tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-39134688105103131472024-03-12T16:08:24.714-07:00Bluegirl designsFollow me as I take the plunge into the crafting business.B. bradleyhttp://www.blogger.com/profile/02561833246437113111noreply@blogger.comBlogger27125tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-3913468810510313147.post-38099592570700256992010-05-17T09:00:00.000-07:002010-05-17T09:00:05.947-07:00DIY Victory - Mission Yogurt<a onblur="try {parent.deselectBloggerImageGracefully();} catch(e) {}" href="http://4.bp.blogspot.com/_5-BEAShgBag/S_CltXaAb9I/AAAAAAAAAY0/ZL_11ZNXXKs/s1600/yogurt.jpg"><img style="display:block; margin:0px auto 10px; text-align:center;cursor:pointer; cursor:hand;width: 216px; height: 162px;" src="http://4.bp.blogspot.com/_5-BEAShgBag/S_CltXaAb9I/AAAAAAAAAY0/ZL_11ZNXXKs/s320/yogurt.jpg" border="0" alt=""id="BLOGGER_PHOTO_ID_5472055746050944978" /></a><br />For the past 10 months I have had an obsession with yogurt. Not just any yogurt. FAGE. Oh, how I love the Greek style yogurt. And not all Greek style yogurt is created equal. No no. Fage is so thick it could easily be mistaken for sour cream like they serve at your neighborhood Mexican restaurant.<br /><br />Fage is thick, creamy and only slightly tart. And they sell it with this little cups of cherry, strawberry or peach preserves or honey. I am spending a lot of money on this stuff, because I have been eating one a day for breakfast for a while. At almost $3 a cup, I am slowly going broke.<br /><br />A couple of weeks ago, one of my DIY websites suggested possibly the easiest homemade Greek yogurt I have ever heard of.<br /><br /><a href="http://jchandmade.typepad.com/jc_handmade/2010/04/make-it-yogurt.html">http://jchandmade.typepad.com/jc_handmade/2010/04/make-it-yogurt.html</a><br /><br />Basically, you heat some milk, cool that milk, then add some yogurt you have in your fridge. So far, sounds way too easy. Then she said to cover the milk mixture with a lid and wrap the container in several towels. Now hear is the freaky part. She said to just leave it on the counter overnight. What? Just leave milk on the counter?<br /><br />I couldn’t do it. This recipe swears by it, and I am not saying I wouldn’t try it, but I couldn’t get past it.<br /><br />So instead, I got Online and researched several different ways to make yogurt at home without a yogurtmaker. Apparently, you can make it with a cooler and hot water. You can make it with a very large thermos. You can make it with a heating pad. But I found one that suggested using your oven, so I decided to try that route.<br /><br />To be honest, the hardest part was the heating of the milk, then cooling it. I had a thermometer, and according to a majority of my recipes you heat the milk to 180 degrees, right before boiling. Each time heating to that temperature set my milk to boiling – almost boiling over. Fine. So then I had to let the milk cool to 110 degrees or until you can hold your finger in the milk for 10 seconds without screaming (my favorite direction of the whole lot). I am not a patient person. But I waited and watched until the temp hit 110. However, I could only hold my finger in the milk for only 6 seconds. Now either my thermometer is wrong or I am a wimp. I went with the later, and stirred in my yogurt starter (Fage 2%). Then dished up the liquid in several small Ziplock containers.<br /><br />Then, after a small preheat, I turned off my over, as per directions and put in my yogurt containers to sit for 8 hours.<br /><br />It didn’t work. My oven could have been too cold, my thermometer could have been wrong – any number of things could have gone wrong. Either way, I only had bacteria milk.<br /><br />I spent the whole week fantasizing about yogurt makers.<br /><br />I even messaged an old culinarily adventurous friend as to whether she had tried making her own yogurt or using a yogurt maker. Her response was this: “Didn’t know you could even buy your own yogurt maker! Greek yogurt is really expensive. I like it, but damn. I think at that price it should come with a hot Greek man to feed it to me. Wait, is that what a “yogurt maker” is? A hot Greek man? If it is I’m gonna need to get one too.”<br /><br />Now she fantasizes about yogurt makers.<br /><br />But here is the problem with actual conventional yogurt machines, you still have to do most of the work. You still have to heat the milk, cool the milk, all the tricky parts that make the yogurt process so complicated. Because apparently adding the starter too soon kills the bacteria. Leaving you with just sour milk. Ew.<br /><br />All the machine does is maintain a consistent temperature. Which is fine, but is it really worth $60.<br /><br />So I decided to give it another shot. This time the heating pad approach. But I don’t own a heating pad. I have a rice bag that I warm in the microwave. So, here is what happened. I prepped the milk and put the mix in the plastic containers again, making sure I could hold my finger in the warm mixture for 10 seconds without screaming. Then I loaded a cardboard box with towels, my warm heating pad and the bacteria milk containers. Then I wrapped the box in a fleece blanket and let it set.<br /><br />I checked it at 5 hrs – still bacteria milk. I reheated the rice bag and then sealed the box again.<br /><br />I check it at 8 hrs. – one container was set. Kind of. I reheated the rice bag and sealed again. I figured something was happening. Might as well give it a full 13 hrs.<br /><br />At 10:30 p.m., right before bed, I make the final check.<br /><br />Victory! 4 containers of a yogurty substance. But it wasn’t Greek. It was Yoplait or Dannon texture. But I was too psyched to care. I gave some feeble attempts at trying to strain off the whey, but I couldn’t master that famous Fage thickness.<br /><br />Regardless, it was yogurt, and right tasty. It wasn’t overly tart, and with a little honey, no sign of tartness at all. I added some granola and it made a faboo breakfast, which I will repeatedly enjoy this week.<br /><br />So victory and high fives to all my DIY sisters and brothers. I am on my way out to buy powdered milk and price yogurt machines.B. bradleyhttp://www.blogger.com/profile/02561833246437113111noreply@blogger.com0tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-3913468810510313147.post-87569153855912827472010-01-27T09:03:00.000-08:002010-01-27T09:12:32.687-08:00Duh!<a onblur="try {parent.deselectBloggerImageGracefully();} catch(e) {}" href="http://1.bp.blogspot.com/_5-BEAShgBag/S2BzgyT70TI/AAAAAAAAAX4/Dq61xqHGrQQ/s1600-h/IMG_0580.JPG"><img style="display:block; margin:0px auto 10px; text-align:center;cursor:pointer; cursor:hand;width: 186px; height: 320px;" src="http://1.bp.blogspot.com/_5-BEAShgBag/S2BzgyT70TI/AAAAAAAAAX4/Dq61xqHGrQQ/s320/IMG_0580.JPG" border="0" alt=""id="BLOGGER_PHOTO_ID_5431468157707211058" /></a><br />Sometimes I can be really stupid when it comes to very simple technical things. Like I have a dear sweet aunt who has been crocheting me doilies for Christmas for years, and all I have done with them in stick them in a box. I never wanted to lay them on coffee tables, but I loved that she made them for me, so I just stashed them until I got a better idea.<br />Today I found it.<br />I was flipping through my craft blogs this morning and I found a great tutorial for a <a href="http://racheldenbow.blogspot.com/2010/01/doily-pillow-tutorial.html">Doily Pillow</a>.<br />Apparently you just sew the doilies together. For some reason I had it in my mind that I would have to crochet a whole pillow-front. I feel very silly now. The pillows on this tutorial are so cute, I am going to have to dig around in my closet and find them from Christmas past.