Humorous Walk In The Woods Poster

A walk in the woods helps me relax and release tension. The fact that I'm dragging a body is totally irrelevant. I particularly like the shovel and the implied hole it rests on.

I have directions for making the Instagram style effect on my blog 365 Projects.

Available on Etsy

How To Make A Stone Texture Background in Photoshop

Start a new file in Photoshop with a white background.

Channels Palette. Click the Create New Channel icon to add a new Alpha 1 channel.
Filter > Render > Difference Clouds. The dark areas make the crevices and light areas are hills.
Activate the RGB Channel.
Filter > Render > Light Effects. Play with the sliders until you are happy with the effect.

Follow The River and You Will Find The Sea Poster

Wouldn't be nice to gently bob along to the ocean? I put a paper boat in the Mississippi River yesterday; it should be there soon.

Available on Etsy
 

Vintage Gift Seals Label Free Digital Download

I've been a little busy with my new blog, 365 Projects, but I wanted to share this sweet vintage package label. You can get a high resolution download here. The back of the paper label is blank so I can't tell you who the original manufacturer was.

Book Launch Party

Last night I went to a college friend's book launch party. The soiree was held in a gorgeous old library.

I haven't seen her since 1978 so I was looking forward to reconnecting with her and another college chum.

The encounter was a far cry from our college days, it was classic Minnesota nice. It's hard to believe how close we were before I moved out of the dorm.

Four Minimalist Movie Posters

March will be full of creatures at my blog 365 Projects and I've been scheduling posts in advance so I'm not tied to the computer on weekends.

Yesterday I made the following 4 monster movie posters.

Teen Wolf. There's a bad moon on the rise.
Arachnophobia. Yeah, that's right... I'm bad.
Slither. Let the hunt begin
Mimic. Funny Shoes.

It's a blast to distill a movie into a simple image. 

Learning From Experience Poster

Good judgement comes from experience, and a lot of that comes of bad judgement. You may run into  problems but the journey is always interesting.

I did this design for a class where the goal was to utilize simple shapes to show movement while using the golden mean.



Available on Etsy

Rube Goldberg Salad Making Machine Poster Print

I heard a stick of butter fall off a shelf inside the frig and ricochet downward. I thought, wouldn't it be great if your food could prepare itself. The salad making machine is a bit more work than the traditional method but would be a lot more entertaining.

 Available on Etsy
 

Your Purpose In Life Poster Print

It may be that your sole purpose in life is simply to serve as warning to others. It's good to give people a heads up.

I particularly like the dynamics of the large circle teetering off the edge while the smaller circle strives to keep everything balanced.

 Available on Etsy

If At First You Don't Succeed Skydiving Is Not For You Poster Print

I fight the impulse to do stupid things. Sometimes I give in but so far I've manged to stay in one piece.

Every once in a while you get lucky and fly through gorgeous clouds. This was a good day.

Available on Etsy
 

Statue of Liberty Silhouette Poster

I did this illustration as artwork for an  announcement for someone who just became a United States citizen. I left the text out for this posting.

Available on Etsy

What Happens Around the Campfire Stays At The Campfire Poster Print

I adore this sweet vintage illustration and the rustic wood branch font is so much fun.

The illustration was from a 1920's songbook and the girls clothing resembles 1920s era Girl Scout uniforms.

Available on Etsy
 

Vacation In A Can

I've admired these magnetic metal spice containers at Ikea but have been stumped for a use.

I made a fake vintage postcard using two of my photos. The tins allow for an image 3.5 inches in diameter. We collect sand everywhere we travel so I had some available to insert in the tin.

The depth was a bit more than I wanted so I put 2 layers of corrugated cardboard behind the printed image.

The photo came out very blue because every time I got near a light source the plastic lid had reflected images. My inner 12 year old goes Blue Hawaii and giggles. The tin insert actually looks like the image above but with sand.

How To Make Mini Saddle Stitched Notebooks Made From Comic Books

Somehow my kids keep ending up with free comic books which they don't read.   I wanted to do something with them other than the recycling bin so I started making mini notebooks that I enclose with my Stray Squirrels Etsy items.

Remove the staples from your comic book.

Tear the double pages into single pages and choose the best looking side to be the front side of the cover.

I made these booklets with 3 sheets of white paper which makes a 6 page booklet.
 

Determine how wide your cover will be and put a tape mark on the stapler so you know how far in to staple. My finished booklets are 3 1/8" x 5". Each page will make two booklets so you need to do 2 sets of staples. I just eyeball it but you can measure if you prefer the spacing to be exact.

The cover now has 4 staples. The paper I happen to be using is tabloid size but regular copy paper works better.

I use a bone folder to press down the staples if they aren't laying nicely. This is an excellent stapler so it isn't an issue, but some of my other staplers don't work as well.

Fold the spine along the staple line using your hands. Use the bone folder to make a crisper fold along the spine.





















Cut the long edge of the booklet. Again, mine is 3 1/8 inches wide. Turn the book so the spine is along the top edge of the cutter and trim one end. Trim the other end so the booklet is 10 inches long. Cut the booklet in half so you have two, 5 inch long pieces.

Buffy hopped up on the table to supervise and became a little jealous when she wasn't in the photos.

New Blog 365 Projects Exporing Subjects For 30 Days

Here is the header for my newest blog, 365 Projects

I just made the favicon for it and discovered that Blogger now has a spot to insert a favicon on the layout page. Yippee! No more writing code.

I'm very pleased with the logo since it's replete with symbolism for me but I won't bore you with the layers of meaning.

