Willy-Nilly Waterlily

Sweet Strawberries for Valentine's Day

2012-02-01T00:18:00.024-10:00

Ever since I created my first batch of strawberry themed amigurumi I've been itching to revisit them because they were so much fun to make. I figured this month would be a great time with Valentine's Day just around the corner. Chocolate covered strawberries are popular around the holiday . . . do you think maybe strawberry covered bunnies and bears will catch on just as well? :)

The first strawberry trio were crocheted out of mohair blend yarn, but this time I used some fluffy chenille yarn.

I normally use beads for the strawberry seeds on the caps, but since most of my crafting supplies (beads included) are still tucked away in storage I had to improvise some. Instead, I just embroidered dozens and dozens of french knots with some pale yellow crochet thread. It's a tedious process, but I love the end result.

To complete the outfit, I gave them coordinating ruffled scarves.

Since strawberries are the theme for this month, I thought I would share with you a simple pattern to crochet a large, juicy strawberry of your own. The strawberry is about 3.5 inches long and 2 inches wide. It's a nice size to use as a pin cushion, which is what I use it for. Or maybe attach a clasp to make it into a keychain.

Strawberry Amigurumi Crochet Pattern

Use sport weight yarn with a 3.5 hook

Terms:

magic adjustable ring -- see link

sc -- single crochet

st(s) -- stitch (es)

sc2tog -- single crochet decrease

sl st -- slip stitch

ch(s) -- chain(s)

Strawberry:

Round 1: 6 sc into magic adjustable ring, pull tail to close and weave in end witha darning needle (6)

Round 2: 2 sc in each st around (12)

Round 3: 1 sc in each st around (12)

Round 4: *1 sc in one st, 2 sc in next st; repeat from * around (18)

Round 5: 1 sc in each st around (18)

Round 6: *1 sc in next two sts, 2 sc in next st; repeat from * around (24)

Round 7: 1 sc in each st around (24)

Round 8: 1 sc in each st around (24)

Round 9: * 1 sc in next three sts, 2 sc in next st; repeat from * around (30)

Round 10: *1 sc in next four sts, 2 sc in next st; repeat from * around (36)

Round 11: 1 sc in each st around (36)

Round 12: 1 sc in each st around (36)

Round 13: *1 sc in next five sts; 2 sc in next st; repeat from * around (42)

Round 14: 1 sc in each st around (42)

Round 15: *1 sc in next six sts: 2 sc in next st; repeat from * around (48)

Round 16: 1 sc in each st around (48)

Round 17: *1 sc in next four sts, sc2tog; repeat from * around (40)

Round 18: *1 sc in next 3 sts, sc2tog; repeat from * around (32)

Round 19: *1 sc in next 2 sts, sc2tog; repeat from * around (24)

Round 20: *1 sc in one st, sc2tog; repeat from * around (16)

Round 21: *sc2tog; repeat from * around (8). Leave a tail long enough for stitching.

Stuff with fiberfill. Thread tail with darning needle and weave tail in and out of the opening's edge in a running stitch, then pull taught to close opening. Tie off.

Stem & Leaf Top:

Round 1: 6 sc into magic adjustable ring, pull tail to close and weave in end with a darning needle (6)

Round 3: 1 sc in each st around (6)

Round 4: 2 sc in each st around (12)

Round 5: * sl st in next st, ch 6, sl st in second chain from end, 1 sc in next three chs, 1 hdc in next ch, sl st in next st over; repeat from * 6x to form six leaves. Leave a long tail for stitching.

Thread tail with darning needle and stitch stem & leaf to the top of the strawberry. Tie off. Because the leaves tend to curl up, tack down each leaf (I stitch them down with needle and thread, but you can use a dot of fabric or hot glue) to the strawberry's body.

Enjoy!

A Fresh Start

2012-01-17T14:40:00.005-10:00

Let me begin by wishing everyone a belated Happy New Year! :) Have you all made any resolutions for 2012? Have you been sticking to them? Well, I'm happy to report that by writing this post I am sticking to one of mine: I resolved to start crafting and blogging again. I took a much longer break from my hobbies than I expected . . . I had no idea how time consuming and all encompassing having a baby would be! And if that wasn't enough I'm also in the process of buying and moving into a new home. It's precisely during chaotic times like these that I feel the need for a creative outlet.

Thankfully, my son is turning one next month (how time flies!) and he's gotten a bit less clingy and needy, which allows me some much needed crafting time. Now it's not nearly as much time as I would like, but even an hour or two a week is enough to scratch my creative itch.

Back to my staple mohair bunnies and bears! You have no idea how terrified I was when I picked up my crochet needle and started working. I was convinced I had forgotten how to make them! However, after a few glitches (how the heck do you decrease again?!) it all slowly came back to me.

I really wanted to sew up some apron dresses for the gals above. Unfortunately my trusty ol' Singer sewing machine is packed away in storage at the moment. I decided to crochet the apron dresses instead . . . and add some handy little pockets.

These girls are dressed a bit more fanciful . . . going to a party perhaps?

Please visit my shop, where they will all become available shortly.

I will end my first post of the New Year by thanking everyone who visits. I appreciate you all for stopping by and taking the time to write me and leave comments. I apologize if I have been so sporadic in my posting or in my replies. I've just been so busy!

However, I did resolve to change all that. I have plans to kick my blog into high gear . . . with more posts and tutorials and just tons more cute! :)

Thank you for dropping by!

I'm Trying...

2011-12-04T19:56:00.002-10:00

Aloha everyone!

I just want to thank everyone, who has continued to visit my blog and etsy shop. I so wish I could maintain both as I used to, but my son keeps me so busy and now I'm in the middle of moving to a new home!

I've been getting so many emails asking about when I will have more items available. Well, it is my sincerest hope that once I get settled I will be able to get things going again. Please stay tuned!

Until then I will try to list a few things that I have on hand.

Thank you again for visiting me! Take care and Happy Holidays! :)

10% Off Sale!!!

2010-11-24T18:01:00.003-10:00

First off, I want to wish everyone a very Happy Thanksgiving!

To celebrate the holidays I'm having a little sale at my Etsy shop. Everything is now 10% off!

Enjoy perusing! :)

The Strawberry Bunch and the Long Lost Minis

2010-11-08T14:03:00.014-10:00

First off, I want to say a big thank you to everyone for their kind words and congratulations on the upcoming baby. I appreciate your good wishes so much! As the due date draws nearer and nearer, things have been getting ever more hectic. From running around and buying baby supplies and furniture to staying goodbye to our truck and searching for a "family car -- there never seems to be enough minutes in the day.

Somehow in between all the busy-ness, I'm still managing to get in some crafting time, though sparingly. Here's what I've been up to:

I really enjoyed making those aviator hats, ski caps, and scarves for the boy amigurumi last time, and so this time around I wanted to make a feminine version. Originally, I intended to make a variety of "fruity" outfits for these gals, but I just enjoyed making the strawberry caps so much that I decided to stick with it all the way.

Here's some close-ups:

I just love the long, leafy stems and the yellow seeds on real strawberries. They translate nicely on these sweet caps, I think. I also made matching dual colored scarves in a diamond pattern to match.

Now here was an exciting find in my craft room. I found these four mini bunnies and bears in a box, all dressed up with nowhere to go. They were completely done, but for their origami gift bags. I must have gotten distracted and forgot about them. Poor things! Well, I'm glad they have been rediscovered.

I worked on their packages this weekend and now they are all ready to go to their new homes. Yayy! :)

Thank you again for dropping by! I hope to have all of these amigurumi in my etsy shop shortly. :)

Oh, Boy!

2010-10-21T09:16:00.012-10:00

Lately, I've been itching to create new things. I can't seem to make myself crochet/ sew my old standards. I love them -- the cupcakes, and cacti, and owls, and such -- but at the moment I just feel the need to make something surprising and unexpected. Or at least to refresh and redesign my usual softie repertoire.

These little guys are pretty novel. I've never made a boy amigurumi before. I've just always loved the floral and frills of outfitting little girls. This time around, however, I wanted to make something a little less frou-frou . . . a lot more casual. Rough and tumble little boys seemed to be the logical answer.

I opted to outfit this bunny and the bear in aviator hats and scarves.

Here's a close-up of the aviator hat.

With chilly weather just around the corner, I decided to dress this bunny boy in a winter earflap hat and matching scarf.

And what has inspired me to create little amigurumi boys? Well, it may have something to do with the little man above :) Yep, this is the Big Project I've been working on and why I haven't been as quick and crafty as I normally am. I've been quite preoccupied preparing for his arrival. I'm so excited!

Well, if you are interested in any of the softies above, I should have them listed in my shop by this weekend.

Thank you for visiting and happy crafting! :)

Sparkly Ballerina Amigurumi Bunnies and Bears

2010-10-03T05:51:00.025-10:00

Hello all! It's been quite awhile, I know. I've just been extremely preoccupied since we last spoke. I don't want to give away the details just yet, but let's just say that I've been working on a massive project . . . my magnum opus, if you will. It's been exhausting, but exciting work and I cannot wait until the big reveal, which will be sooner rather than later. I'm sorry for being so cryptic, but I'm not ready to let the cat out of the bag just yet :)

Despite being so busy, I haven't stopped making softies at all. It's just that with less crafting time on my hands, it takes me a lot longer to finish a project. To make up for my snail's pace I've made a concerted effort to try new things and change up my old designs. I've been finding it difficult to work on the same sort of thing over and over. It gets quite monotonous.

Time for something fresh . . .

Enter these three little ladies:

I've never been a fan of novelty yarn for making my amigurumi, but then I came across several skeins of super soft, fuzzy chenille buried at the bottom of my stash. I was intrigued by that yarn's subtle sparkle. It has a soft twinkle, without being overly brilliant or glittery. And it worked up even better than I imagined -- the stitches are well hidden by the chenille's loft and overall I thought the amigurumi turned out reminiscent of puffy cotton candy or whipped marshmallow fluff. Scrumptious!

Lately, I've been feeling an aversion to my sewing machine so I decided to completely crochet the outfits this time. For the dress design I wanted to move away from the smocks and come up with something more frilly and playful. In the end I decided on ballerina tutu styled dresses. And because I didn't want to overdo it with the flower motifs, I nixed the usual floral ear decor and adorned their heads with large satin bows instead.

Here's a close-up shot of all the little details. I also tried to capture that lovely iridescent sparkle I spoke about earlier:

I enjoyed making this set of amigurumi and it has inspired me to think outside the box -- with my materials as well as with new design ideas. This project makes me want to dig deeper into my yarn stash to see what other possibilities may exist.

Anyway, thank you again for visiting and if you are interested in any of these sweet girls, I will be listing them in my shop shortly.

Su-Lin the Precocious Little Panda

2010-05-28T04:10:00.011-10:00

Please meet Su-Lin.

She is a precocious little thing.

While the other panda cubs romp and frolic in the dirt, you will find her sitting off to the side in the thickest, cleanest patch of grass. Su-Lin always takes great care not to soil her pretty dress.

Her friends often ask, "Su-Lin, why don't you come and play with us?"

"I will," Su-Lin answers. "When you play something less grubby."

Su-lin is my very first amigurumi panda bear so I'm extra excited to share her with you. I christened her after the very first panda to come to the United States in the 1930's.

As the inaugural panda, I really wanted to dress her up to the nines. Su-Lin is wearing a smock dress cut from a Japanese cherry blossom print cotton dobby. Her dress has many crocheted details such as a puff stitch trim along the dresses edge, and a band collar with a dainty flower at the neck. Su-Lin also has a crocheted drawstring purse with beaded ties. Finally, a crochet puff petal flower with a glass bead center is tucked by her right ear.

If you would like to adopt little Su-Lin she will be listed in my shop shortly.

Thank you again for visiting!

Slowly, but surely . . .

2010-05-08T00:04:00.012-10:00

I've been working at a turtle's pace on these amigurumi. I wanted to add a bit of zing to my usual bunnies and bears, and whenever I'm brainstorming new ideas I'm always slow to realize them because there's so much trial and error . . . and more error . . . involved.

As you can see they haven't changed all that much. I didn't want to do an extreme makeover. I needed to keep their charm . . . and then add a dose of oomph! :) I did that by focusing on the little details.

I started out by selecting quality mohair yarns with a wonderful fuzz factor for the little critters. Fuzzier is always better, I think. :) And then for their apron dresses, I chose some lovely fabrics -- a pink embroidered cotton gauze, an imported Liberty of London lawn, and a dainty daisy pique.

With color coordinating cotton thread, I crocheted a picot lace to go around the edge of the dresses and created a Peter Pan collar at the necklines.

To top it all off I changed the routine wool felt flower by their ears. After fiddling with a bunch of flower variations, I came up with these crochet puff petal flowers with glass bead centers. I just love how sweet and plump they look.

These three munchkins will be in my shop soon.

And please stay tuned for my next post. I'm so excited to share my next project with you. It's an amigurumi animal I've never made before. Being that it's another new idea it may take a bit of time, but I promise you it will be worth the wait. :)

Thank you again for visiting!

My First Amigurumi Pattern: A Willy-Nilly Silly Snake

2010-03-12T13:50:00.010-10:00

Please meet the Willy-Nilly Silly Snake.

For those of you who are just starting to crochet and are interested in doing amigurumi, I've written this very simple pattern. I've designed this snake to be super easy, super cute, and a great way to use up all those leftover bits of yarn lying about. :)

Before you start here are some helpful hints:
1. Learn the magic adjustable loop to start off your amigurumi. Here is a great tutorial at CrochetMe.com
2. Mark the end of each round with a stitch marker.
3. Stuff as you go. Especially if you are making a super long snake.

Materials:
-- A multitude of colors of worsted weight yarn
-- For eyes 6mm plastic safety eyes, 6mm round black beads, or black yarn can be used
-- 1/4 inch wide grosgrain ribbon
-- Poly-fil stuffing
-- 4.5 mm crochet hook
-- yarn needle

Notes:
-- sc (single crochet)
-- sc2tog (a decrease made my crocheting two stitches together)

SNAKE HEAD
Row 1: Work 6 sc into a magic loop
Row 2: Work 2 sc in each stitch
Row 3: (Work 1 sc in first stitch, 2 sc in next stitch) repeat 6x
Row 4: Sc all the way around
Row 5: (Work 1 sc in each of first two stitches , 2 sc in next stitch) repeat 6x
Row 6-8: Sc all the way around
Row 9: (Work 1 sc in each of first two stitches, sc2tog) repeat 6x
Row 10: (Work 1 sc in first stitch, sc2tog) repeat 6x

You've formed the general shape of the snake head so now you can affix the eyes. Note that the end of your round will mark the underside of your snake so position eyes accordingly. If you don't have safety eyes or beads, you can simply embroider the eyes on with a simple french knot. I especially recommend embroidering the eyes if you're making this for a small child.

