Devilishly Good Stuff

Swap-O-Rama-Rama at Renegade Craft Fair July 16th

2011-06-29T11:36:00.000-07:00

We're teaming up with Renegade Craft Fair again! SORR will take place on the first day of the 2-day craft fair on Saturday, July 16th, from 12 pm to 5 pm.

Swap-O-Rama-Rama is a super fun clothing exchange event and series of DIY workshops where participants explore creative reuse from recycled clothing. Clean out your closet and bring a bag of clean, gently used, unwanted clothes. Everyone's contributions are sorted and put out on tables where you can pick new-to-you pieces. Take your "new" finds to a sewing or embellishment station to transform them! Designers with sewing machines will be available to help you with ideas and construction. Take home all the clothes you can carry! This is always a fun event and the best part is we're recycling, reducing and reusing. Unfortunately I won't be silkscreening this year because space is tight and we don't have access to running water but I'll be there helping with other stations. We're still looking for volunteers too so please contact Lori if you can help.

BUST Magazine's First Ever Los Angeles Holiday Craftacular

2008-12-03T15:25:00.000-08:00

You read that right, the infamous BUST Magazine Holiday Craftacular has finally made it to Los Angeles and we're beyond excited to be participating as a vendor! It's only 3 days away.... Saturday, December 6th, at the Echoplex. If you'll be there please look us up in booth number 43.

Here are some other awesome vendors you'll see there:

AC Clothing and Bags

I Heart Guts

Michelle Caplan

Monica Burnett Hats

Mucha Muchacha Jewelry

Sprout Studio

Felt Club + Swap-O-Rama-Rama = Super Happy Fun Time!

2008-11-25T16:38:00.000-08:00

Thanks to everyone who came out to see us at Felt Club on Sunday the 16th! Hopefully you all had as much fun as we did. This event just gets bigger and better every year. Lots of people were much more *ahem* timely with their posts so I'm just going to give you some good links in case you're interested in a post-game wrap-up.

Swap-O-Rama-Rama photos are here in the official Swap LA flickr group. Please add your photos to the group, we'd love to see them!

Here's a wrap-up from Swap organizer Lori at Hip Line Media. She has links to some of the terrific designers who worked at this Swap so be sure to check them out.

Great article about Felt Club & Swap in the LA Times.

Stephanie Girard, of Sweater Surgery fame, has some great Felt Club photos over at Craftside.

Nice Felt Club/Swap slideshow over at Metromix.

Heidi from My Paper Crane has a little wrap-up and some great photos. The one of her with Leslie Hall is so awesome!

And last but not least here's a great post about Felt Club from Sean and Aldo of Social Studies Design. And here's a really cute photo I got of them before the show:

The First Rule of Felt Club....

2008-10-09T10:37:00.000-07:00

.......is talk about Felt Club! Lots of great stuff happening behind the scenes in preparation for this year's Holiday Felt Club. It has doubled in size with approximately 150 vendors and is being held at the Shrine Expo Center. Don't forget, Swap-O-Rama-Rama will be there too and we're still looking for volunteers. Contact Lori if you can help! We've got tons of web banners up so please help us spread the word and put one of these little beauties on your blog or web site. It would be ever-so-nice of you and we'll be your best friend forever!

The Coveted Mario Mushroom

2008-09-03T15:16:00.000-07:00

Found this adorable little Mario mushroom at Cost Plus the other day and couldn't resist getting it. We're going through a serious Mario Kart (Wii) addiction lately so we seem to be noticing Mario stuff everywhere. And the songs keep getting stuck in my head. Maybe I need to scale it back a bit. Right after I finish up the Mirrored tracks, I swear!

Them's Fightin' Words

2008-08-07T19:47:00.000-07:00

It's that time crafty friends! Time for Felt Club! Hooray! Applications are now being accepted through the web site and you only have until August 22nd to get yours submitted. As always you *can* share a table with a friend but the cost goes up a bit to $100 per person. Felt Club's Holiday 2008 event is being held Sunday, November 16 at the beautiful Shrine Auditorium Expo Center and it's going to be a blast! It will be the usual melange of great music, your favorite vendors, crafty workshops and this year Swap-O-Rama-Rama has been added. Keep checking back for more info as it becomes available but the important thing right now is to apply! Go, do it now, you know you want to.

Swap Success!

2008-08-04T20:49:00.000-07:00

Holy Cow did we have fun at Swap-O-Rama-Rama! The above photo of our core group of organizers was taken after a long, hectic but awesome day of sewing, screening, and swapping. Lori Petitti (far right) has organizational skills like you wouldn't believe and produced another awesome show. On top of which she manned a sewing station all day! Everyone really got into the spirit of the event and helped each other work on projects, find clothes and come up with ideas for altering and embellishing their finds. One of the rules for SORR is no mirrors which is to encourage people to interact with one another and ask someone else for their opinion. I have to say it definitely worked! There was a lot of teaching and helping going on among participants at the sewing stations too and that's exactly how it's supposed to happen. We've got another one coming up in November so keep checking back for details and I'll hope to see you there!

The Grass is Literally Greener

2008-07-07T16:15:00.000-07:00

I'm a sucker for all types of alternative processes especially when it comes to photography. (You may remember another post on photosynthesis and photography from way-back-when.) So I think these giant images made with grass are just terrific! Artists Heather Ackroyd and Dan Harvey created large panels of grass to act as the photographic paper, and in a darkened room projected a negative image onto the grass while it was growing. Here's an excerpt from the article:

“Ackroyd and Harvey stumbled onto this technique after producing an installation that involved covering an indoor wall with living grass,” he continues. “A ladder was leaning against the wall, and the artists noticed that even after it was removed, a faint outline of the ladder remained on the grass. They set about experimenting with ways of enhancing this effect, and soon they were using a slide projector as an artificial light source for growing their unique photographs. A typical exposure time is just over a week, with the image projected for 12 hours a day.”

Here's a photo from flickr user bowdie of some other grass images they created. Brilliant!

via Creative Review

2008-06-24T12:59:00.000-07:00

Did you know you can now customize your M&M's® with PHOTOS?!! Holy cow this is the greatest thing since sliced bread. Well, close anyway. I thought it was pretty neat when they let you customize with words but adding the photo option is awesome. I see on the home page that they also have team M&Ms® but they're only for baseball. Sadly, hockey gets no love. Oh, you can put logos on too! That might be fun for a craft show giveaway but not as memorable since people would just eat them right away. heh Looks like you can also customize the message inside of Dove® candy wrappers which would be fun. I think the nieces and nephews may have to get some Uncle Dan Rocks M&Ms® this year. muah ha ha

Sneak Peek for Swap-O-Rama-Rama Los Angeles This Saturday

2008-06-23T17:41:00.003-07:00

Just a reminder that Swap-O-Rama-Rama is coming up this Saturday (ack! So much to do!) and a little peek at someone's designs for the silkscreening station. I hope you can join us, it's going to be a lot of fun!

Picture Frame Corkboard Idea

2008-06-18T14:44:00.000-07:00

I saw a brilliant idea in the summer issue of The Nest magazine. Yes, I know the magazine is aimed at newlyweds but I didn't realize that when I signed up for my free trial subscription. heh It just goes to show you never know where you'll find ideas that will strike a chord with you. And my husband found a recipe or two that he'd like to try, so it's definitely useful. (Am I sounding defensive? ha ha) Anyway they did a feature with the owners of an online store called The Curiosity Shoppe, which carries some really cute things by the way. Come to find out these two are the Derek & Lauren of Design Sponge DIY Wednesdays fame. So The Nest showed many lovely photos of their apartment and mentioned the above pictured wall covered with photo frames which have cork in them. The suggestion in the magazine is to "Buy frames from a thrift store, spray paint them bold colors, pop out the glass and cut the cork to fit the rectangle." Ingenius says I! You could just switch out the artwork or photos whenever you wanted. I especially like this idea for use as an inspiration board in my office. Much better than a traditional rectangular bulletin board.

Vive Le France! and Thailand Too!

2008-06-13T14:16:00.000-07:00

We have some new 1" pin-back buttons in the Etsy store. This is the start of a new series showing canceled stamps taken from our childhood collection dating back to the 1970's. Unfortunately the stamp collecting bug didn't stick but we've always loved the look of some of these older stamps that our Maman exceptionnel snagged for us when she worked at the geological society.

Moo moo Moomoo Moo-Moo

2008-06-12T12:14:00.000-07:00

I received my Moo Card prize package (which I won through the Illustration Friday blog back in February) a couple weeks ago and finally have photographs to share. I'm extremely impressed with everything! The Moo MiniCards are really adorable, with a beautiful satin finish, and I think they generate extra interest because of the unusual size. The stickers are gorgeous and really, really shiny which I like. The only thing I didn't like, and I'm sure it's my own fault, is that multiples of the same image weren't grouped together on one page when printed. I wanted 6 of the same image on each sticker page so that I could tear out pages and give them to people but they were all interspersed and distributed randomly throughout the 15 pages. I'm sure there's something I should have done when ordering that would have fixed this. The postcards are nicely done and the colors came out just as I had hoped. I have to say the MiniCards printed a tad darker than I would have liked, which I have heard before from others, but now that I've seen it firsthand I'll just adjust for it in the files I submit in the future. I was also going to say that one drawback of getting so many different images is that it was a little time consuming to pick them out and get them uploaded. However, my husband pointed out that I'm a hopeless perfectionist and a normal person wouldn't have had to spend so much time on it. heh.