<br />Add this to the Must Craft list.B. bradleyhttp://www.blogger.com/profile/02561833246437113111noreply@blogger.com0tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-3913468810510313147.post-48526281047136517312010-01-25T08:18:00.000-08:002010-01-25T08:24:26.956-08:00DIY undies!For a long time I boycotted Victoria Secret. I hated the fact that everytime I went in that store, I was either ignored, or the sales people knew nothing about their product. On countless occasions I would describe items I saw in magazines, to the point of bringing in photos of Victoria Secret ads from Vogue, just to have the sales girls shrug and say, "I've never seen that before." and then direct me to the catalog. <br />But even in my boycott days, I was never brave enough to attempt something a lot of crafters have already tackled - DIY lingerie. <a href="www.craftster.org">Craftster</a> is full of ladies who dare to make their own bras, panties and night gowns with wonderful results. For some reason, I have always been afraid.<br />For those of you who do not share my fears, and want to give it a shot, check out <a href="http://craftstew.com/sewing/70-free-lingerie-sewing-patterns">this website</a> these patterns from everything from robes to chemises.B. bradleyhttp://www.blogger.com/profile/02561833246437113111noreply@blogger.com1tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-3913468810510313147.post-86659640775848777552010-01-12T16:02:00.000-08:002010-01-12T16:02:00.154-08:00Our rock stars are not your rock stars<a onblur="try {parent.deselectBloggerImageGracefully();} catch(e) {}" href="http://3.bp.blogspot.com/_5-BEAShgBag/S0vHnyr28LI/AAAAAAAAAXQ/5uVGO1du-ik/s1600-h/JCO.JPG"><img style="float:left; margin:0 10px 10px 0;cursor:pointer; cursor:hand;width: 320px; height: 240px;" src="http://3.bp.blogspot.com/_5-BEAShgBag/S0vHnyr28LI/AAAAAAAAAXQ/5uVGO1du-ik/s320/JCO.JPG" border="0" alt=""id="BLOGGER_PHOTO_ID_5425649662532448434" /></a><br />Since we have moved to Lexington, we have been presented with a lot more options. We can now shop at Whole Foods, our Library has 5 branches, and I have been able to meet a few pretty awesome writers. That, I was not expecting. No where on the Chamber of Commerce website did it tout "Frequent Book Tour Stop." A couple of months ago I walked away with Silas House's autograph and met a writer names Holly Goddard Jones. But Saturday night I hit the jackpot - Joyce Carol Oates.<br />For those of you who do not know, Joyce Carol Oates is a literary powerhouse. She has about 148 titles to her name, has been nominated for the Nobel Peace Prize in Literature 4 times, and teaches at Princeton University. She also scares the pants off me.<br />When I saw her on <a href="http://www.english.eku.edu/mfa/">EKU's</a> website as part of their Winter Masters of Fine Arts in Creative Writing Residency, I thought it was a misprint. JCO is BIG. Why on earth is she coming in for Eastern Kentucky State? Then I saw that she would be doing a reading, and it would be open to the public.<br />I was so excited, I showed up at the theater a half an hour early, and sat in my car and read <a href="http://www.amazon.com/Foxfire-Confessions-Joyce-Carol-Oates/dp/0452272319/ref=ntt_at_ep_dpt_5">Foxfire</a> by the security lamp light while big flakes of snow piled up around me. When I went in neither food nor beverages were allowed in the theater, so I stood in the entryway, as to finish the coffee I picked up on the way. I chatted up a guy who was in the program about good restaurants in the area. (Turns out coffee drinkers are the new smokers). But lucky for us and our coffee love, because we got to walk in with the wee lady.<br />She is tiny. That is what struck me the most. She walked in this huge pink down parka, and pink cloche hat. She looked like she could be someone's grandma, or some lady sitting at church using a red pick to fluff up her graying black hair. But when she stood before us, she held all of our attentions in the palm of her hand. She could have read for three hours and none of us would have complained.<br />She read a short story from her anthology <a href="http://www.amazon.com/High-Lonesome-Selected-Stories-1966-2006/dp/0060501200/ref=ntt_at_ep_dpt_6">High Lonesome: New and Selected Stories from 1966 to 2006</a>. It was about a woman who has her home invaded by two methamphetamine addicts. Oates is fearless in her subject matter, always pulling events straight from the headlines and putting her own even darker twist on them. I've read several of her books, and she is not afraid to create characters who rape, kill and completely betray their fellow man. She scares me, because the monsters she writes about are us. But I LOVE her, for that same reason. She has a novel from the point of view of the serial killer called <a href="http://www.amazon.com/Zombie-Joyce-Carol-Oates/dp/0452275008/ref=ntt_at_ep_dpi_3">Zombie</a>, and I am too afraid to read it. So here we are - 30 strangers sitting in a dark theater listing to this little woman read about this horrible, terrifying and potentially real terror, and we were all so riveted that no one ever coughed or tried to clear their throat. The whole room was dead silent. I just kinda sat there with my mouth open.<br />So, of course, when it was time to go up and have your books signed by her, I acted like a blubbering idiot. I gushed all over her. "I'm such a huge fan, and I like this book, but it is not my favorite. My favorite is Foxfire, but I don't own Foxfire, but I have checked it out of the library like a million times, and I looked all over town today for a copy, but no one had one. And Blonde! I am such a huge fan of Blonde. . ." and at that point she handed me my book, said thank you and moved on to the next person. And to add to the creepy fan vibe, I practically whispered that whole diatribe, like speaking where she could hear me would offend her, or perhaps I temporarily lost the ability to project. <br />But it didn't matter then. I practically danced out the door. Not, not danced, because dancing would have been too slow. Instead, I grabbed my coat and bolted, putting on gloves and hat as I speed to my car. Maybe I was afraid she would ask for her autograph back, so I high tailed it out of there. I had this whole plan to talk to the coordinators of the event about EKU's program, as a possibility of attending, but that idea completely flew out of my head. I was out the door, phoning my husband to tell him how awesome it was.<br />I'm still all giddy about it.B. bradleyhttp://www.blogger.com/profile/02561833246437113111noreply@blogger.com0tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-3913468810510313147.post-85531102045901805062010-01-11T19:00:00.000-08:002010-01-11T16:02:23.296-08:00Success - Christmas Craftacular<a onblur="try {parent.deselectBloggerImageGracefully();} catch(e) {}" href="http://1.bp.blogspot.com/_5-BEAShgBag/S0u6jtL1DfI/AAAAAAAAAXI/wjhLd0Y3qTk/s1600-h/maw%27squilt.JPG"><img style="display:block; margin:0px auto 10px; text-align:center;cursor:pointer; cursor:hand;width: 320px; height: 240px;" src="http://1.bp.blogspot.com/_5-BEAShgBag/S0u6jtL1DfI/AAAAAAAAAXI/wjhLd0Y3qTk/s320/maw%27squilt.JPG" border="0" alt=""id="BLOGGER_PHOTO_ID_5425635298685292018" /></a><br /><br />I'm so late getting this up because post-Christmas is sometimes more hectic for me than before Christmas. But I am thrilled to report that all in all my handmade holiday was a success. But I will admit, there were a few setbacks.<br />1. I began to hate all the handmade projects I was working on. By the time I was rounding the corner on my mother-in-law's handmade piece, I was sick to death of looking at it. So sick of it, I put it in a frame, wrapped it, and never took a final picture of the piece. It turned out lovely, but I have no actual proof of it.<br />Also, my grandfather's knitted hat had me screaming "HATS ARE HARD!" to my husband after I frogged it three times.