

I'm dreaming of a White Christmas,... wait a minute,...SNOW!!!!

2010-12-26T08:48:00.000-08:00

Hope everyone had a Very Merry Christmas! We had a real honest to goodness White Christmas in Alabama!!!! Over 4 inches and more to come! Just made our day. The last white Christmas here was in the 1960's. Amazing!

K decided presents could wait, so we went out into the wonderland for a few hours.

Susan thought the snow was exciting.

Miss. Kitty liked the fleece snow under the christmas tree much better.

K decided presents could wait, so we went out into the wonderland for a few hours.

More Origami!

2010-12-07T07:33:00.000-08:00

While K was doing homework last night, I sat with her and made these.

They are origami skeletal octahedron Christmas Ornaments. You can find the instructions here.

I've always wanted to make a tiny origami covered Christmas tree. And now I have.

2010-12-07T07:26:00.000-08:00

Last Christmas to decorate a tiny Christmas tree for K's 5th grade teacher. I bought the tree last year on clearance. I had some sparkly miniature balls at Target a few yeas ago for a buck. I used Hobby Lobby coupons and got the lights and some foil origami paper for next to nothing. After a couple days of folding, not whole days, hour here, hour there, I finished something I always wanted to make...

I just love the way the star and dove turned out.

And the little ornaments

And of course, the fur babies had to check it out.

I'll be giving it to Mrs. M. on Monday.

2010-11-22T12:06:00.000-08:00

K absolutely loved it! As far as she was concerned, she was Ginny at the Yule Ball.

I on the other hand, hate this dress and every yard of taffeta and tulle it is made of. And lace, yeah, I really hate lace.

It wasn't that it was a terribly hard dress. Especially since I have Ducky K. A few weeks ago K put on one of Mr. Man's old t shirts and watched TV for a few hours while I wrapped her in three layers of Duct tape. It's really not hard. One old t shirt, 2 big rolls of Duct tape, half a big bag of fiberfill and some PVC pipe is all you need. Two episodes of Buffy, and one Merlin Kept K entertained and we both rather enjoyed the process and the time together. Except for about 10 minutes at the very end. Note of caution: If your subject has any kind of breathing issues, be very careful how tight you wrap. And, I am not allowed to show ducky without proper attire. Too funny.

So I worked on drafting the bodice and collar on Wednesday started cutting out on Thursday, and it was going OK, but not quick. The taffeta was driving me crazy, I cut out the front bodice like 4 times, it kept shifting on me. And the collar just wasn't working for me. But I had another day so, I wasn't worried.

I 'd been coming down with a cold since the weekend, but I was OK till Thursday evening, when the sinus pressure hit. By Friday morning, I was miserable, and then Friday afternoon, my first migraine in what has to be 5 years. By Saturday Morning I just wanted to curl up in a dark corner with an icepack.

But instead, I got up, took some motrin, a sudafed and a big cup of coffee and starting sewing in my sunlit kitchen. I realized at about noon, I didn't have anywhere near enough green tulle to make it look right. I had 3 yards, it needs more like 6. With no time to get more, I just used what I had. When I tried it on K , while explaining that it was just not right, she squeeeed, said it was perfect and set to work making the buttons on the front out of polymer clay. I just love that kid!

I finished the last necessary seam on Saturday at about 3:30, just about when her friend E arrived and needed to be fitted into her Rowena Ravenclaw costume. She was going to wear the dusty purple medieval dress I made for myself about 25 years ago and has since been used to make a princess out of several young ladies. It isn't fancy, no lace, not velvet, just broad cloth and cotton, but every girl that has worn it has loved it.

30 minuted later I took my shower, then fed the girls Cheerios and Milk, helped them get dressed and then drove them to the Yule Ball. Mr. Man met us there. The girls had fun making potions and wands, getting sorted in to Gryffindor and Slytherin by the purple pimp hat, too funny, and playing trivia and winning prizes. E hasn't read all the books, so K stood next to her and tapped her arm when the correct answer was read. They, being preteens, did not dance much, only when the floor was really crowded, but K said she had a great time.

Being a raging perfectionist, I would love to do this dress over again. I'd use peach satin, which I find easier to work with, and loads more tulle. I'd definitely make the collar lighter, just two layers of tulle with the lace hand stitched to the edge, so it would be more drappy at the shoulders and I'd cut it a bit longer in the front, it needs to be just a bit pointy. And I'd use about 6 yards of 60" wide tulle for the over skirts. I made the overskirts by folding the 60" width over to about a 2/3 ratio of over to under and then gathered at the fold. 3 yards is just skimpy. 6 would be nice and fluffy. Though I don't relish the thought of sewing 15+ yards of lace on that tulle. Not at all.

Well, I'm feeling better, K had a great time and I rather enjoyed the ball myself. Mr. Man and I got to sit and talk alone for about 2 hours, so it was almost a date. Good time had by all.

Did I mention, K want's to wear it to church for Easter. :D

I am going to make this dress today. (actually last Wednesday)

2010-11-22T12:04:00.000-08:00

The library is hosting a Yule Ball Saturday night and K wants to go as Ginny. I never even noticed Ginny's dress before, but I just love it. It's cute and sweet and the perfect dress for a tough little Weasley. I'm going for an interpretation, 10 yards + of lace, just don't have the cash. But I think I can get close. Wish me luck!

Sick day, Knitting and Kitty Mania.

2010-11-16T08:34:00.000-08:00

We have been experiencing "flu like symptoms." Well K and I have, Mr. Man seems to just have had a bad cold. Funny, K and I got the flu shot and Mr. Man did not. Coincidence? Hum....

Anyway, in between laying around begging for Motrin and hot tea, K and I did a bit of knitting. I though it was high time she learned to knit on double points so we made little Santa Hat Ornaments! And Miss. Susan helped, of course.

K made the little one with the snow flakes. The pattern for the big hat is by Julie-Bird. I just cast on half as many stitches and winged it for the little hats.

Monkey looks just too cute in his new chapeau.

Oh dear,...

Bad Kitty!

Yes, I forgive you. Octopus and hippo came to join in the fun.

