Ongoing projects

It's been well over a month since I last posted.  I have been busy making hats, bags, scarves, and brushing up on my knitting.  My knitting and crochet classes have been going strong. I'm even getting into projects with the attendees.

I am going to have a host of new products to post soon in my artfire!  I've restructured the designs for the amigurumi puppies that I posted some time ago and here is what I came up with.

      Clemson and Carolina (USC) pups!  I ordered puppy noses rather than crocheted ones and they worked out great.  The Tigers (currently #8) and the Gamecocks (currently #13) have a big rivalry in these parts.

 This is a doll I did a few weeks back.  I have plenty of hats with new designs, some with knitting/crochet combined that I plan to roll out.  I have kept the sale prices in the artfire store until I upload the new items.

New Projects

It's been awhile since I posted. I've been drawing, painting, knitting, crocheting, knooking, reading, writing, and all other manners of creativity. Blogging didn't make the short list of things to do in the meantime. I've done several things.

First off I've done three shrugs. Two were done in a drop knit stitch and the third was done in a broomstick lace stitch. No pictures of two of them presently although I'll probably post them later. This is the last one that I made in the drop stitch. It is from an unknown fiber that has a lot of drape and is very soft.

I like the stitch a lot.  The stitches around the arm are done in a k1p1.  I found the pattern on craftster HERE. 

Africa Tote Bag.  My other tote with the African map sold on artfire so I went to work on another one in the same colors.  I spelled out AFRICA on one side with an African map on the other side.  I really like this bag a lot.  I also put a liner in the bottom and sewed it with my sewing machine.  I could stand to use a bit more practice with it but I was fairly successful.

 

 I also made a knit hat in two colors.  I consider this to be a success considering my limited experience (and patience) with knitting.  I loved the stitch and I love the way this hat fits.  Now my next challenge is blocking.

More cute Amigurumi Puppies

I completed these two little guys in the past couple of days.  First the Dalmatian, then the Carolina Blue and White Pup.

I have an idea for my new pups (and coming soon friends)!  I am working on the website now and some design overhauls.  These will remain the pioneers...they are so darn cute!  Carolina Blue here belongs to my hubby as I made it for him.  The Dalmatian is well-liked and I've already had a few offers!

Like I said I have plans for these guys and I will post real soon about them.

Do you knook?  I am working on various techniques.  There is relatively little out there to help out us burgeoning knook lovers so I am constantly at work developing ways to do it.  I am working on a market bag pattern right now.  Is it easy?  Not really....it's just figuring it all out for the time being.  I'll post really soon!

Cute Amigurumi Puppies

Aren't they cute?  I made these based on a puppy pattern I found on Ravelry.com  I'm going to make quite a few of these little guys.  The next one will be a Dalmatian.

I am presently working on a tablerunner for my great aunt.  I wish I had started on it sooner...working in thread is slow going.  I have 12 days left to complete it and I am working on it every day.  It is a simple pattern with a simple mesh/lace motif.  I have to make it at least three feet long so consistency is key.  It is now 6 inches.

To update:  No one has turned in our camera yet.

Freedom Festival July 4, 2011

I wish I could report a great time as I did last year; however, unfortunately I cannot.  The day started out fine.  As we were on our way (a good 45 minute drive) we noticed a haze in the air, an indicator of a high pollutant day.  I was also suffering from a headache/eye-ache that I was hoping would go away as the day progressed.  WE get there and have issues getting into the main area.  I stopped some workers who were hesitant but ultimately let us through.  So we go to set up.  No issues.  Our position gets moved to the front of the row which pretty much put the final nail in our coffin before we even began.  Why?  There was a breeze in the air and not a moderate one.  A fairly strong intermittent breeze.

The festival was a bust! Great vendors, great music, great food...NO PEOPLE.

