tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-42643173891093228672024-03-20T00:45:55.908-07:00craftasticaKristyhttp://www.blogger.com/profile/01212069033719667079noreply@blogger.comBlogger54125tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-4264317389109322867.post-76752239742326831712010-02-13T21:21:00.001-08:002010-02-13T21:46:08.546-08:00Putting the Heart in Cranberry Cookies<a href="http://www.flickr.com/photos/kjander/4355551418/" title="cranberry cookies by kelanew, on Flickr"><img src="http://farm5.static.flickr.com/4016/4355551418_3ccba4c0f1.jpg" alt="cranberry cookies" width="400" /></a><br />(click through if you see a photo error -- lesson learned, don't replace the flickr photo *after* having blogged it, confuses rss readers... :)<br /><br />I saw these on <a href="http://blog.craftzine.com/archive/2010/02/how-to_cranberry_cookies.html">CRAFT</a> and couldn't resist trying them for Valentine's Day (mmm, cranberry orange...)<br /><br /><a href="http://www.instructables.com/id/Cranberry-Cookies/">Cranberry Cookies</a><br /><br />I have to say, the Instructable is spot-on -- I almost never leave a recipe alone, but I followed this one as written, and it was perfect. I liked the suggestion of making the cookies heart-shaped, and being the geek that I am, had to try two different methods for that to see what worked best.<br /><br />Once the cookies are rolled up in wax paper, I made the top dent in the heart by placing a chopstick (or two, overlapping the narrow ends) along the center of the roll, and left it in place. (I also considered a wooden spatula handle.) Then:<br /><br />For Batch 1: I rolled the whole thing (chopsticks, wax paper, and all) in some heavy duty aluminum foil, which was strong enough to hold the shape of the smooshy cookie roll (technical term :). Then, with the chopsticks on the bottom, I pinched to form the pointy part of the heart.<br /><br />For Batch 2: I pinched a bit to form the heart point, then dropped the point into the corner of an empty cling wrap box. Wiggled a bit to be sure the point was where it should be, then placed the box in the freezer at a 45 degree angle.<br /><br />After slicing, you can adjust the shape a little bit as needed.<br /><br />Batch 1 (photo left) is taller and pointier. Batch 2 (photo right) is shorter and more rounded. Take your pick!<br /><br />To turn these into Valentine's for our friends today, I decided they needed a bit of support. I cut cardboard squares (from a pizza box lid -- hey it was still clean!) and wrapped them in a bit of aluminum foil. I secured the cookie with some cling wrap (hey where's the box with the cutter strip? ah yes, it was recently in the freezer...) and a bit of tape to hold it all in place.<br /><br />I think these cookies are great, but not sure I'd make them for a non-occasion since they require a bit more work than I usually put into a cookie. I was thinking you could do simple balls, make a dent with your thumb, and drop in a dollop of filling... not nearly so cute, but I want to eat them again, so compromises might need to be made!<br /><br />Happy Valentine's Day!<p></p>Kristyhttp://www.blogger.com/profile/01212069033719667079noreply@blogger.com4tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-4264317389109322867.post-41679073239263841662010-02-04T10:07:00.000-08:002010-02-08T13:42:24.031-08:00Valentine's Day Gingerbread House<a href="http://www.flickr.com/photos/kjander/4230054253/" title="valentine gingerbread house by kelanew, on Flickr"><img src="http://farm3.static.flickr.com/2598/4230054253_e60952d1bb.jpg" alt="valentine gingerbread house" height="500" width="333" /></a><br /><br />This year the girls and I decided to make gingerbread houses. Well, the holidays can sort of sneak up on a person, so we didn't make them until after Christmas. That got me thinking, why is gingerbread mostly for Christmas? I left off the green, went crazy with red and white, and viola, a cute little house we can leave up until February.<br /><br />To get the shape, I free-handed the curvy end piece (the narrow wall of the house) on paper, then used that as a stencil (flipping it over for the second piece). I measured the length of the curve for each side (they're different) and used that to determine the height of the wider side pieces. (The roof was the same process, but simple, because there are no curves.)<br /><br /><a href="http://www.flickr.com/photos/kjander/4230818730/" title="valentine gingerbread by kelanew, on Flickr"><img src="http://farm3.static.flickr.com/2544/4230818730_1b230b700f.jpg" alt="valentine gingerbread" height="500" width="333" /></a><br /><br /><br />I baked the gingerbread, then while those side pieces were still warm, propped them up with crumpled aluminum foil (and all manner of things, really... spice jars and whatever was handy). There's no way to get it perfect, but I just held up the paper stencil so that I could match the curve, and adjusted as needed. During assembly, all is forgiven, because I put the narrow walls to the *outside* of the curved side pieces, and any discrepancies were masked by icing and later, candy decorations.<br /><br /><br /><a href="http://www.flickr.com/photos/kjander/4230051971/" title="topsy-turvy gingerbread house by kelanew, on Flickr"><img src="http://farm3.static.flickr.com/2754/4230051971_b354192c1e.jpg" alt="topsy-turvy gingerbread house" height="500" width="333" /></a><br /><br />Candy ideas: white smarties, red spree, red hots (these bleed a lot into the royal icing though), candy canes, peppermint candies (whole or halved), pep-o-mint life savers (whole or crushed), licorice ropes, sliced red/white gumdrops.<br /><br />The best find of all was this weird stuff called licorice "rips" in strawberry. It comes in sheets of 1 mm wide ropes stuck together, so you can tear it to the size you need. Individual ropes worked well for my little curlicues above the windows and doors, and even for the heart outline within the crushed life saver mosaic. <br /><br /><a href="http://www.flickr.com/photos/kjander/4230053043/" title="swag by kelanew, on Flickr"><img src="http://farm5.static.flickr.com/4064/4230053043_98b6f8fd5a.jpg" alt="swag" height="333" width="500" /></a><br /><br />I almost forgot! The windows -- hard to see (because I forgot to place the lights inside before assembling the walls, oops) but there are candy windows in place. Cut the windows before baking the panels, then before removing from the foil, fill the openings with crushed butterscotch hard candies and return to the oven until melted. Allow to cool, the peel away from foil. <br /><br />I've always found great tips, tricks, recipes, patterns, etc at <a href="http://www.ultimategingerbread.com/">ultimategingerbread.com</a>, so give that a try if you're looking for help or inspiration.<br /><br />St. Patrick's Day green gingerbread house? Pastel spring/Easter house? Why not...Kristyhttp://www.blogger.com/profile/01212069033719667079noreply@blogger.com3tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-4264317389109322867.post-8140956415723980562010-02-04T09:58:00.000-08:002010-02-04T10:06:56.753-08:00I'm back ... (?)Hmm... I sort of disappeared for, oh, a year there. Oops. Life gets in the way (some good things, some not so good, but all requiring time and energy). I've hesitated to post for the past few months because I was waiting until I was sure I could post more than sporadically. Well, sporadic it might be, but it's time to just jump back in.<br /><br />So, we're back. I'm not sure if anyone is still out there, but off we go... For those of you who have hung on, thanks! Let's see what I've been up to.Kristyhttp://www.blogger.com/profile/01212069033719667079noreply@blogger.com5tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-4264317389109322867.post-26750432932666944612009-04-10T21:28:00.000-07:002009-04-10T22:48:44.771-07:00kid craft: egg cartons into eggs<a href="http://www.flickr.com/photos/kjander/3431039636/" title="egg carton eggs by kelanew, on Flickr"><img src="http://farm4.static.flickr.com/3580/3431039636_19c6efc602.jpg" width="400" alt="egg carton eggs" /></a><br /><br />recently, our city switched over to a single stream recycling system with lovely rolling blue bins. it's great, you can recycle... well, pretty much everything. paperboard. (ooh!) every number of plastic. (ahh!) combine that with our backyard composter (which is where our<a href="http://www.gdiapers.com/gdiapers101"> flushable diapers</a> end up, along with the usual kitchen scraps and such), and we now have to take the trash out because it starts to get gross rather than because the trash can is full. weird.<br /><br />the exception to this is egg cartons (the cardboardy kind). i find them consternating -- can't recycle them (hmm, or can i? keep meaning to check on that, their website leaves it open to interpretation), don't want to throw them away. i've taken several to my daughter's preschool for art projects, and we've used them for a few things at home, but somehow we always have at least three floating around the house. until the baby chews on them, generally.<br /><br />we have an annual egg hunt with friends in the park -- everyone contributes eggs then we hurry to "hide" them while barely holding the kids at bay, then they run around like crazy scooping them all up. who knew something so simple could be so fun? last year, i made<a href="http://craftastica.blogspot.com/2008/03/fabric-eggs.html"> fabric eggs</a>. this year i was stumped.<br /><br />until i spied those egg cartons in the corner.<br /><br />i don't really know what to call these things. they make me think of wee tiny pinatas, but they also work a bit like <a href="http://www.amazon.com/Cascarones-Easter-Confetti-Eggs-Dozen/dp/B0014DCQS6">cascarones</a> if you fill them with confetti. they're papier-mache. they're fortune eggs. how about "recycled egg carton fortune egg hunt eggs"?<br /><br />who cares what they're called. here's how we made them (the quick version, because there's not much to mess up, and also because i'm sleepy).<br /><br /><a href="http://www.flickr.com/photos/kjander/3430227015/" title="in progress: egg cartons into eggs by kelanew, on Flickr"><img src="http://farm4.static.flickr.com/3335/3430227015_47e4167e68.jpg" width="400" alt="in progress: egg cartons into eggs" /></a><br /><br /><span style="font-weight: bold;">materials:</span><br />cardboard egg carton(s) -- each carton yeilds 6 eggs<br />newspaper or a paper bag<br />flour<br />paper confetti (optional but fun)<br />tissue paper (optional)<br />paints, stamps, crayons, etc (optional)<br /><br /><span style="font-weight: bold;">1. cut & trim egg cartons</span><br />remove the lid and flap from the egg carton, leaving just the egg holding part. cut apart each of the 12 egg cups. trim off the extra bits to yeild a nice round egg half that doesn't have anything sticking out to the side. (the parts that stick straight up are fine to leave if you just round them off a bit -- that can help the egg halves to lock together.) the trimming is not absolutely necessary but yeilds a smoother more egg-shaped egg in the end.<br /><br /><span style="font-weight: bold;">2. fill the eggs with a surprise</span><br />my 3-year-old assistant decided to fill the eggs with "jokes", which eventually morphed into suggestions for fun activities ("hug a friend that you love", "run up the hill and sing a song", "jump up and down on one foot", you get the idea). you could make up fortune-cookie type fortunes, coupons for favors/activities (particularly within the family), scavenger hunt clues, or trinkets of some sort. or candy. there's always candy. don't forget the confetti if you like that sort of thing (the biodegradable paper kind, please).<br /><br /><span style="font-weight: bold;">3. seal them up</span><br />we papier-mached (hey is that a legit verb?) them closed. we used a paste made of slightly more water than flour applied to strips of paper bag (because the newspapers had just been part of the recycling pick-up the day before). just dip your strip of paper in the paste, wipe off the excess (you know the drill), then wind it around the seam between the two egg halves and smooth it down a little. you can let them dry at this point, or continue immediately to the next step. if it needs more structure, you can add a second strip of paper, but i found that they held together just fine.<br /><br /><span style="font-weight: bold;">4. decorate</span><br />to cover with tissue paper, dab a bit of paste onto the egg (because you can't dip the tissue into the paste directly, it disintegrates). wind the tissue -- assorted colors or not -- around the egg until you're happy. one layer or many, it doesn't matter for structure, it's purely decorative. once they dry, you can further decorate with paint, crayons, etc. we used some dot ink stampers.