Pictures: Stitchin' Fish
Finally! Some pictures of crafts I've done lately. So here's my submissions to the EAC Stitchin' Fish North Atlantic sea floor project:
The plastic bag jellyfish in progress:
The white grocery store bag didn't work for me, so I scrapped that part and found a different bag. I tried to use mostly bread bags for the jellyfish, as I liked how the clear plastic looked.
I think I've managed to post some jellyfish photos before, but here is a close up, where it looks like a big crocheted mess:
Actually, most of my submissions looked like a big mess. They looked much better when they were added to the rest of the submissions:
The hyperbolic ruffle:
It used up a an odd ball from my stash, but it was deadly boring after a few rows.
The hyperbolic spiral:
the window at the Loop:
Check out all those jellyfish! The display at EAC's World Ocean Day looked really great. I've only seen photos of it, but from what I saw in the window display, I know it was awesome. And it was really neat to pass by later in the week and see the things that I made in the window.
Next up: Pictures of my recent attempt to sew with a sewing machine!
Posted byHello Pineapples! on Thursday, June 12, 2008 0 comments
filed under: crochet, stitchin' fish
Just when I thought I knew everything about knitting...
I thought I had knitting abbreviations and stitches down to a science. I mean, I've even managed the kitchener stitch in the past. But with my recent acquisition of mochimochi's stackable cats pattern, I've discovered that I did not know how to "w+t" or, wrap and turn. I sort of guessed at it, but ended up with lumpy and holey looking legs. Thank heavens for google and knitters on the internet! It is times like these when I have to ask, "what the heck did people do before the internets???" I'm old enough to remember life before the internet, but this is one of those times when I'm glad I have more than a stack of World Book Encyclopaedias to help me out. (and wow! You can still buy printed encyclopaedias! who knew?)
Edited @ 12:38: good grief. I'm still trying to figure it out. I thought I had it, but then I was getting holes when I was trying to finish the pattern. Turns out that I needed to know more than just the mechanics of the w+t, but how to do a short row as well (I think I've done one of these before, but can't remember how it works). Ravelry and its forums came to my rescue and I found a how-to by misocrafty on the short row heel that (a) makes sense, (b) has pictures, (c) can be applied to my stackable cat.
Posted byHello Pineapples! on Tuesday, June 10, 2008 0 comments
filed under: knit, patterns, ravelry, stitches
My crafty friends are awesome
One last post before I head to bed.
I always knew my friend Sara/Grammardog was one heck of a crafty bitch, but now the crafty whole world knows it! This crafty lady created an impressive looking headboard and posted a how-to on craftster. It was so awesome that Craftzine blog posted about it earlier this week (I'm behind on reading my blogs).
Isn't she awesome?
And if you think that's pretty good, then you should see what she can do with a sewing machine - I love her quilts. They are fantastic.
Posted byHello Pineapples! on Monday, June 09, 2008 0 comments
filed under: arts and crafts, crafty friends, good ideas, show and tell
Monkeys go for a ride
A video I took of some sock monkeys going for a ride in the dryer:
I washed and dryed a bunch (barrel?) of monkeys before bringing them up to Love, Me. Seeing them in the dryer was so funny that I had to get my camera and make it a video.
You can't always tell what is happening, but every now and then, you see a monkey or a monkey limb flying by the dryer window. The clicks and clacks are monkey eyes hitting the side of the dryer. I think what amused me most was that it reminds me of how Kermit looks whenever Miss Piggy yells "hi-yah!" and karate-chops him across the room. I love the flailing limbs of a puppet.
Posted byHello Pineapples! on Monday, June 09, 2008 0 comments
filed under: sock monkeys
Free Pattern Sunday: dust bunnies and party time embroidery
I hadn't forgotten about the free pattern on Friday, but I was out of the house most of the day. I brought my sea creatures to the Loop, did some work at Starbucks, retrieved my cellphone/visited with a friend, went to help out with the Canadian Cancer Society's Relay for Life and then drinks with friends. I also managed to sew with my sewing machine over the weekend! This is quite the feat. Still no camera cord, so pictures will have to wait, but I made a blanket/pillow for my cat to take to the vet. The poor little dude has to stay at the vet for the next week while he recovers from his radioactive iodine. The husband likes to make Hulk jokes; one friend has decided that kitty's radioactive blood will make him SpiderCat. I wonder if "superhero powers" are one of the side effects.
The free pattern is a bit of a "cheat" on my part, but since I was out of the house all Friday, I didn't have as much time to spend on looking for the right one. But there is a method to my madness. This week is Mochimochi's dust bunny, which is free with purchase (there's the cheat). But it is so darn cute that I had to share. I also had to share because my apartment has some dust bunnies that are threatening to take over.
Seriously. They are the cutest. I'm on a pretty tight budget, but I'm thinking I need to purchase something for that pattern.
