Tuesday, January 30, 2007

The camera cord is missing.

That means no blog updates, because really, what is a craft blog update without photos? Nothing, in my opinion. Recent news in short:

1. finished the kittyville, no ears. This has been done a while actually, but the ears were still being debated.
2. Helen came over which led to Recycling my (and her) first yarn. Mine was 100% grey merino wool from a goodwill sweater ($7- I know, pricey for goodwill, but still cheapo for lovely yarn!) It's a little skinnier than DK weight, not really lace though, I dunno.
3. Dyed my first yarn. One "skein" (3.5 oz) of the grey recycled + 3 packs of red kool aid + microwave and pyrex = one "skein" of variegated grey-pink-cranberry yarn. So soft and pretty :) (Though maybe has more grey left than I'd like ;P)
4. Finished everything for the owl swap. I'm so happy with the results. But of course, I couldn't post pictures of this anyway.
5. next project= using this yarn for knitty's branching out as a birthday gift for my mom? This might be a little too ambitious.

No pictures, so that is all for now.

Tuesday, January 23, 2007

Shopping Spree

Today I went on a craft shopping spree. I woke up on the early side and explored the garment district, including a stop at Daytona Trims, and then went downtown to P&S Fabrics. It was wonderful. Funny, I was also in the Canal area last night for dim sum, bubble tea, and dessert... but that's another story- wonderful as well though, I assure you! Sadly, I did forget to bring my knitting for the long train ride back uptown- the 6 from Canal to 96th- I am making good progress on my kittyville hat, maybe 4 inches or so done? I'm excited :) But now I have even more to work on! ;P

Anyway, when I arrived home, laden with packages, my huge zipper lot from ebay arrived! Yes, that's right, 90 zippers in all length and all colors. Anyone up for a swap?? Haha.

Anyway, here's the haul!


3 beautiful floral/paisley prints. The top one is linen, the others are cotton I think. 1 yard ea.


brown floral cotton and brown paisley cord, 1 yard ea.


Cotton prints from P&S- sewing notions, peaches, floral, and animals.


The whole shabang!
Including: "tape measure" ribbon, magnetic snaps, assorted buttons, thread, 3 yards of fusible interfacing, a plain canvas tote for stenciling, 8 pieces of felt, knitting needles, and the zippers.

Almost all of it was really cheap too!! Of course, add up a lot of really cheap things and you've spent a decent amount... but still, it was worth it ;)

So, yes, I had a fun day. Now to start crafting with it all!!

Saturday, January 20, 2007

All boxed up and ready to go

The mini-gloves are finished!
These were great because they were such a quick knit. The second glove (to the right) is a tad looser, the bottom ribbing is slightly shorter, and the top ribbing is slightly longer, but I'm still very happy with them. This is my first knitted gift, other than a chunky garter stitch scarf I made my Dad when I first learned, so I hope they are well received. The girl I made them for really wanted me to knit her something, so I think she'll like them.


and here they are, all boxed up and ready to go. The box is a tiny thing from a gift package we received this holiday, and the gift tag is from my one very experimental attempt at handmade paper. I repeat, very experimental. I tied it up with lace because I have way more lace than ribbon lying around, haha.


Now, no more knitting until after my exams next week... hah, right. ;)

Friday, January 19, 2007

In the beginning, Natch created...

a blog. So, welcome to my brand new craft blog, The Natchbox. Why The Natchbox? Well, I'm Natch, often known as Nathalie or Nat, and I'm just super witty, alright? ;P Anyway, now that I am practically a second term senior and have a little free time on my hands, I wanted to establish my own little place on the web where I post my crafts, etc. I love to sew, knit, and stencil, and am always experimenting and trying new things.

Anyway, I thought I'd start out with a few of my most recent finished objects and works in progress.

First, a reversible tote bag I made from a navy bed sheet, interfacing, and red star fabric I received in a swap. It was based on the tutorial found here. The pockets on mine are a bit short, and I had to switch threads from dark red to lighter red partway through, but overall I'm very happy with it. I took it to my Cornell interview today (navy side out) and received a compliment from my interviewer!

and a close up of the red star fabric and my wonky top stitching:


I also stenciled this shirt last weekend, inspired by a Mary Poppins bag challenge on craftster, which I probably won't get a chance to enter. I love Mary Poppins, so I decided to stencil a T-shirt instead. I made the stencil myself, based on a movie cover, and am quite happy with the result. I'm trying to decide if it needs something else, but I've already worn it and gotten some compliments, so we'll see if I feel like making changes.


Last but not least, I am working on these fingerless gloves for a friend's birthday on Monday. I finished one last night and cast on for the other this morning. They are a super quick knit, from this site, and I am loving the result!


I am also working on some things for a swap, but can't show any of that off yet.

Anyway, to a future of happy crafting and posting, cheers!