milly and tilly

Melty Beads

2013-05-21T07:00:00.000-06:00

When I was in Portland I went to Ikea (of course) and bought some fusible plastic beads (perler/hama-type). I have been sorting them by color to make my pixel projects slightly less time consuming.

So far I have hardly made a dent in the container, but decided to make something. Here is a gnome:

This gnome is based off of a cross stitch pattern from The Frosted Pumpkin Stitchery. He is 'May' in their 2013 Woodland Sampler Club. I think I need more bead colors because this gnome is a little jaundice (the reason I haven't fused him), but should probably just use what I have.

Knit Rose Brooch

2013-05-16T07:00:00.000-06:00

While I was in the airport waiting for my flight to Kansas I knit a Blooming Rose following Veronica O'Neil's pattern.

The rose was made using leftover yarn from my too small vintage toque and knit up quickly. I decided to skip the leaves since I didn't have any complementary green yarn and stitched a small brooch pin to the back.

Kansas & Portland

2013-05-14T07:00:00.000-06:00

These last two weekends I went on mini vacations; first to Kansas then to Portland. Here are some Hipstamatic photos I took while I was away:

Wing. Bird in the Airport. Plane. Raindrops. Morel Mushroom. Row Eight. Tacos. Dino. Pigeon. Flowers.

shrug + cowl = shrowl

2013-05-09T07:00:00.000-06:00

My purple knitting project is finished! It is a shrowl! Here I am wearing it as a cowl:

And here I'm wearing it as a shrug:

I followed the shrowl pattern by Stephen West and used Knit Picks Wool of the Andes yarn in Lullaby. The pattern is quite simple but has a fun ribbing that keeps it from looking too plain.

I've already finished another knitting project, I'll share it with you next week!

Dandelion Picking

2013-05-07T07:00:00.000-06:00

It's springtime and the dandelions are blooming!

I've been collecting their petals to make more dandelion honey! So far I have a quart size bag that is mostly full, not nearly enough to make all the dandelion honey I want. This year I am planning on canning it like I did for the lavender syrup, it last much longer than just refrigerating it.

Seed Starting Bad Luck

2013-05-02T07:00:00.000-06:00

I am having the worst luck with starting seeds this year. Not one has germinated! First it was my lollipop tomatoes that I thought was due to their age, but then I planted luffa, pie pumpkins, and zucchini and none of them sprouted either. I'm not sure what happened, I kept the soil moist and I don't think it was that cold in the house...

Despite my (previous) bad luck with the seed starting I'm trying again with the luffa and pie pumpkin seeds (I used up all my zucchini otherwise I would be planting them too). Right now they look like tiny piles of dirt, nothing exciting enough to take a picture of again. Fingers crossed that these ones grow.

After my lollipop tomato seeds failed to germinate I decided that I would just purchase a tomato plant so it would be pretty big when it was time to transplant it. Well, we are nearly free of frost danger so I stopped by the nursery to find a tomato plant. I ended up getting this yellow pear tomato plant that is as large as if I started it in January!

52 Week Double Exposure Project: Weeks 9 - 17

2013-04-30T07:00:00.000-06:00

Nine more weeks have passed since starting this faux double exposure project so it's time for an update!

Project synopsis: One of my 2013 crafting intentions was a 52 week photo challenge. Every week my mother and I use our iPhones to take at least one photo each using Hipstamatic then we combine them using Image Blender and I post them to my 52 week double exposure project Flickr set.

DIY Dry Erase Calendar

2013-04-25T07:00:00.000-06:00

This project has been on my list for a very long time, I bought the poster frame in 2010 (I know this because we used it for the Jeopardy game board for our 2010 dead celebrity party where I dressed as 'Eldery Rose' from Titanic) and finally made my dry erase calendar/organizer.

I think the scrapbook paper I chose for the calendar part is a little bit too busy, making it slightly difficult to read the things I write on it, but I'm okay with that. There is space for me to write extra notes like things I need to purchase at the store, various ideas I may have, or things I would like to make. Currently these notes are mostly food related, I have been picking dandelion petals from my yard to make more dandelion honey and am waiting for the rhubarb to grow so I can make yummy treats with it!

I'm thinking about making and attaching a small container to hold the pens. Maybe I'll use a toilet paper roll and decorate it with some washi tape, I could attach it at the top in the space to the left of the orange framed camera boxes.

2013-04-23T07:00:00.000-06:00

I'm still working on my purple knitting project. I need to finish already! Unfortunately I am only about halfway through so I need to spend some more time knitting.