Now finish off the head . . .

Rows 11-14: Sc around

SNAKE BODY
Now for the fun part! It's time to change colors. The body is done by single crocheting round and round with a variety of yarn. Work a specific stripe pattern or simply work willy-nilly. And feel free to make the snake as long as you like. It's up to you! :) Just be sure to join each new yarn on the underside of the snake so you don't see the pattern break on the top. Also, be sure to stuff as you go along!

SNAKE TAIL
Each following line is one row (not numbered because I do not know how many rows you've worked in the snake's body):

-- (Work 1 sc in first stitch, sc2tog) repeat 4x
-- Sc all the way around
-- Sc all the way around
-- (Work 1 sc in each of first two stitches, sc2tog) repeat 2x
-- Sc all the way around
-- (Work 1 sc in first stitch, sc2tog) repeat 2x
-- Slip stitch in next stitch. To close opening cut yarn leaving a 6 inch tail. With a yarn needle, thread yarn tail in and out of opening's rim and then pull taught to cinch it shut. Knot. Hide yarn tail by poking through snake's body.

TONGUE
Cut a length of grosgrain ribbon 1 3/4 in. long. Cut a "V" out of one end of ribbon to simulate a forked tongue. Stitch other end of ribbon to snake's face.

That's all there is to it! Hopefully, I've made the instructions clear enough to understand, but if anyone still has questions please feel free to ask.

One last thing . . . these softies will be up in the shop soon if anyone is interested.

Thank you for visiting! :)

Life is Sweet

2010-01-19T13:44:00.023-10:00

Happy New Year to everyone! :)

Lately, I've been busy whipping up amigurumi that sums up my philosophy on life -- it's all too short, but wonderfully sweet . . . so savor every moment. I'm probably still filled with that fresh and novel feeling you get as you ring in the New Year, but I'm hoping it's something more. I hope this feeling sticks. It's easy to get so bogged down in the minutiae of life that you completely miss it. Not me, though. Not this year (or all the years thereafter hopefully). I resolve that in 2010, I will savor life's sweetness so thoroughly that I'll be choking on it! :)

These Charming Chocolate Dipped Strawberries were inspired by a long ago trip to Godiva's, where they had chocolate covered everything. Their jumbo chocolate dipped strawberries looked so heavenly that the sight was forever etched in my brain. Unfortunately, my amigurumi version doesn't taste as good, but I hope to make up for that in charm and cuteness.

Oh, and they're functional, too! I wanted these strawberries to do more than just sit on your desk and smile at you, so I attached a metal snap clip to the back and now you can dangle your strawberry on your bag or use it as a keychain, and take some cuteness with you wherever you go. :)

Each strawberry comes packaged in these clear plastic bento packages I discovered in my local grocery store. Now they're ready for gift giving!

Other sweet additions include Very Berry-licious Cupcakes and Cheery Cherry Cupcakes. I wanted to make cupcakes with more scrumptious and elaborate tops.

So I randomly decorated them with dallops of vanilla frosting, colorful sprinkles, and big fruit pieces. I love how they look from above . . . it's really like looking into a dessert case at the bakery.

Well, that's all the sweetness I have to share for now. Thank you for stopping by again! Best wishes to all of you in the New Year and all the years to come! :)

Quick Shop Update

2009-12-05T13:33:00.003-10:00

Hello everyone!

I hope you all are enjoying the holiday season so far. I've been so busy with custom orders that I haven't been able to stock my shop as much as I would like. However, this weekend I was able to whip up a few amigurumi. Please visit my shop if you are interested. Thank you so much! :)

A Crafting Life In Pictures

2009-11-22T02:36:00.012-10:00

A few custom orders:

And some stuff to go in my shop:

I've been so busy with custom orders and other holiday busy-ness that I scarcely have time to write a complete paragraph.

More than anything I just wanted to wish you all a very Happy Thanksgiving! :)

Shop Update and Some Holiday Crafting

2009-11-07T11:55:00.025-10:00

Aloha everyone! :)

I've been slow to update my shop lately so I'm thrilled to finally have these new editions soon to be listed:

Some Itty Bitty Ami Bears sitting in their origami gift bags . . .

And a trio of Bashful Blooming Cacti. Each cactus will now come with an instructional "How to Care for . . . " hang tag. It's an idea that I've been mulling over for ages and I've finally gotten around to doing it.

The tags read --

Caring for your Bashful Blooming Cactus:
1. Situate in a calm, peaceful place away from loud noises and crowds.
2. Encourage it to bloom without being too pushy.
3. Never put your cactus on the spot -- i.e., ask it to sing or if it knows any good jokes.
4. Finally, nurture your cactus by complimenting it everyday.

I'm excited by how the tags turned out! :)

This Christmas I'm attempting to apply the "use what you have" concept to my gift giving. As a platinum card carrying member of the hopelessly craft obsessed, I've amassed a mountain of fabrics, ribbon, yarn, and other supplies over the years. This Christmas is the perfect time for me to use some of my stock and make room for more. I'm being very strict about my "use what you have" philosophy. I won't run out to purchase something else in order to finish a project. Not even small supplies like thread. If I don't have what I need on hand, I'm going to have to improvise. This may not bode well for the friends and family that I will be creating gifts for. However, I am vowing to do my very best not to construct any Franken-presents out of random objects lying about like pipe cleaners, buttons, and toilet paper. I will strive to make things as cute and pretty as possible with what is readily available.

Here is my first "use what you have" Christmas gift project. It's what I came up with after finding way too many balls of red and green yarn in my stash.

I know, I know . . . they're just potholders, but they're cherry potholders so that's sort of cute, right? But then I discovered some cherry print fabric so I plan to make a whole cherry themed kitchen set. This project is still in the beginning stages so I have hopes that it will blossom into something more impressive than it seems. We'll see, I guess. Stay tuned . . .

Finally, the winner of the Kawaii Kitty for last month's Reader Appreciation giveaway is . . . Sew Very Carrie! Thank you for all your support Carrie! I'll contact you soon! :)

Kawaii Kittens!

2009-10-16T08:00:00.007-10:00

I've still been in a stitching mood since the Kawaii Koalas so I've been diligently working on some Kawaii Kittens. These kittens were derived from the previous koala pattern. I made a few changes here and there and voilà -- a whole new animal! I've been thinking about adapting the original pattern to make a bunny, a sheep, a monkey . . . the softie possibilities are endless! Sorry, I digress. Back to the Kawaii Kittens . . .

I wanted the kittens to have a sort of country, calico-y feel . . . but still remain stylistically kawaii, if you know what I mean. I thought the best way to achieve this was to use some folksy fabrics for the main part of the fur such as plaid or corduroy, and then use some fun Japanese print linen for the patches. The blanket stitching on the patches definitely adds to their homespun feel, too. I also passed on making them decorative flowers for their ears, which is what I tend to do with most of my softies. Instead, I gave these kittens a simple collar with a golden bell.

Well, here they are:

Here's a how the backside looks like. They have a wavy, little tail:

On a Blythe-ier note, I will be adding these Ice Cream Sundae berets to my shop shortly. I made these awhile back, and they slipped my mind, and I never got around to listing them.

This "flavor" is Blueberry, obviously. :) The yarn is a deep purple-y blue.

For this month's Reader Appreciation Giveaway I wanted to give something really special (to make up for being so willy-nilly about the giveaway the past few months) -- A Kawaii Kitten just for you! This Kawaii Kitty is made from soft blue corduroy and has spots cut from a floral print Japanese dobby. Will someone please give her a good home? Well, you know how this works -- I'll pick a winner at random from this post's comment pool.

Last, but not least . . . the winners of the Hawaiian macadamia nut chocolate boxes from the last giveaway! Thank you for your support Evie and Sandy Michelle! I will contact you both soon!

Thank you for all for dropping by again! Happy crafting! :)

Kawaii Koalas!

2009-09-25T10:00:00.011-10:00

Aloha everyone!

I know, I know . . . I've been M.I.A lately, but I have a really good excuse this time! I had an influx of custom orders to do so it was hard to get any fresh crafting done. The custom orders were all amigurumi so by the time I was finished, I felt a need to put my crochet needle down and do something completely different.

I delved into my box of old project ideas and patterns and rediscovered my tried and true koala softie. The koala pattern was the very first softie pattern I ever drafted. I still remember the delight of having an idea in my head slowly come to life in my hands. It felt magical. And it was the spark that ignited my cute and crafty obsession.

I was a wee bit apprehensive when I started the koalas because it has literally been years since I've made one. I was afraid I wouldn't embroider the faces right, that I couldn't re-capture their "spirit". These softies are so different from my amigurumi, whose faces are quiet and humble. With my koalas, the personalities are more lively, their expressions more developed and detailed . . . and I have to render it all with a needle and thread.

Well, here they are:

Here's a close up look of one of their faces along with the crochet twin cherries by her ear:

It wasn't the easiest thing, but I managed alright, I think. :)

Since we spoke last I also managed to whip up some new cards for my blog/ shop. I was getting low on MOO cards, and I was going to order more, but then I thought, "I have this nifty, new laser printer . . . " So I gave it a go with some basic printable blank business cards.

Well, they're nowhere as nice as my former MOO cards, but I think they came out alright just the same, and they were fun to design and a lot less pricey. Here's a tip if you are going to try these at home: The cards I purchased came in perforated sheets. I recommend not tearing them apart. Instead, hold a ruler along the perforated edge and use an exacto knife to cut them apart. The edges just look neater and sharper that way.

Lastly, I've been woefully horrid at keeping up with my monthly giveaway, haven't I? I really am trying. It's just been so difficult to keep up with my blogging lately. I'll definitely try to pick up the pace from now on. Anyway, I have two Reader Appreciation Giveaways this month (an extra to make up for missing last month). My pal P pointed out these super kawaii Hello Kitty mini candy boxes at a local store. Hawaiian Host chocolate covered macadamia nuts are a yummy-licious staple here in the islands and I was surprised to see the character endorsements they have now -- Hello Kitty and Lilo & Stitch just to name a few. P said they'd make the perfect giveaway for my blog and I think he's absolutely right! So you know how it goes -- I will pick two people at random from the comment pool at this post.

Thanks again for dropping by! :)

Cupcake Invasion!

2009-08-21T12:56:00.015-10:00

Hello everyone!

It's been awhile since my last post as I have been meandering aimlessly through these past few weeks, which were filled with lovely distractions like fishing, family time, and zombie movies via Netflix.

It's only lately that my mind has ceased contemplating the pros and cons of fast moving zombies vs. slow moving zombies, and re-focused with some nifty, new project ideas. Here's what I've been working on . . .

First off, remember these guys?

Yep, it's my trusty ol' Happy Swirly Cupcakes. If you've been keeping abreast of my blog posts you'll notice that I've been making mini versions of my usual amigurumi. I just love jamming a whole lotta cute into a small package. It's like concentrated cuteness! :) I suppose it was only a matter of time until my big cupcakes got the shrinking treatment, too.

Please meet the Mini Cupcake Cuties! Each mini cupcake stands 3 inches tall from base to frosted tip. I really love the concept of cute meets function in my Happy Swirly Cupcakes and I wanted to keep true to that with these little fellows. Therefore, I made little blank sign boards on which short messages can be written. I think these mini cupcakes make the perfect surprise "for-no-reason-at-all-I-just-wanted-to-tell-you-I'm-thinking-about-you" present. :)

I must say thank you to 6060 Etsy shop, where I got the little bead eyes for my mini cupcakes! They're the perfect fit! :)

Here's a shot of one of my big cupcakes next to it's baby sibling.

And another comparison shot of the cupcake tops. Although I love the look of the swirly frosted, berry tops on the bigger cupcakes, I've been dying to make some frosted sprinkle cupcakes for the longest time, and so I've done on the smaller counterparts.

All of the above will be in my shop shortly, if anyone is interested.

Last, but certainly not least, I must announce the winner of last month's Reader Appreciation Giveaway:

Wasted Wishes -- Thank you for all your support here at my blog! I will contact you soon!

Happy crafting everyone! :)

March of the Amigurumi . . . and July's Reader Appreciation Giveaway!

2009-07-24T11:46:00.014-10:00

I've been in a major amigurumi zone lately. For whatever reason I have it in my mind to make them in pairs . . . like some sort of amigurumi version of Noah's Ark.

Here are a pair of Bashful Blooming Cacti.

And a plush Apple Cheek Ami Bear and Bunny duo.

Finally, I made this sweet Itty Bitty Ami Bear twosome.

I thought I'd throw in a random shot of the big ami bear next to the mini one. I just wanted to take a photo for comparison, but it gave me the idea of doing a set -- like a little bear holding her little toy bear. Maybe that will be my next project! :)

Now before I leave . . . this month's Reader Appreciation Giveway are these two adorable Japanese fabric iron-ons. Isn't that blue elephant sweet? Apply them to your tote bag or backpack for instant cuteness! As always I will pick someone at random from the comment pool of this post.

Thank you for coming by!

Summer Head Gear

2009-07-03T23:30:00.010-10:00

Summer's officially here and the B gals were in need of something to keep their hair from whipping up into a frightful mess at the beach, so here's what I came up with:

A crochet lace head kerchief with a pretty floral appliqué. This is the first time I've ever crocheted any sort of lace, so I picked a rather simple lace pattern. I'm pleased with how it came out. It's lacy without being too fussy -- perfect for cool, breezy, summer days!

I made them in a bunch of different colors as you can see. They'll be listed in my shop shortly, if anyone is interested.

Do you remember these? I haven't made my Sundae Berets in quite awhile. I used to make them with nuts scattered all over the hot fudge sauce, but this time I decided to do them up with colored sprinkles. I saw something on Food Network about how sprinkles were one of the most popular toppings for ice cream, and I was instantly inspired.

Here's one of my B-gals wearing one. I'll be putting a bunch of these in my shop, too.

Well, that's all the crafting news for now. Sorry this post is so short, but I've been enjoying my long, holiday weekend! :)

Happy Independence Day!

Back in the Zone

2009-06-14T13:41:00.018-10:00

Since the vog (a.k.a The Vile Cloud of Crafting Doom) lifted, I've finally got myself into a nice crafting schedule again. This week it's been nothing but Itty Bitty Amigurumis. Between the crocheting and the origami, I find it a nice all around soothing craft.

As you can see, I've added some bears to my Itty Bitty repertoire. I experimented a bit with the muzzle -- I did an embroidered nose much like my bigger bears, but then I also tried out a black bead nose. I'm not sure which one I like better. What do you all think? Any opinions would be greatly appreciated.

Here's a better look of them all decked out in their crochet dresses.

