written by threadslinger

Marie and I are trying to make a quilt out of threadless shirts like this rocking’ one. As result, this requires a lot of shirts donated to us from fellow threadless folks. As an incentive to get people to donate I agreed to make them a thank you gift, noting my particular skills/patience with crocheting just about anything in the world. See also here and here.

So, one guy took me up on my skills and requested a Darth Vader Helmet. This is what I ended up with:

I wasn’t very happy with the way that it turned out because it didn’t look like a Vader Helmet that much. So I turned to Craftster a website that is amazingly helpful and addicting and asked for some help. From the helpful insight of one other girl I was able to add to it and come up with a much better helmet. Hooray for the internets!

written by threadslinger

Even though Thanksgiving is over I think that this recpie so so dang good that you will want to make it just because. This is clearly one of those “this is holidays so I will allow myself to eat this” desserts cause diet it is not. But, it is very delicious. And good for people who like pumpkin but don’t want to o.d on it.

Ingredients

3 packages cream cheese (8oz) at room temperature
1 Cup Sugar
1 teaspoon groung cinnamon
1/8 teaspoon ground ginger
1/8 teaspoon ground cardamom
1/8 teaspoon nutmeg
1/8 teaspoon cloves
1/4 cup whipping cream
2 teaspoons vanilla extract
3 large eggs
3/4 cup solid-packed pumpkin
1 graham cracker pie crust

Directions

1. Preheat oven to 350 degrees F.

2. To make filling, Mix cream cheese and sugar for 3 minutes on medium speed. Add the cinnamon, ginger, cardoman and nutmeg. On medium speed add the whipping cream and vanilla and beat for 2 minutes. Add the eggs one at a time beating well after each addition and scraping the bowl. Add the pumpkin and beat until combined

3. Add to prepared pan. Put pie pan in a larger pan (like a roast pan) and put in the oven add boiling water half way up the sides of the pie pan.

4. Bake for 60 Minutes. Turn off the oven heat and open door slightly. Leave the cheesecake in the oven for an hour.

Store refrigerated

written by marieann

Caro and I went to the Tegan and Sara concert and Northern State was the opening band. This is the name of their new album and they were wearing t-shirts to advertise. We thought that it was a really amusing phrase so we made our own.

There are stenciling tutorials (that make it easy, here and here.

Click on the image to view/download the large image. Just print on regular paper to make the stencil.

written by marieann

I found this great tutorial and made a couple of wallets for my and my boyfriend. They are pretty easy to make. I’m not completely satisfied with them because it seems like credit cards slip out of the pockets. They aren’t quite tight enough. But this is a great project to try out and maybe you’ll figure out how to improve it.The tutorial for the wallets is located here.

I painted a Master Shake wallet for my bf:

And I made a Crazy Quilt wallet for me:

I used my crazy quilting technique, explained here.

written by threadslinger

I made these ornaments last year and they were fun and very simple to make. Plus, you can really add your own touch by adjusting the size, colors or even adding some hanging beads. Here is a quick tutorial to show you how to make your own.

Materials needed

Yarn
Bendable Cardboard (I found that cereal box works best)
Scissors
Decorative Paper
Tape
Glue
Crochet hook
Beads or any other embellishing desired.

Directions

1. Cut out three rounded edge diamond shapes from the cereal box cardboard. You can cut different sizes to make different shapes.

2. Cut out paper to cover the cardboard that is the same shape. Glue to the cardboard.

3. Tape together the diamonds starting on the sides and moving up to the point. It will form a 3-D diamond shape eventually. Don’t worry about it showing too much tape because you are going to cover this with yarn.

4. Make a single crochet chain long enough to go along the edges of the ornament. Then glue around the edges.

5. Now decorate as desired, have fun with it! I am planning on making more this year with dangling beads or maybe modge podge a few. Happy ornament making!

written by admin

My friend is a great cook. Her mother owns a restaurant and she’s working writing and publishing a cookbook. She doesn’t cook like I cook (that is, strictly follow directions) because she actually understands the science behind cooking so she makes her own recipes and tweaks. She’s always my go-to for meal ideas and cooking hints. She’d love to eventually have her own cooking show but in the meantime she’s started a cooking blog, Food FascinNation.

