Category: Crafts

Craft projects of mine

  • Happy birthday, Lyn!

    Shades of Grey: Celebrating seventy – Just realised that I have finished one other knitting project this year: a garter stitch strip for Lyn’s blanket. I’m not 100% certain, but I’m guessing I’m the only one of the participants that used a pair of 12-sided D&D dice to determine the random placement of my stripes.

  • Cockeyed

    Downton Abbey Costume – “Please ignore that I look suspiciously similar to the robot that turns into a building in Tom Hanks’ Big.” HA! I love Rob’s costume posts each year.

  • Tsumugi Who and Moneta Dress

    Actual finished craft objects! I should probably blog these before I completely forget.

    Tsumugi WhoTsumugi Who
    Is this going to be my ONLY knitting finished this year? Only time will tell. At any rate, earlier this year I decided to splurge and buy myself the Tsumugi Who kit from Dairing that I admired at Camp last year. (Note: They have since changed the name to Seta Soie. I don’t know why. Supplier change? My kit did come with grey instead of the beige.) I cast on in the winter – probably at the Abernethy knitters retreat? – and I remember questioning the pattern. (Teresa Dair’s “patterns” are only patterns in the strictest sense of the word.) I decided to go with garter stitch so it wouldn’t curl. And I was off. I went through the entire pattern once and found myself with significant silk left over. So I kept going. Once it got to about 14 feet long, I figured Tom Baker would be happy so I cast off. Then it took me a few more months to finish weaving in the ends. And now it’s done. I even managed to wear it a few times before it got too warm. The colours are gorgeous and strangers have complimented me on it, even guessed the reference. That was nice.

    MonetaMoneta Dress
    I haven’t sewn much this year either. But at one point I ordered the Colette Guide to Sewing Knits along with the Moneta dress pattern. That was step one. The history of making this dress is one of diving in before my brain had a chance to object. Step two involved making an excursion to Tessuti’s during a sale with some of my (then) co-workers where I picked up a couple different knits to experiment with. This was a black merino double-knit. Step three was me cutting it out many, many weeks ago… and then packing it away in my office. Finally, this past weekend, it occurred to me that if I actually finished the damn thing, that would be one more unique dress for Frocktober. So on Sunday I pulled it out and finished it during a Gilmore Girls marathon on Netflix. I think my seam allowance was inadvertently too wide and my waistband elastic was HELLA WONKY, but to my delight I found that the knit fabric completely hides every flaw. It looks great. I’m very, very happy with this project.

  • Camp Creative

    Ten years ago, I went to a five day summer craft camp called Camp Creative with my mother-in-law. I’ve been on the email newsletter list ever since. I just happened to look at this year’s classes… and I’m BLOWN AWAY. So many potential zombie apocalypse training courses!

    Okay, maybe not that last one. But still. Don’t you think the rag-tag bunch of survivors rebuilding humanity might like to listen to some harp music each night?

    Edited 21/04/2025: Some of the course links are no longer available and are not archived.

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    ARTAX! YOU HAVE TO FIGHT THE SADNESS!

    ARTAX! YOU HAVE TO FIGHT THE SADNESS!

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    Custom laser printed 9Jumpin earrings. Oh yeah.

    Custom laser printed 9Jumpin earrings. Oh yeah.

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    This is doing my head in.

    This is doing my head in. @ Robots & Dinosaurs (the Sydney hackerspace)

    At a makerspace getting ready to code lasers with Women Who Code. There is a robot too.

    At a makerspace getting ready to code lasers with Women Who Code. There is a robot too. @ Robots & Dinosaurs (the Sydney hackerspace)

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    Selfie with "plarn". Highlight of my night!

    Selfie with “plarn”. Highlight of my night!