Gatsby Cloche Hat and Free Pattern

2013-04-18T07:00:00.000-06:00

The Great Gatsby by F Scott Fitzgerald was the last book in my Craft Book Club. As soon as I picked the book I knew I needed to make a cloche hat! My initial plan was to felt a piece of knit wool and use it to sew the hat out of. Unfortunately the piece of wool my mother knit me using her knitting machine shrunk too much so I didn't have enough fabric to cut out all the pattern pieces. I changed my plans slightly, ran to the fabric store, and picked up some polyester felt made from recycled plastic. Technology is amazing! Would you ever have guessed this hat was originally plastic bottles?

My Gatsby inspired cloche was made from two layers of felt and followed a sewing pattern I drafted myself that am offering to you for free! I am pretty excited, this is the of my sewing patterns I am publishing and it is 100% free for personal use! (The pattern link is below.) The photo above shows the hat embellished with a felt flower (instructions at the bottom of this post) and the next two photos show the plain cloche, first with the brim turned up then with the brim down.

view cloche hat sewing pattern.pdf

If you make a cloche following my pattern I would love to see pictures!

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Our next book is Leviathan by Scott Westerfeld or perhaps the entire trilogy because after reading/listening to Alan Cumming read Leviathan I had to find out what happened in Behemoth and now I started Goliath and am plan on finding stuff to make a Huxley this weekend! I'll share my Darwinist creation with you towards the end of May.

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Here is a mini photo tutorial on making a simple felt flower that you could use to embellish your cloche, a headband, or anything that may need a floral adornment:

Another Knit Bicycle U Lock Cover

2013-04-16T07:00:00.000-06:00

After making the bike basket liner I thought my bike needed a new knit U lock cover too.

I used leftover yarn from my stash on this lock cover; other projects knit with this Lion Brand Yarn's Fishermen's Wool are this headband and this coffee cup cozy!

Intergalactic Silk Scarf Winner

2013-04-11T07:00:00.000-06:00

For my fourth blogiversary I dyed this silk scarf to giveaway to one lucky reader. That lucky reader is Danielle!

Congratulations Danielle and thank you everyone for your lovely comments.

I also finished assembling the bodybelt! In several months, when it begins getting cold again, I'll finally get to wear it.

Bike Basket Liner

2013-04-09T07:00:00.000-06:00

The weather is warming up here which is making bike rides irresistible! I decided to spruce up one of my bicycles by making a liner bag for its front basket.

I used a bit of fabric and some ribbon to make this lined bag; the colors are very 'Spring time'.
PS. You can see my DIY iPhone Bike Mount on the handle bar!

Purple!

2013-04-04T07:00:00.000-06:00

I just finished the knitting part of my bodybelt (I still need to seam and block it) and started my next knitting project. You can see my progress below; I really like the purple and the stitch is interesting even though it is very simple.

Strawberry Plants

2013-04-02T07:00:00.000-06:00

I haven't started any seeds since the lollipop tomatoes failed to germinate. So far I have only purchased a few plants; my clearance fern was doing so well I bought another house plant, a fuzzy leafed succulent (no picture of it today), and there was a great deal on strawberry plants so I bought four of them then planted them in a whisky barrel in my front yard.

The strawberry plants are Ft. Laramie, I chose this variety because of their name and my Wyoming heritage. Lucky for me they get lots of good reviews from people posting reviews of strawberry plants on the internet, I can't wait until I get some berries!

Silk Blogiversary

2013-03-28T07:00:00.000-06:00

Sunday is my fourth blogiversary and I have a present for one lucky reader! Traditionally, the fourth anniversary is the linen or silk anniversary so I dyed a silk scarf!

This 100% silk scarf was hand-dyed with an intergalactic look (I really wanted it to have 'stars', but was afraid splattering bleach on the silk would ruin it so it is starless).

All you have to do to win this silk scarf is:
1. Leave a comment below by Sunday, April 7th. (One entry per person.)
2. Wait. The winner will be chosen by a random number generator and will be announced on Thursday, April 11th.

Good Luck!

2013-03-26T07:00:00.000-06:00

Nearly done with the bodybelt. This picture was taken the other day; now I have just a bit more before switching to the edging. I really want to finish this in the next day or so because I am ready to start my next knitting project!

Felted Wool Fabric

2013-03-21T07:00:00.000-06:00

I have sort of started my cloche hat for The Great Gatsby Craft Book Club project. So far I have finished reading The Great Gatsby by F Scott Fitzgerald, and felted the piece of wool my mother knit on her knitting machine. This is what it looks like:

The other weekend I tried following Alvan's A Cloche Hat in Boiled Wool with Tutorial on Craftster to make a head form, but I had some difficulties so I need to try again or look for a sewing pattern to follow. How is your hat/other Gatsby inspired project coming along?

Half of the Bodybelt

2013-03-19T07:00:00.000-06:00

I am still working on the bodybelt, I'm just a little more than halfway through with my knitting. Here is one half:

To bind off I ended up using a stretchy bind off. It is a bit more frilled than I would have liked, but it is fine and I am making it the bottom of my bodybelt.