I've been on a desperate hunt to find more colors of this fingering weight mohair yarn. As you can see all I have at the moment are white and yellow. The manufacturer doesn't make any other suitable colors. The problem with Hawaii is that yarn shops are so scarce so I almost always have to mail order in. It's a bit of a guessing game since you can't see and feel the yarn for yourself. So far I've purchased some mohair yarn from Canada hoping that it would be a good weight/ gauge match with the yarn I'm presently using. No such luck. It was way too thin. I've just ordered some yarn from New York and I'm crossing my eyes and fingers that they're a good match.

I haven't done an "In Other Cuteness" feature in awhile, but I've discovered something so absolutely, irresistibly cute that I simply must share it --

Please meet Pecan! How adorable is he sitting on a stump with his little elephant push toy?

"Pecan is the oldest and wisest of the Pecanpals. He is a master storyteller, often spending entire afternoons sitting under a tall palm tree, reading. He insists that all the knowledge you ever need to know is found in stories. Pecan likes to be aware of things that are happening on the island, making sure to visit each and every person on his daily rounds." -- Noferin

The PecanPals are a group of whimsical characters created by the Australian artists of Noferin. They do paintings based on their characters and recently they branched out into making wooden figures of them. I just had to snatch one up right away! If you would like to purchase one, too, I wouldn't wait very long. These little guys have been going fast!

Before I leave I have to annouce the winner of June's Reader Appreciation Giveway! Thank you to Andrea Rooks of Rooks Paper Scissors for all your support! I will contact you soon!

Happy crafting everyone! :)

It's the Vog's Fault, and the Return of Owls and the Reader Appreciation Giveway!

2009-06-06T14:00:00.002-10:00

Ugh.

I hate it when I don't keep up with my regular scheduled posts. I've had a case of the blahs lately, which I blame on the recent weather. I know most people think that Hawaii weather is a dream -- and for the most part it is -- but sometimes we have this atmospheric phenomenon called vog, and it kicks me in the butt every time. Vog (volcanic smog) occurs when gases emitted from the Kilauea volcano in the Big Island mix with air, sun, and moisture and creates a smog like haze that makes the air feel thick, heavy, and sticky hot. Normally, it doesn't affect us much in Oahu, but occasionally wind will blow it down our way. Well, we recently experienced vog a couple of days running and it really choked the life out of me. Physically and mentally. Not only is the heat and humidity so miserable, but it's also rather depressing to look out at your once beautiful, crystal clear view of Diamond Head and see an ugly, brown film.

Anyway, I blame my vog addled brain for my lazy, blah, non-blogging state. Yep, that's my excuse and I'm sticking to it. :)

When the air (and my head) finally cleared, I decided to make some owls. I hadn't whipped up any of those little critters in awhile. I decided to make a Thoughtful Little Owl and a pair of Scholarly Little Owls. It was fun taking a break from crocheting and getting reacquainted with my sewing machine again. I think I'm going to do even more sewing projects now.

So I'm painfully aware that I missed last month's Reader Appreciation Giveway . . . *sigh*. I feel horrible about it because I hate being willy-nilly about things, even though this blog is aptly named for such behavior. To make up for it I wanted to make June's Reader Appreciation Giveaway super special. So here it is:

My new favorite craft is origami. I find it so calming and fun, and I would love to pass on my joy of origami to someone else. For those of you unfamiliar with the art of Japanese paper folding or for those who could use some more origami supplies, I put together this mini origami crafting kit. In it there's an origami instruction book with 33 sheets of paper included, and I've tossed in two more packages of super sweet Japanese import origami paper. What fun! :) You all know the drill -- I'll be picking the winner at random from the comment pool of this post.

Thank you again for visiting my hopelessly willy-nilly, but obsessively crafty little corner of the universe! Aloha!

It's Loovee Crafting Time

2009-05-10T12:58:00.007-10:00

As you well know, I've been all about amigurumi softies lately. Well, Loovee has been giving me that side eyed glance of discontent that tells me she has been quite neglected. Thus, I decided to devote some time to Loovee crafting. It wasn't hard to find some inspiration. With temperatures reaching upwards of 80° here in Hawaii, summer is definitely around the corner, and it put me in the mind of creating a pretty sundress for Loovee.

I wanted to create a dress that was sweet, simple and defintely summer-y. I decided that I would crochet it because nothing says warm summer days at the beach like a little crochet sundress.

Well, here is Loovee hitting the beach to test the final product. I think she's quite pleased with it. The design is simple and un-fussy. I added the curvy detail at the hem to convey surf and waves, and also to add some interest to such a basic design. I decided to variegate the waves in three different shades of pink, from darkest to lightest. I really like how it came out. It reminds me of a plumeria flower petal. Finally, I thought a beaded tie on the bodice would be a nice touch.

Loovee seems to enjoy sunning herself on the rocks.

Finally, a parting shot of Loovee as the sun sets.

I crocheted a couple more of these sundresses for the shop. I made a point to choose colors that were reminiscent of all things summer -- the beach, seashells, and tropical flowers . . . .

Please click on the pics to see the details better.

These three dresses have the variegated wavy hems.

These three have bold, solid waves.

If anyone is interested in any of these dresses, please check back at my shop. I'll start listing them tomorrow.

Thank you for visiting!

Big Things Come in Small Packages

2009-04-26T13:31:00.016-10:00

These little gals look like my usual ami bunnies, don't they? But what you don't know is that they're packing a little surprise . . . and I do mean LITTLE. :)

I never imagined I would -- or even could -- make amigurumi this small, but after a yarn mail order mishap (the new yarn I purchased was soooooo thin), I decided to make do with what I had. When life gives you lemons, you know? :)

All in all it wasn't so bad working with lace weight mohair yarn. It involved a ton of squinting. And lots of creative thinking to try to scale things down, yet still maintain my meticulous, borderline obsessive attention to detail. Oh, and there was a bit of cursing, too. :)

Sewing their fabric ear insets were a bit of chore. And I decided to crochet their smocks because just thinking about sewing something so tiny would likely cause my head to explode. I did, however, crochet the tiniest heart applique and stitched that onto the smock. I'll admit I'm a bit of a masochist when it comes to my crafting.

Here's a shot of their backside. I had to nix the pom-pom tails since I could not make them that small. I crocheted them instead.

Finally, in my unending quest to use what I have, I grabbed some origami paper and made these little origami packages to tuck the bunnies in. I crocheted the handles with some cotton thread and I cut some tags from cardstock. They're now ready for gift giving!

I'll likely have these mini ami bunnies in my shop next weekend if anyone is interested.

Thank you again for visiting! Happy crafting!

A "Something Special" Ami Bear, some Mother's Day Goodies, and Happy Mail

2009-04-17T18:30:00.003-10:00

Aloha friends! What have you all been up to? As for me, I've just been crafting my behind off as usual.

In my ever expanding series of "Something Special" ami softies, I've created this sweet, little bear. I've named her "Posy" for obvious reasons -- the garland of flowers she wears around her head and the freshly plucked blossom in her hand. I crocheted her out of a new brand of lavender mohair yarn, which is wonderfully soft and full. Her smock dress is cut from embroidered pink cotton gauze and trimmed with white lace.

Here is the entire "Posy" set complete with mini portrait and drawstring bag.

And here are the Mother's Day goodies I've been working on. I thought My Happy Swirly Cupcakes and Bashful Blooming Cacti would make lovely gifts for mom so I decided to put a few more in my shop.

Please visit my shop if you are interested in any of these. I will be listing one or two of them daily starting tomorrow.

Oh, I wanted to show you some happy mail that just came in. These are a set of Clover crochet hooks all tucked into its own velcro closure cozy. I've been thinking that serious crocheting requires some serious tools and I've heard that the thick handles on these Clover hooks are more ergonomic and give you better control. I can't wait to try my new fancy-pants crochet hooks. I feel like I'm graduating from a student violin to a Stradivarius! :)

Before I go I must thank you for all your kind birthday wishes! I appreciate it so much! I'm also happy to announce that the winner of April's Reader Appreciation Giveaway is Little Brown Rabbit! I will get in touch with you soon!

Well, that's it for now! Best wishes to all! :)

Hello Ami Bears, Goodbye Blythe Hoods, and an Extra Special Reader Appreciation Giveaway

2009-04-07T15:00:00.001-10:00

So what happens when I run out of yarn to make a Sweet Apple Cheek Ami Bunny?

I make a Sweet Apple Cheek Ami Bear! These little girls began life as amigurumi bunnies until I realized that there wasn't enough yarn left in the skein for their big ears and pom-pom tails. I've never made an amigurumi bear before so this was a new adventure for me.

I did a lot of sketching in my trusty doodle notebook before I found a bear head that felt right to me. You'd be surprised by how dramatic a simple bear face can change just by altering the size of the nose or the placement of the ears.

Here is another shot of them wearing the other side of their reversible apron dresses.

These little gals will be in my shop soon if anyone is interested.

Speaking of the shop, the last of the Blythe Bouncy Bunny Ear Hoods will go in, too. It's not the last hoods forever, but certainly the last for awhile (unless somone makes a special request because I always oblige). It's just that I have so many exciting project ideas whirling around in my head that I need to get to before they dissipate.

I'm so thrilled because I'm having my birthday this month! It will be doubly exciting because my best pal P has his birthday just four days after mine so we plan on a ton of celebrating. I want to extend the celebration to you by making April's Reader Appreciation Giveaway something extra special. The person I choose at random from the comment pool will receive all the goodies below (a stationary set, a lead pencil, a refrigerator magnet, 3 rubber stamps, a mini sticker book, a stencil ruler) and then some -- I will throw in another surprise gift for some extra fun! :)

Finally, to anyone else that shares a birthday in April with me -- HAPPY BIRTH MONTH!!! :)

The Last of the Blythe Woolly Lamb Hoods, Happy Swirly Cupcakes, and Make a Magnetic Pin Holder in 5 Minutes Tutorial

2009-03-30T09:59:00.027-10:00

I told myself I would not make any more of these because they are a bit difficult to sew, but I only had about 1/4 yard of the faux wool fabric left over, and in my never ending quest to use what I have, I decided to just go for it and use it all up. Goodbye Woolly Fabric! My sewing machine and I won't miss wrestling with your darn poofy-ness!

I haven't made any Happy Swirly Cupcakes in awhile so I whipped some up for the shop. I used to do the cup parts in all sorts of colors, but now I think I'll stick with yellow. It just looks more cake-y to me. I think yellow is a wonderfully edible looking color as opposed to pink or blue or what-not. Also, the blush really pops on a yellow face. I'll save the bright colors for the frosting.

Finally, on to the magnetic pin holder tutorial. Honestly, this is such an easy project that I can spell it out to you in one sentence, but if you're like me and love to see how-to photos . . . well, here we go --

The 5-Minute Magentic Pin Holder Tutorial

Materials:

-- peel & stick magnetic sheets or tape (I purchased this at my local Wal-Mart.)
-- a mint tin or similar small, shallow container
-- scissors
-- pen

Step 1. Clean your tin very well. I chose to use an Altoids mint tin for my pin keeper *Tip* If you're using an Altoid tin or similar mint tin, clean it with a wet paper towel and not by blowing it out. The cool, tingling sensation of peppermint candy dust in your eyeballs is not something I'd recommend.

Step 2. Using your tin as a template, trace around it onto the back of the magnetic strips/ sheet. ( My magnet came in a sheet that you can break apart into strips, but I kept it together in a solid sheet.)

Step 3. Now cut your outline. Be sure to cut inside the line you made as the inside of your tin is smaller than the outside. You might have to trim it a bit more afterwards.

Step 4. Once you've got the magnet to fit nice and snug, just peel, and stick it into place.

Yippee! Now you have a place to hold your pins and needles!

If you have extra time and are feeling super crafty, try decorating your tin. There's this whole world of artists dedicated to altered Altoid tins. Amazing!

Something Special : Star and Scout

2009-03-21T11:40:00.012-10:00

Do you you know what I love? I love it when you don't really have an idea at all of what you're going to make, but you keep fiddling with the materials you have on hand, and slowly, surely something starts to come to life right before your eyes. When that happens it's a fun little journey with unforeseen twists and turns and what you end up with is just a pleasant surprise.

And that's what happened with these little gals. Please meet Star and Scout.

"Star"

"Scout"

It all started with a little dilemma -- I wanted to whip up some of my usual Apple Cheek Ami Bunnies, but the mohair yarn I normally use was still en route from New York. Instead of waiting, I decided to dig around in my yarn stash, where I found some soft, fuzzy, loopy chenille yarn and I just started crocheting away. I absolutely loved how it turned out -- the loopy chenille hid the stitches so well and gave the bunny a wonderful plush look to it.

As I stared at the finished bunnies lying naked on my craft table, they just screamed for me to do something extra special with them. I wanted to do more and give more with them, and basically make them truly one of a kind.

So first, I named them. The buttermilk colored bunny I called Star and the cocoa bunny I christened Scout, both after real pet bunnies of mine.

Then I turned it up as far as their outfits go by giving their dresses details like vintage ric-rac and hand embroidery. I crocheted little bags for them to match their outfits. The flowers by their ears were reworked completely with stitch pleated petals and Japanese ume (plum blossom) centers.

I solidified their uniqueness by doing a little mixed media (watercolor, colored pencil, ink) painting of them with their names written on it. Sort of like a trading card.

Finally, I stitched up matching fully lined drawstring bags to tuck them away in.

I love how everything came out. I feel like these bunnies have their own little personalities. A pleasant surprise, indeed.

These two little gals will be in my shop in the next day or so if anyone is interested.

Oh, before I forget -- the winner of this Month's Reader Appreciation Giveaway is . . . KELLY MEDINA! Thank you for all your support Kelly! I'll get in touch with you soon!

Aloha for now! :)

Blythe Woolly Lamb Hoods, an Origami Envelope Tutorial, and March's Reader Appreciation Giveway

2009-03-13T18:21:00.030-10:00

To continue the tale of the Woolly Lamb Hood from last post --

Voilà!

Despite extensive struggling with the poofy faux wool fabric, I managed to whip up three Blythe Woolly Lamb Hoods. I intended to make four, but after two broken needles and countless fits of cursing I decided to end the battle early.

I did get a pinch of joy from using my new Japanese fabrics. There is nothing more satisfying to this crafter than cutting into a crisp piece of freshly purchased fabric. My favorite hood by far is the one lined with the pink kawaii fruit fabric -- to match the fabric's theme, instead of a flower by the ear, I crocheted twin little cherries with dual stems and leaves.

If you're interested in any of these hoods they should start showing up in my shop in a day or two.

Lately, I've been trying to adopt the "use what you have" mentality and the craft item I have been trying to get rid of was my extensive collection of origami paper. After much brainstorming I came up with this idea -- folding them into little envelopes, filling them with stickers, and stamping a little "For You" message on the back. But whatever for, you ask? Well, I plan to give these as an extra little thank you gift with each purchase at my shop.