<br /><a onblur="try {parent.deselectBloggerImageGracefully();} catch(e) {}" href="http://2.bp.blogspot.com/_5-BEAShgBag/S0u6Sxypi9I/AAAAAAAAAXA/N8DWsAyebTs/s1600-h/popspies.JPG"><img style="float:right; margin:0 0 10px 10px;cursor:pointer; cursor:hand;width: 320px; height: 240px;" src="http://2.bp.blogspot.com/_5-BEAShgBag/S0u6Sxypi9I/AAAAAAAAAXA/N8DWsAyebTs/s320/popspies.JPG" border="0" alt=""id="BLOGGER_PHOTO_ID_5425635007864081362" /></a><br />2. Last minute throw togethers. I had two projects that absolutely had to get done the night before they were to be presented. I don't handle last minute pressure well, so rolling out crumbly pie dough that was supposed to be smooth resulted in me throwing my rolling pin across the room and dough in trash.<br />3. Not reading the instructions. I learned the hard way that allowing paint to dry on a paper stencil will result in painted paper bits sticking to your project and send you running screaming to Joanne's fabrics to resupply and start over. When I told the cashier it was a "craft emergency" she told me to buy my person a gift card instead. Not the type of attitude I expected from someone who worked in a craft store.<br />But in the end, everyone loved their gifts. My grandfather cried in delight, "I got a toboggin!" when he unwrapped his hand-knitted hat. My Maw hid her new quilt because she said she didn't want my sister to be tempted to steal it. And my cousin planned on using her stenciled canvas bag as her new book-bag.<br />All in all, several happy campers = one happy crafter.B. bradleyhttp://www.blogger.com/profile/02561833246437113111noreply@blogger.com0tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-3913468810510313147.post-46672439399861743542010-01-05T14:03:00.000-08:002010-01-06T12:57:42.212-08:00Off time<a onblur="try {parent.deselectBloggerImageGracefully();} catch(e) {}" href="http://4.bp.blogspot.com/_5-BEAShgBag/S0T5LUbEupI/AAAAAAAAAW4/3D7iF5tt_WI/s1600-h/316d6K4RFBL._SL500_AA240_.jpg"><img style="float:left; margin:0 10px 10px 0;cursor:pointer; cursor:hand;width: 240px; height: 240px;" src="http://4.bp.blogspot.com/_5-BEAShgBag/S0T5LUbEupI/AAAAAAAAAW4/3D7iF5tt_WI/s320/316d6K4RFBL._SL500_AA240_.jpg" border="0" alt=""id="BLOGGER_PHOTO_ID_5423733824117062290" /></a><br />You could say, I am taking a quick vacation from crafting to recover from Christmas Craftacular (photos and full report up tomorrow) and get my new year's wits about me.<br />So I plan to read, read, read. Reading is an indulgence I never allow myself, which is so silly of me because I love books and I love to write.<br /><br />Here are just a few selections from my vacation reading list:<br />Into the Woods - Tana French<br />The Wizard of Oz - by L. Frank Baum Can you believe I have never actually read this before<br />The Secret Garden - by Frances Hodgson Burnett. This one either. I watched the movie when my sister was little and I totally fell in love with it. Now, I am actually going to read it.<br />Wicked - by Gregory Maguire. For the third time, I am going to try to read this. <br /><br />I also listen to a lot of books. This is perfect for in the car, doing dishes, or embroidering. Lately I have been on a Harry Potter kick, but I called out "Accio Coke Zero" from my couch the other night, I decided I should probably give it a rest. On deck are:<br />Finger-lickin Fifteen by Janet Evanovich<br />Paint it Black by Janet Finch<br />My Sister My Love by Joyce Carol Oates<br />Remember Me by Sophia Kinsella<br />American Wife - Curtis Sittenfeld<br />Parchment of Leaves - Silas House<br /><br />Not on deck, but definitely recently purchased - Nice Girls Don't Live Forever by Molly Harper. Please, please, please check out this hilarious Southern vampire romance about a girl who opens a coffeeshop for the undead and gives her cold and distant sire boyfriend the ole' heave ho. I give it 4 out of 4 very triumphant stars, and not just because it was dedicated to me.<br /><br />Happy January fellow bookworms.B. bradleyhttp://www.blogger.com/profile/02561833246437113111noreply@blogger.com0tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-3913468810510313147.post-64806292204776357882009-12-28T08:45:00.000-08:002009-12-28T08:47:33.653-08:00On HolidayJust wanted to let everyone know that I will be breaking from the blogging until Jan. 4. Heading for Phase 2 of Holiday celebrations in Tennessee, and still have handmade gifts to finish. I am a procrastinator to the core.<br />Looking forward to a fantastic 2010. See you guys next year.B. bradleyhttp://www.blogger.com/profile/02561833246437113111noreply@blogger.com0tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-3913468810510313147.post-43422468238602066822009-12-19T19:05:00.000-08:002009-12-19T19:24:02.591-08:00Last minute gift idea<a onblur="try {parent.deselectBloggerImageGracefully();} catch(e) {}" href="http://2.bp.blogspot.com/_5-BEAShgBag/Sy2YQtAE9HI/AAAAAAAAAV4/i3IkZKrmMh4/s1600-h/100_0008.JPG"><img style="float:left; margin:0 10px 10px 0;cursor:pointer; cursor:hand;width: 320px; height: 240px;" src="http://2.bp.blogspot.com/_5-BEAShgBag/Sy2YQtAE9HI/AAAAAAAAAV4/i3IkZKrmMh4/s320/100_0008.JPG" border="0" alt=""id="BLOGGER_PHOTO_ID_5417153339521823858" /></a><br /><br />I was going through my Google Reader the other day and came across a tutorial for a <a href="http://www.vanessachristenson.com/2009/02/tutorialrice-bag-feet-warmer.html">rice bag warmer</a>. A rice bag warmer is a fabric bag of rice that you heat in the microwave for a few minutes and then lay the warm bag across your sore neck, head or even slip under your blanket to warm your feet.<br />My grandmother used to make these when we were younger, and I have been complaining to my husband that I wished I had one for my sore crafter's neck. Then, when I saw it, I knew it would be perfect for my co-worker who is always cold.<br />So I made two of them. The most beautiful thing was I had almost everything I needed to make them already in my stash. I just had to go out and buy rice.<br />You can add dried herbs like lavender to the bags, if you want to just increase the awesome.<br />I was lazy, and stuck to just rice.<br />I gave it a whirl this afternoon, and placed it under my son's feet. I thought he would really think it was cool, but mostly it just weirded him out.<br />So I wrapped my coworkers rice bag warmer with two packages of hot chocolate. If her temperature doesn't rise after this gift, then next year I will just have to get her a Snuggie.B. bradleyhttp://www.blogger.com/profile/02561833246437113111noreply@blogger.com0tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-3913468810510313147.post-74140966081014253562009-12-18T06:07:00.000-08:002009-12-19T18:59:42.618-08:00O Christmas Tree<a onblur="try {parent.deselectBloggerImageGracefully();} catch(e) {}" href="http://4.bp.blogspot.com/_5-BEAShgBag/Sy2TBXTTMQI/AAAAAAAAAVw/66azD0AxakI/s1600-h/treeon.JPG"><img style="display:block; margin:0px auto 10px; text-align:center;cursor:pointer; cursor:hand;width: 240px; height: 320px;" src="http://4.bp.blogspot.com/_5-BEAShgBag/Sy2TBXTTMQI/AAAAAAAAAVw/66azD0AxakI/s320/treeon.JPG" border="0" alt=""id="BLOGGER_PHOTO_ID_5417147578440691970" /></a><br />We downsized our Christmas tree this year. Living in the tiny apartment really didn't afford a lot of room for a large tree, and after our storage closet was flooded and our tree and many decorations were ruined, I decided to give up the fight and went searching for a tiny tree.<br />I was able to score one for only $10 - prelit.<br />I didn't think much about tree downsizing until I saw a link on <a href="http://indiefixx.com/2009/12/18/our-charlie-brown-tree/">Indie Fixx</a> today. They too downsized their tree because of space.<br />It made me wonder who else was downsizing this Christmas.<br />Once we got the little tree set up, and the decorations on it, it was a little like a Charlie Brown Christmas. We all looked at it, and decided, it really wasn't so bad. We would have had no place to put a big tree in the first place, and my son loves it just the same. I find myself adding a little bit to the decor everyday, to the point, it might topple over.