I spent most of the day retrieving my styrofoam heads and jewelry that kept flying because of the wind.  We got the brunt of all of the wind. We had ample weights but not enough to withstand the strong wind that was coming through.  No one else got it as they were shielded by the buildings.  My husband went to Home Depot to retrieve bricks to help us balance but to no avail.  One of my large heavy frames was blown right off of an easel and the glass shattered.  When the wind died down the air was so still and stifling you could hardly breathe.  I made a few sales but nothing to really call home about. Then it got hotter.  My headache got worse.  I made a few sales but the crowds were very minimal.  Hardly anyone was really making any sales.  By four last year the streets were so congested you couldn't even see the other side.  It was not the case this year.  During my 10 am - 5 pm stay, there was never a rush of people.  Two ladies were sharing next to me.  One lady left around 3 or so, disappointed in the crowds.  The other lady packed up when she saw my hubby and me packing up.  She had really awesome tile decoupaged pendants.  Another vendor had these leather bracelets, rings, and earrings that were just heavenly...it really was a shame that we didn't have the crowds to show off all of our hard work.

A disappointment. The organizer came through when we were packing up and she seemed disappointed. The kicker? My stepdaughter lost my trusty FujiFinepix. I have pictures over two years old of my kids on that and naturally of course no one turned it into the lost and found yet (and I doubt they ever will). The least they could do is lie and say they found the memory card and return that.

That was it for me. I was angry, hot and suffering from a migraine. I didn't care to make any more sales...I wanted out.

Perhaps it was because it was a Monday.  I don't know.  There wasn't as much advertising for it this year as there was last year...maybe people just weren't aware.  The heat and the wind were the worse parts for me but at least I did make some sales.




The only picture (from my camera phone) that I managed to get. This was up in the day and the two people in the back are indicative of the meager crowds that we had trickling through. The picture on top of the easel was the one that had flown off in a particularly powerful gust and broke the glass. At least I made up the money I spent in gas but overall I lost profits...I didn't even make up the cost of the booth. I probably could have if I had remained the last four hours...who knows folks might have shown up for the fireworks but the wind was progressively getting worse. If the lady beside me had left before I did I would have moved over to her spot. I talked to her briefly and she was very disappointed and honestly I think that was the overall feel for folks at least on our row.

Printed a few linocuts...

This is one of the first prints from the linocut.  With limited space and supplies I think it came out pretty well.  I had the speedball ink and a brayer.  I used freezer paper to ink the brayer and a book and spoon to press.  I really like how it came out and I'm going to watercolor a few of them once it dries.

I'm going to do a few more of these, some small designs to put on cards.

Freedom Festival preparations continue...

I have taken up "knooking."  It is knitting with a crochet hook.  I knit pretty slow with needles but I crochet pretty fast.

 Here is my first go round at knooking.  It creates a true knit/purl stitch not a wanna be like Tunisian.  It worked up pretty quickly.  I did a garter stitch at the bottom, a mix for a few rows and a stockinette stitch at the top.  I like this a lot.


Well I've been super busy preparing for the Freedom Festival pretty consistently.  I was fretting that I wouldn't have a lot; however, I underestimate my generally good work ethic of the past...I already had a lot of stuff to begin with that I haven't even tried to sell.  I have over 25 hats and over 30 pairs of earrings now.  Actually more hats/earrings than that...that's just what I have set out so far for inventory.  I have improved the design of my Around Town crochet cap to include a ribbon band in bright summer colors.

 This is the first one that I had created in pink cotton yarn, perfect for summer!  I will probably list these for sale on my artfire after the Freedom Festival.  One more week to go!  I have to get some painting and artwork done also...I have so many ideas, it's just a matter of getting them all down.

This is the Around Town cap in bright green cotton.  I wouldn't have even thought to get this color; however, I was in JoAnn's (my current craft store obsession) and had a nice conversation with a sweet lady about yarn (go figure).  She thought it was pretty summery and would make a great hat.  Well I'd give anything a try (within reason) and I like the results so score one for nice lady in JoAnn's!

The denim ones are my favorite.  This doesn't have the ribbon yet; however it will be red...this design can work with or without the ribbon.  I will make one of these for myself...denim is universal.

Swirls denim cotton cap with flower and button accessory.

This black one is hotness!  I'm going to make one for myself.


