Heathen Family Revival: crafting

Showing posts with label crafting. Show all posts

Showing posts with label crafting. Show all posts

Wednesday, August 11, 2010

(Digital) Wardrobe Wednesday

Due to an awesome sale at Winkflash this month, I have a major scrapbooking deadline. I don't write about my scrapping often, because I don't think it's a very interesting topic, but right now I have pixels on the brain as I try to scrap 12 months of photos in the next 2 weeks. @$%#!

I was recently trolling the internet for ideas and came across a digital paper pack made to look like chalkboards. I was contemplating a purchase when I realized that I could totally make the paper myself.

I also made the masking tape frame, using my new scanner. How did I ever live without a scanner before?

So, I am totally going to give you these files to download for your own manic scrapbooking.

Chalkboard with Talk Bubble
http://www.mediafire.com/?5nyd77bd2linsr2

Masking Tape Frame
http://www.mediafire.com/?k3h59hj5y9atsdh
*Both files are in photoshop format.

Do me a favor. If you use my stuff, upload a copy of your work to my Linky. I would love to ~~steal~~ see what you come up with!

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Thursday, August 5, 2010

I Like a Man with Exceptional Fine Motor Control

My husband spends a lot of his day pretending to be an asshole. His job involves keeping bad people away from good people and that is not an occupation for the faint of heart. Asshole is part of the job description. Seriously. I read the contract.*

Recently, the stress of work has been following Aaron home. Really, it trails him like an annoying neighbor kid who just can't seem to get the message that he isn't wanted. The stress makes Aaron sensitive and that makes me sensitive and before you know it everyone is suffering from a digestive complaint and a 3-day migraine. I beg. I nag. I plead with my husband to find something, anything to do that might help him de-stress. A real, old-fashioned hobby, involving his hands and various 3 dimensional supplies.**

He found one.

I nag because I care... and because it works.

87 paper cranes were hanging in my living room this morning. He wanted it to be an even 100, but his hands gave out. It took 7 hours to fold them and 3 hours to hang them. It took me about 30 seconds to start crying.

*No I didn't!
**Video games do not count as a hobby. Sorry. Nope.

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Wednesday, February 10, 2010

Wardrobe Wednesday

A couple of weeks ago I let Violet pick out fabric for a new dress. My original intent was to make a dress from this pattern I bought on Etsy. Unfortunately, the pattern calls for 54 inch wide fabric and well...I didn't think Violet would look good in upholstery cloth. The drafter of the pattern uses recycled and reclaimed fabric almost exclusively, so I'll return to it when I get some good vintage sheets.

Patterns were on sale while we were at Jo-Ann's, so I found a different dress to make. Violet was patient for about the first 10 minutes of this excursion and then she started moaning on the floor about it taking too long. When I handed her a pattern catalog, she immediately began demanding that I make her a series of ever more ridiculous items from the costume section.

I settled on this, because I like patterns that have a lot of options for customization.

Violet refused to take the tights off for this photo and insisted that she pose like a "queen".

I'm not sold on the dress. It fits weird and the sleeves are too puffy. We did a good job collaborating on the fabrics and Violet is not bothered by the wonky shape of the garment, so I'll let it go. I don't know if I'll make another though.

I was inspired to make something simpler, using scraps from the under dress. I frequent a blog called indietutes and she has posted a free tutorial on how to make a basic peasant blouse. It is a terrific formula for making shirts and dresses. It's really easy to adjust and sew. She also wrote the aforementioned pattern requiring 54 inch fabric.

Perhaps I'm still drunk on last night's final installment of Emma on PBS, but I think this looks just a 19th century child's dress. The brown fabric is a deliciously soft hunk of fabric cut from the sheets that graced my bed for 2 years. When Vi put it on she said, "Oooh, silky." It is. I might save the top sheet for myself.

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Monday, December 28, 2009

Christmas In a Nutshell

'Twas the Night before Christmas and all through the house, not a creature was sleeping...because mother and child have a genetic commonality that makes it impossible to turn one's brain off after reaching a certain critical mass of anticipation. There was no way that was ever going to rhyme, but like I said I haven't gotten enough sleep in the last 10 days, so I'm a bit punchy.

I engaged in a crafting sprint to the finish on Christmas Eve. Photo cubes, magic wands, monkeys and matching nightgowns for Vi, Knuffle Bunny and Baby Rojo.