<br />But it is beautiful, and I'm glad we did it the way we did.B. bradleyhttp://www.blogger.com/profile/02561833246437113111noreply@blogger.com0tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-3913468810510313147.post-69914041973770084992009-12-15T07:56:00.000-08:002009-12-15T08:13:42.181-08:00Patience, persistence and a good seam ripperI told my mother several months ago that being in a recession means that more people will want to start sewing their own clothes. She didn't believe me. She also doesn't read the New York Times.<br />I came across <a href="http://www.nytimes.com/2009/12/17/fashion/17SPY.html?_r=1&src=tptw">this</a> article this morning and read it with a smile because I have walked down the same road as the author. When I got my first sewing machine, I also bought a dress pattern. I didn't even bother with the home decor process of wanting to make pillows and dish towels. I wanted fashion damn it! This was before Project Runway, mind you, and I just KNEW I could not only make my own clothes, but make enough one of a kind designs to open my own shop in the very tiny little town of Murray, KY. Looking back, I know that Murray probably wouldn't totally embrace my style, even if I had mastered a self taught "fashion degree" (a lofty aspiration all on it's own). But I loved living in that small town, and hated my job. So I was dreaming big. Actually I was completely delusional. <br />But I was also persistent. I bought a dress pattern, fabric, thread, and a zipper. My aunt, who was visiting me at the time, chipped in on the cost of my materials because what's family for if not to support your crackpot ideas and then slip out of town before the results are in.<br />I had a plan. I was going to make my first dress, and I was going to wear it New Years Eve! I was certain it would take no longer than a few hours the Saturday before. <br />I remember the weekend I laid all the materials out in my living room. I carefully cutting out the pattern pieces out of the thin tissue paper. I pinned pieces to some plain white practice fabric. After I cut all the pattern pieces, I pinned them all together and very carefully slipped on my "practice dress".<br />It was too tight. Way too tight. The little pins were three inches from even reaching. I had failed to take my own measurements before I started cutting.<br />That's when I learned a very important lesson. Just because you wear a certain size at the store, doesn't mean you actually are that size in sewing patterns. Now, I might know how to handle that situation. Anything was better than what I actually did do, which was sit in my living room and cry. I never even sewed a stitch.<br />Now I know better. I have bought several sewing books. I have learned to measure twice and cut once, and I have gained an amazing amount of respect for the people who put together something so many people take for granted - our clothing.<br />I don't really sew dresses. I have made several quilts, pillows, placemats and other small projects that can get done in a weekend, but clothing construction takes an amount of patience that I have yet to develop. But I am getting closer with every stitch.B. bradleyhttp://www.blogger.com/profile/02561833246437113111noreply@blogger.com0tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-3913468810510313147.post-43206715043654441802009-12-14T06:57:00.000-08:002009-12-14T07:07:14.742-08:00A little press goes a long way<a onblur="try {parent.deselectBloggerImageGracefully();} catch(e) {}" href="http://2.bp.blogspot.com/_5-BEAShgBag/SyZUWzNWvqI/AAAAAAAAAOQ/_9EO0hPXfNI/s1600-h/091214CUBE14.embedded.prod_affiliate.79.jpg"><img style="display:block; margin:0px auto 10px; text-align:center;cursor:pointer; cursor:hand;width: 240px; height: 320px;" src="http://2.bp.blogspot.com/_5-BEAShgBag/SyZUWzNWvqI/AAAAAAAAAOQ/_9EO0hPXfNI/s320/091214CUBE14.embedded.prod_affiliate.79.jpg" border="0" alt=""id="BLOGGER_PHOTO_ID_5415108352639680162" /></a><br />I am so excited. The store when I have been consigning my holiday ornaments has gotten a little <a href="http://www.kentucky.com/964/story/1058930.html">local press</a>. Street Scene (not to be confused with the urban Christian movement of the same name in Lexington) is a vintage consignment store that has the most awesome, kitchy, irresistible items. I am in LOVE with the pink couch that is in the above photo of owners Terri Wood and Katherine Wiseman. There is also costume jewelry, clothing, pink poodle skirts, lamps, and those really awesome huge sculptural ashtrays that look like they came right out of a 1970s penthouse party. Also, for the DIYers, there are yards and yards of vintage fabric in the back to buy to make your own vintage furnishings.<br />Street Scene is located at <a href="http://maps.google.com/maps?oe=utf-8&rls=org.mozilla:en-US:official&client=firefox-a&um=1&ie=UTF-8&q=Street+Scene+Lexington&fb=1&gl=us&hq=Street+Scene&hnear=Lexington&cid=0,0,4406373752471776753&ei=rVMmS4mMF8_cnAeZg7znCQ&sa=X&oi=local_result&ct=image&resnum=1&ved=0CAgQnwIwAA">2575 Regency Road</a>, or become a fan of them on Facebook.B. bradleyhttp://www.blogger.com/profile/02561833246437113111noreply@blogger.com0tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-3913468810510313147.post-6373240364103415732009-12-07T12:28:00.000-08:002009-12-07T09:44:58.280-08:00Christmas Craft-tacular<a onblur="try {parent.deselectBloggerImageGracefully();} catch(e) {}" href="http://1.bp.blogspot.com/_5-BEAShgBag/Sx0T3hLnsTI/AAAAAAAAAOI/bUXafLhfuA0/s1600-h/IMG00118-20091206-2148.jpg"><img style="float:left; margin:0 10px 10px 0;cursor:pointer; cursor:hand;width: 320px; height: 240px;" src="http://1.bp.blogspot.com/_5-BEAShgBag/Sx0T3hLnsTI/AAAAAAAAAOI/bUXafLhfuA0/s320/IMG00118-20091206-2148.jpg" border="0" alt=""id="BLOGGER_PHOTO_ID_5412504171690045746" /></a><br />So, as always I have decided to do too many things at once.<br />Christmas is rapidly approaching, and I love to make my own gifts. <br />Unfortunately my ambition always outweighs my time frame, and I make lofty goals with no way to complete them.<br />However, last year I got everything done right down to the wire, and perhaps this year with a little more organization and better laid out plan, I will be able to get everything accomplished.<br />Here is the list-<br />Two throw sized quilts (don't turn on me now. They are not patchwork quilts)<br />One queen sized throw (Okay, so that one might not be able to happen because quilt supplies are expensive enough, and this would be an additional gift to one I already had planned)<br />One knitted hat, (or maybe 4 knitted hats, depending upon whether I decide to send a surprise gift early to my nephews)<br />three stenciled bags<br />One piece of original art<br />One batch of chocolate chip cookies (or an apple pie. Last year I perfected my crust, and I saw this awesome little apple shaped pie mold for only $10)<br />This doesn't even count the teacher appreciation gifts, the cards to mail out and items for co-workers, church friends and part-time babysitters.<br />I'm a mad woman and I need to be stopped.<br />But first gift - COMPLETED!<br />I hit up the 40% off sale at Hancock Fabrics and got all my materials for my two throw sized quilts. I had no intention of patchworking and putting edging on these pieces, because I didn't want to completely lose my mind. So this is how I did it, and it was super easy.<br />Buy 60" of 45"wide fabric for the top, and another 60" for the bottom. Layer the pieces like a quilt sandwich - front piece (pretty side up), bottom piece (pretty side down) then batting. It seemed silly to me too, kind of like making a bread, bread, peanut butter sandwich, but bear with me.<br />After I sewed up three side, I flipped the whole thing inside out, just like I was making a pillow, and BAM - it looked like a quilt. I pushed out the corners, ironed the edges, then sewed the open end.