Archives: Laura Cochrane

Burberry-Inspired Cowl-Neck Scarf

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Julianne Smith has a tutorial for a knitted cowl neck scarf on her Garter Girl blog that I am planning on making. She came up with her own pattern after seeing a $750 Burberry cowl neck scarf in a magazine. I've never worn a cowl neck scarf before, but I feel like it would be a really nice accessory to own. In theory, it's similar to a regular scarf in that it keeps your neck warm. But it seems much less fussy than a scarf because it won't unravel and fall off. It also looks a little more put-together, in my opinion. Pictured is Julianne's original design on the left, and Ravelry user Croline's modified version on the right (sign-in required).

Posted by Laura Cochrane | Mar 19, 2010 05:00 PM
Knitting | Permalink | Comments (0) | Suggest a Site

Professor Snape Car Seat Cover

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Walking through a parking lot and coming across a handmade car seat cover that looked like this would totally make my day! Becky of Beck's Blog crocheted this car seat cover of Severus Snape, one of the characters in the Harry Potter series. She explains that she was influenced by Neil Cicierega's Potter Puppet Pals, a series of imagined-scene skits involving plush Harry Potter puppets.

Posted by Laura Cochrane | Mar 18, 2010 06:00 PM
Crochet | Permalink | Comments (0) | Suggest a Site

This Week In Craft Fairs

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Hppy St Ptrck's Dy! I hope you're wearing green! I actually made it out to my car this morning in an outfit devoid of any green, and then the little girl down the street ran up to talk to me, and I realized what day it was. She was all decked out in various shades of green from head to toe, topped off with a cute little green crocheted poncho. D'oh! I'm using a green pen today.

Here are the craft fairs that are coming up this weekend. There are so many upcoming fairs that are looking for vendors! Click on the jump to see East Coast and international call for entries. As always, please add any upcoming events to our calendar, and if you have a call for vendors you want to list in this weekly post.

Coming Up This Weekend:
IndieSacramento Trunk Show & Craft Bazaar
Sacramento, CA
Saturday, Mar. 20, 10am - 3pm

Craft Happy
Fremont, CA
Saturday, Mar. 20, 10am - 4pm

Bead Fest Santa Fe
Santa Fe, NM
Thursday, Mar. 18, 5pm - 9pm
Friday, Mar. 19, 10am - 6pm
Saturday, Mar. 20, 10am - 6pm
Sunday, Mar. 21, 11am - 5pm

Swap-O-Rama-Rama
Chicago, IL
Saturday, Mar. 20, 9am - 5pm
Sunday, Mar. 21, 1pm - 5pm

Calgary Weekend Market
Calgary, Canada
Saturday, Mar. 20, 9am - 5pm

Call For Entries:
Urban Craft Uprising
Seattle, WA
Saturday, Jul. 10 - Sunday, Jul. 11
Fee: $210 - $310
Deadline to apply: Apr. 5

Indie Mart
San Francisco, CA
Sunday, May 23
Fee: $75 - $150
Deadline to apply: ASAP

Red Rabbit Spring Arts & Crafts Market
Glendale, CA
Saturday, May 15, 9am - 5pm
Fee: $75 - $100
Deadline to apply: Apr. 12

The Alliday Show
Tulsa, OK
Saturday, June 26
Fee: $65
Deadline to apply: May 19

Detroit Arts Fest
Detroit, TX
Saturday, June 12
Fee: $5 - $15
Deadline to apply: May 15

Read full story »

Posted by Laura Cochrane | Mar 17, 2010 02:00 PM
Events | Permalink | Comments (0) | Suggest a Site

Madeleine Mini Bloomers

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Sarai at Collette Patterns shares this handsome pattern for bloomers. I would love to make a pair for myself, but right now my sewing skills max out at simple tab curtains. She also posted some images of bloomers that her readers have made. Pretty and feminine. I wonder if they're comfortable.

Posted by Laura Cochrane | Mar 12, 2010 06:00 PM
Sewing | Permalink | Comments (1) | Suggest a Site

Irish Soda Bread with Fennel & Cinnamon

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St. Patrick's Day is coming up - it's next Wednesday! If you're planning an Irish-themed meal, this recipe for Irish Soda Bread with Fennel & Cinnamon on Everybody Likes Sandwiches looks quite nice.

Growing up, ours was a pretty standard (but delicious!) St. Paddy's Day meal: Corned beef, cabbage, potatoes... I don't even remember having soda bread. What do you eat on St. Patrick's? Anything interesting?

Posted by Laura Cochrane | Mar 11, 2010 06:00 PM
Food | Permalink | Comments (5) | Suggest a Site

This Week In Craft Fairs

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Upcoming craft fairs! Please add any you know of to our calendar, and if you have a call for entries you want listed in this weekly post. Call for entries is after the jump!