<br /><br /><br />that's it! assuming you don't add too many layers of tissue, these dry pretty quickly so you don't need too much advance planning (says the woman posting this the day before easter). they're ready for all your fake egg needs, easter or otherwise. you probably shouldn't whack anyone on the head with them (as they're harder than you might think -- the eggs, not the heads), but they're perfectly suited for some gleeful stomping. enjoy!Kristyhttp://www.blogger.com/profile/01212069033719667079noreply@blogger.com15tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-4264317389109322867.post-31397024501149943202009-02-15T21:33:00.000-08:002009-02-15T22:29:59.856-08:00cinnamon ornaments<a href="http://www.flickr.com/photos/kjander/3284041114/" title="cinnamon mobile by kelanew, on Flickr"><img src="http://farm4.static.flickr.com/3635/3284041114_f9e4cc974d.jpg" width="333" height="500" alt="cinnamon mobile" /></a><br /><br />sometimes people ask me how i come up with ideas. i suppose sometimes clever little thoughts just pop into my head out of nowhere, but generally it works more like this:<br /><br /><span class="blsp-spelling-error" id="SPELLING_ERROR_0">eva</span> and i made valentine ornaments for her friends out of cinnamon dough. why? because i finally got around to cleaning out my spice cabinet last week, and came across three old containers of cinnamon (that doesn't count the three different kinds of good <a href="http://www.penzeys.com/cgi-bin/penzeys/p-penzeyscinnamon.html"><span class="blsp-spelling-error" id="SPELLING_ERROR_1">penzey's</span></a> cinnamon i also had in there). i will fess up that one cinnamon was stop & shop brand, which only exists on the east coast (i think?), which means i bought it in college. and <span class="blsp-spelling-error" id="SPELLING_ERROR_2">i've</span> already been to my 10 year reunion. (how that was still in there, <span class="blsp-spelling-error" id="SPELLING_ERROR_3">i'm</span> not sure...) so, what to do with all that cinnamon? wait, i seem to remember the <span class="blsp-spelling-corrected" id="SPELLING_ERROR_4">existence</span> of some sort of cinnamon dough... off to research, and this is what i found: a dough made of cinnamon and applesauce. lucky, because i had a partial jar of applesauce in the fridge that was soon to be a bit questionably old (how long does applesauce keep, anyway? seems like forever...)<br /><br />true to form, i of course had to modify things a bit. i found a recipe on <a href="http://crafts.kaboose.com/cinnamon-dough-ornaments.html"><span class="blsp-spelling-error" id="SPELLING_ERROR_5">kaboose</span></a> (there are many, this is the one i randomly chose), but it called for <span class="blsp-spelling-error" id="SPELLING_ERROR_6">elmer's</span> glue. now, <span class="blsp-spelling-error" id="SPELLING_ERROR_7">i'm</span> sure school glue is technically edible, but i wanted to make these entirely out of food just in case (and a good thing -- the very first recipient took a very cute bite out of one of the hearts before i had a chance to advise otherwise -- oops!). but what is school glue anyway but a kind of paste? and paste is just flour and water... so i replaced the glue with a flour/water mixture that was approximately the same consistency. why not?<br /><br /><a href="http://www.flickr.com/photos/kjander/3283220449/" title="cinnamon ornaments by kelanew, on Flickr"><img src="http://farm4.static.flickr.com/3279/3283220449_9108bdf5ae.jpg" width="500" height="333" alt="cinnamon ornaments" /></a><br /><br />rather than let them dry for a few days, we put them in a 200 degree oven for a couple hours, turning every 30 minutes or so (or, once the edges began to curl). we found that the optimum thickness is in fact between 1/8" and 1/4" -- a bit thicker worked (just took longer to dry) but the thinner ones split a bit. that said, it's not so fussy that you can't just let your preschooler roll them out and cut them herself. (she did fine with the hearts and stars, but needed some help with the seahorses.)<br /><br />we jointly came up with the idea to use our mini-sandwich cutters to make small shapes and connect some of them into mobiles. she also wanted to decorate them, and so we tried using luster dust from my cake decorating supplies. we mixed it with orange extract (which i never use, also discovered in my spice cabinet clean-out), and added food coloring to half of it to get silver and pink. she really had fun decorating, but unfortunately unlike when applied to a softer medium like fondant, in this case the luster dust just sort of flaked off when it dried. so, it's fine as long as you don't handle them too much, and worst case, you have silvery fingers.<br /><br />these would make great <span class="blsp-spelling-error" id="SPELLING_ERROR_8">christmas</span> tree ornaments or gifts for another occasion beyond valentine's day. the cinnamon smell is really lovely, and i presume they keep <span class="blsp-spelling-corrected" id="SPELLING_ERROR_9">indefinitely</span>. <br /><br />happy valentine's day! a bit late in posting, though the treats were delivered on time -- except for a few, which haven't made it into the mail yet. oops.Kristyhttp://www.blogger.com/profile/01212069033719667079noreply@blogger.com4tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-4264317389109322867.post-32007701729346756472009-02-15T19:59:00.000-08:002009-02-15T21:31:26.675-08:00felt veggies<a href="http://www.flickr.com/photos/kjander/3284039766/" title="felt veggies by kelanew, on Flickr"><img src="http://farm4.static.flickr.com/3551/3284039766_c98f685589.jpg" width="400" alt="felt veggies" /></a><br /><br />i made an assortment of felt vegetables for my niece for <span class="blsp-spelling-error" id="SPELLING_ERROR_0">christmas</span>. <span class="blsp-spelling-error" id="SPELLING_ERROR_1">i'd</span> never sewn any stuffed things from felt before, but that's how i craft (apparently) -- do something new, get the hang of it, then promptly become bored of it. :)<br /><br />(i should say, <span class="blsp-spelling-error" id="SPELLING_ERROR_2">i'm</span> catching up on posts from before the holidays -- because i didn't want to spoil the surprise for the various gifts i made, and also because <span class="blsp-spelling-error" id="SPELLING_ERROR_3">i've</span> been swamped since then.)<br /><br />i originally planned to design all the felt food myself, but i was short on time in <span class="blsp-spelling-error" id="SPELLING_ERROR_4">december</span>, and am finally starting to learn from past experience. so, i searched for and found some really cute patterns on <span class="blsp-spelling-error" id="SPELLING_ERROR_5">etsy</span> from seller <a href="http://www.etsy.com/view_listing.php?listing_id=21104919"><span class="blsp-spelling-error" id="SPELLING_ERROR_6">umecrafts</span></a>. and then i splurged and bought the set of every kind of vegetable she offers. i was really happy with the patterns -- for the most part, the instructions were clear (every so often, a step was less than obvious, probably because <span class="blsp-spelling-error" id="SPELLING_ERROR_7">i'm</span> new to this), and she used really interesting techniques to create the various shapes. so, by (for once) <em>not</em> trying to recreate the wheel, i ended up learning a lot, and as a bonus, got my project done in less time with less frustration. (though, i did have to get over the sense that i was somehow cheating...)<br /><br />i wanted to use wool felt, and after some research, i ordered from <a href="http://www.prairiepointjunction.com/woolfeltcentral.html"><span class="blsp-spelling-error" id="SPELLING_ERROR_8">prairiepointjunction</span>.com</a> because they had a really big selection. after ordering, i discovered from their FAQ that the felt isn't terribly colorfast, and i was concerned, since i was making this for a baby, and babies chew on everything. i contacted prairie point junction, and they were very helpful, putting me in touch with the manufacturer. in the end, the answer was that the dyes are the same as what is used for clothing -- so, probably not the best thing for a baby to eat, but not really dangerous either (note: <span class="blsp-spelling-error" id="SPELLING_ERROR_9">i'm</span> paraphrasing here; if you're concerned, don't take my word for it...). the colorfastness of the felt varied tremendously from color to color, and in surprising ways. (one purple shade bled like crazy, the other not at all. same with the greens. odd...) oh, i was also pleased that prairie point junction offered embroidery floss for purchase that was preselected to match each color of felt they offered. that saved me having to make a trip to the local craft store after my order arrived (key during a the busy month of <span class="blsp-spelling-error" id="SPELLING_ERROR_10">december</span>).<br /><br />so, all that was about locating the patterns and supplies, but nothing so far about the process. i guess that's because after i had everything (including the freezer paper for transferring the patterns -- who knew, they don't just sell that in every grocery store anymore?), they really just fell into place. easy, pretty fun to make, and turned out really cute... the hardest part was choosing which veggies to make, knowing i wouldn't have time to make them all. i still plan to make more for my little one... but now that <span class="blsp-spelling-error" id="SPELLING_ERROR_11">i've</span> already figured it out, <span class="blsp-spelling-error" id="SPELLING_ERROR_12">i'm</span> in less of a hurry to do more. they're worth the time, though, so this will reach the top of my queue sometime soon...<br /><br />do you have other sources for felt or patterns for felt crafts? <span class="blsp-spelling-error" id="SPELLING_ERROR_13">i'd</span> love to hear about it in the comments.Kristyhttp://www.blogger.com/profile/01212069033719667079noreply@blogger.com2tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-4264317389109322867.post-41463640994635344592009-01-11T22:16:00.000-08:002009-01-11T23:07:57.057-08:00snowflake cake<a href="http://www.flickr.com/photos/kjander/3178405413/" title="snowflake cake by kelanew, on Flickr"><img src="http://farm4.static.flickr.com/3339/3178405413_56a690580b.jpg" width="333" height="500" alt="snowflake cake" /></a><br /><br />while up north for the holidays, my mom had a milestone birthday (she's not the type, i'm sure, to care if i mentioned which one, but you know...) i'm rarely around for her birthday, so i wanted to take the opportunity to make her a cake. i had a big idea for a far more complicated very personalized cake, but every single person i told paused, then said: "oh. hmm." turns out that translates as "i'm pretty sure you could do that complicated cake, but that in the process, you will become a stressed out crazy person who is insufferable to be around." turns out they (husband, sisters) were all likely correct. so, plan B.<br /><br />we were experiencing record snowfall during our visit. as in, 33 (or more) inches of snow in one month, the most ever on record. that in combination with temperatures such as 15 below zero (yes, farenheit!) kept us from leaving the house more than once a week or so. i grew up in this northern extreme climate, but this was just ridiculous. so rather than fight it -- my sister decreed that no one was allowed to complain about the weather unless they were actually outside in it -- i thought we'd embrace it as inspiration for the cake.<br /><br /><a href="http://www.flickr.com/photos/kjander/3179246092/" title="snowflake detail by kelanew, on Flickr"><img src="http://farm4.static.flickr.com/3333/3179246092_143d719af7.jpg" width="400" alt="snowflake detail" /></a><br /><br />the hardest part of this cake was making the royal icing snowflakes, and honestly they weren't that hard other than that they were very prone to breaking. predicting this (wow, i'm a genius!), i made about three times what i thought i'd need. turns out i only broke about half. um... success!<br /><br />sadly, you can't see it in the photos, but larry wired up some LEDs to go under the glass cake plate. they were six independently-controlled strings he set up in a wave effect that looked like the light in blustery, blowing snow. it was really impressive and went perfectly with the snowy theme. always fun when our interests can combine into one project. :)<br /><br /><a href="http://www.flickr.com/photos/kjander/3178407463/" title="snowflake/side detail by kelanew, on Flickr"><img src="http://farm4.static.flickr.com/3328/3178407463_cec1126b46.jpg" width="400" alt="snowflake/side detail" /></a><br /><br />i think perhaps the snow cake didn't appease the gods of winter. as it turns out, we may have angered them: the day of the party, yet more bad weather moved in, and half the guests couldn't make it. and in fact, *we* couldn't really it the 10 miles to my aunt's house, so we changed the location at the last minute. (as a kid, half my winter birthday parties we canceled, so i think a half-cancellation is probably considered a success with those odds?)<br /><br />my mom seemed a bit "who, me?" regarding the cake (insisting i not go to any trouble, surprised i was bothering to cover it with fondant). well mom, for you i'd happily make a cake as big as a real snowdrift. okay, not that twelve foot high monstrosity on your patio this year, but you know what i mean...Kristyhttp://www.blogger.com/profile/01212069033719667079noreply@blogger.com6tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-4264317389109322867.post-34356891303636945732008-12-27T11:35:00.001-08:002008-12-27T11:35:49.264-08:00egg lathe<style type="text/css">.flickr-photo { border: solid 2px #000000; }.flickr-yourcomment { }.flickr-frame { text-align: left; padding: 3px; }.flickr-caption { font-size: 0.8em; margin-top: 0px; }</style><div class="flickr-frame"> <a href="http://www.flickr.com/photos/kjander/3140846241/" title="photo sharing"><img src="http://farm4.static.flickr.com/3125/3140846241_2a2f2b6cdb.jpg" class="flickr-photo" alt="" height="267" width="401" /></a><br /> <span class="flickr-caption"><a href="http://www.flickr.com/photos/kjander/3140846241/">egg lathe</a>, originally uploaded by <a href="http://www.flickr.com/people/kjander/">kelanew</a>.</span></div> <p class="flickr-yourcomment"> merry christmas to me! my thoughtful and resourceful husband made this egg lathe as a gift for me. now (when i find the time again) i can make super-straight divisions on my <a href="http://www.flickr.com/photos/kjander/sets/72157607138222507/">pysanky</a>. i can hardly wait to give it a try on a real egg (this was just a test, as we're away from my egg supplies right now). check out those closely-spaced parallel lines! and the coolest part is that unlike many egg lathes, it works for vertical divisions as well as horizontal ones. neat.