Final verdict: these Moo products look fabulous and are reasonably priced. I'm going to be ordering more very soon. Not only are they perfect for self-promotion efforts but I'm thinking of all kinds of gift ideas now.

Craft Tutorials Blog Has Moved

2008-06-11T20:07:00.001-07:00

You may remember that last year I started writing for the Craft Tutorials blog. It's changed hands a couple of times since then and now has a new home at crafttutorials.net. Vernon is doing a great job of getting things all spruced up and adding new content. Don't forget to change your bookmarks to the new address and also swing by the flickr pool to see what everyone's making.

LA Craft Mafia is Bustin' Crafty Kneecaps

2008-06-03T12:16:00.000-07:00

Last Tuesday Lori and I attended the Los Angeles Craft Mafia's monthly meeting in Venice to see what they were up to and spread the word about Swap-O-Rama-Rama. Founders Nichole and Morgan were super-nice and are doing a great job facilitating some crafty togetherness. They have a blog and an Etsy store and are planning to do some craft shows too. The guest-crafter for this particular meeting was Sonya Nimri who showed everyone how to make cute bracelets and necklaces by hand-twisting beads onto wire. Sonya manned one of the designer sewing stations at the last LA SORR and she'll be helping us out again in June. She also has a book out called Beadalicious and it looks really fun. Nice to see the Craft Mafia finally make it to Los Angeles!

Welcome StartUps Readers!

2008-06-02T15:16:00.000-07:00

If you found us through the summer issue of Entrepreneur's StartUps Magazine then let us say welcome to our blog! And thanks for taking the time to visit. If you haven't seen StartUps Magazine before you should check it out. Kim Orr wrote a great article about building a business from your crafty hobby and she was kind enough to mention us. You can read part of it online but it's definitely worth it to get the full issue. Lots of good info for all of us entrepreneur-minded people.

Swap-O-Rama-Rama in Los Angeles!

2008-05-30T17:08:00.000-07:00

Mark your calendars for Saturday, June 28th because Swap-O-Rama-Rama is back in LA for the second time! What is SORR you ask? Basically it's a huge clothing swap which encourages creative reuse of recycled clothes. First, clean out your closets and come to SORR with a bag of clothes you don't need anymore. All of the clothing for recycling is sorted into piles by volunteers and then you get to search for new clothes to take home. We'll have DIY stations set up for specific projects as well as sewing stations run by clothing designers who will help you alter and refashion your clothing picks to create something new. It's only $5 if you bring a bag of clothes and $10 if you don't and you get to leave with all the clothes you can carry!

Lori from Hip Line Media is producing the event again this year, this time with the help of AfterCraft, a newly formed group of crafters focusing on recycled and upcycled crafting. (That's where Four Idle Hands comes in!) Swap-O-Rama-Rama is a non-profit organization and all events are run by volunteers. We're still looking for help for the June 28th event so please email Lori if you can help.

Great Minds Think Alike

2008-05-27T11:06:00.000-07:00

I recently ran across the web site of illustrator Melissa Kojima and discovered she's a kindred spirit when it comes to a wonderfully offbeat and quirky aesthetic with some dark humor thrown in for good measure. Her illustrations are filled with the most interesting characters and if you look closely you'll find some pretty amazing details. (I'm talking to you, girl with 4 legs in the illustration below!)
She has a terrific web site (check out the illustrated rollovers on the homepage - love those!) and she even shares images from her sketchbook. (Don't you love when artists let you see their sketches?) She also has a great blog where she features artsy finds and local happenings here in SoCal. Go check her out, you'll be glad you did!

Best Cookie Site EVER

2008-05-22T10:55:00.000-07:00

Seriously, how can you go wrong with a site named Cookie Madness? I've been craving a certain type of chocolate chip cookie lately. Something thick and chewy with some good heft to it; not a flat crunchy type of cookie. After a few failed attempts at new recipes I finally figured out that maybe I should be looking for bar cookie recipes to get the type of texture I wanted. BINGO! The Cookie Madness site came up in my search results and my wonderful similarly-cookie-addicted husband found this Congo Bars recipe for which we just happened to have all the ingredients on hand. They were absolutely delicious! They're super easy to make, which is part of the appeal of bar cookies of course, and they received rave reviews when I took them to my crafty-superfriends meeting. (I'm sorry to say this isn't a photo of the ones I made. It's from the Cookie Madness site.) For our cookies we omitted the coconut and ended up baking it longer than 25 minutes but we a) have a wonky oven and b) used a glass pan so that probably explains it. Next time I think we'll try milk chocolate chips and macadamia nuts. And really, the basic cookie part of these bars is so good it seems suitable for all kinds of different combinations of chocolate and nuts and who knows what else. This weekend we'll be trying the S'mores Bars and next on my list will have to be Sweet and Salty Double Nut Toffee Brownie Bars. [drool]

Who Doesn't Have Boogers

2008-05-20T15:11:00.000-07:00

I absolutely love these little tissue holders from our insanely creative friends at Social Studies Design. It's the little green beads under the nostril that really *make* this piece as far as I'm concerned. Check out their web site to read a great post-Maker Faire/Bazaaar Bizarre write-up complete with tons of photos!

More Non-Creepy Body Part Art

2008-05-19T16:27:00.000-07:00

As long as we're on the subject of body parts, have you seen Margaux Lange's work? She makes beautiful jewelry using everyone's favorite childhood style icon, Barbie. And it looks like Ken is showing up in some pieces as well.
I love how adept she is at creating a well designed piece of art that integrates the doll pieces perfectly. She has an Etsy shop and you should check out her blog too!

Oppose the Orphan Works Bill With One Click

2008-05-15T10:49:00.000-07:00

I posted about this earlier, and now the Illustrator's Partnership has set up a site which allows you to easily email your Senators and Representatives letting them know you oppose the Orphan Works bill. Please help spread the word!

Printmakers of Etsy Unite!

2008-05-13T17:26:00.000-07:00

I recently joined an online group called Printsy. It is made up of Etsy printmakers who have banded together to talk about, share, and promote printmaking. The nice thing is that they are including only Etsy sellers who create original hand-pulled prints; not digital inkjet prints or other reproductions. Marissa of mLee Fine Art has just posted the first in a series of member-to-member interviews on the blog and she did a great job. The first interviewee is another Marissa, or fustian as she is known online. I always enjoy reading about other artists and how they work. Printsy also has a Flickr group if you'd like to see more!

Another Handy Item

2008-05-12T20:53:00.001-07:00

Continuing with our hand theme, I can't believe I haven't yet shown you these little beauties! I absolutely *LOVE* these hand soaps by Foliage on Etsy. They're hand soaps that look like little baby doll hands.
Isn't this the best idea you've ever seen for hand soap? I've heard that some people think they're a little creepy but I don't see how they could be....they're BABY DOLL HANDS! They should flood your mind with happy, nostalgic, childhood memories. Don't you love how fat and chunky they are? I'd also like to see a bunch of these cast in ceramic so that I could display them all over my house. THAT would be even "awesomer."

Lend a Hand

2008-05-06T13:06:00.000-07:00

Found these really great candles while surfing around on Apartment Therapy. As you might imagine we like almost anything and everything having to do with hands around here. They're from a company called Wakey but they only have a placeholder for a web site. Looks like I'll have to plan a trip to France to pick up these lovelies. Twist my arm!

Action Required - Protect Current Copyright Law

2008-04-29T15:09:00.001-07:00

Take a look at this post from Illustration Friday and then read the comments for more links that explain the Orphan Works bill and how devastating it will be to everyone, especially those of us who make a living in the visual arts. Here's some good info from the Illustrators' Partnership:

Orphan Works - No Myth
Orphan Works Resource Page for Artists

You can also download copies of the House and Senate versions of the bill right from their homepage.

We need as many people as possible to take action on this. Please email or write to your representatives and senators asap to let them know you're opposed to this bill. You can find contact info for them here.

Old Habits Die Hard

2008-04-28T13:46:00.000-07:00

I'm a little late to the party on this one (tons of people blogged about it when it first came out, which is why I've always had it in the back of my mind that I needed to read it when I got a chance) but you never know when a book or an article might hit you just right and give you some inspiration just when you need it. So I'm going to go ahead and tell you about Twyla Tharp's book The Creative Habit: Learn It and Use It for Life and hopefully someone else will find it as helpful as I have.

Here's one of my favorite parts of the whole book. She writes this under the heading of How to Be Lucky:

"Be generous. I don't use that word lightly. Generosity is luck going in the opposite direction, away from you. If you're generous to someone, if you do something to help him out, you are in effect making him lucky. This is important. It's like inviting yourself into a community of good fortune."

Now, of course we all try to help people whenever and wherever possible. But to frame it in this way, by pointing out that generosity is really luck going in the opposite direction, somehow puts it in a new light. There's a lot of power in the realization that you can positively affect someone's situation, make them "lucky", just by being generous.

Tharp goes on to say that whenever she's "....working in a groove it's invariably because I feel I am being the benefactor in the situation rather than the beneficiary. I am sharing my art with others, lending my craft to theirs, interest-free with no IOU. I want the dancers to look great, so I try to give them great steps. In return, they live up to the potential I see in them. Then I am the one who feels lucky. In the luck equation, who is the winner here?"

