Thrift

So, I don't know where the rest of you folks out in blog land thrift, but for the most part, the thrift stores in my area are the homes of the old and grimy, rather than the cute and kitschy. However, the other day I made this little, adorable discovery at Housing Works:

There was another identical mug as well, and while I felt a little guilty separating the pair it was hard to justify another $4 for the second one, let alone for the first. (Another thing, our thrift stores aren't always that terribly cheap either.... I suppose that's NYC for you).

Too cute though, the mug has a label which says it's dishwasher and microwave safe so you can heat up soup in it ;) It's also says it's circa 1989, the year I was born.

Well, it's almost the new year... still haven't done any crafting since finishing that hat, but I need to make those mittens before I go back to school or I won't have them until next winter :o We'll see what happens ;)

The Houndstooth Hat, and other holiday fare

New yarn and goodies from knitpicks arrived lightning fast and I began on my Center Square. Once I got the hang of the fair isle (this was my first project with colorwork!) I decided I wasn't happy with how the colors were looking in the pattern. So, I frogged the thing and then this morning, started again, using a houndstooth colorwork pattern instead. I finished it about an hour ago, and I am incredibly happy with it! So this is also my first finished object in a single day ;) (and I still had time to beat my dad at risk, and loose at various other games, including a very close game of scrabble in which I had a 40+ point move! We also ate wonderful homemade pizza (pesto, potato, carmalized onions, and goat cheese) and cookies and other things... so overall, a very good day!) Anyway, here is the hat:




Oh, and another cute Christmas thing: on the way back from my french lesson yesterday I noticed a Christmas tree stand selling "Charlie Brown Christmas Trees" for $1 each. I thought it was way too adorable, and since it's been a few years since we've had a tree, (we don't really celebrate Christmas, though we used to get a tree when I was little and call it a "Hannukah Bush" haha) I thought why not? It was extra fun because my dad and I called my mom telling her we got a tree and she was a little angry because of all the work she would have to do... until she got home and say this:

needless to say, she cracked up ;) And my dad thought it was appropriate that our tree be smaller than our menorah (which was still out yesterday since we had a belated Hannukah celebration when I got home from school)
(The trimmings are all my doing of course. And yes... those are earrings ;) haha)

Merry Christmas and Happy Holidays to all who celebrate! And to everyone else, I hope you had a fabulous day ;)

A Lack of Posting: brought to you by college

So, here I am. My first term of college is done, and while it's been fantastic, it left me with almost no time for crafting. I was so busy... there just wasn't even a moment. For blogging either in that matter. From classes that were hard, to the show I was in--yes, I am quoted in both articles ;), and working as a newscaster at the radio station, and acting in a student film, and new friends... I could go on and on. In the past 4 months all I managed to do craft-wise was to finish this unicorn for a swap:


and to start knitting my first sweater, thermal. I'm a bit further along than this poor picture portrays as I was stuck in Ithaca for an extra day after my exams ended due to snow. Beautiful snow. So what did I do? Knit of course.



brought to you by:


Anyway, while I'm going to miss my friends, my cast mates, and so many other amazing things, I'm excited for more knitting and sewing and crafting over this break. I hope to knit some mittens and maybe hats too, work more on more of my thermal, stitch up some gifts... perhaps... (suggestions anyone?) and maybe even make that dress I've been wanting to start since the summer. I don't know... there are always plenty of things that I intend to do, though one of them certainly is to blog about whatever does get created, and if I don't do this- yell at me! haha. But first... to unpack the exorbitant amount of stuff I brought back with me, including a lot of craft supplies who were sadly neglected up at school.... ah yes... I'll get to that...

Once upon a time there was a girl named Natch

Wow... last post August 1st... 17 days later I left for college and the rest is history. So, yes, basically, I am still alive, but now that I'm at Cornell I have almost no time to craft, let alone blog. I am doing my best to keep up the visual journal I started in July, though I had to cheat and make September after it happened, and maybe I'll share some of those pages with you at some point. However, other than that it looks like both blogging and crafting will be primarily a winter and summer break phenomenon. So, don't forget me, I'm around, and I miss the crafting community oh so much, but my school work, rehearsals, and choices about what I may be doing with the rest of my life come first. haha. Keep crafting and enjoy, I hope to be back here more permanently soon, though likely it won't be until December. :(

My new children

The past week or two has been filled with lots of crafting tidbits combined with driving, work, and college preparation (accompanied by the necessary freak outs).