Here's a quick how-to for the envelopes:

Origami Envelope Tutorial

Step 1. On the diagonal, fold paper upwards in half to form a triangle.

Step 2. Fold the top corner of the uppermost layer down to the bottom edge of the triangle.

Step 3. Take the right corner and fold it exactly 1/3 of the way toward the left. I suggest measuring for accuracy if you want a really neat envelope.

Step 4. Take the left corner and fold it to the edge of the right side. It should now resemble an opened envelope.

Step 5. Fold the right corner of the uppermost flap back towards the left edge.

Step 6. Unfold and open. Use this crease as a guide as you press down on the open flap to form a little square pocket.

Step 7. Take the very top corner and fold down to the bottom edge. This forms the envelope's top flap closure.

Hooray! You're done! Now stuff your little envelope and seal it by taking the top flap and tucking it into the little square pocket.

I'm horrid with instructions, so bear with me if the tutorial is a bit confusing. I tried. :) If you have any questions, feel free to to ask.

Finally . . .

March's Reader Appreciation Giveaway is this very cute puffy paper doll sticker set. The sweet, little girl has an extra dress to change into and lots of food for her to eat. As always , I will randomly choose someone from the comment pool at this post and announce the winner in my next post.

Thank you for visiting! Have a great weekend!

Getting My Craft On

2009-03-07T14:10:00.001-10:00

Since we spoke last I've been a very busy crafting bee! My mind as well as my crafting desk have been a-clutter and aflutter with so many projects.

The major one being an army of Bashful Blooming Cacti. Some are custom orders and some will be going to my Etsy shop soon.

Yayy! They have official tags now! :)

During one of my lazier crafting days I decided to make these little "thank you" tags. I've never been much of a stamper/ paper crafter as sewing and crocheting are my cup of tea, so I was surprised that I got such a kick out of making these. There's something very nostalgic about sitting at your desk and cutting paper and gluing pieces of it here and there. It reminded me of being in grade school and making Valentine's Day cards or construction paper chains for the class Christmas tree. Ahhhhh, childhood . . . . :)

This week I visited my favorite fabric store on the island, Kaimuki Dry Goods, where I scored some sweet Japanese import fabrics. Just look at the yummy colors! I could not wait to start cutting into them!

I'll end this post with a parting shot of my craft desk. Can you tell what I'm working on? If you guessed Blythe Wooly Lamb Hoods then pat yourself on the back! :) I'm not sure how successful it will turn out because the faux lamb's wool is rather thick and it's giving my poor Singer sewing machine a ghastly time of it. We'll see, I guess. If all goes well I should have a bunch in my Etsy shop soon.

Oh, wait! Before I forget -- The winner of February's Reader Appreciation Giveaway is Ismoyo! I will get in touch with you soon, Ismoyo! :)

Take care until next time!

Blythe Bouncy Bunny Ear Hoods, Kawaii Finds, and February's Reader Appreciation Giveaway

2009-02-22T12:40:00.006-10:00

This week I've been busy sewing up some Bouncy Bunny Ear Hoods for my shop. I made one for Loovee ages ago for our trip to Japan and I recently came across the old pattern I drafted while organizing my new craft room. Since spring and Easter is around the corner I thought now would be the perfect time to whip up a few more.

Here's little Loovee modeling one.

The hoods are cut from furry fleece, and the ears and inside of the hood are lined with coordinating cotton fabric. I added a layer of light interfacing in between so that the hood keeps it's shape (fleece is notoriously stretchy), and the ears stay nice and perky. Finally, I added some beaded and crocheted flowers to give the hoods some extra sweetness.

If you're interested in any of these hoods, please check back at my Etsy shop, where they will be listed soon.

This week I also managed to score some super kawaii stuff, which is always a thrill.

From Marukai, a store specializing in Japanese items, I found these clothes pin memo clips and a bunch of rubber stamps. I especially love the little Russian doll stamp.

The My Melody wristwatch came from a McDonald's Kid's Happy Meal. I'm not big on McDonald's, but when I discovered that the promo toys for their Happy Meals were from Sanrio, I just couldn't resist. Unfortunately, I am not eight years old and I can't get away with wearing a My Melody pink camouflage wristwatch, so I was thinking of removing the wristband, attaching a little chain to the watch face, and making it a pocket watch. That way I can enjoy the cuteness of My Melody incognito.

As you know, I've done a few Reader Appreciation Giveaways before. Honestly, I'm so grateful to everyone that visits and takes the time to comment, and that was just my little way of saying thanks. Well, provided fate doesn't pitch me a meteoric curve ball to throw off my schedule or focus, this year I plan to make my Reader Appreciation Giveaway a monthly event so please stay tuned and watch out for my Reader Appreciation Giveaway posts! :)

For this month's giveway, I have this set of Japanese wood bead book marks, which I found during my recent shopping adventures. Cute and useful -- yayy! I will choose someone at random from all the comments I receive and I will annouce the winner of these bookmarks in my next post.

Til next time! :)

Easy Peasy Handmade Labels, More Thoughtful Little Owls, and Yummy Stuff

2009-02-13T14:40:00.004-10:00

I've been toying around with the idea of personalizing all my handmade creations with labels for awhile now, and I'm thrilled to say that I've finally slayed the procrastination beast and done it!

I've seen labels made via the iron-on transfer paper method, where you print your label yourself and then iron it on to ribbon. I thought that was a nifty idea and the results I've seen came out great, but honestly I'm so technologically inept that I foresee many a losing battle with my printer if I go that route.

In the end, I decided on a more basic, fool-proof method to make my labels -- hand stamping on ribbon.

The first thing I did was have a stamp made. I decided to skip the fancy graphics and just have "Willy-Nilly Waterlily" spelled out plain and neat. I found JLMould through Etsy and they did an amazing job of creating my stamp for me. Then I just stamped away!

Here's some quick tips if you want to try this yourself:
1. Use a quick drying, permanent ink pad.
2. Experiment on different types of ribbon. I found that stamping on medium weight 100% cotton ribbon had the least ink bleed of all the ribbons I had on hand and made the crispest stamp images. On the other hand, polyester satin ribbon had the most ink bleed and the blurriest stamp image, so you might want to steer clear of that stuff.
3. Heat set your freshly stamped labels by pressing with an iron (at the highest temperature your ribbon can stand) for about a minute. After doing this I found that my labels stood up much better to a soap and water wash test.

Here are my labels hand sewn onto some owl butts. I just love how they came out!

Speaking of owls, this trio will be going up in my shop shortly. They are all made with super sweet cotton and linen Japanese print fabrics, and a coordinating cotton corduroy. If you're interested, please stay tuned to my shop. :)

On a very random note, I'll end this post with one of the reasons I'm so fortunate to live in Hawaii -- Lappert's Premium Ice Cream. It's made right here in the islands and it's without a doubt the best ice cream I've ever had the pleasure to taste. My favorite flavor is Mauna Kea's Secret (on the right), which is a yummilicious mix of white chocolate ice cream, rasberry sorbet, chocolate chips, and chocolate brownie chunks. Can you say heaven? Please, if you ever visit Hawaii you MUST have some! You know I'd never steer you wrong! :)

Perspective . . . and stuff

2009-02-01T13:00:00.003-10:00

Only 21 days into the new year and it's been quite a whirlwind for me so far.

First, I moved into a brand new apartment. It's so much smaller than my old home, which takes a bit of getting used to. It's funny how you don't really have a clue how much junk you've collected over the years until you have to pack it into boxes. Downsizing my personal possessions was an awful, but necessary endeavor. It's the letting go part that stings the most, I think. Whether it was giving my belongings to charity, saying goodbye to the stray cats I befriended over the years, or closing the door of my old home behind me for the very last time . . . *sigh* . . . letting go is always difficult, isn't it?

As if that wasn't enough to deal with, wouldn't you know it? When I finally settled into my new place my computer began having horrible fits, which pretty much amounted to its final death throes. So even more letting go . . . this time to my trusty old Emachine. Goodbye Emachine! You served me well for being a midnight impulse purchase at my local Wal-Mart. I will look back fondly on all the times you crashed for no reason.

Finally, the icing on the cake that has been the introduction to my new year -- and I say that with venomous, dripping sarcasm -- is that I managed to get a strep throat infection.

For awhile I viewed these recent events with ill humor and I dreaded what the rest of 2009 had in store for me. However, after much useless cursing and shaking my fist to the heavens I had an epiphany!

I've come to realize that you can't control what fate has in store for you, but you certainly can control how you view such events. For instance, I can cry a river over the fact that I no longer reside in the wonderful, big house I lived in for 14 years . . . or I can look around my cute, little townhouse and revel in the fact that less room means less cleaning. :) Plus look at the pretty view that greets me every morning from my back lanai:

And it did suck to have my computer die out on me at the most inopportune time. Not to mention it cost me a pretty penny to replace it, but now I have a new Compaq that doesn't freeze up when I'm trying to blog about how it's been freezing up.

As for my strep throat -- yes, it's awful to be sick and in pain, but it also gives me the perfect excuse to rest up and eat all the ice cream my heart desires. :)

It's all about perspective, you see. Change your perspective -- the way you view your life -- and you'll find that things aren't always as bad as they seem. There really is a silver lining.

So 2009 . . . bring it on because I'm ready!

Well, thank you all for allowing me to wax philosophical for a moment, but now onto more cuter and craftier things.

The winner of the Happy Swirly Cupcake is . . .

I will be contacting you shortly Mushroom Meadows! :)

Also, I'm slowly but surely getting into my crafting zone again. I plan to list a new item in my shop every few days as I get it done so I might not blog about here, but please check my Etsy store often if you're interested. I have some Bashful Blooming Cacti and some Happy Swirly Cupcakes coming up. Here's a peek at one of them:

Oh, before I go I wanted to share a photo of dear Loovee taken on a field trip to Hawaii's premier shopping mall, Ala Moana Center. I loved the big-eyed lemurs and I thought big-eyed Loovee would fit in perfectly among them:

Well, I've been so very out of the loop lately so I'm off to check out what my blogging pals have been up to. Hopefully, you've all had a better start to the new year than I did. :)

A Christmas Gift to You, My Friends . . .

2008-12-11T20:28:00.008-10:00

Okay, so this is reallly, really going to be my last post for 2008. :)

I was in the process of closing up my Etsy shop for the holidays, and I just felt I wanted to do one last thing this year to show my sincerest gratitude to all of you.

I feel so indebted for all the support you show me here at my blog and at my shop.

I appreciate each and every one of you.

Thank you for helping to make 2008 such a wonderful year for me.

So here's another cupcake giveaway to show how very thankful I am. I pulled this little guy out of my shop in hopes of finding him a new home for the new year.

Will you please take him in?

Leave a comment and I will choose his new owner at random from the comment pool, which I will announce in my very first post after the new year.

Take care everyone!

See you in 2009!!!!

Happy Holidays to You!!!

2008-12-02T12:02:00.009-10:00

Aloha friends,

This is a super early holiday greeting because I think this may be my last post until after the New Year. My schedule is packed solid this entire month so I will pretty much be M.I.A here.

I just wanted to wish all my dear readers a wonderful holiday season.

Happy Holidays! Take care! I'll see you all in 2009!

Hugs to you all,
R.

P.S. -- These cupcakes will be the last items going up in my shop. Toodles!

P.P.S. -- I was given the Kreativ Blogger Award by Milkberry. Thank you so much, Milkberry!

In return for receiving this award, I have to name three things that I love. Here they are:

1. I just adore my friends and family.
2. I find the combination of chocolate and peanut butter absolutely irresistible.
3. I live for that feeling of coming up with a great, new idea . . . that sort of light bulb sensation in my head that gets me all excited. It's the best high. :)

Cuteness Therapy

2008-11-28T02:03:00.007-10:00

Are you stressed, worried, or suffering from anxiety?

Can't afford expensive therapy to help you cope?

Well, do what I do. Watch cute animal videos.

Dancing Walrus

Fat Cat vs. Little Box

Sleeping Hamster

Don't you feel a little better now? :)

A Holiday Gift Guide

2008-11-21T19:00:00.004-10:00

So Christmas is looming ever closer and for those of you who need a few gift ideas . . . boy, have I got some! I'm constantly discovering wonderful shops at Etsy and here are just a few that carry some amazing creations that are perfect for holiday gift giving.

Florspace

"Where fuction meets cute . . . " is Florspace's motto and I absolutely agree. Lyn specializes in wallets, purses, and bags cut from the latest kawaii fabrics. I am especially swooning over her Cube and Carte Wallets -- I just love how compact they are, yet they carry all the basics. There's really something for everyone in her shop, but I think teens and kawaii lovers would find her creations especially hard to resist.

SugarElf

Can you believe these lovely little pieces of art are actually pincushions? Christine makes each one herself and the above are just a mere sampling of the types of pincushions she creates. They would brighten up any sewing room and would be the perfect gift for the crafter in your life. Do check out her shop for even more cuteness in the form of ornaments, coasters, and stuffed toys.

Nut and Bee

I just adore Nut and Bee's cute and clever illustrations! Annette has both an etsy shop and her very own web shop, where each illustration can be made into buttons, rubber stamps, notepads, stickers and art prints just to name a few. In fact, I just ordered one of her art prints and I'm dying to receive it! Great gifts for an animal lover!

The Craft Pantry

Now if you know someone on the more practical or earth conscious side, check out the totes at The Craft Pantry. Cammie creates all the designs herself -- from modern to retro, from whimsical to realistic. She can even personalize a tote for you! The Craft Pantry has a wide range of tote styles to choose from. I especially like the fact that all of her bags are eco friendly -- they are either organic or made of hemp or from recycled materials.

Now get ready to shop! :)

Bashful Blooming Cacti and Two Scholarly Little Owls

2008-11-13T08:00:00.005-10:00

In the Sept/Oct issue of Crochet Today! I saw this:

Well, I gave it a go all the while adding the Willy-Nilly Waterlily touch to it. Here's what I came up with:

I freehanded these little gals and spruced them up with lots of flowers. With their downcast eyes, rosy cheeks, and head full of blossoms, I christened them the Bashful Blooming Cacti. They stand about 6 inches tall including the mini terra cotta pot. I think one of these girls would pretty up a desk quite nicely.

Here's a top view.

I also made two Scholarly Little Owls. These little guys are a little more elaborate than my usual owls. They are made with a tweedy fabric for their tummy, wings and tail; and then a faux tooled leather fabric for their head and back. Their gold monocle adds to their distinguished and intellectual look.

If you're interested in any of these Bashful Blooming Cacti or Scholarly Little Owls they will be in my shop starting this Friday.

