Becca crafts.

Quick update

2009-03-27T11:36:00.001-05:00

Hey, if anyone still reads this- I've moved over to WordPress. My new blog is at http://sheepishlittleblog.wordpress.com. Hope to see you over there!

Woo!

2007-12-11T08:42:00.000-06:00

Here are the mittens that my friend Jody commissioned from me. The pattern is from here- found it on Ravelry, of course.They're done in Knitpicks Wool of the Andes in Forest Heather. I love this pattern, it was a fast and easy knit but not very boring with all of the cabling and inc/dec areas. I'll probably make some for myself in cream :D

Oops.

2007-12-03T12:30:00.000-06:00

I completely lost track of this blog, thanks to a molotov cocktail of schoolwork (thank you senior year of college), making Christmas presents (so glad that's mostly done), and.... *cough*.... Ravelry. Yes, I'm completely addicted. Craftster's great and all but you can be all off topic on Ravelry! You can browse so much more in terms of patterns! And it just plain rocks hardcore! (plus there's a queue function!)
So yes, I apologize. Here is a makeup post! Whee!
First, I've made a quilt! It's only 15"x15", it's for a Blythe doll (not mine, for a swap).
The yellow is bees. I think it turned out pretty well!

Next, two pairs of knucks. The first pair is really small because they were for my super-skinny future sister in law. She really liked 'em, too! The second pair was for me. It's way too cold for them now but they served me well back in mid-October. First pair: Elizabeth Lavold Silky Wool. Second: KnitPicks Swish DK. Here's my Halloween costume. COMFIEST COSTUME EVER. Srsly. In case you can't tell, I was Totoro from My Neighbor Totoro. People kept hugging me, it was great. I made the main part of the costume out of a men's hoodie. I took off the pocket before I sewed on the belly fur and I used the pocket fabric to make the ears. The whiskers are pipe-cleaners and all of the accents are fleece.

My mom bought a crochet tomato off of me a while back, and had it on a little shelf in her kitchen. She commissioned an onion and a carrot to go with it.
Here's my friend Kiah's Christmas present. (Kiah, if you read this, DON'T LOOK ANY FURTHER.

ok, so here it is. Well, one of them. There is a pair, I promise. This is the Buccaneer's Booty Socks pattern from Craftster. I used the recommended yarn, KnitPicks Elements. This was my first fair isle!
Finally, a rather blinding MS paint rendition of my next major Christmas project... a quilt for my future mother in law. It'll be an oversize lap quilt. I'm starting it Friday and probably spending all weekend on it.
I hope all that makes up for my long absence! I'll be around more, I promise.

Socks FTW!

2007-09-16T08:43:00.001-05:00

That's right... I knitted socks! My very first pair. I'm totally enamored of (with?) sock knitting now. I used #3 DPNs, TLC Baby in Bunny Print, and Silver's Sock Class rather than a real pattern. The only thing I changed was the leg ribbing... I don't like ribbing all the way down the leg (and I hate purling besides) so I did a bit more than an inch and switched to just knitting the rest of the leg. In all this project took me about 5 weeks, but that's coz I put it down for nearly a month in between. I got sock 1 done in 5 days (with surgery in there somewhere) and cast on right away and got nearly done with sock 2 in another 2 days, but then set it down until 2 days ago, so if you scrunch the time together, it took about 11 days. Not bad for first socks!

Things I learned on this project:
-DPNs aren't scary! Really! You feel like you're going to poke your eye out for the first 3 or 4 rounds and then it just makes sense. I love them!
-I looooove turning heels. It's some kind of crazy voodoo. So awesome.
-Picking up stitches is kind of cool and not hard at all. I expected far worse.
-Kitchener stitch is not that bad either!

A short pictorial telling of the first part of Beowulf.

2007-09-10T17:14:00.001-05:00

Grendel, vile descendant of Cain, ravages the Danish countryside.
Exhibit A- vile countenance. Look at the evil in those beady (buttony?) eyes.

