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Archive: Crafty Travels

December 6, 2011

Gift Guide: Gifts From Around the Globe

We live in an amazing world, where anything you like can be procured from even the most obscure corner of the globe. The hardest people to shop for are those unique friends that you love the most. Don't set any boundaries or limits when searching for their perfect handmade presents.

Twin Lens Reflex Camera

Build a camera from Japanese kit maker Gakken. This 35mm camera kit comes with every piece needed for assembly, down to the very last screw. While the kit is authentically Japanese, the Maker Shed has fully translated instructions in English. Once it's made, use the handmade camera to shoot photos that are lovely, charming and quirky.

Music from Steed Lord

Exotic music comes in many forms. If you are searching for something unusual, it doesn't get much more exotic than edgy Icelandic hip-hop. iTunes makes it easy to purchase and gift albums from a huge selection of artists, including unsigned bands from the Arctic Circle, like Steed Lord.

Real Silver Imported German Glass Glitter

Indulge your favorite crafter with high-end, imported German glass glitter. This glitter from Meyer Imports is made with silver, which imparts a beautiful tarnished patina on projects. It's a small gift and a luxury splurge.

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November 3, 2011

The Workroom

It didn't take very long for me to figure out The Workroom is THE crafting destination in Toronto. I happened to be there last week visiting my family and quickly started asking local folks which places I needed to check out. I'm so glad I did! The Workroom not only sells a full line of gorgeous fabrics and notions, but they offer sew-by-the-hour work stations. For $7 an hour you can sit down at a machine and work on your project, cut out large pattern pieces on the big cutting island, and get some pointers from the friendly staff including shop owner Karyn Valino. Classes are offered, too, in case you're looking to learn some new skills.

Check out a few photos here after the jump and a full set over on Flickr. Make sure to bookmark the studio's blog, too, for a daily source of inspiration.

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September 10, 2011

How-To: Custom Travel Crafting Suitcase

As I was running around this week trying to get ready to fly from New York to LA, one of my biggest problems was deciding which projects to bring and how to pack them in a way that wouldn't result in a tangled mess of embroidery floss and crochet hooks. I eventually settled on a system of tightly wrapped and stacked tote bags, but I really wish I'd seen Amy Powers' crafting suitcase tutorial from her Inspire Co. blog before I left! It's truly an inspired piece of organizational art, and I think the magnetic bead organizers and paper trays are particularly brilliant.

What are your favorite travel tips and secrets for bringing crafty projects along?

[Via Pinterest]

September 7, 2011

How-To: Travel Scissor Case

freshly picked travel scissor case 1.jpg

Susan from Freshly Picked seems like a gal after my own heart. Not only is her travel scissor case tutorial simple and clear, the finished case also doubles as an apron! I'm with her—it seems like a good bet that if someone is bringing that many pairs of scissors along, they probably intend to use them, and a wearable apron is the ultimate in easy access! freshly picked travel scissor case 2.jpg

freshly picked travel scissor case 2.jpg

Plus, her legal statement is titled "bobloblaw" after everyone's favorite onomatopoeic TV lawyer, so what's not to love?

May 26, 2011

World Map Wall Mural

I am ALL about transforming your space by creating graphic wall murals. Renters always worry, but as long as you can yank it down and paint it white, you're good to go. This Cork Board World Map created by K. Faith Morgan for Man Made really caught my eye! This would be a rad way to track your travels and makes a bold statement on your wall. Super easy + Big result = Perfect DIY project

More:

May 17, 2011

Travel Crafty Bay Area

With Maker Faire Bay Area coming up this weekend (May 21 & 22!), it's the perfect opportunity to share with you some of our favorite crafty spots around the Bay!

San Francisco

ImagiKnit
Address: 3897 18th St., San Francisco, Calif., 94114
Phone: 415-621-6642
Hours: Mon-Sat, 11am to 6:30pm; Sun, 11am to 4pm
Website: imagiknit.com

From floor to ceiling everywhere you look, you'll find yarn, yarn, and more yarn.
Allison and the friendly staff at ImagiKnit are fantastic at helping you find the right yarn you'll need for any kind of project. I've been coming to this store for years since it first opened years ago and always find inspiration just ogling and touching all the variety of yarns they carry.

You can also just sit in their craft book area and search for your next project through their extensive pattern binders, books, and magazines or sit on their cozy couches and chairs and cast on your new project. Hone your craft skills by taking any one of their classes from knitting and crochet 101 to spinning. You'll definitely find lots of fiber love at ImagiKnit.

Food Match: Find more inner peace stroll across the street at Samovar Tea Lounge for a pot of green tea and their tea-infused cookie plate. Then sit back and knit or crochet in serenity.

/Natalie Zee Drieu

Britex Fabrics
Address: 146 Geary St., San Francisco, Calif., 94108
Phone: 415-392-2910
Hours: Mon-Sat, 10am to 6pm
Website: britexfabrics.com

If you go to Britex, bring cash only. Not because they don't take credit cards, but because you will spend far more than you intend to otherwise! While the prices are on the high end, this is a true fabric emporium of the highest order, all four floors of it. I always feel a bit like the country girl arriving in the city in some old Hollywood musical - I fantasize that people are dancing up the ladders and unrolling bolts of the most glorious silks, velvets, denims, and prints. (Not that anyone would ever behave so indecorously there!) The notions floor is worth a trip in itself.

