Craftzine.com blog: August 2006 Archives

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August 28, 2006

My Crafty Chumby

Bre, Phil, and I on the MAKE/CRAFT team are so excited to collaborate on Chumby! We each got review devices at FOO camp this weekend to check out and tinker on. My part in all this? Chumby is also a craft hacker's dream. Patterns are available for you to customize Chumby's plush interface into any kind of design imaginable. The product is not ready for prime time just yet but we are preparing to help you customize and hack your Chumby in any way we can. My Chumby named "Craftina" will be debuting some new duds one day here on the CRAFT blog. Link.

More

MAKE Blog Post - Link.
O'Reilly Radar Post - Link.

Amigurumi Chihuahua

Here's a cute amigurumi chihuahua re-interpreted and made by sami-pi from this pattern here. Thanks Bonnie! Link.

Antique Pattern Library

The Antique Pattern Library is a great resource for inspiration or old patterns/designs. Most of these books are rare and are scanned in to share and celebrate the vast history of craft. Pictured here is a French crochet book from 1868 donated by Judith Combs. Topics are range in the needlecraft family from knitting, crochet, embroidery, needlepoint and more. Books listed in light grey are those that are currently being scanned and will be added to the library. Link.

T-Shirt Cami

Crafter Sheila Zent who's author of Sew Teen: Make Your Own Cool Clothes sent us this great T-shirt Cami Pattern to share. You can make this tank 2 old t-shirts. The braided straps and belt make a great touch. Sheila's eXpresSew site is a great resource as well providing lots of kits, glossary of sewing terms, and patterns from no sewing/beginner to free ones as well. Link.

HOW TO - Make a Starship Enterprise out of a floppy disk

Thanks Gerrit for pointing us to a fun way to get rid of your old plastic 3 1/2" floppy disks. Turn them into the Starship Enterprise! Link.

August 27, 2006

CRAFT podcast pattern - Fitzpattern's Maggie Tank and Shorts

We are so excited to team up with Lisa Howdin of Fitzpatterns to bring you the weekly patterns via CRAFT on iTunes.

Here's our second cool pattern from Fitzpattern, the Maggie tank top and girl's "stubbies" shorts. A great quick and easy project to make.

Maggiepattern

The Maggie pattern is sized Medium. If you need another size (Small or Large) please visit the Maggie Pattern page. - Link.

Garment measurements for this 'Medium are:
Bust 88.4cm (33.75 in)
Hips: 90.8cm (35.7 in)
Upper Thigh (1): 64cm (25.2 in)

Click here to get the PDF (and other CRAFT content) delivered automatically via iTunes - Link.

August 26, 2006

Make Podcast: Weekend Projects - DIY T-Shirt Designs

In celebration of the new craftzine magazine and blog, I have created a podcast to teach three ways to make your own t-shirt designs.

Shirt2

When you make your own tshirt designs upload them to the craft flickr pool!

Make sure to go check out the instructional post too!

Click here to get the video (MP4) delivered automatically with iTunes. This video will play on PC/Mac/Linux/PSPs and iPod video devices. Also for your viewing pleasure - HD, 3gp, 3g2, Youtube, Google, and Blip.

Weekend Projects: DIY T-shirt Designs

This week, I've put together an instructional pdf for three different ways to make t-shirt designs.

Wrench

Download it, or subscribe in itunes and have it downloaded automatically!

Bunnyvader

This is what my bunny-vader t-shirt design looked like before rinsing and after!

Train-1

I really want to see the shirts that you design! Make sure if you make your own t-shirt designs that you upload them to the flickr craft pool!

August 25, 2006

Stitch N' Pitch in Chicago on Saturday

Summer's not quite over yet. We still have a few more Stitch N' Pitches to go starting off this Saturday in Chicago with the White Sox. Here's a shot of some knitters from the Texas Rangers game. Check out the summer baseball crafts post I did earlier this summer for some creative project ideas you can take with you to the ballpark. For tickets and more information, visit the Stitch N' Pitch site. Link.