The hero, Sanji- I mean Beowulf, comes to battle with him, bare-handed! Will he triumph?!
Beowulf rips Grendel's arm clean off (ah, the power of velcro) and Grendel runs away like a little baby. Later his mom comes and tries to tell Beowulf off for killing her son, but Beowulf kills her too. What a jerk.
But later, Beowulf gives Grendel his arm back and they become the best of friends. (This doesn't happen.)
The End.

Grendel is made of socks, polyfill, buttons, and a bit of velcro. He's for an English assignment.

...best english assignment EVER.

There are no words.

2007-06-08T22:49:00.001-05:00

Dr. Fu Manchu cupcake.

That's all you need to know.
Oh, and that he'll be up on etsy tomorrow.

Just some news.

2007-06-08T09:46:00.000-05:00

So far I've gotten 4 etsy sales! HOORAY! ...but, I've bought like 5 things, haha. Oh well, it still counts, and none of my sales have been from friends so I guess it's not just pity buying :P
Anyway, I've got a couple more cupcakes and a couple more DPCs to list. I just have to make a few more DPCs this weekend so I can print up a new sheet of cards for them- no sense wasting paper!
I've been thinking of adding some more sewn stuff to my shop. Some crochet hook rolls, some totebags maybe... and maybe some other crochet- related goods, like stitchmarkers or something. Could go over well. Thoughts?

In non-crafty news, this vegetarian thing is still going great. I really feel a lot better than I ever did eating meat- I have more energy and I feel better about what I'm eating. I'm eating healthier, unintentionally, too! So, this will probably be (if not permanent) for sure a long term thing. With my family's history of heart, cholesterol, and bloodsugar problems, I think this dietary path is the best choice I have (aside from completely abandoning sugar, which I've tried and CANNOT do. I get mean. :P) But it's also making me a more adventurous (and therefore better) cook! So I guess this part is kind of crafty. :D oh well.

I had intended to make/sell Pullip shirts and clothes, but I can't seem to get the pattern to work (I can't sew stretch fabric, apparently) so I'll be adding Pullip sized hats and other accessories later this month. They will be cute!

wooohooooo! Etsy = OPEN!

2007-06-01T10:58:00.000-05:00

Go shop! There'll be more items (i have 22 done) going up over the next few days, and I'm working on more DPCs, so keep checkin' back!

Etsy: Your place to buy & sell all things handmade
PinFish.etsy.com

still awesome.

2007-05-24T21:43:00.001-05:00

yep.

awesome.

yet MORE

2007-05-23T09:43:00.000-05:00

yeah, i've been busy. First, my latest (and favorite) cupcake, drooly sleeping cupcake.

awwww so cute!

And here, just coz it's funny, is my current bag o' cakes.

More stuff!

2007-05-23T09:32:00.000-05:00

Here's what I did yesterday. ALL DAY LONG. There are actually a few more than this but I didn't get pictures yet and I'm lazy, so here's the first five (of a total of 8 so far). I call 'em Disgruntled Pocket Critters, and they'll sell for $6-8 in my etsy store which is opening next friday!

So far they've gotten a couple of good reviews on craftster. Tell me what you think!

Also soon to be seen: I've just had a request for crochet veggies and mushrooms and fruits and things, so those'll be in the works later today.

Yes, I realize how entirely awesome I am. Thanks for asking.

2007-05-01T19:18:00.000-05:00

I actually MADE something?!!

2007-04-30T16:15:00.000-05:00

I know... I'm scared too...

/gir

In any case, yes, I've actually made a few things lately. Here's my latest project, the first of what will become an ARMY OF CUTENESS:

#2 is on my hook right now. It will have lavender frosting! YAY

I also participated in an ill-fated craftster swap called Springtime in Discworld. I loves me some Terry Pratchett, I do I do. Here are some terrible pictures of some awesome things that I made. (Ill-fated because I never received from my partner, and I've not heard a word from the lady who volunteered to make an Angel package for me *sad*)
This shirt is actually far more pink. I made a matching one with white paint on a navy shirt for my sister's birthday.
This I won't try to explain. If you know Pratchett, suffice to say it's the librarian in The Last Continent.
And this... is also self explanatory.
Some extras.
Yay! I made stuff! I missed making stuff. :(

Since Craftster is down...