Isn't that a great way to put it? I checked this book from the library but I'm definitely going to get my own copy because a) it's the kind of book that you could pick up at any time just for a mini-dose of inspiration and b) there are a lot of good creative exercises that don't necessarily need to be done all at once. Again, you could pick it up and do one of the exercises when you need to shake things up a bit.

Home is Where You Hang Your Hat

2008-04-22T12:23:00.000-07:00

I was very excited to see these Knife Wall Hooks because they go nicely with my Voodoo Knife Block. They're a little pricey (they are a limited edition after all) so I started searching around to see if anyone else was making something similar. This led me to the Stuck On You hook which looks like a saucepan sticking out of the wall:
I also found these arrow hooks and hand hooks :

And then, I found Lightbulb hooks! Made from concrete! I just love these. In fact, I'd like a bunch of them (minus the lag bolt of course) to display in a bowl as a centerpiece. Beautiful!

Internet Don't Fail Me Now

2008-04-02T16:19:00.000-07:00

I've been surfing around looking for inspiration lately so I thought I'd share some fun things I've run across:

Book By Its Cover - amazing peek into the sketchbooks of some artists and illustrators you might recognize including Ashley G, Takashi Iwasaki, and Meg Hunt
via five and a half

TED talk by Paola Antonelli: Treating design as art

You can never go wrong with Dru Struzan's work, check out these drawings

Nice little interview with Lisa of U Handbag. Lisa's blog is chock full of inspiration and will make you stop whatever you're doing and go sew a bag

What's inspiring you lately? I'd love to hear about it!

Misty Watercolored Memories....

2008-03-26T16:54:00.000-07:00

My Mom is testing out her new camera and sent this photo of my brother. I can't even tell you how many photos he has "enhanced" over the years by adding a little something special.....a middle finger, a buttcrack, a nosepick. Let's just say a lot. Maybe even enough for a blog dedicated just to him. (hmmmm, that gives me an idea!) This photo makes me homesick....I teared up a bit. I miss the nosepicking. sniff sniff

Moo-Moo-Ka-Choo

2008-03-25T10:47:00.000-07:00

Get it? Instead of Koo-koo-ka-choo? I crack myself up sometimes.

February 4th was my lucky day last month because I won the Moo giveaway from Illustration Friday! I was delighted to learn that I won a free pack of MiniCards, Stickers and Postcards. My dilemma now is to figure out what is Moo-worthy enough to put on them. I'll post photos of the finished products as soon as I make a decision and get them back.

Here's the Moo Flickr group if you'd like to see what others are doing with these adorable little cards and stickers.

Many thanks to Illustration Friday and the Moo team!

Super Easy Photo Contact Print Tutorial

2007-11-20T11:48:00.000-08:00

I just posted a great contact print tutorial over at Craft Tutorials. I love this project because it's fast, easy, and not messy at all. It's a fun way to give your photos a hand-printed, artistic look. The print above is one of my favorites....it's from an old photo of my Grandmother and her sisters. I printed it on tan BFK Rives printmaking paper, which is my paper-crush-of-the-moment. The paper looks better in person than in this photo and the tan really goes well with the vintage photo.
I'd love to see the results if anyone experiments with this technique! You can post photos to the Craft Tutorials Group on Flickr.

Pop-Up Books Light Up My Life

2007-11-06T12:56:00.001-08:00

I love, Love, LOVED pop-up books when I was a kid so of course I couldn't let this one pass by without comment. It's a book with a lamp in it! This linen bound book by Takeshi Ishiguro hides a pop-up paper lamp sporting LEDs which are powered by a low voltage adapter. So clever! There's also a Parisian Streetlamp version you might want to check out.

via Uncrate

Hey, We've Been Buzzed!

2007-10-26T11:13:00.000-07:00

We're number 4 on the BuzzFeed list for Scrabble Fashion! woohoo! Thanks to whomever submitted us!

Reveal Your Inner Pirate

2007-10-17T15:48:00.000-07:00

No time to don your full-blown pirate regalia? Need a glimpse of your inner pirate to set your swagger for the day? Look no further then this awesome pirate mirror from designers Choe and Tomlinson. But wait, it gets even better.....they have a skull mirror! You can also pick from antlers, a mustache, pearls, and a songbird. Who needs a songbird when you can have a skull!

via Uncrate.

The Ultimate Linoleum Block Printing Press

2007-10-07T19:29:00.000-07:00

I've heard of people using their cars in lieu of a printing press (sandwich the plate and the paper between two pieces of wood and drive over it) but using a "road roller" is taking it to the next level! This video on YouTube shows some folks in Brighton, England using a small steamroller to make a very large linoleum print. It was apparently a publicity stunt for an arts and entertainment event, the Brighton Festival. This avant-garde printmaking session can also be seen in photos from Fred Pipes on Flickr. Absolutely brilliant! I wonder if any of my printmaking cohorts have access to a steamroller?

Contests Galore

2007-10-05T13:33:00.000-07:00

There are so many contests going on this month I hardly know where to start. I guess I'll go in order of entry deadline.

First up is a very special weekly challenge for Illustration Friday. Everyone is supposed to create their weekly entry and submit by next Friday as usual, but the difference is all of the entries for this week have the chance to be picked for a gallery show. How great is that?! The Illustration Friday community gets to vote and the winners will be shown at Open Books, a bookstore and gallery in Long Beach, CA. (Lucky me, that's only a few miles from where I live so I'll get to see the show in person! woohoo!)

October 22 is the deadline for Scion's Craft My Ride contest. Create a handmade car accessory for the Scion and you could win a 2008 Scion XD. Second place gets you $1,000 and third place wins $500.

Penelope of Penelope Illustration is having another Halloween contest this year, this one entitled Monster Mash. All you have to do is create a monster by any means necessary! It could be an illustration, a plushie or even a photograph. Deadline for entries is October 31st. (Robin made a very cool bat trivet, pictured above, for last year's contest. I love the black grout!)

And last but not least is the Holiday Softie Awards. With nine different categories you're sure to find one that inspires some softie creativity. Deadline for submissions is also October 31st.

Spring is in the Air

2007-09-26T14:40:00.001-07:00

Yes, I know it's fall here in North America but we're feeling awfully spring-y because of these great new Valve Spring Paper Weights we've just received. These are part of our Reincarnations line which is made up of functional metal pieces created from recycled engine and auto parts. They're painted with sparkly metallic automotive paint and then finished with clearcoat, just like your car. I'll let you in on a little secret....our Dad is the mastermind behind all of the awesome Reincarnations stuff. He ran his own automotive repair business for over 30 years and has the discarded parts to prove it! We love that he's doing his part to upcycle by creating useful things from old parts that would otherwise end up in the landfill. And since we have a "no frills or bows" policy here at Four Idle Hands we're especially partial to the industrial look of these pieces.

We'll be adding the spring paper weights to the store in the next week or two. You've seen the spark plug pencil holders right? We'll have those back in the store shortly too.

Teapots Get Disturbing

2007-09-10T15:10:00.000-07:00

I am one of those people who is drawn to teapots. It is hard to explain exactly what I find so appealing about them. Part of it is the overwhelming design possibilities for something that seems so straightforward. They can be very clean and simple all the way to over-the-top elaborate. This all explains why I sat up and took notice when they showed Richard Notkin's teapots on the PBS special "Craft In America." (Ok - it aired several months ago but it took me a while to find the time to watch the recording.) Of course I love skulls so it is no surprise that these caught my eye. But I was also intrigued by the shapes he uses for the skulls. I find the cube-shaped skulls particularly captivating. Gives a whole new feeling to afternoon tea.

Be Still My Beating Heart

2007-09-05T11:22:00.000-07:00

Have you seen this adorable PINK vacuum cleaner from Dyson? Now, truth be told, I probably wouldn't actually plunk down hundreds of dollars for the pink one, purple would probably be my first choice, but something about this lovely shade of bubblegum pink on a vacuum cleaner is very appealing to me. (Maybe it just reminds me of my totally cute, circa 1980's, pink Reeboks that I wore all the time.) They're available only at Target and $40 of every sale will go to the Breast Cancer Research Foundation. Target will also give you a free $100 e-Giftcard when purchasing online.

Graphic Design Makes a Difference

2007-09-04T17:34:00.000-07:00

Here's an interesting article about graphic designer Deborah Adler's thesis project: redesigning prescription pill bottles. I really like her idea to use colored rubber rings that attach to the neck of the bottle to differentiate prescriptions for each family member. Amazing that someone hadn't thought to improve prescription packaging before now.

A Blog After Our Own Hearts

2007-08-30T16:16:00.000-07:00

This post could have just as easily been titled "Why didn't we think of that?" Accompanied by a resounding forehead smack and a loud "DOH!" We love skulls, how did we not think of creating a skull a day for a whole year? The important thing is that Noah Scalin thought of it, and he's been diligently creating a skull a day for the last 88 days.

The SAD blog says that it's a project of Another Limited Rebellion, which according to their web site is a design and consulting firm founded by Noah. Here's a blurb from their home page:

Another Limited Rebellion is a socially conscious design and consulting firm dedicated to creating high quality communications in a sustainable manner.