<br /><br />true to form, he made it from random objects found around the house, but yet you can hardly tell it's repurposed unless you really inspect it. this uses a synthetic wine cork, plastic rings from target pharmacy bottles, and a little acrylic make-up pot as well as wood and hardware. (it needs a few finishing touches yet, because he was waiting to get some input from me.)<br /><br />thanks, larry! now i'm feeling a bit sad that you are nearly the only exception in my "all handmade christmas" plan. (though you seem to be enjoying your kindle just fine. that, and the added gift of a slightly less-crazed wife who was not trying madly to finish yet one more gift in time for christmas. :)<br /><br />more on handmade christmas as i find the time to post -- i've been making a ton of gifts the past few months but couldn't post many of them lest i spoil the surprise. so now i'll catch up.</p>Kristyhttp://www.blogger.com/profile/01212069033719667079noreply@blogger.com5tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-4264317389109322867.post-38873351354529175892008-12-20T15:28:00.000-08:002008-12-20T15:39:11.221-08:00delayed holiday traveler boarding pass paper chain<a href="http://www.flickr.com/photos/kjander/3123883124/" title="delayed holiday traveler paper chain by kelanew, on Flickr"><img src="http://farm4.static.flickr.com/3287/3123883124_f2ec125da0.jpg" width="400" alt="delayed holiday traveler paper chain" /></a><br /><br />not much of a craft, but i thought i'd share...<br /><br />our flight was canceled in minneapolis on thursday (the best part being that the flight just disappeared from the screen without explanation, and no one even came to talk to us for 20 minutes. stay classy, northwest airlines.) (okay, the other best part was that i was sick, larry had zero sleep since we had to get up at 4 a.m., and we had two kids along for the ride.) <br /><br />throughout the day, as we waited standby on various flights for 8 hours before finally making it on board, we were handed more and more sets of boarding passes. my ticket envelope ultimately held quite a thick stack of papers -- so i decided to turn a holiday inconvenience into holiday cheer! it's now a lovely paper chain adorning our doorway. <br /><br />and to VPI student amanda who was attempting to make her way to glendive, MT... i hope you found your way eventually. i felt so sad for you as my family boarded off the standby list, leaving you and 27 others to yet another round of waiting.<br /><br /><a href="http://www.flickr.com/photos/kjander/3123057453/" title="delayed holiday traveler paper chain, detail by kelanew, on Flickr"><img src="http://farm4.static.flickr.com/3196/3123057453_4e48b3e3c8.jpg" width="400" alt="delayed holiday traveler paper chain, detail" /></a>Kristyhttp://www.blogger.com/profile/01212069033719667079noreply@blogger.com2tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-4264317389109322867.post-7762701128561659482008-12-20T13:40:00.001-08:002008-12-20T13:40:58.051-08:00kid craft: felt ornaments<style type="text/css">.flickr-photo { border: solid 2px #000000; }.flickr-yourcomment { }.flickr-frame { text-align: left; padding: 3px; }.flickr-caption { font-size: 0.8em; margin-top: 0px; }</style><div class="flickr-frame"> <a href="http://www.flickr.com/photos/kjander/3122260195/" title="photo sharing"><img src="http://farm4.static.flickr.com/3293/3122260195_ba911448e2.jpg" class="flickr-photo" alt="" height="267" width="401" /></a><br /> <span class="flickr-caption"><a href="http://www.flickr.com/photos/kjander/3122260195/">felt ornaments</a>, originally uploaded by <a href="http://www.flickr.com/people/kjander/">kelanew</a>.</span></div> <p class="flickr-yourcomment"> eva made these ornaments for her cousins and such this year. i traced cookie cutters (mostly in a holiday theme, if you count the Holiday Cat, right?) and cut them out for her. well, she cut out the gingerbread man herself, which is how we discovered that kid scissors don't really work on wool felt, and i was fearing for the safety of that useful bit of skin between one's thumb and hand when helping her with the kitchen scissors. <br /><br />she then decorated with glitter glue and sequins, sewed around the outside, and stuffed them. together, we added a hanging loop and a few jingle bells. [i will caution that once stuffed, the glued-on sequins tend to pop off easily, so beware if your ornament will be going to a household with a little one -- or use stronger glue, or stitch down the sequins?]<br /><br />the nice thing is that you can customize this project to suit the needs of your kid -- or even make it work for several kids of different ages. an older kid can trace, cut, decorate, sew and stuff themselves, and a younger sibling might just do the decorating part.<br /><br />my other discovery with this project: i came across some very inexpensive <a href="http://www.kuningroup.com/cfiles/fc_main.cfm">craft felt from the kunin group</a> that is made of ecofi (or ecospun), which is made from 100% post-consumer recycled plastic bottles. hurray! that assuages my slight guilt of not letting eva have at my brand-new wool felt stash and giving her synthetic instead. :) <br /><br />[warning: rant ahead..]<br />oh, and i found this felt at joann's -- why oh why, i ask myself, was i at joann's yet again, despite my oft-sworn (and occasionally shouted out for the benefit of other customers) oath that i Will Never Shop Here Again. *sigh* i really have issues with that place, their staffing policies designed to keep a minimum of 5 people in line at the cutting table *and* the check-out counter, their deceptive pricing, and on and on. but yet, i find myself there because it's closest to my house and adjacent to the grocery store, and i'm loathe to drag two kids in and out of car seats an extra time if i don't have to. despite the location, though, i would probably still save time if i drove across town and went to a real craft store. do other people have this problem at joann's, or is it just my local store? (well, i know i'm not the *only* one -- this woman received the <a href="http://consumerist.com/consumer/worst-customer-service-ever/jo+ann-fabrics-refuses-to-let-customer-use-bathroom-even-as-she-suffers-diarrhea-right-in-front-of-them-274441.php">worst customer service ever</a> there.) [sorry, end rant. wow, calm down, there, grinchy...] <br /><br />ahem.. where was i? yes, this project is perfect for little holiday gifts for your kid's friends, teachers, grandparents, etc. easy, inexpensive, green(ish), and makes for a fun afternoon. yup, those are pretty much all the criteria.</p>Kristyhttp://www.blogger.com/profile/01212069033719667079noreply@blogger.com0tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-4264317389109322867.post-59893724253579199982008-11-25T20:15:00.000-08:002008-11-25T21:51:47.209-08:00recycle bin advent calendar<a href="http://www.flickr.com/photos/kjander/3060742348/" title="recycle bin advent calendar by kelanew, on Flickr"><img src="http://farm4.static.flickr.com/3196/3060742348_de5f831dc9.jpg" alt="recycle bin advent calendar" height="500" width="294" /></a><br /><br />it may sound silly, but i was recently freaking out about advent calendars. i'd say it officially kept me awake at night (once). i wanted to make just the right kind, something we'd keep and use year after year -- but i didn't have the time to make the sort of thing i had in mind. i meant to start on it this past summer, but then -- oh yeah -- i went and had a baby. i guess that took some of my free time.<br /><br />but then i was filtering through the dozens and dozens of catalogs in our stack of mail that was held during our recent month away... and i knew just what to do. i decided we'd make an advent calendar entirely from the recycle bin (okay. plus some glue and tape). bonuses: 1. eva gets to help make it. turns out she's a whiz kid at cutting out squares. 2. it's cheap. 3. it's green. 4. it can be completed in fewer than four months. <br /><br />i bought a rosemary topiary (shaped like a baby-sized christmas tree), and i've chosen to fill our advent calendar with tiny ornaments for our "tree". (what? no chocolate? i'm catching flack from everyone about that... everyone but my <span style="font-style: italic;">kid</span>, that is, because she doesn't know what she's missing.) i'm making tiny ornaments out of scraps of things we have around, like a pipe cleaner candy cane, a peanut shell painted sliver, some jingle bells, craft pompoms strung on a twist-tie to make a little wreath, cardboard star covered with scraps of foil, etc. i've only made seven or so thus far, but i like that i only have to stay a few days ahead, and can complete the rest at my leisure. :)<br /><br />so here you go, a mini tutorial of how we made our advent calendar. sorry, no photos of the process itself, but it's not terribly difficult. (in fact, sorry for the state of these photos in general -- the camera fell off the roof of a car on a mountain highway a few months ago, and the various rubber bands and wedges of paper are no longer sufficient to keep it working... it's no longer able to focus, manually or otherwise. hmm... guess what we're buying each other for christmas?)<br /><br /><a href="http://www.flickr.com/photos/kjander/3059906423/" title="advent calendar -- top by kelanew, on Flickr"><img src="http://farm4.static.flickr.com/3226/3059906423_bcfc7092bf.jpg" alt="advent calendar -- top" height="500" width="333" /></a><br /> <span style="font-weight: bold;"><br />supplies & tools</span><br />catalogs/magazines<br />2-3 brown paper grocery bags (one with handles if possible)<br />ad circulars/newspaper inserts (optional)<br />glue/tape<br />scissors<br />a holiday-obsessed preschooler, if you have one handy<br /><span style="font-weight: bold;"><br />1. collect and peruse catalogs</span><br />unless you're conscientious like my mother and have called the 800-number of every company that sends you junk mail to get off their mailing list, you probably have stacks of catalogs and magazines arriving in your mailbox this time of year. rip out images you think might be useful -- beyond the obvious holiday and winter scenes, look for areas of solid colors interesting backgrounds. (most of my pockets are decorated collage-styls, even when it may look like a single image -- a person has to get creative to cover up ad copy. :)<br /><span style="font-weight: bold;"><br />2. find those ad circulars in your recycle bin</span><br />you need numbers. large numbers! catalogs are far too tasteful to list their prices in giant yellow 48-point font -- so you'll have to look in the ad inserts. these show up in my mailbox, or if you get the newspaper, that would be helpful. cut out all the numbers you think you'll need, but don't stress that nothing seems to cost $17.23... you may have to hand write the 17 and 23 (but i promise you'll find endless options for the 9).<br /><span style="font-weight: bold;"><br />3. create the backing of the calendar</span><br />to make the backing, you need to open up a brown bag (the one with a handle if you have it) into a long strip. cut down the two narrow sides of the bag, veering out to the corners at the bottom (basically, just cut along the upside-down Y-shaped fold lines on the side panels). flatten bag with "wrong"/printed side facing up. roll the side flaps until they are hidden on the back of the bag and tape in place. you can choose to cut them off or simply fold & glue them to the back, but i found rolling them provides more structural support along the sides, allowing the advent calendar to hold more weight without bowing and bending. cut a strip from another bag, roll it up, and tape it along the top edge of your calendar to create additional reinforcement there. if your bag has handles, you can remove the one from the bottom if you like.<br /><br /><a onblur="try {parent.deselectBloggerImageGracefully();} catch(e) {}" href="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEj0FPQb_VtYvxLABOnDTFyLemocdXxJk91pc0Eto_W1NLLDupVgtVrdzBdMBM7ujsI7zDWVF1cj-5CmDeuBd3EL78LuGQZtmtdxdOZ3EFTIO1TSddPqdtyjjahc4wy-8cBtqo4Mg-_MjYc/s1600-h/adventpocket.jpg"><img style="margin: 0px auto 10px; display: block; text-align: center; cursor: pointer; width: 320px; height: 195px;" src="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEj0FPQb_VtYvxLABOnDTFyLemocdXxJk91pc0Eto_W1NLLDupVgtVrdzBdMBM7ujsI7zDWVF1cj-5CmDeuBd3EL78LuGQZtmtdxdOZ3EFTIO1TSddPqdtyjjahc4wy-8cBtqo4Mg-_MjYc/s320/adventpocket.jpg" alt="" id="BLOGGER_PHOTO_ID_5272828674021784834" border="0" /></a><br /><span style="font-weight: bold;"><br />4. cut dozens of pockets (two dozens, to be exact)</span><br />next you need to cut out 24 pockets from the additional brown bags. i made my pockets 3" wide and 3.25" tall because that's what fit on the paper bag i had (8 rows of three), but you can adjust this as needed. i found triangular-shaped gussets on the sides of the pockets allowed larger items to sit comfortably inside -- to form these, i flared out at a 30 degree angle from the bottom corner of the pockets (see template -- you can eyeball this if your protractor isn't handy). don't forget those flaps around each side which allow it to be glued in place. cut out one pocket the way you like it, then trace and cut the rest. (i stacked & cut five layers of brown paper at once to speed this up.)