Monthly Archives: January 2011

Gloves galore

Posted in Knitting, Stuff to make by

It all started when this gorgeous Mori yarn went on sale at purl soho, which is dangerously close to my office. Yay, I thought, I’ll make fingerless gloves for everyone! I bought five skeins in lovely colors. More than a month later, I’ve completed one pair, and started a second. It turns out I need to knit on size 1 double-pointed needles; they are barely bigger than toothpicks. The gloves were meant for Christmas presents, then New Year’s, but soon I will be handing out gifts for unlikely holidays. Look a Martin Luther King’s Day pair of gloves just for you! But maybe an unexpected gift in January, OK possibly February, is just what’s needed in the heart of winter.

The pattern is also from the good people at purl. Like all the patterns on the purl bee, this one for striped fingerless handwarmers, is well written and turns out as expected.

Wee folk

Posted in Kids, Stuff to make by

Doesn’t this wee creation remind you of Fisher Price Little People? And I’m not talking about those bulbous plastic guys the toy company makes today–I mean the old-school wooden peg people that unfortunately were small enough to be choking hazards. (I never once thought of chewing Little People myself, but my brother and I did routinely place them in the Habitrail where our gerbils nibbled off their little heads.)

I spotted this beret-sporting Lilliputian at a kids’ craft fair at my local library. My friend’s 12-year-old daughter Grace made it out of Sculpey clay. She even fashioned French accessories to go with it: a baguette & a slab of fromage!

Of course, my kids had to try it at home: so we rolled some Fimo (Sculpey, or any polymer clay will do), poked eyes with toothpicks, and baked (per instructions, 30 minutes @ 230 F). We made miniatures of each member of our extended family with eensy IPads, skis, and pets to go with them. 

Aunt Julie with her cat named Little Head

Camera case

Posted in Sewing, Stuff to make by


You can make this soft camera case in about an hour using left over bits of fabric, some batting, and a big button. You might be worried about putting your camera in something that was so easy to make, but don’t be! The case has double batting and French seams; your camera will be safe as houses. Attached are detailed instructions! Point and shoot camera case

Bugs from recycled bits

Posted in Kids, Recycled materials, Stuff to make by

Here’s a mantra to repeat to yourself when doing crafts with kids: process, not product. It will turn you into the craft whisperer. Especially if your child (like mine) swirls paints and blends play dough until each art work takes on the brackish hue and glurpy consistency of a murky bog.

Making bugs from bits collected from the recycling bin ended up to be a good project for everyone in my house, plus some friends. And the end results (not that I would be so superficial as to care, dear craft whisperer) were kind of cute. Plastic milk caps, bread tags, paper clips, pipe cleaners, popsicle sticks, ribbon, and scraps of paper turned into an pleasant infestation of creepy crawlies.

Washi tape

Posted in Paper, Stuff to make by

I put this sherbet-y assortment of washi tape on my Christmas list, and I’m sorry to say that despite a vigorous campaign of hinting, no one got the message. So, I will just mention it here.

I don’t know what I’ll do with it. I may just build a tape tower on my desk and look at it for a while. I first spotted it in the MOMA store (for a roll of ten, $30, $24 for MOMA members), but it’s also available at happy tape in polka dots & plaids. Not that you have to get it for me, but you could. . .