I especially like that the company philosophy includes, among other things, a "committment to work with clients who are not involved in the creation of cigarettes, alcohol, or weapons." How great is that?!
You can also buy this awesome Skull-A-Day t-shirt which was skull #10 in the series, the United Skull of America. While you're at it, vote for the image you'd most like to see on the next t-shirt.

This is so inspiring; it makes me want to commit to a daily creative exercise for a year and really test my limits. Although, *ahem*, maybe I should just try to work on my weekly illustration for Illustration Friday before I get all hepped up on delusions of grandeur. heh.

Another Fun Craft Book to Put on the List

2007-08-28T17:48:00.000-07:00

I posted a little crafty news update over at Craft Tutorials. One of the things I mentioned was this awesome pincushion book that is coming out soon. Remember the eyeball pincushions I posted about months ago? Well, VeryBigJen, the pincushion goddess, has some of her pincushion designs, including the eyeballs, in this book! You can pre-order it from Amazon. (Note: link goes to Jen's affiliate account.)

We Survived Kendra Kaos 2007!

2007-08-23T09:44:00.002-07:00

Our niece Kendra got to take a three week cross-country road trip with her grandparents this summer, stopping at some fun places along the way and spending one week with us in LA. (The above photo of her was taken inside Disney's Innoventions under the blacklights.) Entertaining a 10-yr-old for a week was a lot of work but HOLY MOLY did we have fun!
To commemorate her trip we made matching t-shirts for our group to wear while at California Adventure and Disneyland. This turned out to be one of the best things we did! We didn't plan it, but the bright yellow shirts made it SO much easier for us to spot each other across the park or among crowds. For the front of the shirt we used a graphic from the movie Vacation. Remember when Clark is showing the kids the trip on the computer, and Rusty goes after him with the pacman type character? Well, it technically wasn't pacman, but that's how we remembered it, and we thought it looked better that way so we made it pacman.
Dan dubbed their "Griswold-esque" adventure Kendra Kaos 2007 and had the idea to make the back of the shirt similar to a concert shirt, listing all of the places that they stopped. They started out from Detroit and stops included: St. Louis Arch, Roswell UFO Museum, Grand Canyon (they even went out onto the Skywalk!), Hoover Dam, Calico Ghost Town, California Adventure, Aquarium of the Pacific, Disneyland, Hollywood, and Natural Bridges National Monument.
While they were in LA we also hit the beach a couple of times, silkscreened a bunch of girl scout t-shirts and went to the newly renovated Griffith Park Observatory. phew! Our good friend Sean (from Social Studies Design) was kind enough to hook us up with a behind-the-scenes tour at the aquarium and it was so cool! We got to put our hands into a tank that held cleaner shrimp, and they actually crawl on your hand and clean off bits of food and dead skin cells. Kendra decided that she needs a cleaner shrimp at home as a pet so that she never has to wash her hands again! We also got to feed pieces of fish and shrimp to some rock fish by hand. (Well, you know, with tongs.) The aquarium is really an amazing operation; if you haven't been yet you should definitely go!

Still sorting through the hundreds and hundreds of photos we took and there was some video too. Next we'll start putting it together into a slide show and a DVD. You know, in our spare time. heh.

If You're Dorky and You Know It....

2007-07-30T16:04:00.000-07:00

This is the long-overdue part 2 of our adventuresome Friday a couple of weeks ago. In addition to the Yummy Cupcakes outing we also made a pilgrimmage to the Kwik E Mart in Santa Monica. More photos are in my Flickr gallery.

We parked about a block away and were able to walk right in as soon as we got there but by the time we left there was a line outside. People inside were a little crazy and buying all of the Simpsons merchandise they could get their hands on. Store employees were restocking as fast as they could but there were a few things they said they wouldn't have until later in the day. The parking lot was downright dangerous with people just pulling in willy nilly and parking wherever they felt like.

One thing I was really disappointed with was the Jasper in the Freezer graphic - they put it on backwards! (Here's a good photo of the one in Seattle.) I didn't even take a photo of it; it didn't look right unless you opened the freezer door and viewed it from the inside. Only twelve stores in the country got these graphics and they couldn't get them all applied correctly. Weak.

Despite the the crowds (and the backwards graphic!) we were really glad we went. It was a good transformation and of course all of the graphics were great to see in person. At first I thought we'd feel a little self-conscious about taking our photos with giant plastic cartoon characters but everyone was doing it so it didn't matter! Now I just need to find time to go see the movie.

Pranksters and Marketers Will Use This for Evil

2007-07-26T12:15:00.000-07:00

How cool is this?! Kameraflage technology works by using special colors that are invisible to the naked eye but can be detected by a digital camera. (Notice that you can see a lightening bolt coming from the cloud on the shirt only in the display on the iPhone.) I'm thinking of not only the art/craft possibilities, but the practical joke possibilities as well. Wouldn't you love to sport an invisible thumbs-down symbol on the outfit you wear to the next wedding you attend where you just *know* it won't last? ha ha It would only shown up in the final photos!

This technology could be good (or bad) for some stealth marketing too. What if you took photos of well-known buildings or landmarks only to find a giant advertisement revealed when you looked through your digital camera's viewfinder? Or graffiti! What if graffiti artists started using these colors. That could actually be a good thing. Maybe I shouldn't be giving anyone crazy ideas. I'll go back to thinking about fun art/craft projects.

via Gizmodo.

(edited to note: Okay, I just took a more in-depth look at the Kameraflage site and they *are* marketing Kameraflage Billboard™ as a way for "advertisers to place messages in new locations and situations." All I have to say is thank goodness for Photoshop.)

The Holy Grail of Cupcakes

2007-07-17T14:29:00.000-07:00

I haven't had a chance to blog about our adventuresome Friday, two Fridays ago, so this is the first part. One of the places we had to check out in Santa Monica was Yummy Cupcakes. Holy Moly does this place live up to it's name! They have a group of standard flavors they make every day but then they have the add-ons. The extra-special flavors that are only made on certain days. We tried Peanut Butter Chocolate Chip and Brown Sugar Cinnamon. The PBCC was my favorite, and I have to say the BSC was a little too sweet for me. Although Dan definitely did NOT agree. He loved the BSC!

On July 25th and 26th they're having Christmas in July! Woohoo! You can enjoy holiday flavors like Eggnog, Peppermint Patty and Candy Cane. And on a charitable note, they're also collecting school supplies for homeless children ages 5 - 17. So drop off a donation and treat yourself to a Christmas cupcake at the same time. Win-win.

[I'm not affiliated in any way with Yummy Cupcakes, they're just my current food crush.]

Friday the 13th Super Sale!!

2007-07-12T21:10:00.000-07:00

We couldn't let a Friday the 13th pass by without doing a little something to commemorate it. So we're having a super-duper one-day, one-item, liquidation sale! The creepily cool Wraith Necklace is available all day for only $14.00. This one is high on my list of favorites that Robin has made because it combines two of my favorite things: skulls and the color purple! Also check out the Wraith Earrings and Bracelet.

Felt Club This Weekend - Oh It's ON!

2007-07-12T10:50:00.000-07:00

Just a reminder that Felt Club is happening this weekend, Sunday, July 15, from 11 a.m. to 7 p.m. at the Ukranian Cultural Center. We went last year and it was packed! You'll have to get there very early if you want to snag one of the 250 swag bags they're handing out.

A one dollar donation at the door gets you a raffle ticket for a door prize and then you'll have access to over 70 DIY vendors including my BFF's Sean and Aldo from Social Studies Design. They've been cooking up some great new products lately and they always sell out quickly so be sure to run straight to their booth as soon as you get there! Seriously.

Craft Is As Crafty Does

2007-07-11T12:44:00.000-07:00

I'm happy and proud to announce that I'll be co-writing on another crafty blog! Eve of Craft Tutorials put out a call for bloggers and she's got a really talented group lined up to post tutorial try-outs, new tutorials, and any other craft related tidbits we find. I'm excited about this because I have a ton of backlogged projects that I've been meaning to try and I think this will be the motivation I've been needing.

I just posted yesterday with a round-up of fun pincushion links so please go over and have a look. Lisa posted some great photoshop effects yesterday too!

My New Best Friend

2007-07-10T18:19:00.000-07:00

I found this library receipt in a book I recently checked out.

Book of the Dead? Check.
Barbie and the Magic of Pegasus? Check.
Toy Story 2? Check.

I want to party with this girl.

Old School Crafty Goodness

2007-07-09T14:43:00.000-07:00

Robin and I come from a very crafty family, and thinking back to my childhood there wasn't ever a time when I wasn't making something. Both of our parents were always making things (still are actually) and the family tree is loaded with great-grands, grandparents, aunts, uncles, and cousins who are multi-talented and creative.

This got me to thinking about how many items I still have that friends and family have made for me over the years. (Go ahead and say it: pack rat!) And, no surprise here, I've noticed the things that mean the most to me, and that I've kept the longest, are almost all things that were handmade by people I know. I thought it might be fun to share them on the blog once in awhile because some of them are really great.

First up is a little blue bag from 1973 or 74. My aunts made these personalized bags for all the cousins for Christmas one year. Of course they were filled with pencils and notebooks and other presents and even had a matching drawstring coin purse inside. I just love the red top-stitching and the hand-embroidered name. This one is Robin's, but I have mine packed away somewhere. It has a groovy heart patch on it! You can see this one was used a lot as it has a nice big glue stain in the lower lefthand corner.