DIY Color Powders

2013-03-14T07:00:00.000-06:00

One of the places I would like to visit is India, I would especially like to be there during Holi, the Spring Festival. This year Holi is on March 27th and I am making colored powders for my own play of colors.

So far my color powders aren't as vibrant as the store-bought ones, but they are less expensive and totally edible (when throwing it around some definitely ends up in your mouth!). Here is how I made these:

Supplies:
Large Bowl
Spoon
Sifter/Strainer
Cookie Sheet
Oven
1 Pound Corn Starch (for each color)
Food Coloring
Water

How To:
1. Pour some of the corn starch into a large bowl.
2. Mix 1 cup water and 50+ drops of food coloring (in the picture above, the green used 40 drops of food coloring and the blue used 50) and pour into the bowl.
3. "Stir" the water and corn starch together while slowly adding the remaining corn starch. Once most of the corn starch is added, it may be easier to use your hands to mix.
4. Sift the wet, colored corn starch through a sifter or strainer onto a cookie sheet.
5. Dry the corn starch in a 200°F oven for approximately 60 minutes checking and mixing every 10-20 minutes. Note: A lower temperature and longer time will reduce the likelihood of the starch cooking and forming hard chunks.
6. Once the colored corn starch is dry, sift it through a sifter or strainer again to get rid of any clumps then store in the corn starch container or a zipper storage bag until ready to use.

I have only made blue and green colored powders, I'll be making some other colors this weekend and I'll update this page with any DIY color powder breakthroughs I may have! Also, who wants to get together to throw colored corn starch at each other?

Buffalo Piñata and The Oregon Trail

2013-03-12T07:00:00.000-06:00

Over the weekend I celebrated my birthday with an Oregon Trail game themed party. One of the biggest projects and my favorite was this buffalo piñata:

I took a bull shaped piñata from the store and added a bit more bulk to its body then covered it with tissue paper. Brown tissue paper is difficult to find so I ended up using a pale yellow, orange, and red. The piñata was part of the 'hunting' and was filled with jerky!

My mom made these 'gold nugget' seed bombs that we found in the 'Blue Mountains'. She used yellow napkins and wild flower seeds to make them.

We pulled popsicle sticks to see what family we belonged to, this is one of the families and an ox. This was the Engals family; I was Pa Engals, a farmer.

I didn't take many photos at the event, but my friends took some. Here is a photo of the people we lost along the trail that my friend took and I made look old-timey; only half of us died and none from dysentery, much different than the computer game I remember playing in school!

2013-03-07T07:00:00.000-07:00

My lollipop tomato seeds never germinated and I haven't planted anything else for my vegetable garden yet. I did get a clearance plant at the store recently though. Here is my new bird's nest fern:

I have a yellow planter I wanted to put it in because I thought it would look like a pineapple, but the fern is too big for it. Having greenery inside is pretty nice and I am thinking about getting some more house plants.

One plan I have decided on for my vegetable garden is growing luffa! I just got the seeds and I can't wait to plant them because I am really looking forward to harvesting them and making soaps with luffa sponges inside!

Oregon Trail Party Prep

2013-03-05T07:00:00.000-07:00

My birthday is next week and I am having an Oregon Trail Game themed party this weekend! Here are a few of the projects I am working on for the event:

Faux dove eggs. I painted Easter eggs and filled them with Dove chocolates, they will be used in the hunting part of the game.

A gigantic die! I am using felt and embroidery thread to make fun die faces for a large styrofoam cube. During the game we will roll the die to see if we die and other things too, but saying "roll the die to see if you die," is my favorite.

52 Week Double Exposure Project: Weeks 1 - 8

2013-02-28T07:00:00.000-07:00

Along with the Book Club Crafts, one of my other 2013 crafting intentions was a 52 week photo challenge. Every week my mother and I use our iPhones to take at least one photo each using Hipstamatic then we combine them using Image Blender and I post them to my 52 week double exposure project Flickr set. It has been eight weeks since we started so I am sharing our progress:

I really love the clocks and feathers picture from week 4. You can see all of our photos here.

It's Not a Girdle

2013-02-26T07:00:00.000-07:00

I started knitting another project from a vintage pattern, it is this bodybelt pattern. When a coworker asked what a bodybelt was I was too embarrassed to say, 'it's basically a girdle," so I described it as a sweater without sleeves. The pattern is part of a collection of "Essentials for the Forces" and does say something about Tommy wearing the vest; I'm not familiar with any shapewear for men, so a bodybelt's primary purpose it in keeping your lower torso warm with the added bonus of smoothing your figure. Here is my progress, I am nearly halfway done with the front piece: