A Craft-y Sunday II

Random yet orderly - I like it :)

The downside to being an adult is that all your friends lead busy lives and getting together isn't as easy as it used to be. It's been two months since our last get-together but a few of my friends and I finally managed to coordinate a crafting day last weekend. The main theme: felting! Of course, as it usually turns out, we all ended up doing a mish-mash of different projects.

It was Michelle's first time felting and she ambitiously tackled three different projects (unfortunately, I only have pictures of two.) That patchwork of hearts pictured above is her felted laptop case. We had gone on a shopping trip to Wabi-Sabi, a yarn store (not a sushi shop :P ) a few weeks ago and she had been enticed by a bag of pretty coloured roving (ie. unworked wool). The gorgeous raspberry coloured roving was her favorite as well as mine. It's nice that she finally got a chance to use it.

A single heart to contrast the busyness of the other side.

There was a fair bit of debate over the design: a single heart for the clean and simple look or a bunch of hearts for a more fun, chaotic look? In the end, she ended up doing both - there are two sides to a case after all.

She tried her hand at a 3D figurine after that. It's a mustached cat ghost/monster...sort of like a Pokemon but not.

Michelle is so creative :) 

My sister decided to be very ambitious and started work on a Chocobo (from Final Fantasy for you non-gamers out there.)

Sharp needles and small fluff - it's a dangerous past-time :P

I'm sure its going to look amazing when it is done but she still has a way to go. I guess we'll just have to wait for our next crafting day.

My friend, Nina, joined us but did not feel like stabbing herself with a needle that afternoon. Therefore, she chose to work on a less hazardous project - a pearl and amethyst necklace.

One small bead to start. 

She also did not finish her project that afternoon but got a pretty good start on it at least. It's going to look lovely when it's done. It's a shame that I'm not that into wearing jewelry or I would be tempted to take up jewelry making myself. Crafters are such magpies :).

As for me, I was working on this little puff of adorable-ness:

Is it a bunny? Is it a dog? Okay, it's supposed to be a bunny with its ears flopped down but I must admit,she ended up looking rather ambiguous between the two.

She is still very sweet though. It was through her that I have also finally figured out why Philly, my felted seal, looks so odd - he is way too toned :P. I felted him so firmly that he lost the cute, fat look. This little bunny had layers and layers of wool added on to plump her up.

Unfortunately, a lot of the other girls were busy last weekend and so we had only a small group gathered around my dining room table. Oh well, it was still a great afternoon and there is always next time!

A Little Piece of DNA

This was taken with my iPad camera. Unfortunately, the quality is lacking. 

This week's craft was small, quick and nerdy. I was given a brand new USB by the IT department and I felt that it needed a little something to jazz it up. Since I work in the field of genetics, a chromosome was a natural choice for a charm. A straightened paperclip, a few beads, a length of thread and voila! Can you figure out which chromosome it is? (The level of resolution is 300 and yes, the bands are accurate...relatively.)

Penguin Pals

No, I haven’t forgotten about my New Years Resolution; I have just neglected it. Once you start procrastinating, it is so hard to try and rebuild momentum.

I have developed a love of making mini beaded animals. I am so impatient these days that I am not willing to commit to a longer term craft. These little guys are sitting right next to my turtles, enticing me with the idea of amassing a penguin army to go with my turtle one. Of course, both armies are currently pretty pathetic right now but any day now, they will grow…

I guess sitting in front of kusudama flowers doesn't give them the menacing look of a growing army, does it? :P

Teeny Tiny Turtle Take Two

I had a hard time deciding, but I have settled on this being his best side. 

This is the second-in-command of my turtle army with which I have been planning to take over the world ;). (Amassing this army is a little slow going these days.) I like the colour of his shell better than his brother’s but I must admit, I do not find his face as cute. Side by side though, the two are thumb-sized figures of adorable sparkly-ness!

Turtle Butt :P

Somehow, he just looks more menacing than his brother. 

Petite and Pink

I made this little elephant last year. She's only about 2 inches from tail to trunk. Initially I was a little skeptical about the tiny beaded animals, since they just didn't have the detail of some larger patterns. After making her though, I was completely sold on the idea. She's so cute! They're not really visible in the pictures, but she even has little tusks. A small detail but I think it really adds to the design. 

All credit for her design goes to a Chinese craft book I found at the Hong Kong library.

Beaded Seal Take Two

Recognize this little guy? He should look familiar. You can see his brother here. This one was made of glass beads from my forays in China. Much sparkly-er, and a little heavier than my acrylic one. 

He is my favorite design.

Although really, he is just a ball with fins and a tail. (As I have said in one of my early posts)

I just find his simplicity so cute.

I am sure there is some deep life lesson buried in that thought but we will leave it buried for now.

After making a few things with my glass beads, I have found that I really like the weight of them. The projects just feel more substantial and they look amazing in sunlight. I know what I’m getting the next time I head to China. : )

Dimensions: 4.5 x 4.5 x 2.5 cm

Materials: 4mm bicone white glass beads, 6mm round black glass beads, clear fishing line, black fishing line, clear seed beads

Tools:  scissors, ruler, hands!

Time to Make: 2.5 hours

I would like to buy myself a glass cabinet from IKEA so that I can display all my crafts. With just the right lighting, they would look incredible! 