She plans to answer all reader submitted questions … so ask her about the process of cooking, substitutes, recipes, anything (no question too easy or hard)! She’ll also post some of her favorite recipes (she’s also an amazing food photographer) and techniques. She just started the blog but I strongly recommend you add it to your RSS reader because I’m sure you’ll learn a lot about cooking as she posts more in the future.

written by marieann

I made this cute little purse for a swap. It’s perfect when you just need to bring your wallets and keys. It’s really quick and the possibilities are endless.

Materials:

One 16″ x 8.5″ piece of outside fabric (stiff fabric works best; if you want to use a thin cotton, then you need a laywer of interfacing)
Another piece of the outside fabric approximately 4″x8″ for the handle
One 16″ x 8.5″ of lining fabric (thiner than the outside fabric)
Piece of ribbon approximately 12 inches
Button

Tools:
Sewing machine
Needle (to sew by hand)
Glue gun (not necessary but useful)
Iron
Scissors

Directions:
1. Take the outside piece and fold it together right sides so that it makes a short fat (8 x 8.5″) rectangle.

2. Sew both the edges shut with 1/2″ seams.

3. Keep the purse inside out. Press the corners into a triangle and sew across the corners 2″ from the point (this image is a good guide).

4. Repeat for the lining of the bag. Now you have two square bag pieces. Keep both pieces inside out.

5. Fold over the top of each piece about half an inch. You should be turning the tops toward the outside (to the wrong side).

6. Machine baste the liner bag to the outside bag along folder corners so they won’t separate every time you pull stuff out of your purse. Sew right on top of the last stitches that made your square corners. You should be lining up the wrong sides with the two bottoms flat against each other. Invert the outside bag around the lining and you have your main purse finished. (Do not top-stitch the bags together yet.)

7. Make the strap. Press and pin the strap in half, wrong sides together. Sew along the long side. Turn the strap inside out and press with the seam in the center of one of the sides (this way no seam shows on the top of the strap).

8. Pin the strap inside the purse. The raw ends are to be tucked between the lining and outside bags. Also, pin the bags together at edges. Top stitch all around the outside of the bags.

9. Make a ribbon flower. I used this easy tutorial located here. I hot glued the flower to my bag (because I was lazy) but it would probably be best if you attached it to a pin and then pinned that flower to your bag so you could remove when you wash the purse.

written by threadslinger

In anticipation for the release Super Mario Galaxy™ and because I am übernerd I made this crochet Luigi for my boyfriend. I think he turned out pretty cute and it was super fun to make. I will write out some quick instructions of how I made him so you can make your own. Hey its Luigi!

Materials

3 colors yarn (black, green, white)
1 small piece felt
2 buttons
string and needle
Something for stuffing (I used toilet paper but if you have cotton it is preferable)

Directions

The clothes: (All done using a single crochet stitch)

1. Start out by making the overalls. I began with the top by making a square doing a single crochet stitch. Then I crochet two chains on either side of the top of the square that are the straps of the overalls. I then crocheted another square like the one on the front.

2. Next, do the waist of the overalls. Along the bottom of one of the squares continue on until it connects to the other square. Go down for 3 rows until you have a solid waste. Then, on one side crochet a tube (pant leg). Finish this and tie it off. Repeat the same steps on the other side. Now your overalls should be complete. Stitch two buttons on the top of the overalls.

3. To make the shirt do a crochet circle for about 4 rows so it is like a fat tube. Then make a small crochet circle off the side of the tube on either side, finish until you have your arms.

4. For the hat do a small crochet circle by doing a single crochet stitch and then skipping one loop while hooking the yarn across. It will fan out until your desired size, but I would suggest waiting until you have made the head to complete the hat.

5. For the head. Do a crochet circle (same directions as above) and once it gets to about the size of the bottom of a drinking glass go back to a normal single crochet stitch for 3 more rows. Then begin dropping a stitch a row until it starts to form a circle.

6. For the face I stitched two pieces of black felt for eyes, did a crochet chain for the mustache and a small piece of red felt for the surprise mouth. For the hair I did the same crochet circle just in black and sewed it to the head. Attach the hat to the top and you should be done and have a cute little Luigi.

written by marieann

I finished this baby quilt for my friend. This quilt uses exclusively Heather Ross Lightening Bugs fabrics. Instead of doing a tutorial I’m going to list a few of my quilting tips as I’ve made seven quilts (and counting!) and picked up a few lessons. There are more photos of this baby quilt here.

1. Put a piece of tape on your sewing machine along the 1/4 inch mark. This makes it much easier to make straight perfect seams.

2. Research quick piecing methods before you cut all your pieces. For example, instead of cutting out small squares if you know you’re going to have two pieces next to each other repeatedly, cut strips, sew the strips, then cut the strips. This makes it easier to sew and takes less cutting.

3. Press press press! You cannot have a perfect point or straight lines if you don’t press after you sew each piece together. Also, press the seams toward the darker fabric or else you’ll be able to see the seam thru the fabric.

4. If you are going to quilt with your machine, buy a walking foot. It makes it much easier because the layers are pushed thru at the same speed.

5. Invest in a rotary cutter and board. Of course you can cut squares with scissors but it’s not going to be nearly as clean (or quick) if you use a rotary cutter.

6. Try a quilt with squares to start. The irish chain quilt is a good example of a quilt that’s really pretty but only involves squares. There are infinite amount of pretty designs you can make using only color arrangement with squares.

7. Patience! My quilts are much better when I walk away when I feel like it. Plan to take some time on your quilts and when you feel your blood pressure rising, put everything away.

8. Square up each block before you sew them together. When my mom told me this trick I was sloppy and didn’t do it and my quilt totally suffered when it was wrinkly. My next quilt, I carefully squared them up and it made the quilt top lie much flatter. This is a common theme — don’t take a shortcut.

9. Use a fat quarter pack. I love doing this (I have with two of my quilts, including this baby quilt) because you don’t have to stress over whether the fabrics are meant to go together (because they all match!) These sets can be pretty expensive but it saves a lot of energy in the long run.

10. Play around before you begin! I spent a LONG time planning out the quilt blocks and the entire quilt before I cut a single piece of fabric. There are quilting programs that will let you see the finished quilt first or you could just rely on drawing it on graph paper. Be sure that the patterns and colors work.

And as a bonus to this tip sheet, here’s the block arrangment for the baby quilt above. This was the first quilt that I made with two contrasting blocks and I was really happy with how pretty the design looked together. These squares are 2″ finished. I fussy cut (cut on an angle to make sure it’s angled the right way) the diamonds then sewed strips to the corners of the diamond, then squaring the blocks after it was all sewn.

written by marieann

I know it’s too late for this year, but google will direct people here next Halloween. I made this t-shirt octopus costume for the Etsy contest (I didn’t win but I was featured!). This concept is really simple to work with and I’m sure you could think of lots of other ideas too. I love having the t-shirt as the base and just attaching stuff because it makes for a quick dressing (just slide on the shirt) and is relatively cheaply made. I got lots of smiles when I wore this out to our local Halloween bash (the kiddos loved it!)

Materials:
T-Shirt
Scrap fabrics

Tools:
Sewing machine
Scissors
Glue

Instructions:
1. Design something! I spent a lot of time drawing out octopus faces and the shark for the back (see below). Whatever animal or object could be centered on a t-shirt, do it.
2. Cut out scraps of fabric to make your design and sew on with an applique stitch. I got tired of doing that with the spots so I glued them on.
3. Make stuff to attach to the outside! I attached tentacles out of purple tubes stuffed with newspapers. You could do anything like a tail, leaves, legs, etc.