<br /><span style="font-weight: bold;"><br />5. prefold the pockets</span><br />it will make your life easier if you prefold your pockets before decorating them. to do this, cut a piece of cardstock (magazine reply cards are perfect for this) the size of your finished pocket. lay it in position over one of your pocket pieces, then fold against the cardstock template. (this is much faster than tracing lines in place then carefully folding each one.) then fold up the gluing flaps, and finally fold each gusset into place behind the pocket (along the dotted line in my template). <br /><span style="font-weight: bold;"><br />6. decorate your pockets</span><br />now the fun part! decorate the pockets with the pieces you tore out of the catalogs. <span style="font-style: italic;"> tip</span>: find that piece of cardstock you used to help you fold the pockets. place it behind an image you plan to use and hold this up to the light. position it where you like, then trace around the cardstock and cut out the image for a fast way to get pieces just the right size. add more images until you're happy. <br /><br />eva had a grand time helping me with this part, doing much of the cutting and a bit of the gluing. she selected images i never would have thought of (like the hopscotch girl, or the flowered rug). and surprise, surprise -- the whole project was more fun and the end result is far more special because i followed her lead rather thank staying overly invested in a picture-perfect result (see? i'm learning, slowly but surely...)<br /><br /><a href="http://www.flickr.com/photos/kjander/3060743526/" title="advent calendar pocket by kelanew, on Flickr"><img src="http://farm4.static.flickr.com/3204/3060743526_b3eb4c6320.jpg" alt="advent calendar pocket" width="400" /></a><br /><br /><span style="font-weight: bold;"><br />7. number away...</span><br />arrange the pockets on your calendar backing the way you like <span style="font-style: italic;">before</span> adding numbers -- this way you can find an arrangement you're happy with. add the cut-out numbers you found, or hand-draw numbers, or both.<br /><span style="font-weight: bold;"><br />8. glue and tape pockets in place</span><br />i found it worked to use tape for the sides of the pockets (where the tape could be hidden inside the pockets) but glue for the bottom edges (where tape would show).<br /><span style="font-weight: bold;"><br />9. fill and enjoy</span><br />hang up your calendar by the handle (if it has one), and fill with whatever you like. if you're worried about a wee one sneaking ahead a bit, you can secure the filled pockets closed with decorative stickers or tape. or just hang it really high up on the wall.<br /><br />i can't even describe how excited my three-year-old is about her advent calendar. and it has a very practical purpose as well -- i don't have to try to answer "when will it be christmas?" on an hourly basis. now, just daily. :)<br /><br />and maybe next year i'll create the heirloom advent calendar i seem to think i should be making... or maybe this is it? as eva would say, "we'll just have to wait and see."<br /><br /><a href="http://www.flickr.com/photos/kjander/3060743142/" title="advent calendar -- bottom by kelanew, on Flickr"><img src="http://farm4.static.flickr.com/3151/3060743142_0db882c593.jpg" alt="advent calendar -- bottom" height="500" width="333" /></a>Kristyhttp://www.blogger.com/profile/01212069033719667079noreply@blogger.com50tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-4264317389109322867.post-23848246502480939472008-11-04T13:29:00.000-08:002008-11-04T15:57:49.764-08:00cindy lou who & the grinch<a href="http://www.flickr.com/photos/kjander/2993793150/" title="cindy lou who by kelanew, on Flickr"><img src="http://farm4.static.flickr.com/3158/2993793150_5d1e418173.jpg" width="333" height="500" alt="cindy lou who" /></a><br /><br /><a onblur="try {parent.deselectBloggerImageGracefully();} catch(e) {}" href="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEge4T1S2-q53nbgYeNTDzZVLiIjfwPBRRAYc3Num-H7f_VvUMKg71UhL4kr0uMDmH8mdodjpa6qFEy_5pgMkRMtKsvdQdhHJcVvnifq3uCP-zYmnMahCuMbSihF4WsH-Hnz1_ndK12ygCQ/s1600-h/cindy-lou-who.jpg"><img style="display:block; margin:0px auto 10px; text-align:center;cursor:pointer; cursor:hand;width: 246px; height: 320px;" src="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEge4T1S2-q53nbgYeNTDzZVLiIjfwPBRRAYc3Num-H7f_VvUMKg71UhL4kr0uMDmH8mdodjpa6qFEy_5pgMkRMtKsvdQdhHJcVvnifq3uCP-zYmnMahCuMbSihF4WsH-Hnz1_ndK12ygCQ/s320/cindy-lou-who.jpg" border="0" alt=""id="BLOGGER_PHOTO_ID_5264923769890680450" /></a><br /><br />sometime in february, several months and a hundred or so readings into "how the grinch stole christmas", i told eva that if she still loved cindy lou who that much when it got to be halloween, that i would make her a cindy lou who costume. she was thrilled. shortly after hazel was born, she suggested that she could be the grinch. and somehow or other, baby cousin lilly ended up as max the dog.<br /><br />the cindy lou who costume consisted of a wig hat, a pink dress, and a giant christmas ball. <br /><br />the pink dress was made of pink costume fur -- for added warmth, since we're visiting in the north for halloween, and there's nothing worse for a kid than being forced to wear a winter coat over one's costume. the dress is loosely based on a pattern for a nightgown with a raglan sleeve (<a href="http://www.butterick.com/item/B4910.htm">butterick #4910</a>). i added scallops at the neck, sleeve, and hem, and stuffed them with scrap fabric to make them cartoonishly puffy. the hem was tapered, but i couldn't taper it in completely around her feet, obviously. i fashioned what amounts to a puffy apron to tie around her waist under the dress to add to the effect by widening the dress around her middle.<br /><br />the wig hat (as i've come to call it) is crocheted out of <a href="http://www.bernat.com/product.php?LGC=glowinthedark">bernat glow in the dark</a> yellow yarn. i thought i was worth a try -- and especially for halloween -- but i'm not overly impressed. the yarn has a pretty awful texture, and you can't discern much of a glow, unless you charge it up directly under a light then immediately head to a very dark room. but, it was enough to entertain her, so i guess it was worth it. i basically shaped a regular crocheted hat, then added extra rows down the back to make it approximate her hairline. i made separate triangular pieces that i attached around the front hairline to look like locks of hair, and added a few chains of stitches to fill it out. cindy lou who has little red hair bows, and as the last fun detail, squiggly seuss-style antennae. i formed one pipe cleaner (ahem, excuse me, they're now known as "chenille stems") in to a circle, then attached the antennae and poked them through the wig from the underneath. they stayed standing upright perfectly with this method.<br /><br />the red ball... well, we were planning to make one from scratch, but happily, we found a giant novelty (shatterproof) christmas bulb at a local home improvement store. hurray for the christmas creep that puts christmas decorations within my grasp prior to halloween! (eek.) all i had to do was add the little topper part and the seussian hook. that consisted of a painted small plastic food storage container and more pipe cleaners.<br /><br /><br /><a href="http://www.flickr.com/photos/kjander/2992953293/" title="baby grinch by kelanew, on Flickr"><img src="http://farm4.static.flickr.com/3163/2992953293_5c2bdf1dcf.jpg" width="333" height="500" alt="baby grinch" /></a><br /><br /><a onblur="try {parent.deselectBloggerImageGracefully();} catch(e) {}" href="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEhCaZ4KzD5fGU22NLIQ8oD_4-ZpoKskccuDkiVP1pqsOHhJG1l3z9gsNcqFaJdQomt2X1fMRS_kc0Z7crOkMC-D6EbOrPbB5yFUvfiJ3aFYzAAAFM9BsqjySncRA-IHK6Q8QREjB_WbMHo/s1600-h/santa-grinch.jpg"><img style="display:block; margin:0px auto 10px; text-align:center;cursor:pointer; cursor:hand;width: 278px; height: 320px;" src="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEhCaZ4KzD5fGU22NLIQ8oD_4-ZpoKskccuDkiVP1pqsOHhJG1l3z9gsNcqFaJdQomt2X1fMRS_kc0Z7crOkMC-D6EbOrPbB5yFUvfiJ3aFYzAAAFM9BsqjySncRA-IHK6Q8QREjB_WbMHo/s320/santa-grinch.jpg" border="0" alt=""id="BLOGGER_PHOTO_ID_5264923661118622418" /></a><br /><br />and for the grinch... oh, the grinch. you can't very well paint a baby's face green, nor can you give her green furry gloves that she'll just eat. so as a result, she mostly looked like a tiny somewhat demented christmas elf, i'd say. but, whatever it was, it was plenty cute. the coat was a tiny, shorter version of the same basic pattern i used for the cindy dress. the hat and shoes were just quickly mocked up, and on the third try, i actually made the shoes big enough for my baby's chubby feet and ankles! <br /><br /><a href="http://www.flickr.com/photos/kjander/2994908125/" title="three sizes by kelanew, on Flickr"><img src="http://farm4.static.flickr.com/3001/2994908125_f7d58a6dc0.jpg" width="400" alt="three sizes" /></a><br /><br />to minimize future angst along the lines of "oh sure, i had to be the grinch for my first halloween!", i was sure to make her the happy grinch from the end of the story, the one after his heart grew three sizes. thus the embroidered detail of the heart that grew so big that it broke right through the fancy gold measuring device (i based this off a screen shot from the movie).<br /><br /><a href="http://www.flickr.com/photos/kjander/2993798356/" title="max by kelanew, on Flickr"><img src="http://farm4.static.flickr.com/3144/2993798356_da53f7d1d9_m.jpg" width="171" height="240" alt="max" /></a><br /><br /><a onblur="try {parent.deselectBloggerImageGracefully();} catch(e) {}" href="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEhOLJTLL0IZBSvVn8Q4gDIK3LYmyciy9nCWZVKmoIB6ICW62_yH8xrxcJdxLl5D_ardKy3HfO_cqh0Xyz085PbXEgxPp9ywCg1dp2bbLGB74aOckRUx74KCxFBUDlg02C7anIhyphenhyphenGO2RKx8/s1600-h/maxgrinch.jpg"><img style="display:block; margin:0px auto 10px; text-align:center;cursor:pointer; cursor:hand;width: 320px; height: 245px;" src="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEhOLJTLL0IZBSvVn8Q4gDIK3LYmyciy9nCWZVKmoIB6ICW62_yH8xrxcJdxLl5D_ardKy3HfO_cqh0Xyz085PbXEgxPp9ywCg1dp2bbLGB74aOckRUx74KCxFBUDlg02C7anIhyphenhyphenGO2RKx8/s320/maxgrinch.jpg" border="0" alt=""id="BLOGGER_PHOTO_ID_5264923547546725058" /></a><br /><br />and speaking of future therapy bills, my baby niece lilly looked very cute as max the dog. my sister bought her a dog costume, and i fashioned a reindeer horn (with what inside? more pipe cleaners, of course!).<br /><br /><a href="http://www.flickr.com/photos/kjander/2992956451/" title="gazing ball by kelanew, on Flickr"><img src="http://farm4.static.flickr.com/3049/2992956451_9f011fd0cb_m.jpg" width="160" height="240" alt="gazing ball" /></a><br /><br />like usual, i went a little more nuts than i intended. but i will always make my kids homemade halloween costumes, for as long as they want me to do so. eva was so very pleased, her face just lit up when she finally saw the completed costume. (though not so much in the photo below... this was taken the day after, when the sugar high had dissolved into a massive cranky sugar crash. :)<br /><br /><a href="http://www.flickr.com/photos/kjander/2993800646/" title="little cindy lou who by kelanew, on Flickr"><img src="http://farm4.static.flickr.com/3035/2993800646_c096a0055d.jpg" height="400" alt="little cindy lou who" /></a>Kristyhttp://www.blogger.com/profile/01212069033719667079noreply@blogger.com13tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-4264317389109322867.post-53068698114343152052008-10-23T17:44:00.000-07:002008-10-23T18:30:43.137-07:00maker faire community egg<a href="http://www.flickr.com/photos/kjander/2967149353/" title="maker faire community egg by kelanew, on Flickr"><img src="http://farm4.static.flickr.com/3043/2967149353_aab754907a.jpg" width="400" alt="maker faire community egg" /></a><br /><br /><a href="http://www.flickr.com/photos/kjander/2967995112/" title="maker egg, back by kelanew, on Flickr"><img src="http://farm4.static.flickr.com/3187/2967995112_ffa917d2a7.jpg" width="400" alt="maker egg, back" /></a><br /><br /><a href="http://www.makerfaire.com/">Maker Faire</a> has come and gone, and though it took some feats of organization to be there along with a preschooler and a nursing baby for two big days, it was totally worth it. I was so happy to have the chance to share one of my crafts, making <a href="http://www.flickr.com/photos/kjander/sets/72157607138222507/">pysanky</a> (Ukrainian eggs), with so many great people. Everyone was so friendly, and I loved getting to meet so many crafters from Austin and beyond.<br /><br />And speaking of that, thanks to <a href="http://averagejanecrafter.blogspot.com/2008/10/having-fun-at-maker-faire.html">Rachel</a> for making me one of her <a href="http://blog.craftzine.com/archive/2008/10/crafty_maker_updates_from_make.html?CMP=OTC-5JF307375954">"editor's picks"</a> among the craft makers. I didn't get as much opportunity to spend time looking around as I might have liked, but from the little I saw, I was thoroughly impressed (and am still in awe of the lace-making... hmm, I'm tempted... but do I need a whole new project?)<br /><br />I helped about three dozen people make eggs of their own to take home, and several people seemed especially taken with the craft. (Oh, and for everyone who is attempting to remove the wax from their eggs at home: I said to use an oven on the lowest setting with the door propped open -- oops! That applies to eggs that have been blown out -- for whole eggs, you need a bit more heat. Sorry for any frustration I may have inadvertently caused... :)<br /><br />I also had people add to the community egg (shown above). I liked the idea of an egg that was created by many hands, and it also gave people the chance to try it out even if they didn't have time to sit down and make a whole egg.<br /><br />If anyone I met at Maker Faire has any questions, please feel free to post them here and I'll be sure to answer.