2007-02-26T20:15:00.000-06:00

And Lenny is going on a trip for "little visitor swap #6"...
I made him a fake ID.
Yes. that is, in fact, a mustache.

This is Fred.

2007-02-23T20:01:00.000-06:00

Fred is a caring and friendly bear. He loves hugs and cuddles.

He also likes to help his friends- like Lenny here, who was feeling a bit low.

His absolute favorite thing to do, however, is play Barrel of Monkeys. He currently holds the state record for most monkeys linked in a single game!

What, more?!

2007-02-22T21:38:00.000-06:00

Yeah, I finished something else today- those slippers for Nicole. Another pair o' mary jane type ones, in that yarn I forgot the name of again. dangit. I left the wrapper at work. Oh well. In any case, it's that soft squishy stuff I used for the other pair of slippers, but red this time.I LOVE the buttons- little blue stegosauruses and green t-rexes. They remind me of Wash (any firefly fans out there? Yes? No?). Hooray, now I can devote all my time to that teddy bear!! :D

Meet Lenny, Destroyer of Worlds.

2007-02-22T15:48:00.000-06:00

I finally finished that dang octopode, and now you all get to meet him.

This is Lenny. Lenny, Destroyer of Worlds.
Upon being fully awakened, he promptly stole my computer,
My chocolate stash,
And proceeded to attack my head.
After all that time I spent on him! You'd think he'd be more grateful. However, we've settled down to a truce now (meaning I bribed him with more chocolate) and managed to get my computer back. I hope he likes this world enough to not, you know, destroy it. That'd be nice.

some atcs

2007-02-21T21:58:00.000-06:00

Hooray, i made more atcs! ...finally. Anyway, here are four. All are up for trade.
The first one is called "light". Obviously. The second is untitled at the moment, but expresses how I feel about people giving fat people "that look" when they see them eating something fattening. It's stupid, and I eat fatty food in public with pride. And so should everyone.

The third one is fairly personal for me, but I think anyone who has had depression would appreciate it. The last I made a while ago, and it doesn't really have a story- just inspiration striking.

WIPs

2007-02-20T21:15:00.000-06:00

Here are my two main WIPs, the octopode and fuzzy bear. First the octopode, which may turn out as more of a septopode, because I'm getting dang sick of crocheting tentacles. I only have four done now, and a start on the fifth. I'm not sure why the body is ...deformed, but once I attach the tentacles you shouldn't be able to tell. Also, the tentacles that have a long string for attaching them look a lot like purple tampons.

And Fuzzy Bear, possibly my favorite amigurumi pattern I've EVER seen. SO cute, and versatile too! And a reason to buy cushy fuzzy yarns :D I have head and ears done, and a start on the body.

Speaking of cushy yarn. I LOVE Patons Divine, the yarn I'm using for this teddy bear. It's so fuzzy and squishy and delightful. I had a picture but it kind of made the yarn look dirty which is not how it looks at ALL, so go buy some and you'll see what I mean. It's on sale at Michael's. GO BUY IT.

Some recent projects...

2007-02-17T16:47:00.000-06:00

Yeah, I've been really bad about posting here, particularly with my month long trip out of the country, but I'm back! With stuff!

First, while I was abroad I found a number of gorgeous scarves/wraps, and I've been getting really into wearing them when we go out to semi-nice places. I wanted a way to store them without wrinkling them, while also displaying them (because they're bloody gorgeous). So I grabbed some wire and came up with this.

I think it came out really nicely. And I do love swirlies!

Then I made these. They're... less cute than I expected. Hmph. But they're nice and warm. I got the pattern from here. I then did a personal swap and made someone a much nicer and cuter pair, but no pics 'til she recieves. Hehe, no swap spoilage here.

Then I was looking at that same yarn and decided to try amigurumi. This is the first time I've ever done it, and, insane person that I am, I ended up making up my own pattern (no I didn't write it down, sorry... wish I had). I think it came out REALLY well. I'm going to be giving it to my cousin's baby, after said baby gets born. I hope she likes it.

New camera!