So lately I've been thinking about tags. My softies need nice little tags. I've been searching high and low for places that print glossy custom tags. And then it occurred to me -- I should make them myself! And I don't mean print them out from my computer, but actually making them individually by hand. I guess I got so caught up with my spiffy, new MOO MiniCards and how professional they look that for a moment I forgot the fun and simplicity of making things yourself . . . all the way down to the tiniest detail.

Well, here are my handmade tags. They're just simple watercolor doodles and my handwriting. It's not the most professional looking, but it's definitely a lot more personal feeling. Not to mention less expensive! :)

Well, that's all the news for now. I must run along as there is so much more crafting to be done and so little time.

Talk to you all soon!

Apple Cheeked Ami Bunnies, A Blythe Sale, MOO, and Let' Go Make History

2008-10-31T10:50:00.005-10:00

Hello friends!

HAPPY HALLOWEEN!!! I imagine most of you are gearing up for the big night. So what manner of costume will you be roaming this ghoulishly dark night in?

As for my costume, I'm going as The Boring Crafty Girl Huddled in Her Room When She Should Really Be Socializing With Others. It's the same one I wore last year.

So here's what I've been up to:

I've finally finished this trio of Apple Cheeked Ami Bunnies.

Here they are wearing the other side of their reversible dresses

And a view of their fluffy pompom tails.

To those who may be interested, these three little bunnies will be listed in my shop this Sunday.

In other Etsy news, I would like to empty out my shop before it closes for the holidays. Therefore, I'm having a special on all Blythe dresses. They are now all 10% off and they'll still come with all these lovely freebies. Please take a peek! Perhaps you'll see something you like :)

Oh, I just received some very happy mail! My MOO MiniCards finally arrived all the way from England and I absolutely love how they came out. I'll be using these as promo cards for my shop. I must thank my fellow blogger, Berrysprite, for giving me the heads up on MOO -- Thank you, Berrysprite!:)

Now on a more serious note . . .

Lately, I've been glued to the news channels, watching poll after poll and listening to pundit after pundit. Tuesday is a big day for my country -- Election Day. They say that this election will be the most important in my lifetime. I'm thrilled at the opportunity to play even the most minute part in history. I'm dying for my voice to be heard. My fellow Americans, make sure your voices are heard, too.

Vote.

Some Etsy Shop News: A Couple More Cupcakes and Some Freebies

2008-10-21T11:30:00.006-10:00

First of all, I want to thank everyone who purchased items from my shop. I appreciate it so much!

My Happy Swirly Cupcakes sold out fairly quickly and I've had some inquiries about when I will churn out more. Well, I've done just that. :) Here's three more, including my very first chocolate cupcake. I'll be listing them in my shop on Thursday if anyone is interested.

Here's a view of the cupcake tops.

I think these will be the last cupcakes for awhile. I'm going to turn my attention to some amigurumi bunnies now.

I enjoy giving freebies as much as I enjoy getting them, so here's two freebies going on in my shop at the moment:

1. If you purchase any Blythe item, you'll get a pair of these super cute candy barrettes. They are 3/4 in. long, the perfect size for your Blythe. I'll choose a color for you at random.

2. If you purchase any two items in my shop you'll get an official Sanrio Hello Kitty Hawaii keychain and large sticker. I'll randomly choose these for you, too.

And yes, if you buy two Blythe dresses you will get two pairs of candy barettes and the keychain and sticker altogether! :)

Well, that's all the news for now. My crafting room calls . . .

Talk to you all soon!

A Quick Break from Crafting Madness

2008-10-16T13:07:00.011-10:00

During my ongoing crafting blitz, I have moments where I must put the crochet hook down and take a breather. That's when I go outside and enjoy the sunshine with some friends of mine.

I don't know where they came from. One day they were just there in my garage -- stray cats. That was months ago. I have been feeding them ever since. I enjoy just sitting down, sipping a soda, and watching their silliness. Have you ever seen a cat stalk a gecko? If not, you really must. Oh, and don't worry -- the gecko got away.

Anyway, let me introduce you.

Please meet Gray Tabby.

This is The Lazy One.

And this is Ninja Kitty.

Last, but not least this ornery old cat is Up Ear/ Down Ear.

I am wonderfully original with names, aren't I?

I will probably name my first child Wrinkly Pink Wiggly Thing.

So what creatures wander around your home?

No More Sad, Empty Etsy Shop: BIG Update!

2008-10-06T11:40:00.002-10:00

Aloha friends!

I have finally decided to dust the cobwebs off of my woefully neglected Etsy shop. These past few weeks I have been working diligently on Blythe dresses and softies galore to fill up its empty shelves.

I went to town and whipped up more of my apron dresses. I rummaged through my fabric stash and picked out a variety of sweet prints from kawaii animals to florals. Here's a peek:

1. Kawaii Flowers
2. Kawaii Owls

3. Circus Elephants

4. Happy Strawberries

5. Cottage in the Woods

6. Musical Pigs

7. Retro Daisies (I adore this one because it is made from vintage 70's fabric that's sprinkled with fuzzy flocked daisies)
8. Aloha!

9. Petites Fleurs

I also made some Aloha Dresses in great retro and modern prints:

1. Pink and Orange Retro Floral
2. Green and Pink Retro Floral

3. Purple and Blue Retro Floral

4. Aloha!
5. Surfer Girl

And now for the softies!

Here's a trio of Thoughtful Little Owls.

I am delighted to introduce the Happy Swirly Cupcakes! I've been working on a new cupcake design that was yummier than my original and I really like how it came out. They aren't just sweet to look at, either. They're functional, too! Each Happy Swirly Cupcake will come with a removal plastic pick, which can hold amorous messages, reminder notes, and even photographs.

Here's a shot of the cupcake tops.

Continuing with the theme of sugary sweetness, do you remember my Blythe Nutty Sundae Berets? Here's a photograph to refresh your memory just in case:

Anyway, for awhile now I've toyed around with the idea of creating an Etsy listing, where you could custom design your own Nutty Sundae Beret. Well, I am thrilled to say that I've finally done it!

Although the hot fudge sauce, nuts, and whipped cream will remain the same, you will be able to choose from the nine delicious ice cream "flavors" above.

You will also be able to choose between two colors of cherries to top off your sundae with --pink or red!

I do hope you all like what I made as much as I loved making them. If there is something you are interested in, please stop by my Etsy shop this Friday when I will list them.

Thanks again to all of you for dropping by!

We Now Return You to Our Previously Scheduled Program . . .

2008-09-19T12:30:00.005-10:00

When life karate chops you in the throat, there's nothing like good friends to help you breathe again. So I want to thank all of you for your kind comments in my last post. I appreciate all your thoughts and well wishes so much.

Now let's get back to the craft and cute, shall we? :)

I've been lucky enough to take part in two great swaps with pals Linda of The Adventures of Molli fame, and Milkberry.

Look at all of the goodies from Linda and Molli! There's three beautiful sun dress/ bead headband sets; a watermelon head Sonny Angel; a travel Re-Ment set with a little suitcase; and a teeny, tiny little bunny book just to name a few.

And what's in the mystery box with my name on it, you ask?

It's a lovely silver necklace with a topaz stone. I just adore how pretty, clean, and simple it is. It's perfect, Linda!

Here's Loovee wearing her favorite dress set from the swap. It's such a sweet, playful, little outfit, don't you think?

Thank you so much for another wonderful swap, Linda and Molli! Loovee and I are so overwhelmed with your generosity and kindness.

Now Milkberry and I had a very different kind of swap -- a super yummy-licious candy swap! Milkberry, who lives in Japan, came up with the genius idea to trade Japanese candy for American ones. Let the salivating begin!

My favorites by far are the flavored KitKats. In Japan, they do KitKats in the most wonderfully odd flavors. Milkberry sent over KitKats in tea, watermelon, and strawberry flavors. Yippee!

Thank you so much for swapping with me, Milkberry! I do hope you enjoy your American candies as much as I am enjoying mine.

So a couple of weeks ago I was kindly given the Brillante Weblog honor by fellow crafty bloggers, Ismoyo and Milkberry. I'm so tickled! Thanks so much, you two!

In return for accepting this honor, I now have the pleasure of awarding it to five other blogs that I enjoy visiting.

The Adventures of Molli -- Loovee highly recommends you take a peek at her best friend's blog. A must visit if you are a B-girl lover.

Berrysprite -- A kawaii and crafty blog by a fellow Hawaii resident. Check out her Etsy shop, too.

The Pigwidget Chronicles -- One of my new favorites.

Mushroommeadows -- I just adore her simple, yet super cute doodles.

In Company with Sparkles -- Such a sweet, little blog. I've been enjoying reading about her recent round the world adventures.

Now all of you above please pass this honor along to other blogs you admire!

Thank you all for visiting once again!

We Interrupt Our Regularly Scheduled Cute and Crafty Broadcast . . .

2008-09-11T11:45:00.010-10:00

Sometimes life bashes you in the head with a big dose of reality that no amount of crafting and cuteness can ignore.

Unfortunately, this is one of those times.

In memory of:

G. L. B
1948-2008

and

R.F.R, Sr.
1913-2008

I am so grateful to have known you.

Much love,
Rima Lani

A Field Trip for Loovee: Waikiki

2008-09-02T01:25:00.004-10:00

I have a love-hate relationship with Waikiki, Hawaii's most famous beachfront. I love the energy and excitement, but I hate the crowds. I love the vast variety of restaurants and shops, but I hate how commercial it has now become. I love that it is so renown that people all over the world want to visit, but I hate that it seems like a new hotel is being built every week to accommodate them.

Anyway, Loovee wanted to show you that despite Waikiki's hustle and bustle, and all the construction going on at the moment, there are still a few places that are green, serene, and reminiscent of the the real Hawaii.

The following three photos were taken at the Hilton Hawaiian Village. It is a huge resort, which features manicured tropical gardens, ponds with waterfalls, and a man-made lagoon.

This is one of the Hilton's many ponds. They are often filled with colorful carp fish and it's not unusual to see the resident ducks swimming by.

Resting in the shade of a palm tree.

Here's Loovee observing the cascading water.

The next two pictures were taken at Leahi Park, which overlooks the beautiful ocean.

Lounging on the seawall.

Watch out for those big waves, Loovee!

Finally, Loovee ends the day in front of Diamond Head Crater as the Hawaiian sun starts to set.

"Aloha and mahalo for visiting!" Loovee says.

And the Winner is . . . , Loovee's Trip to the Museum, and Gachapin's Lunch Set

2008-08-07T13:00:00.005-10:00

Aloha! It's been awhile, hasn't it? I hope you are all well and enjoying your summer. This summer is a mild one here in Hawaii, which I am thankful for. It's usually not very hot, but in those moments when it does start to swelter some, you can always count on a good breeze to keep you cool and comfy. I just love Hawaii.

Anyway, let's get on with the first order of business. The winner of the happy, little cupcake is:

Pigwidget has an amazing crafty Blythe blog and if you haven't visited it yet, you must! She always has great photos of her girls. I will get in touch with you soon, Pigwidget!

Last weekend, Loovee tagged along with me to the Contemporary Museum in Honolulu. One of my favorite exhibits was by local artist Cade Roster. It was called Plush Gaiden and it featured a series of whimsical mixed media bear sculptures. Here are a few of my favorites from the series:

"8th Grade" by Cade Roster

"Juggernaut" by Cade Roster

"Truth" by Cade Roster

Aren't they adorable? Their kawaii-ness had me seriously squealing.

The museum has a beautiful, lush zen garden out back, which features even more art sculptures. Loovee had a great time running around there.

I enjoyed the trip to the museum with Loovee so much that I think I will make field trips a regular feature. There are so many great places in Hawaii that Loovee and I are dying to share with you all.

As for my aforementioned Re-Ment frenzy . . . well, it has died down, thankfully. What killed the obsession for me was the constant disappointment of getting sets I did not want. I had to go through seven boxes to find the dinosaur lunch set I was coveting for Gachapin. I swear I felt like I won the lottery when I finally found it!

I sure hope Gachapin appreciates my efforts more than his droopy face is showing.

Well, it's time to check out what my wonderful blogging pals are up to. I can't wait to see what great things are going on with all of you.

Mahalo for stopping by!

P.S. If you are wondering why my photos now have copyrights on them it's because I recently had some of my photos stolen. Have any of you ever experienced this? What a headache that was. I shake my fist at you, image thieves!

Reader Appreciation: A Cupcake For You

2008-07-08T09:27:00.005-10:00

I just wanted to say thank you.

Thank you all for taking the time to read my silly little blog and to write such sweet comments that encourage and motivate me to do more.

Thank you all for inspiring me with your own fantastic ideas and creativity.

Thank you all for being such good friends.

Thank you all for visiting me here -- my own little corner of the universe -- again and again.

I appreciate you all so very much.

And to show it I'm having a little giveaway. This amigurumi cupcake will go to anyone who comments to this post, chosen at random. I will mail it anywhere in the world. I will announce the winner in my next post.

Thank you!

Happy Mail, Re-Ment, and Custom Orders

2008-06-24T13:10:00.017-10:00

I would like to thank everyone that purchased and inquired about purchasing the items in my Etsy shop. I am so pleased that the things I create are met with such enthusiasm! Thank you, thank you, thank you!!!

I have been busy with so much outgoing mail that it was nice to get some incoming mail for a change. I finally got to purchase some Louos Loves creations! I have been waiting forever to snag some of his stuff, but whenever I come up on one of his sales posts at TIB, everything has been sold out. Aren't these Louos Loves tees adorable? I love the prints and all the pink!

In more happy mail news, I finally received my Arte du Blythe fat book! Yippee! It definitely lived up to its name -- it is a very FAT book chock full of artfully adorned pages. Thank you to everyone who participated in this project and especially to Gina of Blythe-O-Mania Untamed for all her hard work to make it happen. It was so much fun!

My new obsession du jour are Re-Ment miniatures. I was so thrilled to discover that they sell them here in Hawaii. It is a blessing and a curse because now that I know they are in the vicinity I have the constant urge to pick up another box. And another. And another. 24 boxes so far and counting. Scary.

As for my Etsy shop, I am still working on the cupcakes, owls, and some new Blythe outfits, but my focus on them has taken a little detour as I accepted a few custom orders on my apron dress sets and my sundae hats. I've been a bit wary about taking custom orders in the past because of my willy-nilly nature. I've always been afraid that I would never finish them in a timely manner or that I would rush them out, and they would not be done as well as if I took my time. Thankfully, I finished the following apron dress set and sundae hats in relatively short order (for me, at least).

Thank you, Megumi!

Thank you, Alisa!

Thank you, Evelyn!

And thank you all for dropping by once again!

Etsy Shop Update

2008-06-07T11:24:00.005-10:00

First off, I want to congratulate the winners and all the participants of TIB's Heroes Contest. There were so many amazing and inspiring entries. I had such fun doing it, too. I can't wait until the next TIB contest!

Since we spoke last I've been such a busy little bee, making stuff for my sad, empty Etsy shop. So far I have whipped up four nutty sundae berets and four apron dress/ head kerchief sets.

I make each nutty sundae beret with a variety of yarns and crochet threads. I just love mixing textures. Each hat has 5 layers-- ice cream, hot fudge, nuts, whipped cream, and a big cherry on top. Every layer is carefully hand stitched onto the next. Here are the "flavors" I've made:

Strawberry Sundae

Neopolitan Sundae

Caramel Sundae

Cool Candy Mint Sundae

For the apron dress sets, I used the most kawaii fabrics from my stash, which were all imported from Japan. The rick rack trim on them is vintage, which is so much softer and pliable than modern rick-rack. The dresses are also completely lined in white cotton. The back closes with a metal hook and eye. Finally, all seams are hidden, which prevents unraveling.

Anyway, here they are:

Bunnies & Berries

Panda & Pig Ballet

Cottage in the Woods

Kawaii Owls

I had some time on my hands so I decided to whip up some hang tags. Look at me trying to be all professional and stuff ;) Actually, I used to write little thank you notes by hand with each sale, so I just thought this would be much neater and prettier.

I'm going to take a few more photos of the sundae hats and dress sets and then I'll be posting them in my Etsy store soon.

I think I'll work on some amigurumi cupcakes and owls next for the shop.

Talk to you soon!

TIB's Heroes Contest and the Arte du Blythe Fat Book Project

2008-05-12T15:30:00.009-10:00

Have you ever had one of those days (or weeks) where none of your projects turn out like you pictured them in your head? Well, that's the state I've been in. I had such great ideas for the TIB Heroes Contest and my Arte du Blythe project, but for some reason I kept falling short of realizing them. I hate when that happens. *sigh*

Anyway, now for the unveiling of the hero Loovee and I chose!

Drum roll please . . .

It's Gachapin!

Here's a closer shot.

I am sure I've spoken about Gachapin before, but in case you're unfamiliar with him, Gachapin the dinosaur is a very popular television character in Japan. Unfortunately, I was not lucky enough to grow up watching him in the children's show Hirake! Ponkiki! as I live in the USA. However, I fell in love with his adorable likeness during my trip to Japan and I have since watched many YouTube videos of him. Little did I know that behind that gentle, dopey demeanor lies such vibrant energy. I've seen videos where he rock climbs, break dances, jet skis, and even ice skates! I enjoy all of his playful antics and greatly admire how agile and athletic he is . . . and that is why Gachapin is my hero! Wow. That sounded like a grade school theme paper.

As for the costume, it didn't come out like my original sketch, which I ripped up in frustration so I'm afraid I can't share it with you. The dress I had in mind was completely different, but being that I was crunched for time, I decided to nix it and just use my old apron dress pattern. The helmet came out pretty dead on, so I am pleased with that bit. Although it's not exactly what I envisioned, I'm happy that I managed to whip up something at all before the looming deadline.

For my Arte du Blythe Fat Book project we had to create two different page designs with an animal theme. Fat books are chunky little books filled with collage art pages individually created by different artists. I had to make 28 pages total (14 of each design). I have never done a collage before so it was a very interesting endeavor.
This is my first page design. It feels rather busy to me and has no clear focus, so I'm not sure how I feel about it, really.

This is my second design. This one has a definite focus, but feels rather sparse. However, I was too afraid to touch it up for fear it would get too busy like the first design. What a dilemma, huh?

Well, I am hoping that I can move past this so-so crafting phase and find my zone with my upcoming project -- updating my Etsy shop. My shop has been woefully neglected and I plan to remedy that right away. I plan on making owls; amigurumi rabbits and cupcakes; and even Blythe clothes such as some apron dress/head kerchief sets and sundae hats.

Well, thank you again for dropping by. I'm off now to visit my fellow blogging pals and see what wonderful things they've been up to.

Come back soon!

Inedible Desserts, the Un-Patchwork Dress, and TIB's Heroes Contest

2008-04-23T13:44:00.010-10:00

Aloha all! I have been deep in the crafting mines yet again, which is why I've been away for a bit. However, I thought it was about time I resurfaced for a much needed break. I must often remind myself to smell the roses, make some human contact, and to basically stave off my inevitable future of being a crafting hermit for just a little bit longer.

So I've had cupcakes on my mind lately. Like really badly. I am not sure what it is exactly since I'm more of a muffin sort of gal then a cupcake one. It could very well be due to Linda and Molli's influence. All their talk of cupcakes with accompanying yummy-licious photos have planted a sugary sweet seed in my head. I've been wanting to make cupcakes ever since, but since I can't bake worth beans . . .

This is my first crack at making an amigurumi cupcake. It came out looking more like a bloated, frosted acorn. Back to the drawing board.
These are cupcakes Version. 2.0. They definitely look more cupcake-y, less acorn-y.

Here is a shot of their frosted tops.

I really enjoyed making these cupcakes. I did them free hand, which kept things interesting and novel because I never knew how they were going to turn out. Not only is it a really fun and cute project, but it's also a fabulous way to use up scrap yarn.

Keeping with the dessert theme, I also crocheted this nutty mocha sundae beret for our friends Sandy and Sarafina. Thank you Sandy!

As for Loovee's patchwork dress from last post, I'm afraid I got sidetracked. Sometimes you just have to go where inspiration takes you and this week inspiration arrived in the mail in the form of these kawaii linen fabrics from Sweet Flavor and Plum Tickled Fabrics.

I know I said I would have the patchwork dress from last post finished by now, but I just went mad over the circus elephant print fabric as soon as I saw it, and I just had to do something with it immediately. I decided to use the same pattern as Loovee's old apron dress because I wanted a simple style, where the kawaii print is easily visible. I gave it a bit of a twist with a wider contrasting border and some vintage rick-rack. I also made a head kerchief to match.
It looks very playful and summery to me. Like something Loovee could wear skipping on the beach.

I'm so sorry to everyone that was expecting to see the patchwork dress in this post. The word "willy-nilly" is not in my blog title by accident. It definitely describes how scatterbrained and impulsive I am, and how keeping a certain order is a difficult thing for me to do. I swear you will see the patchwork dress in the near future (barring any more sudden inspirations and cute distractions).

A Blythe project I'm very excited about is the Heroes Costume Contest hosted by TIB. Have you all heard about this? Gina Garan says, "The theme is 'Heroes' and the basic premise is to dress up to 3 of your girls as any notable figure, living or non. She can be anything from a popstar to a politician to a flying monkey (Dorothy's buddy)." Doesn't that sound like such fun? Deadline is May 15 so get started everyone! I have some ideas for Loovee's costume already! It will be thrilling to see what interesting and creative costumes everyone comes up with!

Well, it's been very good chatting with you all again, but it's now time for me to dive headlong into the bottomless depths of craftiness and cute once again!

The 2nd Annual Softie Awards and a Bunch of Blythe Goings-Ons (is that a real word?)

2008-04-05T15:46:00.013-10:00

I just wanted to say thank you to everyone for all your congratulations on my little ami bunny softies. I appreciate it so much!So there is even more softie fun to be had! The 2nd Annual Softie Awards Contest is now in session! There are a lot of fun categories this year -- Picnic Food, Elephant Tribute, Cutest Face, Pink or Plaid, and Embroidered to Death. Consider entering if you haven't already. It's so much fun to play along! Do check out the Softies Central Flickr group to see all the entries so far and prepare to be inspired!
I think I will enter my little Albino Koala in the Cutest Face category. That's her face peeking out of my banner up there. She was the first softie I ever made of my own design so she is very dear to my heart. It was inspired by a real life albino koala, Onya-Birri.

For the Pink or Plaid category I plan to enter my Good Luck Cat.

This week in Blythe I finished this nutty strawberry sundae hat for Gina & her girls. Thank you Gina!

I also made this sketch of a dress that's been bouncing around in my noggin for awhile. It's a very simple sundress, which features a gathered patchwork skirt. I like the idea of it, but I think it's in danger of turning out sort of hippie looking, which is not the look I'm going for. I want it to be sweet, childlike and playful.
I've chosen these fabrics for the dress so far. I stuck to pastel colors (with lots of pink :) and dainty prints, which hopefully will avoid the whole hippie issue. Another fear that I have is that all the seams in the skirt will make it look rather stiff. To avoid that I've chosen the lightest, most airiest fabrics from my stash -- cotton gauzes, handkerchief linens, and London lawns.

Next step is to draft the pattern. If all goes well you'll see the final product in my next post.

Take care until then!

Easter Excitement

2008-03-28T13:49:00.014-10:00

First off, I want to wish everyone a very belated Happy Easter! I had hoped to publish this post in a more timely manner and send my well wishes sooner, but I've been slow to emerge from my chocolate candy coma.

Loovee and Gachapin wanted to give you all a proper Easter greeting, too. Sweet little Loovee surprised Gachapin with an Easter gift -- a festive bunny bonnet . . . in pink, no less. Loovee thought he looked adorable. Gachapin thought . . . well, I think his face says it all.
A cute and crafty highlight of our Easter weekend was our wonderful swap with Linda, Molli, Zelda and Ramona. Look at all the beautifully wrapped packages!

Gachapin received a cute froggie toy and these yummy snacks. Just looking at this delicious cupcake made him forget all about the silly hat he was forced to wear that day.

Loovee was thrilled to receive these three beautiful babydoll dresses! She had the most difficult time choosing one to try on first because they were all so lovely.

Loovee also got this pretty Sew Pixie travel cozy so she can now travel safely and in style. Looks like I may have to get one for Gachapin, too.

Thank you so much Linda & girls for another fun swap! You gave us so many wonderful goodies and we appreciate it so much.
So now for some very exciting and surprising Easter news. Do you recall these little gals? Well, my little ami bunnies were voted the winner of the Billions of Bunnies category in the first annual Q.D. Patooties Easter Parade! I'm so tickled, you have no idea! Thank you so much to Lisa for putting this wonderful softie celebration together. Go and visit her Etsy shop to see some of her own amazingly adorable softies.

Well, that's all our Easter news. Once again, a belated Happy Easter to you all and thank you for visiting!

Cute Explosion!

2008-03-19T14:15:00.004-10:00

Well, so much cuteness has been pouring in lately and I'm so excited to share it with all of you!
My newest cute obsession is TarePanda by San-X. How can you not fall in love with such a roly poly, lazy panda? Loovee, of course, is obsessed by association. She just adores her TarePanda shirt from Minikitty and her own mini panda plushie.

I am building up quite a collection of Japanese kewpies. I fell in love with Sonny Angel Kewpies on my trip to Japan. They are tiny PVC figures that wear the most adorable outfits from animal helmets to shirts with silly sayings. They come in blind boxes so you never know what you are getting until you open them. Each one is a cute surprise (and I was very surprised to find two completely nude ones)!
Most recently I've discovered Ecopit Kewpies. An Ecopit Kewpie is described as "The watcher of the earth and spreads the love, happiness, and energy, and the brightness in the world." This little guy is appropriately named Bumble and he is one in a series of Ecopit dolls from Japan. Read more about the Ecopit philosophy here. I purchased mine from the Valley of the Dolls, a great doll shop which also features Blythe and Pullip dolls.

After I received dear little Bumble I just had to go back and purchase another. Please welcome Pilote! I adore his little sprout head. His cap says, " I would do anything for your smile." So sweet!

Well, that's all the cuteness for now. 'Til next time!

The Return of the Crochet Dress Sets, Arte du Blythe, and You MUST Watch This

2008-03-14T13:13:00.008-10:00

I've crocheted four more babydoll/ hair clip dress sets that I'll be listing on the TIB Clothing & Sundries section tomorrow. I'm so tickled by the complimentary reaction to them. Thank you to everyone for your kind comments and for purchasing the last sets. I'm so appreciative! These will be the last of the them for now as my crochet dress phase is dying down and I'm excited to move on to other crafty projects. Update: I've just listed them here.

So I've recently become a proud member of the Arte du Blythe group. If you haven't heard about it yet it's basically a bunch of crafty people getting together to create a fat book dedicated to Blythe. What is a fat book, you ask? Well, read all about it and the Arte du Blythe group here, and come join us if you are interested. Everyone is just so lovely over there!

The little doodle above was my entry into the group's blog button contest. Doesn't she look familiar? It was the first time I had ever used Adobe Photoshop to color one of my sketches. I usually hand paint them with watercolors and I guess I'm just so used to that organic, textured look because my Photoshop doodle looks quite flat to me. Still, it was very quick and fun to do. When I have the time I think I will toy around with the artistic capabilities of Photoshop a bit more (oh, and also fix Loovee's wonky eyelashes above).

Someone posted this great video on TIB not so long ago and if you adore Blythe and haven't seen it yet, please do! It's in Japanese so I have no idea what they are saying, but I've gathered that it's some sort of news report featuring the Blythe doll phenomenon in Japan. It's amazing eye candy!

Well, I must run along now because I just got some cuteness in the mail and I am dying to rip open the package. I can't wait to show it to you in my next post!

Thank you all for visiting! Have a great weekend!

In Need of a Blythe Intervention

2008-03-08T16:32:00.002-10:00

Etsy and the TIB Forum's Clothes and Sundries section is a dangerous place for me. In the wee hours of the morning, when the rest of the world slumbers and the only light in my home is the glare of the monitor illuminating my eager face, I shop.

"I can't pass this up!" I tell myself. "Loovee absolutely NEEDS it!" I tell myself.

And so Loovee ends up with a cute new shirt all the way from Cris Shida in Japan.

A whopping influx of shoes.
This very elaborate Kenmore kitchen set, and Barbie dining table with matching chairs.
Some lovely kawaii fabric, which Loovee begs to be made into a dress soon.
Finally, to punctuate the ridiculousness of my problem, yet another Re-Ment dress form just because it was too good a deal to ignore.

Loovee is thrilled beyond words. My bank account -- not so much.

Well, I must run along now. I have some crochet dress sets to do and two swaps coming up, which I must prepare for. How exciting! Blythe stuff coming in the mail, which I needn't feel guilty about!

The Crochet Dress Phase Continues

2008-03-04T13:17:00.004-10:00

Hello friends! So I'm still very much in the depths of my crochet phase. Do you recall the crochet babydoll dress I made for Loovee a few posts back? Well, I've improved the design and my technique, and I've been having fun whipping up more dresses in a variety of color combinations. I even crocheted some floral hair clips to match them.

This set I'm keeping for Loovee. I know it looks a lot like the last dress I made, but it isn't. I've tweaked the colors a little in this final version .

I never did show you a view of the back, did I? I decided to use a tie closure. The ties are 100% silk double sided ribbon, which is very smooth and soft, and not stiff at all. I thought the silk ribbon closure was functional yet very pretty.

Here are the other dress/hair clips sets I've made in lovely spring colors. I plan to post these extra sets on the TIB Forum's Clothing & Sundries section later this evening, so if you are interested please take a peek there. Update: They have all been sold. Thank you to those who purchased them!

I came across even more great shops at Etsy that crochet for Blythe and I wanted to feature them here. Crocheting such tiny little dresses and accessories is not easy (for me anyways) so I admire and appreciate people who have such a talent for it.

I just adore the sweet crochet camisoles and floral bonnets at Millie Made.

Sweet Honey Complex has the cutest crochet hats! Her cupcake hats and her animal helmets are so kawaii. I especially love this frog helmet.

Lilith Delgoulet Designs creates crochet hats, tops, dresses, and coats. There's lots at her shop to choose from in various styles and colors! She also has a crafty Blythe blog, too.

Grrrlie Designs features some very sexy crochet outfits for your Blythe like sequined cocktail and flamenco dresses. She even published her very own crochet patten book!

I love the crochet hats at Lucy's Postcard Quilts for the pretty variegated yarns she uses. Her hats come in a variety of styles, too, from brimmed hats to pointy elfin caps.

The above are only a few of the many skilled Blythe crocheters at Etsy. Do check out their shops. You're bound to find something you'll fall in love with!

Tag! Loovee's IT!

2008-02-24T13:35:00.010-10:00

Milkberry tagged me for another meme, but Loovee wanted to have a go at it this time.
I don't know why the big people always get to have all the fun. I want to play, too!

Okay, so seven random facts about me. Hmmmmm . . .

My name, Loovee, comes from the book Hitchhiker's Guide to the Galaxy. The Hooloovoo, is an alien race described as a super intelligent shade of the color blue, and my name is short for that.
I think pink is the sweetest color in the world!
Gachapin is my best-est friend even if he's a Japanese dinosaur, and we have a hard time communicating because I don't know much Japanese and the only English he knows are, "Cake!" and "Mine!"
I cannot live without my pig boots, which are not boots made out of a pig, but boots with a cute pig face painted on them.
I have 4 pairs of eyes.
I hum to myself all the time, but never when anyone is around.
I'll eat most anything with peanut butter in it, and I especially love peanut butter mochi and Reese's peanut butter ice cream.

So now who will I tag for 7 Random Facts?

My pals Molli, Zelda . . . and New Girl, too, if she's not too shy to talk.

I always read about Hana and Misuzu and their adventures, and I would love to know them better.

Lilly London is very fashionable and I would love to know more about her!

Febee is a new girl and I'm so curious about her!

I want to know more about Marlene and her pretty violet hair.

And Alla . . . you're it, too!

Cuteness, Critters, Crochet & World Peace!

2008-02-18T11:58:00.003-10:00

Hello, friends! Once again, long time no post as things have been quite hectic around here so I shall make up for my absence by making this an extra lengthy one. Here's what's been happening since we spoke last:
These little critters are off to our dear friends, Linda, Molli, and Zelda. Goodbye Owl and Bunny! Have a safe trip to your wonderful, new home where I know you'll get lots and lots of love. Thank you, Molli, for adopting them! (Update: They arrived safely!)

I've been lucky enough to come into all manner of cuteness lately. Some adorable barrettes for Loovee, which include a set of pink Hello Kitty clips; a kawaii notebook with a sweet teddy bear softie on the cover; the teensiest bunny stickers; and the pièce de résistance -- the cutest Gachapin keychain ever!

These are the first commercially made Blythe outfits I've ever purchased -- Sugarmag and Par Avion. I prefer to make my own Blythe outfits or to get them from fellow crafty folks. I just appreciate the personal handiwork so much. However, Gina Garan had a great clearance sale at her TIB shop, so I decided to give it a go. The neat thing about ordering from her shop is she gives you a free signed Blythe postcard. Hooray for freebies!

Notice that there's not a single bit of pink or blue in it, which are Loovee's favorite colors. So who could this outfit possibly be for? Hmmmmm . . . . The plot thickens.

Although, I have crocheted a simple tank top for Loovee in the past, I've been apprehensive of crocheting a whole dress for her. The problem is every time I think "crochet doll dress" my head immediately gets filled with visions of those awful toilet paper cozy dolls my grandma used to have in her bathroom. You know those plastic lady dolls with their crochet dresses that discreetly hide a fresh roll of T.P. underneath their skirts. Thankfully, I came across some beautiful crochet dresses on Flickr that completely changed my mind and have obliterated my notion that crochet doll dress = a special kind of ugly.

Look at this lovely Blythe dress from Godesia. She has a great Etsy store that sells her crochet creations, too.

This sweet dress is by TeenyWeeny Designs and is for a Pocket Fairy doll. She also has an Etsy store. Love her Blythe hats!

This Blythe schoolgirl dress by Jojoling is incredible! Last I checked she still had a few at her Etsy shop.

I adore this mod Blythe minidress by Dolluxe. Her stuff sells out super fast at her Etsy shop so visit often if you want to snag one of her amazing pieces.

Anyway, I want to thank the above for inspiring me. Here is my very first crochet dolly dress! Not too bad, eh? It still needs a bit of tweaking, but overall I think it came out okay for my first try.

Notice the pretty heart barrette on Loovee's noggin? It came all the way from Holland from Tizzalicious. She makes the cutest accessories (for Blythe and people alike) in lots and lots of pink, which makes them all very painful for me to resist. She has a great Etsy shop and a blog dedicated to her craftiness, too. Thank you, Tizz!

Last, but not least I've been tagged by the talented Zari at justZHM to do a meme! How thrilling! I have never been tagged before. The theme for her meme is Love and Peace and that is her beautiful dove illustration above. It is a very timely subject for me as this summer my brother-in-law will be shipping off to Iraq. It is my hope that this new year brings less strife and more peace to our world.

Much aloha to you all!

I Am Having Trouble Coming Up With an Appropriate Title for this Post

2008-02-05T15:17:00.001-10:00

Hello everyone! Long time no post, I know, but I've been feeling a bit under the weather. Crafting has been slow going, but this is what I've been up to lately:

Normally I like to draft my own patterns, but I was feeling a tad lazy so for Project Loovee I dusted off my Dolly Dolly Coordinate Recipe Vol.1 book and gave it a go with one of the patterns inside. I chose to do this baby doll top, which I planned to lengthen to make a sundress.

However, my hope for a quick and easy project backfired as it took me 3 days -- 3 long, arduous days -- to whip up such a simple dress. Maybe it was because I was feeling ill. Maybe it's because I'm so used to making my own patterns and sewing things a certain way that following someone else's instructions just confused me to no end. Whatever the reason, this dress is without a doubt the most headache inducing project I've had in recent memory.

Anyhow, here's my little Loovee enjoying the fruits of my agonizing labor.

Oh, do you remember Loovee's crochet blanket from last post? Well, it got buried amongst the clutter of my art desk, and I thought I lost it for good so I started on this new one. A week later, lo and behold! The first blanket surfaced and now I can't decide which one I like best. Which do you prefer? Your opinions would be much appreciated.

I've not done an installment of This Week in Cute for awhile so here goes one featuring Gachapin, beloved Japanese icon, but most importantly -- Loovee's bestest friend. If you're like me, you may have first spied him in the Killer's video, Read My Mind. Gachapin is little known outside of Japan, where he's a famous children's television character. Think of him as the Japanese equivalent of our Big Bird in the U.S.

Loovee and I were lucky enough to adopt a Gachapin of our very own on our summer trip to Japan (thanks to my pal P).

Here's a picture of him on a modern art sculpture at the Kozunomori Station.

And another of him at a park near Narita Station. I just love his droopy little face!
Loovee and Gachapin have been inseparable ever since!

Thank you for visiting!

Amigurumi Rabbit Redux and Some Loovee Happenings

2008-01-26T14:46:00.001-10:00

This has been a week of willy-nilly crafting. I haven't had the time to work on anything really ambitious, so I kept my projects rather quick and simple.

Do you recall the amigurumi bunnies from last week?

Hooray for me for getting off my bum and finally finishing them! I had the most difficult time deciding on a proper color/fabric combination. I kept changing my mind over and over. My art teacher once told me that what's worse than having no vision is having an unfocused one. Note to self: Next time sketch out all of your ideas first!

Here's a view of their fluffy pom pom tails.

In minor Project Loovee news, I purchased these plain pair of glasses from the TIB shop. I wanted to give them a more Loovee-esque flair so I modded them by adding the butterflies to the frames. Voilà! Some silly glasses for an equally silly girl.

Finally, I've been working on this crochet ripple blanket for Loovee. Aren't the colors the yummiest? So vibrant and juicy like a bowl of fresh fruit salad. The colorway is called Freesia from Claudia Hand Painted Yarns. It's 100% merino wool and it's soooooo buttery smooth and billowy soft. It will definitely keep Loovee warm and cozy at night. This blanket is actually a sneak peak into a much larger project that I'm very excited about. I'm dying to get started on the rest of it. Please stay tuned for the big reveal, which hopefully won't be that far off.

Thank you all for dropping by!

Easy Peasy Beaded Headband for Blythe: A Tutorial

2008-01-19T00:50:00.001-10:00

I think the best gift a crafty blog can give other than inspiration, is a tutorial. From blog tutorials I've learned such things as how to sew a zipper bag or how to make a bottle cap pin cushion. I'm just so grateful when people are willing to pass on their knowledge. So today I'm gonna pay it forward by making my very first tutorial, which I hope you will all use and enjoy.

I thought up this idea while browsing through my local hobby shop. I came across this nifty thing called memory wire. Memory wire is a coiled jewelry wire that snaps back into its original shape when flexed. I noticed that the necklace sized memory wire was about the diameter of Blythe's noggin, and then this simple idea popped into my head.

Anyway, let's get started shall we?

First, gather your supplies:

-- Precut memory wire, regular necklace size (Find it at your local hobby or bead shop. The diameter of the wire coil I purchased is about 3.6 inches.)

-- an assortment of small beads
-- needle nose pliers

1. Trim one of the precut wires to a length of 8 1/2 inches. My wire came with one end already bent in a little loop. If your wire doesn't have a loop, take your pliers and make one. Make sure that when you bend the loop, the wire's end faces outwards. It will be less likely to catch on your Blythe's hair that way.
2. Now start slipping beads onto the wire until it's about 7 5/8 in. in length. If your doll's hair is extra poofy, you may want to lengthen the headband a bit.
3. Cut the wire about 3/16 in. after the last bead.
4. Grab your pliers and carefully twist the end into another loop to secure the beads in place. Try to make the loop tight against the final bead so that the beads don't slide about on the wire.
5. If the headband is a bit loosey-goosey on your Blythe's head, you can bend them a bit inward to give it a tighter fit. This may take some doing as the wire does tend to hold it's shape, but it'll work.

Hooray! You're all done! Now you have a pretty headband for your Blythe! These are so easy and fun to make. I whipped up these three headbands in less than 15 minutes. I do hope I explained things well enough, but if you still have questions please don't hesitate to ask.

Happy crafting!

Project Loovee and Amigurumi Bunnies in Progress

2008-01-13T15:33:00.001-10:00

I've decided to try something rather ambitious with Loovee. I'm aiming to make her a new article of clothing every single week. It could be something as elaborate as a two piece outfit or as simple as a headband. Whatever it may be, that's my goal -- to slowly expand her presently pathetic excuse for a wardrobe.

So in this first installment of Project Loovee, I was inspired by these kawaii appliqués. I didn't want anything too frou-frou because I really wanted to feature the appliqué. Thus, I sketched this simple A-line dress.

As you can see, I nixed the ruffle at the hem because I discovered that linen unravels like crazy. Instead, I wrapped all the edges with a cotton bias binding. Machine sewing such tiny binding is a nightmare for me, so I opted to sew it on by hand. Actually, the whole dress is hand sewn. Although, it wasn't exactly as I planned, I think it came out alright. It looks like a crafty apron style dress.

Here's Loovee modeling her latest dress and enjoying her new Re-Ment Fashion Mannequin. Now she gets busy draping and pinning right next me as I'm sewing away.

After taking a long holiday break from my Etsy shop, I'm starting to gear up for its reopening in a week or so. These two amigurumi bunnies will be the first softies to be listed. They are presently in various stages of development, but I do hope to get them done this weekend.

Well, this is a round up of what I've been fiddling with this past week. Happy Friday everyone!

Craft Spaz

2008-01-08T22:26:00.001-10:00

The above title accurately describes what I've been like since my last post. I have so many project ideas popping into my head that it's hard for me to even think straight. One moment I'm cutting fabric for a new softie, soon after I'll drop that to crochet an amigurumi bunny, and before that's even done I find myself doodling more outfits for Loovee. I just wish I had the focus and time to do everything that whizzes through my head.

Here's some of the projects I've actually finished:

I had such fun making Loovee's sundae beret that just for kicks I whipped up several more in a variety of "flavors" with yarn I had on hand -- mocha, crème de menthe, strawberry and French vanilla. However, this time I embroidered nuts on the hot fudge instead of sprinkles, which I thought gave it a more proper sundae feel to them. I really do not know what I shall do with the rest of these, so I think they'll find their way to my Esty shop.

This week I managed to make Loovee this new summery (as it's always summer in Hawaii) outfit. I crocheted her tank top out of some cotton thread. The denim wrap skirt was so very quick and easy to make. The cherry detail is a tiny iron on patch I purchased on my trip to Japan. I was so excited to finally have reason to use it!

Lately, I have been musing over creating a little house for Loovee. She does not have one as of yet, but I'm hoping she will in the near future. Being the DIY-er that I am and having adopted the Trash to Treasure philosophy, I want to whip up things for Loovee whenever possible -- from clothing to wee home furnishings. However, I did purchase a Re-ment Lamp & Chest set all the way from Gina Garan. That bunny silhouette on the lamp just won me over.

Anyway, in this first episode of Marginally Extreme Homeless Makeover, here's a before shot of some odds and ends along with the Re-ment chest.

And here's the after shot with Loovee doing her best Vanna White impression. I used that leftover ball of fluffy yarn to crochet a simple shag carpet. I re-purposed the round jewelry box into a Blythe sized storage hat box, which holds some of Loovee's crafting supplies. The Re-ment chest adds the final touch to this little vignette.

Here's a close up of all the bits and bobs inside Loovee's little craft box -- yarn skeins made of wound embroidery thread, folded fabric scraps, button cards, and a pair of mini scissors. Now she can be a proper craft spaz lik me!

Whew! So now that I've gotten you all caught up with what's been going on around here . . . back into the crafting mines I go!

Loovee Time and Some Random Crafting

2008-01-03T02:48:00.001-10:00

Loovee has been suffering for some new clothes. The poor dear has only about 5 or 6 outfits to her name, which is a frightful shame. Her wee wardrobe has been giving her a bit of a complex after seeing this and this. However, I hope to change all that very soon by clocking in some much needed Loovee crafting time each week. This is what I've managed so far:

Quite awhile ago, I sketched this silly strawberry sundae hat for her.

