Empress Asma

Craft Derailment .... Puppy Station

2009-04-07T19:04:00.007-05:00

Not so much time for crafts lately - since we just got a new puppy.

But I am trying to put together a set of place mats, I picked out the fabrics, and just need to find the time to sew. I'm going with the pattern in Bend-the-Rules Sewing - and using flannel as the interior, right sides together.

One other thing I found this week is the kolo blog. I have long been a fan of the kolo album, and was sad when their flagship store closed in Hartford, but I'm pleased to see the new Essex Travel Book, which looks so convenient and handy as a journal. I also really liked the blog entry about using a little embroidery square in the photo window on the album cover. What a great idea! Here is something I embroidered a couple months ago, when I first learned how to embroider. I never know what to do with these little pieces...

I love my OWLS

2009-03-21T14:47:00.009-05:00

A couple weeks ago I joined an owl stuffie swap on Swap-Bot.com. My partners have already received their owls, so I can show off my pictures now. I made my owls from a felted thrift store sweater, an old pair of very soft corduroy pants and some wool felt. I stuffed them with leftover cut up cotton batting from a quilt that I made, and I thought that was a good alternative to buying the poly-fil stuffing. I had 2 swap partners, but I made three owls so I could keep one too. The owl fabric I sewed to to the front is by Alexander Henry and is so cute and features bunches of unique owls and endless inspiration. I think I just might have to make a couple more....

The week does fly by

2009-03-20T15:35:00.018-05:00

And since I am on cooking strike, I have lots of time for sewing. I made a couple very cute wine totes from this pattern on SewingRepublic.com. They have some good video tutorials as well. Great thing about having a wine shop ... lots of bottles to put in wine totes. I have to say that it was a little challenging to top sew the top seam, as you have to flatten it out and manage the handles and still run it straight on the sewing machine, but i made it thru. Only needs 2 fat quarters and the insul-brite batting. The fabrics are all from Joann's.

Next is a little caddy I put together today - no pattern necessary. Used my extensive (haha) quilting skills to make a small quilt with binding, then i folded it and whip stitched it. Turned out the tricky part was the grommets. I thought they were like eyelets - 1 piece, so I got out my hammer and tried to attach them ... like 5 times. Where are those directions??? OHHHH.. they are 2 pieces that interlock. Then you hammer with the setter. Much better! I hung it up on the side of my craft bookcase for a little extra storage. The fabrics are Amy Butler's Daisy Chain and the pattern lent itself quite nicely to diagonal quilting. The best part was that I was able to zig zag some batting scraps together to make a piece that was big enough (10" x 17") for the inside.

Last, but not least, I went to see the Flower Show at Elizabeth Park this morning. It was the last day, of course. Lovely!

Sneak Peek

2009-03-13T20:38:00.008-05:00

I'm making a couple baby quilts as gifts, so I can't do the big reveal yet, but here is a sneak preview. The owl print is so cute, and this was actually my first finished quilt - with a binding and everything! I learned A LOT and I have to admit to being quite proud of myself, although I'm not sure I could handle a bigger size just yet. Oh ... one thing I learned is that 100 meters of thread is NOT enough for a baby quilt. Small Gutterman spool = not enough thread! And also I really enjoyed using the Fairfield 50% Bamboo 50% Cotton batting. I think the emergence of bamboo is great - from floors to kitchen items to to yarn, it really seems to be a super-plant. Apparently, the batting is also "naturally antibacterial" for what that's worth. Must be good for the kiddies.

Small bunny

2009-03-12T21:06:00.003-05:00

Bunny is an example that every project does not need to be complex. I made this small bunny from thrifted, felted sweaters. I drew the shape on cardstock, cut out two pieces of the sweater, and used the blanket stitch to sew them together. The eyes are buttons, the nose embroidered, and the carrot is cut from felt and glued. Softies can be as complex or simple as you want them to be!

They make great pets

2009-03-10T15:47:00.011-05:00

One of my first sewing projects, a year+ ago, was a few of these birds. Great to use up some scraps and you can make them as big or as small as you want. The pattern was nicely provided by Spool Sewing. They make me wish I was still in Philly, because they seem to have some really nice classes. It was my first 3D sewing project back then, but I am glad to report that when i made one the other day, I realized my sewing skills have increased Phenomenally (hello .... stitch tension!). Regardless .... the original birds are nicely housed in a cage that was a gift from my friend Susan. The cage sat empty for many years, but I love how the birds look in there. It's up on my office desk and I look at it every day. See more birds here.