It was my intent to totally exhaust myself, so that I would fall asleep easily, but it didn't work. We were awake at 5:30 AM on Christmas. The smell of my crockpot breakfast casserole probably did not make it any easier to stay in bed, so we all stumbled down the steps at 6 to see what the big guy left us.

I was an orgy of wrapping paper and glitter. The glitter has been so thoroughly tracked through my house that I am now finding it in my underwear. NEVER leave a craft happy four year old alone in a room with a vial of gold glitter. Daddy has born the brunt of the glitter onslaught, largely due to his Christmas bling.

Violet said Daddy needed a "big ol' Daddy necklace" for Christmas. Done.

Mommy got this little hunk of high tech crack after Daddy bullied T-Mobile into letting us upgrade a month ahead of schedule.

It's a Samsung Memoir and IT IS FULLY AWESOME!

Despite family wide fatigue, we continued the day's festivities with my in-laws. There were more presents there and Violet and her cousin showed definite signs of Holiday PTSD. Fabulous gifts were unwrapped and met with cold, blank stares. Later, the girls could be seen rending their garments and crying out for a nap.

The monkeys were a big hit though and my faith in love and humanity was restored.

I was asked by Aaron's Aunt to take family portraits for her. I'm telling you. You buy a big fancy camera and suddenly everyone recognizes your artistic genius. They turned out nice, but I'm not going to out the in-laws online, so here is the photo I am sure certain people wish we would have used on our Christmas card.

Notice how my child looks like a drunk sorority girl after a Halloween party. That's when you know it is time to go home and take a rest, before the next round of gifts.

Christmas continues for us this coming weekend, when the out of town presents get opened at my Aunt's house. Hopefully, Violet will sober up by then. For now, she's recuperating with her most extravagant gift.

Oh, and this also happens to be my 400th post. Thanks for reading and commenting and generally validating my very existence. There will be many more to come in 2010, unless someone convinces me to shut up.

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Tuesday, December 22, 2009

When the Voices in Your Head Don't Calm You Down...Blog

Thanks for the pep talk about my Christmas cards. Before I got my own blog, I would have stewed about this little incident for days and days. Talking to one's self does not provide the positive feedback necessary for a speedy emotional recovery, no matter how much you agree with yourself.

To celebrate my acceptance of the rejection of my offensive Christmas card (see how I can laugh about it now), I have hand crafted gifts for the two littlest people in our family. My family is all about homemade stuff and personal, sentimental type gifts. My husband's family (whom we spend Christmas with) is not terribly comfortable with such intimacies. In the past, I have tried my best to respect their quirks, but I HAD to make these.

I found the pattern for Molly Monkey on a blog called mmmcrafts. I would show you how I put them together, but the pattern itself does a much better job. It is truly idiot proof. I made them out of all one fabric, instead of scraps like the pattern calls for. The crown was my idea and the green tutu is one of those fabulous no-sew numbers rendered in miniature. The polka-dot monkey is made from flannel and has a crinkly belly and a jingly tail, as her soon-to-be mama is but a scant 9 months old. They aren't perfect, but Violet immediately requested her own when she saw what I made, so they must be okay. Is it stupid that I'm nervous about my gifts to a 3 year old and her baby sister?

I think I might need to make myself a batch of high octane egg nog. Clearly, my nerves are shot.

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Wednesday, December 9, 2009

Wardrobe Wednesday

Someone I know likes to wear head bands. Actually, if you ask her she'll say she likes to wear "hand bags". We're working on it.

The problem with plastic head bands is that they are not shaped like any child's head and therefore do not hold any hair back. Stretchy elastic bands just slide off the back of Violet's head in a matter of minutes. Spiky head band hair is a huge pet peeve in Violet's universe. Every time I adjust her head band, Vi fusses. "No hair sticking up!" Much of the time her tiara-like head bands are worn in addition to a barrette. Ah, the lowly barrette, doing the thankless job of keeping hair out of Violet's eyes.

I have begun my seasonal crochet binge and came across a really cool and really simple head band pattern by creativeyarn. The pattern was actually too simple and I managed to complicate it, but subsequent head bands will be produced with ease. I used a different flower on Vi's head band; one that I had lying around already. It works like magic, but it is fitted. You need to measure your melon and account for stretch in the yarn.

