I used clip on lights. I should have bought three of the larger sized ones, but I wanted to save a couple of dollars.... I used duct tape to tape the lamps right to my plastic tub. Since the lights are hot halogen ones, I have to be sure to switch off the lamps so I don't melt my plastic tub. (edit- I switched the tape to heat resistant aluminum tape and it works much better than duct tape. You can find it in the same area of the hardware store as duct tape.)
Here is the result:
I was able to achieve this with my old method of laying the items out by a sunny window, but the light that way was too inconsistent. I only did some very small photoshop tweaks to get this to come out. I also got 4 separate angles of this item and the color matches on each photo. Yeah... I'm a lightbox convert. My camera is one of the littler digital ones, not one of those fancy SLRs people have so much success with.
It turns out that I thought I needed a tripod, but I have a good steady hand and it is easier to snap super closeups without the tripod set up. I love that little flower setting on my camera.
It's taken me all day to get photographs taken of just 4 of my fabric pouches to list them at my etsy shop. The crafting is easy, but dang, getting decent photographs is so frustrating! It's particularly difficult getting four angles of each item to match. I think it may be the winter sun. We went out and got a cheap full spectrum light and it helped, but I'm still not totally satisfied with my photos...
I really like my pouches though!
I've had this adorable sock monkey fabric for awhile. I even made my own mousepad with some of it. This is my Sock Monkey Fabric Pouch.
Here is another monkey style applique pouch. I love this bandana fabric. One of these fabrics is from Michael Miller.
Finally, I made another version of my Alien Invasion pouch. The novelty fabric was at JoAnns, but I think it sold out awhile ago.
I hit upon the idea to do circular patches because some of my fabrics are very graphic and bright and aren't such good backgrounds for handstitched details.
Three of our Chicagoland Craft Collective members are at CHA (Craft and Hobby Association) Trade Show in Anaheim, California this week. Sarah founded the blog Craft Critique one year ago and it has grown by leaps and bounds. They have a large team of reporters and they review new craft products and supplies as they come out.
They'll be giving regular dispatches and posting photographs from the floor of the show. It turns out that bloggers are taken quite seriously by the vendors at CHA.
I find this Forrest line of new stuff from Love, Elsie very inspiring. Click HERE to see.
So be sure to keep checking back with Craft Critique to see what new items will be filling up our crafts stores in the coming months!
I'm still inspired by monkeys so I have a few versions of monkey applique on some new pouches. I use interfacing on the lining, so they are quite sturdy. I use one in my purse to organize my pens and small pads of paper and it holds it's shape nicely without being stiff. These are turned inside out and need ironing, velcro, and their square gussets.
Last night we got a call from our village telling us that there is a shortage of rock salt in the midwest so they will only be salting the main roads during the current storm. In my area we are supposed to get 9-12 inches, so it's going to be slick out there. The kids are home for their third snow day.
Honestly, I do love winter. I like the way a snowy cold day justifies my homebody tendencies. The snow is bright and lovely when the season is usually grey and dim. I really can't function well outside when it is really hot and I like wearing jeans and cute sweaters better than shorts and t-shirts. However.. It's February now and I need some bright sunshine! My mother-in-law goes south for a month in the winter to miss the worst of the winter blahs.
Here's the backyard now. It's like a wonderland! This is just about 4 inches of what is expected to fall all day.
My blogging has really slowed down. I love winter, but late January and February is when winter malaise hits me. I'm thinking about getting more full spectrum lightbulbs in the house because I heard they help.
We made it to Super Tuesday! Don't forget to vote if you live in one of the states in the USA voting today! My dad serves as the election judge at his precinct and election day is his favorite. He likes to chat up all his neighbors old and new that show up at the polls. Being an election judge is truly a marathon that starts at dawn and doesn't end until well after the polls have close and the votes are counted.
In many ways, I think voting in primaries is more significant than voting in the general election because the primary is where we can have a voice in the direction our party takes. Here in highly corrupt Illinois politics we've seen many honest, hardworking candidates lose in the primaries because they don't have a political machine backing them. I personally don't think there is such a thing as "throwing your vote away" on an underdog candidate.
That said, my candidate is a front runner. My darling husband votes in the other primary and would like them to stay true to their ideological principles.