<br /><br />And I promise, we'll return to something other than eggs now... :)Kristyhttp://www.blogger.com/profile/01212069033719667079noreply@blogger.com0tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-4264317389109322867.post-26336297170931870542008-10-13T22:18:00.000-07:002008-10-13T22:38:15.426-07:00maker faire // nest egg<a href="http://www.flickr.com/photos/kjander/2940953284/" title="nest egg by kelanew, on Flickr"><img src="http://farm4.static.flickr.com/3159/2940953284_678a724036.jpg" width="500" height="333" alt="nest egg" /></a><br /><br /><a href="http://www.makerfaire.com/">maker faire</a> is this weekend, so if you'll be in the austin area (or can grab your hobo stick and hop a train to get here?) come check it out, and be sure to stop by and say hi. i'll be there with my <a href="http://makerfaire.com/pub/e/1928">pysanky</a>, which means i've been working on eggs all this week.<br /><br />above is the final egg in a series of eggs i made to show the steps in the process (thus the simple design; i needed to repeat it five times). given current events, i felt motivated to make a graph of the dow jones industrial average across my entire lifetime so far. in egg form. (it's pretty accurate, too.) seeing the graph that way makes it pretty clear...that whole exponential growth thing had to break sometime, huh? the egg is pictured atop the contents of eva's piggy bank (which includes five different currencies... hey, does that mean we're safe?). nest egg, indeed.<br /><br /><a href="http://www.flickr.com/photos/kjander/2939887873/" title="my week by kelanew, on Flickr"><img src="http://farm4.static.flickr.com/3169/2939887873_46d44a799a_m.jpg" width="240" height="160" alt="my week" /></a><br /><br />(bonus points if you spot all the currencies... :)Kristyhttp://www.blogger.com/profile/01212069033719667079noreply@blogger.com3tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-4264317389109322867.post-24981242186364308052008-10-11T20:35:00.001-07:002008-10-11T22:06:46.774-07:00ghosts of halloween pasti'm currently working on this year's halloween costumes, but thought i'd take a moment to offer a tour of past halloween costumes.<br /><br />the one i'm most proud of is the evil knievel costume i made for larry a few years back. i based it on a commercial pattern for an elvis costume, but added the red white and blue trim (stars! oh the stars!), a belt, and a detachable cape.<br /><br /><a href="http://www.flickr.com/photos/kjander/2930560678/" title="evil knievel by kelanew, on Flickr"><img src="http://farm4.static.flickr.com/3217/2930560678_9d69c0ba61_m.jpg" width="159" height="240" alt="evil knievel" /></a> <a href="http://www.flickr.com/photos/kjander/2929702501/" title="evil knievel cape by kelanew, on Flickr"><img src="http://farm4.static.flickr.com/3003/2929702501_4b6fc770a4_m.jpg" width="159" height="240" alt="evil knievel cape" /></a><br /><br />i put more time into it than one logically should put into a halloween constume, but once a decade or so, i think that's okay. as a result, <span style="font-style:italic;">my</span> costume that year was a more or less no-sew project. i made a mummy bride quickly by "draping" shredded fabric over my wedding petticoat, pinning, and basting in place. the bodice is more or less tied on, and the gloves and veil are cheesecloth (in december when i wanted cheesecloth to mull some cider, i couldn't figure out what happened to the full package i knew i had just bought...oh yeah. :)<br /><br /><a href="http://www.flickr.com/photos/kjander/2930561072/" title="mummy bride by kelanew, on Flickr"><img src="http://farm4.static.flickr.com/3057/2930561072_b8ddff6c9c_m.jpg" width="159" height="240" text-align:center; alt="mummy bride" /></a><br />(forgive the poor photo, this was several years ago...)<br /><br />my sister lora and her friends are crazy about halloween. (no, really. <span style="font-style:italic;">cra-zeee.</span>) they've done "dukes of hazzard" with tiny little cars, all the shrek characters (i think that damn cat took forever). here are a few others -- click through any photo for more info, or feel free to post a comment if want more details:<br /><br />the lollipop guild (with a movie photo for reference):<br /><br /><a href="http://www.flickr.com/photos/nd_lora/2909249527/in/set-72157607695324384/"><br /><img style="display:block; margin:0px auto 2px; text-align:center;cursor:pointer; cursor:hand;" src="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEhHYYpfJnVypwpp22KdMoL-X_E5glK_-EKlpXwHJh8__NEWM-Fc-exuti_gVKNppXNUB3uvTbm6zOg-LZRSMcMD8COO49C_JrsWlTCvgrYwQQJhMgrs9eH4o-J1Z1F6LAUXn1Sjp1xbemc/s200/lollipop.jpg" border="0" alt=""id="BLOGGER_PHOTO_ID_5256111853512904290" /></a><br /><a onblur="try {parent.deselectBloggerImageGracefully();} catch(e) {}" href="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEhjSXSiGdUXRzs1IBU592iDUfP4ii9nyaAXe_1kmG7IL1pCbGl46K6AXvXP6Qja_GIs_aJWxh3p_R9qC5EEE2R37iQfar8EgzQ4kBjYDibsVROpfa9iQ8uAlGsLOIOZS20j5s14zC0eJa8/s1600-h/WizardLollipop.jpg"><img style="display:block; margin:0px auto 2px; text-align:center;cursor:pointer; cursor:hand;" src="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEhjSXSiGdUXRzs1IBU592iDUfP4ii9nyaAXe_1kmG7IL1pCbGl46K6AXvXP6Qja_GIs_aJWxh3p_R9qC5EEE2R37iQfar8EgzQ4kBjYDibsVROpfa9iQ8uAlGsLOIOZS20j5s14zC0eJa8/s200/WizardLollipop.jpg" border="0" alt=""id="BLOGGER_PHOTO_ID_5256112087469025426" /></a><br /><br />various muppets, including statler and waldorf (the old guys from the balcony), kermit the frog and miss piggy, and beaker and bunsen (shown with a friend of theirs dressed as mary catherine gallagher):<br /><br /><a href="http://www.flickr.com/photos/nd_lora/2910113192/in/set-72157607695324384/"><br /><img style="display:block; margin:0px auto 2px; text-align:center;cursor:pointer; cursor:hand;width: 200px;" src="http://farm4.static.flickr.com/3159/2910113192_edbcdb6aeb.jpg?v=0" border="0" alt="" /></a><br /><a href="http://www.flickr.com/photos/nd_lora/2910123066/in/set-72157607695324384/"><br /><img style="display:block; margin:0px auto 2px; text-align:center;cursor:pointer; cursor:hand;width: 200px;" src="http://farm4.static.flickr.com/3076/2910123066_a67b74226f.jpg?v=0" border="0" alt="" /></a><br /><br />the princess bride:<br /><br /><a href="http://www.flickr.com/photos/nd_lora/2910096576/in/set-72157607695324384/"><br /><img style="display:block; margin:0px auto 2px; text-align:center;cursor:pointer; cursor:hand;width: 200px;" src="http://farm4.static.flickr.com/3268/2910096576_dbbe5e0640.jpg?v=0" border="0" alt="" /></a><br /><a onblur="try {parent.deselectBloggerImageGracefully();} catch(e) {}" href="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEjRtHaO-tOS_ax4C5qWhpLcS4CZvFDQc449iTy2dz0QW1iDMwwgELrKoT3_hyphenhyphenTVNfXArbcRb2J-2th9byfeW5ey1DUmDEXTjUOtbDiNKSCOnw45qNfnq3vYPlcMKOZP3A3QgwgvTYWY80c/s1600-h/princessbride.jpg"><img style="display:block; margin:0px auto 2px; text-align:center;cursor:pointer; cursor:hand;" src="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEjRtHaO-tOS_ax4C5qWhpLcS4CZvFDQc449iTy2dz0QW1iDMwwgELrKoT3_hyphenhyphenTVNfXArbcRb2J-2th9byfeW5ey1DUmDEXTjUOtbDiNKSCOnw45qNfnq3vYPlcMKOZP3A3QgwgvTYWY80c/s200/princessbride.jpg" border="0" alt=""id="BLOGGER_PHOTO_ID_5256115912399867890" /></a><br /><br />oops, looks like we got the blindfold color wrong. well, i think it's also a break from complete accuracy that our princess bride was noticeably pregnant. (hmm, i don't remember that plot twist from the movie. :)<br /><br />and my other favorite, the monkey costume i made for eva two years ago. she wore it for two years, because i intentionally made it large enough and basted it up the first year. she was so cute, and convincing enough that it made all the neighborhood dogs bark like crazy. :)<br /><br /><a href="http://www.flickr.com/photos/kjander/307402382/" title="a monkey stands by kelanew, on Flickr"><img src="http://farm1.static.flickr.com/119/307402382_ad66651021.jpg" width="500" height="333" alt="a monkey stands" /></a><br /><br />this year, though, she's old enough to choose for herself. and sometime around february, based on her ongoing obsession, she choose cindy lou who ("who was not more than two") from the grinch. we're making it a theme, and the babies in her life (sister, cousin) will be the grinch and max the dog, and any participating grown-ups will be the whos from whoville. check back after halloween for that update.Kristyhttp://www.blogger.com/profile/01212069033719667079noreply@blogger.com4tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-4264317389109322867.post-42388101922325309802008-09-29T22:13:00.000-07:002008-10-01T08:39:12.457-07:00plastic bag pompoms<a href="http://www.flickr.com/photos/kjander/2901334624/" title="pompoms by kelanew, on Flickr"><img src="http://farm4.static.flickr.com/3273/2901334624_ec2efdbeb6.jpg" alt="pompoms" width="400" /></a><br /><br />I'm not exactly the cheerleader type. I was once a cheerleader, though -- in sixth grade, my first year in a new town, I (along with every other girl in the class save one) tried out for next year's <span class="blsp-spelling-error" id="SPELLING_ERROR_0">jr</span>. high squad. Unfortunately for me, my cheering older sister had taught me enough that I made the squad, only to find that it just wasn't my thing. I think I ended up feigning illness many Saturdays, and the squad alternate ended up cheering more games than I did. (Granted, that wasn't a terribly mature way to handle the situation... but that's kind of the definition of being in seventh grade, I think.)<br /><br />Well, my daughter saw pompoms on TV, and declared that she wanted some. "How do you even know what pompoms <span style="font-style: italic;">are</span>?" "That's just what they're called, Mom. They're <span style="font-style: italic;">pompoms</span>." <span class="blsp-spelling-error" id="SPELLING_ERROR_1">Hmm</span>. So much for that whole plan of <span style="font-style: italic;">not</span> indoctrinating her with immutable gender roles. Pompoms it is!<br /><br />Rather than go pick some up at Target -- where they would assuredly be bright pink with pink on top and emblazoned with some distasteful licensed character -- I decided to make our own out of Target bags. That's what I had on hand (Gimme a "T"! Gimme an "A"! Gimme an "R"!...), but I think this would be really cool with some solid colored bags if you could get your hands on them. (Just last week I had a red one lying around, too bad we decided to clean up! Lesson learned. :) Here's how we did it, but I'm sure this method could be adapted in any number of ways. See what you come up with...<br /><span style="font-weight: bold;"><br />Materials:</span> 7 plastic bags (for a pair of pompoms), a rotary cutter/mat/straight edge set or a scissors. That's it. You don't even need tape or a ruler.<br /><table><br /><tbody><tr><br /><a onblur="try {parent.deselectBloggerImageGracefully();} catch(e) {}" href="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEjdfCK0LlDlFEYw7-gDGEFQ5_e148Yi6R6oOUVn2-HydgJFS1npMCjkpjXj31sQ4C0unFUGicmEGTHuBfyAEJ6_7BN1yq0OVSYWmKpmc1rzULAIAeVEMZGJ1Zl4dcdcBF4K5yBOoQGjS5s/s1600-h/img_8312-1.jpg"><img style="margin: 0pt 10px 10px 0pt; float: left; cursor: pointer;" src="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEjdfCK0LlDlFEYw7-gDGEFQ5_e148Yi6R6oOUVn2-HydgJFS1npMCjkpjXj31sQ4C0unFUGicmEGTHuBfyAEJ6_7BN1yq0OVSYWmKpmc1rzULAIAeVEMZGJ1Zl4dcdcBF4K5yBOoQGjS5s/s320/img_8312-1.jpg" alt="" id="BLOGGER_PHOTO_ID_5251681217163380658" border="0" /></a><br /><span style="font-weight: bold;">1. Slice off the bottom. </span> Cut off the bottom inch or so of one of the plastic bags.<br /></tr><br /><tr><br /><a onblur="try {parent.deselectBloggerImageGracefully();} catch(e) {}" href="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEiRMaf0Ll-mCJFAf5fWN0l1JbY33O8mpQkX59HAF1U4-XDDhVIO4Hgf8o9-9Er5wmYAWyy_IW8suII_Q3GqIzBkIZQ-woQhGHAIv4quez92tYbU7FWO1vJsgDYirgd1Q23RtFJ5nYoq4GY/s1600-h/img_8314-1.jpg"><img style="margin: 0pt 10px 10px 0pt; float: left; cursor: pointer;" src="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEiRMaf0Ll-mCJFAf5fWN0l1JbY33O8mpQkX59HAF1U4-XDDhVIO4Hgf8o9-9Er5wmYAWyy_IW8suII_Q3GqIzBkIZQ-woQhGHAIv4quez92tYbU7FWO1vJsgDYirgd1Q23RtFJ5nYoq4GY/s320/img_8314-1.jpg" alt="" id="BLOGGER_PHOTO_ID_5251681798419016386" border="0" /></a><br /><span style="font-weight: bold;">2. Open it up. </span> Pull out the pleats and lay it flat. Fold the bag in half side-to-side. (That's optional, but folding it in half means less cutting.) I used a rotary cutter, but a scissors would work too if necessary.<br /></tr><br /><tr><br /><a onblur="try {parent.deselectBloggerImageGracefully();} catch(e) {}" href="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEjlEwPKWpub7jU3tNNyGMcJFdq2OM25_Moa0YQi0QgvlVenSXJdKXEH-u-2Bhb-rEC2hpyLz6-sP79VLvPz4e0vUC0ABnC2dXchHRX13wsJWWcJQLuTb_iP79MrLYjp7A3s7e-ceQNVid4/s1600-h/img_8316-1.jpg"><img style="margin: 0pt 10px 10px 0pt; float: left; cursor: pointer;" src="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEjlEwPKWpub7jU3tNNyGMcJFdq2OM25_Moa0YQi0QgvlVenSXJdKXEH-u-2Bhb-rEC2hpyLz6-sP79VLvPz4e0vUC0ABnC2dXchHRX13wsJWWcJQLuTb_iP79MrLYjp7A3s7e-ceQNVid4/s320/img_8316-1.jpg" alt="" id="BLOGGER_PHOTO_ID_5251687972104582338" border="0" /></a><br /><span style="font-weight: bold;">3. Cut fringe. </span> Cut strips about 1/2" to 3/4" wide, from the bottom of the bag, stopping about 2" before you reach the top edge. The width isn't that important... don't bother measuring (but do try to keep the cuts parallel). Feel free to experiment with wider or narrower fringe, but you might not want to go too narrow unless you're using thicker plastic.<br /></tr><br /><tr><br /><a onblur="try {parent.deselectBloggerImageGracefully();} catch(e) {}" href="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEjK7mDXSPyscjNntRIRjGXCRLfMx7C408pR9RxBW65BglCvq5v_IPQudKpxO0Cl3Zj5Tisbz7JYJzjOxxpvIYRKL9uRaoDinAaLhSgv1l3q7BTIpvp3yWtUasYUmWEVSAGGy-TxD_rj7wk/s1600-h/img_8318-1.jpg"><img style="margin: 0pt 10px 10px 0pt; float: left; cursor: pointer;" src="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEjK7mDXSPyscjNntRIRjGXCRLfMx7C408pR9RxBW65BglCvq5v_IPQudKpxO0Cl3Zj5Tisbz7JYJzjOxxpvIYRKL9uRaoDinAaLhSgv1l3q7BTIpvp3yWtUasYUmWEVSAGGy-TxD_rj7wk/s320/img_8318-1.jpg" alt="" id="BLOGGER_PHOTO_ID_5251688592606156786" border="0" /></a><br /><span style="font-weight: bold;">4. Snip one handle. </span> Cut one of the handles at the top. (This photo shows multiple bags stacked up as I got into production mode, sorry if that's confusing.)