And then Miss. Susan decided she needed to sit for her portrait.

Yeah, she looks sweet, but she is one crazy ball o'fur. Climbs drapes, window screens, clothes hanging in closets, walls. Chews on anything, mostly me and K. She's driven poor Miss Kitty stark raving mad with her wild antics. Miss Kitty keeps giving me this look that screams "Why did you bring that thing home?!?!"

AND WE LOVE HER! She will lay in your lap for hours and let you pet her and cuddle her and roll over on her and all she does is purr. And then, when you're done, she jumps up and attacks your toes. Funny! Right now she's in my lap, purring like a truck, watching me type. Love her!

Tea anyone?

2010-11-02T06:53:00.000-07:00

I've wanted to make a tea cosy for years. The Harry Potter House Cup on Ravelry finally gave me a good reason. I followed the basic pattern by Yasmin . I used two skeins of Burnt Pumpkin and placed a stitch marker on one of the skeins to keep the confusion to a minimum. Added a crocheted stem and curl, no leaves, leaves were too much.

My cosy is keeping my tea warm and lovely as I type.

Punkins!

2010-11-01T09:29:00.000-07:00

The Doctor's Daughter

2010-10-26T05:45:00.000-07:00

After much debate and many changes of mind, K decided to be the Doctor's new companion Amy Pond for Halloween. She chose the costume Amy wore in Vampires in Venice (one of two costumes Amy has worn thus far, that a young girl should wear.) The long, not pink, skirt and accessories were K's idea.

She desperately wanted Mr. Man to dress up for trunk or treat. I was going as Molly Weasley, so he was going to be Arthur, until we realized his grey hair would be ginger for quite some time if we used the red hair spray. Not an option.

Determined, K started rummaging through our closets and laying pieces out on the bed. Ten minutes later, I'd made the final piece, a burgundy bow tie, and K had made herself the Doctor's Daughter.

OK, she's been the Doctor's Daughter since birth, but this absolutely made her day.

FInished!

2010-09-11T09:32:00.000-07:00

Modeled by the lovely K...

I made these for a private swap with Dragonsinger954. One pair of Rose's Fingerless Mittens from Doomsday in exchange for a Molly Weasley Sweater! I'm so excited, I'm going to be Molly for Halloween! Mr. Man will make a perfect Mr. Weasley, with just a bit of red hair spray. Can you get that stuff out of grey hair? Guess we'll find out. :D

OK Dragonsinger, I need you to PM me your address!

Duct Tape!

2010-08-24T09:08:00.000-07:00

K started it! She had an assignment in Art class. Decorate your Sketch book, anyway you want.

Doctor Who in Duct tape! I bought the tape, she did everything else. Cool!

She's working on a Duct tape Tardis purse. Love it!

Duct tape obsession meets Eyeball obsession.

Yes, I need therapy. Or should I say we. :D

Seriously, paper piecing with duct tap, it works really well. Shaebay made some wonderful duct tape purses from Ofenjen's patterns, so I think I'll follow her lead and make this one the flap on a purse.

Thanks again and again for sharing Ofenjen!

I see it coming.

2010-08-10T10:44:00.000-07:00

K went back to school Monday, happy to see her friends, but sad that summer was over. We had such a great summer. K went to orchestra camp and VBS and volunteered at the library, and we all hung from ropes 20 feet in the trees and played with tamarinds and had friends over and went to the pool and watched Doctor Who... But mostly we hung out at home together, just the three of us.

Every summer seems to have a theme for us, last year it was swimming, one year it was drawing, another year it was whooping cough and hula hoops, that was an odd one. This summer it was sticks and string: bows and needles and yarn.

K moved up from a 1/4 size to a 1/2 size base and she had to relearn how to play. It was frustrating, but she really worked at it and came out of her orchestra audition last week with a big smile.

"It was easy ! And they knew it was me (it was a blind audition) because at the end Mr. F said That was Excellent Ka... Uh... Great Job!"

And we all survived a summer of archery, in 100 degree weather. We learned to hydrate before you leave the house, and start the next bottle of water as soon as you finish the last. And we bought K a new full length arm guard, after she bruised herself so badly, her doctor at her well visit, documented all her bruises and asked her if she felt safe at home. "Oh yeah, but I have to learn to hold my arm better when I shoot." It was fun watching the doctor's face as she explained.

And we knitted and crocheted and made friendship bracelets till our wrists hurt. I taught K to cable knit, right after I taught myself, and we made owl dishcloths. They were an easy first project and she loved it. I made first a trial pair and then started a pair of Rose's fingerless mittens for a private swap. Right hand done, left to go.

And then it was the first day of school. She packed up all her supplies, stood in the same spot we have been taking her picture since she was in Kindergarten, hopped into the car with Mr. Man and let us kiss her goodbye. As they drove a way she took one look back, and smiled.

She had a great day, all her friends are back and a few new kids. Her favorite teachers were all there and the a/c was almost all working. She had homework, but it wasn't too much and she had stories to tell and was looking forward to the next day.

Motherhood is tough. If you do your job right, one day, on the right day, your child will take one look back, smile, and go.

They will be happy and healthy and ready to live their own lives. They will send pictures and emails from tiny dorm rooms and apartments. They will call in tears and giggles with tales of joy and woe. They will visit on holidays and birthdays and anniversaries. They might move back for a week or a summer or a year, but they will make new homes and new lives and never really return.

I am so proud of the woman K is becoming, and I have years. But I know, that day will be here before I know it. And it will be so sad, but oh so good.

Till then, I'm living and loving every minute.

Best of luck to all in the new school year and in all your new beginnings.

HPC Potions Swap, in which K and I transfigure total strangers.

2010-08-02T09:02:00.000-07:00

K and I participated in the Harry Potter Crafts Potions Swap this summer. K had the idea of making a Polyjuice potions kit and we went to town.

Our swap partner is a Gryffindor, so I made her a House Bookscarf, wrapped it around our note and placed it in the packing box, on the top of the wrapped goodies. I found the wooden box at Hobby Lobby, and we thought about stenciling a Gryffindor crest on the top, but it was perfect just as it was. The goblets are from Pier One, about 20 years ago. They were just perfect for potions and survived shipping, now that's magic, that is.

