tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-66528561863135493472024-03-13T12:31:19.426-06:00Crazy Crafting MamaWelcome! Hi, I'm Donna and I am the Crazy Crafting Mama. Thanks for stopping by and sharing in my craft adventures. Join the conversation and subscribe to my blog below.donnahttp://www.blogger.com/profile/08936890338409352644noreply@blogger.comBlogger109125tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-6652856186313549347.post-4815939582005374312011-11-08T23:15:00.001-06:002011-11-08T23:15:36.207-06:00Motivation by SwapI started swapping again via the web site <a href="http://www.swap-bot.com/">http://www.swap-bot.com/</a>. I've done this mainly to force myself to do things I like to do and then share them with others. Mostly, I've been swapping supplies like fabric. It is helping me to rediscover fabrics I have forgotten I had. It used to be a regular thing where I would open up my containers of fabric and organize them or pull them out to do little projects but I just got busy and stopped doing it so much. <br />
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Now though, I try to find little tidbits that I don't mind sharing or maybe I just don't love so much anymore. I love putting together fabrics and seeing what someone else thinks. I'm just starting to do swaps where I actually have to make something. I did one the other day and was so excited that I finished it that I forgot to take a picture of it. <br />
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The latest one I sent out was to commemorate the 100,000th swap on the site. I decided to take the little pictures Swap-bot provides to use as profile pictures and put them together like a little collage and make a coaster or mug-rug. I lined them all up on my computer and then printed them on fabric. I decided that wasn't enough to give so I made two matching postcards. Here they are so what do you think?<br />
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<a href="http://4.bp.blogspot.com/-fAh9QsYkUrk/TroLtmviMiI/AAAAAAAAA70/W4XvIVN1XUw/s1600/100%252C000+swap.jpg" imageanchor="1" style="margin-left: 1em; margin-right: 1em;"><img border="0" height="301" ida="true" src="http://4.bp.blogspot.com/-fAh9QsYkUrk/TroLtmviMiI/AAAAAAAAA70/W4XvIVN1XUw/s320/100%252C000+swap.jpg" width="320" /></a></div>donnahttp://www.blogger.com/profile/08936890338409352644noreply@blogger.com1tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-6652856186313549347.post-87789984816562802662011-09-21T18:14:00.000-06:002011-09-21T18:15:01.989-06:00Just CrazyThinking about just changing the name of my blog to Just Crazy as I start getting back into crafting more and hoping to actually get some holiday gifts done this year. However, I still want to keep taking classes and learn more computer stuff. I already have several Microsoft Office Certificates and the elusive Comptia Network+ certification.<br />
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I recently changed jobs (still same place - different department) and I'm working evening hours. I was hoping to squeeze more time out of the day since I have mornings to myself but I find I want to stay at home more than I ever have. Darn those benefits like health insurance and money to buy my supplies.donnahttp://www.blogger.com/profile/08936890338409352644noreply@blogger.com0tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-6652856186313549347.post-13465335587243280692010-03-23T08:54:00.006-06:002010-03-23T11:45:50.099-06:00Men Who QuiltToday I stumbled upon a blog written by a male quilter. The fact that he quilts and is male is really not that shocking or anything. I have known a few men who quilt or do some sort of fiber art but it was his profile picture that stood out. At the time of this reading he is wearing a really nice suit and tie in his picture and reminded me more of a business-CEO-type-of-guy. I used to work for a company that was all about making people more creative but the suits up stairs had no idea what (or why we loved to do it) the things we did. They only cared about $$$.<br /><br />So, I was like "Really?" and I browsed through <a href="http://imjustaguywhoquilts.blogspot.com/">Ryan Walsh: I'm Just a Guy Who Quilts blog</a>. And you know what, he is awesome! I'm love with his tutorial<a href="http://imjustaguywhoquilts.blogspot.com/2010/03/pillow-talk-tutorial-part-i-prepping.html"> {Pillow Talk} A Tutorial Part I</a> and <a href="http://imjustaguywhoquilts.blogspot.com/2010/03/pillow-talk-tutorial-part-ii-layout.html">Part II </a>which involves altering circles to complete a very interesting layout and design.