I made one for myself as well, but it is done in a really garish, red, acrylic yarn and will most likely not see the light of day. I think I might buy some pretty yarn and make a bunch of these to stuff in Violet's stocking. Pink, sparkle yarn here I come!

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Tuesday, November 24, 2009

Tissue Tube Advent Thingy

I have been saving toilet paper tubes for what seems like my entire life. Every time I'd get close to having enough, the husband would suddenly develop a sense of shame about the condition of our home and throw them away. Grrr....

Anyway, I finally managed to get 24 un-crushed tubes together to make my ghetto fabulous advent calendar.

Ad·vent /'ædvent/

noun

1. the period including the four Sundays just before Christmas

2. the thing that will keep me from losing my mind as I try to explain how

long it is until Christmas, day in and day out for the whole of December.

I will stuff each tube with treats, that may or may not be Halloween left-overs re-appropriated by the Candy Fairy.

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Saturday, September 5, 2009

OK Mama, but Only if the Duct Tape is Pink

This morning I became obsessed with acquiring a child size dress form. I have suffered several sewing failures as of late and a fake little body that stands perfectly still and NEVER, EVER whines would really help me out.

After 30 minutes of googling it became clear that they do not make adjustable dress forms small enough for my needs. Then I remembered seeing a tutorial about making a dress form out of duct tape and fiber fill. So, off we went to buy the necessary supplies. Violet insisted on pink duct tape, even though it was twice as expensive.

I dressed Violet in form fitting, disposable clothes and just started wrapping at the hips. I only bought one roll of the colored tape and two would have been better. A single roll of the silver would have been more economical, but I had to talk someone into this little endeavor with a bribe, so pink it was.

The idea is to get a basic shape and then perfect the edges after you take it off the model. Be careful at the neck area, tiny hairs get stuck to the tape and then there's crying and you don't want that.

Try to keep your model from wiggling her impossibly cute, pink behind.

Basically you want to make a skin tight dominatrix style dress.

Make sure the child has a potty break before starting this process. Perhaps I should have mentioned that at the beginning.

Anyway, keep wrapping. Try not to overlap too much, especially on such a little body, it will make the dress form bigger than you want it to be.

Once you are satisfied, or your model threatens to throw herself on the floor in protest (whichever comes first), start the cutting. This part was way scarier than I anticipated. I was so concerned about wrapping and conserving tape that I didn't give a second thought to placing sharp metal against my baby's skin.

It went well and there was no bleeding, but I'm glad Aaron was here because Violet kept trying to reach around and protect her booty from my scissors. An understandable reflex, but not something I wanted her to accomplish.

After releasing Violet, I set to work taping the form back together and stuffing it. I also stuck a wrapping paper tube in the center of the form to make a neck-like thing for hanging it. Hmm, sounds like wholesome family fun.

It doesn't look like much in the photo, but it works. It also illustrates nicely how Violet has inherited her mother's waist-less figure and her father's total lack of ass.

Now I'm off to sew all night with my headless and gloriously cooperative Violet clone.

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Wednesday, April 29, 2009

Wardrobe Wednesday

One of my husband's co-workers gave him a huge bag of old linens and towels. Apparently, it's gotten around that I'm good at transforming garbage into useful stuff. There was a particularly cheesy set of cheap, baby blue, polyester queen size sheets in the sack and I held on to them to use as an emergency spare for our bed. Well, yesterday I was looking for some fabric to practice a new dress pattern on and I decided that these sheets would make a fine jumper for Violet, if I didn't totally screw it up.

It actually looks much better in the photo than it does in person. I used a McCall's pattern (5613) and it came together pretty easily, even though I didn't read it before starting and was surprised by a totally superfluous piece of elastic that I was supposed to install at the back of the thing. I left out the elastic, because I'm a renegade... and I didn't have any that was small enough. The dress is loose for lack of the elastic, but I like it that way. I also changed the configuration of the button holes because the straps were waaaaay to long and I was not about to undo the whole damn dress just to shorten the straps. So, the straps are under the front flap, with the buttonholes on the front. I can move the buttons if Violet suddenly (miraculously) gets taller.

OH, and in case you haven't been counting each precious post as you read it, this is my 300th entry. Gifts of champagne and chocolate covered strawberries will be gladly accepted.