I rewrote the Polyjuice Potion and K provided the new illustrations. The cat was because we put in a P.S. to our note saying sorry if she mistakenly, turned into a cat, cause you know, Miss. Kitty gets into everything.

We wanted our potion to be drinkable and fun so we based it on Poison Punch, which you can find here. We substituted fizzing Koolaid tablets for powder, so she only had to make 3 cups instead of 3 quarts, and added gummy worms, pop rocks, a pixie stick and a rock candy wand, just for fun. All the ingredients came safely individually wrapped, so she could mix and drink the potion without being worried about drinking something sent by a total stranger. All our swap recipient had to add was water and ginger ale. We wrapped each ingredient, mostly origami envelopes, and labeled all the ingredients, adding a few faux wax seals, string, and labels. Oh, and a couple of Tiffany Vincent's Potions stamps. Love those.

We made the kit for two, because everyone knows, only death eaters transfigure alone, so there were two final ingredients, the Extract of the Transfigured Being to Be (OK, it was cake sprinkles.) The pink sprinkles transfigure the drinker into.... Tonks!

Drink the green and you become,... Mad Eye Moody!

Our partner has posted, and posted again, and posted pictures, and we think, it is just possible, she really liked it. Squeeee!

Hours of entertainment!

2010-07-26T07:46:00.001-07:00

I don't want to know.

2010-07-23T06:03:00.000-07:00

I was picking up a few things at the store the other day and saw this. Just happened to have my camera.

I didn't try to see why Paula was behind the Cosmo Screen. I don't want to know.

Harry Potter Bookmark Mania!!!!

2010-07-21T06:44:00.000-07:00

K and I have been making bookmarks for the Headmistress Challenge in the Harry Potter Knitting and Crochet House Cup on Ravelry. The bookmarks are going to be sent to J.K. Rowling and K is totally Squeeful over the idea. She has made about 10 and is sending her best 4, one from each house.

These are Chevron pattern Friendship Bracelets, slightly altered and elongated into a bookmark. We are calling them Friendship bookmarks. K learned to make these at VBS this summer and has been churning them out ever since.

I'm making tunisian crochet bookscarves.

I'm a Hufflepuff, and yes, I finished the Slytherin first. *hangs head in shame* I have the Ravenclaw almost done, just needs fringe, and I will finish Hufflepuff and Gryffindor today.

And... I have learned to cable!!!!! It is so easy, I would never have thought. I've finished one test pair of Rose's fingerless mitts from Doomsday for K and I to share, and have started another that I am going to trade with Dragonsinger for a Mrs. Weasley sweater. I'll post picks when I finish. *does a little happy dance*

Harry Potter House Knitting and Crochet House Cup: DADA Homework

2010-06-30T19:21:00.000-07:00

I searched my soul and found my deepest desire to be peace. The end of war and strife, the lion lying down with the lamb, dogs and cats living together, oh, sorry that was Ghostbusters. Anyway, I tried to find a pattern for a Lion and Lamb, but nothing jumped out and screamed make me woman! So, I made then next best thing: a hippo and a monkey.

OK, yes, not a perfect analogy I know. They are both mostly herbavores, hippos don’t actually eat monkeys. But monkeys have a tendency to fling unmentionable things and hippos are rather irritable, so if they were to just lie down together and try to hang out and not fling stuff, it would be rather indicative of my desire for peace.

OK, OK, OK, they were just sooooo cute I couldn’t help myself.

Harry Potter House Knitting and Crochet House Cup: Charms and Potions Homework

2010-06-30T19:19:00.000-07:00

For Charms my dear Daughter K, home for the summer and resting up for middle school next fall, designed and created her own Bellatrix inspired summer fingerless gloves. They are fingerknitted in black so her skin shows through, creating a rather cool light dark contrast. She thinks they are just the thing for the premier in November.

She is casting lumos with our Potions homework, a custom made wand, much like Harry’s Hawthorn wand, though this wand has a Bamboo core (think skewer. :) )

We had such fun on these assignments, though my dozen attempts are Ginny’s twisted wand were not good. I’ll figure it out one day. picks up hook with determined look

Harry Potter House Knitting and Crochet House Cup: Herbology Homework

2010-06-30T19:17:00.000-07:00

Having searched the local yarn emporiums for edible fiber yarns and and found nada, except bamboo, which seems to be good for everything from food to flooring, I decided to go with my heart, or rather stomach and make what I was having for dinner. A lovely Aubergine, fried, and covered with pure maple syrup. Yum.

New Camp Half-Blood Gear

2010-06-29T15:26:00.000-07:00

There was a Percy Jackson Party last evening at the library. K was all excited, except for her Camp Half-Blood shirt, which was a total fail when we made it. She's worn it proudly ever since, but it's looked worse and worse with every washing. So we made a new one, with a freezer paper stencil and fabric paint. She made a few extra beads for her necklace and added my Moms class ring.

She had a lot of fun, won a hardback copy of the first Charlie Bone book, answered almost all the questions in Percy Jackson Jeopardy and did not dive into the pile of children when the Medusa head pinata hit the floor. She went home happy after a snack of blue corn chips, blue stuff Oreos and blue Hawaiian Punch. She passed on the blue nacho cheese, good call. All in all a good time had.

Father's Day Fun and Crafting!

2010-06-22T08:57:00.000-07:00

I hope you all had a wonderful Father's Day! We really enjoyed our day with Mr. Man and he loved what we made him.

K made him a card inspired by one we saw online

I love the pen in the pocket. She was going to put a spot of red on the pocket, but that was a bit too Sean for the occasion. Instead, she made the tie blue and brown, because Mr. Man is her favorite Doctor. Mine too. :)

My card was an origami tie and shirt

When he saw it he said, "Hey, Dilbert! Cool!"