<br /></tr><br /><tr><br /><a onblur="try {parent.deselectBloggerImageGracefully();} catch(e) {}" href="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEjjJZMbj75OwBh5jKYQ912fHJCXYnftEu2qmFw7toJDhkYyVS8pWgQ01u4ydHDIfKiDaMFrbbmcahAvCBTDbU6MWtCGaTb-tnCKZctK4i5yQPoRI36_B9XpfVYqApA0Uwc1Y79vTmBkmYs/s1600-h/img_8319-1.jpg"><img style="margin: 0pt 10px 10px 0pt; float: left; cursor: pointer;" src="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEjjJZMbj75OwBh5jKYQ912fHJCXYnftEu2qmFw7toJDhkYyVS8pWgQ01u4ydHDIfKiDaMFrbbmcahAvCBTDbU6MWtCGaTb-tnCKZctK4i5yQPoRI36_B9XpfVYqApA0Uwc1Y79vTmBkmYs/s320/img_8319-1.jpg" alt="" id="BLOGGER_PHOTO_ID_5251943202615920082" border="0" /></a><br /><span style="font-weight: bold;">5. Roll it up. </span> Starting from the edge with the intact handle, roll up the bag across the top edge. The snipped handle will end up on the outside of the roll.<br /></tr><br /><tr><br /><a onblur="try {parent.deselectBloggerImageGracefully();} catch(e) {}" href="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEhg_Ot-4gOwZK35fsrtfnw6FZj9qHwExrSnRnnbxTdMzYtA9nuUIbUTwwGh4fFMEC1Z2NCaLpC5VJB5vfpNtDCjxh3tjNwUI4PubzohPAtdgrYi-7iJfBnJ9Gw_Ew5vNEDXR-ylLv8tPgg/s1600-h/img_8320-1.jpg"><img style="margin: 0pt 10px 10px 0pt; float: left; cursor: pointer;" src="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEhg_Ot-4gOwZK35fsrtfnw6FZj9qHwExrSnRnnbxTdMzYtA9nuUIbUTwwGh4fFMEC1Z2NCaLpC5VJB5vfpNtDCjxh3tjNwUI4PubzohPAtdgrYi-7iJfBnJ9Gw_Ew5vNEDXR-ylLv8tPgg/s320/img_8320-1.jpg" alt="" id="BLOGGER_PHOTO_ID_5251943189626293730" border="0" /></a><br /><span style="font-weight: bold;">6. Pull down the outside handle. </span> This reminds me of one of the <span class="blsp-spelling-corrected" id="SPELLING_ERROR_2"><span>battalion</span></span> of brooms in Fantasia. Send your fledgling pompom around the room carrying a bucket of water if you like.<br /></tr><br /><tr><br /><a onblur="try {parent.deselectBloggerImageGracefully();} catch(e) {}" href="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEjyZe3xuRn-hayhgG_98izcw-mcoGVhIEI-gDfeQNcEdXRMkSUycNSll8zjQyeUWKSbQ3sybytReQKUKK1PmssE4JBZMLG3em4FtutoqXI7_0Ns0doLdmiarzGG9wkVy4O2gFldKpFdO2s/s1600-h/img_8321-1.jpg"><img style="margin: 0pt 10px 10px 0pt; float: left; cursor: pointer;" src="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEjyZe3xuRn-hayhgG_98izcw-mcoGVhIEI-gDfeQNcEdXRMkSUycNSll8zjQyeUWKSbQ3sybytReQKUKK1PmssE4JBZMLG3em4FtutoqXI7_0Ns0doLdmiarzGG9wkVy4O2gFldKpFdO2s/s320/img_8321-1.jpg" alt="" id="BLOGGER_PHOTO_ID_5251943191783400066" border="0" /></a><br /><span style="font-weight: bold;">7. Tie it up. </span> Use that snipped handle to secure the roll-up. Wrap the two ends around the rolled-up area a time or two, tie off, and trim off the extra (photo was taken before I trimmed).<br /><br />Repeat this with a total of 3 bags for each pompom you want to make. Two is a popular quantity. :) If you have bags of different colors, you could experiment with placement: roll multiple bags together to blend the colors, or group the little poms so that the center is white and outside is purple (just like my <span class="blsp-spelling-error" id="SPELLING_ERROR_3">jr</span>. high pompoms).<br /><br />Next we need to make some plastic strips with which to wrap the handles -- think of it as grip tape like used on a tennis racket or hockey stick. (Or, <span class="blsp-spelling-error" id="SPELLING_ERROR_4">anthropomorphized</span> broom?) One bag yields enough "tape" for a pair of pompoms.<br /></tr><br /><tr><br /><a onblur="try {parent.deselectBloggerImageGracefully();} catch(e) {}" href="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEiEuGE1nhc29dumtIALdISf5y06Rb7BtAS-0XaFWU3L2iTT1K2Sw1qh1suPb59kfwh6o60xEYUKyA6XTBHCt1S4lqaF3QjF_wbL0_mFZZ3IclkRtCayawnhrsT6ezhWaahQO2zyOAKqUF4/s1600-h/img_8322-1.jpg"><img style="margin: 0pt 10px 10px 0pt; float: left; cursor: pointer;" src="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEiEuGE1nhc29dumtIALdISf5y06Rb7BtAS-0XaFWU3L2iTT1K2Sw1qh1suPb59kfwh6o60xEYUKyA6XTBHCt1S4lqaF3QjF_wbL0_mFZZ3IclkRtCayawnhrsT6ezhWaahQO2zyOAKqUF4/s320/img_8322-1.jpg" alt="" id="BLOGGER_PHOTO_ID_5251943185964267394" border="0" /></a><br /><span style="font-weight: bold;">8. Create tape loops. </span> <span style="font-style: italic;"> [I'm basically following the continuous <a href="http://laughingpurplegoldfish.blogspot.com/2008/06/no-join-method-of-cutting-fabric-strips.html">strip-cutting technique</a> from <a href="http://laughingpurplegoldfish.blogspot.com/">Laughing Purple Goldfish</a>, so you can check out her instructions if you need more photos.]</span> If you want a contrasting color for the handles, this is the time to grab that bag.<br /><br />Cut off the bottom inch of the bag and pull out the pleats (as before) to make the bag lie flat. Trim off the handles, creating a nice rectangular tube of plastic. Fold one side edge (as opposed to the trimmed top/bottom edges) almost over to the other side edge (maybe 3" shy). Starting at that newly created fold (bottom of photo), cut 2" wide strips extending nearly to the opposite edge, but leaving 2" or so connected. (I'm compressing many steps here, so if it's as confusing as I suspect it is, check out the Goldfish tutorial :)<br /></tr><br /><tr><br /><a onblur="try {parent.deselectBloggerImageGracefully();} catch(e) {}" href="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEjXAgFm1EAb2-qsSg4QlcxpsT6i9A_c_n3o7phRenXSE-OGBurE4D57g2P0fjUHwLqqho903uaCutUQn0DSIiOBOxc2_TQzJP2Wr1Ky_S-mmo1bL63YtWn6W8iIlpKlBSfT57aeBc9pPec/s1600-h/img_8323-1.jpg"><img style="margin: 0pt 10px 10px 0pt; float: left; cursor: pointer;" src="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEjXAgFm1EAb2-qsSg4QlcxpsT6i9A_c_n3o7phRenXSE-OGBurE4D57g2P0fjUHwLqqho903uaCutUQn0DSIiOBOxc2_TQzJP2Wr1Ky_S-mmo1bL63YtWn6W8iIlpKlBSfT57aeBc9pPec/s320/img_8323-1.jpg" alt="" id="BLOGGER_PHOTO_ID_5251943181074964722" border="0" /></a><br /><span style="font-weight: bold;">9. Turn the loops into one long strip. </span> Open up the bag, and cut on a diagonal across the part you left connected, which makes one long strip of plastic tape. (Clear? Good.) Find the approximate middle of that very long strip, and cut it to create two pieces of tape, one for each pompom. Repeat steps 8 and 9 for each pair of pompoms you wish to make.<br /></tr><br /><tr><br /><br /><a onblur="try {parent.deselectBloggerImageGracefully();} catch(e) {}" href="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEiV1Jj-XukiBkRFSMMvW6fWdZw6YPgpZi4RuAVF2xePqz2KyeLQilmWWFFyq-P1eY90r_NVm-elFDcspizV4yKTmBT0afDKZy6q8GIo0nyL-1AO65RE_WozlfYGFOvY0NPbzYc-csF7RTo/s1600-h/img_8324-1.jpg"><img style="margin: 0pt 10px 10px 0pt; float: left; cursor: pointer;" src="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEiV1Jj-XukiBkRFSMMvW6fWdZw6YPgpZi4RuAVF2xePqz2KyeLQilmWWFFyq-P1eY90r_NVm-elFDcspizV4yKTmBT0afDKZy6q8GIo0nyL-1AO65RE_WozlfYGFOvY0NPbzYc-csF7RTo/s320/img_8324-1.jpg" alt="" id="BLOGGER_PHOTO_ID_5251941688244497042" border="0" /></a><br /><br /><span style="font-weight: bold;">10. Prepare to wrap. </span> Group three poms together (hey, feel free to go nuts and put like 20 together and make a mega-pom... you've got spirit, yes you do!). Tie the end of your tape around the base of the fringe, then begin wrapping up toward the handle, catching the tail of the tape underneath.<br /></tr><br /><tr><br /><a onblur="try {parent.deselectBloggerImageGracefully();} catch(e) {}" href="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEjBYa2TnYk0xDmj95iKQ9oSEZ3_V6HTBw3PaAXkC13ukdvK_PCRiQGVhdNdBBJTqBNcfcId_9aLqzZVCOqsJ9KbOW2rKQrY5nviL1E0Z_A3zx9jDFo57WJBDSdRbmZqwLCeAzqDdeTO-kA/s1600-h/img_8325-1.jpg"><img style="margin: 0pt 10px 10px 0pt; float: left; cursor: pointer;" src="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEjBYa2TnYk0xDmj95iKQ9oSEZ3_V6HTBw3PaAXkC13ukdvK_PCRiQGVhdNdBBJTqBNcfcId_9aLqzZVCOqsJ9KbOW2rKQrY5nviL1E0Z_A3zx9jDFo57WJBDSdRbmZqwLCeAzqDdeTO-kA/s320/img_8325-1.jpg" alt="" id="BLOGGER_PHOTO_ID_5251941678597374994" border="0" /></a><br /><span style="font-weight: bold;">11. Keep winding. </span> Do your best to keep the tape flat, overlapping generously (like that racket handle), but if you're not too bothered about it, you can just let the tape twist up into a rope as you wind. Just depends on how much you want to be concerned about it. When you get to the top (the base of the handle), start winding through the handle.<br /></tr><br /><tr><br /><a onblur="try {parent.deselectBloggerImageGracefully();} catch(e) {}" href="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEiwTJjwc2iTrFwAtHUeGp-zHnLWpFNMehXjbWfS2rhPjFP5GLyH5R-Q4aWJfAvMX0loGey6cwtAcBpqUwmGpGakJP5t_vjuGI6uM2TdEK_ofsGrQ0e2Oy4k-TyJb6jPscB2XbSIhCxlxyc/s1600-h/img_8326-1.jpg"><img style="margin: 0pt 10px 10px 0pt; float: left; cursor: pointer;" src="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEiwTJjwc2iTrFwAtHUeGp-zHnLWpFNMehXjbWfS2rhPjFP5GLyH5R-Q4aWJfAvMX0loGey6cwtAcBpqUwmGpGakJP5t_vjuGI6uM2TdEK_ofsGrQ0e2Oy4k-TyJb6jPscB2XbSIhCxlxyc/s320/img_8326-1.jpg" alt="" id="BLOGGER_PHOTO_ID_5251941680564451730" border="0" /></a><br /><span style="font-weight: bold;">12. This part isn't so fun, but keep going. </span> It helps if you roll the remainder of the tape into a little ball so that you can shove it through the handle (over and over) a bit more easily. Make sure you're overlapping the tape quite a lot in this part (or, if you've given up and are going for the twisted rope rather than flat tape method, keep the rope fairly snug).<br /></tr><br /><tr><br /><a onblur="try {parent.deselectBloggerImageGracefully();} catch(e) {}" href="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEgx4yVzFwwWU2G8ELFpih7y_gqXisKB0OIhUdlIfAtLJN6dWh0Y5xOdzGykv83wiDpILRpVB6ZhenLt79Pt_p2ATu_0C9wOK6sfzpSuUP2B4OaRr5LkB89OMA4EE6-F-OjXrkhNtvpfYh4/s1600-h/img_8327-1.jpg"><img style="margin: 0pt 10px 10px 0pt; float: left; cursor: pointer;" src="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEgx4yVzFwwWU2G8ELFpih7y_gqXisKB0OIhUdlIfAtLJN6dWh0Y5xOdzGykv83wiDpILRpVB6ZhenLt79Pt_p2ATu_0C9wOK6sfzpSuUP2B4OaRr5LkB89OMA4EE6-F-OjXrkhNtvpfYh4/s320/img_8327-1.jpg" alt="" id="BLOGGER_PHOTO_ID_5251941675753610178" border="0" /></a><br /><span style="font-weight: bold;">13. Finish up. </span> Once you get around to the other side of the handle, wind back down to the base of the fringe. Tie a knot, then let the remaining length of tape blend in with the pompom fringe (trimming as necessary).<br /></tr><br /><tr><br /><a onblur="try {parent.deselectBloggerImageGracefully();} catch(e) {}" href="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEj5JPosBbvJFarNloYarsjAcw_LSd0FJhA64dGXFbpztxNCu537zzmIXORLOK1M-vZZUO2VlLwMOoU3woWo4ABXQvnToddY9rukG2Cmv_11giohN0HNDfZWRA1FZULBurlFJEJZqem5-uY/s1600-h/img_8329-1.jpg"><img style="margin: 0pt 10px 10px 0pt; float: left; cursor: pointer;" src="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEj5JPosBbvJFarNloYarsjAcw_LSd0FJhA64dGXFbpztxNCu537zzmIXORLOK1M-vZZUO2VlLwMOoU3woWo4ABXQvnToddY9rukG2Cmv_11giohN0HNDfZWRA1FZULBurlFJEJZqem5-uY/s320/img_8329-1.jpg" alt="" id="BLOGGER_PHOTO_ID_5251940895603505682" border="0" /></a><br /><span style="font-weight: bold;">14. Rah, rah. </span> Repeat the final assembly steps for the other pompom. Now you're ready to outwardly exhibit your enthusiasm for a whole variety of things. Rah, indeed!<br /><br /><br /></tr></tbody></table>Kristyhttp://www.blogger.com/profile/01212069033719667079noreply@blogger.com5tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-4264317389109322867.post-9530839951026373232008-09-23T21:42:00.000-07:002008-09-23T22:43:31.642-07:00t-shirt bag<a href="http://www.flickr.com/photos/kjander/2884272482/" title="t-shirt bag by kelanew, on Flickr"><img src="http://farm4.static.flickr.com/3128/2884272482_1d84af71db.jpg" alt="t-shirt bag" width="333" height="500" /></a><br /><br />i've vowed several times in the past many years to stay away from cheap disposable one-season clothing and focus on quality, timeless pieces. well, i try, but it's been a struggle lately, and somehow an embarrassingly high percentage of my wardrobe comes from target (hey, did you know you can just wheel that whole damn cart right into the dressing room, toddler and all? that's on a good day. most of the time, i just pull things off the rack, try them on at home so i don't have to do it while juggling kids, and return what doesn't fit. lame. you can imagine how well this plan is working for me.)<br /><br />well, i have big plans. i've been holding off until my body figures out what size it wants to be post-baby, but shortly i plan to equip myself with, say a minimum of two pairs of pants that fit (up from my current total of zero -- it's summer, i've been relying on those roughly three skirts i have. seriously sad.) this time around, i really want to commit to avoiding disposable clothing. i'm sticking to timeless styles, remaking old stuff i have around or that i find resale, or sewing. eek! i've always wanted to have a wardrobe of clothing i've sewn, and have never managed more than a few pieces at a time. of course, now i have less time than ever... so i think i may have to ease into this, but stating the goal is a good a place to start as any.