Out with the old ....

2009-03-09T20:59:00.012-05:00

and in with the new .... potholders, that is! i threw away my ratty old falling apart set and whipped up a new batch with some quilt scraps. I was very proud of myself. The oven mitt pattern is here, but i didn't love the template, so i traced my old mitt instead (plus 1/2 inch seam allowance). I backed the pot holders with a recycled, felted sweater and fused them with Heat n Bond Ultra. I had to hand sew the binding on the pot holders, since you are not supposed to sew thru the Heat n Bond Ultra, and i probably wouldn't go that way next time. For the oven mitts, I did my first "professional" binding based on Heather Bailey's binding tutorial.

These are my new fat quarters from the Fat Quarter swap at Sew, Mama, Sew. Thanks to all my swap buddies - what to make, what to make .... ? i hadn't swapped in while so this was a good way to get back into it, since it all it required was cutting and putting in an envelope!

oh, one last thing ... i found these super cute softie patterns by Melly & Me. They seem to Australia based, but you can get the patterns here in the US too.

Happy Monday!

Felt Wall hanging

2009-03-06T14:32:00.010-05:00

i love working with the wool felt ... but why is it so darn expensive??? i got mine at Magic Cabin - the jewel color mix pack. Fusing the felt to fabric with the heat n bond makes this a very simple project. I just cut and glued most of the pieces down and added decorative embroidery stitches and a little beading all around. And, indeed, everything always looks better framed with ric rac! I wish I could make a dozen of these to sell ... but the hand stitching just takes too long. The middle pinwheel was an idea from the Warm Fuzzies book. Until I find a more permanent space, it looks nice in my hallway.

Not exactly a herd

2009-03-05T11:14:00.011-05:00

Here are a couple elephants I have been working on, based on a pattern I found here. The underbelly is thrift store felted sweaters that seem to pile up in the craft room, the tops are some fatty quarters I had. I had some trouble with getting the legs to stay upright, i ended up sewing them together a bit from the underside after it was stuffed, but if anyone has better ideas, I would be glad to hear them! Regardless, they turned out very cute.

And here, 8 inches of snow outside but a little bit of spring in my dining room. I thought it was a nice juxtaposition of nature and technology :)

ALL these months later

2009-03-04T22:51:00.021-05:00

and where have i been?

working, store owning, house buying, drinking, decorating, cooking, cleaning, organizing, making, yelling, crafting ...

it's finally all coming along, falling into place, so i'm trying to get back to the posting the things i make.

here's a little something i made for a friend that had a baby. A little Knitty doll dress plus a dash of Black Apple Doll head + body/legs cut to fit the dress and I had created my own little angel, in my favorite colors (in case you couldn't tell). I used a very nice Classic Elite bamboo yarn for the dress, very soft but split a bit.

tomorrow ... a herd of elephants.

KIDS - Do Not Try this at Home

2006-09-12T08:59:00.003-05:00

Holy sharpened pencils, Batman! This sculpture is about the craziest art I have seen in a while. I love the uniformity of the tiny sharpened pencils, as well as the reflection of sea creatures in wood & eraser. Don't miss the nails. Bravo, Jennifer!

Iron Works Graphics

2006-09-11T12:50:00.001-05:00

Made from Scratch ...

These fantastic cards are not only letterpressed, but also designed, drawn and carved by Scott Baldwin. His Greetings and Postcards are great but I really fell for the booklets. Beautiful!

SWAP-A-LOT

2006-09-06T19:55:00.001-05:00

Here's what new in the swapping world of Asma.

Here is the tons of ribbon I received from Dana and Kathy H. Thank you!

Here is a scene in a matchbox that I sent out. It's a little library if you can't tell. It's about 2 1/4" by 1 1/8 inches. I used paper and clay and shrinky dinks and colored wooden match sticks to create the scene.

Handmade items sent to me by Dawn in the UK. A beautiful roomy polka-tote and a wash cloth that seems to have the most intricate 'brick' stitch.

Handmade items I sent across the seas to Australia. Some soap and letterpressed notecards and polymer items.