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Wednesday, April 15, 2009

Wardrobe Wednesday

Fairy wings are a frequent part of Violet's wardrobe. This skirt is just one of 5 skirts that I made in a recent burst of creative ~~diarrhea~~ energy. I went crazy and bought a bunch of half yard fabric remnants on Etsy and used them to make skirts and crayon rolls*. Half a yard of fabric is just enough to make one skirt for my little pixie, with a leftover strip that can contribute to making a crayon roll.

Bonus Outfit!

As I was composing this post, Violet emerged from her room like this. She is looking forward to summer, with a halter dress, but keeping things practical by layering it with a long sleeved shirt.

*For the uninitiated, a crayon roll is a crayon holder made out of fabric that can be rolled up for easy transport. See here for visual.

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Thursday, March 26, 2009

Better Homes & Gardens I am NOT

Over a month ago I made a trip to IKEA. You may recall that I had a plan, a very specific plan, for The Pink Room. I bought shelving and tables and table legs and the entire BYGEL product line to store bits and bobs on my wall. I was very excited.

Then I was felled by the Ninja Flu and the plan completely unraveled. I wanted to be able to show you a room worthy of a blog like Maya*Made or Sew Liberated. The reality is, I don't live neatly and I have no time or patience for removing the spectacularly hideous wallpaper. I try my best to clean up my mess, but in the end, the mess is me.

So, without further ado, I give you the newly reorganized and slighlty less disastrous Pink Room.

Here's a close-up of that fine, iridescent paper. The green shelves are from the AS-IS section at IKEA, so I only paid $2 each for them. Score! The Rubbermaid brand uprights were not cheap.

I wanted to have one continuous table the length of the room (sewing on side, paper crafts on the other), but the dimensions of our borrowed truck limited my choice of table tops. So, I have two tables with a mismatched board spanning the two. Classy.

Here are the BYGEL storage thingies. They are meant for use in the kitchen, but I've repurposed them for supplies.

Here is Violet's corner of the room. It gets a lot of light and she can do her thing while I'm sewing. Also, notice the homemade curtains that do not match and used to be twin sized sheets. Crafty+Cheap=Awesome!

Um, yeah. Here's all the crap that used to be on the floor. See, I've watched Wall-E a lot over the winter and I've learned that the best thing to do with garbage is to stack it vertically and hope it doesn't fall over. Anybody want a non-digital 13" TV? No? How about a copy of the Friends trivia game?

On a swanky craft blog, this shot would be of neatly folded and color coordinated piles of gorgeous designer fabric. Here at chez Heathen you get to see my tiny pile of clearance bin designer fabric and my enormous collection of salvaged towels and outgrown clothes. I have plans for all that. Yes, I do.

There you have it. Now, I can really make a mess in there.

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Tuesday, February 3, 2009

String Theory for Tots

I'm learning to crochet and therefore have many tempting balls of yarn lying around. After exhausting her interest in the extra hook I gave her to play with, Violet decided it was time to crochet the house.

While I'm cleaning up all the yarn, you can scoot on over to Family Bliss and read my latest post.

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Friday, November 14, 2008

All Hail the Queen of Well Chosen Cheap Gifts!

I have observed that my best friend's daughter Kyra likes to dress up. Anytime she and Violet are together the event is a back and forth extravaganza of the naked/not-naked game. I have also observed that children's dress-up apparel is expensive, poorly constructed and sized specifically for children of an alien race. Finally, I have observed that I have a modicum of skill with a sewing machine and the free time necessary to comb the thrift stores for raw materials. So, this year I am busy creating the most fantastic, trunk full of fancy dress clothes that Kyra's mother will ever have occasion to lay her eyes on. Was that a bit much? My past gifts for Kyra have received so much praise for creativity and originality that I am kind of addicted to the pursuit of the next best gift. Of course, the gifts are also super cheap (sometimes free), which I have a reallly hard time NOT bragging about. For Kyra's 3rd birthday I gave her a storybook starring herself that I made on Shutterfly. It was FREE. I made Kyra's baby brother funny newborn onesies, using iron on transfers. But, I digress...
Here is Violet modeling the recycled t-shirt rag boa that I made using a pattern from the book Alabama Stitch. A kid size boa takes two XL t-shirts to make. An adult version takes four. Violet's lovely skirt was fashioned from a peignoir that I found at my favorite thrift store. Most of the items that will go into Kyra's gift didn't need to be altered at all. I found quite a few very small adult blouses that make great play dresses. I also stalked the post-Halloween sale racks for cheap buys, because every little girl needs a purple fright wig. I cannot wait for Kyra to open her gift, so that I can hear her mother tell me again how good I am at giving gifts! Hey, 'tis better to give than to receive, right?

