Peace Sampler

As promised, photos of my progress so far.




Design: Peace Sampler by Carol Emmer, JCS May/June 2012 issue
Fabric: 32ct cream Belfast Wichelt linen
Threads: DMC
Start: 5/29/2012

I wasn't kidding when I said that I didn't have alot stitched on this design. You know what I'm talking about if you've seen the design in that issue of JCS.

Until next time ^_____^

Kawaii

Good afternoon! I hope you are enjoying a wonderful day with crafting or spending time with family, etc.

Today I decided to make a tote bag. I used a pink tote bag, iron-on transfer lettering in glittery blue, and iron-on crystals in a peacock color that I got half-off at Hobby Lobby.

Viola! Kawaii if I don't say so myself. Though I wish I knew the word for 'cute' in Korean because that would be more appropriate since it is a Korean pop music tote bag :P


The photo is cute dark, but the color is the same as the Tree Star tote bag I made last month!



I didn't have any dashes in the letter set for 'K-Pop'.....and now that I think about it, I could have just cut one of the letter 'I's in half. LOL Don't you just hate it when you think of something after the fact!?!?! Oh, well. I think it looks good all things considered.

It took me a while to make the tote bag. You wouldn't think so, but I had a hard time getting the lettering to stick to the fabric. I had to repeat and let the lettering cool several times before it finally stuck.

The same thing happened with the crystals. I was using a thin dishcloth, but that didn't work (even though the instructions said to use a thin cloth). I ended up using a thin layer of paper towels and that seemed to work a lot better with only a few of the crystals not sticking and needing more heat applied.

What are my plans for the rest of the day? I think I'll probably cross stitch a bit and see if I can make enough progress to post about ;)

Until next time ^_____^

May Recap

Recap:

Read:
1. A Magnificent Obsession by Helen Rappaport
2. Bewitching by Alex Flinn
3. Timeless by Gail Carriger
4. Book Girl and the Corrupted Angel by Mizuki Nomura
5. Apollo's Angels: A History of Ballet by Jennifer Homans
6. Rebel Fire: A Young Sherlock Holmes novel by Andrew Lane
7. Daddy Long Legs by Jean Webster
8. Dear Enemy by Jean Webster
9. Nobody's Girl by Hector Malot

Crafts:
1. Gentleman Monster amigurumi
2. Bunny blob amigurumi
3. Cupcake amigurumi
4. Good Luck Neko amigurumi

Wow! It's amazing how fast the year is going by or maybe it just seems that way because I've been busy.

What's up for the month of June in terms of craftiness? Right now, I'm working on a sampler that my aunt wanted me to cross stitch for her ;) It's going a bit slow so I won't show a picture of it until I have a few more motifs stitched on it. I think I jinxed myself by saying, "Oh, that's easy. It won't take that long." I had completely forgot about the fact that it was stitched on 32ct linen which takes more time for me than the larger 28ct I'm used to.

I know, I know. There are some of ladies and gents who stitch on higher counts like 40, etc., but I usually use what types of fabrics that Hobby Lobby carries so I don't even have to contemplate using a larger count!! Woohoo for me! Just kidding ;)

I hope you enjoy your weekend. We have a cold front of some sort coming through the South so it feels absolutely amazing this morning. You would think it was the end of the summer and you felt the first signs of fall. But that's just the weather playing tricks on you!

Until next time ^____^

Extra, extra, read all about it.......an Etsy shop!

Good afternoon, everyone! I hope you are having a great Memorial Day with family and friends. We are getting ready for dinner later today. My aunt is making a spicy pork recipe from the Pioneer Woman's new book. My mother is making cole slaw and for those of us who don't eat pork, hot dogs! Yum!

In other news, which is BIG NEWS! My friends and I decided to start an Etsy shop called Cherry Blossom Cute. That's why you haven't heard from me in the past week or so. I've been taking pictures of our merchandise, writing descriptions, etc. to add to our shop. All the crafts are handmade by either myself, Amanda, or Kristina.



While we sold some of our crafts at Mobi-Con, we thought it would be great idea to start an Etsy shop for everything that didn't sell there.

We have all sorts of kawaii in our shop. Cell phone charms for Sailor Moon fans, various geeky felties for your cell phone or keychain, and some adorable amigurumi plushies!

One of items that I would like to talk about here is this one since it is perfect for my cross stitch readers:

A lovely beaded pastel butterfly cell phone charm which doubles as a scissors fob!



My friend Amanda made me a butterfly scissors fob like the pictured above as a gift in August of last year.

