I’m going to make some puppets and this is my first one. Meet Miss Mouse. We’ve been reading this book with the girls, so they requested a mouse. You can look at this flickr set for instructions and here’s a template: miss-mouse-template.
Embellished Lampshade
CAUTION: Do not try this at home. Somehow I managed to stitch this by machine without even breaking a needle. If I haven’t mentioned it before, I have a strong aversion to hand sewing.
If you want to try this, I would suggest doing a sample bit on the back of the lampshade to get the tension correct and make sure that you aren’t going to break your machine! I used a paper lampshade, had to decrease the tension, and went around very, very slowly. Oh, and you’ll need to load the thread color you want into the bobbin as you’ll be sewing on the reverse side.
Random Assortment GIVE-AWAY!
I am still cleaning out and moving my sewing room to make way for our master bath. So I have some fabric to unload. The photo on the left is of the larger scraps — quarter yards, half-yards and a few full yards. On the right are the smaller scraps. There’s fabric here from pretty much all of the projects I’ve made in the last year. Some Liberty of London, Amy Butler, Kaffe Fassett, etc.
So if you want to add to your fabric collection, please leave a comment here and I will choose a number randomly. Deadline for entering is Monday (July 28) at midnight Eastern time. I’ll ship anywhere in the United States or Canada. Thanks for helping me clean up!
UPDATE TO THIS POST: The fabric give-away is now over. Thanks for entering!
Etsy Finds Friday
Japanese Dessert Eraser Set, $7 from So Fly Supplies.
Erin McMorris Park Slope, one yard of 6 fabrics for $44.50, from fabricworm.
Elephant Pillow by jamtart baby, 10″x10″ pillow, $20.
Vintage Album Cover Gift Tags from Royal Buffet, $9 for a set of 6.
Flamant Rose Watercolor Print, 8.3″ x 5.8″, $20 from Flora Douville.
Daisy Journal in Natural Linen, $50 from paperiaarre.
Wonderland Dress, size 0/6 to 3T, $21 from Mani-Mina.
Prairie Field vintage cotton fabric by Textile Junkies, $6 for 1 1/4 yards.
Heirloom Growth Chart by Miss Natalie, $40.
Kawaii
Pictured above: sticker sheet from little apple crafts, $4.75. Animal Mascot book, $35 from Purl.
If you read craft blogs all the time like I do, you are no doubt familiar with the term kawaii. It refers to the cuteness that seems to be embedded in Japanese pop culture. Think Hello Kitty and all things adorable. Now the term zakka confuses me a bit because it seems to encompass many things, but this definition from wikipedia captures some sense of it. As I understand it, zakka is a simple style of handmade functional objects that bring beauty to your life and home.
Japanese culture is somewhat of an enigma to me. My husband is always pointing out music that is oddly popular in Japan. For example, musical relic Boz Scaggs is big in Japan (this link is to a Japanese man singing a karaoke Boz Scaggs song because I thought it was funny). Another strange phenomenon is that Japanese tourists have stopped our family on several occasions to look at our children and/or take pictures with them. We can’t quite figure it out, but we need to take the girls to visit Japan so they can feel like rock stars.
I digress. Here are some great places to look for cute Japanese stuff (kawaii). And these coveted Japanese craft books are so beautiful — who cares if you can’t read them?
From Japan with Love: Etsy shop with a huge selection of stickers, stamps, fabric and notions.
good-ness: Etsy shop featuring books, fabric, stamps, gocco supplies, etc.
kitty-craft: books, fabric, supplies.
superbuzzy: fabric, notions, supplies, etc.
nuno plus: fabric, bags, craft supplies.
Karaku: Etsy fabric shop.
little apple crafts: Etsy shop featuring stickers and craft supplies.