Crafthope Sock Monkey, Bicultural Ann, and the Legend of Zelda Costume

Mr. Stilton, Jr.,  here is our contribution to Crafthope #4.  We had a hard time boxing him up–I’d never made a sock monkey before this project.  Curiously, while I was making the cheerfully striped Mr. Stilton, Sr., (he of the mind-bendingly long limbs), and his little friend, I discovered that everyone in my household wanted [...]

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Baby Steps

Aren’t these adorable?  I whipped them up while waiting for the world to cool off enough that I could go to bed.  Thanks to the incomparable Saartje de Bruijn’s pattern (free!), they couldn’t be easier.  I’m going to make a bunch of them and have them stashed away for unexpected baby gifts–which seem to come [...]

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Butterfly Wishes

In February,  I started doing this very strange (and strangely addictive and amazing) kind of yoga called Shiva Nata, the Dance of Shiva.  The god Shiva, among other things, superintends the destroying and creating of the universe; this form of yoga essentially destroys and creates your brain while you’re doing it–in the best possible way, I [...]

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Steampunkery: Robot Children

Little Sunshine is designing and executing a series of redwork robots (say:  roe-buts) for me.  She does wonderful, evocative line drawings of robots and cityscapes–I have a folder full of them.  They translate beautifully into redwork, and she’s getting to be a very skillful needlewoman.  If you’d like a copy of one of these, drop me [...]

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Gold Diggers of 2009

Here’s Frankie again–with her new basket, bell, and flower.  I decided against the $60 basket at the bike shop, and went to Michael’s instead, where I picked up this perfect lined basket for$15 on clearance!  Rushed home and whipped up a flower (tutorial here) for the front.

It’ll be a diamond bracelet next.  I just can’t [...]

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Tweetcret Santa Revisited or, I Score Big

My fussing about Tweetcret Santa has not yet come to an end.  Mia Hansen sent me this beautiful little ceramic dish, crafted by Laura McKibbon, a friend of hers whose business is called Cul-de-Sac Design.  It was wrapped in the beautiful Erte print wrapping paper you see as background.  Total coolness!
Thank you, Mia, for resolving my [...]

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Tweetcret Santa

One of the blogs I follow is the terrific I Like, a design and coolness kind of blog which first caught my attention with its great pictures of British tearooms and cafes in decline, and its love for Tunnock’s.  Now she’s hosting a Tweetcret Santa. 
I have Secret Santa trauma.  Once upon a time, I went into [...]

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Little Sunshine’s new winter ensemble

Little Sunshine has outgrown her winter coat from 4 years ago–both physically and spiritually.  A trip to the Ross Dress for Less revealed her hitherto hidden talent for ferreting out high-end fashion.  We traded down from Calvin Klein (a bargain at $130 marked down from $300) to this very elegant Kenneth Cole pea coat.  But [...]

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Halloween Embroidery Patterns

Some embroidery patterns for Halloween–a creative collaboration between Tuxedo Boy and myself.  (He did the artwork, and I stitched it up.)
Suitable for tea towels, handbags, tee-shirts, handkerchiefs, and napkins, these three fabulous holiday patterns will be available at my Etsy shop, Underhill, Ltd., in a day or two.  In the meantime, we’ll be giving one set of patterns [...]

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Little Sunshine Saves the Planet

Little Sunshine is extremely environmentally conscious, and it’s thanks to her prompting that I (sometimes) remember to take my own grocery bags to WinCo.  She and Tuxedo Boy have really gotten into shopping lately–they’re helping plan the meals, which means that Monday is spaghetti-in-front-of-the-tv (Bones and House!) night, and Friday night is pizza night.  They [...]

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