dare to create

new york state of mind

2007-12-11T14:09:00.000+01:00

we're off to a short vacation. this time to one of my favourite cities in the world: new york. and then after christmas we're flying to the uk to spend new years' with family and friends. i hope you all have a great time, whatever holiday you celibrate. see you next year!

holidays are coming

2007-12-07T07:14:00.000+01:00

sinterklaas has left for spain again, so that means christmas is just around the corner! oromono has some suitable seasonal gifts. i know that egg mercantile in amsterdam sells oromono, but i'm not sure if they have the christmas range available. isn't it just a nice idea to spruce up a scarf like this?

feltilicious part 2

2007-11-30T14:35:00.000+01:00

a couple more things by branch. too good to pass up!

feltilicious!

2007-11-30T14:14:00.000+01:00

loads of sites i come across have giftguides on now and whenever i see something nice on them made of felt it seems to be from branch! branch is all about sustainable living and of course fits right in that category. i love the felt pebbles and i think i'm going to try to make them myself. when i did my felt workshop there was a lady who said she had made felted pebbles using an actual pebble which she cleaned and then covered in wool roving. the rest of the felting process was pretty much as usual: use warm water and a fatty (olive) soap and rub till all the fibers merge.

fabulous felt pouches

2007-11-25T22:22:00.000+01:00

i was hunting the internet for christmas and hanukkah gifts this evening, since i'm always panicking at the last moment and i thought i'd get a head start this year. i decided to start with etsy, because it's a wonderful place for unique presents. anyway, it was there that i came across the seriously cool products by working class heroes. they make pouches made of felt and leather for laptops, ipods, sun glasses and more. and they'll even do custom sleeves if you send them the dimensions of your laptop.

abc buttons

2007-11-25T14:12:00.000+01:00

this is one of those ideas i wish i would have thought of myself. so simple, but pure genius at the same time. they are called abc buttons and they come with 9 holes in each button, giving you the possibility to form letters in them! great for kids' clothing, but also to make little statements on your own clothes. each of the 2 buttons per pack is made out of dark brown horn and has a diameter of 0.8" (2 cm), comes with the patented 9 hole pattern, a needle and three colours of thread. it comes with a font too, so it'll be extra easy to find the best way to make the letters you choose. the only problem i can see is that if you want to use them for a shirt or coat you'd have to buy about 3 packs and at €9 that would be a bit expensive. so hopefully they'll come out with some bigger packages too.

clever mugs

2007-11-25T13:58:00.000+01:00

strictly speaking this has little to nothing to do with crafts, but i still wanted to share these with you. the tea code mugs have cuffs with a button on them and come in 4 different versions. clever, because the cuff gives the mug a double layer so you don't burn your hands when you hold the mug. and also clever because the button gives you something to tie your tea bag too. great gift option for the sewing entusiast in your circle of friends or family?

not your grandmother's sewing machine

2007-11-21T09:49:00.000+01:00

if you think about it, sewing machines haven't changed much over the years. they became electric and some have fancy stitches, but the machine itself pretty much stayed the same. the belOga concept (it's hasn't been picked up for production yet) was designed by Kristine Brückner and takes it a step further. apart from it looking different it comes with a big touch screen and the display lets you preview stiches before the needle hits the fabric. it even automatically conducts the thread through the machine, clever eh? looks like a winner to me!

and we're back in the room

2007-11-21T08:38:00.000+01:00

it took me a while, but after a long absense i'm back again! i've not been sitting still, i've been sewing and i've done a felt workshop a couple of weeks ago. i can really recommend making your own felt, it's as much a therapeutic as creative thing to do. in februari there will be a follow up where we'll be making a seamless bag. i'll keep you posted on it. for other people who live in the rotterdam area: you might want to check out atelier het narrenschip yourself. ok, back to the actual post: these poufs by flocks have done the rounds on the blog circuit, but i found them to good to pass up on. they're the brainchild of christien meindertsma and made from hand felted yarn from kyrgyzstan. together with a knitter, spinners and a graphic designer she uses these beautiful yarns to create poufs, knitted rugs and cute cardigans.

holiday!

2007-09-06T11:31:00.000+02:00

finally a much-needed vacation is starting tomorrow. the trip wil be to siena in tuscany, so hopefully i'll return full of energy and inspiration (and pizza, of course). see you all in a couple of weeks!

knitting for psychos

2007-09-03T13:42:00.000+02:00

this is one of the funniest things i've seen in a while, knitted softies that are sure to make any kid cry! i was sent the link to this off the slightly warped website, but there is no mention on who made these and why. all i know is that i would love to have the bunny!

rapture and wright

2007-08-30T20:51:00.000+02:00

wow, i can't believe it has been more than a week since my last post! lots of things going on here, so time flew by. i'll be going on holiday in a week, so i better get my ass in motion now. aaaaanyway, i came across some beautiful fabric by rapture and wright, an english company that specialises in hand printed wallpaper and fabrics. in their own words their products are 100% british, using skills that are rapidly disappearing in the uk.

praha

2007-08-22T14:29:00.000+02:00

as i was browsing through the archives of one of my new favourite blogs six and a half stitches i came across a link for praha, a japanese company who make hand-made felt products. lovely designed flower corsages, hair pins, bookmarks, bags, purses and they even make a cute little mini bowling set. fuck it dude, let's go bowling...

