Evil Kittens

I know, I’ve been promising a new video tutorial on Twitter, but it’s kind of a long one and is going to take FOR-EV-ER to upload on our crapass internet connection. I bring a peace offering of kittens.

One of our cats, Saxby, died in the middle of July. His brother Zelda was getting pretty lonely, so we adopted two kittens from the country animal shelter in August. This is a quick video of them right after we got them.

They’ve grown so much in almost a month, it’s crazy!

WhatTheCraft Handmade Giveaway – Briar Muse candles winner

Congratulations to Tracy, who won last week’s Briar Muse giveaway!

Thanks to everyone who entered, I hope you’ll be back for our next handmade giveaway! In the meantime, don’t forget to enter the Sharpie giveaway!

Start Something New With Sharpie Giveaway!

As promised, it’s time for the Sharpie giveaway! This one is quick and easy. All you have to do to enter is comment here with the craziest thing you’ve done with Sharpies. Or something crazy you’d LIKE to do with Sharpies! Sharpie your car, your toilet, your shoes…

This giveaway will close at 11:59 PM EST on Thursday, September 1st. After that I will randomly select a winner from the entries.

The winner will receive a set of Sharpie minis, Stained fabric brush markers, Fine Point pens, highlighters, and Liquid Graphite pencils.

Bonus Entries

On Facebook:

Please include your Facebook name in your comment

• “LIKE” WhatTheCraft on Facebook
• “LIKE” SmarmyClothes on Facebook

 

On Twitter:

Please include your Twitter name in your comment

• Follow WhatTheCraft on Twitter
• Follow SmarmyClothes on Twitter

 

Other Ways:

• Follow SmarmyClothes on Tumblr – include your Tumblr username in your comment
  
• Subscribe to my YouTube channel – include your YouTube username in your comment

 

 

PLEASE make sure you include a valid email address on the comment form so I can get in touch with you if you win!

This giveaway will end at 11:59 PM EST on Thursday, September 1st, 2011.

I Sharpied my Sewing Machine!

I’ve always wanted to paint my Singer 301, because it’s beige and beige is… well, beige. So when Sharpie asked me to be part of the Sharpie Takeover, and I started thinking, “What will I Sharpie?” the first thing that popped into my head was: SEWING MACHINE.

I chose my other Singer to Sharpie, because it’s white and would show color better. The beige will have to stay beige until another day.

Here it is.

Boring. White. Plastic.

 

And here’s the “new” version. Way cooler.

 

Hardcore Nightmare Before Christmas fans will probably recognize that I used Sally’s dress as the inspiration for my pattern. What better pattern for a sewing machine than one inspired by a rag doll who sews herself up when her arm gets ripped off?

I used regular Sharpie permanent markers. Depending on what you draw on, you might want to seal your artwork, or it might eventually start to rub off with a lot of use. Also, if you make a mistake, rubbing alcohol will take off MOST of the ink.

Now before you start running around trying to amass all of your Sharpies (I swear they grow feet, like scissors. I know I have 20 Sharpie in the house but I can never find them when I need them!) so you can doodle on your appliances, don’t forget to submit your Sharpie creation to the Sharpie gallery at Sharpie.com, so you can get featured in the Sharpie Takeover Youtube video!

Plus, I have 2 fantastic words for you, my friends. SHARPIE GIVEAWAY. Sharpie has generously offered to provide one lucky WhatTheCraft reader with a Sharpie grab bag! You get a set of Sharpie minis, fabric brush markers, Fine Point pens, highlighters, and Liquid Graphite pencils (these are mind bogglingly awesome).

 

The giveaway starts on Monday, so don’t forget to head back here! In the meantime, check out our current giveaway with Briar Muse!

WhatTheCraft Handmade Giveaway – Briar Muse candles

This week’s WhatTheCraft Giveaway is sponsored by Christina of Briar Muse, who is offering two handpoured candles to one lucky winner!

