Hair Doo-Dads

Well hey there. It's been a while since I posted here, so I thought I'd better get a quick post in. I recently participated in another Craftster swap, this time for hair "doo-dads." I had 3 swap partners, and had to make them each something simple. Here's what I came up with:

For the first partner, who likes the color green and plastic toys in accessories:

For the second partner, who didn't give many guidelines but said she likes bright colors:

I also did a headband for her, since the bobbies were simple:

And here's a detail shot of the bow:

And lastly (my favorite), for the third partner, who likes the color yellow and had a cool bee necklace in her Wists:

The bees and birds are felt and embroidery thread, and every piece required hot glue. Making these was fun, I'll probably make some in the future for myself :)

New Obsession: ATCs

So, I recently started making ATCs for a swap I'm involved in. "What in the world is an ATC?" you wonder? Well, let me enlighten you.

ATC stands for "Artist Trading Card." The only hard and fast rule is that they have to measure 2.5" by 3.5", and they are not supposed to be sold, just traded.

There's more info here, on Craftster. You can also peruse pages of ATCs made by all kinds of crafters.

In this particular swap, participants make lists of different themes in which they would like to recieve ATCs. Person A posts a list, then person B "claims" them for one of there themes, then posts their own list. Person C claims person B for one of there themes, posts their list, and so on (until the end of August). So far, I have made 4 claims. Unfortunately, I didn't get a good picture of the first ATC I made, but here are the other three (and their respective themes):

"Cthulhu"

This one I did in a yarn painting style, with a red Swarovski eye. Here's another angle:

"Edgar Allen Poe"

This is just a collage, with pages from a magazine, a printed portrait of Poe, and black puffy paint. Another angle:

"Om nom nom nom"

Another magazine collage, with a ruffle for textural interest. Here's a pre-ruffle pic that shows the color a little better:

These are super fun to make, and I imagine I'll make a lot more. Anyone can make them, and they give you a chance to try out different techniques and styles on a small scale. I love the "trading card" idea, and I look forward to acquiring a collection :)

The elephant in the room

I mentioned Craftster in my previous post, but I did not really get into how awesome this website is. Basically, it is an enormous forum for discussing, showing off, and looking at all things crafty and homemade. Craftster has a huge user base, and there is enough info and cool stuff to look at on there that you would likely never get through it all.

One of the neat things on Craftster is the organized swap. There are constantly swaps going on, and they all pretty much work the same way:

• Someone comes up with a theme for a swap and posts it
• People sign up
• Original poster divides participants into pairs
• Each participant makes something and sends it to their partner

There are specific guidelines laid out for each swap, but this is basically how it goes. I hadn't done a swap in a while, and decided I felt like doing one the other week. I love making little stuffed animals, so when I saw there was a stuffie swap going on, I thought it could be a lot of fun.

The girl I was paired up with is German, and right around my age. (I am not the only one in my mid-20s who appreciates a stuffie swap. Ha!) When you sign up, you have to fill out a questionnaire so as to give your partner an idea of what you'd like to receive. One of my swap partner's favorite animals is the elephant, so I decided that's what I'd make for her.

When I crochet an animal, I don't use a pattern. I crochet enough that I kind of just know how much to increase or decrease to get the shape I want (most seasoned crocheters would probably tell you the same thing). I work in spirals, creating hollow shapes that I stuff and assemble. Basically, I just make it up as I go along...

Here's a shot of the trunk/head when it still just looked like a cone:

And here are the pieces once I finished them, pre-assembly:

And post-assembly, sitting on my computer:

Now, I liked how the simple, cream-colored shape of the elephant was looking, but it still needed a little something else....

Ribbon?

A good start, but not quite enough. So I added fabric paint eyes and a felt heart, and it was finally finished.

She's on her way to Germany now, I hope she makes her new owner smile :)