Crafterbation

Meet Kate! The lovely little “kitten in britches” as she’s described by creator Jess Hutchison. Yep, that same Jess Hutch who makes those rad knit robots. Good luck tracking that pattern down though, its long out of print… Any way back to the pattern for Kate. If you’re an avid knitty reader, you know this pattern has been around a while, and it’s been on my back burner for just as long. I really just love everything about her. From her little striped top to her cute little “britches.” I think it might be time to upgrade this to “current project” status. :)

I spied these adorable little ankle socks a little while back [via Craft:], and they have not let me forget about them. For the most part I don’t wear any kind of socks besides little cotton below-the-ankle socks or peds. So I was pretty stoked to find this pattern for pom-pom peds from purl bee. My only caveat about making them is they are knit in wool. While it is 100% organic merino wool, it’s still wool. Not my ideal choice for a summer sock. I’d love to find a fingerling weight, cotton or cotton blend yarn with enough give to knit a pair of socks. Such a yarn must exist, no?

This week I’ve decided to focus on posts about knitting, specifically knitting projects that I would like to make. I’m a pretty picky knitter and I have a really hard time deciding on projects. I’m also a pretty lazy knitter, so unless I’m really wrapped up in a project, it will take me forever to finish it. Also in the interest of full disclosure, I feel i should mention I haven’t knitted much in the past year, in pretty stark contrast to the 6 or so years preceeding it. I’m sure my move had a lot to do with it, since all my free time in the few months prior to moving were spoken for and post move I guess, I never really settled back into the habit of knitting. That is, until few weeks ago.

Now I’m consumed with the urge to knit, and boy have I been knitting. I finally finished an old project that has been hanging over my head for over a year, and in a little over a week knocked out another brand new one (more on these to come). So now I’m on the hunt for some new projects! Now that’s almost summer (and for the most part, pretty much always summer here) choosing a knitting project can be tricky. I’m looking for some fun summer appropriate projects that would be well suited to the climate. For the most part I prefer smaller projects for their portability and more instant gratification. Also bonus points will be awarded to projects that I might enable me to use up the small portion of my stash that made the move with me.

Got a suggestion? I’d love to here it!

Well, this week went way too fast and I feel like I barely scratched the surface (yes, terrible pun intended) with music crafts. I will definitely need to revisit this topic again. All the posts really just ended up being retro-y cassette tape and record album crafts. In particular, I came across so many great “mix tape” crafts that I had to wrangle them up into a single post. Ah, the mix tape…

One of my favorites was this rad mix tape belt buckle by Customink. It’s such a simple idea, yet so fantastic. If I ever get around to making a non leather belt that accepts those interchangeable buckles, I’ll have to whip one of these up.

Lindsey of BraveMoonman made this little mix tape coin purse. I love the cute little details in the stitching and the gradation of the felt. It totally reminds me this old tape my aunt Julie taped Michael Jackson songs on for me when I was 5 or so.

I’m also pretty fond of this mix tape pouch by Brenda of goodkarma, particularly the contrast of the different fabrics and the mix of machine and hand stitching. 

Finally, I’d like to point out this fabulous Ohio Mix Tape t-shirt by Alison Rose. It’s shown above, modeled by my best friend Rhea, who of course rocks the eff out of it. I am seriously in love with this shirt. I have an incredible soft spot for all things Ohio, especially the rad Ohio sunglasses I got at the state fair when I was about 6, but that’s a topic for another post. :) In short, Ohio + Mix Tape = Totally Awesome. You can get your own here.

In my hunt for some record themed crafts I came across some great little accessories. Hair clips, rings, necklaces, bracelets, etc. These are a few of my favorites.

I love the simplicity of the implied records on this necklace made of buttons by Minski. Maybe you’re looking for something that’s a little less representational, like something literally made out of a record? Check out these rad record cuff bracelets. 

(L) This great wide record cuff is made by etsy seller wonderful. 
(R) Christine of EyePopArt made this simple record cuff, and gave it a coat of blue paint. 

For a while now I’ve wanted to try my hand an making one of these. My friend Juniper and I used to make journals, bowls and coasters out of old scratched up records and album covers that were in abundant supply at the record store she owns with her husband Dave. We had a couple times discussed trying to make some other things, like record cuffs but never figured out a good way to cut them. Turns out it was easier than we thought. Jennifer Perkins of Stylelicious showed how to make these on their show, you can check out the steps to make your own here.