Month: May 2008

Beaded Shank Button

Beaded Shank Button

Links of entry

Many pieces of jewelry like necklaces or bracelets need some kind of closure. Purses do, too, journals perhaps. Maybe you crochet an iPod cozy that should be closable.
You can use pre-made closures (which I mostly don’t like), but you can make a self-made shank button match just as you like.
For my bracelet bracelet *Little Black Dress* with the beaded spiral bead I made such a shank button and it worked out really fine.


Links:
Beaded Shank Button (Tubular Herringbone/Ndebele)

Here at unikatissima:
Beaded Spiral Beads

Plaster Bowl

Plaster Bowl

Links of entry

Because I like to make bowls this tutorial on how to make a plaster bowl is high on my what-I-really-want-to-do-list.
I worked with plaster already, but never with those plaster bandages and I hope that I will have the opportunity soon.
Once I have read (but I can’t remember where) that you can cut some old fabric (e.g. old bedsheets) in strips, pull them through the plaster and put them on to emulate the rigid wrap from the tutorial.
Has anybody tried this?


Links:
MakingFriends.com: A website with lots of crafts for children
Plaster Bowl

Broomstick Lace Scarf

Broomstick Lace Scarf

Links of entry

After I have found tutorials on how to make Broomstick Lace I wanted to try it (for tutorials see Links below).
I like lacy scarves. So I made a scarf from it.

 

Broomstick Lace Scarf
That is how I did it:
Material:

  • Yarn (I used acrylic yarn)
  • Matching crochet hook
  • Dowel / Ruler / Cardboard tube (as you can see I used a cardboard tube)
 

Instructions:
Row 1: Chain as much as you want the scarf to be long (I chained 240). It must be a multiple of 4.
Row 2: Crochet every chain with one Broomstick Lace loop.
Row 3: Take four Broomstick Lace loops and crochet 1 sc (single crochet), 1 hdc (half double crochet), 1 dc (double crochet) and 1 sc (single crochet) around the four strands.
Do this with all groups of four Broomstick Lace loops until the end.
Finish this side and begin again at the other side of your first chain to work the second half of your scarf.


Links:
Broomstick Lace Tutorial (with explaining photos)
Broomstick Lace Tutorial (with explaining videos)

Flexagons

Flexagon Flexagon Flexagon Flexagon

Links of entry

Flexagons a quite interesting things: a kind of card with four sides, and you can flip from one side to the other, back and forth.
But to better understand what Flexagons are, how they work and how you can make one for yourself take a look at the Flexagon page.
On the photos you see the four pages of my first (and up until now last) flexagon. (Click on thumbnails to see the photos.)
It doesn’t work so well, because it is to bulky:
I made them from cardboard to make them lasting longer, glued then cotton on to the cardboard, because I thought that fabric would bend better if you flip them over and over and then glued on the pieces of my hand-embroidered and tape-transfered collages on the appropriate places.
Next time I will see to it that they get slender.
But anyhow: I love my flexagon ;-))


Links:
Flexagons

And if you want to embroider your collages:
English Embroidery Stitch Diagrams – Deutsche Stickstichbeschreibungen
(see also Paper Crazy Quilt)

If you want to know more about image transfers
Easy Photo Transfers (different techniques)
Image Transfer
Packing Tape Image Transfers
(see also Artist Book)

Here at unikatissima:
Paper Crazy Quilt
Artist Book

Bead and Wire Wall Vase

Bead and Wire Window Vase

Links of entry

Inspired by two wonderful items, the Bead & Wire Heart at The Bead Bugle and the Bead Godesses from Ronda Kivett at the Autumn 2003 Issue of ARTitude Zine I did deliberately my vase from the photo.
I feel that I was a little too cautious, but I like it already.
Next time I want to get nearer to those shining examples I had.


Links:
Bead & Wire Heart at The Bead Bugle
Bead Godesses from Ronda Kivett at the Autumn 2003 Issue of ARTitude Zine

 

Self-made Crochet Hooks And Knitting Needles

Self-made crochet hook and knitting needles

Links of entry

Once I wanted to have a really big crochet hook and knitting needles and after I found tutorials on how to make them (see links below), I made myself some.
In fact they are so big that it is quite difficult to work with them ;-)
I use them very rarely – but if necessary, I can ;-)

 


Links:
Making Crochet Hooks:
Making Crochet Hooks from Chopsticks (with explaining pictures)
Make your own straight hook (with explaining pictures)

Making Knitting Needles:
Chopstick/dowel knitting needle tutorial

Bead Picots

Bead Picots

Links of entry

Bead picots are a beautiful way to give you work a neat border.
I was therefore glad to find this tutorial on how to make bead picots tutorial on how to make bead picots.
On the photo you see a freeform bead embroidered pin I made; I worked the bead picots all around the pin.
I also made once a little book (given away without taking a photo ;-(), where I used the bead picots to border the paper pages – it look great, too.
Next time I’ll make an Artist Book, I will use bead picots on the paper, as well as on the next crochet purse I will make (but no one knows when this will be ;-)), perhaps even the next greeting card I’ll create and who knows what ideas I’ll get by then ;-)


Links:
Bead Picot Instructions
The original site doesn’t exist any more and is now available through webarchive: Bead Picot Instructions

Here at unikatissima:
Freeform Bead Embroidery
Artist Book

Fingerloop Braiding

Fingerloop Braiding

Links of entry

Sometimes you need some cord and one fun and fast way to make one is fingerloop braiding (for tutorials see Links below).
It is a medieval technique and I used it several times with good results.
On the photo you see two of my self-made cords.
The most difficult part is for me to get the cord evenly, because you must adapt to the loops become shorter while working.
But it is only a question of practising ;-)


Links:
Fingerloop.org:
Basic Braiding Instructions

Phiala’s String Page:
Basic Braiding Instructions
Fingerloop braiding for two or more people

The Tudor Costume Page:
Making Finger Braids (many explaining photos)

Hochmittelalter Infoseite:
Fingerloop Braiding (German, very good illustrations)

Coin Ring

Coin Ring

Links of entry

Browsing craftster I found one day the thread about coin rings.
Somewhere in the thread is also a link to a tutorial on how to make your own coin ring (with many explaining pictures).
I can’t image that I will ever do this, but I find it interesting enough to present it here.

Perhaps someone wants to make their weddings rings this way? ;-))


Links:
craftster: ‘coin rings! i’m an addict!!!’

Tutorial on how to make a coin ring