Talk to Me Tuesday: Twi-Stuff

It seems like a lot of fellow TTMT'ers have Twilight on the brain this week. I'm no exception.



Things Mentioned:

Ofenjen featured me!

Patterns on Twilight_crafts

Crafty Monday: Etch-A-Sketch Frame Tutorial

I really loved my Etch-A-Sketch Embroidery (it got featured in Craft!), and I thought that I would share how I made the frame in 5 easy steps.



Supplies:
- 5x7 Wood Frame (Can be purchased at Hobby Lobby or here)***
- Wood circles for knobs (Purchase here or at Hobby Lobby)
- Red Paint
- White Paint
- Gold Paint
- Tacky Glue
- Foam Brush
- Small Tip Paint Brush
- Clear Gloss Spray

Step 1: Paint the Frame



Using the red paint and the foam brush, paint the frame. From my experience, it will need at least 2 coats, most likely three. Luckily the paint dries really fast on the wood, so by the time the first coat is done, you'll be ready to apply the second coat. Allow the frame to dry. I like to hang mine on a metal post on our craft space's pegboard so nothing touches it.



Step 2: Glue the Knobs



Unless you can find something the exact right size, you'll need to glue the wooden circles together with tacky glue to make it appropriately sized knobs. I glued three together, making sure the one with the smoothest surface ended up on top.


Step 3: Paint the Knobs



Add a few coats of white paint to the knobs, and let them dry. Glue them to the Etch-A-Sketch


Step 4: Add the lettering



For me this is the most nerve wracking part of making the frame. My hands shake a lot when under this kind of pressure, so adding the lettering is something that needs to be done slowly and carefully. If it makes it easier, use a pencil and lightly trace out the letters you'll be putting at the top. The typical Etch-A-Sketch has the words "Magic Etch-A-Sketch Screen" at the top, but I think just the Etch-A-Sketch part looks the best.


Step 5: Spray the crap out of it



Use a glossy spray with the frame in a box in a well ventilated area (unless you really like the smell of the spray, which I totally don't, I'm just throwing it out there). It should need only 2 coats of the spray. Do the second coat only after making sure the first has dried and is no longer tacky to the touch.



Finished!



And now you're done! If you want, you can buy a 5x7 piece of glass for the frame (the curved edges of the inside of the back may not allow you to put the glass in, so I suggest using a razor knife to make the back square so the glass can fit).



To make an Etch-A-Sketch Embroidery the only thing you need to do is get some gray fabric, black embroidery floss and a self stick mounting board, to ensure that your stitched doodle stays flat.

I've listed the finished product on etsy, if anyone is interested

*** You will know you've purchased the correct frame by the ridiculously freaky baby picture

Talk to me Tuesday: Me

This video is really quite long, but possibly one of my most favorite ones because you can see me at my best (or rather, me being completely me - stumbling over words, forgetting certain words entirely, dropping stuff, and talking to my computer).





Things mentioned:

's etsy shop

Sewhooked.org

My flickr

Crafty Monday: Alternative Frames

Ever since I started cross stitching I've become a bit of a frame junkie. It doesn't matter what kind of a store I'm in, chances are they'll have frames, and I'll be drawn to them. I love all sorts of frames. Corny frames, plastic frames, metal frames, really giant elaborate frames, teeny tiny frames, and of course, wacky themed frames.



Sure, most embroidery is wonderful when left in the hoop, but I think a special frame for a cross stitch or embroidery really makes the design something amazing. This weekend I finished two projects that took regular frames and made them into something new. The first was actually inspired directly from the quote that is stitched onto it. The quote is from Dr. Horrible's Sing Along Blog.

Captain Hammer says to Dr. Horrible (while choking him), "It's curtains for you, Dr. Horrible. Lacy, gently wafting curtains." I don't know exactly how I came up with the idea other than the usual, "Wouldn't it be funny if..." and the stitch was done. But of course, it wasn't that easy. The finished stitch was bigger than the frame I had purchased for it. I went to the store again and had to buy a new frame as well as new curtains (and I'm glad I did, my original ones were not as awesome).

The second idea I got just came to me randomly. I was wandering the aisles of Hobby Lobby and was in the wooden items section. I saw a frame and thought to myself, "Wow, that looks like an etch a sketch, wouldn't it be funny if..." Sadly, I didn't buy the frame at the time because it was broken. Every time I went to Hobby Lobby for the next month, the kind of frame I wanted was warped, broken, or didn't look that great. Finally I went last week and found one that was in good condition. I started painting, putting together the discs for the white knobs, and stitched some doodles on gray fabric. So my etch-a-sketch embroidery was born!

I'm pretty proud of both of my projects, and would love to do more cool looking frames. Right now, I'm considering making a few of the Etch-A-Sketch frames to be sold on etsy, so others can make their own doodles.

more photos can be found on my flickr

Talk to Me Tuesday: Excitement

Eeek, I completely spaced on posting this here. I had technical problems that did not get fixed until late Wednesday night, so I spaced posting this here.



Things Mentioned:

Newspaper scan

Movie Magic scan

Dinosaur Cross Stitch

Cloud Embroidery

Skelefishy Embroidery

Urban Threads

Craft Monday: A new kind of craft!

For the last week I've had an idea for a nifty project, but the bad part is that the project needs to be embroidered. Since I've been cross stitching for a while, I decided I might as well tackle embroidery (plus, I've seen some gorgeous projects that have also nudged me towards trying it). The first thing I decided to stitch was the outline of the grumpy storm cloud on my twitter background.

I think he turned out really nice. The eyes and the rain drops are french knots (which I have used several times after learning how in the Owl Punch Needle) while the cloud, mouth, and lightning bolt are all done with the stem stitch.


Today I decided to do a really cute pattern from Urban Threads - the Skelefishy. I thought it was cute and simple. Because I still don't have transfer paper or proper embroidery supplies, I just used a light blue colored pencil to draw the design onto the fabric. The fishy was done with a backstitch, but somehow I couldn't keep the stitches the same length. I still need to learn a few more stitch types before I can continue on with my fun project idea, but I am looking forward to it.

Detail Shots

Talk to Me Tuesday: Ugly Hats and Meh

The feeling of meh continues in this video.

Crafty Monday: The Great Stitch Drought of ‘09

Everyone hits slumps now and then, and I seem to be in one right now. I have a lot of fun projects that I want to be stitching, but I haven’t been able to pick up my hoop for over a week. When I get ready to stitch, I just don’t feel like it.

Meh

Talk to Me Tuesday (On Wednesday)

Zombies have invaded Talk to Me Tuesday, and of course, I didn't find out about it until Wednesday.