In my sophomore year of college, I had to give a “persuasive” speech, and I wanted to choose a topic that nobody else would pick. So I did “Why people should insects”. In my research I came upon a recipe for “Crispy Cajun Crickets”. I thought I had better try eating insects if I was going to talk other people into eating them, so I caught a bunch in the yard and made them and actually they weren’t that bad. The spices kind of overwhelmed the cricket flavor, and after being roasted, they had a pretty nice crunch. Here’s the recipe in case there’s anyone out there who wants to try it, and some artwork inspired by the handout I made for that class.
I’ve always been obedient to sewing patterns (mostly) but this time I said, “To heck with fusible interfacing!” After making this dress, now I see why it’s so important. But I had to be a naughty sewing rebel just once, to see what it was like…
Since Rachel’s blog introduced me to Spoonflower, I am totally addicted to designing fabrics. I want to do a new one every day. Maybe I will. I’ll keep adding them as inspiration comes.
The tiling can be pretty tricky when the images are complex…but it’s a fun challenge.
Every Sunday night my husband has graciously agreed to watch our little ones and let me have an uninterrupted (sort of) art night. Sometimes I sew, sometimes I paint, sometimes I write songs, and sometimes I just goof off. Here’s something I made with no other purpose than that.
My brother, who is now about 36 or so, made a lamp in college. He was an industrial design major. In its original form, it was a white square with a big half-sphere sticking out the front, covered with what looks like eggs. One of the eggs at the bottom is secretly a dimmer switch that turns it on and off. He gave it to me when I was 16 or 17 and I always used it as a decoration everywhere I’ve lived. It looked kind of Star-Trekky. Last year I converted it into a huge flower via foam and pipecleaners for my little girl’s obnoxiously lively bedroom. Okay, but listen to this. I have never ever changed the light bulb in it. This light bulb has been going for 16 years! Isn’t that totally crazy?
I found out about a new website called Spoonflower.com through the Mamma Made blog (a great read for sewing enthusiasts,) in which you can print your own designs on fabric. I’ve been pondering for about two weeks what to make. Sometimes having so much creative opportunity can be overwhelming! Today at dinner, I had the perfect idea. Many years ago I made my husband sit down and paint pictures with me one night (NOT his cup of tea), and he painted the cutest little picture of a bunch of Chinese men with those little pointy hats riding bikes through a village. It’s all one dimensional, kind of like a little kid would paint. I LOVE it and he HATES it, and through the years, I always bring it up and threaten to do different things to display it (i.e., making t-shirts out of it) and he always gets so mad! So I had this great idea tonight: I will have it put on fabric and make a garment out of it! It is like the ultimate idea! So I went up to my attic to find it and oh no! Alas, I can’t find it! So, sadly, I quit looking and decided to just make some kind of design. So here it is. It’s no Chinese village, but it will have to do.
Here’s a romper and cap I made for some special friends of ours who are about to have a little boy. He will be growing up in the mission field in the Middle East.
Here’s Heidi in a pink shirt I made for her, which was my second attempt at sewing something without a pattern, using another garment for a guide. It turned out pretty well except it seems to have too much extra material at her chest and I had originally planned the sleeves to be longer. I’ll have to adjust for next time – I plan on making a bunch more of these out of some sweet old baby blankets that we aren’t using anymore.