One of our gifts was an original creation designed by K and I. Mr. Man has a rather extensive collection of tie and tie accessories, mostly given to him by his Mom over the years, many from his Dad after he passed. He's wanted a place to store/display/easily access his accessories for years, but not a jewelry box. Something that could hang in his closet. So K and I put our heads together and designed a tie accessory hanging storage/display thing:

It hangs from and OLD wooden hanger his Mom gave him yeas ago. We found the material on the scrap table at Hancock's. The buttons came from the found button drawer in his grannie's sewing machine. K drew the design sketch and determined dimensions, then drew, tweaked and cut the paper pattern pieces. I helped cut out the fabric, cause that nylon was slippery. K sewed the long seams on the machine, I did the tricky bits and we both finished the hand sewing. It hangs a bit crumply when it's weighted down, but I think a little tie at the top center will fix that. Mr. Man loved it and we all had fun looking at all his tie clips and pins. Now we just need to add about 2 dozen button holes for all his cuff links.

Did I mention, Mr. Man only wears a shirt and tie about once a week? Too Funny.

Happy Father's Day!

Orchestra camp rocks!

2010-06-14T07:52:00.000-07:00

K went to orchestra camp last week and her orchestra got to play...

Coldplay is now, of course, one of K's favorite bands.

What my little girl taught me.

2010-06-08T13:30:00.001-07:00

Cool!

Graduation gifts!

2010-05-27T08:49:00.000-07:00

K's friend V is graduating this year and heading to high school. I wanted to make her something unique and crafty, cause she is unique and crafty too. I've already made her an adipose plushie, so, I though origami.

I love making my own gift boxes. They're an easy fold, and very cute. Top it off with a stork or a dragon or a squirrel or a flower, and it's just too cute.

You can print the pattern with the bunnies on the canon chiyogami page. I love this pattern, did you know bunnies live on the moon? Neither did I. The top of the box is a regular 1/4 fold box made from an 8.5" square of printed card stock. The bottom is a piece of 12" x 12"construction paper folded in the 1/3 fold box. (Actually 2 pieces cleverly glued together at the bottom center seam. A sheet of 12" x 12" scrapbook card stock would work perfectly, but I just didn't have any.) The crane is regular origami paper. Just glue it on with white glue or hot glue.

After a bit of a search I found a diagram for an origami mortar board made from a dollar bill.

Believe it or not, the mortarboard is the simplest fold. I added a diploma, just cause it was fun. K said V really liked it and wants to come over and learn some fancy folding this summer.

And poking a hole in the bill to tie on the tassel is not technically a federal offense. I looked it up.

ArcherK

2010-05-23T11:46:00.001-07:00

This is for you archerpren. :D

K scored 574 out of 900 and came in 3rd in her first tournament! She shot 144 arrows between 10 am and 5 pm and she absolutely loved it, despite the blisters and sunburn.

This past week she shot her first JOAD scoring and at 15m she scored a 280 out of 360, so she is moving up to 20m.

Thanks for the encouragement Pren. K is having a blast!

Make a girl a bracelet, and she'll wear it forever. Teach a girl to make a bracelet and you'll get one for Mother's Day!

2010-05-10T11:02:00.000-07:00

I had a lovely Mother's Day. Mr. Man and K made me breakfast, not in bed, and they spent the day helping clean the house. I loved it. I got goodies too. Mr. Man found another Baby Blues book, love those and some deep dark chocolate. K painted me a beautiful watercolor picture.

and she made me a lovely spiral bracelet for Mother's Day, all on her own, no help from anyone.

I just love it and I love that she knows that handmade is best. Not that I don't love chocolate and comics. Did I mention I don't have to share my chocolate. *evil grin*

Happy Mother's Day!

2010-05-09T14:09:00.000-07:00

"You're not the ugly step sisters, you're the pretty step sisters."

2010-05-07T05:24:00.000-07:00

It's spring concert time at K's school, and my sewing machine is smokin'! This year K will be one of the ugly stepsisters in "the Granny Awards." She and her friend S, fight to the death over a tiny plastic shoe, all whilst singing and keeping a straight face. The director told me K needs to fight a bit harder because the other step sister, her daughter, is a red head with two sisters at home. K is loving every minute, and is so proud of her bruises.

Her costume had to be ugly and K immediately thought of a long, yellow, flowered dress, made and worn by her great Grandmother in the 70's. She dug it out of Narnia, you know the deep, dark, back of her closet, and even after years of dress up, it was still in pretty good shape. It was way too long and way too big, but after a week of pinning and tucking and fussing, it turned out quite ugly.

Turns out, bows are the epitome of ugly. So we added a sash and two big orange bows, one on the back and one in her hair. The one on her back is stiffened with netting inside and held in place with thread and snaps. When her stepsister pulls on the right side, the snaps should let go and it should hang like it was torn in battle. I desperately want to crimp K's hair to make it just wild, but she won't let me. Please comment and tell her she should let me. :D

K's one requirement was sleeves. She has to fall down, roll around, and play tug of war, so they had to be puffy, cause puffy is ugly too, but really loose. So K designed them and I cut and sewed and ripped out, and then repeated a couple of times, before I got it right. I wanted to make one of the sleeves tear away, but I realized, stepsister has two sisters , it'll just happen.

The skirt was a little too narrow, and our first thought was to cut the center front and put in an orange pleated panel. We kept pinning and folding and just couldn't get it too look right, so we opened the back seam and hid another yard of fullness in a cream colored satin that wouldn't show too much. Looks much better, ugly, but not too ugly.

K's last requirement was a higher neck line, which I added in the orange material first and then ripped out and redid in the cream, the orange was a bit too much. It's higher, but open in the back, so she won't strangle, I hope.

And she'll be barefoot, so the footman can "try on the shoe" without actually touching her. Cause this is middle school, and that just ain't happenin' people. Touch a girls,...foot! Yuck! If we can only keep them thinking that way till college.

One that note, when the parts were announced, the boy next to her, who is already shaving, whispered, "You're not the ugly step sisters, you're the pretty step sisters." K was so giddy when she told me, and is not allowed to talk to that boy again,... cause he is shaving!

I'll post pics from the performance, if I can hold the camera steady. I've seen them rehearsing and it's a hoot!

Oh those beautiful beaches...

2010-04-30T14:52:00.000-07:00

As a proud resident of Alabama, I am now officially opposed to off shore drilling.