I had told her about the couch in our living room that was literally a scissor eater! To solve my problem of losing track of my scissors, she made me a beaded butterfly fob using Swarovski crystal beads with a tiny bell on top. So every time I lose my scissors in the couch, I just have to listen for the tingling of a tiny bell.

In addition to the pastel colored fob in our shop, we also have a lovely one in shades of pink and another in shades of purple!

So come and have a look around! We hope you find something that tickles your fancy!

Until next time ^____^

Mobi-Con 2012

Hi, everyone! Kristina and I will be at Mobi-Con 2012 tomorrow and this weekend in Mobile, AL at the Ashbury Hotel in the dealers' room.

Please come by and see us! Just look for the pink table with the hospitable amigurumi octopi, Sir Sassafras and Miss Petunia. We will be selling all sorts of geeky plushies, cell charms, bottle caps, etc. All our crafts are handmade by Kristina, Amanda, and myself!

In terms of fun guests this year, we have anime voice actors Colleen Clinkenbeard and Christopher Sabat. We also have bestselling author Christopher Rice.

Come join the fun!

Good Luck Neko

Pattern: Good Luck Neko by Nimoe
Hook: size G
Yarn: Red Heart white medium 4 worsted
Notions: red 3/8" grosgrain ribbon, Chinese coin bead, felt, and 9mm safety eyes
Start/Finish: 5/14-16/2012

Good morning! Last night I was able to finish stitching together this cute good luck kitty! It is another lovely creation by Nimoe.

As all of you know my friend Kristina and I will be at Mobi-Con selling our crafts. To add some good luck to our venture, I made the kitty. She will sit at our table amongst my friend Amanda's amigurumi plushies. No she isn't for sale. She is actually going to live with a friend after the convention ;)

I've got a few last minute things to do this evening for the convention! Ironing tote bags and putting some price tags on some jewelry.

Until next time ^____^

Cupcake Love!

Pattern: Cupcake by Nimoe
Hook: size G
Yarn: Red Heart white and buff medium 4 worsted
Notions: pale pink bow, heart button, and 9mm safety eyes
Start/Finish: 5/12-13/2012

Good afternoon! Yesterday I spent the day inventorying all my crafts for the convention next weekend. Later that night I started on another amigurumi. I found a cute pattern for a cupcake at Nimoe's blog.

I found some pre-made ribbon bows at Hobby Lobby yesterday morning and I'm so glad I purchased them. I bought them to use on my felties, but they worked great as an embellishment for this cupcake. I attached a pale pink heart button to the bow (you gotta love having a stash of buttons!) before gluing the bow to the cupcake.

For the eyes, I used 9mm safety eyes. Yesterday I received a package from my friend Amanda which had lots of Japanese gummies and biscuits, a dragon amigurumi that I commissioned for Mother's Day, and a surprise. Also included in that package was a bag full of different size safety eyes and some stitch markers. I'm so happy she sent me some because I was able to use them on my cupcake! Just today I found some safety eyes at Joann's Fabrics. They seem to be the only place I've seen them in town.

I've got some laundry to do before watching the finale of OUAT and another episode of Sherlock on PBS.

Until next time ^_____^

Bunny blob

Pattern: Bunny blob by Cutesy Crochet
Hook: size I
Yarn: Red Heart white medium 4 worsted
Start/Finish: 5/8-10/2012

I found a cute pattern for a bunny blob when I was searching for beginners' patterns for amigurumi. This blog called Cutesy Crochet has a great tutorial on making this little cutie. Her videos are great too!

At the advice of my friend Amanda I used a larger hook so I could see the stitches in the yarn. Thanks for all your advice and encouragement!

I think if I make this pattern again, I'll stitch more rows in the ears to make them longer as my sister mentioned that my bunny looked like a mouse before I put the tail on it O_o"

I used pink yarn for the nose and black felt for eyes. I made a yarn pom-pom for the bunny tail ;)

Until next time ^____^

A gentleman monster!

Another try at learning to crochet. Here is my creation for the day!

Woot! A gentleman monster! I dressed up my monster amigurumi with a mustache ;)

Until next time ^____^

Hmm....

My first attempt at amigurumi....it's a mess, I know! LOL I already told my friend Amanda about this one. I was stitching the rows on this little guy and my paper clip fell out (substitute for a stitch marker). This afternoon I was talking to a coworker about learning to crochet. He said just because I lost count didn't mean I couldn't attach the bottom to it and see what it becomes.

My mother says it reminds her of one of the enemies in Yoshi's Island. LOL That wasn't what I was going for, but I'll take it.

I think it's backwards too.....there is a right and wrong way to yarn......

So tomorrow I'm off to HB to buy some decent yarn and stitch markers ;)

Until next time ^____^