 The winner of this giveaway will receive:
two soy/botanical scented candles
Valued at $30!

How long have you been doing Briar Muse?
I have been making candles for the past 6 years.  Briar Muse is a spawn of my old company, Illuminescents Candles.  I wanted a fresher, more unique name and decided to make the change at the beginning of this year.

Is it a full-time or part-time endeavor?
Full time, with so many differnt things to test, we have to be reminded to sleep sometimes

Where do you find inspiration?
I find inspiration everywhere!  But I have the most fun with food and perfume combinations.  We’re super excited about some of the new fragrances we’re working on and can’t wait to get them through testing and announced!

What is your favorite item you’ve ever made?
Ever since the day I found it, I have been head over heels for Pumpkin Spice.  It’s especially fun in the Fall when you can find cute pumpkin containers to make the candles in, they’re always a hit with our customers.

If you had a million dollars, what’s the first handmade item you’d buy?
Oh man, if I had a million dollars, I could spend it all on Etsy!  I love the stuff I find from great crafters on there!

What’s your favorite movie?
Hands down . . . The Boondock Saints!

Want more?

Find more about Briar Muse here:
Shop
Facebook
Twitter

Giveaway Info:

Briar Muse is giving away a 2 candle combo.

 

There are lots of ways to enter, so even us lazy folk have a chance at winning!

This contest will close on August 28th at 11:59 PM EST. I will randomly select one winner after the contest closes.

You MUST comment on this post with your entries as you complete them.

If you do not comment, I will have no way to count your entries.
You can post a separate comment for each entry or
put all of your entries into one comment.

If you have Liked/Followed/etc. WhatTheCraft in previous giveaways,
you can still use that as entry, just comment saying you have done so.

Ways to Enter

On Facebook:

Please include your Facebook name in your comment

• “LIKE” Briar Muse on Facebook
  
• “LIKE” WhatTheCraft on Facebook
• “LIKE” SmarmyClothes on Facebook
• Post a Facebook status update with a link to this giveaway
• Post a Facebook update with a link to your favorite item from Briar Muse

 

On Twitter:

Please include your Twitter name in your comment

• Follow Briar Muse on Twitter
  
• Follow WhatTheCraft on Twitter
• Follow SmarmyClothes on Twitter
• Retweet this tweet from your Twitter
• Tweet with a link to your favorite item from Briar Muse
  

 

Other Ways:

• Follow SmarmyClothes on Tumblr – include your Tumblr username in your comment
  
• Blog about this giveaway and/or about Briar Muse - include a link to the post in your comment
• Subscribe to my YouTube channel – include your YouTube username in your comment

 

PLEASE make sure you include a valid email address on the comment form so I can get in touch with you if you win!

This giveaway will end at 11:59 PM EST on Sunday, August 28th, 2011.

Free Swatch Day!

It’s Free Swatch Day at Spoonflower.com!  Now’s your chance to get a sample of your very own custom fabric! Or one of the thousands of awesome designs submitted by other Spoonflower users!

I couldn’t resist designing my own last year (look familiar?)

This year I’m just too busy with custom orders to design my own, so I picked up a swatch of this super cute print. I’m trying the cotton sateen this time around, since I’ve already seen Spoonflower’s quilting cotton and cotton knit.

What print are you going to choose?

Why handmade is “so expensive”

“$70 for a t-shirt?!”

“I love your website, but everything on it is overpriced!”

“Your stuff is too expensive.”

“Are you rich or something?”

“I could make that for $5.”

“Sorry, but that’s a rip-off.”

“$80 for a hoodie? You’re not Gucci.”

I’ve heard it all. At first it hurt my feelings and made me worry that my prices were too high. Now it only baffles me that someone would say something so rude. This is my job. It may not be like your job. I don’t have a boss or regular hours, and I don’t have to drive to work or even get dressed for it (heh), but this is how I pay the bills.

