I made a terrarium!

I've Been Away For A Long Time

...because I bought a house! And work and go to school full time. But a friend of mine reminded me today that I should keep up my craftiness.
So here is a taste of home-owning craftiness. The house was built in 1942 and some foolish folks along the way had carpeted over the hardwood. After many an hour spent crawling along the floor pulling carpet tacks out, we sanded  ...                                                                                                                                      

and refinished the hardwood.

And threw up some fresh paint.


Now I'm all moved in, but as all homeowners, still have projects pending. 

Things I have already purchased for the kitchen
(the old laminate floor layers are all pulled up and the tile goes in in a couple of weeks)

All of the elements that I hope my bathroom will one day conatin are here
(wainscoating, freestanding tub, better window covering, pedestal sink, and tile floor)

Narwhal!

Improvised pattern & thrift store sweater

Toadstools

I went on vacation and got swept away doing summer things, but I wanted to post another craft from the archives to get back into the swing of things. I'm putting some finishing touches on some other things this weekend and posts should be more regular again now.

I made these little toadstools a couple of years ago from sort of faux velvet fabric scraps a friend gave me. I did all of the sewing by hand and placed the finished product in tiny terra cotta pots with some pebbles for stability. Simple but really fun!

Another Oldie But Goodie

I have some weekend projects in the works, but I feel like I've gone too long without a post. So I thought I'd share another from the archives.

Owl tesselations! A really time consuming craft, but worth it. (I did not create the original tesselation just used it as a template.) They're fun.

Vintage Woodblock Display

I found these vintage woodblock printing letters about six months ago at an antique store and was able to pick out the letters for my last name (Forbes) and my companion's (Langer).  I stashed them away for our anniversary in the beginning of June and got around to assembling them into a shadow box display for our tiny entry hall today.

I like the quirkiness of the letters that face backwards mixed with ones that I was able to place facing forward. (Since the woodblocks are stamps, the letters are mirror imaged.) I didn't actually do a lot of the making here technically, although I did use antiquing techniques on the newspaper and create an artistic arrangement for the shadow box.

Accessories for a Pair of Dapper Gents

So we saw some crafts I did for a baby shower. That friend had a baby girl in the wee hours of May 29th. I have another friend who is 7 months along with a baby boy and I started some crafts for him this weekend. I did a freehand template of a neck tie and used some iron-on double stick fusible web to applique some onesies.

 I also made a little clip on bow tie for him. I'll probably make him the real thing when he's old enough. I figured a clip on would be no fuss to take off at feeding or nap time and be more comfortable for a newborn just adapting to restrictive clothing. Ok so I *may* have gotten a little carried away, but I also found a baby fedora on sale, so I ordered it too.

http://www.gap.com/browse/product.do?cid=65278&vid=1&pid=827616

I also know a very distinguished cat who is fond of capes, bandannas, painted nails etc. I've had it in my mind to make him a little how tie for quite some time. I made the same clip on bow tie in the adjusted baby size and clipped it to a matching red safety release collar. Of course I couldn't resist making my own anguished cat model the finished product (the photography proved rather challenging).

I've been gathering up more patterns and ideas; more to come!