The weekend of the 21st (yes, Harry Potter weekend, and yes I did get the book at midnight and finish it before the weekend was out) was spent up in the Berkshires which lent itself to more driving practice, and you guessed it- craft shopping. While Joann's did not satisfy my palate in terms of fabric, I did come home with a Built by Wendy pattern, as well as many other supplies ranging from foam and felt to thread and cover buttons. Very exciting indeed.

However, other than Mr. Potter, the highlight of the weekend was spending time with my grandfather... and building the newest addition to my crafting family. A swift. When I arrived home I ordered a ball winder online and just this Monday I was finally able to enjoy some blissful yarn winding time.

she's a little crooked but she was made with love and care and I'm so excited by how these two new toys work together! Winding up beautiful little cakes of yarn is such a breeze... and such fun! Granted my setup is a little... erm, makeshift... right now, but maybe someday I'll have a table to use for these things.

Anyway. Tracking back a bit, last Friday merited my first trip to Purl Patchwork downtown to spend a gift certificate from my birthday. And what a fantastic place this is! I was sad that I deterred myself from purchasing from superbuzzy during the last update, and this really lifted my spirits. While the store is small, bolts of gorgeous fabric- ranging from Japanese to Amy Butler to anything you might desire- are piled high. It's such eye candy!
Anyway, I came away with a nice little addition to my ever growing fabric collection.

and yes, those are the ever coveted little Japanese hedgehogs... oh how they set my heart afire ;)

However, I did not stop at that. Saturday we took a trip up to Ikea for dorm shopping and came home with quite a nice little haul. I think my favorite thing was Ikea's "yarn store" which demonstrated storage and other furniture for small business... but it was so great! I didn't get to spend long mulling over fabrics because we had other clear purposes, but as you can probably tell from the picture above, I did not come away empty handed in that department.

With all these new fabrics in tow you can imagine my desire to cut into something at once. The Japanese fabric still being too precious to me, I broke into my piece from Ikea to create a cloth grocery bag.

This baby is strong! And he has a lot of character. Unfortunately his lining (from Germany) is quite bulky and so he does not fold into his pocket like he should. However, I love him and took him for a test run recently.

Something about carrying this baby around makes me feel very hip... hahaha. And I love how miserably he clashes with many of my outfits... I really do love it ;)

Well, this post is getting on now... but I promise I'll have more exciting things to show you soon. Including another new baby who excites me more than you can believe! Oh just you wait and see ;) hahaha

Dankeshen

Now, I know you've all been waiting to here more about my trip to Germany, and especially to see pictures of all the delightful things I got while I was there. In Berlin, we visited many flea markets, including a huge one which had many "craft" type booths, a Turkish market, and various shops. We also spent time in Gorlitz, Dresden, and the Saxon Switzerland region while paying super quick visits to Poland and the Czech Republic. The trip was fantastic and I'm so excited to show you everything I brought home with me ;)

First, buttons. Flea markets are always loaded with vintage buttons, but I happen to think I picked up an especially fabulous batch that my photos just don't do justice to.


A few of my favorites:

(the small flowers came in all sorts of colors, and I may use a little paint or polish to fix up their insides)

I found this great hat at the same flea market:


Later, I found this handcrafted felt hat at a sort of craft market set up near our hotel:


And got a lovely dress from some very nice crafters who gave me tips about the Turkish markets (for fabric):

(do excuse my mess of a room)

The advice was good, and I brought home 3 yards of simple, but beautiful, cloth.
I've already paired one of them with two pieces from my stash ;)
(The first 3 on the left are from the market, the two on the right are from my stash)


Close up of the printed one:


I even picked up these shoes at the same market! Any tips for how I can seal them so they won't get too too dirty?