Monkey Business

I like to add a personal touch to my gifts even if I am buying them and not making them. I got one of my aunts a pair of warm, soft lady slippers for her precious tootsies this Christmas and I clipped this little fellow onto the gift tag. His pattern is part of a Chinese zodiac collection although I modified his design a little from the pattern in the book. Originally, he was supposed to have a face on both sides but that just looked weird to me. His little red nose is adorable and I am thinking that I might want to make a set of three with three different coloured noses. We’ll see.

I modified his ears from the pattern by using larger beads than what was listed in the book. I feel big ears are cuter!

This is what the back of a head should look like - being double-faced is a bit odd.

Dimensions: 5 x 2.5 x 1 cm (not including key chain)

Materials: 4mm light brown, champagne, black & red glass bicone beads, clear fishing line, key chain,

Time to Make: 1.5 hours

Beaded Birthday Presents

It's almost Christmas! ("Deck the halls with boughs of holly... Fa la la la la la la la la!") Time has flown and I can not believe that I have not updated since September. 

This little critter dates back to a few years ago and was a present to a friend of mine for her birthday. She was generous enough to let me photograph him to feature in my blog. One of my early works. Cute, eh?

Front

Back

Left

Right

I always have the hardest time thinking of what to get as gifts for other people. My fall back a lot of the time is to make something. Hmm…maybe I should take up knitting…

Materials: 6 mm blue, white, & pink bicone acrylic beads, 6 mm black round acrylic beads, 0.55 mm clear fishing line, light blue seed beads,

Tools: scissors, ruler,  

Time to Make: To long ago to remember…

Teeny Tiny Turtle

After a summer hiatus due to sheer busyness of life/laziness of person, I am back! I have crafts gracing my shelves but unfortunately, I simply haven’t had the time to photograph them and write posts.

This little guy has been patiently waiting for his time to sparkle. I made him on a sunny Saturday afternoon sitting on my living room carpet. He is so cute that I plan to make a little army of turtles in a rainbow of colours.  (Then I will use them to take over the world! *evil laughter* = P)

Look to the right... (his right ; ) )

Look to the left... (his left)

Hello!

Dimensions: 3 x 2 x1.5 cm

Materials: 4mm white glass bicone beads, 4mm light green glass bicone beads, 4mm black glass rounded beads, fishing line

Tools: Fingers – that’s all you need!

Time to make: ~ 2 hour

My precious...

During my family vacation to Mainland China, we found out through a friend of a friend of family where we could find some cheap craft supplies. My main goal was beads for my beaded animals. It was a convoluted route (which I don't recommend for the faint of heart) but we found a whole building of craft supply whole sellers. There was a whole floor of stalls which sold only beads. I swear there were over 50 different stands. I was in crafter heaven! There were also pearls, chains, beading lines, etc. It was incredible - I never knew places like this existed! I so wished I lived in China for that reason.

It is times like these that I am very much aware of my magpie-like tendencies. These beads are the newest additions to my collection. Are they not gorgeous? The photos really do not do them justice. If you hold them up to the sunlight, they sparkle like rows and rows of gems. Lovely…

My sister says that it looks like I could open a store here in Canada.

Another friend suggested that I just hang them all in front of my door as a curtain.

I had not planned on buying this many. When I first began selecting colours, I was much more conservative.

Then my mother reminded me that we are not coming back to China any time soon so if I wanted something, I had better get it.

I ended up buying 16 980 beads. 

I love my mother! : D

At least I have no regrets. Nothing worse than thinking, 'Oh shoot! I should have also gotten..."

This supply should last until my next vacation to China. ; P

They are made of glass and you can really feel the weight and coolness of them when you hold them in your hand. There were also crystal beads available in China but I decided to play it safe and not purchase any since I do not know how to gauge the quality of crystal.  These glass beads already add enough sparkle to my projects. 

Beaded Bunny

Dimensions: 16 x 5 x 4 cm

Materials: 6 mm yellow acrylic beads, 6 mm pink acrylic beads, 6 mm black round acrylic bead, 0.55 mm clear fishing line, black seed beads

Tools:  Just my hands!

Time to Make: Hmm…don’t remember…

Compared to the seal, this bunny was a lot more complex to make. I have to admit, I’m not too crazy about stringing together arms and legs. They are by far the most difficult parts. Round things, like the body and head, are so much easier. This is the only completed beaded bunny figure that I have made. It was my third attempt. Previously, I had made two bunny heads for birthday presents but had run out of time to make the bodies (It’s never a good idea to start on a birthday present the night before). A little bit macabre for a present now that I think of it…just heads in boxes. : D

(Update 07/04/2015 - this post is now linked to: Gluesticks Friday Finds Link Party) 

Beaded Buddies

When I was in high school, my aunt in Hong Kong sent over a bunch of glass beads and two books on how to bead animals. I have beaded so many creatures since then using a variety of different beads. My favorite to use so far is the 6mm acrylic bead because it is cheap and the large size makes for great displays. The major downside to this hobby though is that it can be fairly pricey. Projects need certain sizes, shapes and colours. I also prefer if all the beads are made of the same material (mixing up glass and acrylic is quite obvious and does not look that nice). One of these days, I am going to get myself some fancy crystal beads and make a really sparkly (and expensive!) animal.

Dimensions: 6 x 4 x 4 cm

Materials: 6mm blue acrylic beads, 6mm round black acrylic beads, 0.55mm clear fishing line, black fishing line, blue seed beads

Tools:  Just my hands!

Time to Make: 2 hours

The simplicity of this design makes it my favorite to make. I can whip one together in about 1.5 hours now. It was the first design that I attempted. It is pretty much just a ball with some fins and a tail but it is so cute. I think this particular one is the third seal that I have made.