I've made a host of others that I still need to construct the brim on.  Yes, I have indeed been busy.  I have been selling my hats locally with much success at a local store, Sid and Nancy.  I will definitely bring in some more of my hats after the Freedom Festival.  I will temporarily shut down my artfire store on July 3rd as my inventory needs may change after the festival.

I have more inventory than space!  These are crochet earrings hiding out in the most available space in my work area (living room).  Those ribbon bangles usually go over pretty big; however, I'm limited in how many I make at a time because of the materials that I use.  I have great demand with a great but slow supply so to speak.  There are about 18 pairs of earrings here.

Here are the earrings I completed today.  I had already crocheted them...it was just a matter of putting them together.  The Africa earrings are cut from hard leather...that was quite an adventure let me tell you!  They came out pretty lovely though.  I still need to make some duplicates of these so I will get that done this week.  I did a trade of a few of my Rasta earrings...the lady I traded with makes the most A-W-E-S-O-M-E crochet bags and the one she sent matches my Mocha Queen earrings perfectly.  I just need the perfect outfit to set it off and I will post!

Since I started working with leather, I figured I would experiment a little bit.  I kept the kids at bay by telling them what leather was...they don't want to come anywhere near it now (yay!).  Ballpoint ink works beautifully on leather and research on the net found that acrylic and gouache work pretty well also.  With that knowledge in mind here is what I came up with:

Painted leather afro lady!  I created her to match my afro polymer/wood lady I made actually back in 09 and hadn't had the heart to ever sell although I've had many offers.  I think they make quite a pair!  I got some glossy acrylic sealer and I'm working on building up a sufficient layer on it.  The brown in her hair isn't as obvious in real life.  I will definitely do more of these but probably as appliques or magnets (or any other idea I can come up with).

I did a linocut.  I started on it yesterday morning and finished up this morning.  I had these linoleum blocks hanging around for the longest.  This is 6" x 9" and it is tentatively named "Black Man's Redemption."  Yes it was inspired by Bob Marley.  It originally had a map of Africa in the back but silly me, I forgot about the whole "mirror-image" thing so I ended up cutting it out as I had it in there the right way on the cut.  I think I still get the point across without it though.  I will print it later this week.

Hairpin lace is fun.  It worked up quicker than I had anticipated and I am well on my way to making a cute skirt using this method.  The yarn I'm using, a laine (wool), acrylic, nylon, polyester blend (a great fine) has awesome drape and is beautifully variegated.




On June 11, 2011 I took my two youngest girls to an open call at a local modeling consulting agency.  Folks had been telling me for the longest that those girls could model and I had brushed it off until now.  My youngest is five and has such a big personality...my six year old is more reserve but she also has that special spark.  I'm definitely going to put her in dance as she has natural ability in the future.  The girls made a splash.  They were first to get the ball rolling with their commercials and the runway walk.  They were called back a second time and were offered a place in the program.  It is mostly a program for acting courses.  They would learn monologues, stage presence, how to interview, improvisation and a host of other skills that would benefit them not only for potential work in entertainment but in life.  They already have great confidence and something like this would ensure that they maintain that high level of self-assurance they already possess.  We need some help helping the girls with the costs of the program.  It is with the Deabreu Modeling Consulting Agency and the company already has a pretty good track record and success rate.  Anyone watch Are We There Yet? on TBS?  The little boy, Coy Stewart, got his start at Deabreu.  The potential is there.  The girls think it is all fun and I want it to remain that way for them.  They are slated to start classes on July 9th and I hope that we are able to make this happen for them.  I'm pooling all of my craft funds, including the profits for the festival, into this for them.  Any purchase made on my artfire site or on the site I made for them, The Dream Girls Project, will go towards this.  We'd appreciate any amount or purchase because even $1 adds up.

      

Freedom Festival July 4, 2011

Great news!  I was selected again this year to participate in the Freedom Festival at the Villages of Sandhills in Columbia, SC on July 4, 2011!  I am ecstatic about being chosen again and I will be working double time this year to prepare enough items!