2006-12-29T10:32:00.000-06:00

Another non-crafty post, but photography is art! Right? Right.
So apparently my dad works for the same Pentax that makes cameras, and they were giving out some older models that they couldn't sell anymore. So he gave me the one he got- it's an Optio 30, and a neat little camera. It's really easy to use and takes nice pictures. With the memory card that Cory already had, it can hold something around 150 pictures at a time, and came with a cardreader and a rather nice photomanip program.

Here are some photos!

First off, look at the shutter speed on this thing. Simon was pouncing on a bit of sticker just as I took this picture, and it's not even slightly blurry.
I love this picture of Wick.

This one's a little dark but I still really like how it came out. it's my desktop picture now.
This is just so cute. She's actually resting her head on my hand in this picture.
Aaand here's one of Cory. The redeye was terrible in this picture but that nice photo program that came with the camera gets rid of redeye very nicely!
And this one is kind of blurry but still is a cute picture. She was stretching.

Most of what I've made lately!

2006-12-28T15:02:00.000-06:00

So here it is! A couple of things are not pictured here because... well, I didn't manage to get pictures. But anyway. Here's some things.

First, the coin purse I made for Kiah. The lining matches the purse and wallet I made her for her birthday in July. The dino on the front matches the stegos on the fabric- it's embroidered. I thought I did pretty well on that. The edges are admittedly exposed inside but she doesn't care and it still looks nice.

The zipper is blue, which is awesome.
And here's the lining.

This is a Christmas present for my friend Teri who looooves Rainbow Brite. It's layered felt, like the zombie one.

So, yeah, I taught myself to crochet. This was my first "project"- a ball. It's a cat toy now, can you tell? Yeah it's pretty gross and awful. But hey, Simon likes it.

And here is my second project! Such a cute purse. I love how this turned out, and it really forced me to downsize in terms of purse contents. It isn't actually lopsided and I don't know where that weird fold in the side came from. In reality it is properly crescent-shaped.

Lininnnng. Yum! As you can see from the compact in there, it's not a very big purse.

Here's the wallet I made to match.

Third crochet project: flip-top mittens. Super pretty green/tan/blue wool that I had lying around.
See those gaps? That's called, Bex is learning how to join rounds. I got it better on the left mitten.

And here's what I made today, using a bunch of christmas presents from my mom (quilter's cutting set, fabric, jewerly tools, glass penguin beads) to hold one of my presents from Cory (a bunch of new crochet hooks.)
It unrolls into...
And the top flap opens to reveal...
It has 15 slots, one for each crochet hook size from B to P. My H slot has two hooks in it, so you can see that the smaller slots hold multiple hooks. There are 10 small slots and 5 big slots, and at the right edge there's a bigger pocket that holds yarn clippers and a yarn needle. The red square thing is a needlebook. There's a safety pin in it, too, which holds the two stitch markers (glass penguin beads!) that I made today.
Hooray! That was a long post. More to come if I get those other pictures. Not pictured is a fabric basket that folds flat, and a stenciled shirt that says "I solemnly swear I am up to no good" in a proper Harry Potter font. Whee!

Next project: Hipslinger, wallet, and passport case for Thailand. Also I plan to crochet a bunch of snuggles for the local kitty shelter while I'm on the plane... plenty to do, and for a good cause! I recommend that any of y'all who craft make a few of these for your local shelter. They are so appreciated, and it's a good way to use up scraps!

Sorry, no pictures this time.

2006-12-18T10:48:00.000-06:00

Yes, I've been making a ton of things, but the camera has exactly 0 batteries. So pictures will come later, from various sources (ie the people that I gave the presents to).
But I have a deep, philosophical question that probes the meaning of life, the universe, and everything, and the answer ain't 42.

WHY is knitting your SO a sweater supposedly a relationship-death-wish?

All the time I hear people joke about it, and I've even see it happen- you knit your boy a sweater and WHAM. he dumps you. WTF? Why?
I know for a fact that if I knit my boy a sweater he'd wear it with pride. He asks me to make him things all the time. He wears the scarf that I made him two years ago even in the summer! He shows off this terrible little card case that I made for his sheep's head deck to random strangers!
I don't get it. I really don't. Is it committment phobia? If so, people need to GROW UP. These men dumping their girls over a handknit (with love, I might add) are not teenagers. They are adults, who should be able to accept a gift graciously. It's not like the sweaters were ugly, or misshapen, or bill-cosby-type monstrosities. These are nice, classy (in one case cashmere!) sweaters.

