Dreaming of glass etching

Hmm... I seriously just want to run to the next craft shop and grab a tube/bottle/whatever-package-it-some-in of glass etching cream. I am itching to etch ;p 

I bet it would make some really cute Christmas presents for the ladies in the family (a.k.a. super experienced housewives in the shape of Mom and Sister in Law). But I am also wondering if it's worth it to just splurge (hm, or maybe not, I don't really know how much glass etching cream costs in Frankfurt, silly me, LOL) on something that might be a total failure.  But then again, this is why it's called 'learning', isn't it?

Now... what will I say again to Mr. Herr to justify the spending... hmmm......

Refashion: Dress up a plain black T-shirt

Did I tell you that we left most of our clothes in Yemen? Yeah? I bet I explained it like a thousand times already, LOL.  Long story short, I was in need of some light, casual T-shirt and decided to ask my dear husband for any old shirts he no longer wears.

I ended up with some white shirts (I hate white shirts, but that's another story), and two back ones.  I decided to start wearing one of the black ones, but first it needs some prettifying, no?

The shirt was rather big, so first step was to take it in in the sides a little bit.  The neck was also a bit too high, so I simply cut around it.  To match the neck, I also cut some centimeter off the sleeves, and left all the edges raw  (they ended up curling up really nicely, so that was good).

Next I made some rough patterns from some old newspaper, and played around with them on the shirt.

Next step is to play around with the yarn.  If you are unsure on how the yarn + pattern will come out, make some trial swatches.  I chose to use only 100% cotton yarn, to avoid having the applique shrinking at different paces.

Crochet away!  Finally attach the applique on to your shirt.  I used black thread for everything, except for the broken-white circle.  I also deliberately did not sew all the way around the biggest circle, to create some sort of pocket, just right for something light like one key (not a whole bunch, mind you) or some tissue paper.  If you decide to make a pocket out of one of the appliques too, make sure you place they pattern in a comfortable place, probably a good idea to pin the pattern on while you are wearing the shirt.

Voila! A 'new' shirt!

My 'secret' pocket!

PS:  My husband was not too convinced at the beginning, but he was quite impressed afterwards.  The shirt also got a rave review during a trip to Spain, so, there you go.  A little bit of color, creativity (and not to mention a bit of guts), goes a long way :)

FIMO buttons, anyone?

 I just came back from a workshop trip on Tenerife, Spain, and I met a wonderful young lady who made jewelery with FIMO, polymer clay product from Staedtler.   I have seen a lot of FIMO products before, but only after I went shopping for supplies with her, I realized that it's a german product, LOL. It's an advantage for me since I read a little bit of German.

There are some free online resources if you are looking for inspiration.  It's available in English and German, although I found out that the German version has some extra tips that are not covered in the English version. Check out the English ideas here, and the German one here.  I would say that you don't necessarily have the required language skill (though it definitely helps), because the instructions come with really helpful pictures.

Hm...now I start wondering if I could make my own buttons with FIMO :)

Vowinckel - craft supply in Frankfurt

Yesterday I finally checked out Vowinckel, a craft supply shop I've been meaning to visit since a while.  

I have to admit that the shop felt quite small when I first entered it.  It gave a very different vibe from Idee, another big craft supply shop in town. I could tend to say that Vowinckel is a bit on the 'oldish' side, especially the way they style the shop.  No nonsense, no frills corner shop packed full of crafting goodies.  It works.

And I finally found what I was looking for, supplies to make your own lampshade from scratch.  It's a bit too late now, since I could not find it when I needed it, so we bought already a nice lampshade for our living room.  But it's always good to know where you can find stuff, right? Just in case ;p They also have quite a good selection of hardware, all sorts of pliers, cutters, punchers, wood burner, etc. etc.  And I seriously eyed a stereofoam half bust.... mmm... I could definitely decoupage it, and use it to display necklaces... Wish I could bring it over to Indonesia as a gift for my niece, LOL.


They seem to have quite a big range of paints and glues (this is not something I usually do, so I have no clue, seriously...).  And they have a whole section of candle making and decorating.  Not that it will be useful for me, hahaha.  What IS useful for me is that section where they have all those tiny metal fixtures; corners, poster hangers, plate hangers (seriously...do you know you can buy this thing you can glue behind you plate, instead of circling the bottom old-fashioned-way with wire...I'm stunned...), towel clippers, really cheap plain magnets (I was so close to grabbing them if I did not have a mental image of us already barely able to see the original surface of our fridge flashing....).

What they don't have in abundance is jewelery-making supply.  They have some beads selection, and quite a big selection of wooden beads.  But the fancy-girly-flashy things you'd like to string together and show off when you go to an opera, (and not to a rock concert), they don't really have them.


At a quick glance, the prices seem to be quite a good value.  All in all, this shop is definitely going to be one of my go-to-destinations in town.


