Archive for the ‘Canadian Content’ Category

Here's hoping that you have a chance to indulge of your craft of choice over the next few days. And maybe a bit of sitting in the sun, barbecuing, and time outdoors, too.

I've got plenty to keep me busy. Knitting and reading and knitting and did I mention knitting? The Tops, Tanks and Tees Knitalong ends next Wednesday, and it's going to be a squeaker!

I've got miles to go. OK, not really, more like six inches, but you know what I mean. I might take a break from the body and do the sleeves, so that when I cast off the body I'm really, truly finished. That's such a good feeling.

Oh that? Just a list of the next dozen things I want to make. At least I know I won't be bored...?

In my travels around the internet the other day, I came across one of the coolest craft ideas I've seen in a while. Wendy Tsao in Vancouver runs Child's Own Studio, a custom shop that creates soft toys from children's drawings.

Parents send in a drawing like this (notice that "Mom" is the name emblazoned on this creature, and she's holding a laptop!):

All photos, courtesy of Wendy Tsao, Child's Own Studio Flickr photostream

...and Wendy uses some funky fabric, some fancy stitiching and tons of creativity to turn that drawing into this:

She's made "a few hundred" of these soft toys for many a happy child who gets to see his or her 2-D creation come to life in 3-D. Check out her gallery of finished projects here.

There was another one that really made me smile – and reminded me of Monsters Inc. (one of my very favourite movies). It was this sparsely illustrated dragon:

...who Wendy turned into this fantastic multicoloured softie:

Fortunately for Wendy, business has been brisk. Unfortunately for us, she's not taking any new orders at the moment, and is working through her waiting list.  I think everyone here can sympathize with that – I'm not the only one with a years-long backlog of projects in her craft room, right? Ahem.

But it got me thinking. This would be a great craft project if you have kids and some decent sewing skills. What do you think? Would you try making something like this?

Chances are that many of you have seen our June issue on newsstands (or in your mailbox) by now. It's the one with the bright pink type and that delicious looking salad:

If you're a long-time reader, you'll have noticed some changes – we've updated the look, changed some things around and generally made your magazine even better than it was before. But there's one big change that I'm SUPER excited about: Canadian Living now has an entire section devoted to crafts!

Yay!!!!

Every month, you'll see the section opener: look for the big blue banner that reads "Crafts are for sharing."

That's the opening page of "Craft Matters," two pages that are devoted to exploring craft products, books, projects, hints and tips – every month! It's where we'll report on creative Canadians and great craft finds, take products for test drives (in June, it's scissors), and share the bits and pieces that don't fit into the larger craft stories.

After Craft Matters, you'll find craft projects for adults and kids – now conveniently packaged together. We've been working hard to come up with easy projects, short instructions and GREAT photos  – after all, you can get a lot of information and inspiration just from looking at the pictures. Here's a peek at what's in store in June.

A quick and easy picnic tote to sew, and...

...a Father's Day card (and Dad can even clip the tie to his collar! perhaps not boardroom-appropriate, but good for a giggle).

I really hope you like this new section and can't wait to hear what you think. And hey, if you've got an idea for something (or someone) you'd like to see in Craft Matters, I hope you'll let me know!

PS Not a subscriber? That's easy to fix. Sign up right here.

What with all that sewing last week, my knitting took a bit of a hit. But not too much! In fact, a long drive out into the countryside last weekend gave me ample opportunity to do a bit of catching up.

I'm half a round away from dividing the sleeves from the body of my sweater, which will cut the stitch count in half. At that point I think this project will really start zooming. (Especially since the sleeves require just 6 rounds of st st each! Thank goodness for short sleeves!)

The pattern is Gemini, and the KAL is the Tops, Tanks and Tees KAL that Shannon is hosting. I've got another couple long car rides coming up, so I should be in good stead to meet the May 23 end date. (More discussion and information on the Ravelry thread.)

Meanwhile, there's another KAL on the horizon that I'm kind of excited about: the Tanis Fiber Arts Colour Knit Along. It starts next Monday and it's wide open for interpretation – as long as your project has two or more colours of TFA, you're good to go. I don't know what I'm making yet, but I'm pretty sure I know what I'll be making it with...

This jewel-tone TFA Palette that I picked up at the Knitter's Frolic. I love it! It's an assortment of Yellow Label DK weight yarn. I might make a simple (but super cheerful!) striped pullover.

Of course, there are tons of appealing options that use a different gauge yarn – including Colour Affection, for example, or Gathering Stripes, both from Veera Välimäki. Or either of the Bláithín sweaters (for bigs or littles) or the Betty Mouat cowl from Kate Davies. Decisions, decisions...

What are you making these days? (Have you seen the granny-along over at wise craft? Fun!)

Today Lisa and I were chatting about what to blog about today, and I thought about a conversation that we had over email yesterday. We were discussing our plans for the patterns we'd made in a custom T-shirt pattern making class we took at The Workroom...and incidentally, about the myth of the prolific night-time crafter.

From:  Lisa
Date: Tue, 1 May 2012 13:16
To: Austen
Subject: !