My largest, and most favorite purchase from the trip had to be this fantastic messenger bag (Though the felt hat comes in close behind, it doesn't count because my mom bought it for me) ;)

The flaps unzip and are interchangeable... the walls of the entire store were full of flap choices. It was great! Visit www.taushe-berlin.de for fantastic photos of more of their bags and their shop. Plus, their name is a combination of "tauschen" (to change) and "Tasche" (bag) - how cool is that?

detail of back zip where you change the flaps:


Lastly, as a tourist in Berlin, I had to buy a small piece of the wall... even if I don't like the idea of making money off of things like this.

also pictured is an adorable "make your own matchbox diorama" set given to me by the woman at the toy museum in Gorlitz ;)

I know it seems like our vacation was all shopping, but we spent quite a lot of time exploring, visiting museums, and seeing beautiful scenery and architecture... I promise!

More from me soon, as we will be in the Berkshires this weekend, which, of course, means a trip to Joanne's ;)

Matryoshka's for my Travels

So, I have returned from Germany and had an absolutely wonderful time. I will, of course, soon have lots of goodies to show you from my trip, but first I'd like to show you the new wallet I made myself right before I left. I'm really pleased with it because of it's small size and the larger capacity it has than the last wallet I made, which is now ragged and falling apart.

It took a lot of trial and error, because while I loosely based it on a craftster tutorial, I was pretty much making it up as I went along, which makes me even more pleased with the results.

I used a discount print I found at Joanne's which I think is really charming, plus I had enough of it not to worry about wasting it with all my trial and error.

Anyway, without further ado, pictures:

front of the wallet:


opened:

3 card pockets, 1 clear ID pocket, two misc pockets (where the papers are sticking out) and of course, the cash money pocket.

inside the cash pocket:


and the part I'm proudest of (and what my last wallet was really lacking)- the zippered coin pocket on the back:

It proved quite useful in Berlin, especially since 1 and 2 euro are coins!

Since returning from my trip I've gotten right back on the crafting circuit.
Most recently I carved an "initial stamp" which I plan to be offering in craftster's SSS round 10. I'm so excited! :)


Anyway, goodies from my trip to follow soon, along with the final transformation of a WIP to a KIP which I know you've all been waiting for ;) haha

As we go on, we remember...

So, I went and graduated on you, how about that?


But this blog isn't about all that, what's most important are my crafty endeavors, eh?

So, I do have a few things I wanted to show you.

First, the bag (remember the one I was knitting on all of those spring break flights?) is done. The pocket isn't shown in this picture, but I finished knitting that as well. All that's left now is to felt it up and put it together. I'm excited :)


I also had a sweet 16 a weekend ago (it's been a while since I had one of those) and had no gift on the day of. So, I whipped up an ipod case (a little messy as I had no real pattern and had never made an ipod case before) and got her an itunes gift card. Overall I was fairly pleased with it. The pictures are awful though as I snapped them as I was running out the door.


I also have a new, many pocketed wallet, to show you, as well as a lace knitted "market bag" I started on, and some plastic fabric I ironed up. However, all this for another day as I prefer to take my photos in the daylight.

Tomorrow I go into school one last time to pick up my final report card and diploma (yes, they only hand us a diploma case at graduation). Then Thursday I leave for a week and a little in Berlin, so I may not post again for a while. However, I do hope to return with lots of crafty and thrifty goodies to show you and will finally be able to show you the great graduation dress which is sadly hidden under my robe in the picture above.

I leave you for now with a nice little graduation appropriate quote I found through some crafty page or another...

"Promise me you'll always remember... you're braver than you believe, and stronger than you seem, and smarter than you think" said Christopher Robin. ;)

Ran away to Renegade

Wow, it's been a long time again, hasn't it? Well, it really is summer now, and I hope to be able to bring you more consistent, continuous, craft filled posts in the near future.

Any the way, this weekend was the Renegade Craft fair in Brooklyn, and it was absolutely spectacular! It my my first time attending the event and my mom accompanied me since Helen couldn't come with (her grandfather passed away, and on father's day- how awful!) :(

Despite the sad news, and once I overcame my shell shock, I had a truly terrific time! While I was still too shy to really say hi to some of my favorite bloggers/craft world idols (such as Heidi and Emily) I did partake in the buying of their wares, which are only that much more wonderful in person. If anyone saw me, I was the sheepish girl with big rectangular sunglasses and a brown t-shirt reading "Natch." (I made it for the occasion, but don't have photos as of yet because it's in the wash- boy it was hot yesterday!)