Now that I sew I have a much better appreciation for this bag. It must have taken quite a bit of time, not to mention patience!

Back From the Time of Vacation

2007-06-28T14:45:00.001-07:00

Feeling a little slow and fuzzy this week as I try to get back into the swing of things after vacation. We went to Cancun, where it was very, very, hot with hardly a cloud in the sky. Oven hot. Wring out your socks hot. Fry an egg on your forehead hot. But the snorkeling was great so it was all worth it. We had a couple of little glitches with United for the return flight, but after reading this and this (via BoingBoing) about what has come to be known as the Poop Plane, I'm really counting my blessings and thinking we didn't have it so bad after all.

More To Love About M&M's

2007-06-20T15:51:00.002-07:00

As if being the website for a yummy chocolate candy wasn't enough, the M&M's website has lots of fun things to see and do. I usually don't plug advertising but I just love the M&M's Addams Family commercial. It is finger-snapping good. Another great diversion on this page is the Find 50 Dark Movies Hidden In A Painting. It is a great way to test your memory of scary movie titles. If you are feeling creative you can create your own M&M character. Making yourself into an M&M character is fun but I have even more fun creating M&M characters of people I know. (I am still laughing at the image I created of my brother as an M&M.) Once you have a character you can put them in front of backdrops for snapshots or put them in a movie. I can't think of a better way to waste an afternoon as long as I have the bag of M&M's to keep me going!

What Happened in the 80's Should Stay in the 80's

2007-06-08T10:40:00.000-07:00

About two years ago I saw the first signs that 1980's fashion was circling around and becoming popular again. Girls at the local community college where I print were wearing leg warmers with their mini-skirts and flip-flops. Yes, yes, I know, it makes no sense, but wearing Uggs with your mini-skirts in sunny southern California doesn't make any sense either.

Now it seems there's a little trend back toward Tyvek clothing. Remember Tyvek jackets from the 80's, with lots of nice bright colors and eye-popping graphics? As with all returning fads they are somewhat reinterpreted for today's fashionistas but it looks like Tyvek clothing is on the way back.

Make Your Own Tyvek Bag

And in more exciting and crafty news, via laissezfaire, here's a bag kit using Tyvek! Created by Sac A Faire, it comes with one giant sheet of Tyvek and patterns for 10 bags so you can sew them yourself. I like the clean crumpled-paper look of just the plain white Tyvek, but I wonder if you could print on it? I'm thinking silkscreening, possibly linocut. I guess I know what I'll be shopping for this weekend!

Leg warmers photo by fran-cis-ca via flickr used under a Creative Commons License.

Spooning

2007-06-07T15:04:00.000-07:00

You have to see these beautiful spoon pendants! Just found them via the Make magazine blog. Love these! I'd like to see smaller ones; maybe made from little baby spoons.

Supremely Good Idea

2007-06-06T20:09:00.000-07:00

The awesome and talented Communicatrix just helped Megan Mullally launch a way-cool web site called Supreme Story Program. The goal is to get people in touch with their creativity. A topic is presented and anyone can submit their personal stories which are then posted on the site. I've already spent way too much time reading them; there's just something very compelling about people sharing these little parts of their history. Lots of good links for inspiration too.

What a Character

2007-06-05T12:39:00.000-07:00

I found this little book from the 1940's at a yard sale recently. It contains the "secrets" of analyzing a person's character by the size and shape of their heads. Here's an excerpt from the preface:

"You will find yourself described in this book; also your friends, your sweetheart, your husband or wife, and your child. It was written from a practical point of view after the author had made thousands of analyses of students, soldiers, statesmen, executives, farmers, people prominent in society; in fact, men and women in every vocation and in every department of life."

The first chapter talks about using character analysis in business, and the "new profession" of vocational analyst, to help people find the jobs for which they are best suited. The author also talks about resolving conflict with business partners and family members by understanding your own specific personality traits as well as those of others. He then goes on to describe the traits of different types of profiles, head size and shape, and body type to name a few.

Some of his "scientific" findings are pretty funny; a person with a narrow forehead is narrow-minded, a person with thin tight lips is secretive. He even surmises that people with crow's feet are jovial and like to laugh. Interesting little handbook on psychology and character judgements though.

Little Bitty Kitty Update

2007-05-31T11:51:00.000-07:00

Hey, remember when we told you about Little Bitty Kitty and his hilarious podcasts? Well, because we were fortunate enough to be picked for a Girl Power Moment we also received this really great calendar! We received it months ago so it's a bit of a belated acknowledgment (sorry LBK!) but we love it and thought it was cute and funny to boot! Thanks again to Little Bitty Kitty and if you haven't listened to one of his podcasts yet definitely hightail it over there.

Anatomically Correct

2007-05-22T12:53:00.000-07:00

I'm finally getting some of our hand-printed anatomy cards up in the shop. We're cooking up some other product ideas that will also feature these old medical illustrations. I made the etching plates using a very cool toner-transfer technique that I need to post as a separate tutorial. On some of them I then I used a process called chin collé in which you add an additional piece of paper in between the plate and the printing paper. Sprinkle on some powdered wheat paste and when you run it through the press the dampness of the printing paper and the pressure of the press activates the paste and it all sticks together. It's a great way to add color to a piece while printing with black ink. There are so many interesting things you can do with this process, I just love it!

Customized Fortune Cookie

2007-05-21T14:03:00.000-07:00

Here's a neat little marketing idea, that I'll bet is actually pretty expensive when it comes right down to it. Customized fortune cookies! (Click on the photo to see a larger version.) We ordered some snorkeling gear recently and this was in the package. I have to tell you though that I did not eat the cookie because the wrapper had come open, but I thought it was a really interesting way for Snorkel-Mart to make themselves memorable. And it's not the usual snorkel or dive related promo such as something to do with the ocean or fish; I like that the fortune cookie promo was paired with snorkel products. What other ways have you seen to make your packages more memorable?

I Finally Know What a Tasket Is

2007-05-20T17:42:00.000-07:00

Taskets are these wonderful little odds-and-ends holder thingys made by Jenn Maruska. She also makes too-cute-for-words sewing books. I hadn't heard of a sewing book before but now that I've seen these I know my crafting life will not be complete without one. And the best part is she also blogs! Go check her out!

My Cupcakes Need Feet

2007-05-18T17:50:00.000-07:00

How adorable are these?! I officially dub these the cutest silicone baking cups ever! Found them in Family Fun magazine and they mentioned their kids were using them on their desks to hold odds and ends. So now I'll have to order enough to use for cupcakes AND in my office.

Wilton is the company who makes the extra tall cupcake pan that everybody's been talking about and now I see that they have jumbo muffin pans as well. Michaels carries the Wilton brand if you don't want to pay for shipping. Hooray!

And Another Thing....

2007-05-17T11:28:00.000-07:00

One other thing that used to bug me about some blogs is the tendency to forget about things they say they'll post at a later date. Now that I have my own blog however, I see how difficult it is to keep up on this. In fact, I can think of at least a couple of things I said I'd be posting on here and then promptly forgot about. Shame on me! So, as previously promised, here are some personal favorites from the Etsy/BazBiz Upcycle contest:

Korean Cookie box made into a pen case - This item has sold already but take a look at the rest of Dingo's shop. Love this teeny tiny little book!

Recycled Paper Shower Curtain - Love the design and colors of this piece. She has some lovely handpainted scarves too.

Blue Capacitor Bug - So cute! This one is sold out, but there are plenty more where that came from.

Plastic Bag Rain Coat - I was really sad that I missed out on buying this back in February. Love the design! Check out the cute felted hair clips.

Bottle Cap Necklace - Love the seed beads in resin. More recycled stuff in her shop.

Missing Time

2007-05-16T17:45:00.000-07:00

Holy Moly, has it really been two weeks since I posted to the blog? Unforgiveable! I really hate it when my favorite blogs aren't updated regularly so I had been trying to make a more concerted effort to post consistently. But then work was busy, and I had a LOT of cleaning to do to get ready for a parental visit, and then the 'rents came out for a *very* fun week of galavanting around SoCal and here we are. May 16th and mentally it feels like March. sigh. (The photo is from a car show we went to in Hermosa Beach. It's a side view of the tire cover on the back of a beautifully restored old car. I really love photos of reflections.)

Lots of stuff going on right now:

Maker Faire - This weekend! May 19 & 20! Check out the full schedule here. Don't forget to swing by Bazaar Bizarre inside the Maker Faire and look for our two Etsy Upcycle contest winners JackRabbit and New Orleans Craft Mafia. We had to pass on it this year (*sob*) so please let us know when you have photos posted.

Felt Club - Applications are now being accepted for Felt Club's summer show. But hurry, the deadline is this Friday, May 18th.

Sew Useful Contest at Etsy - Sponsored by Etsy and Instructables this contest is looking for a tutorial along with the finished product. Put your thinking caps on and check here for details.

Better Late Than Never.....Right??