<br />But we're still not done. I had to do something to keep the batting from slipping, sliding and bunching on the inside. So, I was going to have to tack it. I folded the quilt in quarters to find the center and threaded my yarn needle. With a pretty piece of pink yarn, I dove the needle into the center and back up and then tied the yarn in a knot. Then I continued to tack in 5" intervals all over the quilt.<br />The whole project took 6 hours, and my Maw will be so pleased.<br />Things I learned:<br />1. high loft batting, when sewed as the top layer, can get tangled up in your presser foot, so be very careful to keep it flat.<br />2. There is a reason quilting stores sell large plexiglass rulers. They are to press the fabric down so you can easily trim access. I did not have one of those large rulers, so I used a very large book instead.<br />3. A bed does not make the best cutting table, but it will due. I am SHOCKED I did not cut a big hole in my comforter. <br />4.I used three pairs of scissors and always left them out of arms reach of where ever I needed them. Considering getting a tool belt.<br />I went ahead and knocked out the sewing part of my second scheduled holiday quilt, and just have to tack it tonight. Also, I got a friendly reminder from my husband to come up with a manlier way to tack, because the second quilt was for his dad and yarn ties looked "girly."<br />You know, I don't tell him how to study for his law finals.<br />Whatever, besides, yarn ties might be a little girly, but I'll figure that out tonight.<br />Wish me luck.B. bradleyhttp://www.blogger.com/profile/02561833246437113111noreply@blogger.com0tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-3913468810510313147.post-37789889348361438702009-12-04T06:33:00.000-08:002009-12-04T06:45:21.640-08:00My first timeToday, I bought my first little bit of <a href="http://www.etsy.com/category/needlecraft">advertising</a>. <br />Which has been incredibly weird for me because I sell advertising. Being on the other side of the fence has been quite eye-opening. As soon as I realized, that TODAY was the day I was going to have a featured artist spot on Etsy, I immediately went to the site and clicked refresh until my ornament appeared. Then I immediately went in and switched the photo I picked because I thought the Vampire ornament might be too much for the needlecraft site, and now I am thinking about switching it back because the dove might seem too pedestrian to bring in any actual buyers. As you can clearly see I am driving myself insane over it.<br />I sell advertising, and I have the knowledge that sales is a numbers game. You have to ensure that either the most people see your ad as possible to draw in a handful of potential clients, or you have to directly target your specific audience with lazerlike acuracy. I know that Etsy gets a good number of visitors that come to the sight specifically to shop. I know that if someone is interested in needlecrafts they will go to that link. I know my $7 is well spent. <br />But owning a business and putting your heart into it takes all the logic out of my head. Just having items on Etsy is intimidating enough because there are a lot of sellers and they truly are artists. Suddenly the ornaments I made that seemed so awesome yesterday, seem average today in the light of self-doubt.<br />So I will probably change the photo back to the vampire lips again, put on my business hat that reminds me of the odds, and in the end hope for the best.B. bradleyhttp://www.blogger.com/profile/02561833246437113111noreply@blogger.com0tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-3913468810510313147.post-39217274301896077302009-11-27T10:59:00.000-08:002009-11-29T11:20:39.513-08:00Sewing machines<a onblur="try {parent.deselectBloggerImageGracefully();} catch(e) {}" href="http://3.bp.blogspot.com/_5-BEAShgBag/SxLHXwlbuDI/AAAAAAAAANw/DARU9DVQFTw/s1600/IMG00065-20091129-1402.jpg"><img style="float:right; margin:0 0 10px 10px;cursor:pointer; cursor:hand;width: 320px; height: 240px;" src="http://3.bp.blogspot.com/_5-BEAShgBag/SxLHXwlbuDI/AAAAAAAAANw/DARU9DVQFTw/s320/IMG00065-20091129-1402.jpg" border="0" alt=""id="BLOGGER_PHOTO_ID_5409605313418213426" /></a><br />Not too long after I graduated from college, and was living on my own for the first time, I started putting two and two together that making things for myself might be cheaper than buying them. So when my mother called and asked what I wanted for Christmas that year, I gave it some thought and said, "You know, I have always wanted my own sewing machine." My mother quickly responded, "You will never use it."<br />Perhaps her response was brought on by the fact that my aunt had actually given me a sewing machine not too long before, and I promptly returned the relic after it billowed smoke on a trial run and the man at the repair store told me it would be cheaper to buy a new one.<br />But, my mother did come through with the machine by way of Santa that year (yes, I still and always will celebrate Santa). A Brother LS-1520 Sewing Machine with about 14 stitch setting purchased at Walmart for about $100 (You can get the same machine at the same store for less these days, but I digress) and I totally fell in love with it. This machine and I have had an on and off passionate affair for many years. I have read and reread the manual 100s of times. I have learned basic small machine repair. I have oiled and tweaked and cussed it out on several occasions. And sometimes, I actually make things with it, once again proving my mother wrong (Ha. Ha. Ha. evil laugh).<br />I started fondly referring to my machine as the Tank. For a while, I would visit expensive sewing machine stores and think I had to have one of those fancy smancy models to be able to produce a fine garment. But then I spent a weekend sewing on one of those machines, and as it turns out, I was not impressed. The thread kept getting caught inside the bobbin case, most likely my fault, and I had to take the machine apart every few stitches. After that weekend I promised I would never bad-mouth my machine ever again. Clearly it was tough enough to withstand my amateur mistakes, and still run like a top. <br />I have a fondness for sewing machines. Like stray puppies and kittens, I just want to make sure they all find a good home. So when I found the thread on <a href="http://www.craftster.org/forum/index.php?topic=34786.0">Crafter</a> asking people to show off their machines, I had to flip through it. Photos proudly posted like parents with brand new babies. There were 57 pages of postings. 57 pages of love and adoration for machines fondly referred to as Baby, Beastie and Gretta . Not all were expensive toys, like the ones at quilt stores with complicated German names and price tags that rival my car. Some were Goodwill finds, Freecycle scores, and hand-me-downs from parents who loved these machines before. <br />So in honor of the day of Thanks, I am bestowing thanks to my own mechanical partner in crime, in which all garments are possible.B. bradleyhttp://www.blogger.com/profile/02561833246437113111noreply@blogger.com1tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-3913468810510313147.post-38056402412192900482009-11-27T06:41:00.001-08:002009-11-27T06:44:39.151-08:00I want to make<a onblur="try {parent.deselectBloggerImageGracefully();} catch(e) {}" href="http://4.bp.blogspot.com/_5-BEAShgBag/Sw_lm1STYZI/AAAAAAAAANo/suo0NlKDnGY/s1600/4127892240_544b53f005.jpg"><img style="float:left; margin:0 10px 10px 0;cursor:pointer; cursor:hand;width: 229px; height: 320px;" src="http://4.bp.blogspot.com/_5-BEAShgBag/Sw_lm1STYZI/AAAAAAAAANo/suo0NlKDnGY/s320/4127892240_544b53f005.jpg" border="0" alt=""id="BLOGGER_PHOTO_ID_5408794132796891538" /></a><br />Apparently I have a bag fascination. I have found two in the past week I want to make. If you take my bag obsession along with my pillow fascination, my closet dwelling sewing machine might have to find a permanent home somewhere in my tiny apartment.