I’m always tempted to asked these people, “How about I come down to where you work and tell your boss you’re overpaid?” Because that’s essentially what they’re saying.

But I’m too polite to do that.

Instead I decided to write this article to shed some light on the work that all of us that run a handmade business are doing… including all the behind-the-scenes stuff you probably never even think about. (And that some of us don’t charge for.)

Sure, some people will still be rude doucheballoons. That’s life. But maybe I can just make a few people think, “Oh, I hadn’t realized how much work goes into that!”

[Note: If you are a handmade seller looking for guidelines on how to price your items, please don't use this article as a model for your own pricing. As you'll see below, I'm a hypocrite when it comes to not underpricing. Please do as I say and not as I do. Read this guide for pricing instead, if that's what you're looking for.]

 

Step 1: The design phase

I sketch most of my ideas before I start cutting. Sometimes it’s completely spontaneous. I just start doodling and see where it takes me. Other times I have exactly what it will look like all planned out, and I want to get it down on paper so I don’t forget anything.

It’s usually just a quick scribble of pen or pencil on paper. Other times I take more time. I’ll add color with colored pencils or do the sketch 4 or 5 times before nailing down a particular design.

Since most of my sketches are quick, we’ll say the total time spent sketching one piece is 5 minutes.

 

Sketching: 5 minutes

 

Step 2: The drafting phase

Unlike a commercial outfit, I don’t have each of my patterns drawn up in every single size.  For custom orders, I redraft my pattern each time to match the customer’s measurements, because I’m not a fan of “standard” sizing.

Likewise, even for non-custom pieces, I don’t have patterns for each possible combination of styles I make. I get bored easily, so I prefer to make one of a kind designs.  For example, I have a single t-shirt pattern that I customize depending on whether or not I’m making a tank top, a hoodie, or a tee. I don’t have one scoopneck pattern, one v-neck pattern, and one crewneck pattern. I have one pattern for a t-shirt that I change each time I use it, depending on what I’m making.

 

This shirt is pretty simple, so it only took about 15 minutes

Read more

Tutorial: How to Crochet a Chain

by Stacey Trock

Hi there! Today, we’re going to crochet! Never crocheted before? Don’t worry! This tutorial is written for total crochet-newbies, and by the end of this post, you’ll be crocheting chains that you can use as necklaces, headbands… or whatever else you imagination comes up with!

Getting Started

To get started crocheting, grab some yarn and a crochet hook.  It’s easiest to use the size hook that’s recommended on the yarn label.

To begin, make a slip knot (check out my video if you don’t know how!).  All crocheting begins with a slip knot.

Now, we’re going to start crocheting! Insert your hook into the loop created by your slip knot, and tug on the tail (the short little piece of yarn that’s not connected to the ball) until the loop fits snugly around your hook, as pictured.

Now it’s time to chain! Hold the working end of the yarn (the really long end that’s attached to the ball of yarn) and wrap it around the back of the hook to the front, so that it wraps around the top of the hook, as pictured. Read more

Tutorial: Photographic printing with Inkodyes

The wonderful people at Inkodye have shared yet another fabulous tutorial with us.

Using their sun-exposed dyes, they use film negatives to do photo printing on a ribbon! It’s kind of like reverse-screenprinting, but so much easier than messing with screens and emulsions. You could easily do this on a larger scale by printing a negative-style image onto a transparency sheet and using that instead of a negative.

Since I first became familiar with Inkodye, I’ve been dye-ing to try them (hahahha, PUN!).  The Craft Gods were smiling down upon me, as Inkodye has generously provided me with a sample kit to experiment with. I can’t wait to show you what I come up with.

Click here for the full Inkodye Photographic Printing tutorial!

WhatTheCraft Handmade Giveaway – Handcrafted Affairs Winner

Congrats to our winner, Henria O, who won the Handcrafted Affairs giveaway!

Thank you to everyone who entered, I hope you’ll return for our next giveaway, which starts on August 21st!