CRAFT!

I am broke, I have no job and no prospects! Also I'm hooked on this image sharing site called imgfave, lots of memes, superimposed helvetica  and presently harry potter stuff. Every now and again it has pictures of cute little crafty stuff and I like to save these pictures to inspire me in my endeavors! This got me started on stumbling crafts on the stumbleupon engine which led me to various craft/ d.i.y sites and so for the past month I've been accumulating a cache of ideas for homemade presents! I love making people stuff, the present is completely unique and then theres the reaction, hopefully it'll be something like "OMmmGod that's SO cute/cool!!"

So let me give you a run down of all the handmades I've put together so far -

First off - pantscakes. I've seen this done with socks, vests, towels and of course underwear and they look so cute and easy I had to try them. I cut the bottoms off plastic cups to make the bun cases and finished off the raw edge with green ribbon and pink bows which I salvaged from my leaving cert craft project ( a Marie Antoinette puppet). Then I rolled up the pants with a little corner sticking up to look like frosting. Finally I wrapped them in cellophane, just cause! I made these for my secret Santa friends in studio 4, peaches of girls they are, truly worthy of being honored with undergarments!



Show a little backbone! (BAM again)



Next -The footprint necklace. Jess was my specific secret Santa, I got her a honka honka horn for her bike and fashion origami but I wanted to make her something too. Earlier in the year I made a necklace from a bird vertebrate my friend Vanessa found in a handful of gravel and Jess said she'd like one. However I didn't like the idea of going spine hunting so I went with this. I love dinky little pendants with charms on them but at the moment all the ones in the shops all have either swallows, owls, clocks, lockets or something equally whimsical on them. So in a bid for uniqueness, I made a little tablet out of fimo paper clay and pressed two little footprints into it with a pen, when it dried I sprayed it with gold chrome. Why footprints? Lets just say over the 7 years of our friendship Jess has made quite the impression on me. (BAM!)



I also gave all the girls one of these Warm Wishes cards, a stencil and red paint on card, simple as!

 

Another necklace worthy individual is my friend and savior Hazel Egan. Hazel rescued me last Tuesday when I filleted myself with my scalpel during a lino cut, she sought out first aid, took me to the hospital, waited with me, and sat through the stitches with me, and we only just met this year! Anyhow as we sat in the waiting room we were chatting away about various artsy things and I found out she liked this beautiful rainbow necklace by  designer called mixko. So home I went to attempt to do something similar! Its 5 strands of embroidery thread suspended between two paper clay clouds hot glued onto a chain. Its sitting in a casio dictaphone casette box because it was the only small box I had left, but I think it adds something!

I also made her a card, red glitter a la the yeah yeah yeahs video for off with your head!

For my other studio 4 holmes I made these candycane heart pops that I saw on the Pleasant Home blog. You break the candycanes to size, arrange them over a lollypop stick then pour melted white chocolate into the heart you've made, I finished them off with some festive sprinkles and more cellophane and a twirly ribbon!

I have friends on the outside too! For my life-partner and fellow owl enthusiast Meghan I sewed her an owl bobble hat. We saw one in Claire's Accessorise but I missed the boat to buy it so I made her this with patchwork fabric, big buttons and embroidery thread. Dear god I hope she forgives the fact its eyes are so far apart!

For my stylist, confidante and all round beautiful person Andrew I made a speaker hat, I took one of those furry deerstalker hats, sliced the sides and sat in a pair of speakers. Will this prove practical in reality - 50:50 but its warm as having a fox wrapped around your head!

 

On a final note, most of this stuff apart from the hats was made after Tuesdays trip to a&e (Pictured above are my gristly paw and my slings, one for day wear and one for Spacemas) so I was largely a one handed effort; and so is a testament to just how easy all this stuff is to make!