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Archive: Intern's Corner
November 13, 2009
Intern's Corner: Crochet-Along Panda Party
Every other week, CRAFT's awesome interns tell about the projects they're building in the Craft: Labs, the trouble they've gotten into, and what they'll make next.
By Lindsey North, projects intern
In September we launched a new feature: the CRAFT Crochet-Along brought to you by Lion Brand Yarn. Readers followed along online, live with Tamie Snow from Roxycraft, to crochet a cool Fuzzy Panda Amigurumi in three lessons, then entered their finished pandas in the CRAFT Crochet-Along Flickr Group for a crafty prize giveaway. Tamie's the author of Tiny Yarn Animals, she's extremely talented, and she created this fun pattern just for us CRAFT readers. Pretty sweet!
Download the Fuzzy Panda Amigurumi pattern in PDF format
It's a wonderful project for someone who's always working on the same types of knit and crochet projects. If you feel like you're endlessly making hat after scarf after afghan after hat, you should really try it. If you already crochet, it's a walk in the park, a lovely sunny day when the leaves are starting to turn and fall from the trees. And if you're new to crochet, the stitches are easy to learn, and as long as you use your stitch markers you can be confident your panda will turn out just like it's supposed to. Tamie gives row-by-row instructions the whole way.
So after I completed my little top-heavy, adorably fuzzy panda, I decided to challenge myself by trying to change the scale and making a panda party. At the moment, I'm playing around with both scale and color -- here's my original Pinkie and a larger-scale Rusty -- and I encourage everyone to do the same. Have fun with this cute little ball of fluff, make it your own.
Enjoy the other Crochet-Alongs in the future. It's a great way to make the most of the free time you may have in this busy season to do something creative and fun!
Your CRAFT intern,
Lindsey
- Related: CRAFT Crochet-Along home page
Posted by Keith Hammond |
Nov 13, 2009 10:03 AM
CRAFT Projects, Crochet, Crochet-Along, Intern's Corner |
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October 30, 2009
Intern's Corner: Cover It with Crochet, Escama-style
Every other week, CRAFT's awesome interns tell about the projects they're building in the Craft: Labs, the trouble they've gotten into, and what they'll make next.
By Meara O'Reilly, projects intern
Ever since I found out about Brazilian craft cooperative Escama (featured in CRAFT Volume 03, "Pull-Tab Crochet") and saw some of their work at Maker Faire a couple of years ago, I've been on a thread-crocheting kick. I just love the way that the process involves a sort of functional, enterprising spirit (what can I cobble together and how do I invent the stitches to do it?) as well as a really interesting aesthetic.
Once I learned the basic stitches and figured out how to wrap them around just about any object, I was off!
Apart from making this pull-tab wallet for the CRAFT Archive and a few demonstration flowers from the article, I started covering everything I could think of: hoop earings, bracelets, and yup, recycled bra under-wire!
I'm still trying to figure out the best way to secure the ends of my crochet (I've so far used beads and glue on the end of each wire to keep the stitches on) but I love the structure of these bra-wire necklaces and I think somebody could make something really beautiful with the idea -- baby mobiles or lampshades, anyone?
Posted by Keith Hammond |
Oct 30, 2009 10:03 AM
Crochet, Fashion, Intern's Corner, Jewelry |
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October 16, 2009
Intern's Corner: How to make sand art with kids
Every other week, CRAFT's awesome interns tell about the projects they're building in the Craft: Labs, the trouble they've gotten into, and what they'll make next.
By Ed Troxell, photo intern
Looking for some entertainment that kids will love? Try sand art.
I not only work as a photo intern at MAKE and CRAFT, but I also run my own magazine. Well, on top of that I work in the afternoons at an after-school day care center.
Every Wednesday -- it's our long day because the kids get out of school early -- we try to come up with a craft project they'll actually want to do. If you've ever worked with kids, you know that when it comes time to do arts and crafts not everyone jumps at the opportunity to get started. However, this simple project turned out to be one of our best yet: it keeps kids entertained while allowing them to be creative.
How-to:
Read full story
Posted by Keith Hammond |
Oct 16, 2009 10:23 AM
Arts & Design, CRAFT Projects, Intern's Corner, Kids |
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October 2, 2009
Intern's Corner: Cocktail Hats, Anyone?
Every other week, CRAFT's awesome interns tell about the projects they're building in the Craft: Labs, the trouble they've gotten into, and what they'll make next.
By Lindsey North, projects intern
So your best friend calls -- you're to attend a fancy dress party, costumes mandatory. But you have nothing to wear! However, you see fun beads and feathers sitting on your crafting table ...
From these small items, along with a clothes hanger, a headband, and a few scraps of fabric, you can make the perfect cocktail hat. (And if you want to make it completely outrageous, you can cover it in peacock feathers and sequins.)