feltastic

2007-08-20T08:57:00.000+02:00

another wonderful example of designers doing cool things with felt are these products from studio nynker based in soest in the netherlands. all the products (cap, bottle cooler, bag and tea cozy) are made from flat pieces of felt and by clever pattern making and sewing it together it gets its shape. speaking of sewing: i finished my skirt! it will make its premiere this thursday when i'll be wearing it to my sewing class. i'm really pleased with how it turned out, i'll post some pictures soon. next project will be a jacket which i bought a black quilted fabric for with stitched circles in green and for the lining the same colour green as the stitching. get on a sewing machine, it's so much fun!

volksfaden

2007-08-14T21:06:00.000+02:00

for some reason there aren't a lot of contemporary fabric shops to be found around on mainland europe. most of the really nice stuff seems to come from japan and the us and are difficult to get here. enter volksfaden: some very cute fabrics by the likes of amy butler and moda that are excellent for quilting. based in berlin (one of my favourite european cities) linda gaylord, who used the be a dancer and teacher, runs this online shop where she sells the fabrics she likes to work with herself. apart from the fabrics sold by the meter she also sells little bags of scrap fabric that are really useful to the starting quilter. you might also want to check out the quilts, aprons and bags she makes, they are gorgeous!

skinny laminx

2007-08-13T18:04:00.000+02:00

the talented heather moore (aka skinny laminx) probably qualifies as a bonafide etsy celebrity. she's an illustrator and designer from south africa and she sells gorgeous tea towels and pillows in her etsy store. her illustrations have a real retro feel to them, but they're really contemporary at the same time i wish she'd do a limited edition line of fabrics!

marimekko fabrics

2007-08-12T00:57:00.000+02:00

one of my favourite fabric producers has to be the finnish company marimekko. they have been around since the 1950's and have always been known for their bold and graphic prints. i can't think of many other companies who have been around for more than half a decade and still rock it!

quilting crazy

2007-08-11T19:56:00.000+02:00

more proof that this crafting craze is becoming huge are these wonderful pillows marcel wanders made for b&b italia. reminds me i bought this cute japanese book about quilting with a sewing machine...

bholu

2007-08-11T19:27:00.000+02:00

it's not often you are truly impressed with a new company. once in a while you'll see some that make cool stuff, sometimes they'll have a special philosophy, but bholu seems to have it all. the company was started by australian designer jodie fried who designs all the products herself, but she employs ladies from the western gujarat region in india to hand embroider them. not for cheap labor, but to support these women so they can gain (financial) independence. what is also quite cool is that the children's products were made with drawings gujarati children made. cute idea to begin with, but even more when you realise that these kids would normally be working and have little time for things like drawing. the result is beautiful things made out of wool felt and silk embroidery that have a soul. it doesn't get much better than that!

cute boots

2007-08-08T22:59:00.000+02:00

just came across these cuties from otchi-potchi on etsy. i think i've seen a japanese craft book that has patterns for fabric booties, but somehow they look difficult to make! if making them will not be an option i might have to buy a pair of these to wear on the colder days, when flip-flops are not an option. this from the girl who'll wear a pair of flip-flops with socks around the house...

emily eibel

2007-08-06T22:58:00.000+02:00

i saw the link to emily eibel's stitched works of art on design*sponge this evening. i had wondered before if it would be possible to machine stitch pictures on a regular sewing machine, but it looks quite difficult. of course i don't know how emily makes her pictures, but that's how i imagine it would be done. a really cool use of this technique i think!

uuuuuugly

2007-08-04T23:13:00.000+02:00

i suppose everybody knows the uglydolls, but did you also know they do 2 foot (±60 cm) versions? how cool is that? i remember the first time i was in new york with my sister, years and years ago, she picked one up and since then i must have seen them everywhere i've travelled to. you see loads of lookalikes nowadays, but they still stand their ground!

killer bunnies

2007-08-01T16:09:00.000+02:00

these amazing bunnies are the work of dawn, who's a self proclaimed plush-a-holic. i'm not sure if that's a condition you have to go to a support group for, but her plushies sure look dangerous. it must be the combination of the eyes, the graphic patterns of the fabric and the strong shape. she sells her gorgeous creatures in her etsy store and although there are always enough bunnies to buy i always seem to lust most after the ones that are already sold. i guess i'll have to look more often!

shinzi katoh

2007-08-01T13:53:00.000+02:00

a while ago i did a post about zakka and since then i've been seeing zakka everywhere i look. on monday i ordered some japanese fabrics from superbuzzy and i saw that they sell supercute shinzi katoh bags. i found the illustrations so charming i went looking for more and found the shinzi katoh website. it starts with: "in this site, we have the most famous zakka designer shinzi katoh's wonderful world." and a wonderful world it is! you can find all kinds of items like bags (also featured on do something pretty this week), water bottles, softies, t-shirts, fabric and buttons. i fell in love with the buttons, but i found out since that they are sold in sets of 2 single buttons, not a whole bottle. i'll wait till i really need them before i buy any, it's a pitty to just have them laying around... look like the cute softies are kits you have to sew yourself, but i'm not a 100% sure.

black bear

2007-07-31T22:11:00.000+02:00

ok, let me start by saying i'm a bad blogger. a bad, bad blogger. no posts for almost a week... but in my defense: i've not been sitting still! i've worked on my skirt (it's almost done now, next lesson we'll finish it by putting in a blind zip) and i've started work on a softie from the aranzi aronzo book. last saturday my friend ann and her lovely son sal accompanied me to the albert cuyp market in sunny amsterdam to purchase some new fabrics. nowadays fabric shops are not that common in rotterdam any more, but along the sides of the albert cuyp market there are loads of them! i ended up buying some grey marl jersey and some black stretch velvet to experiment with. as a start i thought it might be nice to make a soft black bear, sort of like the dick bruna black bear. not sure if it's going to turn out good, but i've got high hopes. in spite of my 'unconventional' sewing methods. shortcut is my middle name. i'll keep you posted!