<br /><br />So I got to thinking about other guy quilters I know, and they vary in personalities just as much as women quilters I know but I just don't know as many of them. I decided to do searches on those I know about and to see if I could find more. Here are some of the ones I found (in no particular order):<br /><br /><ul><li><a href="http://www.kaffefassett.com/Biography.html">Kaffe Fassett</a></li><li><a href="http://flynnquilt.com/">John Flynn</a></li><li><a href="http://www.danolfe.com/galleries.htm">Dan Olfe</a></li><li><a href="http://www.marklipinski.com/">Mark Lipinski</a></li><li>Kevin Kosbab aka <a href="http://feeddog.blogspot.com/">Feed Dog</a></li><li><a href="http://www.unl.edu/mjames_quilts/">Michael James</a></li><li><a href="http://www.philbeaver.com/">Phil Beaver</a></li><li><a href="http://quilts.rickytims.com/">Ricky Tims</a></li><li>Charlie Scott aka <a href="http://qubeequilts.blogspot.com/">Qubee</a></li></ul><p>They are all amazing and inspiring to me. They are doing what they love. Keep it up guys!</p>donnahttp://www.blogger.com/profile/08936890338409352644noreply@blogger.com19tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-6652856186313549347.post-36510231783419196392010-03-15T08:54:00.003-06:002010-03-15T09:38:27.390-06:00Be Proud to be DIYAs many of you probably do, I subscribe to a number of blogs and they span a great deal of different interests but many times they do relate to each other even if it is not about crafting. That happened today with Get Rich Slowly, a personal finance blog that I read from time to time. The article today is <a href="http://www.getrichslowly.org/blog/2010/03/15/made-by-hand-in-praise-of-amateurs/">Made by Hand: In Praise of Amateurs</a>. It is a personal tribute not only to handmade, DIY and being self-sustainable but to the author's dad who did many projects and inventions over the years before his rather young passing. It is amazing how much he did in his short lifetime.<br /><br />J.D. Roth, the author, also gives us a sneak peak at the upcoming book <em>Made by Hand</em> by Mark Fraunfelder the editor of <a href="http://makezine.com/"><em>Make</em> magazine</a>. Evidently it is not a do-it-yourself instruction book but a look at someone who loves to do what DIYers love to do. I came from a family of DIY types. We always had a huge garden, we canned and froze all kinds of produce, my mom taught me to sew and crochet, my brother was a wood carver and cabinet maker but not professionally and we never ate out which at the time I thought was tragic.<br /><br />I really liked this article because it brought back my own memories but also the change I've felt in the last few years about being able to be more self-sustainable. I'm even taking a computer course so I can do my own maintenance and it has inspired me to one day to try to build my own computer. I recently learned how to knit and have had great praise for the scarves I've given away.<br /><br />Do you do crafts as part of being able to DIY? Do you find yourself wanting to DIY other areas like constructing your own lamp or building a patio?donnahttp://www.blogger.com/profile/08936890338409352644noreply@blogger.com1tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-6652856186313549347.post-89358857835744424312010-03-12T21:43:00.004-06:002010-03-12T21:52:35.678-06:00I'm in the Top 25 at Craft Critique<a onblur="try {parent.deselectBloggerImageGracefully();} catch(e) {}" href="http://3.bp.blogspot.com/_xKSJbV2MKfI/S5sLe7rOj-I/AAAAAAAAA38/BfPAdggwUVg/s1600-h/projects.JPG"><img style="margin: 0pt 10px 10px 0pt; float: left; cursor: pointer; width: 155px; height: 198px;" src="http://3.bp.blogspot.com/_xKSJbV2MKfI/S5sLe7rOj-I/AAAAAAAAA38/BfPAdggwUVg/s320/projects.JPG" alt="" id="BLOGGER_PHOTO_ID_5447960800277729250" border="0" /></a><br />My <a href="http://www.craftcritique.com/2007/07/wire-edge-ribbon.html">wire-edge ribbon article </a>I wrote for <a href="http://www.craftcritique.com/">Craft Critique </a>is one of their 25 most read articles. I'm so excited. You can read it too; <a href="http://www.craftcritique.com/2007/07/wire-edge-ribbon.html">click here</a>. It contains a tutorial on making a ribbon rose. Or, you can go to Craft Critique to see it and all the top 25 in <a href="http://www.craftcritique.com/2010/03/best-of-craft-critique.html">this special article</a>.donnahttp://www.blogger.com/profile/08936890338409352644noreply@blogger.com2tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-6652856186313549347.post-89718745553762585602010-03-10T21:01:00.005-06:002010-03-10T21:13:36.483-06:00A Place to Shop<a onblur="try {parent.deselectBloggerImageGracefully();} catch(e) {}" href="http://www.ericas.com/"><img style="margin: 0pt 10px 10px 0pt; float: left; cursor: pointer; width: 205px; height: 105px;" src="http://3.bp.blogspot.com/_xKSJbV2MKfI/S5he3xJh4mI/AAAAAAAAA30/FGoqYO66hcs/s320/ericas+logo.gif" alt="" id="BLOGGER_PHOTO_ID_5447208061483737698" border="0" /></a>One of my favorite online stores that I sometimes find myself at late at night is <a href="http://www.ericas.com/">Erica's Craft & Sewing Center</a>. They have just about anything: fabric, books, yarn, thread, machines, magazines (even the Australian ones), and more. You should really explore the site yourself.