Gulf Shores, you know, the Redneck Riviera, and it was just beautiful. Was may be the proper tense.

Every energy source has its problems. Solar is expensive and just doesn't work well in some areas. Wind power modifies the local climate and can harm wildlife. Nuclear produces waste that lasts forever. Coal impacts the health of the miners and it's going to run out just like oil. Veggie fuel cuts into the world food supply.

What to do?

So sad.

I LOVE this hat!

2010-04-30T06:53:00.001-07:00

The pattern is free at Kristy and Tom and I could actually follow it! I used "I love This Yarn" from Hobby Lobby and the hat is thick and soft and kinda springy, it feels wonderful. K loves this it, wore it all winter. I made her matching fingerless mittens, kinda like Rose's from Parting of the Ways, but much simpler. She was all decked out for the really cold winter we just went through.

In other hat news, I just finished my second Bella hat. K's friend E is a huge Bella fan, so I made her a grey La Push hat. When I showed her mom and she went "Mine!" and put it on. So, I'm making E another one, in Purple, to match the second one I made in tardis blue for K.

The pattern is by April Draven and it was also very easy to follow.

My first Twilight Craft, I'm so proud.

Tornados, math tournaments, sleep overs and arts festivals! What a weekend!

2010-04-26T06:57:00.000-07:00

I need a nap! This weekend never slowed up. More tornados, though not actually in our town this time. Mississippi really got it and a bit south of here too. We just kinda went about out lives, keeping an eye on the windows. K had a math tournament Saturday Morning that went on as scheduled in the AM, but cancelled the afternoon awards ceremony. Good call. So we took K and her buddy E home to play and watch Doctor Who. They built a laser beam maze in the living room.

Yup, it's still there, not sure if/when it's comin' down. I like it. Miss. Kitty thinks, well, actually I'm not sure what Miss. Kitty thinks about it. She certainly can get through it quick though.

Mr. Man and I spent Saturday evening listening to the weather radio wail. We never did have to cower in the basement, it only really got bad here for a few minutes, but that's all it takes. And it was all over by 9ish so we got to sleep through the night. Yeah!

Sunday we went to the big arts festival in town and the weather was windy, but beautiful, we all got burnt and blown away, but it was fun and got to see a drawing by K on display! Each year each school can send two pieces of art from each grade and this year her teacher picked one of K's pieces!

We were a bit worried that it had been blown away in the storm, but it was just fine.

There were tons of children's activities at the festival, and K expressed her Fan Girl pride.

The other side has Team Jacob, a Tardis and an Adipose. She so funny!

At the end of the day we heard the best Jazz quartet we have ever heard in this area. Mr. Man comes from a family of jazz musicians, semi professionals, they've sat in and played with some really amazing people, all while holding day jobs. His mom sings and still does jobs with her brother and some friends. I really know nothing about music, but even I could tell these guys were good. Mr. Man already checked out where they play and is making plans. Cool!

What a great weekend. I think I'm going to collapse.

Turning Kindergartners into Lady Bugs

2010-04-26T06:51:00.000-07:00

I usually play with some form of sticks and strings while I wait during K's bass lesson, or piano lesson, or orchestra practice, or,... basically I wait a lot, but It's cool cause, sticks and string make me happy and never fail to start interesting conversations. Usually with small children who are dying to know what I'm doing and could they try.

This week I was sewing black dots on red shirts for the little kids in K's school play. Her bass teacher looked over at my pile of fabric and asked what I was doing. I said I was turning kindergartners into Ladybugs. He smiled and said "Black magic or costuming?" You be the judge.

The luck has returned!

2010-04-14T07:37:00.000-07:00

The four leaf clovers are here! Late this year, like everything else, but better late than never.

Four leaf clovers are kinda my thing. I've found them since I was a wee girly. It must be a symmetry thing. My brain REALLY likes symmetry, looks for it all the time, and in a sea of three leaves, four just pop out. K's the same. She found her first when she was maybe three. Some friends were visiting and I picked them a clover for luck on their drive home. K looked at it, toddled away and came back with a fist full. They took home a bouquet of luck.

And that's the secret to clover luck: you have to give them away. You can keep a few, I have loads of them, but you have to give them to others to have any luck for yourself. And never sell them. Tried that in high school, quite lucrative, but disastrous luck wise.

There's one in every patch, maybe a dozen. Pass that luck along!

Lookie what K made!

2010-04-06T09:15:00.000-07:00

Bunny egg cozies for Easter!

One for me, and one for Mr. Man. She stuffed Mr. Man's with coffee, because he is Mr. Coffee, seriously, he has to be like 70% coffee. Mine was filled with tea, LOVE me tea!

Here they are being devoured by Big Mouth Bunny.

K made him when she was a wee thing. I think of it as "The Scream," with cotton balls and crayons. I stuff his mouth with plastic eggs and put him on the mantle every year. It makes me glad.

Thank you Sweety, we love them!

Happy Easter! Buns, Bunnys and Bananas!

2010-04-04T10:02:00.000-07:00

K isn't fond of chocolate, but she does like chocolate bunnies. Not to eat, just to save and look at, till they become disgusting and have to be thrown away under duress. This year, I thought I'd avoid the whole problem and make her a Chocolate Bunny she could keep without fear of loss or infestation.

I've no idea how I made Mr. Bun, just kinda reduced and increased as needed. I used "I love this yarn" and it is nice and soft. The pink ribbon is one K used to play with all the time when she was small. She smiled and said "Don't cry Mom," when she saw I'd kept it and reused it. I think I'll make one for my Mother in Law too.

K and I made the rolls and she decorated them. I love that we have gone from me making the rolls and her loving them, to a wonderful tradition we do together. All I did this year was throw the ingredients in the bread maker and cut the dough into bits, she did the shaping and decorating. One day, (God willin' and the creek don' rise,) she'll make them with her little ones. Love that.

Happy Easter!

Done!

2010-03-31T17:27:00.000-07:00

Just finished the Ravenclaw Scarf I'm sending to Rachel, the winner of the February challenge on Harry Potter Crafts. Modeled by the lovely K:

I love this shot.