<br />This <a href="http://pm-betweenthelines.blogspot.com/2009/11/messenger-bag-tutorial.html">messenger bag</a> is adorable, and I am just dying to make it.B. bradleyhttp://www.blogger.com/profile/02561833246437113111noreply@blogger.com0tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-3913468810510313147.post-19822333309801706502009-11-23T09:10:00.000-08:002009-11-23T09:24:59.979-08:00A Birthday Pony<a onblur="try {parent.deselectBloggerImageGracefully();} catch(e) {}" href="http://1.bp.blogspot.com/_5-BEAShgBag/SwrFSrQmuaI/AAAAAAAAANg/Ok_0VHYvGQA/s1600/IMG00060-20091123-1206.jpg"><img style="display:block; margin:0px auto 10px; text-align:center;cursor:pointer; cursor:hand;width: 320px; height: 240px;" src="http://1.bp.blogspot.com/_5-BEAShgBag/SwrFSrQmuaI/AAAAAAAAANg/Ok_0VHYvGQA/s320/IMG00060-20091123-1206.jpg" border="0" alt=""id="BLOGGER_PHOTO_ID_5407351227252390306" /></a><br />My niece Ava LOVES horses. It started out with My Little Ponys but now it is all horses. Her birthday is coming up, and I guarantee that she will most likely be getting the entire toy horse wing at Toys are Us, so I decided to stick with that theme.<br />I love this print. There is something so Little House on the Prairie about it that I just fell in love when I saw it.<br />The process was actually a lot easier than I thought.<br />I made the pillow cover from a tutorial I found on <a href="http://www.craftster.org/forum/index.php?topic=42499.0">craftster.org</a>.<br />I traced a horse silhouette I found onto the plain pink fabric, and ironed a fusible backing.I embroidered my details and then cut out. Then, I sewed the horse on the pillow cover. Start to finish, it probable took me about 12 hours. I can't be sure because I slept in between. Either way it is a great weekend project. Now I want to fill my whole house with throw pillows. I will try to restrain myself.B. bradleyhttp://www.blogger.com/profile/02561833246437113111noreply@blogger.com0tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-3913468810510313147.post-9871570755204497882009-11-20T06:29:00.001-08:002009-11-20T06:40:21.908-08:00DIY Office style<a href="http://www.skiptomylou.org/2009/09/09/how-to-make-a-notepad/"><a onblur="try {parent.deselectBloggerImageGracefully();} catch(e) {}" href="http://3.bp.blogspot.com/_5-BEAShgBag/SwaqKR0VseI/AAAAAAAAANY/DdHumblhOxw/s1600/Notepad3.jpg"><img style="float:right; margin:0 0 10px 10px;cursor:pointer; cursor:hand;width: 304px; height: 320px;" src="http://3.bp.blogspot.com/_5-BEAShgBag/SwaqKR0VseI/AAAAAAAAANY/DdHumblhOxw/s320/Notepad3.jpg" border="0" alt=""id="BLOGGER_PHOTO_ID_5406195496263201250" /></a></a><br />I can often be found wandering around office supply stores. I love binder clips, pocket notebooks and can completely lose myself in the sharpie aisle.<br />So when I can across <a href="http://indiefixx.com/2009/11/20/handmade-office-supplies/">Indie Fixx</a> this morning and their awesome compilation of indie office supplies, and tutorials to make your own, I clicked on each photo with the hunger of a young teenage werewolf who bursts out of his clothes when he attacks. . . and I'm sorry, I got off track there.<br />So check out these office supplies, while I try to pull myself back together.B. bradleyhttp://www.blogger.com/profile/02561833246437113111noreply@blogger.com0tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-3913468810510313147.post-32366364023281573352009-11-19T19:59:00.001-08:002009-11-19T20:11:42.352-08:00New find<a onblur="try {parent.deselectBloggerImageGracefully();} catch(e) {}" href="http://1.bp.blogspot.com/_5-BEAShgBag/SwYWr_elTYI/AAAAAAAAAM4/CpGNzgtx9FQ/s1600/091015_teller_puppe.jpg"><img style="float:left; margin:0 10px 10px 0;cursor:pointer; cursor:hand;width: 320px; height: 239px;" src="http://1.bp.blogspot.com/_5-BEAShgBag/SwYWr_elTYI/AAAAAAAAAM4/CpGNzgtx9FQ/s320/091015_teller_puppe.jpg" border="0" alt=""id="BLOGGER_PHOTO_ID_5406033347734752642" /></a><br />I stumbled across the absolute cutest blog today. She is a German artist named <a href="http://translate.google.com/translate?hl=en&sl=de&u=http://www.mymaki.de/&ei=TBMGS5_VE5XSNYeVscEK&sa=X&oi=translate&ct=result&resnum=1&ved=0CA0Q7gEwAA&prev=/search%3Fq%3Dhttp://www.mymaki.de/%26hl%3Den%26client%3Dfirefox-a%26rls%3Dcom.ubuntu:en-US:official%26hs%3DX5K">Mymaki</a>.<br />She has the most adorable characters on each of her items. I bookmarked her before I realized I could use Google translator to actually read some of the stuff she wrote. Honestly, her work spoke for itself.<br />Mymaki - I likey.B. bradleyhttp://www.blogger.com/profile/02561833246437113111noreply@blogger.com0tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-3913468810510313147.post-29263567250619108932009-11-16T13:52:00.000-08:002009-11-16T13:59:16.153-08:00Putting it all to work<a onblur="try {parent.deselectBloggerImageGracefully();} catch(e) {}" href="http://2.bp.blogspot.com/_5-BEAShgBag/SwHKqy-XViI/AAAAAAAAAMw/f2Wg1HTQ5UA/s1600/IMG00055-20091116-1120.jpg"><img style="float:left; margin:0 10px 10px 0;cursor:pointer; cursor:hand;width: 300px; height: 400px;" src="http://2.bp.blogspot.com/_5-BEAShgBag/SwHKqy-XViI/AAAAAAAAAMw/f2Wg1HTQ5UA/s400/IMG00055-20091116-1120.jpg" border="0" alt=""id="BLOGGER_PHOTO_ID_5404823864407971362" /></a><br />Today I got to give my news stamps a real work-out. I took another gross of ornaments to Street Scene and I needed to whip out a few hang tags for pricing. The stamped cards look really cool and my production times was a cut in half.B. bradleyhttp://www.blogger.com/profile/02561833246437113111noreply@blogger.com0tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-3913468810510313147.post-23603988009832328152009-11-16T06:20:00.000-08:002009-11-16T06:27:47.875-08:00Something to inspireSometimes we all get in a creativity rut. I came across this on a website called <a href="http://indiefixx.com/">Indie Fixx</a>, which posted a Top Ten Ways to Be Creative Everyday by an artist named Nicole Docimo of Blue Bicicletta.<br /><a onblur="try {parent.deselectBloggerImageGracefully();} catch(e) {}" href="http://3.bp.blogspot.com/_5-BEAShgBag/SwFg-XzaBjI/AAAAAAAAAMo/MPkD-t-ozMc/s1600/docimo_10things_everydaycreative.jpg"><img style="float:left; margin:0 10px 10px 0;cursor:pointer; cursor:hand;width: 142px; height: 400px;" src="http://3.bp.blogspot.com/_5-BEAShgBag/SwFg-XzaBjI/AAAAAAAAAMo/MPkD-t-ozMc/s400/docimo_10things_everydaycreative.jpg" border="0" alt=""id="BLOGGER_PHOTO_ID_5404707652479092274" /></a><br />She is too cute, with her hand drawn lists and calendars. Love, love it.<br />Sorry the art is so small, but check it out <a href="http://indiefixx.com/2009/11/16/10-things-10-ways-to-be-everyday-creative/">here.</a><br />Or check out Nicole's <a href="http://www.etsy.com/shop/bluebicicletta">etsy</a> to see her work.B. bradleyhttp://www.blogger.com/profile/02561833246437113111noreply@blogger.com0tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-3913468810510313147.post-27412305117216147482009-11-15T17:30:00.000-08:002009-11-15T18:07:48.968-08:00Stamp-tacular hits and misses<a onblur="try {parent.deselectBloggerImageGracefully();} catch(e) {}" href="http://4.bp.blogspot.com/_5-BEAShgBag/SwCzUwLyqYI/AAAAAAAAAMQ/06GleAd2CSA/s1600/P1010009.JPG"><img style="display:block; margin:0px auto 10px; text-align:center;cursor:pointer; cursor:hand;width: 320px; height: 240px;" src="http://4.bp.blogspot.com/_5-BEAShgBag/SwCzUwLyqYI/AAAAAAAAAMQ/06GleAd2CSA/s320/P1010009.JPG" border="0" alt=""id="BLOGGER_PHOTO_ID_5404516721957710210" /></a><br />This week I dropped off a few of my Christmas ornaments at a local vintage consignment shop called Street Scene. I was putting together pricing labels, and realized after hand lettering my second card that I really needed something that would help me create labels faster. Now, I should have followed my first instinct, which was go to Office Depot and get a rubber stamp made. Something professional with curly cues. But the $20 price tag threw me off. Surely I can come up with something on my own. <br />After scouring the forums and blogs, I fumbled across a few sites that explained how to make rubber stamps with $1 erasers, like <a href="http://blogdelanine.blogspot.com/search/label/handcarvedstampstutorial">this one</a> that I book-marked over a year ago and have been dying to try. <br />However, the Speedball lino cutter almost everyone on the blogs brought me back to the $20 price tag I have been trying to avoid. So, I found another blog where a stamp carving only used an Xacto knife. Considering I already owned an Xacto knife, I gave it a shot. I grabbed a sharpie and drew my company name on a standard pink eraser and got to carving. The result wasn't that bad, but my edges were rough, and of course, I didn't realize I was supposed the be carving a reverse image, so my bluegirl actually read lrigeuld.