etceteramedia

2007-07-25T23:06:00.000+02:00

i have been looking for a little pouch to keep papers in since i've had my wonderful leather mammoet bag. the only problem with the mammoet bag is that it's huge and hasn't got a lot of separate spaces. then, a few months ago i saw a seller called etceteramedia on etsy, who makes pouches, cases and bags out of industrial felt. i decided to order the olive file filer and an olive ipod case, they were both so nice! after the first package went missing in the post the lovely kelly of etceteramedia was kind enough to send me another one and it arrived at the beginning of the week. i have to say it's even better than i expected, the quality is amazing and the olive colour gorgeous. while surfing i now found out that they have a website/webstore. and now i've seen that they make really nice handbags too. what's a girl to do?

fluff market

2007-07-25T21:26:00.000+02:00

i came across something exciting this evening: there's going to be an arts and crafts fair called fluff market in den haag next month! there's still room for talented people, so if you have some cool products you'd like to sell and you're from the benelux, this is your chance. i for one haven't got anything to sell, but i'm sure going to be there to meet some cool crafters. so come check it out on saturday, august 11 in den haag!

ジャージーぬいぐるみ

2007-07-24T20:05:00.000+02:00

ok, i'm not sure what it means, but it's the title of my new japanese craft book. it's an aranzi aronzo softies book with patterns for the aranzi aronzo figures and i can tell you it's mighty cute! of course there's not a word of english in it, but that can't spoil the fun... i bought it through the marketplace of amazon.co.jp, which has lower shipping charges than the books that you buy from amazon directly (¥1200 for the marketplace versus ¥3400 + ¥300 handling fee for amazon.co.jp). ok, to much talk about money, but this way the book only cost me ¥2000 (€12, £8, $16,50). Good score!

sew what?

2007-07-24T18:51:00.000+02:00

i have to say that when i saw a link for the burdastyle website the name initially put me off. i suppose i associate the name burda with old fashioned and stuffy. you can argue if i'm right thinking that, but i was certainly wrong about burdastyle! this website is a treasure of patterns and sewing (machine) information. most of the patterns seem to be free and there are loads of how-to's for just about any sewing issue. there's something called sewpedia, with tons and tons of interesting sewing reference, and a forum. what can i say: go have a look, you'll not be disappointed!

felt necklaces

2007-07-22T21:48:00.000+02:00

danielle gori-montanelli is an artist who used to make metal jewellery, using a blowtorch, a handsaw and a hammer. after having two children she wanted to use safer materials and began experimenting. she wound up making felt jewellery for children and grown ups, from simple dot necklaces to complicated collars. they're not necessarily my cup of tea, but i do like how she uses felt in quite a new way. i saw this link on do something pretty, a very worthwhile read!

craft corner

2007-07-22T21:17:00.000+02:00

the one thing that was lacking in my house was a little corner where i could set up my sewing machine and spread out my fabric. since last year my boyfriend has moved in with me and has taken over the dining room table as a desk. he works from home, so he needs the table a lot more than i do. fair enough. the only problem is that there aren't any rooms left, so it was a bit difficult to find the space to fit an extra table into. yesterday we decided to drive to ikea and see what they have on offer. going to ikea on a saturday is a bad idea, but i did find this desk called jonas. it's meant as a computer desk, but the slide out part is actually perfect as a sewing machine table, since it's slightly lower than a normal one. also i can slide the part in and put the machine under it when it's not in use, ideal! it was compact enough to fit into the other side of the dining room, so now it's officially a work room. i've already used it to work on my skirt for the sewing class i take and i couldn't be happier! of course it's not completely finished. i'll still need to put in some storage for fabrics and tools, but it'll all come together... the last picture is of a book sheila (my boyfriends mom) sent me to help me learn to knit. she's really good at all this craft stuff, so i'm sure i will learn a thing or two from her too. how cool is the book though? i think it's almost as old as i am!

area ny

2007-07-21T19:54:00.000+02:00

the thing that got me thinking about the fold bedding i wrote about was a link i saw for area, a new york company that make bedding and home accessories. like fold they've got a beautiful clean style and only use natural fibers. the company's founder being swedish might have something to do with that. very inspirational!

jouwes? mijnes!

2007-07-20T21:59:00.000+02:00

i saw a link to mijnes on bloesem a while ago and now on print & pattern. they hand-make really cute pillows, bags and other baby accessories with high quality materials. i'm really happening so much seems to be going on in holland right now, with new crafty companies springing up all around. maybe in time there will be events here like renegade and groups like craft maffia. i for one can't wait!

beautiful bedding

2007-07-20T17:32:00.000+02:00

the first time i saw the bedding on the fold website i knew i wanted to learn to sew. i was there to look at the wallter starburst wall application i wanted to buy, but i was really most impressed with the bedspreads they make. the company was started by max and linda, a couple who shared a creative calling and decided that business and pleasure could be mixed. the results prove they were right!