Go HERE to see the photos from the Freedom Festival 2010.  I am getting into sewing.  I already know how to hand sew and I'm now dabbling into machine sewing.  I was saving it for another time however I came across this neat little machine at Big Lots.  It came with over 100 accessories and I figured I could at least get the logistics down with it.  So far, so good.  I got it to work with no issues and it does a basic stitch.  I have sewing a straight seam down now.  I can't focus on it too much.  I have so much to do to prepare for the Freedom Festival!




This week is children's week.  If I finish early enough I'll start on earrings.

And so it goes!

I finally completed a new Rasta Drawstring Tam!  It goes great with the Rasta earrings and I loved working with the drop double crochet stitch.

I will place this for sale soon on my artfire site!

Projects

Crochet Rasta Earrings.  I've made similar ones before but now I make the circles differently.  They hang about 3.5 inches and are about an inch in diameter.

Pink Elegance Earrings from the previous post.  They are about 2.5 inches long and in diameter.

Rasta Earrings.  I used a unique pattern to create these circles earrings.  They are about 2.5 inches long and in diameter.

I am presently working on a matching hat that will also feature a unique pattern.

Earth Goddess Crochet Earrings with Cowrie shells.  This is an original design that goes along with my Queen series. 






The basketweave purse is still a work in progress.  Here is what I have done so far:

 All of the pieces together.

I'll be finished by the end of the week.  This is for my mom :-). 

New Artfire Item!

I have a new item in my artfire:  The Earth Goddess Crochet Rasta Tam/Slouch Hat with Matching Earrings!

When I saw the green yarn I had to buy it!  It was a near perfect match for this beautiful jade green yarn I had purchased in NC last year.  I substituted the faces I normally use for a cowrie shell.  It features a drawstring cap to make the tam adjustable with cowrie cord stops. I absolutely love the earrings.  They were originally done like the hat but the green and brown were too similar so I did them like this.





I was working on a few other projects also.  Here is my long list (pictures to come later):

*   A thread crochet halter dress (I'll probably make it a top since my progress has been so slow).
*   A thread crochet top (the yarn is really fun!) 
*   A basketweave purse.  I was originally following a pattern, however I deviated away from it so much I ended up with something new!  I'll post the purse and maybe the pattern later.
*   A knit circular shrug.  I don't knit much and this project is a prime example as to why not.  I knit very slowly because it bores me after awhile.  I'm a little over halfway done so I am trying to find the inspiration to finish it.
*  A knit leg warmer set.  This is a more interesting project because it includes some techniques beyond knit and purl.  I've had to restart three times because of twisted stitches...they will be really nice once I get going.
*   A crochet H.  I made this for my kindergarten baby's teacher and didn't take a picture before I gave it to her.  I have to work on a crochet M pillow next for her other teacher.
*   Various crochet earrings.

The pink pair are one of the newer pairs that I have made.  The ankh ones were made a long time ago.  My niece commandeered my last pink ones.  These feature beautiful pink glass beads and swarovski's crystals.

Various projects

Remember Thing-A-Day?  Well even though I haven't posted I have worked on a "thing-a-day" consistently.  Between drawing, crocheting, knitting, and writing I have definitely kept up the crafty spirit of the "thing-a-day" mission.

That being said I have several things I have been doing.

First of all, stitchmarkers!

I did these amber stitchmarkers.  Stitchmarkers come in handy when you are working on big projects so I always like having several handy.

Letter stitchmarkers.  I would have made one that said crochet; however I couldn't get all of the beads to fit on my head pin.  I love these.

I ran out of things to do, obviously.  I've been knitting (or attempting to knit) lately so these seemed appropriate.  Funny I haven't done one single purl as my project called for a garter stitch.







Well here is my knit project:

I am making an earring holder.  I have an empty black frame that would make a great earring holder.  Crochet isn't too conducive (in my opinion) to being a holder without employing some kind of mesh pattern and those tend to be a distraction from the earrings.


I tried but got really irritated of the stitches so I cut it off early.

I placed some earrings on it to see how it would look.  I'm happy with it.  I nailed it to the back for lack of a better idea of how to get it on there.







I made one commissioned hat from the Saturday before last that I will deliver to the customer this weekend.  I also did this project.  I won't post for the sake of keeping my blog g-rated lol.  I may work on a swimsuit in the future.