betty cricket

This is a fuzzy cow you can pet! The bison is a symbol of my home province, having an important economic and symbolic history. So when I saw the Bison dolls on Boolah Baguette's website, it stirred some homesickness, and I was inspired to make one for myself, with what I had on hand. Below is how I did it. Supplies: scissors  one brown sock dark grey or black felt for nose and horns 2 button eyes 4 black or brown pompoms needle and thread embroidery thread fiber fill for stuffing fake fur trim (this was from the the dollar store, but fabric places sell these strips as well) How to assemble:  1) Cut your shapes: toe top for nose, ears, head/ body/ back legs (note the "heel" part should be where you imagine the neck would be), front legs (from between the 2 back legs as pictured) and tail. MAKE SURE YOUR PIECES ARE INSIDE OUT BEFORE SEWING 2) Sew up the sides of your ears, back legs, front legs and tail (note i ended up shortening the tail to half of the pictured size). Tur...

  A short post to discuss some shirt updates I did to breath new life into my closet. The first one is the "WANTED" shirt that was inspired by a design Lena Hoschek made a few years ago ( Cassidy Pullover from the Jolene collection ).  I REALLY wanted this shirt, but resigned myself to use what I already had:  a tan long-sleeved t-shirt  some "College Sports " iron on felt letters that I bought for 25 cents at Dressew black embroidery thread to match the letters tan embroidery thread to match the shirts google images of western fonts Basically I followed the instructions and ironed on the letters. I googled western fonts and sewed "V" shapes in tan to "remove" or cover up parts of the lettering to match the shirt. Then I added more "V" shapes to the lettering in black to give it a western feel. Honestly love this shirt now. It's graduated from being an undershirt. The second shirt is more of a light cotton sweater than a T shirt: I...

I usually get to fish (okay, really just tagging along with my nephew and his buddies) when I visit Lake of the Woods in Ontario. This beaded blunt nose minnow is inspired by all the little fish I have to hook on the lines in hopes that a muskie will show up. As a reference, I would point to the amazing embroidery artist Lera Petunina  and her collection of fish. Supplies: generally a bit of a stash buster.... felt various beads (large, small, bugle, etc.) pearls sequin of different sizes embroidery thread regular thread wire (paperclip wire works too) mod podge of contact cement glue Tools: embroidery hoop (embroidery) scissors  needle (small enough to be threaded and work with your beads) embroidery needle 1) first take the wire and make a tiny loop, big enough for a needle and thread to go through. Then bend the wire around the tip of your index finger. once you are happy with the "U" shape snip it off and create a tiny loop on the other end. repeat this step so you have 2...

These little guys are great for play, and would even make a great low cost favor at a child's fairytale or even camping themed party. Easy to assemble with no sewing (you can sew them if you prefer). Here's how I make them: Supplies for frog only: green felt white felt micro pompoms (5mm) glue gun glue Supplies for crown: felt of choice colour 1cm pompom choice of colour Tools: small pair of scissors that can go around tight edges glue gun 1) cut out the pieces 2) one at a time, dab a small bit of glue to the tips of the darts on the main body piece (green and white dots) and fold under the adjacent tabs to secure in place. here is the back section glued together: here is the eye area glued together: 3) add the pom pom eyes: 4) add the eyelids 5) I prepped the tummy by adding a vertical seam to the center of the piece by adding a 1" line of glue to the center and folding it as seen below - you can skip this step though. 6) working in a section at a time, starting at the ti...

  This is my second fly swatter I have created - they really do work! These are based loosely on the cute fly shaped fly swatters from Ameico Inc . Before I get in to my process, please note that this requires a sharp xacto blade.  Please only attempt if you are an adult, and please be careful! Supplies: leather leather lacing 4 small buttons wooden dowel contact cement or similar glue for leather mod podge upholstery thread (or heavy duty thread) patten for front and back of swatter - one side is the body and wings, the other side is just the body (wings will be only one layer thick) Tools: paint brush needle leather punch with different sized holes scissors xacto blade  clips to hold your pattern in place q-tip for spreading contact cement lighter to singe the ends of the upholstery thread 1) using a pattern, cut out your leather pieces, use the leather punch to punch out sewing holes around the body, as well as holes on the wings. 2) using the xacto knife, shave off ex...

  I had a relative who worked on the Black Brant rocket and I will say that he had the best (craziest) stories (well at least I thought so). After learning about his work, I developed a huge appreciation for the Saturn V rocket (I mean jet engines powering rocket engines - what's not to love?).  Seeing the core rope memory computer , that seamstresses helped create, makes you really appreciate the ingenuity of humanity. These bracelets were inspired by the 26 bit computers as well as this post by artist M. Synnott . My "core rope" bracelets are "8 bit", using jump rings and thread. I've worn them out quite a bit, so you don't have to worry about them snagging on something any more than a traditional chain bracelet. Very inexpensive, and fun to make!  Supplies: 10 jump rings metallic thread to match the jump rings a clasp scissors BE SURE AND DOUBLE UP ALL OF THE THREAD (that means one end will have 2 raw ends of the thread while the other end is where t...