Felted Tote - start to finish

2006-09-06T19:25:00.001-05:00

Here is a felted tote that I just finished. My first felting and knitting on cable needles - in the round (untwisted after 3 tries)! Good job, me. I love the yarn, I used a combination Lumpy Bumpy by Farmhouse Yarns and a double strand of Cascade 220 Wool, because my yarn shop does not carry the Berroco.

Before I felted:

After I felted - it shrunk from 16" x 24" to about 14" square. I wasn't sure whether to have the knit side out or the purl side out, but for now i have the knit side.

Cheap Thrills

2006-08-31T16:02:00.001-05:00

Really cheap. Remember those machines that smoosh (technical term) your penny and print an image on it. Well, someone has gone and listed all the machines and posted pictures of almost all the penny images that you can make. It's fun to look thru the images to see all the places you have been and NOT collected pennies from.

Compudrawing

2006-08-25T12:50:00.001-05:00

Aye Caramba! Between these two sites, you can have your hands full creating masterpices with your mouse.

Kaleidscope Drawtoy

Jackson Pollack
Click to change colors.

First Knit and more...

2006-08-23T13:58:00.001-05:00

Here is my first knitting - a fuzzy hat and scarf combo made from Paton's Divine yarn in yummy Orangina. The pattern was from the Michael's web site, and turned out to be pretty easy. I'm knitting a second set for a birthday present for a friend.

Here are bookmarks I received in a swap, they're so pretty (and professsional)! Thank you, Kat.

Here are a couple things I have sent out this week for a handmade journal swap and a ribbon swap. The ribbons & fibers were from my stash, but the books were newly made. I recently took a book binding class at the Creative Arts Workshop and hope to take another one in the fall. The book covers are made with a paper from EK Success that is called LetterPress, but is really just debossed. It has a nice texture even though it isn't real letterpress. In official bookbinding speak, the journals are single-signature hard cover pamphlets.

The Namesake

2006-08-22T09:52:00.000-05:00

Oh, oh, oh - I'm so excited about The Namesake release, Sept 20. I loved the book (it was my life) but i'm even more excited that Kal Penn is starring! I found his blog and he's still really cute :)

'bout me

2006-08-21T16:06:00.000-05:00

Things you may not have known about me.....

A) Four jobs I have had in my life:
1. counted pills at Warminster Pharmacy
2. called people to answer surveys (telemarketing)
3. ran errands for graduate architecture department at CMU
4. Database performance tuning for IBM

B) Four movies you would watch over and over:
1. Red
2. Bridget Jones' Diary
3. Gone with the Wind
4. Four Weddings and Funeral

C) Four places you have lived:
1. Warminster, Pennsylvania (mom & dad)
2. Pittsburgh, Pennsylvania (various dorms and apartments)
3. New York City (5th floor walk-up)
4. Yonkers, NY (on the Hudson River)

D) Four TV shows/channels you love to watch:
1. LOST
2. scrubs
3. The Kumars at No 42
4. sex & the city

E) Four places you have been on vacation:
1. Paris (twice)
2. Florence (with laura)
3. Bombay/Poona (visit family)
4. San Francisco, CA (part of honeymoon)

F) Websites you visit daily: (or semi-weekly)
1. yahoo
2. swap-bot
3. google
4. new york times

G) Four of my favorite foods:
1. chocolate
2. mocha
3. grilled cheese with tomatoes
4. french toast

H) Four places I would rather be right now:
1. home (not at work)
2 Savannah, Georgia
3. St. Petersburg
4. Art store

Soapy Swap

2006-08-17T10:33:00.002-05:00

Hi. I've been doing this swapping for a month or so. You sign up for a swap, make a little package for your swap partner(s) and send it to them, and you receive something from someone else. Sometimes it's handmade stuff, sometimes store bought. So, I have started a swap of my own, for handmade soap. All you soap makers out there, sign up: Soap Swap

I'm published (sort of)

2006-08-16T16:04:00.002-05:00

For my wedding in April, I designed a 'save the date' card, that was letterpressed. I was thrilled when the printer posted it on their web site as an example!

Save The Date

First blog entry EVER!

2006-08-16T13:48:00.000-05:00

Hi. I've been a blog voyeur (blogyeur?) for some time now, and thought i would try my hand at all the fun. I will be posting a variety of crafts that i make or life updates or fun stuff from the web. Let's see how it goes.....