felt beads

2007-07-18T22:33:00.000+02:00

ok, some more felt then! bits and bobbins had a picture of the colourful felt jewellery on her blog, so i read up on the french artist who made it, virginie bois. apart from these pieces, she also makes other jewellery, but she also does installations and sculptures. i came across a really good tutorial to make felt beads at instructables a while ago, so this is your chance to do something fun and save some money!

fabulous felt

2007-07-18T19:29:00.000+02:00

if you've been reading my older posts, you might have noticed i have this thing about felt. on the re:makeables blog i came across a post about josh jakus. i've seen his bags in shops before and was impressed with the original approach to the material. what kept me from buying one was that they just didn't strike me as very practical. open the zip a bit to far and everything comes falling out... that doesn't take away from the fact that the design is very cool!

miss buttons

2007-07-16T21:15:00.000+02:00

one of the easiest ways to get started making dolls is to get a kit that has everything together. this little cutie is a good example of a fun project to get you started with. miss button was designed by the talented miss white (there are so many amazing australian ladies out there!) and on sewyourown you can buy the full kit or you can choose to buy just the pattern. the cool thing: when you've completed your miss buttons you can upload a picture of her to their website!

aranzi aronzo

2007-07-16T00:00:00.000+02:00

in my quest for all things cute and craftable i keep coming back to japanese craft books. this time i found aranzi aronzo, a company that make products featuring cartoon characters. i just ordered a book with patterns to make their toys out of jersey fabric, but they also have some other craft materials like patches and printed fabric. cute overload!

grandma's stash

2007-07-15T16:21:00.000+02:00

sunday's the day i visit my grandmother and when i was telling her about my sewing course she told me she still has lots of old supplies she doesn't use anymore. i didn't really get into all of it, but i did come across a couple of cute things. i thought the buttons weren't that special, but i just love the packaging! i do really like the ribbon, especially the one with the ladybirds. i also love the metal buttons that you can use to make fabric covered buttons with. i can't wait to dive into the rest of the cupboard!

orla kiely

2007-07-15T11:44:00.000+02:00

about 8 years ago i saw a gorgeous bag on a girl in london. i was to shy to ask here where she got it, so instead i just got a bit closer and saw it said 'orla' (the rest i couldn't make out) on the little label. when i got back home i did some research and found out it was a bag by the irish designer orla kiely. ever since her name has been popping up left, right and centre and she's been added to my list of design heroes. she's most famous for her stem print bags, but she does fashion, homewares, luggage and much more. tinsmiths sell a couple of orla's oilcloth fabrics, but stock is very limited.

caro bärtling

2007-07-15T11:00:00.000+02:00

the work of caro bärtling has been around the blogs a couple of months ago, but i thought some of you might have missed it the first time around. she uses various craft techniques like embroidery and knitting in her jewellery, which isn't new, but she does in a very cool way. caro has been called a dutch designer before, but she's actually a german designer who lives in the netherlands. she's based in a beautiful place called vaals, which is in the very south of the country and it borders both germany and belgium. a nice place to look up if you are ever in the area!

look ma, no hands!

2007-07-14T21:59:00.000+02:00

for my sewing class (which is really cool btw) i needed to get some materials so i went into town this afternoon to one of the sewing shops. i'm afraid the shop isn't very nice (they didn't have half the stuff i needed and weren't very helpful), but what they did have was a demonstration of the brother innovis 4000 d embroidery machine. i had never seen anything like it, it was awesome! basically this machine can embroider anything you like (well, i might be exaggerating a bit). it comes with a number of designs, but the really cool thing is that you can hook it up to a computer and use special software to make your own designs. all this for the modest price of €4500 (and that's without the software). cough.

dandelion one & two

2007-07-14T21:10:00.000+02:00

i've had the link to the st. jude's website for a long time, but i kind of forgot about them. skipping through my bookmarks i rediscovered them and remembered why i bookmarked the site: their lovely dandelion fabric. it's a limited edition screen printed fabric designed by artist-printmaker angie lewin, who studied fine art printmaking at central st.martins college of art and design. i think the print has got a bit of a retro feel to it, but it might also be the mustard yellow colour that does it. i'm totally loving that colour lately! the bad news? dandelion one on heavy weight cotton is £38 a metre and dandelion two on heavy weight cotton is £32 a metre. yikes!

hot felt

2007-07-14T17:08:00.000+02:00

i got this months' elle decoration today and came across these lovely cuddly animals made by the portuguese duo la maison de lola. the toys are all handmade of wool and felt and go by cute names like mr grizzly and ms oink. they cost around £32 each at twentytwentyone (about €48 / $65), so i suppose getting the whole series would be out of the question... they've also do some nice handmade cross pillows in 4 different colours that would look great on my couch!

in the bag!

2007-07-13T23:59:00.000+02:00

so you already know about my slipper obsession and my overcomplete collection of sunglasses, but (and this won't come as a surprise to most ladies) bags are very high on my list of wanna's. having already bought two japanese books on the subject of making bags i was still looking for a place to buy the hardware you need. now it looks like i found it and it's an online shop in the uk called u-handbag. they've got everything: fabric, bag frames, handles, patterns, you name it. if that's not enough they have a blog with bag making tutorials. i've started my sewing course yesterday (i'm making a linen skirt), so when i've got some more confidence sewing i'm sure i'll get started on a bag!

spools art

2007-07-13T22:35:00.000+02:00

on the thisisloveforever blog i came across the work of installation artist devorah sperber. apart from from noticing her first name (the same as mine and not seen very often) i was amazed with her works. she uses spools of thread to form pictures, sort of like big pixels. the degree of detail is amazing, i would love to see some of these in real life.

we love crafts!