Coming Up This Weekend:
The Pink Parlour Festival 2010
Arcadia, CA
Sunday, Mar. 14, 11am - 6pm

32nd Annual Dollhouse Miniature Show & Sale
Phoenix, AZ
Saturday, Mar. 13, 10am - 5pm
Sunday, Mar. 14, 11am - 4pm

2nd Annual Funky Finds Spring Fling
Fort Worth, TX
Saturday, Mar. 13, 9am - 3pm

Indie Craft Revolution
St. Louis, MO
Saturday, Mar. 13, 10am - 6pm
Sunday, Mar. 14, 10am - 4pm

Sugarloaf Crafts Festival in Somerset
Somerset, NJ
Friday, Mar. 12, 10am - 6pm
Saturday, Mar. 13, 10am - 6pm
Sunday, Mar. 14, 10am - 5pm

Calgary Weekend Market
Calgary, Canada
Saturday, Mar. 13, 9am - 5pm

Read full story »

Posted by Laura Cochrane | Mar 10, 2010 02:00 PM
Events | Permalink | Comments (0) | Suggest a Site

Ira Glass on Improving Your Craft

I really admire Ira Glass of radio's This American Life. He's just so intelligent. And it comes across in a very real, down-to-earth way that's indicative of someone who seriously mulls things over.

This is a snippet of a longer talk on creating stories for television or radio, but in this particular segment, he is speaking on the topic of improving your craft, and it's inspirational to anyone who creates. He describes the difference between your aspirations and the level you are currently at as a gap, which is especially large when you are first embarking on a new genre of craft. He underscores the importance of imposing deadlines on yourself in order to churn out a large amount of sub-par work, which will enable you get to the level of skill that you aspire to. In other words, perfecting your craft through diligent practice. "... You have to turn out that work. Because it's only by going through a volume of work that you're actually going to catch up and close that gap. And the work you're making will be as good as your ambitions."

He concludes with words of encouragement. "It takes a while. It's going to take you a while. It's normal to take a while. You just have to fight your way through that. Okay? You will be fierce, you will be a warrior, and you will make things that aren't as good as you know in your heart you want them to be. And you will just make one after another."

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Posted by Laura Cochrane | Mar 5, 2010 05:00 PM
General | Permalink | Comments (1) | Suggest a Site

Herbed Yogurt Cheese

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"Full of flavor and low in calories" ... yes please!

Sara at The Herb Gardener has a simple, delicious-sounding recipe for herbed yogurt cheese. We're getting some spring-like weather here in Northern California, and the chives in my herb garden are growing in a vibrant spring green. I'm going to make this! I just need to check if I have cheesecloth and a sieve. When I do - tonight or this weekend - I'll let you know what I think in the comments of this post. If you make it before me or you've made yogurt cheese before, please share your thoughts about this recipe. I'm new at making yogurt cheese. Or any kind of cheese. Thanks!

Posted by Laura Cochrane | Mar 4, 2010 05:00 PM
Food | Permalink | Comments (1) | Suggest a Site

This Week In Craft Fairs

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Here is one upcoming craft fair and a number of call for entries. Please add any craft fairs that you know of to our online calendar (if they aren't already there). if you know of a craft fair call for entries. Thank you! Click on the jump to see the East Coast and international call for entries.

Coming Up This Weekend:
The K11 March Madness Craft Sale
Berkeley, CA
Saturday, Mar. 6, 10am - 4pm

Call For Entries:
Urban Craft Uprising
Seattle, WA
Saturday, Jul. 10 - Sunday, Jul. 11
Fee: $210 - $310
Deadline to apply: Apr. 5

Handmade + Vintage Spring Market
Arcata, CA
Sunday, Apr. 25
Fee: $80
Deadline to apply: Mar. 12

Red Rabbit Spring Arts & Crafts Market
Glendale, CA
Saturday, May 15, 9am - 5pm
Fee: $75 - $100
Deadline to apply: Apr. 12

The Alliday Show
Tulsa, OK
Saturday, June 26
Fee: $65
Deadline to apply: May 19

Read full story »

Posted by Laura Cochrane | Mar 3, 2010 02:00 PM
Events | Permalink | Comments (0) | Suggest a Site

Articulate Matter - A Sculptural Web Comic

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San Francisco-based Justina Kochansky maintains a delightful sculptural web comic on Flickr, called Articulate Matter. Featuring mainly squid and other sea creatures, it is quirky and clever. The squid find themselves in all sorts of situations: Zombie squid, The Birth of Venus, ninja squid, Kal-El Mar-Ee (on his way to Earth), catfish burglers ... You get the idea. I love that she sets up a little scene like you'd see in a comic panel, but in 3D!

Posted by Laura Cochrane | Feb 26, 2010 06:00 PM
General | Permalink | Comments (1) | Suggest a Site


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