And, finally I want to show off my purchase.... GIANT crochet hooks!! Finally!!!  It's a pity they only have the ones in plastic, not the metal ones, but it's good to finally found them in an actual shop.

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Crocheted key topper

Have you ever experienced the difficulty of finding the right key out of a bundle of similar keys?  I certainly have.  I was thinking more than once to grab one of those elastic key toppers packages, but then again, I was not sure I wanted to exchange trying to remember which key is for which door with which topper color is for which door.  So I really wanted to mark only one key.  But then again, the cheap ones come only more than 4 pieces in a package, and the ones that come in twos are ridiculously expensive.


Then, of course, I could crochet :)  A simple rows of chains, followed by rounds of single crochet until it fits around the key.  Don't cut the yarn before you fit it on the key, so you can pull the opening tightly closed.  Viola! Uniquely yours, a one-of-a-kind crocheted key topper. 

Simple Photography Home Studio

I just got this link in a newsletter, and it's AWESOME! The tutorial from Photojojo shows you how to make a simple home studio with 5 things you probably already have, if you like photography or are setting up your own online shop.
The link is here.


There are other links in the tutorial, and one of them is this one from Strobist, and it's really fun.  Sofbox from cardboard box, why not? I saw other versions like this before, but I think this one is the simplest so far, and it included the option of making it bottomless so you can put it over objects.  Very cool indeed.


Will definitely put that on the list of things to try.

Make what you can

I am a beginner crocheter, and nowadays, that basic skill seems to be useful for our tiny new apartment.

Case in point #1:

I bought 2 pieces of cloth from an interior shop as 'emergency curtain', although they are actually a bit too short.  I just hated the feeling of us so exposed with the big glass windows.  We fixed them on the curtain line with safety pins, LOL.  When we started staying overnight there, I bought two more pieces of similar cloth, and decided to turn them into 'proper' curtain.  

As I was dreading the possibility of cutting and finishing tiny strips of cloth to 'hang' the curtain, I was thinking to use felt strips or ribbon instead.  But wait.... I can theoretically crochet those strips, right?  Yay!!  I ended up crocheting them, and did not have to worry about fraying.

The button and crocheted piece

The finished curtain, before hanging

Tadaaa....

Case in point # 2:

We have a tiny terrace, and it turned out that there is a terrace lamp (look, I've been here a week, okay...give me a break ;p ).  Mr. B said that he didn't like the lamp because the light is too harsh (well, it IS a bit too strong for the size of the terrace, I have to agree), so he has an oil lamp to use outside.

My issue was that I had a 'taste' of that lamp, or rather the oil, when we made our move.  The oil spilled and it stinks like hell.  So I would like to avoid using it at (almost) all cost.

I crocheted a simple net to wrap the light cover, and hoped that it would be good enough to soften the light.  It did help.  Yay!

Before: light off

Before:  light on

After:  light off

After: light on... It works!!!

Frankfurt, June 1, 2011.

Fabric Necklace

Recycle and old favourite dress or shirt into an accessory you could wear daily.  I made mine from old dresses of my mom.  It doesn’t matter if the dress or clothes are a bit damaged, because you only need a thin long strip of material.  Let’s start!

Material:  fabric, batting, wood/plastic bead(s), needle, thread

Optional: ribbon, chain, chopstick


How to:
1.     Measure and cut the fabric in a long strip.  Measure the width to be +- 10 cm.  The length depends on how long you want the necklace to be.  To be on the safe side, measure the length of fabric to be 2 x intended necklace length.

2.    Fold the strip along the length, with the good side inside (facing each other).

3.    Sew along the edge.

4.    After you finish sewing, turn it inside out, so that it makes a tube with the good side of the fabric outside.  You can use chopstick or safety pin to help you turn the tube.

5.    Define the middle of the tube, and insert a bead inside.

6.    Make a knot each on the left and right side of bead.

 7.    Continue filling in the left and the right side of the first knot with batting or beads.  Don’t forget to make a knot after you put each filling inside.  Beads will make the necklace hang low, while batting will make it light and loose, your choice.

8.    There are some variations to finish the necklace:
(a)    You can fill in + knot all around the tube, until it’s all filled and tied.  When you finish, join the ends and sew.

(b)    You can stop filling + knotting after a certain number, and sew the ends of the tubes together.

(c)    You can stop filling + knotting after a certain number, give a little extra space, then cut the tube on both ends.  Finish/sew the ends separately. 

 You can then join this piece with a length or ribbon or chain of your choice.

  9.     Wear it proudly!

My First Granny Square

first granny square

Today I made my first granny square, ever, so I thought it's a perfect opportunity to start writing on this blog.  The pattern that I followed was from JPF Crochet Club website that you can find here.  It's very easy to follow, and I could make it on first try.

I also went to a shopping 'mall' with my mom in law, and stocked on some really delicious (and discounted) yarn *grin*.

Eberstadt, January 26, 2011.