2007-07-13T19:21:00.000+02:00

this makes me happy: i stumbled across this really cool online magazine on crafts this evening. it's 86 pages of articles on crafting areas, japanese zakka, felting and funky tutorials. the only downside? it's in spanish... i don't know how good your spanish language skills are, but mine are not very good. having said that: with some imagination i can kinda work out most. still, i hope they're considering an english version of it! go check it out here!

cheeky moopy

2007-07-13T12:41:00.000+02:00

since i've been writing this blog i've become more and more amazed at how many creative and talented people are out there. one of them being carly of nest studio from australia. her moopies are so original and fun that it just makes you itch to try and make something like that! well, luckily you can! carly sells kits for her moopies in her etsy store. each kit comes with a pattern and pieces of fabrics, leftover from her toy making.

super slippers

2007-07-11T22:44:00.000+02:00

i don't know about you guys, but i LOVE wearing slippers. as soon as the weather is nice enough (or sometimes even when it's not that nice outside) i'll wear a pair of slippers. in my opinion a girl can't have to many pairs of slippers or to many pairs of sunglasses! hmmm, my boyfriend is going to love that i wrote that down... aaaaanyway, i stumbled across a tutorial by the talented lady harvatine for some fabric summer slippers that you can wear around the house. it seams pretty easy to follow and i just love the thought of being able to make your own slippers with some funky fabric!

bake your own

2007-07-11T13:08:00.000+02:00

i received an email this afternoon by lisa, who had seen a tutorial to make your own felt donuts on craftster. it looks pretty straight forward and fun. i bet one would make a great pin cushion and you can make any flavour you like... thanks lisa!

readymade furoshiki

2007-07-10T20:55:00.000+02:00

i wrote about the japanese art of wrapping gifts in cloth yesterday, but what i didn't know then is that these wraps are for sale at the wonderful shop cut+paste for $12 a piece. i love the green print on the brown one!

selvedge pin cushions

2007-07-10T19:14:00.000+02:00

this is one of the best ideas i've seen in a while: using the sides of fabric you normally discard. these pin cushions were made by manda of tree fall design, who apart from being super creative sounds like a lovely lady. she was inspired by a quilt she saw made of selvedge and has saved her own scraps ever since, trying to find a purpose for them. unfortunately the pin cushions in her etsy store have already sold out, but hopefully she'll put some more up in the future. i know i'm not throwing my selvedge away again!

mmmm, donuts...

2007-07-10T18:46:00.000+02:00

it's just a couple of weeks before the premiere of the simpsons movie, so these felt donuts from sewdorky should be just in time! who can resist?

reprodepot

2007-07-09T22:31:00.000+02:00

one of my favourite stores for fabrics has to be reprodepot. it was started out of a love for vintage fabrics, but they sell much more than that alone. they've got a very nice selection of japanese and marimekko fabrics, but also some lovely amy butler patterns (shown in an earlier post). plus on top of that their shipping charges are very reasonable. above are the japanese fabrics i just purchased. i'm not sure what i'm going to do with them, but i'm sure i'll think of something since i'll be beginning my sewing course this thursday!

fabric wraps

2007-07-09T16:50:00.000+02:00

while we are on japanese crafts i would like to introduce you to furoshiki. it is basically a way to wrap gifts in fabric, instead of wrapping paper. on the craft magazine blog there's a little article about how the japanese government (links to a pdf of the folding techniques) are trying to promote this old craft, to cut down on the waste of paper. smart, no? if i get a present wrapped in fabric i would certainly keep the piece to re-use, but with paper it would go into the paper recycling bin. you could use scraps of fabric or even make a little patchwork of different pieces of textile.

zakka!

2007-07-09T10:40:00.000+02:00

before i started this blog i had never heard of zakka, but i have been stumbling upon the word ever since. to try and learn all kind of new craft techniques and find patterns to work from i have been looking at what kind of books are out there. i found the japanese craft books to be what i was looking for, they have a certain style that really appeals to me and the fact that they are in a language that i don't understand makes it even better! i must be a sucker for punishment... anyway,i kept seeing all kind of different books and patterns for handmade zakka. i've been reading up a bit on this and from what i understand zakka is a word to describe a japanese product with added (design) value. it applies mostly to fashion and accessories, but also to toys and housewares. if i'm not mistaken it just means extra attention is given to the way it looks and feels, kind of what we call 'design'. zakka bag = design bag. of course all with a very stylish and tasteful japanese twist! ps. this is my first post in english, looks like a lot of my visitors are from the uk and the us. so welcome!

die hard in je hemd

2007-07-08T17:55:00.000+02:00

mijn vriend Mark heeft komende week een die hard- avond met zijn collega's in engeland en had bedacht dat het leuk zou zijn als ze allemaal een speciaal bedrukt hemd zouden dragen. ik had vaker over deze printervellen gehoord, maar had niet gedacht dat het zo eenvoudig zou zijn. je maakt een ontwerpje in de computer, print het gespiegeld uit op een speciaal printvel, knipt het uit (ronde hoekjes maken), strijkt het op het kledingstuk, laat het afkoelen en trekt de papieren achterkant weg. je hebt dan een glanzend oppervlak, maar om het geheel zachter en mat te maken strijk je er nog een keer overheen, met een vel wit papier erover. presto, een hemd met een print. en dat dan 20 keer!