*****************************************************
This week's PBN Blog Blast was sponsored by Klutz Books.

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Monday, November 3, 2008

Crafty Heathens: Part Two, with Bonus Rant!

I had a few pairs of Underoos as a child. I remember with much affection dressing like C3PO under my clothes and, of course, there was Wonder Woman. After many searches on the vast interwebs, I have resigned myself to the fact that they no longer make Wonder Woman Underoos for little girls. I have had occasion to see LOTS of erotic Wonder Woman undies for the purpose of sexy role playing, but that is cold comfort for a mother who wants her child to experience all the clean-cut, practical fun that a set of Underoos can bring. Why are these not made anymore? Do children not wear underpants and undershirts like in the old days? Well, during a recent trip to a soul-sucking Super Wal-Mart, I observed Underoos in the boys underwear aisle. SuperMan, Batman, Hulk and SpiderMan were all there. My heart swelled! I trotted over to the girls' undie section. No Underoos! I walked a circle around that aisle 10 times, thinking I might have missed some stealth display of Girls' Underoos. There were no girls' Underoos. I convinced myself that this was Wal-Mart's fault. I contemplated buying boy Underoos and then I left to search the interwebs at home for Underoos info.

Fruit of the Loom owns the Underoos name now and their website claims to "offer a broad choice of children's decorated underwear, decorated with images of movie and/or cartoon characters." In fact, the website shows only one option for girls' Underoos and they are Dora the Explorer themed. An Amazon search led me to more Super Hero Underoos for boys, but none for girls. My rage led me to make homemade Wonder Woman pajamas. The shirt design is based on the old-school Wonder Woman Underoos. It isn't perfect, but I know that Violet will squeal with delight when she sees them and that is all that matters. Fruit of the Loom isn't off the hook yet. Me and my pal Wonder Woman will come up with a plan to teach them a lesson, Super Friends' style!

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Monday, October 27, 2008

Crafty Heathens: Part One

Halloween is almost here and so it is time for the Heathen household to descend into Christmas preparations. Last year, I made a pantry full of felt food and play food boxes for the kitchen that Violet was getting from Santa. This year's theme is Wonder Woman. Violet fell hard for Diana Prince's scantily clad alter-ego ( I will post costume pics soon) and I must say that I am encouraging it. ANYTHING but Cinderella and Dora, PLEASE! Anyway, I really like for Vi to have an enormous number of packages to open on Christmas Day, but since we are not wealthy, I must pad the purchases with homemade gifts.

*Please don't think me a spoiler, we do not generally indulge Violet during

the other 11 months of the year.

So, I present to you, my first completed craft for the holiday season. Okay, I know that knotted polar fleece blankets are hardly art, but I didn't use a kit and I made that Wonder Woman logo all by myself (ok, photoshop was involved) and I am pretty proud of the results. And, for those of you who have not made one of these no-sew blankets, they are a back breaking pain in the ass. Sure, any idiot can tie the knots, but cutting each piece of fringe precisely, is VERY tedious. I don't think I'll be making these for other people. Violet will love it and that makes the scissor callus on my finger all worth it!

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Sunday, May 18, 2008

Case In Point

Now, if I had big bad job would I have time to whip out a doll sling on a whim in the middle of the afternoon? Would I have enough free brain space to realize that I could use old link-a-dos as sling rings? Would I have enough energy to wrangle the child and sit down at the sewing machine at the same time?
*Okay, I am exaggerating now. Little Bear kept Violet mesmerized while I did the quick sewing. I also must give some credit to Jan Andrea for giving me a little visual inspiration to complete my mission.

Now, when we take our trip to Michigan this week, I can rest assured that Baby Rojo or Knuffle Bunny can be safely carried about without fear of loss.
*Mama and Daddy live in constant fear that Knuffle Bunny, in particular, will get lost or irrevocably damaged in the course of an outing.

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