2007-04-27T11:40:00.000-07:00

Now that it's practically May, I can finally reveal our big Christmas 2006 project! ha ha We decided to make gifts for the nieces and nephew this year and they turned out great. We've had an ongoing joke that as Aunt and Uncle we'll always be on good terms with the kids. You know, the Aunts and Uncles are always the cool ones, even when the kids get to that age where they find their parents embarassing. We're pretty happy about that. So I made a 70's inspired graphic of Dan's face that said Uncle Dan Rocks and we silkscreened it onto shirts. I usually use oil-based ink for silkscreening, but it smells to high-heaven and it's best to use it in the studio where there's better ventilation and it doesn't matter if you spill some on the table or floor. For this project I bought a water-based ink that is especially for fabric and it was terrific. So nice to have easy clean-up for a change. First, we put chipboard inside the shirt to protect the back in case there's any ink bleed-through and also to provide a smooth surface on which to screen. I had Dan hold the screen in position while I pulled the ink through and then we let the shirts dry overnight. The next day we heat-set them with the iron so that the ink wouldn't fade when washed. It was super quick; more time went into making the graphic. Dan's not happy about it but other people have asked for t-shirts with this graphic and I'm thinking tote-bags would be cute too!

VA Comes to its Senses

2007-04-26T12:23:00.000-07:00

The Department of Veterans Affairs settled a lawsuit in Wisconsin and will finally include the Wiccan pentacle among religious symbols allowed to be displayed on veterans' grave markers. I thought this was pretty ridiculous back when I heard they had to file a law suit in the first place just to resolve it. Seems like a trivial thing for the VA to get persnickety over when we're talking about grave markers for people who willingly chose to fight for their country.

Here's an excerpt from an AP article listed on TwinCities.com:

The lawsuit argued that the VA's refusal to act on requests to permit the symbol on veterans' grave markers violated Wiccans' constitutional rights of freedom of speech, religion and due process.
The lawsuit also said it made no sense for Wiccan symbols to be banned from grave markers when Wiccan soldiers can list their faith on dog tags, Wiccan organizations are allowed to hold services on military installations, and the Army Chaplains Handbook includes an explanation of the religion.

The list of allowed symbols is here on the VA's web site. More on the widely misunderstood Wicca religion here. Info on the pentacle here.

Boy Oh Boynton

2007-04-24T09:30:00.000-07:00

You all remember the Boynton characters, right? Sandra Boynton's adorable cartoon characters were all the rage in the 80's, adorning everything from greeting cards to coffee mugs to who-knows-what else. I love the characters but I think it was the wordplay that really got me hooked. She's licensed some of her characters for a promotion with Kohls. They're selling book/cd sets and these adorable plushies! All proceeds "support health and educational opportunities for children nationwide." Unfortunately they didn't make a plushie of the infamous Boynton cat, which was Robin's personal favorite, but they did include the pig, rhino, dog, and chicken. I couldn't resist getting the chicken. It must be the nostalgia factor. And look at the little embroidered signature on the bottom of her foot! So cute. Dan remarked that the chicken kind-of sorta reminded him of a Muppet chicken. Which brought to mind a Muppet chicken sketch in which they sang along to an all-chicken version of In the Mood, which was actually listed as being performed by the Henhouse Five. Not sure if it was from Sesame Street or The Muppet Show but the song by itself, which was actually by Ray Stevens, is hilarious. Anyone else remember it?

Oh my goodness, there's Boynton jewelry, and a penguin song performed by Davy Jones! I'm having flashbacks to adolescence.

Rainy Friday Round-Up

2007-04-20T12:27:00.000-07:00

Yes, it's actually raining here in Southern California! Well, what they call "rain" here would more accurately be characterized as a light drizzle in other parts of the country. Whatever you call it though I'm happy about it because I *love* rainy days. Here's a round-up of some things that have come up this week that I just knew you would want to hear about:

-Hook a Sistah Up Alison, friend to crafters everywhere, organizer of BazBiz Boston, crafty gal behind Wonderland Q, has suffered a medical emergency and has no insurance. Etsy and the crafting community have come to her rescue with this awesome Etsy store. All proceeds will go directly to Alison to help with her already mounting medical bills. Donate something to sell in the store if you can or do some Mother's Day shopping!

-Next Big Thing Today is the last day to enter Fred Flare's Next Big Thing contest. We were too busy this year, but maybe if we start planning today, we can get it done in the next 365.

-Stitch 'n Pitch Contest You have until May 31st to enter this one. Craft magazine has teamed up with The National Needle Arts Association for a contest. Entries must be a needle art (knitting, crochet, cross-stitch, needlepoint, or embroidery) and must reflect the theme of baseball.

-Fun OSX Trick Press ctrl-option-cmd-8 to invert the colors on your monitor. It toggles on and off. Is this a useful feature? I don't know, but I've been playing with it all day. Look at photos in your browser after converting too. via kottke.org

Get Out the Band-Aids®

2007-04-16T18:11:00.000-07:00

As much as I love books, and thus might have a hard time cutting one up, (I know Robin is cringing even more than I am right now) I'm dying to try a project like this. I'm sure artist Georgia Russell uses only older books that would have been destined for the landfill anyway. Surely I wouldn't feel bad about cutting up an old college textbook that they wouldn't buy back from me because there was a newer edition available.....right? Aside from the part about destroying to create, I suppose I might also have a bit of a problem with the inherent dangers of using an X-Acto® knife for any length of time. You'd think my years of graphic design work and crafting would have left me with a fair bit of skill with sharp implements, but alas, it just means a higher incident of accidents for a clumsy girl like me. I'm not really allowed to use knives in the kitchen unless carefully supervised and I have yet to cut my own mats for artwork. So, maybe I'll just admire Georgia Russell's work on the internet because additionally I doubt I have the attention span for this type of....oh look, a chicken!

via Fun Forever

Photo on a Rope

2007-04-13T09:38:00.000-07:00

Holy Cow, this is the coolest display idea I've seen in awhile. I'm a sucker for anything photo related and especially for new ways to display my photos, so this is right up my alley. I'm envisioning a whole line of these covering a wall! And of course the best part is they are easily changed out as the mood strikes. It's a 43" cable that comes with 8 magnets. (Note to self: order more magnets.) The top of the cable has a loop for hanging and the bottom is weighted to keep it straight. This would be great in my office too for reminder notes, or sketches, or what-have-you.

I'm also digging these photo clips, and this monster pod, which sticks virtually anywhere. These are all from PhotoJojo.

We're Not Edgy

2007-04-09T15:30:00.000-07:00

So, apparently, and we had no idea, there are some people who prefer the [gasp] outer edges of food items. Like brownies and Pop-tarts® for example. Robin and I are both completely flabbergasted by this revelation. We thought 99.9% of the population preferred the yummy, gooey, delicious center of certain foods. Like brownies and Pop-tarts® for example! That's why they started cutting the crusts off of sandwiches in the first place, right? All the Idle Hands, spouses included, prefer the middle pieces of brownies. We also barely tolerate the crusts of the Pop-tart® in order to get to the delicious, frosted, sugar-filled center, and feel quite upset if we encounter a Pop-tart® that suffered a glitch in the production process thereby rendering it with too much crust. Center lasagna is better too. I also prefer Uncrustables® to regular peanut butter and jelly sandwiches. (Unless it's one of Dan's patented Grilled PBJs of course.) Turns out our Mom is also a middle person, so maybe this explains our preference. Now I'm wondering if it's learned, or genetic. Still waiting to hear from the Queen Mother, aka Grandmom, on her brownie prefs.

I saw the above pictured edges-only brownie pan somewhere (maybe on BoingBoing) and while incredibly clever, I initially thought it was a joke, or a one-off item. Because surely there was no way there could be a market for a pan like this. Who, in their right mind, would want a pan that created only brownie edges? Then Daily Candy sent an email touting Brownie Butts from Mary Louise Butters. The sacrilege! Finally I started asking around, and my friends, let me tell you, I actually know some of these edgy brownie people. [gasp, clutch the pearls]

Edginess is not always across the board however. Our friend Sean prefers the edges of brownies, but is definitely a middle-Pop-tart® person. Our friend Aldo says it's the transition from the crunchy edge to the chewy middle of the brownie that is the best part, and he thinks the edges, the CRUSTS for goodness sake, of the Pop-tart® are the best part! [insert eye roll emoticon here] He says the middle is too sweet on its own. It's true what they say, you learn something new every day.

We're still polling friends and family members so feel free to comment or drop us an email weighing in on this potentially controversial and divisive matter and we'll post the results next week.

It's Better Than a Sharp Stick - Really

2007-04-06T16:03:00.000-07:00

Mom is officially retired as of 1:00 pm MST today! We've got a sale going on to celebrate this momentous occasion. Because she worked for various insurance agents for the last 27 years, we're offering a 27% discount on selected items through April 30th. Being a relentless optimist, one of Mom's oft-used sayings has always been "It's better than a sharp stick in the eye!" Hence the name of our promotion. Now we can put her to work crafting more wonderful handmade goodies that we can list on the web site. Well, okay, we can let her have some downtime before we insist she does our bidding. But we know her, she won't want to be idle for long!
Seriously though, we couldn't be happier for her and we're sure she's going to find a million fun things to fill her time.

Some Much Needed Monday Inspiration

2007-03-26T16:48:00.000-07:00

Check out this wonderful flip book video of George Lange's work from 2006. Really beautiful.

via sfgirlbybay (aka Victoria Smith)

I Only Have Eyeballs For You

2007-03-21T09:13:00.000-07:00

Is there anything better than an eyeball pin cushion? Not if you're weird like us there's not. I found these creepy cool eyeball bottlecap pin cushions while browsing through all the entries for the Softie Awards. I kept seeing these wonderful pin cushion entries and found that they were all made by VeryBigJen. She has generously shared her method for making these little beauties with a Flickr tutorial. Thanks Jen!