I'm quite pleased with it. In the post tomorrow!

Sweet old movies, knitting, and odd books.

2010-03-29T06:53:00.000-07:00

When I'm home working on something, knitting, sewing that kind of thing, I like to listen to movies on Netflix. Mostly I listen to the same movies over and over. Old movies or BBC adaptations, that kind of thing. Last week I decided to branch out and I listened to a sweet old movie called "I know where I'm going." Just a little film, but it was nice, especially the second time around.

It was just the thing for finishing the prize for the February Harry Potter Crafts Challenge. It's a first year Ravenclaw scarf in movie colors. I machine knitted it on my Bond Fashion Knitter and I just need to put on the fringe. I used "I love this Yarn!" from Hobby Lobby in Royal Blue and Light grey. I followed the pattern in Charmed Knits for the longer version and it is really long!!! It feels wonderful. I hope Rachel and her daughter like it.

I'm going to make one for K in Ravenclaw Book colors. She has Gryffindor robes and a Ginny skirt, but hey, she's a kid and she doesn't care, so why not. I've actually been toying with the idea of making her robes with interchangeable linings and patches. With Velcro and Duc tape, we could conquer the world.

And I just finished "The Graveyard book" by Neil Gaiman, he also wrote "Coraline" and the Sandman Series. It was wonderful. His style is intriguing. The book is for young readers, but it's detailed and unpredictable and gentle. A person I used to work with tried to get me to read Sandman years ago, but I never got around to it. Might just have to get around to that now.

Linus Connection blanket in Starknuts colors.

2010-03-22T11:58:00.000-07:00

My first Granny Square Blanket, almost! I made the 12 inch squares and Jennifer joined them into a blanket. I love the end result!

There's a Parthenon,... in Nashville? Really? Yup.

2010-03-22T08:34:00.000-07:00

K, being a huge Percy Jackson fan, wanted to know if there was really a Parthenon in Nashville. Yes indeed there is.

And it is sooooo cool! We didn't know what to expect. We arrived around 10:30, just when a group tour was starting, looked like 6Th graders, maybe 7Th. The tour guide was really great, so we just kinda tagged along. And it was fantastic! Really well done and as authentic as a one can be using concrete and gold leaf. The coolest part are the castings taken from the original Parthenon statues. They were done really well and we were told they were some of the last castings the British Museum allowed to be made from the originals. They tried to accurately recreate the original structure and the Athena statue, which looks nothing like the one in the movie, but very much like the original. Minus the ivory, thank goodness.

K absolutely loved it. We stayed for three hours, and then she wanted to go back after lunch. And there was nothing to do with Percy Jackson, they don't even mention the movie. We asked another wonderful museum docent and she said, yes, the movie was filmed there, last August, but that was it. K was still all excited and walked all around trying to think where Percy and Annabeth might have stood. Fun.

And did I mention, there's an art gallery downstairs. Very cool.

Camp Half-Blood Gear

2010-03-12T06:20:00.000-08:00

K and I made some gear for the Percy Jackson and the Olympians premiere.

I love this age because K is old enough to pretty much do whatever she thinks up. So we divided and conquered. I made the t-shirts. I messed up royally on K's but, she loved it, one of the many reasons I love that kid. I used freezer paper and spray t-shirt paint, which is more of a spray dye than a paint, which I didn't know. The watery dye seeped under the freezer paper and spread before I could mop it up and get the paper off. I made the second shirt with t-shirt transfer paper and gave K the choice. She picked the messy one, did I mention I love her.

K made necklaces for herself a couple of friends.

She wasn't exactly sure of the designs. After much deliberation she went with a trident on a black bead for the first year, the bright blue bead has a golden fleece (actually golden sheep, cause fleece was too gross) for the second year, a red bead with a gold maze for the third year, and a sky blue bead with the empire state building in gold for the fourth. She wanted to do Annabeth's necklace, but most of her beads aren't described in the book. So she just added Annabeth's father's class ring, and went with it. Don't tell her it isn't a class ring, she doesn't mind.

She and her friend E wore their gear, complete with silver Riptide's, and baseball caps, to opening night and were the envy of all. Even saw some boys K knew who had brought foil lightening bolts, hidden in their sleeves. They were all so excited.

Of course, K did not love the movie, the little book snob, but a good time was still had.

It's A Pen Valentine! Seriously, it's a Pen!

2010-03-10T08:14:00.000-08:00

K is Percy Jackson CRAZY! She's read all the books again and again, it's all she talked about for weeks. And as a true book lover, she hated the movie to the point of planning to write a "strongly worded letter" to the director and writers.

Her whole class has the fever. Her literature class has been studying Mythology for the last two quarters and they are all so interested, their teacher just keeps finding new stuff for them to do. Way to go Mrs. C!

So, not unexpectedly, K wanted Percy Jackson Valentine's. There were, of course, none to be found. So, she got on our (virus infested) PC and designed her own.

The class LOVED them! She said there were screams of "Riptide!" and they all tore the caps off to see if a sword would pop out. They are still tucked in the back pocket of many of her classmates and Riptide is the most popular pen in the class to this day.

How did she put the name on the pen? Address labels! Yup, she printed them and put them on and they looked great! The original file for the card is lost, eaten by a Trojan, but she may redesign it and if she does, I'll post it.

Once you go mac,...

2010-03-08T12:31:00.000-08:00

I'm back!

I've been offline about a month due to my computer being possessed by a nasty russian trojan. I was massively infected, it was bad, really bad. I still have a backdoor I don't know how to close. Don't know if I can. I have now given up and bought an imac. Expensive, but hopefully, safe and secure.

The washer, our standing lamp and the window shade in K's bedroom all died the same week as the computer. I fixed the lamp and rigged the shade to kinda work. The new washer and dryer will be delivered Wednesday.

What a month it has been.

HPC Bookmark Swap!

