Crafty Carolinagirl

An apron for me

A few weeks ago Val from Yarni Gras asked her readers to name her new dress form. A little side note: if any of my family or friends are reading this post and are having difficulties figuring out what to get me for my birthday, a dress form would be nice :) Now, back to the post. 

I thought that was such a cute idea, so I submitted my name, April the apron wearing dress form. Lo and behold Val chose my name. To thank me for the name, she sent me the cutest apron:

and the greatest bookmark ever, Hootie!

You know I love Hootie and the Blowfish, so this little Hootie is perfect for me. I guess I have to start reading something now just to use him. 

Thanks again Val! I can't wait to wear my new apron for the 4th of July!!!

What, no Alice in Chains???

I love to read what other people classify as good music. Most of the time I totally disagree. This was the case, yet again, when I read Yahoo's list of the 25 Best Alternative Rock Bands of the '90s. 

As most of you know I love music ('70s disco, '80s new wave, '90s alternative) even more than crafts! So, since this was a '90s alternative list I really thought I would enjoy reading their choices, this was not the case. Blech! What a list. I never even heard of half the artists (Sebadoh) and those I did I only remember one or two of their songs (The Breeders). And don't even get me started on Beck being on this list! 

So, I thought I would vent a little and give my list for my top 25 Best Alternative Rock Songs and Artists of the '90s. Here we go. . .

25. "Heart Shaped Box" - Nirvana

24. "Zombie" - The Cranberries

23. "Stay" - Shakespeare's Sister

22. "Feed the Tree" - Belly

21. "My Sister" - Juliana Hatfield

20. "Seether" - Veruca Salt

19. "You Ought to Know" - Alanis Morissette

18. "Desire" - Gene Loves Jezebel

17. "Californication" Red Hot Chili Peppers

16. "Sleep to Dream" - Fiona Apple

15. "Personal Jesus" - Depeche Mode

14. "Back Hole Sun" - Soundgarden

13. "Candy" - Iggy Pop and Kate Pierson

12. "Deadbeat Club" - The B 52s

11. "Omaha" - Counting Crows

10. "Would?" - Alice in Chains

9. "Creep" - Stone Temple Pilots

8. "St. Theresa" - Joan Osborne

7. "Wonderwall" - Oasis

6. "Just a Girl" - No Doubt

5. "Crowing" - Toad the Wet Sprocket

4. "Elsewhere" - Sarah McLachlan

3. "How You've Grown" - 10,000 Maniacs

2. "Winter" - Tori Amos

1. "Everybody Knows" - Concrete Blonde

That was a lot harder than I thought, especially three through one (my favorite artists of all time). I chose Concrete Blonde as #1 because that song was featured in Pump Up the Volume, and you might remember that I was obsessed with Christian Slater in the '90s. I thought it was very fitting. 

Feel free to post your list, or a similar one on your blog. Let me know if you do. I'd love to see your favorites.

What a crazy weekend!!!

Five things I did during this crazy weekend:

1. Attended my monthly Etsy street team meeting. 
2. Learned how to make my own soy candles, okay so I supervised, but it was still fun.  
3. Made a photo CD with scanned childhood pictures and music for my sister's 30th birthday. Can I just say that if I have to hear "Step by Step" from the New Kids on the Block one more time I am gonna pull my hair out.
4. Constructed a photo light box, though I still can't figure out how to work it.
5. Opened my new Etsy shop.  

So as you can see, I did absolutely NO crafts this weekend. That is pretty rare and I now feel the need to make up for it. So, last night I whipped up a little crocheted bracelet from a pattern I got from Eve on my Crochet Along group. 

Of course this is my first try so I used cheap yarn and cheap beads. But, it was so easy and so much fun that I think I am going to try some more with better yarn and nicer beads. This might turn out to be what everyone is getting for Christmas this year!

I also got my prize package from Yarnigras! I'll post about that and show you what cool things I got this week, once I get some pictures taken.

I Love Etsy!

If you've ever been on Etsy you know it can be quite overwhelming. I can look for hours and not even hit the tip of the iceberg. So, I thought I would start showcasing some of my favorite artists/items. 