Superaweseome thought I just had: You could totally use that Tshirt pattern to make a dress! The most awesomely comfortable dress ever. I'm doing that.

---

From: Austen
Date: Tue, 1 May 2012 13:21
To: Lisa

That is a genius idea! So smart. Hellooooooo, summer wardrobe!

I am planning to try my pattern out tonight. But just for a T-shirt.

---

From:  Lisa
Date: Tue, 1 May 2012 13:26
To: Austen

I was thinking I might too. Though I often daydream about these things in the afternoon, and then when it gets to be about 8 p.m. and I finally have a few spare minutes, I don't follow through.
Excited to see what you come up with!

---

From: Austen
Sent: Tue, 1 May 2012 13:30
To: Lisa

That happens to me too. For some reason I feel like I should be able to start something and finish it on the same day, and then when I  know I can't, I get frustrated so I just don't start anything at all. And watch TV instead.

So maybe I should say that tonight I am going to cut out the pieces of a tshirt. Or, more realistically, tonight I am going to set up the ironing board. At this rate, I'll have a new t-shirt by Labour Day. Guess I should make it long-sleeved after all?

---

From: Lisa
Date: Tue, 1 May 2012 13:34
To: Austen

Glad it's not just me! I always imagine that you go home every night and make or cook or write something

---

From: Austen
Date: Tue, 1 May 2012 13:41
To: Lisa

Well, you know: make (a mess), cook (boil the kettle?) and write (a four word email).

--------------

When I re-read this exchange this morning it made me laugh (and it sort of reminded me of this post on Dinner: A Love Story).

I think that sometimes – even to people we know quite well, people with whom we share daily routines and typical ups and downs – it looks like we're just effortlessly putting in the 9-to-5, then going home, taking care of business (dinner, housework, family, all the rest) and, oh yeah, no big deal, whipping up a craft or two on the side every night.

But we're not. Some nights, just ironing the fabric for that new T-shirt is as good as it gets. If we're really lucky and someone else is making dinner, sometimes we might get more done. But there are many many nights that end, not with some late-night sewing, but with a dead drop onto the couch.

Just thought you might like to know.

Yesterday at lunch time I treated myself to a fabric store field trip. It'd been a while since I'd been there, so I was looking forward to seeing the spring/summer fabrics and checking out the sales. (I love buying fabric on sale, don't you?)

The store near our office is a Fabricland "Decor Centre," which means that in addition to the fashion- and craft-oriented material, it's got a great selection of home decor fabrics and notions. But yesterday the store seemed even more jam-packed than usual – it was difficult just to turn around, let alone shop.

But then I overheard a conversation at the cutting table. Turns out that all that fabric and all those sale signs (so many sale signs!) had nothing to do with a springtime bonanza and everything to do with a closing-out sale.

Harrumph!

The company surely has its reasons (rumour has it the rent was set to quadruple), but still. This close-out means that there's only one Fabricland in Toronto – and it's kind of a pain to get to if, like me, you don't own a car. I *love* my local independent retailers, but I'm going to miss this Fabricland for all those urgent lunchtime sequin-tape-buying missions. (It happens more often than you might think!)

Of course, the more I've thought about it, the more I've realized that living in Toronto, I've become spoiled. In lots of places in Canada, fabric and notions that are a 10-minute walk away would sound like a crazy pipe dream. Back when I lived in semi-rural Nova Scotia, it was an hour's drive to the closest fabric store – definitely not something I could do on a lunch hour.

So I'm wondering: Where do you buy your fabric? Is there a chain store where you live? An independent retailer? Do you order online? What would you do if your local fabric store up and moved out?

This giveaway is now closed. Thank you for reading!

Wow: This is our 800th post here on The Craft Blog. Can you believe it? I wish I could give each of you a cupcake to say thank you for coming along on our crafty adventures.

It didn't happen overnight. We've been gathering here to talk about all things crafty for three years now. In that time, we've shared project ideas, exclaimed over crafting triumphs (and frustrations), hosted guest bloggers, posted tutorials, and met all kinds of Canadian crafters.

Through the blog, we've been able to get to know the people who read our website and our magazine each month – finding out what crafts you're passionate about, where you buy your fabric and yarn, what you love (and hate!) about your hobby of choice. It's been wonderful.

To celebrate, we're having a giveaway! (Yay!) I've got 8 great craft books ready for 8 lucky winners.

Here's how to enter:

1. Leave a comment on this post to say hello. Tell us what your favourite craft is, what you like to read about, what you wish there was more of....any or all of those things.
2. Make sure you leave your name and email address, so that I can contact you if you win. (Unfortunately, we can only ship prizes within Canada, but we'd still love to hear from you if you're an international reader!)
3. Do it before 11:59 p.m. on Sunday, May 6.

I'll randomly choose and announce the winners on Monday, May 7. Good luck – and thanks again for reading The Craft Blog!

Do you memorize recipes? I do. Most of the time it's not deliberate – it's just that after you've made the same cookie recipe five or six dozen times, you're bound to remember the details. And so Chocolate O'Chippers* are a permanent part of my repertoire.

Same for scones, pancakes, and baking powder biscuits. For me, they're all comfort foods, and there's nothing more comforting than being able to walk into the kitchen and start baking – no cookbook required.

