Take a look at my post over on Alpha Mom to see how we made these “kid coins” from shrinky dinks. You know, everybody needs a Presidents’ Day craft, right?
Studio Amano
My friend Trisha has an Etsy shop! I like to persuade (annoy, pester, badger) my talented friends to sell their wares on Etsy. So here’s Trisha’s shop, Studio Amano. Trisha taught our daughter in preschool six years ago and she’s been babysitting and helping us out ever since.
And Trisha likes to knit. I mean she loves to knit. She is a yarn hoarder-deluxe (and she could totally surround herself in yarn like this woman). So help her get rid of that yarn and buy one of her lovely fuzzy bowls. It takes her about three hours to knit each one from wool yarn; then she felts them in warm water. If you’re not familiar with the process, it’s pretty much what happens when you accidentally wash a wool sweater.
I still have these on my table. And if you want to learn more about what crazy things Trisha is doing with fiber lately, you can follow her new blog here.
Happy Valentine’s Day
Just popping in to wish you a Happy Valentine’s Day. Though I love to make Valentine crafts, I’m too cynical for the whole romance, flowers, mushy, buy-something-to-show-your-love celebrating. (We end up with takeout and a movie at home). But my kids are always excited. So however you feel about it, have a nice day.
The image above is from last year’s post for Alpha Mom.
Etsy Finds Friday
Turquoise Stem Teapot, $100 from Dahlhaus.
Jay McCarroll’s Raise the Roof from his new collection, Habitat, $8.25 per yard from Stitch Craft.
Vintage Children’s Suitcase, $30 from Little Red Mercantile.
Pet Party Heart, $24 from xmoonbloom. (Sorry, I couldn’t resist.)
Furoshiki Bag, $68 from frumafar.
Printable Love Notes, $4 from Vicinity Studio.
Boat Fabric, $30 for one yard (with all six colors) from Aunt June.
“Valentines Day is for Saps & Suckers” (and other cynical messages) Printable Cards, $12 from Meghan McCrary.
The Kiss, giclee art print, 11″ x 8 1/2″, $35 from Inaluxe.
Today
I’ve been spending a lot of time in my sewing room, but not actually sewing much. Working on the computer and creating a few patterns for upcoming publications (though I can’t show you these yet). So I thought I’d show you a bit of today’s inspiration.
Here’s what I’m reading:
Vera: The Art and Life of an Icon by Susan Seid. Vera Neumann’s artful surface design is amazing and continues to inspire today.
Print & Pattern by Bowie Style. A compilation of great surface design from the blog of the same name. Here’s the work of Pata Pri, one of my first Etsy favorites.
Quilt Artistry: Inspired Designs from the East by Yoshiko Jinzenji. Breathtaking work here.
Quilting Line + Color: Techniques and Designs for Abstract Quilts, also by Yoshiko Jinzenji. More beautiful work. I love how she plays with transparent fabric as you can see in the image below. You have to see her hexagon quilt.
I’ve also been receiving some freebies (a great benefit of blogging). This cozy stack of wool came from Heavens to Betsy (one of my newest sponsors) and this wool felt ribbon came from Felt-0-Rama. So check out all of their amazing goods and make something warm.