Here are the remaining Stitch N' Pitch games for the season:
Sept 2 - San Diego Padres
Sept 9 - Tampa Bay Devil Rays
Sept 9 - Arizona Diamondbacks
Sept 10 - Cincinati Reds
Sept 13 - Cleveland Indians
Sept 17 - Atlanta Braves

I've also posted up more Stitch N' Pitch photos, more from the SF Giants game as well as the Pirates and Rangers games. Thanks to Barbara Paley, co-commissoner of the Stitch N' Pitch events, as well as Randy Fong of the Knitting Yarn Store for giving me their photos to post.

Stitch N' Pitch: SF Giants Photos - Link.
Stitch N' Pitch: Pirates and Rangers Photos - Link.

Casting for a new documentary on So Cal Crafters

Hi Crafters, here's a quick note from Blake Levin who's about to produce a new documentary and needs some Southern California crafters.

From Blake Levin: We are currently casting for a new documentary series about the women who make up the SoCal craft scene. We are looking for women who are passionate about being a crafter and who are trying to create their own independent business out of their work.

We are looking for outgoing, fun and above all, real and honest people that would feel comfortable sharing all aspects of their lives with us, from the creation of new craft items to a night out on the town with their friends.

If you are interested in being a part of the project, please send an email to CrafterDocumentary@gmail.com. Please include a recent photograph of yourself as well as a sample of some of your recent craft work. Any other questions about the project can be sent to this email address as well.

Information on the Executive Producer:
Blake Levin is an accomplished Writer, Producer and Director. Some of his recent projects include the Emmy Award winning "10 Days that Unexpectedly Changed America" for The History Channel, "Flip That House" for TLC, "30 Days" for FX and "Switched" for ABC Family.

Knit Cupcake

Keeping with our knit food today, here's a knit cupcake pattern, that's seamless! Link.

Katherine Wakid's digital quilt

Created by Katherine Wakid of California College of the Arts in San Francisco, Stitchories explores the nature of craft in our technology world. The digital quilt is a cotton blanket with a built-in computer that can upload photos and record spoken narratives. Stitchories received an Honorable Mention in ID magazine's 2006 Student Design Review. [ via ] Link.

Phyllo Cups

From "computer geek gone chef and back again" Joseph show us how easy it is to make phylo pastry dough cups. He says "Have you ever been to a party and seen fancy appetizers served in phyllo cups? They look good, don't they? I bet you're wondering how to make those. This tutorial walks you through making a batch of phyllo cups, ready to use to impress your friends." Link.

More:
Fun with Phyllo - Link.

Knit a slice of pizza

I still love the whole food theme that's been happening in crafts lately. Here's a pattern for you to knit up your own slice of pizza. [ via ] Link.

Make kids wristbands with no sewing

This looks like a fun project to work with kids on and the no sewing makes it all the more easier! Link.

HOW TO - Quilted cards

Here's a great tutorial on making quilted fabric cards from craft apple (I'm loving this craft blog now). What a great way to use up all those fabric scraps to make some unique cards. I love the zig zag stitching used in some of the pieces. Link.

August 24, 2006

Craft art inspiration now in NY galleries

by Arwen O'Reilly

I first started noticing craft infiltrating the tony Chelsea galleries in NYC a few years ago (beautiful embroidered paintings by Ghada Amer, felted clothing by Andrea Zittel), but now I'm starting to think that the gallery scene is getting to be a craft destination! I stopped by some galleries on my way back from Eyebeam (a technology and art gallery we've worked with for MAKE, for those of you who don't know it) and saw this amazing crocheted sculpture by Xenobia Bailey.

It's the first piece you see (it almost yanked me in off the street) in a group show called "Six Degrees of Separation 2," which is intended to explore "self-reflection, repetition, loss and the decay of cultural memory." Xenobia Bailey's crocheted tent, "Sistah Paradise Great Wall of Fire Revival Tent" from 1999, is astonishing: part Rasta hide-out, part bedouin tent, part revivalist sanctuary, it pushed all my buttons at once as well as just plain taking my breath away at the detailed craftsmanship. Definitely worth checking out. Bailey's other work (not on display at the moment, but you can see it on the Stux Gallery's webpage) is also crocheted, but they're psychedelic wall hangings that remind me of African weavings, hippie mandalas and fractal geometry. The tent can be seen Tuesdays through Sundays until September 9th.