Thanks to you all who had advice for me about the rosacea makeup. I'm going to try one of the brands of the mineral stuff although "all natural" isn't always good. Poison ivy is natural, but I wouldn't use in on my skin. I found THIS product from Maybelline. It is quite inexpensive. I have to put it on right after the moisturizer so it isn't too dry on my skin.....
Back to our regularly scheduled crafting soon. I pledge to take some photos today of the cute pouches I'm working on for my shop.
Some of these cheerful sunny pouches have already sold, but the purple and yellow one is available.
Today a big event in our family has been on my mind. 5 years ago, my husband was in a serious car accident. He's doing great, but that was a frightening time for us. Our son was in kindergarten and our little daughter was only 2 years old. I'd just decided not to take a new part time job and it was a good thing because all of our time became about helping his recovery.
This was him five years ago. It really was a bad accident and completely the fault of the other driver. Everyone survived and the other guy had no injuries. At the time, he felt he had to go right back to work. He really isn't a workaholic, but he is very responsible. Looking back, we should have taken a medical leave, but he still recovered. I did have to chauffeur him to-and-from work every day with the kids in the car. We listened to a lot of pop radio and Justin Timberlake and Snoop Dogg had big hits. It gets a little bit embarrassing when your 5-year old can quote Snoop Dogg....
This really was a tough time, and we got through it day by day. We feel extremely lucky and grateful since this event. Although it eventually led to my husband getting what we call an "amicable divorce" from his job. He was able to start his own business and we lived frugally on the settlement money while the business got underway. In many ways, our life is better since this accident. We had to confront some other issues and although I'd say we focused on the right things before, an event like this puts everything in sharp focus.
These days, he still had to drive and drive all over Chicagoland to see his customers. He once liked rollercoasters, but those are forever off limits as is downhill skiing, which we never did anyway. He always avoided heavy lifting or big jobs around the house and yard, but now he has an aching neck to blame.
Just today, I realized this car accident is part of the reason I'm still a stay-at-home mom, even though my children are both at school during the days. Having me at home gives us the calm, low-key life we all prefer. We all have our individual lives, but we are very much a team and support each other.
And completely changing the subject, I've been on a nostalgia trip on YouTube. I saw this several days ago and the tune is still going in my head. Anyone from the USA who was a kid in the 1970's will remember Schoolhouse Rock. These little shorts ran on Saturday mornings alongside the cartoons on network television. Some of us at a certain age can't read the words "We the People" without this tune embedding itself. It is election season here too, so I guess it is timely. My husband and I vote for completely different parties which only increases our resolve to vote in every single election in every race no matter how obscure in order to cancel out the other's vote.
I've been totally addicted to Super Mario Galaxy on the Nintendo Wii. Hubby is too, so our game playing time is doubled while we both have to beat the game and save Princess Peach. I'm almost there!
Meanwhile, here is a book from my Flickr archive. This was one I inherited from my Grandma N's craft stash. It could be that this came from my Mom too, because I'm pretty sure she crafted from it:. It's called, "Have Fun With Felt". Yes, thank you! I think I will! The copyright dates are from 1966-1973. The assembly of the projects here is typically just glue.
Here are some funky, graphic felt bags:
These are cute too:
My brother and I had these Christmas stockings. They hung on our bedroom doors and we'd get an extra little gift on Christmas morning up in our rooms. I think my mom made these, but they eventually got damaged in our basement storage area.
People are still crafting little birdies like these:
Here's the pattern for you to try out:
Likewise, monkeys have never lost their appeal:
Faces on veggies:
I usually don't include patterns, but here is a little photo of the veggies. You'll have to enlarge them:
I'm thinking about Valentines Day crafts too. My daughter has a plan for the ones she wants to make for school.
I'm a lifelong crafty-person.
I tend to make fiber-art things that involve needles, hooks, or thread. If your Grandma knew a particular fiber craft, chances are that it's on my list of things to make. I also adore vintage textiles and I probably watch at least one vintage film every day. I am a once-and-future elementary school teacher, but I've been home with my 2 school-aged children avoiding housework for more than a a decade.
Email me at tszig@hotmail.com