Food match: If you're looking for lunch, it's a pleasant walk down to the Embarcadero to drool over the offerings at the Ferry Building Marketplace. Full of boutique butchers, locally grown mushrooms, gluten-free baked goods, and artisan olive oils, there are enough fancy food shops and restaurants to bankrupt just about anyone! But it's also easy to grab a perfect espresso at Blue Bottle Coffee, a bento box to go from Delica, or a few briny oysters from Hog Island Oyster Company. On Tuesday, Thursdays, and Saturdays, there's also hopping farmer's market with, dare I say, the finest of the nation's produce. Saturday is the "see and be seen" day, packed to the gills, but it's worth a trip any day of the week.

/Arwen O'Reilly Griffith

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April 29, 2011

A Peek Inside a Real French Bakery

Last summer while vacationing in the southwest of France (the region where my husband is from) I got addicted to Pastis Landais, a sweet brioche that I literally would snack on throughout the day (related CRAFT post here). The pastries I enjoyed during my time there were all from this local bakery in Parentis en Born called Patisserie Bled Frédéric, run by a husband and wife team, Katia and Frédéric Bled. My mother-in-law frequents this patisserie and Katia and Frédéric were nice enough to open up their shop doors to give me a behind the scenes look at how french pastries are really done. What I observed was Frédéric's amazing attention to detail - every pastry looked beautiful and symmetrical - as well as his ability to multi-task between each projects of pastries and breads. Every pastry was a work of art as you can see and quite delicious as I taste tested most of them as my "research". If you ever get a chance to visit this enchanting town and summer lake vacation spot, you'll have to stop at this wonderful local patisserie for it's delicious treats and French charm.

Bled Katia Frederic

Bled 2Outside

Patisserie Bled Frédéric

20 Av du 8 mai 1945 
Parentis en Born, France

41 place Marsan
Biscarrosse, France

Web site: http://www.patisseriebledfrederic.fr
Facebook: Patisserie Bled Frédéric

See more photos from my visit after the jump!

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April 8, 2011

How-To: Travel Watercolor Kit

Nicole at One Golden Apple shows you how to make a travel water color kit using an upcycled mint tin and some polymer clay. I love the tip on using fantastix pens which you can fill with water to make watercoloring even more portable without a need for a jar of water.
Nicole writes:

I made this for my 11 year old daughter who is working hard on filling a sketchbook with her best work of black line drawings with the color fill. She brings it with her everywhere so I thought I should make it easy to bring her watercolors along too.

April 4, 2011

How-To: Portable Chalkboard and Dry Erase Art Roll for Kids

Sara at The Split Stitch shows you how to make a portable chalkboard and dry erase roll for kids. It's the prefect little travel toy for little ones when you are on the go!

March 17, 2011

Travel Crafty Copenhagen

By Karen K. Hansen

Copenhagen is a bicycler's city, and a hub-and-spokes approach makes the most of limited time to explore the crafts scene in this design capital. With a few Danish coins, you can rent a bike from street stands. Or you can walk this route, taking in the street vibe as you discover other treasures and pleasures.

While Copenhagen's city center is the hub, it's a mere starting point. Following different "spokes" into nearby neighborhoods offers contrasting experiences, from hip and gritty to museum quality.

When dark winter days finally give way to springtime sunlight, determined Danes enjoy artfully crafted cuisine at sidewalk cafes and bars, surrounded by heaters and fleece throws.

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February 24, 2011

Travel Crafty Toronto

Header Travelcrafty Toronto

By Jeromina Juan

Often mistaken as the capital city of Canada, Toronto is the country's largest city and the principal of commerce and culture. Toronto is home to a bustling blend of nationalities, making it one of the world's most ethnically diverse cosmopolitan centers, among the likes of cities such as Chicago and New York. It is this very magnificent multiplicity that elevates Toronto's rank in the world of arts, crafts, and design. Cultural communities make big strides to contribute substantially to the city's artistic fabric. Shop owners hail from all corners of the globe, providing infinite variety in arty and crafty material. Whether you are a knitter, sewer, jewelry maker, paper crafter, artist, or art collector, there is an abundance of things to see, buy, and do in Toronto. Among scores of superb shops, here are just a few notable spots.

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December 2, 2010

Traditional Arts and Crafts From Around the World

Dr. Carol Ventura, professor of art at Tennessee Technological University, maintains a website that focuses on her research of traditional arts and crafts in The Americas, Africa, Asia, and Europe.

She shares an extensive collection of crafts, each with its own set of process shots of the skilled craftspeople at work, with descriptions of each step beneath the image. Many of the crafts are location-specific: Spanish ceramics from Talavera de la Reina, Chinese cloisonné enameling, Asanti Kente cloth weaving, Japanese katazome stencil dyeing, Balinese horn carving, and Guatemalan glass blowing (pictured above), to name a few.

What stories she must have, from all of her travel and research!

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