<br /><br />If you live or plan on visiting near <a href="http://www.mapquest.com/maps?address=1320+N+Ironwood+Dr&city=South+Bend&state=IN&zipcode=46615&country=US&cid=lfmaplink">South Bend, Indiana you can visit the actual store</a>. I have still yet to go even though I've driven by South Bend several times to visit relatives but never during a time when they're open.donnahttp://www.blogger.com/profile/08936890338409352644noreply@blogger.com0tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-6652856186313549347.post-2517855909291633272010-03-09T19:03:00.008-06:002010-03-10T11:51:23.154-06:00Recycle Crafting and Green CraftingI'm a little behind on my crafty links for each day of the month, National Craft Month. It was a very busy weekend with spending the whole day Saturday at <a href="http://craftingmama.blogspot.com/2010/03/crop-for-cause-making-ms-memory.html">Crop for a Cause</a>. I didn't get much done but I did have a lot of fun with my friends and I did win one silent auction of some kids scrapbooking supplies for my daughter.<br /><br />While trying to think of what I wanted to share with you next I came across an article about taking used items and making them into unique art items to sell. They called it Junk Style Art. Recently I have been collecting old sweaters (mostly wool ones to felt) and any unique pieces of clothing to create something new. I have done some re-fashion before and wrote about one of the items in this article: <a href="http://craftingmama.blogspot.com/2007/03/how-to-re-fashion-kids-sweatshirt.html">How to Re-fashion a Kid's Sweatshirt</a>. I started researching sites to give me some ideas and found the ones below.<br /><br />Try these sites for finding ideas on recycle crafting or being a green crafter:<br /><ul><li><a href="http://nikkishell.typepad.com/wardroberefashion/">Wardrobe Re-Fashion </a>- You can pledge to re-fashion used clothing instead of buying new but it's a great source of inspiration.</li><li><a href="http://craftingagreenworld.com/">Crafting a Green World</a> - Eco-friendly craft projects.</li><li><a href="http://dollarstorecrafts.com/">Dollar Store Crafts </a>- Emphasis is using supplies from a dollar store or dollar section of a store but you can find recycled ideas like this <a href="http://dollarstorecrafts.com/2010/03/make-a-recycled-plastic-chandelier/">Recycled Plastic Bottle Chandelier</a>.</li><li><a href="http://recycledcrafts.craftgossip.com/">Recycled Crafts at Craft Gossip.com</a> - Very cute stuff!</li></ul><p>Have fun exploring and getting inspiration.</p>donnahttp://www.blogger.com/profile/08936890338409352644noreply@blogger.com1tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-6652856186313549347.post-69835986490346246402010-03-05T13:30:00.007-06:002010-03-05T13:46:34.280-06:00Crop for a Cause: Making MS a Memory<a href="http://www.cropforacause.com/index.html"><img style="MARGIN: 0px 10px 10px 0px; WIDTH: 234px; FLOAT: left; HEIGHT: 104px; CURSOR: hand" id="BLOGGER_PHOTO_ID_5445236495490555874" border="0" alt="" src="http://3.bp.blogspot.com/_xKSJbV2MKfI/S5Fdvhe1H-I/AAAAAAAAA3k/lN64NX_A-Uk/s320/MS+a+memory.jpg" /></a><br />Hi everyone. Tomorrow I'll be at the Crop for Cause: Making MS a Memory fundraising event. This is the 4th year for this phenomenal 8 hour event where about 200 scrapbookers, paper crafters and even other crafters come together to have fun and hopefully get some crafty work done.<br /><br />There will be food and prizes and a great silent auction area where over 140 baskets of goodies are up for grabs. Baskets are filled with not just scrapping supplies but dinners, fitness memberships, Chicago Fire soccer tickets, and even a condo package in Hawaii. <a href="http://www.cropforacause.com/silent_auction2008.html">Check it out.</a> If you are in the <a href="http://www.cropforacause.com/driving_directions_crop_for_a_cause.html">Schaumburg, IL area you can stop by </a>and see the silent auction area for yourselves. The auction area is open to the public.<br /><br />Since I will be here tomorrow, Saturday, March 6, I won't be posting my daily link but I did post 2 for today. Have a good weekend everyone!donnahttp://www.blogger.com/profile/08936890338409352644noreply@blogger.com0tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-6652856186313549347.post-20135012801389904232010-03-05T07:00:00.004-06:002010-03-10T21:16:34.673-06:00Lion Brand Yarn<a onblur="try {parent.deselectBloggerImageGracefully();} catch(e) {}" href="http://cache.lionbrand.com/"><img style="margin: 0pt 10px 10px 0pt; float: left; cursor: pointer; width: 130px; height: 122px;" src="http://4.bp.blogspot.com/_xKSJbV2MKfI/S5CNlHr14xI/AAAAAAAAA3c/w7Ea3w16-5I/s320/Lion+Brand+Logo.jpg" alt="" id="BLOGGER_PHOTO_ID_5445007618348540690" border="0" /></a><br />This is one of my favorite sites to get free patterns for crochet and knit. I've been crocheting ever since I've been a little girl. My mom taught me when I was 5. She also tried to teach me to knit but after too many arguments about how I was doing it all wrong and too many times getting all tangled up I gave up.<br /><br />Fast forward 30 some years later and in half and hour with much more focus I learned to cast on and do a basic stitch at a quilt show. Although, I did not remember everything that day it gave me the itch to learn more. Luckily, <a href="http://www.youtube.com/user/LionBrandYarn">Lion Brand has put these great how-to videos on You Tube</a>. See, You Tube can actually be educational. Who knew?<br /><br />The video below will show you one way to cast on. I don't do it this way but you can access other video lessons to do much more with your yarn and a pair of knitting needles.<br /><br /><object height="305" width="400"><param name="movie" value="http://www.youtube.com/v/gvd8VfvNW9Q&hl=en_US&fs=1&"><param name="allowFullScreen" value="true"><param name="allowscriptaccess" value="always"><embed src="http://www.youtube.com/v/gvd8VfvNW9Q&hl=en_US&fs=1&" type="application/x-shockwave-flash" allowscriptaccess="always" allowfullscreen="true" height="305" width="400"></embed></object>donnahttp://www.blogger.com/profile/08936890338409352644noreply@blogger.com0tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-6652856186313549347.post-46539899708655617142010-03-03T15:44:00.004-06:002010-03-05T08:36:27.042-06:00Craft: Transforming Traditional CraftsMany of you may remember when <a href="http://www.craftzine.com/">Craft </a>was this cool new craft magazine that popped up on your local magazine rack at the bookstore. It was so different from all the other magazines. It spoke to a younger generation of crafters who were trending DIY and indie craft styles but it was a refreshing look at the art of craft for those of us not exactly in our twenties anymore. Then you may have wondered where it went.<br /><br />After about 5 years as a hard copy medium it evolved into an awesome online magazine with a blog, projects, a community section and how-to videos. So, <a href="http://www.craftzine.com/">craftzine.com </a>is my crafty link for today. Have fun exploring.donnahttp://www.blogger.com/profile/08936890338409352644noreply@blogger.com0tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-6652856186313549347.post-90372964204987145812010-03-03T07:29:00.001-06:002010-03-03T07:29:00.429-06:00BurdaStyle<img style="MARGIN: 0px 10px 10px 0px; WIDTH: 270px; FLOAT: left; HEIGHT: 60px; CURSOR: hand" id="BLOGGER_PHOTO_ID_5444215030407303522" border="0" alt="" src="http://2.bp.blogspot.com/_xKSJbV2MKfI/S428ubhFEWI/AAAAAAAAA3U/ABWwJyTuOH0/s320/burda+style.gif" /><br /><br />Going forward with my crafty site for everyday of National Craft Month I have selected BurdaStyle for today. It's a community of sewers who mostly create their own patterns from Burda's collection or their own then share them with the community. Burda calls it "open source sewing." You don't have to worry about copyrights here and you get a heck of a lot of inspiration from everyone's creativity. And if you don't sew clothes, don't worry they have non-apparel craft projects too.donnahttp://www.blogger.com/profile/08936890338409352644noreply@blogger.com0tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-6652856186313549347.post-27911079092808969342010-03-02T08:40:00.004-06:002010-03-02T11:15:55.961-06:00Swap-Bot<div><a href="http://4.bp.blogspot.com/_xKSJbV2MKfI/S40lJyFlQhI/AAAAAAAAA3M/7mtFRG74ZLI/s1600-h/swapbot-small.gif"><img style="margin: 0px 10px 10px 0px; width: 280px; float: left; height: 56px;" id="BLOGGER_PHOTO_ID_5444048374555034130" alt="" src="http://4.bp.blogspot.com/_xKSJbV2MKfI/S40lJyFlQhI/AAAAAAAAA3M/7mtFRG74ZLI/s320/swapbot-small.gif" border="0" /></a>Today I continue my quest to post a link to a craft-related site for everyday in March. My choice for today is the site <a href="http://www.swap-bot.com/">Swap-Bot</a>. If you like to do swaps of either handmade items, supplies or even just emails or real mail then this is the place for you. I just joined last week after a friend suggested I visit the site. </div><br /><div></div><br /><div>Because I'm a newbie I can only do a handful of swaps until I get so many good ratings. I am currently signed up for swaps for buttons, book or magazine and fibers. Since I am so busy with classes and stuff I decided to keep my chosen swaps simple and use stuff I already have. I'll keep you posted on how it works out.</div>donnahttp://www.blogger.com/profile/08936890338409352644noreply@blogger.com0tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-6652856186313549347.post-71248711566629244032010-03-01T00:13:00.008-06:002010-03-01T00:35:25.124-06:00March is National Crafting MonthYes, it is March. It still feels like January in the Midwest but at least we have our crafts. Unfortunately, I have not been crafting as much as I would like and it's been since September that I have written about anything.<br /><br />But to celebrate this awesome month and to have fun waiting for Spring to get here I am challenging myself to visit and list a crafty site everyday of this month. You may have noticed that I didn't say anything about crafting something myself. I am currently taking some classes while I work full-time and it has limited my crafting adventures but hopefully I will get some time to work on something and I'll let you know. But now, on with the show.<br /><br /><br /><div style="text-align: center;"><a onblur="try {parent.deselectBloggerImageGracefully();} catch(e) {}" href="http://www.craftcritique.com/"><img style="margin: 0pt 0pt 10px 10px; cursor: pointer; width: 320px; height: 125px;" src="http://1.bp.blogspot.com/_xKSJbV2MKfI/S4tfJ9BMu1I/AAAAAAAAA3E/Rg9chDuDo3s/s320/Craft+Critique+Logo+Color.jpg" alt="" id="BLOGGER_PHOTO_ID_5443549199210429266" border="0" /></a><br /><br /></div>One of my favorites and not just because I used to write for them but to learn about a variety of crafty products is CraftCritique. If you are curious about a product you can also check over there to see if anyone else has used that <a href="http://www.craftcritique.com/2009/09/vendor-spotlight-copic-markers_16.html">marker </a>or experimented with a <a href="http://www.craftcritique.com/2009/09/vendor-spotlight-provocraft-yudu_08.html">Yudu </a>or <a href="http://www.amazon.com/gp/redirect.html?ie=UTF8&location=http%3A%2F%2Fwww.amazon.com%2FFabrics-Florals-Scrapbook-Styles-Miller%2Fdp%2F0823016374&tag=saraandthesta-20&linkCode=ur2&camp=1789&creative=9325">read that book</a>.donnahttp://www.blogger.com/profile/08936890338409352644noreply@blogger.com0tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-6652856186313549347.post-72407050774619166432009-09-13T21:20:00.007-06:002009-09-13T22:22:38.503-06:00Learning to Knit at Renegade<a onblur="try {parent.deselectBloggerImageGracefully();} catch(e) {}" href="http://4.bp.blogspot.com/_xKSJbV2MKfI/Sq3Enw4Z9KI/AAAAAAAAA24/-HmnREhep4c/s1600-h/chicago003-721.jpg"><img style="margin: 0pt 0pt 10px 10px; float: right; cursor: pointer; width: 212px; height: 212px;" src="http://4.bp.blogspot.com/_xKSJbV2MKfI/Sq3Enw4Z9KI/AAAAAAAAA24/-HmnREhep4c/s320/chicago003-721.jpg" alt="" id="BLOGGER_PHOTO_ID_5381173317193036962" border="0" /></a><span style="font-family:arial;">The <a href="http://www.renegadecraft.com/">Renegade Craft Fair </a>is one of the most impressive displays of creativity you can find anywhere. Although, I've only been to the one in Chicago, I have went down for 3 years in a row. I have seen it grow from just phenomenal to just "WOW!" It is safe to say that I am much older than the average age of the indie crafter displaying their wares. At one time when I worked for <a href="http://www.leisurearts.com/default.aspx">Leisure Arts </a>there was an air that craft</span><span style="font-family:arial;">ing and hands on creativity was thought to be something of a relic in th</span><span style="font-family:arial;">e near </span><span style="font-family:arial;">future. Then </span><span style="font-family:arial;">something happened. I don't know if it was the new generation tired of mass production and super consumerism that pervaded our culture or if the do-it-yourself (DIY) shows on <a href="http://www.hgtv.com/">HGTV </a>made people realize that "Hey, I can do that" but whatever it was I am eternally grateful to know that the art/craft spirit lives on.<br /></span><br /><span style="font-family:arial;">And, now, I think my daughter may have caught some of the crafting bug. She has always been interested in art especially drawing and painting but not quite </span><span style="font-family:arial;">the crafty part, at least, not whole-heartedly. At Renegade this year the <a href="http://www.chicagowaldorf.org/">Chicago Waldorf School </a>was there giving on-the-spot knitting lessons which included m</span><span style="font-family:arial;">aking your own knit</span><span style="font-family:arial;">ting needles. Basically, they take wooden dowels, sharpen one end with a pencil sharpener, sand and then place beeswax on the end fo</span><span style="font-family:arial;">r a stopper. Here is Emma making hers:<br /></span><a onblur="try {parent.deselectBloggerImageGracefully();} catch(e) {}" href="http://1.bp.blogspot.com/_xKSJbV2MKfI/Sq3Avz6mthI/AAAAAAAAA2Q/bVnRlO-0mjM/s1600-h/Making+needles.JPG"><img style="margin: 0px auto 10px; display: block; text-align: center; cursor: pointer; width: 240px; height: 320px;" src="http://1.bp.blogspot.com/_xKSJbV2MKfI/Sq3Avz6mthI/AAAAAAAAA2Q/bVnRlO-0mjM/s320/Making+needles.JPG" alt="" id="BLOGGER_PHOTO_ID_5381169057400010258" border="0" /></a><br /><span style="font-family:arial;">Then she started casting on.</span><br /><br /><a onblur="try {parent.deselectBloggerImageGracefully();} catch(e) {}" href="http://1.bp.blogspot.com/_xKSJbV2MKfI/Sq3AwN_JQyI/AAAAAAAAA2Y/A4848Xzb3qU/s1600-h/casting+on.JPG"><img style="margin: 0px auto 10px; display: block; text-align: center; cursor: pointer; width: 257px; height: 320px;" src="http://1.bp.blogspot.com/_xKSJbV2MKfI/Sq3AwN_JQyI/AAAAAAAAA2Y/A4848Xzb3qU/s320/casting+on.JPG" alt="" id="BLOGGER_PHOTO_ID_5381169064398373666" border="0" /></a><br /><span style="font-family:arial;">Didn't take long to get started but it did take lots of concentration.<br /><br /></span><a onblur="try {parent.deselectBloggerImageGracefully();} catch(e) {}" href="http://4.bp.blogspot.com/_xKSJbV2MKfI/Sq3Awhz2kNI/AAAAAAAAA2g/I53CrKmpX7M/s1600-h/knitting.JPG"><img style="margin: 0px auto 10px; display: block; text-align: center; cursor: pointer; width: 320px; height: 217px;" src="http://4.bp.blogspot.com/_xKSJbV2MKfI/Sq3Awhz2kNI/AAAAAAAAA2g/I53CrKmpX7M/s320/knitting.JPG" alt="" id="BLOGGER_PHOTO_ID_5381169069719720146" border="0" /></a><br /><span style="font-family:arial;">She was so interested she tried to continue to do it on the Blue Line but the ride was a little too bumpy. (You aren't seeing things, she is wearing cat ears that the <a href="http://treehouseanimals.org/">Tree House Humane Society </a>was handing out.)<br /><br /></span><a onblur="try {parent.deselectBloggerImageGracefully();} catch(e) {}" href="http://2.bp.blogspot.com/_xKSJbV2MKfI/Sq3AxPuS_KI/AAAAAAAAA2o/__zqw7xqvZM/s1600-h/knitting+on+cta.JPG"><img style="margin: 0px auto 10px; display: block; text-align: center; cursor: pointer; width: 268px; height: 320px;" src="http://2.bp.blogspot.com/_xKSJbV2MKfI/Sq3AxPuS_KI/AAAAAAAAA2o/__zqw7xqvZM/s320/knitting+on+cta.JPG" alt="" id="BLOGGER_PHOTO_ID_5381169082044447906" border="0" /></a> <span style="font-family:arial;">We had a great day even if it was a little on the warm side for a Chicago September day. If you ever get a chance to get to a Renegade Craft Fair please go.</span>donnahttp://www.blogger.com/profile/08936890338409352644noreply@blogger.com0tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-6652856186313549347.post-68027315714913737842009-09-11T20:20:00.003-06:002009-09-11T20:27:57.613-06:00Remembering<div style="text-align: left;"><a onblur="try {parent.deselectBloggerImageGracefully();} catch(e) {}" href="http://4.bp.blogspot.com/_xKSJbV2MKfI/SqsGQG3SZzI/AAAAAAAAA2I/A-7DWJew8ts/s1600-h/I+remember+9.11.jpg"><img style="margin: 0px auto 10px; display: block; text-align: center; cursor: pointer; width: 96px; height: 96px;" src="http://4.bp.blogspot.com/_xKSJbV2MKfI/SqsGQG3SZzI/AAAAAAAAA2I/A-7DWJew8ts/s400/I+remember+9.11.jpg" alt="" id="BLOGGER_PHOTO_ID_5380401053614368562" border="0" /></a><br /></div><span style="color: rgb(51, 51, 51);font-family:trebuchet ms;font-size:85%;" >I got this image from <a href="http://cardsforheroes.org/">CardsForHeroes.org </a>off their Facebook fan page. May we never forget and pray for peace to all.</span>donnahttp://www.blogger.com/profile/08936890338409352644noreply@blogger.com0tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-6652856186313549347.post-10914136403113723602009-09-08T21:02:00.004-06:002009-09-08T21:17:55.639-06:00Fall is Coming<a onblur="try {parent.deselectBloggerImageGracefully();} catch(e) {}" href="http://1.bp.blogspot.com/_xKSJbV2MKfI/SqcctBTPdcI/AAAAAAAAA2A/Mx1ZKPHO0CU/s1600-h/muffins.jpg"><img style="margin: 0pt 10px 10px 0pt; float: left; cursor: pointer; width: 288px; height: 216px;" src="http://1.bp.blogspot.com/_xKSJbV2MKfI/SqcctBTPdcI/AAAAAAAAA2A/Mx1ZKPHO0CU/s320/muffins.jpg" alt="" id="BLOGGER_PHOTO_ID_5379299839686178242" border="0" /></a>A couple of weeks ago it seemed like October was just about here in Chicagoland already. It definitely put me in the baking mood but we are trying to be a little healthier around here so I got out my <a href="http://www.blogger.com/%3Ca%20href=%22http://www.amazon.com/gp/product/1579549659?ie=UTF8&tag=cracramam-20&linkCode=as2&camp=1789&creative=9325&creativeASIN=1579549659%22%3E12%20Best%20Foods%20Cookbook:%20Over%20200%20Recipes%20Featuring%20The%2012%20Healthiest%20Foods%3C/a%3E%3Cimg%20src=%22http://www.assoc-amazon.com/e/ir?t=cracramam-20&l=as2&o=1&a=1579549659%22%20width=%221%22%20height=%221%22%20border=%220%22%20alt=%22%22%20style=%22border:none%20%21important;%20margin:0px%20%21important;%22%20/%3E">12 Best Foods Cookbook </a>and whipped up a batch of Sweet Potato Muffins. Well, I did have to go to the grocery store first but I had to do that anyway plus I picked out a black bean salad recipe out of the book to go with the grilled steak dinner my dear hubby was planning.