There are many things I wish I could do, but I think drawing is close to the top of my list. I really admire anyone who can draw something from their imagination. Unfortunately, I have never been able to do that. 

Here are a few drawings/paintings that I just love.   

1. gorjuss  2. monjojo 3. bellatrix 4. aliceinparis  5. theoleanderblack 6. kirby 7. elloh  8. Lilymoon  9. kerrybeary 10. annejulie 11. artandghosts 12. moonlightwhispers 13. mikiep 14. savageartworks 15. asunder 16. stephaniefizer

Aren't they amazing? I have added links to each of their Etsy shops, so please when you have a minute check them out for more of their beautiful art.

Adopt a Shelter Cat Month

Summer is the season when shelters see an influx of cats come into their facilities. This is why June has been declared "Adopt a Shelter Cat Month". Many shelters offer discounts and free food/toys/litter when a cat is adopted during the month of June. This is a great incentive for adoption, but should not be the sole reason for adding a cat to your family.

Unfortunately, there are some cats that are very hard to adopt even during the month of June - black cats. I don't know if it is because people are superstitious or just afraid of a black cat, but whatever the reason many black cats are euthanized every year for the simple reason of their color.

ShimmerGreen from the "Black Cat Lovers" group on Ravelry has decided to try and change this. She has come up with a black cat pattern to be crocheted and embroidered on Snuggle Mats. These beds will be given to black cats and will travel with them to their new homes. Her hope is that each bed, "helps the potential pet owner to make the connection to the potential pet a little easier".

So, if you have some spare time and some left over yarn, stitch up a few of these. If you don't crochet, there are knitting and sewing instructions for Snuggle Beds as well. I know I'll be making some of these for my local shelters, and of course one for my own black shelter cat, Drusilla!

Meet my first pop culture icon doll, Abby

I have been tinkering around with the idea of making some pop culture dolls for fun and maybe even for my new Etsy store. I have been hooked on this idea since I saw the Knitted Icons book, but I have yet to master the art of knitting. I had to come up with something I could actually do, so I chose a felt doll.

I have had a fairly difficult time drawing a doll pattern. I really don't know why, but people have always been hard for me. And faces are even worse, which is why most of my creatures/people have eyes only. So, this past week, while counting the days until I could work on my deck, I finally came up with a doll pattern that was acceptable. It isn't anything odd, like a big head and a little body, just a normal felt doll shape.

I wanted to pick a very simple pop culture icon to start out with. I figure the more I work with the doll pattern, the better I will get and then I can tackle more difficult ones. So Friday night, during the first of two NCIS marathons, I decided on my first pop culture icon doll, Abby. 

I figured Abby would be easy to replicate, and hopefully people (at least NCIS fans) would know who she was by just looking at her. So I worked on her all weekend, after painting my deck. I think I got her just about right until I remembered I forgot her spiderweb neck tattoo. I'm gonna have to work on that.

So here is a picture of the real Abby (or at least the character Abby) and my little Abby.

What do you think? I think she needs shoes and her lab coat, so I'll be working on them this week along with her tattoo. Who knows, maybe I'll be inspired to do another member of the team, any suggestions? I am not so sure how my men are going to turn out. Maybe I should give one of them a try. 

DIY Deck Project - Step 4

Over this Memorial Day holiday weekend I did the unthinkable, I finished Step 4 of my deck project! It was not fun, actually it was awful, but it is completely done! Boy am I relieved.

So to refresh your memory, here is how the deck looked last week after Step 3 (you can read about Step 3 here)

 

Now onto Step 4 - Painting the Deck!

1. Buy your supplies Can you believe it? I did not buy any supplies for Step 4 at Lowes. No worries though, I will be buying my Step 5 supplies there this weekend.

Here is what I bought: 2 gallons of Sherwin Williams Rookwood Red Porch and Floor Enamel paint, an 11 piece painting set (rollers, tray, paintbrush, etc.), and a paint roller extender (both bought at WalMart).