Illustrated March Calendar To Do List

I love paper planes, they symbolize freedom and possibilities, which can be in short supply in one of our endless Minnesota winters.

Winter is great but by the end of March it seems like enough for one year. My friends on the west coast are putting in gardens while I'm trying to decide whether to chip dog poo out of the ice or salt the spot the mail carrier keeps getting stuck in by the mailbox.

Illustrated February Calendar To Do List

I have activities that I try to do every day and it's nice to track how successful I am achieving that goal.

As the job is done, I cross off the date.

I try to clean something beyond day to day cleaning, doing dishes doesn't count. It's my way of keeping up with household tasks without a major time commitment.

Most of the jobs are usually pretty quick but this helps keep me on track and perhaps someday I'll be able to play the guitar well or hold a conversation in Spanish without asking why Grandma has a parrot on her head.

Beach Themed Love Note Treasure Hunt

I normally do riddle laden scavenger hunts for Birthdays but this time I did something a little different.

I took a sand dollar image, duplicated it and printed it on heavy paper with messages about what makes him special. I did one message for each year.

I put a little sand from one of our trips in the bottom of a container and then layered the messages and sand until the container was filled.

He then had to dig through the sand with his fingers to find the messages.

Only Boring People Are Bored Poster

I get restless but never bored. There is always something interesting to do but it would be better if it was done in a new location; preferably Fiji.

Available on Etsy

Rasta Umbrella Bob Marley Quote Poster

Some people feel the rain. Others just get wet.

The Rasta rain flows off the edge of the paper.

Jamaica was the first stamp in my passport and the country has a very special place in my heart. It's where I learned to sail and snorkeling was a lot more fun when the fish are colors other than beige.


Available on Etsy

 

Chasing Buses Double Crochet Filet Stitch Scarf Pattern

Alethea had scarf envy and handed me a small ball of wool yarn. I knew I needed an airy design to compensate for limited resources but she also wanted a warm scarf.

I called the pattern Chasing Buses since my other daughter just started taking classes at the U of M and she had multiple bus adventures today. The solid parts represent the streets and the holes are her footsteps in the snow as she ran.

The first row is the filet stitch followed by 3 rows of double crochet.

Here is the pattern.

Use the crochet hook size recommended by the weight of your yarn. This scarf was done using a G hook.

I chained on 30 stitches since the scarf is worked in a repeating pattern of three and I prefer odd numbers.

Insert your hook in the 6th chain from the hook and DC, chain 2, DC in the 3rd chain  from the last stitch. Repeat DC, chain 2, DC until you reach the end of the chain. Chain 3 and turn. (You now have a row of 9 filet stitches)

The chain 3 is your first stitch.
2 DC in the chain 2 space. DC in the top of the previous filet double crochet stitch. Continue across the first row. Chain 3 and turn. You will have 28 DC stitches.

DC across the top of the second row. When you get to the end, chain 3 and turn.

DC across. You now have 3 rows of solid DC.  When you get to the end, chain 5 and turn.

The chain 5 is one side and the top of your first filet stitch. Double crochet in the 3rd stitch over. Chain 2. Repeat DC, Chain 2, DC until you reach the end. Chain 3 and turn.

Do 3 more rows of DC followed by a filet row. Continue pattern until you achieve the desired length. I would have added fringe to the ends but ran out of yarn.

Macchiato Colored Crocheted Scarf

I still had a lot of yarn left so I made a scarf using the pattern by Catherine South.

The scarf and the two hats used a total of 3 large skeins of yarn.

Nissa likes texture and the stitch has a fun little crossover bump every few stitches.

Ribbed Crochet Winter Stocking Hat

I had a lot of brown yarn left over so I tried another hat pattern, this one is from Crochet Geek. It's very warm and was much easier to fit.

Nissa was beginning to get a little concerned when I kept calling her to try it on since the yesterday's hat was too large and first trial fitting for this one was too tight.

I made this one 5 stitches longer than the pattern called for since she's going to be taking the bus to the U of M and I wanted to make sure the cuffed portion covered her ears.

Cocheted Puppy Dog Hat

I made this hat using the cute pattern at Repeat Crafter Me.

It may have turned out a bit larger than I intended but Nissa wore it all day in the house; which was awfully sweet of her.

Next time I make this hat I'll use a smaller crochet hook than the one recommended, a tighter stitch and have one less row across the bottom so it doesn't sit so low on the face.

It would be fun to use the pattern to make a cunning hat like the one Jayne Cobb wore on Firefly.

Forest Tree Face Sculpted From Clay

This face was so huge it took almost a month to dry.

I formed it over a plastic covered bowl so it wouldn't be too solid. The bark features were made by adding clay and forming ruts with my fingers.

The leaves were individually made, scored, and placed with slip.

The hardest part was transporting it, freshly made, home from the cabin in a car filled with dogs. I never thought it would survive but it somehow made the trip intact, didn't break in the kiln, and avoided being nabbed by the art thieves that plagued Nissa's class. We lost a surprising number of items.

Slice Carved Pottery Bowl

The wheel thrown bowl was generously sliced with a scooping motion using the loop tool.

Bowl Carved With A Zig Zag Cake Decorating Tool

You take the zig zag surface tool from Wilton's cake decorating line and heavily incise the surface. You need to do this before it's leather hard but not too soft or you'll cave in the sides.

A Platter of Clay Heads

Nothing says a party like a plate full of clay heads. A few of them are waiting for antlers, hair, and a rather stylish Mohawk.

The bottoms have a hole so that they can have a supported inserted inside.