In CRAFT Volume 10 we featured a Fancy Cocktail Hat and showed readers how to make a basic hat form. You start with a piece of metal wire -- an old clothes hanger works wonderfully, since it's light enough to bend easily but strong enough to hold its form.
Read full story
Posted by Keith Hammond |
Oct 2, 2009 10:03 AM
CRAFT Projects, Intern's Corner, Parties, Sewing, Vintage |
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September 18, 2009
Intern's Corner: The Hunt for Pineapple Yarn
Every other week, CRAFT's awesome interns tell about the projects they're building in the Craft: Labs, the trouble they've gotten into, and what they'll make next.
By Lindsey North, projects intern
As readers of CRAFT and MAKE know, finding materials for projects can sometimes be challenging, if not downright maddening. I've spent hours online looking for very specialized materials that appear to be as mythical as unicorns. And even when you know exactly what you're after, you have to surf the web looking for the best deals.
To make CRAFT's Crocheted Wooden Bowl project by Vickie Howell, I remember hunting for yarn made from pineapple fibers that would be used to crochet around the wooden bowl to add decoration and color.
Pineapple fiber yarn! Come on! Where do you find that?
I searched online and learned that pineapple fiber is commonly called pina or piña. I called every yarn store in Sonoma County and then started calling the bigger stores in San Francisco. I couldn't find what I wanted.
So I did a general search and found Knit Purl, a store in Portland, Oregon, that carried the whole line of alternate-fiber yarns. These were made from various barks and leaves, and dyed with amazing colors; the saturation and hue reminded me of a florist's shop. And they had pineapple yarn! Theirs is called fique (fee-kay) and is made from a relative of the commercial pineapple plant. The store owners were very helpful, as they allowed me to pay over the phone and shipped the yarn to me. Knit Purl is the place to go for strange and awesome yarns. At this point in my crafting career that has been my greatest acquisitional challenge.
I had a blast working on this project after I found the yarn and some wooden bowls that didn't "cost an arm and a leg." (I would have a hard time spending big bucks on something I'm just going to drill holes in.) Returning to the Craft Lab, I measured and marked the points where I would be drilling my wooden bowls. (Measuring is very important and should never be skipped ever if you are a trained professional.)
Then I crocheted my way around the bowl, slowly decreasing as I got closer to the base. I ended the last ring around the base, and wove the end back in. This bowl looks totally awesome when it is full of fruit -- or balls of hard-to-find yarn.
Your CRAFT intern,
Lindsey
Posted by Keith Hammond |
Sep 18, 2009 10:03 AM
Crochet, Fiber Art, Home Decor, Intern's Corner |
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September 4, 2009
Intern's Corner: Crash Course in Chicken Knitting!
Every other week, CRAFT's awesome interns tell about the projects they're building in the Craft: Labs, the trouble they've gotten into, and what they'll make next.
By Meara O'Reilly, projects intern
When I started interning at CRAFT magazine, my skills and interests tended more toward soldering and sawing than knitting and sewing -- but I was ready for a crash course! Of course I'd knitted a few scarves growing up, and taught myself to crochet just by messing around with yarn, so I thought learning how to knit objects would be cinch!
I'd had a great time knitting the hyperbolic baby pants from CRAFT Volume 06 and was really excited about learning how to mold different shapes and build my stitch repertoire, so the reversible Chicken-and-Egg knitted puppet (also from CRAFT Volume 06) seemed like a logical next step.
By the time it came down to finishing the project, though (to show it off at the CRAFT booth at the Craftaluma fair in Petaluma, Calif.), I was running around 24/7 helping my sister get ready for her wedding, so time got a little tight! I actually stayed up all night knitting the chicken-and-egg the night before the fair, desperately trying to finish it up (a memory my poor hands will not forget soon!).
But on the bright side, I will also never forget these basic stitches and tips that I learned, courtesy of a few benevolent YouTube mavens:
Read full story
Posted by Keith Hammond |
Sep 4, 2009 10:00 AM
Amigurumi, CRAFT Projects, Intern's Corner, Knitting |
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August 21, 2009
Intern's Corner: The Mini Kitties
Every other week, CRAFT's awesome interns tell about the projects they're building in the Craft: Labs, the trouble they've gotten into, and what they'll make next.
By Lindsey North, projects intern
On my first day as an official CRAFT intern I entered the lab for the first time. It was like entering a new dimension, a creative person's dream. There were supplies everywhere; you could build just about anything out of what you found in there. And in this lab I received my first assignment: I was to build miniature kittens dressed in little dresses.
I was later shocked to see my mini kitties featured on the cover of Volume 03 of CRAFT magazine. Turns out they're Japanese imports: we excerpted the patterns for White Cat, Striped Cat, and Black Cat from Aranzi Aronzo's The Cute Book (Random House).
When completed, each of these little creations made of felt were smaller than the width of my hand. It's surprisingly difficult to sew small pieces of felt together when you plan on stuffing them. You have to sew close enough to the edge so that you still have room to fill with stuffing, but you can't get too close to the edge or else the stitches will pull out when you try to stuff the mini kitty.