<br /><a onblur="try {parent.deselectBloggerImageGracefully();} catch(e) {}" href="http://3.bp.blogspot.com/_5-BEAShgBag/SwCxQWcvipI/AAAAAAAAALo/_2F3_UEUIpQ/s1600/P1010011.JPG"><img style="float:left; margin:0 10px 10px 0;cursor:pointer; cursor:hand;width: 200px; height: 150px;" src="http://3.bp.blogspot.com/_5-BEAShgBag/SwCxQWcvipI/AAAAAAAAALo/_2F3_UEUIpQ/s200/P1010011.JPG" border="0" alt=""id="BLOGGER_PHOTO_ID_5404514447306754706" /></a><br />Take 2 – I found another blog where I learned how to easily get my reverse image in my eraser before carving, AND this carver made all her stamps with only a cuticle cutter. Alright. I could buy a whole manicure set at Dollar Tree for only a buck. So with a whole new package of erasers I gave this technique a go. <br /><a onblur="try {parent.deselectBloggerImageGracefully();} catch(e) {}" href="http://4.bp.blogspot.com/_5-BEAShgBag/SwCxr7_K7xI/AAAAAAAAALw/Zkc9OhUwOCM/s1600/P1010013.JPG"><img style="float:right; margin:0 0 10px 10px;cursor:pointer; cursor:hand;width: 200px; height: 150px;" src="http://4.bp.blogspot.com/_5-BEAShgBag/SwCxr7_K7xI/AAAAAAAAALw/Zkc9OhUwOCM/s200/P1010013.JPG" border="0" alt=""id="BLOGGER_PHOTO_ID_5404514921239736082" /></a><br />Rats. The cuticle cutter did okay, but again, my round edges looked rough, and there are a lot of curves in my chosen company name, so that wasn't going to work. Also mad props to the girl who can carve with a cuticle cutter, but I put her in a category of crafters who can knit with pencil nibs and paint masterpieces with a sponge. This is a category I don't fall in.<br /><a onblur="try {parent.deselectBloggerImageGracefully();} catch(e) {}" href="http://2.bp.blogspot.com/_5-BEAShgBag/SwCykX8OLlI/AAAAAAAAAMA/0YJnBmGV0uk/s1600/P1010008.JPG"><img style="float:left; margin:0 10px 10px 0;cursor:pointer; cursor:hand;width: 200px; height: 150px;" src="http://2.bp.blogspot.com/_5-BEAShgBag/SwCykX8OLlI/AAAAAAAAAMA/0YJnBmGV0uk/s200/P1010008.JPG" border="0" alt=""id="BLOGGER_PHOTO_ID_5404515890816233042" /></a><br />My determination has a tendency to override my common-sense, and the once lofty $20 price tag on the Speedball carving kit didn't seem too outrageous. Totally forgetting that I could have a professional make a stamp for me for the same price that would be detailed enough to include my store site, blog and a tiny portrait of myself, I stomped right into my local craft store and bought the lino carving set.<br /><a onblur="try {parent.deselectBloggerImageGracefully();} catch(e) {}" href="http://2.bp.blogspot.com/_5-BEAShgBag/SwCy-Z-aacI/AAAAAAAAAMI/tzIeWA9diqM/s1600/IMG00048-20091113-2241.jpg"><img style="float:right; margin:0 0 10px 10px;cursor:pointer; cursor:hand;width: 150px; height: 200px;" src="http://2.bp.blogspot.com/_5-BEAShgBag/SwCy-Z-aacI/AAAAAAAAAMI/tzIeWA9diqM/s200/IMG00048-20091113-2241.jpg" border="0" alt=""id="BLOGGER_PHOTO_ID_5404516338038892994" /></a><br />What a difference the right tools make. I carved out a couple of initial stamps and my company logo. I am in love, love love with the linocutter. I was up till midnight playing around with it, and can't wait to play with it some more. I have a decent company logo I can use on price tags, and a little flower for practice.<br /><a onblur="try {parent.deselectBloggerImageGracefully();} catch(e) {}" href="http://4.bp.blogspot.com/_5-BEAShgBag/SwCyM8KeKhI/AAAAAAAAAL4/olRIvyAune8/s1600/P1010010.JPG"><img style="float:left; margin:0 10px 10px 0;cursor:pointer; cursor:hand;width: 200px; height: 150px;" src="http://4.bp.blogspot.com/_5-BEAShgBag/SwCyM8KeKhI/AAAAAAAAAL4/olRIvyAune8/s200/P1010010.JPG" border="0" alt=""id="BLOGGER_PHOTO_ID_5404515488222816786" /></a><br />In the end my frugality lost, but I have one more item on my list of, “I want to learn how to do that someday” items and that is truly priceless. <br /><br />Here is how I did it.<br />Step 1 – trace an outline of the pink eraser on a regular piece of paper so you will know how big your design can be. Then draw your design in pencil in that space.<br />Step 2 – cut out the design and place it face down on your eraser. Then rub, rub, rub the back of your pencil, or your fingernail, on the paper and your image will magically transfer.<br />Step 3 – carve out your designs. Remember to cut away anything you do not want stamped.<br />And that's it.<br />If you want to try the cuticle cutter method, check out this <a href="http://obsessivelystitching.blogspot.com/2009/08/make-your-own-rubber-stamps.html">blog</a> for instructions.<br />Have fun buying the Dollar Tree out of eraser packages. I have.B. bradleyhttp://www.blogger.com/profile/02561833246437113111noreply@blogger.com1tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-3913468810510313147.post-62417774701371505782009-11-09T13:30:00.000-08:002009-11-09T13:44:26.728-08:00Prom Queen - right hereI am having a rush of popularity today, which is weird, because I thrive on being the loner in the cubicle daring people to address her. I've had a few shout outs and a few mentions, and my normal pale, wan, apathetic face is awash with the glow of self esteem.<br />My friend Molly gave me a plug about my vampire lips ornament on her <a href="http://singleundeadfemale.blogspot.com/">blog</a>, and then ordered a few as stocking stuffers.<br />Then after posting my Vampire ornament on Crafster, the curator at another blog sent me a message wanting to post my fanged lips on <a href="http://geekcrafts.com/">Geek Crafts</a>.<br />And my friend at <a href="http://razzledazzlecrafting.blogspot.com/">Razzle Dazzle Crafting</a> gave me a huge shout out and showcased the piece of art I made her for her wedding.<br />THEN, today I took a handful of ornaments over to Street Scene - a super awesome vintage consignment store- to sell my ornaments. Fine, getting all gooey that a store will consign my stuff probably reeks of amateurism, but I don't care. Something I made is in a store, and to me that is pretty awesome.<br />I'm not sure what to do with all this love and affection. Normally I would make rude comments over dinner until I officially ran my attractors off - but I don't think I'll do that this time.<br />And who knows, maybe all this respect and self esteem will create a new bubbly, happy full of rainbows and sunshine crafter who scrapbooks and writes funny inspirations poems. Eh - maybe not.<br />But thanks everyone for all the love.B. bradleyhttp://www.blogger.com/profile/02561833246437113111noreply@blogger.com0tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-3913468810510313147.post-80065706314811552962009-11-07T19:34:00.000-08:002009-11-07T19:54:55.454-08:00To the teeth<a onblur="try {parent.deselectBloggerImageGracefully();} catch(e) {}" href="http://3.bp.blogspot.com/_5-BEAShgBag/SvZAIX6BfPI/AAAAAAAAALI/lMIRGKvhd0E/s1600-h/IMG00042-20091107-1059.jpg"><img style="display:block; margin:0px auto 10px; text-align:center;cursor:pointer; cursor:hand;width: 320px; height: 240px;" src="http://3.bp.blogspot.com/_5-BEAShgBag/SvZAIX6BfPI/AAAAAAAAALI/lMIRGKvhd0E/s320/IMG00042-20091107-1059.jpg" border="0" alt=""id="BLOGGER_PHOTO_ID_5401575315678002418" /></a><br />So my dear friend Molly Harper was within driving distance today at the Kentucky Book Fair to promote her new book, <a href="http://www.amazon.com/Nice-Girls-Dont-Date-Jameson/dp/1416589430/ref=sr_1_1?ie=UTF8&s=books&qid=1257651307&sr=8-1">Nice Girls Don't Date Dead Men</a>. She LOVES the vamps, which is why she has Twilight wallpaper on her laptop, sat through John Carpenters Vampires, and has written her own Southern Vampire series which is HILARIOUS. <br />I know. I am biased, but it is a book series about a librarian who is quickly transformed into a vampire because she was accidentally mistaken as a deer and shot by a drunk deer hunter. I don't care who you are- that is funny.