And last night I finally finished crocheting it. I'm so happy with how it came out. I embroidered some pink, yellow, and white sprinkles on the hot fudge sauce, which gave it an even more yummy touch.

Thankfully, Loovee does not have to depend entirely on me or the kindness of her pal Molli to remain well clothed. Monica from Feltland custom made this beautiful dress for her in her favorite colors. Isn't it lovely? The knitting is just so unbelievably dainty and neat.

In random craftiness news, every year after Christmas I am left with a bunch of very sturdy and functional, yet hideous gift boxes. I love to use them to store my bits and bobs, but I cannot bear to look at them. This year I decided to do something about it.

Some glue and some pretty paper later and . . . voilà!

No more motley collection of boxes that assault your eyes! I actually went a bit crazy with this and discovered some ugly boxes from Christmas past to wrap. A crafter is always in need of more storage, right?

Oh, yes -- Happy 2008 to you all!

Christmas Craftiness and Cuteness

2007-12-25T13:36:00.001-10:00

"Every gift from a friend is a wish for your happiness."
--Richard Bach, author

I hope you all had a wonderful Christmas! My own Christmas was filled with much craft and cute, both given and received. I worked my fingers to nubs stitching gifts for family and friends til the very last minute. However, it was more than worth it to see the delight on their faces when they opened their boxes. Not to mention they generously gifted me with many wonderful things in return!

Now that Christmas has passed I can finally reveal a few of the softie gifts I was excitedly working on.

Here's a more elaborate take on my usual owl. I was going for a Victorian era look. I love how distinguished and proper he looks. I had such fun making him that I'm thinking of doing more owls in costume like say . . . a Zorro owl, a pirate owl, or a roman owl in toga garb. Such possibilities!

Here's a new softie design of mine, which I'm calling a Wee Beastie. I was inspired by Max's wolf suit in the book, Where the Wild Things Are by Maurice Sendak as well as Mario's Tanooki Suit. Basically, instead of wolves in sheep's clothing, think kids in beastie clothing.

This little guy is the first I've made from the new pattern and I'm so pleased with how it came out. He looks so cheerful, smart, and ready to take on the world, don't you think?

A close-up of his face.

As for the things I received, I must have been very good this year or at least I've gotten better at hiding my shenanigans.

Look -- another Eveluche! How lucky am I?! This little fellow is called the Frozen Raccoon. That explains his sadly sweet expression. I just started to crochet and I cannot imagine making something so intricate. I counted at least 5 different yarns used to make him. He's quite a work of art. Every time I look at him I'm amazed all over again.

Don't be sad anymore, Frozen Raccoon. You're in Hawaii now, where it's nice and warm. We'll have to put that scarf away and get you a straw hat! Do you remember your fellow Canadian, Little Blue Bear? He'll give you the grand tour of your new home.

Look at this tiny sculpey charm modeled after one of my owls. It's only a centimeter tall. One must have such steady hands to paint something so lilliputian. I love it!

No, these are not bowling pins. They are wooden nesting dolls ready to be painted! What a unique canvas, don't you think? I have so many ideas for these . . . all which include bunnies of some sort. I cannot wait until I have the time to start working on them.

Thank you everyone for all the goodies and good wishes. Thank you for visiting me here, my own little corner of the universe. Most of all, thank you for making my holidays so happy, crafty and cute! Much aloha to you all!

Please Welcome Mino the Elephant!

2007-12-23T10:15:00.001-10:00

I've been dying of anticipation ever since I was lucky enough to purchase one of Mumka's softies. I've been visiting her store for awhile now, and I've just been so intrigued by the little bears and bunnies she makes. They are so adorable! And when an unusual little green elephant popped up in her shop, I snatched him up right away!
I spied a little box in my mailman's hand as he walked up my driveway yesterday. I was so thrilled. Finally, my Mumka! However, that quickly turned to dread upon seeing a large gash on the side of the box and an ominous green sticker that screamed: EXAMINED BY U.S. CUSTOMS! My Mumka softie came all the way from Poland and I'm not well versed in the ways of international shipping, so seeing this gave me a bit of a fright. I immediately had visions of over enthusiastic bomb and drug sniffing dogs shredding open my box and drooling on my poor plushie.

With apprehension, I carefully opened the box . . .

And thankfully, Mino the Elephant was none the worse for wear considering his extensive and harrowing trip to Hawaii. Isn't he cute? I just adore his fresh, mint green color. He was also very well outfitted for his travels -- he came with a little blankie, a pillow, and a wee elephant softie of his very own. A card that accompanied him states:

Mint Elephant Mino
Born: 8th December 2007
Made with mohair, linen, cotton, felt, *heart*
Favourites: short trips and sleeping

Short trips? Well, that was certainly a very long trip, poor thing.

And sleeping? Well, I guess that explains why when I left him for just a moment, I returned and found this --

Shhhhhhhh . . .

Sweet dreams, Little Mino.

Loovee's Christmas Swap (and the Meddlesome Monster)

2007-12-18T15:04:00.002-10:00

What an exciting day! Loovee's swap package from pal Molli and her mommy Linda finally arrived!

What could possibly be inside that pretty box?

A bottomless pit of goodness that's what! Loovee was speechless by all the adorable items -- cupcake ornaments, cute kitchen magnets, sweet smelling erasers, a cat rubber stamp, Hello Kitty stationary . . . but what was really screaming out at her was that beautiful dress.

She quickly rushed away to try it on . . . .

And returned to find Gachapin, the resident exchange monster from Japan, rifling through her package! It seems he could not resist all those delicious looking goodies.

Luckily, Loovee got there before he could do any real damage. She coaxed him out of the box with a cupcake magnet and sat him down. Patiently, she explained that the world is a tricky place, and just because it looks like food doesn't necessarily mean that it is.

Poor Gachapin was so confused and unhappy. "But that ice cream cone looked so real!"

***

Thank you so much, Linda and Molli! This was Loovee's first swap and it was the funnest experience. The outfit you made is just scrumptious. I love the great details like the teensy buttons and the flowers on the headband. And how do you sew such neat, little hems?

We do hope you enjoy our swap package as much as we have enjoyed yours. Thank you, thank you, thank you, Molli and Linda!

The Mailman is My Friend

2007-12-12T15:20:00.003-10:00

This has been a very happy mail week.

I purchased this lovely bear from Eveluche on Etsy. It was supposed to be a gift to myself, which I would open up on Christmas Day. Obviously, that didn't work out as planned. I tore the package open as soon as he arrived. Honestly, making myself wait was like telling myself to not be happy, which is just downright silly.

Isn't he adorable? And so well made, too. I love his crocheted tag with the embroidered heart. He also came with a little first aid kit with a variety of yarns. So clever! I am just thrilled to have him in my ever growing collection of handcrafted softies.

I got these kokeshi fabrics from Lucky Kaero Fabric and Supplies. I couldn't resist those big round heads and rosy cheeks.

This print came all the way from England from Belle and Boo. I have such an affinity for bunnies. They just make the greatest pets. One my my favorites was one Boo Radley, who passed away last year. He was all white like in the print and given the name of the shop . . . well , it's fate that I should have it, don't you think?

I miss you, Boo.

And this bit of mail is something being given, not received. I was lucky enough to meet Linda and Molli via the TIB Forum dedicated to Blythe dolls. We are doing a Holiday swap for our dollies, Molli and Loovee. Such fun! I have never done a swap before so I am excited beyond words. I am mailing Molli's package off tomorrow, and I do hope they like what Loovee and I have been working on.

I have more things coming in the mail, which I am dying to receive. I hope my mailman isn't creeped out by my sitting on the curb, waiting for him.

The Last Owl and Bunny

2007-11-29T21:22:00.001-10:00

Found this little guy in The Drawer of Almost Finished Projects. All he needed was a face. Now off to Etsy he goes, ready to see the world with his brand spanking new eyes.

And so ends my amigurumi bunny phase with this last girl. I had so much fun making them, but now it's time to get a move on. She's going to Etsy, too.

These softies will be the last I'll list in my shop until after the New Year.

With the holidays coming at light speed, I have to switch from leisurely crafting mode to "Holy cow! I've got a load of Christmas gifts to make!" mode. That doesn't mean I'm done with softies, tho. I have some really great new softie ideas and I can't wait to get started on them.

I hope I can finish them in time. 26 days until Christmas!

Hoot! Hoot!

2007-11-24T16:05:00.001-10:00

It's been awhile since I've made owls. I forgot how much fun they were to put together. This bit of magic happens when I finally sew the eyes in place. They suddenly come alive and it's all I can do to not start talking to them. Out loud, at least.

Once again, I will sing the praises of wool felt -- it is wonderful stuff! It costs a lot more than craft felt and is harder to come by, but it is so worth it. They make these owls' eyes pop.

This group of Thoughtful Little Owls will go to my shop bit by bit as I find the time to list them.

Thank you to everyone who inquired!

Multiplying Like Bunnies

2007-11-15T00:58:00.001-10:00

I've been in an amigurumi bunny zone lately. After making the snow bunny for Softies Central I cannot seem to stop. Now that I've finally got the hang of it, I just find crocheting so soothing. Much different from sewing, which for me requires a lot of concentration. As for the bunny obsession . . . well, I have four pet rabbits running about my house so they serve as my muses.

For these three little girls I used a loosely woven alpaca blend yarn. It's hard to see in the photo, but they have this fuzzy halo, which sort of reminds me of sparse mohair fur teddies.

The best part about making them was finally having a reason to use supplies that I was saving for something special. I recently got some 60/40 wool & rayon blend felt which I ordered online. It's great stuff! I will never go back to acrylic craft felt again. I found 100% wool felt to be too thick and stiff, but 60/40 has a nice drape and is easy to sew. It also still has that soft, smooth feel you only get from wool felt. I loved using them for the flower embellishments on their ears.

For the ear insets and reversible smocks I got to bust out all the fabrics I purchased on my summer trip to Japan. I didn't intend to make the smocks reversible, but I had such a difficult time choosing just one fabric so this was a nice compromise. Also, the fact that you can switcheroo their clothes makes them a bit more playable and not just displayable.

I think I will try my hand at making other amigurumi creatures next time -- bears, koalas, kitties, etc. Once this bunny phase dies down that is.

Off to Find New Homes . . .

2007-11-07T11:57:00.001-10:00

This Week in Cute: Wawaya Softies

2007-11-06T10:35:00.002-10:00

Adorable, yes? When I discovered Etsy about two years ago, a wee stuffed bunny immediately caught my eye. It was so sweet and strange looking. At first I wasn't even sure if it was a bunny (I'm still not sure, really) because it looked so alien, but then those rabbity ears . . . . Anyway, I couldn't resist. I had to have it . . . and then another.

These softies were made by a very talented artist in Japan. You must take a peek at her work. Even though her site is in Chinese the photos tell all. Her softies are truly original, and if ever you're lucky enough to own one, you'll see that they don't disappoint up close, either. The detail work on the little guys I purchased are amazing. They are completely hand sewn, button jointed, and can stand unaided. Oh, and their facial expressions -- so precious! Not to mention that they each came tucked inside a drawstring bag that had my name hand embroidered on it.

Just looking at my Wawayas always makes me smile.

Softie Surplus = Etsy

2007-11-03T09:56:00.002-10:00

So every time I design and create a new softie I get so excited about it that I whip them out one after another . . .until the novelty peters out. Well, after awhile I've built up quite a softie surplus. Hence, my opening up an Etsy shop. I hope my softies find better homes than the plastic storage bins they sadly live in now.

These will be the first softies up for adoption this weekend (or however long it takes me to figure out Etsy).
A sweet koala girl.

A pretty kitty.

And three thoughtful owls.

The Softies Central Holiday Awards

2007-10-27T11:45:00.003-10:00

Little bunny happily skips through the snow to drop off gifts to family and friends . . .
So this is what's been keeping me busy this past week. Have you heard of Softies Central? Well, if not you must go pay a visit. It's a hub for softie artists and they're currently hosting a contest for the holidays. All the entries thus far are amazing and so creative. Go take a peek and be inspired. Little Bunny here will be participating in the festivities.

"Happy Holidays to you!" Little Bunny says. "Now off I go!'

Loovee's First Trip to Japan

2007-10-17T12:35:00.002-10:00

This past summer I took Loovee on vacation with me to Japan. I had so much fun gearing her up for the trip. I sewed all of her outfits. Loovee is my very first Blythe and also the first I've ever photographed in public. I was a bit embarrassed about doing so for all the world to see, but luckily my pal P does not embarrass easily, and he helped me pose her and take the pictures. Here are a few:
Before I left Hawaii for the trip, I fell in love with this Japanese creature called Gachapin, who I first spied in the Killers music video, Read My Mind. P spotted a Gachapin softie in a shop in Japan and purchased him for me. Loovee was wary of him at first, not knowing exactly what sort of monster he is, but they soon became fast friends.

One of the things I was excited to visit in Japan was a 100 Yen Shop. I just love a good bargain.

Here's one of the malls we frequented.

I plunked Loovee down in a random flower bed we passed by. I think the flowers really bring out the blue in her hair and eyes. I just have to say I had a helluva time making the pattern for that bunny hat. I wanted it to fit perfectly. About a dozen drafts and a couple of maximum strength aspirin later, I finally got it to my satisfaction.

The street to the Naritasan Shinshoji Temple were lined with these cute little statues of different animals such as turtles, bunnies, chickens, and such. Here she is on a ram.

At a park near the Narita Station.

The parting shot -- at the airport before we left Japan. Loovee is decked out in her aloha dress, ready to go back home to Hawaii with her new best friend.

Aloha!

2007-10-15T16:07:00.001-10:00

I'm not much for talking about myself so I think I'll keep this introduction short and sweet, and (mostly) in picture form.

First off, I love to make softies. I'm very inspired by the Japanese ideal of cute. No one does cute like they do. Here are some koalas I whipped up awhile back.

I make owls, too.

These are some kitties that I've yet to finish. They have no faces yet, so enjoy the view of their behinds.

I recently taught myself to crochet for the specific purpose of making amigurumi. I used the book, Crocheting for Dummies. It is aptly titled in my case. I have a long way to go, especially in the tension department. My hands get so cramped up. This is a little amigurumi bunny I purchased off ebay, which serves as inspiration. Along side it was my first attempt at crocheting.

In the neighborhood of cuteness, I've fallen in love with Takara Blythe dolls. This is my Loovee, an Asian Butterfly Encore. I made her dress and bunny hat, which she wore on her first trip to Japan. I think I will tell you more about that in my next post.

Well, thank you for peeking in and I hope you visit again.