Ny Taylor-1
One block up, at the James Cohan Gallery on 26th St, Alison Elizabeth Taylor will be showing her amazing inlaid wood paintings from September 7-September 30. Inspired by the wood inlay in the Studiolo at the Metropolitan museum (also well worth seeing), Taylor has been reinterpreting this ancient medium, and instead of lutes, books, saints and statesmen, she shows the kind of people you or I might hang out with: a girl chatting on her cellphone outside a geodesic dome house, someone playing video games in their underwear, two kids hanging out by the side of the road with their car. I saw a piece of hers in a group show at James Cohen last month, and now she gets her own show! The colors are understandably fairly muddy and tending towards brown, but there's a depth to the wood that is incredible, and the subject matter plays nicely with the weighty material she uses. (There's an article on Taylor in the September Vogue if you want to find out more about her.)

Sew Subversive: book + party

The Sew Subversive Book (just $10.17 on Amazon) is a must have for your craft bookshelf. Authors and Crafters Hope Meng, Melissa Rannels, and Melissa Alvarado own the cool sewing studio and workshop, Stitch Lounge in San Francisco. These three stylish ladies are known for their sewing expertise and funky style. In this book, they show you how to refashion anything old you have in your closet, into something new that's wearable and fun. You'll not only have the basics of sewing down, you'll learn the tips, tricks, and style basics that will give you the foundation for more creative sewing. From setting up your sewing station to creative storage tips, you'll get the skinny on all the tools of the trade. Learn how to refashion a t-shirt, ruffle up a skirt, detail up a boring pair of pants, and cut up old sweaters into just about anything. One of the major lessons I learned from this book is to not be afraid to use my scissors or make mistakes. Go for it and have fun with it. Sometimes, it's those little mistakes that will give you the unique look you never knew was there. Sew Subversive will enhance your sewing creativity and allow you to be your own DIY fashionista. Link.

Sewsubversive Party

It was a fun night after work last night where I met up with Kirk and Sarah (MAKE/CRAFT designers) at Stitch Lounge to celebrate Hope, Melissa, and Melissa's new book Sew Subversive. The party was a lot of fun with drinks, yummy apps, cool beats by the DJ and a raffle! Unfortunately, none of us won anything but some lucky lady won the grand prize, a Janome sewing machine! - Link.

Robot pendant

These are some cool robot pendants by Izik Levy that CRAFT friend Bonnie got us hooked on. Each robot is carefully sculpted by hand using a torch and moretti glass rods. A tiny heart is embedded into the chest of every robot. Ten percent of sales of these robot pendants will be donated to the SickKids Foundation. Link.

More:
Glass Working - Link.

Superbuzzy

There's a new online fabric shop called Superbuzzy that specializes in cute Japanese craft imports. We should have known since the site is brought to us by a couple of our favorite craft blogs Super Eggplant and Buzzville. There are lots of great fabrics in cool prints, notions, and Clover craft tools. Link.

< Previous | August 2006 Home | Next >

Craft:

My Crafty Chumby

Amigurumi Chihuahua

Antique Pattern Library

T-Shirt Cami

HOW TO - Make a Starship Enterprise out of a floppy disk

CRAFT podcast pattern - Fitzpattern's Maggie Tank and Shorts

Make Podcast: Weekend Projects - DIY T-Shirt Designs

Weekend Projects: DIY T-shirt Designs

Stitch N' Pitch in Chicago on Saturday

Casting for a new documentary on So Cal Crafters

Knit Cupcake

Katherine Wakid's digital quilt

Phyllo Cups

Knit a slice of pizza

Make kids wristbands with no sewing

HOW TO - Quilted cards

Craft art inspiration now in NY galleries

Sew Subversive: book + party

Robot pendant

Superbuzzy

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