2010-02-04T07:54:00.000-08:00

Harry Potter Crafts had a bookmark swap, just a small swap, I like those. For my partner, Puppetmaker, I wrote a note in green ink on parchment paper and folded it into an envelope. I wanted to put a seal on the back but my hot glue with a pound coin and sharpie technique just wouldn't work for me that day. So no seal. I wrapped her bookmark in brown paper and tied it up with string, one of my favorite things, and added one of Tiffany Vincents Owl post stamps and a Flourish and Blotts label I made from a sign I found online. And I slipped an origami Squid into the folded envelope, just cause it's so cute.

My bookmark was a Gryffindor bookscarf made in Tunisian Crochet and pearl cotton. I really liked the way it turned out. And it's the perfect size for Barbie! Or in K's case, her garden gnome.

The front side of this type of Tunisian crochet looks like knitting, but the back looks kinda ridgy and almost knotted. And after blocking, it lies smooth and flat.

And Puppetmaker made me...Two Monster Book of Monsters bookmarks!

The ravenous little beasties attacked before I could stop them. K suggested we tie them up to prevent them doing further harm. It's a really cool idea, I am just going to have to run with. Well, it does have eyes, how could I resist! Thanks Puppetmaker!

And then there were four!

2010-01-25T09:51:00.001-08:00

So how many do I need to make a nice size blanket for a child and and how do I put them together?

My first Granny! Ever!

2010-01-22T12:41:00.000-08:00

Ofenjen is collecting Log Cabins and Granny Squares for the Linus Connection. So...

I made my first Granny Square! Ever!

It is purple and lime green, the colors of Starknuts, a little Harry Potter /coffee /tea / knitting /crochet community I frequent. We are trying to make a bunch in the Starknuts colors to send to Ofenjen.

Actually this is my second. The first did not go well. I'm tearing it out an redoing it and it looks very nice. I don't know how many I'll make. I think 6 make a baby blanket, so I might aim for that. We'll see.

Batiks on Black are so cool!

2010-01-14T09:14:00.001-08:00

I entered two quilt blocks for Ofenjen's Batiks on Black contest. I used her slightly twisted pattern, which I really like. The fact that I finished is a minor miracle.

There are 30+ blocks in the drawing and they are all so cool!. Whoever wins gets the lot. Is that totally cool or what!

Thanks Ofenjen!

Snow!

2010-01-07T11:35:00.000-08:00

Chudley Cannons!

2010-01-07T11:21:00.000-08:00

If you want to make your own Chudley Cannons Shirt, I have uploaded the front and back stencils to my flicker account. Just click on the image and you will be taken to the full size image on Flickr.

I really don't recommend using the t-shirt transfer paper, it is very fast, but it just won't last. I only used it cause I was in an uber hurry. You'll get a much better result if you cut a stencil out of freezer paper and use black fabric paint. The logo will have the CC floating in the middle of the black circle, so use care when cutting that part out. And the slogan will of course take forever.

I was thinking if you have a Slice or other cutting machine, you should be able to cut freezer paper with the slice and cut the letters as stencils? Or even just cut out the letters and stipple around them.

Hum,... Hobby Lobby has the Slice on sale,...

We are not sporty kinda people.

2010-01-07T05:58:00.000-08:00

K got in the car yesterday after school and announced that tomorrow, that is today, was going to be her schools annual "Wear your team sweatshirt to school day!" It comes around every year, but this year is extra special cause Alabama is playing,... some big game,... today,... against some other team,... Texas,... I think,... I really have no idea. Football?... Obviously, we are not sports fans.

Well, maybe one sport,...

We drove to the Walmart, cause Michaels didn't have any sweatshirts, and bought two orange sweatshirts, on sale for $5 each, (Yeah!) and raced home. K designed the logo, which is not cannon, (get it cannon!) but I really like it. I used t-shirt transfer for light colors and saturated the black when I printed it. Halfway through I thought I had ruined the shirt, it turned deep burnt orange where I put the iron. But when it cooled, it went back to normal. Love the team slogan!

Unfortunately, just found out this morning that the main color for the other team in the big Alabama game today is,...Orange! She will undoubtedly be stoned to death upon arrival. Unless her librarian saves her.

22 Foot Scarf, Naruto Hat and One Happy Cat.

2010-01-04T15:33:00.000-08:00

I've been off with family for the last few weeks, baking and eating cookies, sleeping and visiting friends, and generally laying around watching Doctor Who and having a wonderful holiday.

Mr. Man, K and I have been watching old Doctor Who's for years, but K is just old enough to watch the new Who without hiding behind the sofa and we are having such fun. Mr Man and I have seen all the way to the end of the Martha's, but with K we are about half way thru the 10th doctor's first season. K loves Ten and is so upset that the Doctor is regenerating into "some stupid teenager!" Give him a chance Sweetie.

With all that inspiration, I spent my birthday making another Doctor Who scarf for F, the daughter of a friend. She saw the one I made in 2008 for my friend M and wanted it soo0000 bad, I just had to make her one. I cheated though. I used my knitting machine and finished it in a day, instead of a year. It's stockinette, and it curls like crazy, but I ironed it and it laid flattish enoughish. She squeeed, said "Mom! Mom! It's the scarf!!!!" so I'm thinking it was a hit. She wore it wrapped around her head like a mummy or around her torso like a sarong the whole night.. Yeah. She liked it.

22 feet with fringe!

I made her brother W a Naruto hat. K thought of it at the last minute and I had a total of 35 minutes to put it together, so not my best work, but he was so happy. He loved the eyes and put his mom's sunglasses on them. It was really funny. W is just a funny guy.

And just for fun a pic of Miss. Kitty, cause she's been so sick and she's feeling happy again. Don't get too close.

Did I mention unhappy sick kitties do not use their litter box. *I love my kitty, I love my kitty, I love my kitty*

Peppermint Candy Pillow!

2009-12-17T07:46:00.000-08:00

Last Christmas I started a project: Send my Mother in Law a handmade pillow for every season. I didn't know when I made the first pillow that it was the first in a series, it just kinda turned into one cause she just really seemed to like them. So far I have made her a pillow for Christmas, Valentines Day, Easter, Fourth of July, Halloween (sort of) and now another Christmas again, just cause I wanted to.