<br /><br />so, in an effort to clear out some room in my closet, i pulled down a whole stack of t-shirts that are all from 2004 or earlier. remember? back when we were made to believe that it was hopelessly frumpy if the hem of our t-shirts so much as grazed the tops of our jeans? well, i saved all my t-shirts then when i switched into maternity clothes, thinking i'd wear them again some day. i'm pleased that i've more or less fit back into them since then, but lo and behold, they're... short. <span style="font-style: italic;">now</span> it's really important that our t-shirts not only sit squarely <span style="font-style: italic;">below</span> the tops of our jeans, but it's ideal if they extend nearly to the thigh. perfect. and, unlike the hemlines of my mother's day, i can't just raise or lower my t-shirts so that i can keep wearing them. you would have thought t-shirts were more or less a basic item, not so affected by the whims of fashion. but were that so, how else would they get us to buy all new t-shirts every two years?<br /><br /><a href="http://www.flickr.com/photos/kjander/2883432205/" title="stack o' t-shirts by kelanew, on Flickr"><img src="http://farm4.static.flickr.com/3141/2883432205_fca9091c99_m.jpg" alt="stack o' t-shirts" width="240" height="180" /></a><br /><br />lesson learned. that's why i'm not playing that game anymore (as best i can avoid it, in any case.)<br /><br />all this to say that i used <a href="http://laughingpurplegoldfish.blogspot.com/">laughing purple goldfish design's</a> <a href="http://laughingpurplegoldfish.blogspot.com/2008/06/no-join-method-of-cutting-fabric-strips.html">strip cutting technique</a> to attack those short t-shirts, and while i was over there, got inspired by her <a href="http://laughingpurplegoldfish.blogspot.com/2008/08/easy-peasy-crochet-bag.html">crochet bags</a>. i will say, i didn't bother with the pattern (too lazy to walk over to the computer and remind myself what it was, though i would have been better off if i had), so mine is just made up. luckily, it's the sort of thing you can make up while sitting on the floor attempting to have a conversation with an old friend, as two babies and two kids swirl around the room (we had house guests this weekend, which was really too much fun.)<br /><br />a few details: i cut the strips 1 inch wide (might go narrower next time?), and used a N hook. (i'd read the metric size for you off said hook, but my daughter took a liking to its novelty-like giant goofiness and now it's somewhere among her things, i'd guess.) i did it single "strand", which kept the colors distinct and formed a stripe pattern (so to speak), but using thinner strips and crocheting double-strand would give a different look if you like. the handles were a twisted rope sort of thing formed by the loops cut off the bottoms of the shirts (to avoid having to deal with the thicker hemmed fabric). i opted not to line it since it's so stretchy, i wanted to go with that rather than work against it with a lining. also, it's heavy. really heavy. just something to keep in mind.<br /><br />so there you have it. my too-short shirts have become a just-right-sized bag. i like how the colors worked out, but really it's not that surprising. after all, i did <span style="font-style: italic;">choose</span> all those shirts once upon a time. really, the surprising part is that it's not all just shades of green.Kristyhttp://www.blogger.com/profile/01212069033719667079noreply@blogger.com5tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-4264317389109322867.post-17481784467921710842008-09-23T20:24:00.000-07:002008-09-23T21:28:41.323-07:00crochet toddler dress<a href="http://www.flickr.com/photos/kjander/2883431483/" title="crochet dress for hazel by kelanew, on Flickr"><img src="http://farm4.static.flickr.com/3119/2883431483_1e46b62cca.jpg" width="333" height="500" alt="crochet dress for hazel" /></a><br /><br />two months ago, i decided to crochet something for hazel. i settled on a sweet timeless looking dress pattern from a book i have around (<a href="http://www.amazon.com/Candy-Crochet-Adorable-Designs-Toddlers/dp/1933027177">candy crochet</a> by candi jensen, the pattern is "summer love"). i really want to just make up my own stuff, which i will do next, but i figured i'd try not to tax my recently-postpartum brain for now. similarly, i made it 18 mo size so that if it took me a long time to complete, there would be no chance she'd outgrow it before it was completed. <br /><br />plus -- and i really believe this -- 'tis better to make clothing for toddlers than for babies. babies grow ridiculously fast, and ideally you'll want them to wear it for more total hours than the number of hours you spent making it. (unless you just really love making baby booties... which i've done and can totally understand the appeal.)<br /><br /><a href="http://www.flickr.com/photos/kjander/2883433709/" title="crochet dress detail by kelanew, on Flickr"><img src="http://farm4.static.flickr.com/3296/2883433709_a9d11b5067_m.jpg" width="240" height="160" alt="crochet dress detail" /></a><br /><br />well, it's finished, so i think i did okay with that whole schedule/sizing thing. :) in fact, i started it during the opening ceremony of the olympics (remember that? weird how it already seems like ages ago) and finished it before the olympics ended. i wonder if other people do this or if i'm weird, but when i look at something i've made, i always remember what i was thinking or what was happening around me while i was working on it. thus, i'll always think of this as hazel's "olympics dress".<br /><br />i was going to title the post that way, but i figure that will just confuse the search engines. in fact, if anyone arrived here looking for patriotic, athletic-inspired clothing, i apologize. (but if you did, and you read this far anyway, leave a comment to say hi. because that's something i'd do... the internet is so distracting. :)<br /><br /><a href="http://www.flickr.com/photos/kjander/2884270934/" title="button and picot detail by kelanew, on Flickr"><img src="http://farm4.static.flickr.com/3263/2884270934_e1765c1463.jpg" width="400" alt="button and picot detail" /></a><br /><br />p.s. this is the second thing i've made out of bamboo blend yarn (the first was a springy <a href="http://craftastica.blogspot.com/2008/02/crocheted-toddler-sweater.html">sweater</a>), and i'm really sold on it. it's easy to work with, has a lovely sheen, and works well for those of us in warm climates where wool isn't always the best option. this time, it was bamboo/nylon <a href="http://www.kyarns.com/knit-one-crochet-too-babyboo-bamboo-nylon-blend-double-knitting-sport-weight-baby-yarn.html">babyboo</a> in color "blue ice" -- quite economical, too, at $5.50/skein. last time, it was <a href="http://www.classiceliteyarns.com/product_page_detail.php?category_id=1&item_id=44">wool bam boo</a> (guess what it's made of?), and after washing it a ton, i can attest that it really holds up well.Kristyhttp://www.blogger.com/profile/01212069033719667079noreply@blogger.com2tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-4264317389109322867.post-63534867963524265312008-09-11T20:26:00.000-07:002008-09-11T21:32:36.959-07:00garden party cake<a href="http://www.flickr.com/photos/kjander/2817979722/" title="cake in a meadow by kelanew, on Flickr"><img src="http://farm4.static.flickr.com/3237/2817979722_eaae9d60aa.jpg" width="333" height="500" alt="cake in a meadow" /></a><br /><br />two weeks ago, my sister called to chat as she drove home from work:<br />"so, what are you doing?" she asked.<br />"um... i don't want to tell you."<br />"why?"<br />"well, okay. i'm making 1,000 blades of grass out of sugar."<br />[pause, then she asks:] "do you ever ask yourself, 'why did i think this was a good plan?' other people wouldn't think of doing this stuff! well, they might <span style="font-style:italic;">think</span> of doing it, but then they'd come to their senses and not actually <span style="font-style:italic;">do</span> it, because they're not crazy."<br /><br />i have to admit, she has a point.<br /><br />i often find that i have these grand ideas for things that "won't be that hard" and then somewhere around 2 a.m., i'm starting to reconsider. yet, despite all my crazy plans, i can only think of one time where i actually threw in the towel and went with a less-cool Plan B (which was my <a href="http://craftastica.blogspot.com/2007/04/wii-cake.html">Wii cake</a>, which actually turned out to be my most viewed project ever, despite the catastrophic failure of Plan A).<br /><br /><a href="http://www.flickr.com/photos/kjander/2817974036/" title="a thousand blades of grass by kelanew, on Flickr"><img src="http://farm4.static.flickr.com/3002/2817974036_67e2a57179_m.jpg" width="240" height="160" alt="a thousand blades of grass" /></a><br /><br />in this case, though, the 1,000 blades of grass weren't really so bad, maybe an hour to pipe and and 90 minutes to place them. and, hey, this math major got to use some numbers! (hmm, area of the cake plate, minus the area of the cake itself, times the number of blades per square inch... i did have to recheck my figures when the answer came out to be 960-something.) but the very idea... i'm fessing up, it's a bit nuts. <br /><br />i was inspired by a filler photo (not one of the featured projects) in "<a href="http://www.amazon.com/Kates-Cake-Decorating-Techniques-Fancy/dp/1592530702/ref=sr_1_4?ie=UTF8&s=books&qid=1221189762&sr=1-4">kate's cake decorating</a>", a 2004 cake book by kate sullivan. that book seems to be out of print, but a newer book, "<a href="http://www.amazon.com/Fun-Fancy-Cake-Decorating-Techniques/dp/1592532942/ref=sr_1_2?ie=UTF8&s=books&qid=1221189762&sr=1-2">fun & fancy cake decorating</a>" appears to be largely a reworking of the older book (from what i can tell peeking inside it on amazon, anyway). i quite enjoy the book i have; if you have some basic skills from a wilton class or something, but don't want to make the same semi-dated ordinary cakes over and over (sorry, wilton! i know you're trying...), kate sullivan's ideas can help you transition into something a little more interesting. that said, i disagree with some of her specific methods (why the obsession with painting over untinted icing? it seems easier and tidier just to tint the icing, IMO), but everyone has their own way of doing things, and i never follow the methods as presented to me anyway! overall, i definitely got my money's worth from it as a source of ideas, so you might want to check out the new book. (hopefully that typo about putting approximately a metric ton of leavener into the otherwise amazing (!) chocolate cake got fixed in the second version -- at least, the lava flow of cake batter that's still charred into the bottom of my oven feels that it might have been a typo. can't say for sure.)<br /><br />enough with the mini book review (so timely and useful, reviewing a book that is out of print!). this cake was for my mother-in-law's recent birthday. we wanted to do something special for her this year, so larry and i brainstormed and came up with an idea for a little garden party. his mother lives in a beautiful setting, with a little green space next to a creek extending from her back yard, so we decided to utilize that wonderfulness and set up a table there. with some flowers, candles, paper lanterns, and a few other little decorations, we had a lovely table set up, all in green and yellow. the cake followed that theme, and included daisies which i knew to be one of her favorites. we ordered in food from a nearby italian restaurant that we all really enjoy (too many babies around to consider cooking ourselves). she seemed genuinely surprised (hurray, subterfuge!) and everyone had a great time. (and i'm learning that you don't have to stress about going 100% martha to have a lovely party...)<br /><br /><a href="http://www.flickr.com/photos/kjander/2817984626/" title="party table by kelanew, on Flickr"><img src="http://farm4.static.flickr.com/3080/2817984626_1b0acff453_m.jpg" width="240" height="160" alt="party table" /></a><br /><br />i do have one party idea i want to share, though. after dinner, we played a bit of family-themed pictionary. i wasn't sure how this idea would play out, but it ended up being really a lot of fun: i made up pictionary cards with concepts or events from the family, that most everyone would be familiar with (people, professions, cities where we had lived, family quotes, etc, as well as funny notable events like "the time the boys changed the baby brother's diaper by hosing him off in the yard".) as we played, people started making up their own clues, too, which was really funny. we used one of those giant presentation pads from an office supply store, but that wouldn't be necessary if you were indoors. the fact that the game triggered lots of remembering and joking around made it perfect for a family party. try it out at thanksgiving, ideally after some wine but before the naps take over.<br /><br /><a href="http://www.flickr.com/photos/kjander/2818075030/" title="happy birthday! by kelanew, on Flickr"><img src="http://farm4.static.flickr.com/3237/2818075030_14193d6cb1.jpg" width="400" alt="happy birthday!" /></a>Kristyhttp://www.blogger.com/profile/01212069033719667079noreply@blogger.com1tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-4264317389109322867.post-30029898929718707042008-09-07T19:40:00.000-07:002008-09-16T14:13:21.198-07:00pysanky<a href="http://www.flickr.com/photos/kjander/2832454692/" title="bee egg by kelanew, on Flickr"><img src="http://farm4.static.flickr.com/3220/2832454692_ca515f1bce.jpg" width="400" alt="bee egg" /></a><br /><br />i've created a <a href="http://www.flickr.com/photos/kjander/sets/72157607138222507/">flickr set</a> showing and describing my Ukrainian eggs (pysanky). i haven't worked on this project for a while and have been really wanting to start back up again, so this is part of my motivation to do so. <br /><br />rather than repeat everything here, if you're interested in reading more, i invite you to <a href="http://www.flickr.com/photos/kjander/sets/72157607138222507/">click through to the flickr set</a>. as always, i'm more than happy to answer any questions, so just leave a comment (either place).