project voor de zondag

2007-07-08T11:33:00.000+02:00

op de blog van the green lifestyle vond ik een leuke grote tas met de verwijzing naar een uitgebreide werkbeschrijving. Sus gebruikte een gerecyclede stof om haar tas te maken, maar je kunt natuurlijk gebruiken wat je leuk vindt...

wunderkammer

2007-07-07T23:32:00.000+02:00

de maakster van deze haakwerkjes, Jessica Polka, heeft altijd al een fascinatie gehad voor rariteitenkabinetten en is toen met haar haaknaald aan de slag gegaan. het resultaat is hele mooie werkjes die vooral erg origineel zijn. op de blog van craft magazine staat een klein interview met de maakster. je kan haar werk bekijken in haar etsy shop, waar je patronen en haakwerk kan kopen.

evil rock quilts

2007-07-06T16:36:00.000+02:00

quilten is zo'n hobby die een, laten we het zeggen, suf imago heeft. ik denk gelijk aan oude amerikaanse vrouwtjes en de amish. op your daily awesome zag ik iets wat me van gedachte deed veranderen! deze quilts zijn van quiltsrÿche, die quilts maken van oude rock t-shirts en anders stoffen die je erin wil laten verwerken. je moet er maar op komen!

project runway / project catwalk

2007-07-05T21:17:00.000+02:00

het zal de meeste van jullie niet ontgaan zijn, maar het nieuwe seizoen van project runway is al weer begonnen! gisteren viel ik er toevallig in, ik wist niet dat het al weer begonnen was. aan de ene kant baalde ik dat ik het begin had gemist, maar ik heb er in ieder geval iets van gezien! ik vind het een feest: beginnende modeontwerpers die iedere keer weer in een vrij korte periode met creatieve ideeën moeten komen en die dan ook nog moeten uitvoeren. aan het eind van de uitzending worden de projecten door een vakkundige jury (de modeontwerper michael kors, de redactrice van elle us nina garcia en het voormalig model heidi klum). ben er toch altijd weer van onder de indruk... ik was het gisteren trouwens helemaal met de jury eens, de oranje zomerjurk was vreselijk! voor degenen die nog niet kijken: iedere woensdag om 22.25 u. op rtl5.

handmade nation

2007-07-04T16:57:00.001+02:00

in de v.s. zijn de kunstige handwerkers en zelfmakers een grote beweging aan het vormen en over dit fenomeen is een documentaire gemaakt die handmade nation heet. hij schijnt nog niet af te zijn, maar je kan vast een voorproefje bekijken. nu nederland nog aan het craften!

behang, maar dan anders

2007-07-04T10:21:00.000+02:00

het heeft weinig te doen met handwerken, maar ik wilde dit toch met jullie delen. dit bijzondere behang wordt op maat gemaakt door surrealien uit duitsland. Je geeft de maten van je wand door, de locatie van stopcontacten of andere elementen op je muur en het behang wordt dan helemaal afgesteld daar op. enige nadeel is natuurlijk dat je niet even een schilderijtje verhangt, maar het ziet er super uit!

kennen jullie dat?

2007-07-03T14:49:00.001+02:00

je ziet iets en denkt: tof, maar dat kan ik toch zelf maken? deze accessoires van uniform-studio zijn daar een voorbeeld van...

egg mercantile

2007-07-03T10:25:00.000+02:00

ik ben via de blog van bloesem ooit al eens op de website van egg mercantile geweest, maar ik was eigenlijk vergeten dat ze ook wol verkopen. de wol is handgesponnen en geverfd door vrouwen in uruguay en ziet er prachtig uit. ik twijfel of ik zulke mooie wol moet gebruiken voor mijn matige haak of breikunsten, maar ik vind het echt heel mooi. ze hebben een winkel aan de leliegracht in amsterdam, dus ik zal binnenkort 'ns gaan kijken.

eerste haakavontuur! (deel 2)

2007-07-01T22:03:00.000+02:00

nou, dit is het geworden. een vaas-uh-hoes... wat het nut is weet ik niet, maar dat was het enige wat ik bedenken kan. het gaat erom dat ik het gemaakt heb!

eerste haakavontuur!

2007-07-01T17:28:00.000+02:00

ik was gisteren in antwerpen in een winkel waar ze wat handwerkspullen hadden, dus ik heb gelijk wat materialen ingekocht. ik heb een viltnaald en matje weten te bemachtigen, plus een haaknaald en wat wol. ik heb gisterenavond wat haakinstructiefilmpjes bekeken en vanmiddag wat hulp gekregen van mijn moeder. het had een bal moeten worden, maar ik ben ergens de fout in gegaan! nu is het een soort koker met bodem geworden. een glashuls? een mandje? laten we het daar maar op houden... ik ben al blij dat ik zo ver gekomen ben!

kleurig vilt (2)

2007-06-30T11:09:00.000+02:00

het andere bedrijf is red maloo. ook hier weer mooie strakke vormgeving en felle kleuren, alleen niet zoveel verschillende producten. de laptop hoezen zijn inmiddels overbekend, maar de tassen en ipodhoesjes zijn nog niet zo lang verkrijgbaar.

kleurig vilt (1)

2007-06-30T10:25:00.000+02:00

of het toeval is weet ik niet, maar je hebt in ieder geval twee duitse bedrijven die mooie vilten producten op de markt brengen. één ervan is hey-sign, die kleurige handgemaakte vilten tassen, poefjes, vloerkleden en nog veel meer maakt.