In the end, I did my best to control my spending (that was certainly a challenge) and came home with:

Two journals (I am so in love with everything this guy makes! These books are blank journals with some of the original pages interspersed and are quite possibly my new favorite thing!) from Jacob at ex libris anonymous. The tuba one is for me (of course) and the other (which also has the most charming illustrations inside) is for Helen. This guy will even make notebooks out of books you send him for only $9 a peach! How fantastic!
And, a beautiful print from Miss Emily at theblackapple which is already hanging on my wall (though still in it's plastic as I have no frame and it is certainly worth protecting)


A used tissue for Helen (I thought it was ironically appropriate... but also darling) from the wonderful Heidi over at mypapercrane. Though I'm wishing I bought something of hers for myself, I kept gazing wistfully back at those cute little milk cartons...
A wonderful monster from Mad Science, who is new to me, but I'm so glad I discovered.
and a cute little clutch from cotton cupcakes, which is the only purchase I'm regretting just a twinge, because I know if I tried really hard, I could have made it myself. (Though not with that lovely owlie fabric...)


I also picked up some fabric (and a free lolly) from the reprodepot booth


and won a raffle at the adorn and knit magazine booths! The bag was filled with yarn and other goodies, and the included crochet hook inspired me to give crocheting another try when I got home...

resulting in my first crochet FOs, three lovely little flowers:

I'm certain I didn't do it "correctly" but I think they came out alright. Now I want to make a cloche hat to put them on. (I tried on and fell in love with this hat at the fair... but $100-$140 for a hat, even as stunning as that, I just can't afford)

More craft and less shop soon. I have a few FOs to blog about. I know you don't believe me, but I swear!

Back In Action

Yes, I know, it has been quite a long time. Well, now that my senior year is drawing to a close, my APs are over, and so are the band concert and the musical (which both went fabulously well), I finally have some time to craft again.

I'll start by sharing something that I made quite some time ago, but it's pretty exciting as I suppose you could call it my first commissioned work. A double sided stamp for someone who plans on using them in their jewelery:



More recently, inspired by the fact that I was unhappy with my summer wardrobe, and still had very little time to go shopping, I also started work on a dress using the fabric I got way back in San Franciso.



No pictures of the dress itself yet as I still need to add straps and hem or cut it to a length, but I think it's looking good so far, and I'm pretty proud as I just made it up as I went along.

However, I did complete the reconstruction of an old pair of jeans into some shorts. I wish I had a before picture, but these were jeans I had played with when I was younger, and entirely destroyed. I had ripped the side seams out to add big triangles of Asian inspired fabric that was now in a state of fray and decay. There were also some crude patches sprinkled over the lower half of the jeans. It's reasonable to say that after this job I never wore them, at least out of the house, again. Recently, I brought them back to life by cutting the pants, ripping the seams open again and removing the fabric, and then sewing them back up to a normal size. I then added the lace to polish them off.


Lastly, I spent memorial day weekend up in the Berkshire's with my Grandparents, and got a chance to pay a visit to Joanne's. I picked up some cute fabrics and discovered some Dritz cover button kits, which I picked up with very little confidence, thinking they wouldn't work well. However, I was elated to find out that I was wrong! I am in love with these little things and my only problem is that now I want more, more, more! However, it'll be a while before I can go to Joanne's again, so I settled for making 3 cute buttons which, no pin backs available, I sewed on to the messenger bag I am now using for school, as the end of senior year has rendered my Jansport obsolete.

the moo print fabric and the matreshkas are both new from Joanne's, while the giraffe is from something older from P&S.

This weekend I also finished up my prom shopping with some great shoes and a bag. Soon I'll be able to show you those fantastic dresses I raved about... prom is on Thursday!

Any the way, I can hardly wait for the move in to summer so I can start making more and more things! ...I'm also excited for my move to college in mid August!
Did I mention I'll be joining fellow crafter Avian Flight at Cornell University in the fall?