The amount of paint you will need will be determined by the size of your deck. My deck is actually larger than I thought (after painting the whole thing), and I used the entire 2 gallons of paint. I would buy more than less. You don't want to get halfway done and realize you don't have enough paint. I thought that was gong to happen to me, and believe me, it is not a good feeling.

2. Paint the deck Take all of your supplies outside, put on your radio, take a deep breath, and start to paint. The entire process took me 19 hours divided into three days. 

The first day, Saturday, I did all of the railings (8 hours). That was a big chunk of the deck, so I was feeling pretty good when I called it a day on Saturday. 

The second day, Sunday, I did the trellis (6 hours), floorboards (1 hour), and stairs (1 hour - total 8 hours). If you don't have a trellis, be very thankful. It was, by far, the worst part of the project. Not only did I have to paint with a paintbrush inside all of the holes, I was constantly attacked by wasps and yellow jackets. I am happy to report I did not get stung, but I did come to realize that there must be some sort of nest under the deck. I think the bug man will be making a trip to my newly painted deck very soon!

The last day, Monday, was the touch up day (3 hours). I repainted the spots that hadn't gotten enough paint, mostly the floorboards. I think I was getting too tired on Sunday after doing the stupid trellis that I didn't put enough force on the brush. 

So, after 19 hours of pain, sweat, and sunburn, here is my newly painted deck:

I took this picture this morning from inside the house, since the deck is still a little sticky. You can see my blue painter's tape on the steps. That is so no golfers or neighbors take a seat on the wet paint (my little next door neighbor likes to sit on my steps while she watches the birds in the tree).

Whew! We are down to the wire now. Only one step to go until this project is complete. I hope to be able to finish this up this weekend. We'll see if the weather will cooperate!

Great way to start the weekend!!!

What a surprise it was to click on Etsy this morning and see one of my items on the front page! I missed seeing Penelope Hedgehog a few months ago, but I got a chance to see my Green Flowered Puffy Heart as the very first item:

The Etsy treasury owner that hand picked my item is Silvia66. She is from Italy and she makes absolutely gorgeous items. I especially love her Nocciola Cowl and TOSCA capelet. Next time you're on Etsy take a peek at her store. It is awesome!!!

That is why they call me Crafty Carolinagirl

I don't know what has been going on with me, but I have been all kinds of crafty lately. I guess I am living up to my blogging name! It first started with me teaching myself to make stitch markers, which led to me learning jewelry making. Well, now I am into making crochet beads!

I am really enjoying making the beads. I can whip up so many in such a short time, and this is the first time I have used #3 thread and a small hook. It is a running joke between me and my crafty friends that I use a size G hook on everything, and I mean everything. I have five G hooks because of this. I do enjoy bigger hooks too, but basically because it makes the project move faster.

Anyway, I am really enjoying my little hook and my thin thread, as is Drusilla. She has become very attached to the ball. I am going to have to keep an eye on her so she doesn't try to take a nibble. That would not be good.

So, here are a few beads I finished up last night. . .

I really like the peach color. I only bought one color, in case I didn't like it, but I love it so much I am going to have to go back to Michaels this weekend and get some more colors and some bigger beads. So, now y'all know what I'll be doing this Memorial Day weekend while watching two more NCIS marathons (did anyone see that finale on Tuesday? Whew!), and of course working on my deck!!!

Can't play with my Yo-Yo

Does anyone else remember the song, "Can't play with my yo-yo"? I think it was in the '90s, sung by the rapper Yo-Yo. Maybe it's just me. Anyway, anytime anyone mentions a yo-yo I sing that song, or at least the chorus of the song.

Why am I talking yo-yos? Well, I hope ya'll can help me out. I have tried several times to make a fabric yo-yo. Unfortunately, every one has come out looking like crap. Does anyone know of an easy yo-yo pattern or tutorial? I'd like to make a yo-yo pillow for the fall and need to master this craft asap.

I think everyone knows what a fabric yo-yo looks like, but in case I am calling it something different than it should be called here is a picture:

This pillow kit is available at Oriental Trading Company, but I'd like to make my own.

Any help that you can give me is much appreciated! I'll post pictures of my crappy yo-yos along with some of my nicer ones (fingers crossed)!