textiel kunst

2007-06-29T22:33:00.000+02:00

al surfend ben ik de objecten van de getalenteerde tamar mogendorff tegengekomen, op een nogal onverwachte plek. ik weet niet wat jullie er van vinden, maar ik vind ze beeldschoon. vooral de zwaan is buitengewoon mooi! de dieren zijn gemaakt van onder andere wol, mohair, katoen, gerecyclede stoffen en antieke knopen. er staat op haar website geen persoonlijke informatie, maar haar naam en de titels van sommige van haar objecten verraden een israëlische afkomst. ik kan niet anders zeggen dan nifla!

etsy

2007-06-28T21:33:00.000+02:00

ik weet niet hoe bekend etsy inmiddels is, maar voor degenen die het nog niet kennen: het is een website waarop mensen, vooral zelfgemaakte, dingen kunnen kopen en verkopen. rechts onder aan deze pagina kan je wat van mijn favorieten zien. één van de leukere verkopers is stiksel, een meisje uit rotterdam die hele toffe tassen maakt van oude ptt postzakken. stiksel heeft ook haar eigen blog, klik hier om het te bezoeken.

haak je hek

2007-06-28T21:21:00.000+02:00

kijk, als je je fantasie de vrije loop laat ontstaan de mooiste dingen! dit gehaakte hek is van demakersvan, een nederlands ontwerp collectief. ik wou dat ik het bedacht had!

crewel borduren

2007-06-27T15:09:00.000+02:00

bij borduren denk je al snel aan suffe bloemen of foute landschapjes, maar het kan ook leuk! de crewel methode schijnt al heel oud te zijn, maar wat het bijzonder maakt is dat je bij deze techniek niet hoeft te tellen en je met wol op iedere (liefst katoen of linnen) ondergrond kan borduren. het klinkt eenvoudig, maar dat betekent vaak dat het ingewikkeld is! katherine shaughnessy heeft een boekje gemaakt waarin de techniek uitgelegd wordt met eigentijdse designs. het boek is besteld, ik zal jullie laten horen als ik het binnen heb!

japanse inspiratie

2007-06-25T23:33:00.000+02:00

ok, ik heb er weer een nieuwe obsessie bij: japanse vilt boeken. zoals met alles hebben de japanners een ongelofelijk gevoel voor stijl en design, dus ook als het over handwerken gaat. nu hoor ik je al denken: wordt er nog 'ns iets gedaan hier? ja hoor, ik ga van de week beginnen met de borduurwerkjes van subversivecrossstitch! ik zal proberen mijn voortgang in beeld te brengen (niet vergeten: camera opladen!). iemand anders met iets leuks bezig?

fitz

2007-06-24T13:33:00.000+02:00

een leuke website die ik nog niet met jullie heb gedeeld is deze van fitz. behalve dat de patronen makkelijk en jong zijn, zijn ze ook nog eens erg goedkoop! alle patronen kosten tussen $0.00 en $3.00 en kan je direct downloaden als pdf, om ze dan zelf te printen. voor de prijs hoef je het niet te laten!

loop london

2007-06-23T23:03:00.000+02:00

via een engelse vriendin kwam ik op de website van loop in londen. wow, wat een leuke zaak, waarom bestaan er hier niet van dat soort winkeltjes? de wolwinkels die ik hier in rotterdam tegenkom zijn heel anders. ik moet snel weer 'ns naar engeland!

liesl+co tas

2007-06-22T18:10:00.000+02:00

deze tas zag ik vanmiddag op de blog van craft magazine. het is een liesl+co patroon van purl soho en kost $15 voor de eenvoudige uitvoering (alleen patroon) en $24 voor de versie met metaalbeslag. ik vind de kleurencombinatie vooral erg leuk!

leuke stofjes

2007-06-21T21:54:00.000+02:00

ik zag deze toffe stofjes op de site van michael miller fabrics. ik ben er nog niet helemaal achter waar je hier in nederland echt leuke stoffen kan kopen, maar ik vind de winkeltjes bij de albert cuypmarkt een ware schatkamer. heel veel stoffen, van heel goedkoop tot echt chique, maar ook een hele goede fourniturenzaak. ik ga over drie weken beginnen met een naaicursus bij de rotterdamse snijschool, dus ik kan wel wat stofjes gebruiken! ik ben trouwens altijd op zoek naar nieuwe adresjes, dus als je een tip hebt hoor ik het graag!

speldenkusssentjes

2007-06-19T23:08:00.000+02:00

ik gebruik een speldenkussentje die kristien, een vriendin van m'n moeder, ooit voor me gemaakt heeft. iets dat special voor jou gemaakt is doe je natuurlijk niet weg, maar als ik er geen zou hebben zou ik waarschijnlijk verleid worden door een van deze kussentjes van cut+paste. leuk om zelf te maken misschien?

appeltruitjes

2007-06-19T21:34:00.000+02:00

ja, je moet er natuurlijk niet aan denken dat je appeltje het koud krijgt! waarschijnlijk heeft jacqueline dufresne daarom deze truitjes gemaakt. bang om aangeklaagd te worden voor appelverwaarlozing? ze zijn te koop voor $12,50 bij rose and radish. veel gekker moet het niet worden!