I apologize for how long overdue this post was, and for my lack of eloquence today. I hope I can bring you more frequent quality blogging in the future ;)

Vintage Heaven

I spent the better part of yesterday with my mother at the Manhattan Vintage Show, and it was absolutely wonderful. When I entered the doors of the Metropolitan Pavilion, I was in absolute vintage crafter and designer heaven. I was so overwhelmed that I don't know if I made the best use of my time, but I did manage to find what I was looking for: the perfect non-traditional prom dress, which turned out to be 1980s Mary McFadden, and not a bad price either! I also fell completely in love with a 1950s summer green and white eyelet dress, which although was not on the agenda, was deemed the perfect graduation dress, and also purchased. This one was a bit more pricey, being vintage Dior, but after getting such a good deal on the prom dress, and seeing how in love with it I was, my mom bought it for me anyway. She also got a kick out of how eternally grateful I was, doing favors for her for the rest of the day.

I also bought some amazing saddle shoes and an adorable, bright yellow 70s culotte. There was some lovely vintage fabric at the show, and I was especially drawn to a gorgeous piece with little poodles all over it. However, I was turned off after discovering the $24 price tag, though in retrospect, the booths all had such a wide range of prices that I should have looked harder. Ah well, there's always next time... I believe the next show is in October... hopefully I can come back from school to go!

Anyway, enough boring you with my rambles, and I apologize that I can't show you the dresses, but both of those must wait for their respect reveal dates before anyone lays eyes on them ;)
However, I can share a few things:

Those perfect saddle shoes, with real buckles in the back!


Can't you tell I'm ready for spring? Thank goodness the weather has been fabulous since Friday! (Oh, and do excuse the dirty hair ;P)

Well, I suppose that's all I have for now. I'm sorry this blog has been more clothes and less craft lately, I've been awfully busy, and mostly working on things for other people, but I promise to have some crafts to post soon!

Across the country and back again

Well, Spring break is over and done, and now it is time to get back in swing with the rest of the year. I had a fantastic time both in Brunswick and San Francisco and was not without crafty things on my mind.

One of the highlights of my fabulous weekend in Brunswick with Mary was the fabulous flea market inside an old mill. There was so much to see and so much I wanted to get my hands on, but I managed a few especially stellar finds, The highlight being a potential dress for prom, Vintage Gunne Sax, for $12.50! I know for a fact the original price was at the very least over $100. It makes my thrifty bones tingle a bit ;)

(I'm afraid I don't photograph myself very well, and can hardly do the dress justice)

I also snagged a few beautiful vintage buttons for about $6 and a fantastic pair of black, gold plated cameo earrings (1920s-30s so the woman who sold them to me said).


I also picked up some fun fabric remnants and a bounty of colorful acrylic felt from a cute everything store in town and a few fabulous deals from the Ralph Lauren store in Freeport. Not to mention that Mary and I had a wonderful time.

Then, after a few days at home, it was off to San Francisco to meet the gang. We saw the sites- Chinatown, Fisherman's Warf, Ghirardelli Sqaure, Japan Center, Haight Asbury, the Golden Gate Bridge, Sausalito- and I picked up a few fun things. While I managed, barely, to pull myself away from the kitschy ceramics in Brunswick, particularly a cute squirrel salt and pepper shaker set, I could not resist this little bank in Chinatown for only $2.


I also found a few great pieces in the Haight area at a store called Buffalo exchange, the highlight being this Mark Jacobs sweater for a mere $30. Normally, I am not such a brand oriented person, but beauty and quality can just be so hard to resist.


We has an amazing trip, and got some exercise too while biking across the Golden Gate bridge!


Sorry this post was so much thrift and ramble, and so little craft, but the many plane rides did give me an opportunity to get some knitting done.

I am now well in to knitty's satchel, a project I started especially for these trips and am very excited about.

I also had a chance to test an adorable pattern for a stuffed turtle by everyone's favorite Hillary Lang, but I shall refrain from posting pictures just yet.

More soon now that the window escapades are through with and I am back home in the land of craft.