<br />So, I wanted to make something in honor of her literary success.<br /><a onblur="try {parent.deselectBloggerImageGracefully();} catch(e) {}" href="http://1.bp.blogspot.com/_5-BEAShgBag/SvZAyRBTpiI/AAAAAAAAALY/WHTYbKeC804/s1600-h/IMG00041-20091107-1059.jpg"><img style="float:left; margin:0 10px 10px 0;cursor:pointer; cursor:hand;width: 320px; height: 240px;" src="http://1.bp.blogspot.com/_5-BEAShgBag/SvZAyRBTpiI/AAAAAAAAALY/WHTYbKeC804/s320/IMG00041-20091107-1059.jpg" border="0" alt=""id="BLOGGER_PHOTO_ID_5401576035384010274" /></a><br />The idea for the ornament came about as an afterthought, but it turned out to be the best piece. It usually works out that way. I whipped it together this morning before we met. <br />I think it looks pretty cool.B. bradleyhttp://www.blogger.com/profile/02561833246437113111noreply@blogger.com0tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-3913468810510313147.post-67943137949071982002009-11-06T06:05:00.000-08:002009-11-06T06:25:42.908-08:00Owls, anyone?<a onblur="try {parent.deselectBloggerImageGracefully();} catch(e) {}" href="http://4.bp.blogspot.com/_5-BEAShgBag/SvQv0Y1YO7I/AAAAAAAAALA/DXYjQ4Izy6w/s1600-h/IMG00039-20091103-2328.jpg"><img style="display:block; margin:0px auto 10px; text-align:center;cursor:pointer; cursor:hand;width: 240px; height: 320px;" src="http://4.bp.blogspot.com/_5-BEAShgBag/SvQv0Y1YO7I/AAAAAAAAALA/DXYjQ4Izy6w/s320/IMG00039-20091103-2328.jpg" border="0" alt=""id="BLOGGER_PHOTO_ID_5400994430190107570" /></a><br /><br />I stopped by a consignment shop this week to possibly hock some of my wares. It is this adorable vintage consignment shop where every item is a cross between Mad Men and John Waters. I was in heaven. (I also found this awesome leopard print coat for only $70)<br />So I showed the owner my <a href="http://www.bluegirldesigns.etsy.com">etsy</a> store on my phone, and her first question was, "Do you do an owl?"<br />Of course because I am always happy to sell out a bit I said, "Sure, I can do an owl."<br /><br />While I watched How I Met Your Mother, I set to drawing out my template. I found some blue fleece (I accidentally bought a sheet of fleece last year instead of felt, and although I love its softness, it was a pain to embroider on.) and got to work. I also picked up <a href="http://www.amazon.com/Embroidery-Stitch-Bible-Betty-Barnden/dp/0873495101/ref=sr_1_10?ie=UTF8&s=books&qid=1257517132&sr=1-10">The Embroidery Stitch Bible</a>, at the library and tested out a few new fancy stitches for the feathers. I also stitched on a little scarf to tie it in to the winter theme.<br />All in all I am pretty pleased, but now I want to whip out a whole woodland creatures series. I have bought some brown felt for a raccoon. I'll let you know how it goes.B. bradleyhttp://www.blogger.com/profile/02561833246437113111noreply@blogger.com1tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-3913468810510313147.post-69364250450595834742009-10-31T20:50:00.001-07:002009-10-31T21:23:03.156-07:00Homemade business cards<a onblur="try {parent.deselectBloggerImageGracefully();} catch(e) {}" href="http://2.bp.blogspot.com/_5-BEAShgBag/Su0MShnELcI/AAAAAAAAAKo/B1SUoxH-gD8/s1600-h/img-1.jpg"><img style="display:block; margin:0px auto 10px; text-align:center;cursor:pointer; cursor:hand;width: 240px; height: 320px;" src="http://2.bp.blogspot.com/_5-BEAShgBag/Su0MShnELcI/AAAAAAAAAKo/B1SUoxH-gD8/s320/img-1.jpg" border="0" alt=""id="BLOGGER_PHOTO_ID_5398985040686493122" /></a><br />So, I was sitting in my Weight Watchers meeting recently, patiently embroidering a Christmas ornament while I waited for the meeting to start, when the older lady sitting next to me starting asking me the standard caught crafting in public questions, "What are you making? What else do you know how to do? How long have you been doing it?" which is always followed up with "I wish I knew how to do that."<br />She was sweet, telling me how embroidery was a lost art, so of course, I told her about my store. After hearing I was actually planning on churning out these little beauties for profit, she asked, "What are you going to do if you get a rush of orders?" I laughed and said, "Sew faster I guess."<br />By the end of the meeting, my little dove was ready to take flight, so I showed her the progress I made in the course of a half and hour, and she was impressed. She asked where she might buy one.<br />Damn, I thought. I don't have any business cards.<br />After writing down my store's address on a random piece of paper for her and her friend, I decided I was going to have to come up with some business cards. The problem- business cards start at $3.95 and would take days to ship. Clearly I needed these business cards yesterday. So I set about that night to make my own.<br />My craft philosophy is "Craft with what you got," so after I pondered what I wanted my cards to look like, along with a mental inventory of what I had available on hand, I set about my task.<br />I gathered up:<br />Two printer pages of my temporary logo columned into business card size<br />One sheet of 12x12 navy card stock<br />stick glue<br />light blue embroidery floss<br />pencil<br />ruler <br />Scissors<br />ruffle edge scissors<br />Thumb tack<br />The Collected Works of Jane Austin<br />First, I draw a grid of 3.5"x2" business cards on the navy cardstock. Then I cut out the cards and printer pages of logos. I trimmed the printer page logos with ruffle edged scissors to add some flair.<br />Then I glued the logos on the card stock.<br />This would have been plenty, but of course, I had to take it further.<br />I wanted to embroider on the cards. Because a card that says bluegirl designs could mean anything. I wanted them to look quickly at the card and remember, "Oh yeah, that's the girl that does the embroidered thingies."<br />But embroidering on cardstock is not at easy as it looks. I knew I was going to have to punch little holes in the cardstock for the needle to go through. Kind of like drilling holes in a wall before installing the screws. I also knew if I started punching holes in the cards on my kitchen table, I would have little holes in my tabletop as well. So, I grabbed something large, and heavy that could handle a few tiny holes without losing the integrity of the piece, that is where the Collected Works of Jane Austin came in. I knew the holes would not obscure any of the work, and Jane would walk away from the experience with a little more character.<br />After I pressed in the holes, I lazy daisied a stitch on two corners of the card and Voila - unique business cards for a unique business venture. I like these way more than the standard template cards that were available on the Internet. Unfortunately, just to whip up 20 cards took all night, and my hand cramped from thumbtacking.<br />What do you think?<br /><a onblur="try {parent.deselectBloggerImageGracefully();} catch(e) {}" href="http://4.bp.blogspot.com/_5-BEAShgBag/Su0MwLhwiRI/AAAAAAAAAKw/Mo-07yDI8JI/s1600-h/img-1.jpg"><img style="display:block; margin:0px auto 10px; text-align:center;cursor:pointer; cursor:hand;width: 320px; height: 240px;" src="http://4.bp.blogspot.com/_5-BEAShgBag/Su0MwLhwiRI/AAAAAAAAAKw/Mo-07yDI8JI/s320/img-1.jpg" border="0" alt=""id="BLOGGER_PHOTO_ID_5398985550154729746" /></a>B. bradleyhttp://www.blogger.com/profile/02561833246437113111noreply@blogger.com0