Design and Illustration Goodies

2007-03-09T08:49:00.000-08:00

Here are a few links to some graphic design-y type things with an illustration site thrown in for good measure.

Create, share and search color schemes online with Adobe's Kuler.
via Spencer from Kernspiracy

Another color tool; generate a palette based on any image.
via Josh from Kernspiracy

Paul Giambarba's blog 100 Years of Illustration and Design.
via the Illustration Friday blog

Logo trends of 2006 from LogoLounge.
via Graphic Design Bar

Bazaar Bizarre at Maker Faire Application

2007-03-08T09:22:00.000-08:00

Interested in being a vendor at Bazaar Bizarre San Francisco with the Maker Faire this year? Last year was a blast and I think this year will be even better. The big news is that the craft section is being held indoors this year! This will eliminate the problem we had with windy conditions. Over 20,000 people attended and it was the first year for this event so I think the numbers are going to be much, much higher this time. The Maker Faire will be held on Saturday and Sunday, May 19th and 20th, 2007 at the San Mateo Fairgrounds. Deadline for BazBiz applications is March 25, 2007.

Grandma's Lawn Chair Redux

2007-02-28T18:22:00.000-08:00

Remember those old plastic-webbing-clad aluminum lawn chairs from your youth? The ones that your grandparents brought out for the family picnics? April from Rosewebs has found a new, and dare I say, better use for that durable but stiff webbing that was always scratchy on bare legs. She makes the cutest little zippered pouches, clutches, wallets, and messenger bags, all from lawn chair webbing. I found her through her submission to the Bazaar Bizarre/Etsy contest and had to order a little pencil pouch. It was so adorable, and so well made, I ordered a bunch more for family and friends. She uses webbing that she finds at thrift stores and home sales but which has never been used on a chair. It's a clever use for a recycled material and I love the nostalgia factor.

We'd Like to Thank the Academy...

2007-02-21T18:11:00.000-08:00

We were thrilled and honored to discover that we were the featured artist on The Little Bitty Kitty Show's Girl Power Moment! If you haven't heard of Little Bitty Kitty go check him out asap. We're featured in episode 8: John Wayne's Ghostie Must Die.

When we first started Four Idle Hands one of our goals was to reach the feline market and Little Bitty Kitty has helped us take this all-important first step. LBK is the definitive voice in feline podcasting and we can't say thank you enough.

Photo Gift Idea

2007-02-20T10:33:00.000-08:00

Need a unique and inspired gift idea? Something personal, and above all useful? Then check out PicPads, notepads created from your personal photographs. I haven't ordered them yet but I'm making a mental list of potential gift recipients. The cost is only $27.95 for four 5" x 8" or four 3.5" x 8.5" notepads and you can add an inscription. Starting March 1st they'll have color notepads available but I'm a sucker for black and white photography so I'll probably stick with the original.

Thanks to Lori for the reminder on this! (I think I may have also seen them last year on Fototiller.)

Prolific

2007-02-20T08:56:00.000-08:00

I'm reading a book about Picasso. Here is what was inventoried from all of his houses, apartments, vaults, etc. after his death. (And it took 4 years to catalogue everything by the way.)

•1,885 paintings
•7,089 drawings
•1,228 sculptures
•6,112 lithographs
•2,800 ceramics
•18,095 engravings
•3,181 prints
•149 books containing 4,659 drawings and sketches
•8 carpets and 11 tapestries

These are just the works he had in his possession. This doesn't count everything he sold or gave away throughout his life. And I think I'm doing good if I manage to get a couple of print editions out in a semester! ha!

Winners Announced!

2007-02-15T10:13:00.000-08:00

Craft magazine announced the winners of their Valentine's Day Card challenge and they're incredible! There are three winners:

Postbird by Ciana Bodini; love the map envelope. Be sure to look at her other photos so you can see what the card looks like unfolded.
Monster Valentine Card by Blythe Church. This one is a personal favorite because it opens to reveal an anatomically correct heart pin. So cute.
Altoids Tin Valentine by Emma Axelson. I love the floating frame in the lid of the tin with the little hearts suspended there.

You can see all of the entries here.

My Bloody Valentine

2007-02-07T12:21:00.000-08:00

Have you seen these Bloody Valentine earrings we have in the store? I love these little heartshaped hematite beads, and in two sizes no less. There's also a matching necklace if you're so inclined. Sorry, the knife is not included. You'll have to get your own Valentine's knife.

And if you're just not feeling the love this year maybe you'll relate to these Anti-Valentine e-cards by Meg. I especially like the "Do the Math" cards.

Someone's Got a Case of the Mondays

2007-02-05T16:48:00.000-08:00

Okay, not necessarily an official case of the Mondays; just wishing it were still Sunday. I finally have our photos up from Bazaar Bizarre. We really didn't get that many good photos. Luckily Robin took some good ones of the set-up the day before. I didn't make it upstairs for any photos at all of Swap-O-Rama-Rama and of course no sponsor shots, no DIY shots, no favorite vendor shots. sigh. Actually, I'll have to remember this for next time.....on-site professional photography would be a good service to offer at a craft show. That way one person could be dedicated to just photographing everyone in their booths and taking candids throughout the show.

On another note, some fun links:
Check out these really interesting photos by Chema Madoz. via kottke.org

Serious bookbinders rejoice - extensive tutorial on case binding from Indiana University. via the Craft blog.

Don't Go Breaking My Heart

2007-02-03T10:35:00.000-08:00

I've always loved that song by Elton John and Kiki Dee. Call me a sap but I can't resist those light-hearted pop songs of the 70's. But I digress....I really want to tell you about Craft magazine's Recycle Your Heart Valentine's Day Card Contest! Put your creative genius to work and fashion a Valentine's Day card from recycled materials. And they're not limiting it to paper either, so this is a good excuse to get crazy with found objects and unusual materials. Hurry though, the deadline for entering is Friday, February 9th at 5 pm PST. Ooooooo, one of the judges is Megan Reardon of Not Martha; I love her blog!

Splenda heart garland by Rakka.

And the Winner Is......

2007-02-02T13:47:00.000-08:00

Congratulations to JackRabbit, the first place winner of the Etsy/Bazaar Bizarre Upcycle Contest! There were around a thousand entries and believe me when I tell you it was difficult to whittle the list down. Everyone put a lot of thought and time into their projects and it was very obvious that the upcycling theme really struck a chord with a lot of folks. Over the next week or so we'll be featuring some of our personal favorites so be sure to check back. There were so many beautiful, clever, and kooky items that we just can't resist pointing them out to you. They'll really get you in the mood to think creatively and be more mindful about what you're throwing in the trash. For the complete list of winners check out the Etsy blog. Many thanks to the whole gang at Etsy, and especially Matt, for doing a stellar job with this contest!

Finally, a New Use for Post-Its®

2007-02-02T08:59:00.000-08:00

Walt must be very popular and much beloved by his coworkers because they spent a fair bit of time artfully covering his Jaguar with post-it® notes. Growing up in a household of car enthusiasts my first thought was one of concern for the finish on the car. Granted, post-it® notes are pretty benign as far as sticky stuff goes, but I wonder if they will leave any marks. heh heh We'll have to check with Steven (yes, that Steven) to get his professional opinion on the after affects of post-its® on automotive paint. In the meantime though take a look at all of the work-in-progress photos of the Jag. What I'd really like to see though is the photo of Walt's face when he went to find his car after work that day!

Found via the Flickr blog; photo by Scott Ableman.

Bag Empty - Cat Gone

2007-01-10T12:17:00.000-08:00

I'm very excited that I can finally let everyone know about the big secret project that came up in September. I wrote a linocut tutorial for the second issue of Craft magazine and it will be out any day now! (Actually, subscribers should be receiving their copies any day and it will hit newstands on January 23rd. Subscribe here if you haven't already.) The theme for Craft:02 is Creative Copies and I can't wait to see all of the other stuff they've got in there. You've probably noticed from my earlier posts that I am a bit enamored with Craft, so to be able to write for them, about printmaking no less, is beyond exciting. I'm totally geeked about it! They're such a great group of people and the whole experience was thoroughly enjoyable.

The photo above is just one example of why you won't see anything but my hands in the article photos. ha! I have a tendency to close my eyes or make some other equally goofy face when having my picture taken. And by goofy I mean weird and frightening. But I feel good about posting this one on our blog. If I can't share embarassing photos with the whole internet then what's the point of having a blog, right?

Back Amongst the Living

2007-01-04T17:02:00.000-08:00

Holy Smokes! I think the month of December gave new meaning to the word "over-committed." We're just now coming out of the fog of a whirlwind December and a much needed holiday rest.

Thank you so much to everyone who came out to Bazaar Bizarre and stopped by our booth to say hi! We had a great time, met lots of wonderful new people (Tess and Heather from Vermin and Tess, the uber-talented Jaime Zollars, and the infamous Matt from Etsy, to name a few) and reconnected with some old friends too. (Hi Karen!) Lori from Hip Line Media did a fantastic job with Swap-O-Rama-Rama. All eleven sewing stations were busy the entire day. And kudos to Marshall, silkscreener extraordinaire, who came to LA just for this event. He printed like a maniac all day and barely had time to eat lunch!