Having said that, Mochimochi does have some of the cutest free knitting patterns online. And, Mochimochi is having a photo contest. You knit up one of the patterns (free or purchased), take a picture, submit it on Flickr and maybe you'll win cute stuff.
The other free pattern is from the new and fabulous Pimp Stitch:
If you read other crafty blogs, you have probably already caught on to Pimp Stitch, but if not, enjoy the free patterns they have planned. I know I will be. The site looks like it will be an awesome pattern/idea source for embroidery fans.
Posted byHello Pineapples! on Monday, June 09, 2008 1 comments
filed under: blogs, embroidery, free pattern friday, knit
Wednesday's Website: How About Orange (and then some)
As I was trying to decide on a website to write about today, an odd-ish thing happened: I noticed that two of these sites appeared on the top 50 blogger powered blogs and appeared very close to one another. Along with them was a blog that I had recently come across and enjoyed. A sort of interesting coincidence, n'est pas? I think I'll take that as a sign to write about all three.
#44 is PoppyTalk, which is described as "A Canadian design blog collecting inspiration and promoting emerging design talent." It's a roundup of design, craft, DIY, and just plain pretty. It's also a great resource for those who are into design: PoppyTalk provides a ton of links to take you all over the arts and crafty internets. I also like that it's Canadian. My complaints about the site: it's a little bit too busy and the links to different sections of the site open up a new window/tab. I appreciate sites that link to a new window when I'm headed to a new site, but it's excessive when I'm exploring the same site. Regardless, I like PoppyTalk and I like how it is separated into sections such as 'affordable art' (my kind of art!), 'the decayed' (aka. vintage), and 'collecting' (a look at the collections of design folks).
#43 is Bitch, PhD., which is "A feminist, leftist and personal blog." Not exactly crafty in nature, but I appreciate it because I am attempting to finish my MA in Women's Studies and I'm a member of the Women's Centre Board of Directors at my school. These things mean that school, feminism, and sometimes just feeling like a bitch are all on my mind. But to make a link between feminism, a PhD and craft, I'm going to link to the work of "maximalist artist" Allyson Mitchell. My favourite is her Granny Square Wreck Room. I had a chance to help her out with her Finger of Craft exhibit at the Khyber in the fall. It was pretty awesome.
#42 is of no interest to me. I'm sure it's a very good blog, but as I haven't visited it yet, and it does not indicate that it has anything to do with crafts of any kind, I'm not going to bother to visit or write about it right now.
#41 is my choice of the day: How About Orange.
Described as "Visual treats and hands-on projects dreamed up in an orange office", the blog of graphic designer Jessica Jones is one of my favourite reads in Google Reader. She posts on an almost daily basis (which is an awesome feat in itself) about design and crafts and other pretty things. She also provides tutorials for many of her crafts. I'm a huge fan of her desktop designs and the desktops she shares with readers. I'm also in love with the fabric that she has recently designed and is for sale (online) at j. caroline creative.
So, if there is some reason why you are not part of the reason that How About Orange is in the top 50 blogger powered blogs, you really should go check it out.
Posted byHello Pineapples! on Wednesday, June 04, 2008 0 comments
filed under: arts and crafts, blogs, wednesday's website
Stitchin' Jellyfish
I can tell that summer is just about here. Not because we're having some really nice weather, but because I can hear bagpipes off in the distance, probably at a nearby hotel. This city loves its bagpipes. And I guess our tourists do too.
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Still no camera cord, but I do have a camera phone with bluetooth, so here are some pics (as promised) of my jellyfish made of plastic bags:
while that looks like a mess, it really isn't. For the finished jellyfish, I used mainly bread bags. The clear bags make it look transparent-ish, a quality I think is important in a jellyfish. 
I've also made some "yarn" out of a reusable Sobeys bag (that was broken) and some Superstore plastic bags. The superstore bags haven't really worked out so far, but that could be because they were some of my first attempts at plastic yarn and my original method makes them look a little messy. The Sobeys bag crochets up real nice, but I haven't managed to work it into a pattern that I like. 
(the photo is fuzzy because it was hard to take a picture and hold the ruler steady).
I had originally attempted to make some "coral" with the green bag, but no luck - there wasn't enough for it to look good. the jelly fish is a little iffy. I think I'll try making the tentacles with clear bags and some pretty woolly yarn for good measure.
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Since I'm on the subject of sea creatures, here's today's Natalie Dee comic:
nataliedee.com
I frakking love Natalie Dee. Sometimes, when she draws things that coincidentally relate to my life (like pineapples, or cake, or octopi), I feel like she might be my doppleganger and if we were ever to meet, one of us would have to die. She probably isn't my doppleganger. Instead she's probably someone who has a sense of humour that is somewhat similar to my own. But that isn't as fun as saying that I have a doppleganger.
Posted byHello Pineapples! on Tuesday, June 03, 2008 0 comments
filed under: amigurumi, crochet, stitchin' fish
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