I ended up making six of these little fellows, and it took me several days to complete them all. Your fingers can get really sore trying to sew through layers of felt, so take breaks in between kitties if you choose to make a litter.
These cute little creatures make amazing presents, the purrfect addition to any gift. It's fun to play around with the felt colors. Try crafting a few!
Your CRAFT intern,
Lindsey
Posted by Keith Hammond |
Aug 21, 2009 10:00 AM
CRAFT Projects, Intern's Corner, Japanese Crafts, Plush, Sewing |
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August 7, 2009
Intern's Corner: Refashioned newsprint shoes
Every other week, CRAFT's awesome interns tell about the projects they're building in the Craft: Labs, the trouble they've gotten into, and what they'll make next.
By Lindsey North, projects intern
In Volume 02 of CRAFT magazine there's a page that shows the reader how to revamp a pair of old shoes. The author, one Yasmin Bochi, covered a pair of shoes using vintage stamps that she had collected. This inspired me to try to breathe life back into one of my favorite pairs of shoes that died from being overworked.
My Nine West flats had clearly suffered, grinding away on the concrete. After reading Yasmin's article, I was cleaning off my table, shuffling mail and old newspapers, and I decided to resuscitate my shoes by covering them in old newsprint. So I pulled out my box of wonders and uncovered the amazing Mod Podge (good stuff), an adhesive and a sealer all in one.
After carefully ripping apart the paper, I lightly sanded my shoes so that the glue would stick better. The shoes were now prepped and ready for the decoupage. Later, as they sat by the window enjoying a light breeze, I covered them in another layer of Mod Podge to seal them. But I stupidly forgot that your foot actually bends when you walk, so ... my favorite pair of shoes now hangs on the wall as a decoration and as a reminder of what all other shoes should be.
Your Craft Intern,
Lindsey
Posted by Keith Hammond |
Aug 7, 2009 10:00 AM
CRAFT Projects, Intern's Corner, Paper Crafts, Refashion, Wardrobe Refresh |
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July 24, 2009
From the Inside -- Welcome to Intern's Corner
Here at Craftzine, we're lucky enough to have a rotating stable of interns who can knit, sew, crochet, weave, solder, paint, draw, and more. They used to test most of the projects before they went into each print issue of CRAFT. Nowadays, they try out instructions in how-to books we get sent and then review them; make cool projects from previous issues or from the blog to show off at craft fairs or on television shows like The Martha Show; test drive crafty kits from the Maker Shed; and help out on MAKE projects as needed. In the past, we've even had MAKE engineering interns take a stab at helping with Craft projects, with varying results (more on that later).
The interns also haul supplies from the warehouse, shop for tools and materials, and come up with projects of their own on a surprisingly regular basis. We work them to near death before, during, and after each Maker Faire -- packing pallets and building projects to send to the fairgrounds beforehand; setting up booths and greeting the public for 12-plus hours a day during the event; and unpacking trucks when everything comes back to our offices after the fact.
In exchange, they get to have one of the most highly coveted jobs in the land. Seriously. I've had top-level editors ask if they could trade their job for an internship, not to mention designers, the parents of our interns, and just about anyone who gets a look at the Labs, where the interns work their magic day in and day out.
So now we're offering our website readers a look into the fabulous lives of the Craftzine interns. Twice a month the current interns will offer up stories about the projects they're working on, the trouble they've gotten into, and what they plan on creating in the near future.
Jacob McKenzie, one of our two original interns who began working for us for MAKE in the fall of 2005, has always said that we've pretty much ruined him for life in terms of ever having a cooler job. Nonetheless, Jake left his internship in 2007 to finish his bachelor's degree at UC Berkeley. He graduated with a 4.0 GPA and a degree in mechanical engineering. During the 2008 winter break, we called him up and asked him to demonstrate a few of our previous projects for the TV show, Quest, which were well-received and a blast to see get filmed in our very own Make: Labs.
Before we'd hired interns specifically for crafting projects, we forced Jake to explore his crafty side by testing the Freezer Paper Stencil project we ran in CRAFT, Volume 02. He was more than reluctant, having an engineer's fear for creative tasks, but finally agreed to try it out once he found a cool bicycle design for his stencil. It took him 2 or 3 tries, but he finally succeeded and the story came out great. But he never volunteered to do any other craft projects.
Most recently, Jake was accepted at both Stanford and MIT for graduate school. After much thought, he chose MIT, where he'll begin the next part of his engineering journey this fall. He's promised to keep in touch, and let us know if he ever finds a cooler job than the one he had here. He remains unconvinced, but his future looks bright to us.
Tune in on Friday, Aug. 7, for the first of many first-person accounts about interning at CRAFTZINE!
Posted by Shawn Connally |
Jul 24, 2009 10:00 AM
Intern's Corner |
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