One last thank you to all of our volunteers.....it takes more work than you might imagine to put on events like the Bazaar and the Swap and we honestly couldn't do it without the generosity of like-minded folks who are all about promoting the DIY spirit. Thanks a million!

Bazaar Bizarre + Etsy Contest

2006-12-11T12:32:00.000-08:00

You could be a winner! Bazaar Bizarre has teamed up with our wonderful sponsor Etsy to bring you this amazing contest which will bestow upon the winner a free booth at Bazaar Bizarre San Francisco, which is held inside the Maker Faire, along with airfare and hotel accommodations. (Well, up to $1,000 anyway.) The theme of the contest is "upcycling" a term coined by William McDonaugh and Michael Braugart in their book on ecologically intelligent design, Cradle to Cradle. Here's an excerpt from the Etsy contest page:

In the simplest terms, upcycling is the practice of taking something that is disposable and transforming it into something of greater use and value. In this contest we challenge all Etsy users to create an object to sell on Etsy that is comprised of materials that would have otherwise ended up in the trash heap.

Take a look at all the great entries that have been submitted already. You can find more details about the contest and submission guidelines here. Go ahead and open your own Etsy store while you're at it. You'll be glad you did.

Everybody's Working for the Wiikend

2006-12-10T06:51:00.000-08:00

We picked up our new Nintendo game system a couple of weeks ago, the Wii, and let me tell you, this thing is a work of pure genius. We're not hardcore gamers by any means, so I hesitated to even blog about it, but then I realized that's the true beauty of the Wii; its accessibility to anyone! I'm lefthanded and have always had issues with "normal" handheld controllers. Computer games were fine as long as I could use the mouse and keyboard, but even joysticks presented a problem if there was a "fire" button on the side. Our most recent console purchase was the GameCube and I hardly ever played it because it was backwards. I thought I would be able to find a left-handed controller for it but alas, there is no such thing. So you can imagine how excited I was when my husband told me about this new thing called Wii. (I agree, they missed the mark on the name, but the controllers and the functionality make up for it.) The main controller is about the size of a tennis racket handle, which is very convenient for playing the Wii Sports tennis game, and an additional joystick controller attaches to the remote with a cord. Having these two components separate makes a lot of ergonomic sense and makes me wonder why it hasn't been done before now. Even for rightys it's an easier, more comfortable position for your hands and arms. The Wii controllers are sensitive to motion and position in relation to a sensor bar you set on top of your television. You get to move as if you were the game character. This is what makes the sports games so fun and also what has already led to cases of tennis elbow. I can vouch for the fact that even though you know it's a virtual game, and you know you don't really have to swing it that hard, it's difficult not to when you're trying to slam the ball over the net. And this is also why the remote comes with a wrist strap! We're still figuring out all of the Wii's bells and whistles so stay tuned for more updates.

Will It Blend?

2006-11-22T11:38:00.000-08:00

Robin has discovered the Holy Grail of blenders! Does everyone else already know about these blenders? You've got to go to this site and check out the videos. They're divided into two categories, Don't Try This at Home, and Try This at Home. I haven't even looked at the Try This at Home videos yet because the Don't videos are so much fun. I think it's the cheesy 70's music that adds the perfect touch. Check out the Thanksgiving dinner blend and the Movie blend. Oh, and you have to see the Marbles! I can barely get my blender to chunk up a couple of ice cubes and this thing is turning marbles into dust. They're not cheap, but the ability to make every single meal into a milkshake would be well worth it.

Quirky Collectors Unite!

2006-11-16T09:49:00.000-08:00

Angelica over at Swapatorium is compiling a list of people interested in helping each other with additions to their quirky collections. And by quirky she means things that might seem "worthless" to the uninitiated. Things like business cards, worn photos, gum wrappers, buttons, you get the idea. I signed up for ticket stubs! hooray! Members send stuff (for free) to other members on the list to help them build their collections. She's only allowing one collection item per person, and she won't list duplicates. So once she has someone down for take-out menus, which she does, she won't add anyone else who collects those. Sounds fun, huh? If you wanna play hop on over to the site and sign up. And take a few minutes to visit the rest of the site, there are some really great finds!

Open Call for Swap-O-Rama-Rama

2006-11-09T11:21:00.000-08:00

You may have already heard that Bazaar Bizarre is presenting Swap-O-Rama-Rama this year but did you know it marks the Swap's debut in Southern California? SORR is a huge clothing swap and DIY event where folks bring in bags of unwanted clothes, sort throught the piles that everyone else brought and pick as many new things as they'd like, and then hit the various DIY sewing, embroidery and silkscreening stations to create wonderful new things. It's going to be a lot of fun and of course the best part is we're helping people express their creativity through clothing while keeping textile waste out of the landfills.
Right now we're having an Open Call for designers, silkscreeners, seamstresses, and DIY types of all kinds to participate in this event. We also need people to help sort as we're anticipating approximately 10,000 lbs. of free clothes! More details are in this PDF, or you can email Lori from Hip Line Media to volunteer now.

Fly the Coop to Giant Robot

2006-11-06T13:11:00.000-08:00

Talented illustrator/artist Susie Ghahremani of BoyGirlParty fame has a solo show opening at Giant Robot in Los Angeles this weekend. Here's an excerpt from GR's site:

"For Bird Call, Ghahremani is creating an expanded collection of animals, invented creatures, patterns, and color studies. There will be about 150 gouache paintings on wood, board, and paper. Dimensions range from “mini” to “not so mini.”

The opening reception will be held Saturday, November 11, 2006 from 6:30 p.m. to 10:00 p.m. at GR2 which is located at 2062 Sawtelle Blvd.

Dia de los Muertos

2006-11-01T10:50:00.000-08:00

I've been reading up on Day of the Dead and it's very interesting. Apparently it goes from October 31 through November 2nd, which I did not know. We were throwing around some ideas for a contest, or promo, or a related product launch, but the fall is so busy for us we just ran out of time. Let me point out these skull jingle bell earrings though. They're the newest item in our growing collection of skull jewelry products.

Here are some other awesome skeleton products we found on Etsy:
-cute skeleton holiday cards from catboxartstudio

-adorable little amigurumi skeleton from NeedleNoodles

-cutest skeleton plush ever from blacklilypie

Sneak Peak

2006-10-30T14:32:00.000-08:00

What is this you ask? We've got something big brewing here at the casa de cuatro manos ociosas. (Any spanish speakers out there feel free to correct my junior high spanish.) This is but a glimpse of a super-terrific top-secret project we're working on....keep checking back and we'll spill the beans as soon as we can.

Trick or Treat

2006-10-27T08:17:00.000-07:00

This is what halloween costumes looked like in the early 1970s in Trenton, New Jersey. They were homemade and they were FABULOUS! Thanks to our very crafty parents of course. That's me on the left as a cigar/cigarette girl.....uh what? I know, I know, sounds weird to me too but Robin pointed out that maybe it was more "kitschy" back then. All I know is I got to stock that cigarette tray with bubble gum cigars and candy cigarettes and a nice little sugar buzz trumps all when you're a kid. (Actually it still does.) That's our brother Steven in the middle (yes, *that* Steven) and he's dressed up as a boat-racer, complete with cardboard boat. Boat racing was very popular back east at that time and our Dad was really into it. He even built his own wooden boat completely from scratch. Hence, the boat-racer costume. That's Robin on the right and trust me when I tell you this is the only time we will ever see her as a blonde. And it's a little weird. Cute, but not "her" at all. I'm not sure why she couldn't have been a brunette Little Red but I guess donning the wig made it seem more like a costume. I always loved that little red cape.
So the ulterior motive for this post is Craft's Halloween Trick or Treat contest. You should check it out, there's still time to enter. Have I mentioned how much I love that magazine?

The New Phone Books Are Here!

2006-10-24T21:27:00.000-07:00

Craft magazine is out and it's bee-you-tee-ful! It's jam-packed with cool projects and interesting articles, all wrapped up in a nice clean design. It is a little pricey from the newstand ($14.99) so it's a much better deal to subscribe. (Don't forget, if you're an Etsy seller you can get 5 issues for the price of 4.) And, if you think about it, since it's quarterly the cost-per-month price is about the same as other magazines. I scanned in some pages showing the great coverage for Etsy and Etsy sellers, just in case you haven't seen it yet. And, for fellow SoCal locals, you won't want to miss the launch party this Saturday, October 28, 11 am to 3 pm.

Things are going to start happening to me now.

-Navin R. Johnson

Chlorophyll Printing

2006-10-24T11:36:00.000-07:00

Found the artwork of Binh Danh over at Boing Boing this morning. Simply amazing! I'm actually surprised someone hasn't thought of this before. He uses the process of photosynthesis in leaves to create photographic prints. I will definitely need to try this for myself because the possibilities are mind boggling. (I love anything that involves photography and have a great collection of old family negatives. Being able to "print" photos onto leaves would be so cool!) He puts the leaf into a little bag of water to keep it alive, lays it flat onto a board with a negative and a piece of glass on top and "bakes" it in the sun. Here is the link to a gallery of his work, an article with him from two years ago, and an article about a similar process. All of these links are from Boing Boing.