<br /><br />There is nothing like homemade food made from fresh ingredients. The muffins were made from fresh baked sweet potatoes, grated carrot and topped with pumpkin seeds. The salad involved fresh cilantro which is one of my favorite flavors. Great! I'm getting hungry again. Better get back to my craft table.donnahttp://www.blogger.com/profile/08936890338409352644noreply@blogger.com0tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-6652856186313549347.post-80508200050021126462009-07-13T07:00:00.000-06:002009-07-13T07:43:19.175-06:00Project Linus and Other CharitiesJust wanted everyone to know that I'm going to be giving away my remaining fleece blankets to Project Linus. I also have a ton of fabric left that I'm going to make more blankets and donate. I do have non-kid fabric that I would like to make lap robes to give to veterans or nursing homes but I don't know who to contact. If anyone has any ideas I would love to know.<br /><br />Also, I've made a few pet beds (small dog and cat size) that I would like to give to a shelter. I have a couple of places that I am going to call but if you know of something in the Chicago suburb area let me know what you think of those rescues.donnahttp://www.blogger.com/profile/08936890338409352644noreply@blogger.com0tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-6652856186313549347.post-26460947394523733092009-07-12T23:07:00.004-06:002009-07-12T23:15:13.152-06:00Trying New ThingsWith my creations that is. Some of you may have already heard of Cafe Press. It's basically a website where you can take your creations and put them on just about anything. You can also buy other people's creations. For my first attempt I took a photo of a quilt square and put it on a few items. Here is a framed tile:<br /><br /><a onblur="try {parent.deselectBloggerImageGracefully();} catch(e) {}" href="http://4.bp.blogspot.com/_xKSJbV2MKfI/SlrB0xq0-bI/AAAAAAAAA14/QlQhOoL7iLs/s1600-h/Tile.jpg"><img style="margin: 0px auto 10px; display: block; text-align: center; cursor: pointer; width: 191px; height: 191px;" src="http://4.bp.blogspot.com/_xKSJbV2MKfI/SlrB0xq0-bI/AAAAAAAAA14/QlQhOoL7iLs/s320/Tile.jpg" alt="" id="BLOGGER_PHOTO_ID_5357807819140954546" border="0" /></a>It actually looks much better at the site. If you get a chance to look around and let me know what you think, that would be great. I have it on note cards, buttons and magnets, too. <a href="http://www.cafepress.com/dlyn67">My Cafe Press spot can be reached by clicking here.</a> I'm hoping this can get me more motivated to create more. It feels nice (and fun) to see what I've done on something else.donnahttp://www.blogger.com/profile/08936890338409352644noreply@blogger.com0tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-6652856186313549347.post-7081243388072541372009-05-31T20:28:00.007-06:002009-07-13T08:25:59.172-06:00Craft Show<a onblur="try {parent.deselectBloggerImageGracefully();} catch(e) {}" style="FONT-FAMILY: arial" href="http://2.bp.blogspot.com/_xKSJbV2MKfI/SiM9nxhtN-I/AAAAAAAAA1w/lLiaFRkBY5Q/s1600-h/craft+show+edited.jpg"><img id="BLOGGER_PHOTO_ID_5342181336510445538" style="FLOAT: right; MARGIN: 0pt 10px 10px 0pt; WIDTH: 289px; CURSOR: pointer; HEIGHT: 211px" alt="" src="http://2.bp.blogspot.com/_xKSJbV2MKfI/SiM9nxhtN-I/AAAAAAAAA1w/lLiaFRkBY5Q/s320/craft+show+edited.jpg" border="0" /></a><span style="font-family:arial;">Unfortunately, emailing my picture to post mobile didn't work. But, here is a photo from the show I took with my new cell phone. Not the greatest picture because I had to email it to myself. I think once I get a new data disk for the phone and I learn to use it just a little better then I will be able to do this the way you're suppose to.</span><br /><br /><span style="font-family:arial;">It was the first year for the show in Elgin, IL to raise funds for a friends pre-school. I sold a few things including the poncho that was displayed by my daughter on one of her stuffed animals. If you look closely you can see her peeking out kind of like ET between 2 stuffed animals. Most of my items are left over fleece items that my sister and I did together. I did add some new pet beds and a couple of blankets. I'm looking for new ideas for fleece because I have a lot of it left. </span>donnahttp://www.blogger.com/profile/08936890338409352644noreply@blogger.com1tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-6652856186313549347.post-44791685808798534042009-05-30T00:28:00.001-06:002009-05-30T00:28:54.801-06:00It worked. I'll try to send a photo from the craft show I will be doing.donnahttp://www.blogger.com/profile/08936890338409352644noreply@blogger.com0tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-6652856186313549347.post-68453825673113584702009-05-30T00:25:00.001-06:002009-05-30T00:25:18.882-06:00Hey there! It's late and I'm trying out the mobile blogging feature. Sounds cool. We'll see.donnahttp://www.blogger.com/profile/08936890338409352644noreply@blogger.com0tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-6652856186313549347.post-6958077455767826852009-04-16T09:56:00.003-06:002009-04-16T10:06:07.201-06:00Blogger's Quilt Festival TomorrowI've been so crazy busy with work and school lately that I haven't been taking much care of my crafting side but I'm slowly trying to work back into it. While doing so I found this event going on in the <a href="http://parkcitygirl.blogspot.com/2009/04/calling-all-quilters.html">blogging world for quilters</a>. I don't know if I'll have time to post something for it but I thought all my friends would love to know about it. And since I'm going to the <a href="http://www.quilts.com/home/">International Quilt Show in Chicago</a> this weekend, it fits in nicely.