<br /><br /><a href="http://www.flickr.com/photos/kjander/2832453138/" title="pysanky by kelanew, on Flickr"><img src="http://farm4.static.flickr.com/3074/2832453138_49802bb1cc.jpg" width="400" alt="pysanky" /></a><br /><br /><a href="http://www.flickr.com/photos/kjander/2831618683/" title="oh, pengie! by kelanew, on Flickr"><img src="http://farm4.static.flickr.com/3046/2831618683_7721f0f338_m.jpg" width="240" height="160" alt="oh, pengie!" /></a><br /><br /><span style="font-style:italic;"><span style="font-weight:bold;">Update 09.16.2008:</span> I just found out I've been accepted to <a href="http://makerfaire.com/">Maker Faire</a>! I'll have an interactive display of these eggs -- if you'll be around, stop by and try your hand at making one, or just to say hi!</span>Kristyhttp://www.blogger.com/profile/01212069033719667079noreply@blogger.com5tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-4264317389109322867.post-78529634319069603152008-08-22T16:36:00.000-07:002008-08-22T21:00:58.631-07:00kid craft: fun with food coloring<a href="http://www.flickr.com/photos/28486132@N08/2788348402/" title="primary colors by evasnaps, on Flickr"><img src="http://farm4.static.flickr.com/3079/2788348402_ae44815a31.jpg" alt="primary colors" width="400" /></a><br /><br />i don't find much time for crafting with a preschooler and (not-so-)newborn in the house, thus the dramatic slow-down in posting the past three months. today, though, we did a bit of kid crafting that i wanted to share. not <em>quite</em> a guest blogger post, but a collaborative effort to be sure: not only is the artwork eva's, but she took all the photos as well (she got her own camera for her third birthday, complete with her own <a href="http://flickr.com/photos/28486132@N08/">flickr site</a> -- have i gone off the deep end?).<br /><br /><a href="http://www.flickr.com/photos/28486132@N08/2787494477/" title="orange + blue by evasnaps, on Flickr"><img src="http://farm4.static.flickr.com/3247/2787494477_f96ec7c1d1_m.jpg" alt="orange + blue" width="240" align="right" height="180" /></a>we started out by playing around with food coloring and water, as suggested by a fellow mama. as you can see, we decided to start with the three primary colors in "tiny" (ahem, <em>shot</em>) glasses and go from there. we worked out things like what colors you need to make green, what you get if you mix red and yellow, and that no matter how many times you try it, mixing all three will give you a version of brown. ("how about if we add blue to the orange we just made? oh, look, that makes brown <em>too</em>, mama!")<br /><br />we used a syringe to suck up water and mix it in a small white bowl (the needle-less syringe i happened to have lying around was a marinade injector. why? because <a href="http://lorasrecipes.blogspot.com/">my sister is a foodie</a>, that's why. normal people can use a dropper from a craft or teacher supply store). from there, the new color went back into the syringe to be placed on our medium -- first, a paper towel. (the original idea was to use coffee filters, which would be great, but we didn't have any handy.) the colors bled and mixed in cool ways, and being a paper towel, it soaked up enough of the water to prevent a huge mess. we even made a duplicate "print" of the original by pressing a second paper towel onto the first. neat.<br /><br /><a href="http://www.flickr.com/photos/28486132@N08/2788349512/" title="food coloring art by evasnaps, on Flickr"><img src="http://farm3.static.flickr.com/2120/2788349512_a31bc9a68b.jpg" alt="food coloring art" width="400" /></a><br /><br />next, we tried doing a modified tie-dye: i rolled up an old tea towel and bound it with twist ties and rubber bands to make a "caterpillar" shape. eva placed different colors along the caterpillar, then we unrolled it to see the design. this is a somewhat ephemeral project, as my understanding is that you can't permanently dye cotton with food coloring (maybe next time, we'll try <a href="http://www.pburch.net/dyeing/FAQ/drinkmix.shtml">kool-aid</a>?). i may try heat setting it with an iron -- still won't be washable, but might be good enough that i can let her use it for her toy kitchen without worrying that it will stain the carpet.<br /><br /><a href="http://www.flickr.com/photos/28486132@N08/2788348686/" title="all wrapped up by evasnaps, on Flickr"><img src="http://farm4.static.flickr.com/3068/2788348686_88f5d0e267_m.jpg" alt="all wrapped up" width="240" height="171" /></a> <a href="http://www.flickr.com/photos/28486132@N08/2788349080/" title="sorta tie-dye by evasnaps, on Flickr"><img src="http://farm4.static.flickr.com/3091/2788349080_8a1ec78d21_m.jpg" alt="sorta tie-dye" width="180" height="240" /></a><br /><br />now, since this is eva's project, here is the method in her own words in a 17-second-long video, which she recorded herself with her camera. (it's only her third (or so) video, so you can hear me telling her how to turn it off at the end. :)<br /><br /><object type="application/x-shockwave-flash" data="http://www.flickr.com/apps/video/stewart.swf?v=59154" classid="clsid:D27CDB6E-AE6D-11cf-96B8-444553540000" width="400" height="300"> <param name="flashvars" value="intl_lang=en-us&photo_secret=de40a1e962&photo_id=2788783068"> <param name="movie" value="http://www.flickr.com/apps/video/stewart.swf?v=59154"> <param name="bgcolor" value="#000000"> <param name="allowFullScreen" value="true"><embed type="application/x-shockwave-flash" src="http://www.flickr.com/apps/video/stewart.swf?v=59154" bgcolor="#000000" allowfullscreen="true" flashvars="intl_lang=en-us&photo_secret=de40a1e962&photo_id=2788783068" width="400" height="300"></embed></object><br /><br /><em>[caption: "mom, we used this colored water, and we used "play water", and we put it on that cloth right there. with twist ties and rubber bands."]</em><br /><br />this isn't earth-shattering stuff of course, but we sure enjoyed ourselves. and with minimal set-up/clean-up, we did the whole thing while baby hazel slept. perfect for our rainy afternoon!Kristyhttp://www.blogger.com/profile/01212069033719667079noreply@blogger.com2tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-4264317389109322867.post-11034796343925819572008-07-05T20:35:00.001-07:002008-07-05T21:25:10.063-07:00globe cake<a href="http://www.flickr.com/photos/kjander/2640378585/" title="eva's cake by kelanew, on Flickr"><img src="http://farm4.static.flickr.com/3046/2640378585_b197bd4648.jpg" width="333" height="500" alt="eva's cake" /></a><br /><br />here's the cake i made for eva's third birthday. she loves her earth ball (an inflatable globe ball) and likes to talk about where different places are on the map -- where we live, places she's traveled, where family members live or have traveled. so, why not make an "earth ball cake"? sure it's round and complicated, and sure i just had a baby, but why not? :) luckily my sisters are visiting, so i had both hands free for long enough stretches to enable me to make this. hurray for sisters!<br /><br />it's hummingbird cake (pineapple/banana/pecan) with cream cheese icing, and each half of the earth is composed of two 8" cakes (torted into four layers) plus half a torted 6" cake on top. then, the whole thing is carved into shape (i could have bought a special pan, but this worked fine). i covered each half in fondant, inverted one, and stuck them together. (structural notes: there are dowels supporting the bottom tier (hemisphere?) of the cake, and i put hot glue between the two pieces of cardboard to help hold the two tiers together.) the fondant on the bottom half threatened to fall off -- and in the heat at the park, it did start to slip -- but i added a band of fondant around the center to bind the two halves together. <br /><br /><a href="http://www.flickr.com/photos/kjander/2641206222/" title="my earth ball cake by kelanew, on Flickr"><img src="http://farm4.static.flickr.com/3267/2641206222_496c23765c.jpg" width="333" height="500" alt="my earth ball cake" /></a><br /><br />the continents are piped on in royal icing, which i did by looking at a map and using latitude and longitude lines as a guide. i got a bit impatient around 1 a.m., so the filling in of the land masses got a bit sloppy at the end. good enough! (i'm learning the beauty of that phrase.) the topper -- a girl holding a toy airplane -- is made of fondant, with a piece of wire in there to support the arms. it's eva-like, but as she'll tell you, her hair is a little bit lighter... the flags are to denote places of interest, places we've found on the map time and time again. ("mama, show me seattle again. remember when we saw the face needle?" she's still working on pronouncing that "sp" consonant blend :)<br /><br /><a href="http://www.flickr.com/photos/kjander/2640378065/" title="cake topper detail by kelanew, on Flickr"><img src="http://farm4.static.flickr.com/3157/2640378065_e76800c750.jpg" width="333" height="500" alt="cake topper detail" /></a><br /><br />the location of the party moved at the last minute from our back yard to a park 20 minutes away... so the cake suddenly had to survive an unplanned transport and *then* had to endure the texas summer heat. i'm surprised that it did all of that without a hitch. (we rigged up a clever support system in a cooler.) it didn't come out exactly the way i envisioned it, but i'm quite happy with it. and it was really tasty, too.Kristyhttp://www.blogger.com/profile/01212069033719667079noreply@blogger.com4tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-4264317389109322867.post-90601205243895114882008-06-15T19:53:00.000-07:002008-06-15T21:16:29.762-07:00rocking chairs<a href="http://www.flickr.com/photos/kjander/2582156599/" title="img_6113.jpg by kelanew, on Flickr"><img src="http://farm4.static.flickr.com/3161/2582156599_865d3d0de0.jpg" width="333" height="500" alt="img_6113.jpg" /></a><br /><br /><a href="http://www.flickr.com/photos/kjander/2582977612/" title="img_6068.jpg by kelanew, on Flickr"><img src="http://farm4.static.flickr.com/3024/2582977612_b2283c22f6.jpg" width="333" height="500" alt="img_6068.jpg" /></a><br /><br />in honor of father's day, here are photos of the rocking chairs my dad made for my daughter. (she received the larger chair for her first birthday, and upon realizing it was a bit too big, he promptly started making the smaller one for christmas! thus, two chairs...) now that he has two new granddaughters as of this year, he's got more woodworking ahead of him, it seems.<br /><br />both my parents have always helped me to know that i can probably make most anything -- or, more accurately: it might not work out at first, but it's sure worth giving it a try. the first thing i made with my dad (that i recall making) was a wooden jigsaw puzzle. i colored a drawing on a scrap of plywood with some crayons, and he used the table saw (okay, so it wasn't a <span style="font-style:italic;">jig</span>saw, but who's ever heard of a table saw puzzle?) to cut it into about 10 pieces. strangely, this resulted in a really challenging puzzle that adults had difficulty putting together, even after a bit of practice.<br /><br />happy father's day, dad. :)Kristyhttp://www.blogger.com/profile/01212069033719667079noreply@blogger.com1tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-4264317389109322867.post-75652651788625174032008-05-24T17:32:00.000-07:002008-05-24T18:09:07.601-07:00home madeyesterday we welcomed <a href="http://mangobounce.blogspot.com/2008/05/hazel.html">hazel</a> into our family. she was born peacefully at home, and we're all doing well...Kristyhttp://www.blogger.com/profile/01212069033719667079noreply@blogger.com4tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-4264317389109322867.post-64112978730776876092008-05-14T21:53:00.000-07:002008-05-14T22:16:52.359-07:00frog meets bear<a href="http://www.flickr.com/photos/kjander/2494229070/" title="froggy by kelanew, on Flickr"><img src="http://farm4.static.flickr.com/3074/2494229070_0586985f8f.jpg" width="400" /></a><br /><br />sometimes i get into this mode where i enjoy some project so much, i then repeat it (with variations) several more times before moving on to something else. well, those <a href="http://craftastica.blogspot.com/2008/05/amigurumi-bears.html">bears</a> i made last week were pretty entertaining... so this week i made a frog. (seriously, the <a href="http://www.knitpicks.com/Kyuuto%21+Amigurumi_BD31016.html">kyuuto amigurumi book</a> is totally worth it -- for the price, it would have been worthwhile had i made only one project out of it, and i've done three already...)<br /><br />my main difficulty, though, is the facial expression. this is as true of stuffed animals as it is of dolls (when i made <a href="http://craftastica.blogspot.com/2007/02/sadie.html">eva's doll</a>, i restitched the second eye about ten times so she didn't look depressed or crazy, and in the end i gave up and settled for half-drunk -- isn't it weird how a pupil half a milimeter to the side can cause a whole different expression?). it took some effort to get the frog eyes to look roughly balanced, and then i did the mouth (which is embroidered since i had no red felt on hand) three times before he looked friendly and not like he might try to eat you in your sleep. expressions are harder than they seem, and i have much respect for people who have learned to do this well. (i luck into a passable expression eventually, but some people can achieve the look they want with actual <span style="font-style: italic;">skill</span>.)<br /><br />this is for a friend's little girl, but i think first i'll have to convince eva to relinquish it. she's been ribbit-ing it around the house for a few days now. and of course, she's now asking about her bear. soon...Kristyhttp://www.blogger.com/profile/01212069033719667079noreply@blogger.com2