Sigh. people depress me.

In other news:
I can crochet! Last week at work I taught myself using the videos at nexstitch. I made a misshapen ball first, and then made my adorable new purse using this tutorial. It's so dang adorable. Pics later.
:D :D :D crocheting rules...

FINALLY...

2006-12-06T11:14:00.000-06:00

I finally finished that shawl for my mom! Here are some pictures. First, my wall modeling it, so you can see it spread out...
I love this yarn SO much. Details on it are in an earlier entry. The pattern is a free Lion Brand Yarn pattern called "easy triangle shawl" and it was VERY easy. just YO's, and knit knit knit knit. Time consuming, though.

Detail of the YO edging.
And here's an action shot. It's quite long.

Braaaaaains (Nicole, no peeking)

2006-11-29T20:52:00.000-06:00

ATTENTION NICOLE!!
If you read my craft blog, which I don't know if you do, DO NOT LOOK at this entry! Unless you want to know what you're getting for Christmas, but then you kind of suck, so don't do it, kay?

So, here is Nicole's Christmas present. I'm all kinds of proud of it- she's never been into Christmas much but she's been more into it lately, so I thought I'd help out by putting Christmas and her biggest obsession (zombies) together in this festive ornament!

It's layered felt with sequins and seed beads for eyes. The ribbon is supposed to be brain-like in color, cause I couldn't find anything that looked brain-er. There are a TON of layers on this dude. I'm quite pleased with him.

A close up on the face...
And this is how it hangs! I'm pleased with that, too. Just a bit off kilter, because he is a zombie. Yay! So morbidly festive! I loves it so much. I hope Nicole does, too!

I got a commission!

2006-11-27T17:15:00.000-06:00

So here's my first commissioned piece, a sketchbook for a guy named Brett that I know from Gaia. It's his logo, so no stealin'.

Not at all my usual style- but he designed it, so no surprise there! It's coptic bound, exposed binding so it will lay flat, with double-thick heavy duty black carpet thread. It's 5x7 and has 120 pages (if you use both sides).

Front cover:
Here's a shot of the spine:
Here're the pages. See? It lies nice and flat. Good for drawing.And here's the inside cover. I decided to put the checkered paper in there too, because I thought it added interest.

I sent him the pictures but he hasn't recieved it yet. I hope he likes it.

Doodoodoodoot, doodoodoodoot! Doot. You got a star!

2006-11-27T16:39:00.000-06:00

uh, Mario reference for you non-geeks out there.

Anyway, Cory and I got our very first christmas tree together this past weekend! And while we have ornaments, we had no tree topper, so I whipped up this red velvet star. It has a wire framework and is lightly stuffed.
Here it is:
And on the tree:

Later I'll post the book I made on commission. Promise.

More new stuff!

2006-11-21T21:35:00.000-06:00

Here's some pictures of that shawl I'm making my mom for christmas. It's Plymouth Yarn brand Baby Alpaca Brush in a gorgeous plum colorway that I adore. It so soft and snuggly... it's like knitting with dreams. Here's a closeup of the lace edging. Really easy, but hey I'm new to... anything non-scarf. It's about 3/4 done, I'd say.

This lil guy is just something I whipped up one night when I needed a creative outlet. I think he's cute as heck. His stuffing's a little lumpy, but everyone has their quirks.

These are some stitchmarkers (for crochet) that I made for a personal swap on Craftster. They're more detailed than the picture shows- you can't see the little dimples in the citrus fruits, or the seeds on the strawberry. But still cute.

I felt bad since they aren't very detailed, and only took about 45 minutes, so I made a little pouch for them . This was the very first time I've done a zipper. It didn't turn out that well, but it's hard to tell just looking at it, so I'm gonna send it to her anyway. If you can't tell it's supposed to be a slice of lime.
Inside, with stitchmarkers. I didn't bother lining it, the zipper was enough of an adventure.