Just this weekend I realized that I've started to do the same thing with my knitting. I've got a few standby patterns that now reside permanently in my head. Glenna's Nice Ribbed Socks have taken up residence, as have the Cutest Booties from the Yarn Harlot. Given a repeat knit or two, I think that the Classic Raglan might move in, too.

I've also got a simple shawl pattern stored away up there. It's based on Simple Things – a super basic triangle shawl built with symmetrical yarn overs, with rows of garter stitch and yarn overs as decorative edging toward the bottom of the shawl. It was just the ticket for Sunday afternoon, when I had a movie to go to and nothing simple to work on in the dark. This is Noro Silk Garden, knit on 5 mm needles. I'm loving it.

* You didn't think I'd let you go without providing that cookie recipe, did you? Of course not! This recipe was shared with me by my friend Ali. I don't know where she got it, but I do know it's my favourite.

Chocolate O’Chippers
1/2 cup butter, softened
1 cup packed brown sugar
1/2 tsp vanilla extract
1 egg
1 cup all-purpose flour
1 cup oatmeal
1/2 tsp baking soda
1/4 tsp salt
1 cup chocolate chips

Preheat oven to 350ºF. Cream butter with sugar until light. Add vanilla and egg; mix well. Add flour, oatmeal, baking soda and salt; stir til incorporated. Stir in chocolate chips.

Drop by teaspoonfuls onto parchment paper–lined baking sheet. Bake 10 to 12 min, or until edges are golden and tops are just beginning to set. Makes approx 36 cookies.

(You can play with the add-ins if you like: I'm also a fan of raisins, pecans and coconut, in any measure.)

I had a super crafty weekend – how about you?

Vintage buttons! Yay!

On Friday afternoon, Lisa and I headed to Hamilton to explore James St. North. This street seems to be experiencing a crafty renaissance – though there are still some seriously dilapidated storefronts, it's also home to some great stores that are chock-a-block with nifty wares.

We popped in to White Elephant, where I reconnected with Jane, a former classmate of mine. (Small world alert!) You can read more about Jane and Hollie, the store owners, and the eclectic wares they carry, at their blog Love it A Lot.

Down the street a bit, Mixed Media, an art supply store, tempted me with a wide array of art supplies, inspiring books, magazines and posters, and blank notebooks (my favourite). Needlework, a fabric store and creative workspace, made me wish for a free afternoon to do nothing but sew in the sun.

Saturday morning I ventured out to City of Craft – and I'm so glad I did! It was packed and I had my hands full, so I don't have any photos, but what a great show. I was pleased to see lots of great vendors – some familiar, some new to me – including:

• Krystal Speck, who makes ceramic art & tableware (and offers pottery classes! exciting!)
• Kid Icarus, from whom I bought some supersweet recipe cards
• Wolfe Island Woolworks, with a selection of lovely one-of-a-kind yarns (read more on the blog)
• Rare Specimen, by Jane of White Elephant. I'd like to buy a pair of these cool earrings for each of my friends
• The Workroom also had a table at the show, where they were selling packs of vintage buttons (shown above) and fabric scrap packs. It was a feeding frenzy!

I don't have room to enumerate everyone I saw, but it was great to see so many vendors – and buyers – out on a cool, rainy spring day. Hooray!

I dropped by the post office yesterday to pick up Sweater #4. Although in my head this baby's already finished and ready to wear, the reality's a bit different.

Yeah. So I have a bit of work to do yet.

The yarn is  CotLin in Surf, from KnitPicks. I loved the colour, the cotton/linen blend will be just right for summer, and at $2.99/ball, the price was right. (I'm saving up to buy a Palette from Tanis Fiber Arts for a colourful KAL she's planning. And if I win the Heart & Stroke Lottery, I'm buying one of each!)

Um, where was I?

Right. Sweater #4.

I'm going to make the Gemini t-shirt by Jane Richmond, featured in the spring issue of Knitty. So cute! Reversible! And – importantly – short sleeved!

I started swatching last night while I caught up on my various guilty-pleasure TV shows. You know: Bones, Castle. That sort of thing. Though I should have saved the plain-vanilla knitting for  Sherlock, which is far too absorbing (and scary!!) to watch while tackling raglan increases for a top-down cardigan in sock yarn on 2.75 mm needles, I learned this weekend.

Sorry, distracted again.

Anyhoodle. I'm joining the Tops, Tanks and Tees KAL over at luvinthemommyhood – I'm a week late to the party but hopefully I'll be able to catch up. Today there's a great post about understanding fit, so if you're like me and sometimes your brain starts to hurt when you're trying to discern the difference between body measurements and finished measurements (and what's this business about ease?!) be sure to check it out. Helpful to the max!

I'm almost finished my swatch – couple more rows and then a wash and dry and we'll see how I did. Right now it's coming in a bit tight – looks like about 24 sts and 30 rows to 4 inches on 4 mm needles, rather than the specified 22/28. But only time will tell!

So anyway, what are you making these days? And failing that, what are you watching? Sherlock's only got a few episodes per season, so I'm looking for recommendations!