<br /><br /><br /><br /><center><a href="http://parkcitygirl.blogspot.com/"><img src="http://farm4.static.flickr.com/3592/3437746881_4abcf175e0_m.jpg" /></a></center>donnahttp://www.blogger.com/profile/08936890338409352644noreply@blogger.com1tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-6652856186313549347.post-19037220375669439222008-12-02T22:40:00.004-06:002008-12-02T22:47:50.391-06:00Update and Amazon Store<span style="font-family:arial;">Well, I'm more than halfway through my math class and so far, so good. I'm working on some holiday projects and some clothes for my daughter. Nothing in the stores seems to fit her quite right. I haven't made anything from scratch but have been altering items and embellishing. Hopefully, I will have some pictures soon.</span><br /><br /><span style="font-family:arial;">I've also been checking out doing some more felting. If you are looking for some of the tools I found some through Amazon and put them on <a href="http://astore.amazon.com/cracramam-20">the little store I have with them</a> on the page I call Cool Tools. It's amazing the stuff you can find through them these days. </span>donnahttp://www.blogger.com/profile/08936890338409352644noreply@blogger.com0tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-6652856186313549347.post-66804453426417469722008-09-10T20:14:00.004-06:002008-09-10T20:28:13.297-06:00Busy, BusyI'm still around trying to get anything and everything done. Right now everyone has been sick and hopefully on the mend. I also started a College Algebra class so I have a couple less nights than usual. Okay, I know everyone is asking "Why". It's because I want to get a Master's and I will probably need to take the <span class="blsp-spelling-error" id="SPELLING_ERROR_0">GRE</span> and it's been a long, long time since I've done that kind of math. It's only been 2 weeks but it hasn't been horrible. Really, it hasn't but I'm not going to say too much because I don't want to jinx it. I will wait to tell you either the jubilation I feel at the end or give you a good old-fashioned math horror story when I'm through.<br /><br /><a onblur="try {parent.deselectBloggerImageGracefully();} catch(e) {}" href="http://3.bp.blogspot.com/_xKSJbV2MKfI/SMiB67eVYbI/AAAAAAAAAm0/kGGA04e-lbM/s1600-h/rub+on+necklace.jpg"><img style="margin: 0pt 10px 10px 0pt; float: left; cursor: pointer; width: 242px; height: 189px;" src="http://3.bp.blogspot.com/_xKSJbV2MKfI/SMiB67eVYbI/AAAAAAAAAm0/kGGA04e-lbM/s320/rub+on+necklace.jpg" alt="" id="BLOGGER_PHOTO_ID_5244584615470260658" border="0" /></a>Oh, the other reason I wanted to make sure I posted was I almost forgot to tell you all about the book review I did over at <a href="http://www.craftcritique.com/">Craft Critique</a>. It is about the <a href="http://www.craftcritique.com/2008/09/naughty-secretary-club-working-girls.html">Naughty Secretary Club: The Working Girl's Guide to Handmade Jewelry</a>. It is one of the most fun craft books I've seen come out in a long time. I even made some things from it (gasp) and finished them and worn them. See the photo to the left. Next time your at the bookstore just take a look. I'm sure you will be reading some of the <span class="blsp-spelling-corrected" id="SPELLING_ERROR_1">anecdotes</span> included.donnahttp://www.blogger.com/profile/08936890338409352644noreply@blogger.com2tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-6652856186313549347.post-42690771584851267652008-09-01T00:17:00.004-06:002008-09-01T00:23:46.810-06:00Talking About Punch Needle Tools<span style="font-size:100%;"><span style="font-family: arial;">I know there are a few punch needle or needlepunch enthusiasts out there so I wanted to let you know about my latest trials. I recently used one of those cheaper needle tools when I misplaced (notice I did not admit to the word lost) my really nice one. Based on my use, I wrote an <a href="http://www.craftcritique.com/2008/08/punch-needle-tool-comparison.html">article comparing the 2 different needles</a> over at <a href="http://www.craftcritique.com/">Craft Critique</a>. I finally used different sized loops to make a nice little flower. <a href="http://www.craftcritique.com/2008/08/punch-needle-tool-comparison.html">Check it out!</a></span></span>donnahttp://www.blogger.com/profile/08936890338409352644noreply@blogger.com0