From the side so you can see that it's slice shaped. The white is done with a tightly packed zigzag machine stitch, it turned out pretty cute.

That's all for now, more to come soon... so many projects, so little time!

Recent Crafts...

2006-10-30T15:17:00.000-06:00

Here are some things I've made recently.
Firstly, some things that I made for the October Unconditional Swap on Craftster, for the lovely and talented KatJones.
Here is the huggymonster!He is a nice monster who really likes chocolate. He has his own bag (which velcros to his hands. note- the velcro ON his hands is the soft fuzzy side so he is huggable and does not stick to things). Here is his bag with the fall patch on it. There are four patches- one for each season- seen below.

He is now apparently going to grace Kat's merch table at her shows and dispense candy for the masses!
I also made her a journal, but I completely forgot to take any pictures. here is the picture that Kat took.
Then I stenciled this Dr. McNinja shirt for my big brother, all the way over in Japan.
I'm very proud because this was my very first stencil and there were over 50 teeeeeny tiny bridges in it. Hooray. I used the freezer paper method, which comes out just lovely.

I'm also working on a shawl for my mother- I'll post progress pictures once I have some.

That's all for now!

BexInfo!

2006-10-30T14:31:00.000-06:00

I'm writing this for craftster swap partners!

I'm a 21 year old college student. I'm majoring in Anthropology with a heavy focus in Archaeology and artifact illustration. I live in an apartment with my boyfriend, Cory, and our two cats, Wick and Simon.
^ that's us :)

Favorite colors: Blues, greens, black, browns, purples, burgundy- jewel tones and earth tones. I also like the combination of brown with pink, and brown with olive green, and brown with turquoise. Since I am also into punk and rockabilly culture I like black, red, lime green, bright purple, and pink.
I don't like: yellow. I hate yellow. Like, really hate it. I also am not much for orange but I'll wear it if it's with other fall colors.

General things I like: nature, especially trees. I LOVE trees. I also love anything relating to water- I'm a true Pisces. I'm very liberal, as well. I like stars, cute things, sanrio (especially cinnamoroll!), gothy stuff (I used to be very goth in high school), pinups, HUGE black boots with buckles and things, the Renaissance, skulls, pirates, ninjas, webcomics (especially Questionable Content and Wapsi Square), video games (I have a DS but I love old Nintendo stuff and Final Fantasy), cute but morbid things, Edward Gorey, Jhonen Vasquez, FABRIC, owls, and cats (actually I like nearly all animals), indie music. Oh, and chocolate. I adore chocolate.

Things I don't like: Raisins, yellow (I know I already said it, but I hate yellow!), realistic violence (think Quentin Terintino), walnuts, pop/country/rap music.

Speaking of music: I like alternative, indie, rock, punk, rockabilly, international, some metal (not the screamy stuff, the singy stuff. think Cold, not Slipknot), celtic, some classical, humor.

I love anything fantasy or science fiction. I especially love Lord of the Rings, and I have since I was... oh, about two years old. I own almost every book Tolkien wrote, and I've read most every biography of Tolkien ever written. I'm... a bit of a Tolkien geek. BUT ON THAT NOTE: I don't like fanfiction. At all. In fact, I think there's only ever been one fanfic that I liked.
I like some anime- Azumanga Daioh, One Piece, Jungle Wa Itsumo Hale Nochi Guu, Digi Charat... mostly the really bizarre ones.
I adore Discworld novels (those're by Terry Pratchett if you don't know). My favorite characters in them are Death, Susan, Tiffany Aching, Granny Weatherwax, and Commander Vimes. My favorite book in the series is The Truth, closely followed by Thief of Time and Reaper Man.

My sizes: tops, US X-large. Pants/skirts/dresses, US 16-18. Wrist, 7 inches. Shoes, US 9 women's.
I have a nose piercing and my ears are pierced. I love long earrings and fancy necklaces.

My wists are here: www.wists.com/Bexiecat

First Post

2006-10-30T13:47:00.000-06:00

I think it's kind of required that, when one starts a craft blog, one must have the obligatory "first post" post that really only says that one is starting said blog.

So, yay! I'm starting a craft blog!