kussens

2007-06-19T18:20:00.000+02:00

deze fantastische kussens van jonathan adler zijn zo ongeveer de aanleiding geweest van mijn creatieve onrust. voor wie nog nooit van hem heeft gehoord: hij is in één woord fabulous! compleet over the top, maar heel innemend en leuk. een tijdje terug heeft hij op de amerikaanse zender bravo een reality serie gedaan met interieur ontwerpers. het was een programma als project runway (project catwalk heet het geloof ik op rtl5), waarin elke aflevering een uitdaging centraal stond. de serie was op zich niet erg bijzonder, maar jonathan adler des te meer! in december ben ik nog in zijn winkel geweest in new york en, hoewel niet alles mijn smaak is, het zag er allemaal prachtig uit! maar eh, zo moeilijk kan het toch niet zijn om zulke kussens te maken?

wollen kruik en slippers

2007-06-19T18:03:00.000+02:00

ook op thorsten van elten deze wollen kruik en slippers. daar is het nu natuurlijk veel te warm voor, maar ik kan me zo voorstellen dat het van de winter lekker zal zijn. ik zie mezelf al zitten met m'n zelfgebreide kruik onder een dekentje!

gehaakte lampenkapjes

2007-06-19T17:50:00.000+02:00

ik kwam deze lampjes van thorsten van elten tegen op de blog van bloesem. ze kosten zo'n €70, dus zeker betaalbaar. maar als je ze zelf haakt zijn ze natuurlijk nog leuker! trouwens bloesem is een echte aanrader, ik denk dat ik elke dag wel een keertje op haar site kijk. behalve de leuke posts lijkt irene een erg sympathieke vrouw, die op het moment in kuala lumpur woont.

leren breien

2007-06-18T22:43:00.000+02:00

ok, ik wil dus breien. wat weet ik nog niet, maar belangrijker dan dat: ik weet ook niet hoe! ik denk dat het me met wat moeite misschien wel lukt om steken op te zetten en ik denk dat rechts-averechts ook wel zal gaan. maar dat is het dan. meerderen? afmaken? ik heb geen flauw idee, zo ver ben ik nooit gekomen! ik denk als ik goed bij mijn ouders thuis zoek, ik nog ergens een breiwerkje moet kunnen vinden van de lagere school. een sjaal. met de mot erin inmiddels. nog op de naalden. ik wist niet hoe ik de uiteinden moest afwerken, dus ik bleef maar doorgaan... in ieder geval, ik heb nu een website gevonden met gratis tutorials. het ziet er niet zo moeilijk uit, maar dat heb je als mensen iets doen dat ze goed kunnen. op knittinghelp is het in ieder geval toegankelijk gebracht, met filmpjes voor allemaal verschillende technieken. hier is een klein voorproefje. enjoy!

lotta

2007-06-18T21:48:00.000+02:00

lotta jansdotter is een leuke vrouw die op haar 20ste vanuit stockholm naar de vs is verhuisd en daar een bedrijfje heeft opgezet. ze illustreert, ontwerpt textiel, maakt tassen, kussens, kaarten en ga zo maar door. ik vind haar stijl typisch scandinavisch: clean en met veel gevoel voor esthetiek. dit boek is net nieuw, met patronen die ook geschikt zijn voor de onervaren naaier.

messyfish sokaapjes

2007-06-18T19:16:00.000+02:00

hoe leuk zijn deze sokpoppen? ze zijn gemaakt van sokken en daarna gevuld met polyester. stelt eigenlijk niet veel voor, maar erg leuk gedaan. lijkt me een leuk project om met (wat grotere) kinderen te doen, maar ook leuk voor een wijven (m/v) middagje. kijk voor meer voorbeelden op messyfish.

zelf tassen maken

2007-06-18T18:40:00.000+02:00

op retrodepot staan erg leuke patronen van amy butler tassen. bij ieder patroon staat duidelijk wat je nodig hebt aan stof en fournituren. ziet er leuk uit en door je keuze van stoffen maak je ze uniek. ik denk zelf aan een messenger van donkere jeansstof met een limekleurige binnenkant, maar dan met een iets smallere schouderband. tof toch?

handenarbeid

2007-06-17T22:24:00.000+02:00

had je dat ook op de lagere school? ik weet niet of het overal zo was, maar wij leerden echt van alles wat. breien, haken, borduren en zelfs spinnen met een tol en spinnenwiel. we hebben wol geverfd met onder andere uienschillen en rode bietjes. waarom is er niet zoiets voor volwassenen? stel je voor: een plaats waar je van alles uit kan proberen en workshops kan volgen. je zou denken dat zoiets bestaat, maar ik kan hier in rotterdam niets vinden waar dat kan. bij de skvr kan je van alles leren, maar dat nou net weer niet. of kan ik gewoon niet zoeken?

borduurwerkjes met een knipoog

2007-06-17T20:39:00.000+02:00

een tijdje geleden kwam ik de website van subversivecrossstitch tegen. dit is eigenlijk wat ik zoek: creatief met een knipoog.

ik word waarschijnlijk oud...

2007-06-17T20:29:00.000+02:00

maar ik heb de laatste tijd behoefte aan creatief gemuts. breien, haken, naaien of borduren. Het lijkt me allemaal leuk! ik weet niet of het komt omdat ik ouder aan het worden ben, waardoor me op deze manier wil uiten, of omdat het hip is. breien blijkt het nieuwe yoga te zijn. whatever. in ieder geval lijkt het me leuk om iets te gaan doen en het lijkt me een goed idee om mijn reis met anderen te delen, aangezien ik in mijn omgeving merk dat anderen dit ook hebben. ik ben van plan om links te delen, eventuele projecten te laten zien en om tips te vragen en geven. als je het leuk vindt schrijf dan wat. we zien wel wat het gaat worden hier!