Isn't it just the cutest thing! I saw a picture of a pillow like this online and thought, I can do that! It was really easy to make, probably even easier if you buy the pattern, but I am rubbish with patterns so I just looked at the picture and winged it. I love the netting tied around it like a wrapper, so cute. It's about 12" diameter and just so soft and cuddly. K loves it and is having major gifting anxiety. I think I'll make her one for Christmas. Don't tell her. :)

Can you guess who we were for Halloween?

2009-11-18T09:37:00.000-08:00

We had a wonderful Halloween this year.

Mr Man was...

...Dilbert!

K was...

...Nudge from Maximum Ride. (Yup, jeans, a tshirt, windbreaker and wings. All I had to do was paint the wings like a tauwny owl. Least time I've spent on a costume this decade.)

And I was...

...Merope! I just wore my locket and had fun watchings peoples reactions. Several people understood at first sight, several thought it was cool after I explained, and several looked at me like I had really bad fashion sense. Pretty much a normal day then. :)

And even more Squeeee Mail!

2009-11-18T08:21:00.001-08:00

Our dear friend Pren surprised us with Halloween Squeee mail! K and I literally danced when we saw who it was from.

The moment we opened the package we were met with the most wonderful aroma. She sent us a bar of handmade soap, made by her friend Libby (her etsy store is Maylees Garden.) The scent is Pumpkin Cider and it smells lovely, but not overpowering. And it leaves your hands soft, with just the most delicate hint of fragrance. It is really, really lovely. I have it by the kitchen sink and I am going to buy a pretty soap dish for it, because it is just that special.

Pren also sent us some Halloween erasers, K has an eraser obsession, and Halloween Pencils and Halloween straws. Fun!

Now Pren, don't make me get all over you AGAIN about being all kind, generous, sweet, and thoughtful woman!

You are here by forbidden to send us anything else, until we finish your housewarming surprise! Seriously, I mean it, save your pennies for your new house. Roofs and A/C cost big bucks Babe and die at a moments notice. Hail is no ones friend.

We will finish your presy before Christmas (fingers and toes crossed.) But till then,... *glaring with one eyebrow raised high*

P.S. K hit little Voldy. He's been buggin' her for a while now and yesturday he started poking her and she told him to stop and he didn't and she asked him to stop again and he didn't and she put up with it for as long as she could and she just hauled off and smacked him a good one. Teacher didn't see. He's leavin' her alone. I didn't punch the air,... while she was looking. Go K!

Swappity, Swap, Squeeee!

2009-11-18T07:01:00.000-08:00

We participated in a Halloween Swap and did we get the goodies! Hermione_jean is a cheater pants and sent us a BIG box full of goodies, wrapped up in brown paper and strings:

We love glowey necklaces!

She made the dish Towels! Love Them! And the potholders are sooooooo cute! I put them out, but I wouldn't use the potholders or the towels, they might get messed up. The orange fuzzy yarn will soon become a fuzzy orange pumpkin.

K ate the pop rocks with a coke and lived to tell the tale. :D And Halloween Socks! We'll wear 'em till Christmas!

K put the ghosts together and hung them in our front tree. Yes, they're still there. We'll probably just put Santa hats on them and wave at the neighbors on Christmas.

Needless to say, we we're well pleased. Thank you Hermione_jean! We loved our Goodies!

We sent a goodie box to Dragonsinger954. It was regulation size *pointedly staring at hermione_jean* but we compression packed that little bugger with everything we love for Halloween.

Of course there were erasers and glow stick bracelets. And eyeballs! Can you see all the eyeballs? Googley eyeball glasses

A crocheted eyeball,

Bouncy Rubber eyeballs

Evil vampire eyeball dishcloth (that was Dragonsinger954's idea after all)

Why eyeballs, because I have a problem. But admitting a problem is the first step.

I love these crochet pumpkins. I made a bunch for gifts for Halloween and I'm making more for Thanksgiving. Quick and cute, just the thing.

And pom poms and cauldrons and ribbons and the loudest noisemaker on the planet and gel decorations and crochet candy corns and stickers and ironons,... Oh MY!

We had such fun putting dragonsinger954's goodie box together! Hope you liked it!

And she didn't fall to her death because...

2009-11-10T06:01:00.000-08:00

...An adorable little girl attempting to carry her big string bass down steep stairs in a long skirt and dress shoes, induces directors of symphonies, sound men and random daddies to RUN!

This is what happened. K wanted to carry her bass everywhere during the concert, because she was told that students should take responsibility for their instruments and K is Miss Responsible. Seriously, it's her middle name. I told her that yes, she is responsible for practicing, cleaning, and packing her bass, music, stand, rosin,... but that her bass weights 25lbs in its case, 20 out of its case and no one expects her to carry it for more than 20 feet. No, she said she had to do it.

So, we arrive at dress rehearsal and everything goes fine. She's carrying her bass, and her bow and her music all over the place: down this long hall, up stairs, onto the stage, back down the stairs, back down this long hall. The sound man, who is a really nice guy, tried to help her, and we tried to help her, but no, she's got it. The sound guy joked about how he would be there to catch her just in case and we all laughed. Mr. man and I take our seats, in the middle of an aisle a few rows back.

So, it comes time for her group to play in the concert. The hall is quiet and she's carrying her bass up these steep stairs to the stage, and she bobbles,... and there's this resounding sound of expensive wood hitting hard floor, and she totters,... but there's a wall to lean on and she recovers. She makes it to her place and all is well.

Her group plays, they do a wonderful job, and we all clap. So, now she has to get back down those stairs. She tucks her music under her arm, hoists her bass and bow, takes a step, starts to teeter,... and the sound man and half the front row are out of their seats. The director of the youth symphony was the first to her aid, I think he started moving before we stopped clapping, so he grabbed her bass, and I believe the sound man held her hand on the stairs. One daddy just kinda took up a catch position.

Needless to say, we all learned something. K now understands that if the director of the symphony feels he needs to carry her bass, he can't possibly think she should carry it. And Mr. Man and I are going to sit in the front row and carry the bass up and down the stairs until she's at least 5 feet tall. Or 13, whichever comes first.

Concert number 2 is this Saturday, same stage, different orchestra. Prayers gratefully accepted.