Alice and Grace's blog is one of my favorites these days. Knitting, sewing and spinning, I'm not sure there's a craft out there these two won't try. Which I love, because I'm totally like that too, just can't confine myself to one craft, no matter how hard I try. Grace's recent Vintage Velvet scarf (from Scarf Style,) had me drooling! In the book, I merely liked the pattern; but in a more vibrant color, and lots more photos - it's simply stunning, and I must make one for myself. LOL
They have a great extras section, with tutorials and patterns. My (current) favorite is the DPN pouches. Clear directions and pictures, and tips to make them larger or smaller; if you're a beginner, this would be a fantastic first sewn project. Even if you're more experienced, the envelope pouch could be used for all sorts of storage needs. How about pen pockets, or pouches for makeup or even wider pouches for DVDs! They also have a Review section, which is such an awesome idea! Right now, it's yarns and needles, but I have no doubt books will follow soon. It can be tough to decide what yarn, pattern or book to buy, so more information can be a great help! Their blog is relatively new, but I can already tell it's going to be a great resource for lots of crafters. I think sharing projects and ideas can really spark inspiration, and love finding new blogs that do just that! Alice & Grace, I LOVE your blog, and can't wait to see what you'll both do next!
Go check out their Etsy store for their first knit patterns, Hawkeye and Kiddie Cadet Hats. They're super cute, and great for boys and girls! I should get the pattern to make a lilac one for myself, but I'm fairly scared of short-rows! (I know, I'm a knitting chicken! LOL)
Wendy's blog, Knit & Tonic is one of my most favorite, knitting or otherwise. Her patterns are amazing, I'm currently working on sizing down Le Slouch for my Blythe dolls! LOL I'm terrible at getting gauge though, so we'll see how long it takes me! I'm also pretty frustrated with DPN's... anybody got any tricks for a gal that feels awkward hanging onto all those extra futzy things? LOL
Wendy is an awesomely talented knitter, blogger, mother and wife. I can always count on her blog to make me laugh, and her finished objects are to-DIE-for! Plus, she just knits like the wind! I thought my sister was the fastest knitter I'd ever seen, and then I caught Wendy on tv - amazing! I wish I could knit that fast! I'd conquer the world with all of the FO's I could post about! And isn't she stunningly beautiful?!?!?! (I wish I was brave enough to post pictures of me on my blog, but I always feel like I look like a grump in photos! And it's super hard to photograph yourself... LOL!)
There's something about Wendy's writing that I really admire, and that's how personal she dares to be on her blog. I would love to gain that kind of openness in my writing; I tend to lean towards sarcastically detached. LOL Blogging can be a very fine line, I think. And I really enjoy and admire Wendy's balance. Even if you're not a knitter, you'll still appreciate her humor. She'll even make you sort milk out of your nose if you're not careful! :)
ETA: Thanks Wendy for letting me use your photo!
Laura's blog, Frog Is A Four Letter Word, is so much fun to read! It's quickly becoming one of my favorite knitting blogs, because her writing is so personal! I think there can sometimes be a tendency in the blog-o-sphere to want to polish everything to perfection before publishing. That's not to say I think her blog or writing is unpolished (at all!), but that it's polished just enough and no more. Her writing style is so accessible, I feel like she doesn't try to be anything she isn't, for the sake of blogging; and I really admire that. I really try to portray a certain image of myself on my blog, and that's probably more to do with letting my guard down (and that I don't that much.) I have issues, what can I say? LOL
I also absolutely love her Etsy shop, and am scratching my head as to why I haven't bought these awesome vintage embroidery buttons; aren't they awesome?!?! She tries a lot of different styles with her products, which I think is key to any Etsy store; because the market is so large, and people's personal styles vary so widely. Just because we as the seller might love some product's style or color doesn't mean it appeals to everyone. I also love that she also sells vintage trim (which I also should have bought already, what's friggen wrong with me? LOL) If you haven't checked her out, please do so! She donates a portion of sales to charity, which is another thing I really admire in her. Plus, I just love her blog title! Frog is a four letter word! LOL She's also a fellow Chicagoan, so I knew I just had to Spotlight her! Laura, you ROCK! :)
Alice's blog, FutureGirl, rocks my socks off! LOL I found her blog through Whiplash, and her Octophrost is probably my favorite, although her felt sewing tutorial is awesome too! LOL She's got an awesome Etsy store, with cute bags & clutches like this little number! (Click on the pic to go there!)
I'm so amazed by how many wonderful crafters share their lives through blogs. It can be very time consuming, and sometimes not as fun as we might've hoped it would always be. When I start feeling down about my work/blog/life, all I have to do is visit one of many new blog friends, and I'm refreshed and inspired, motivated and moved. Alice is such a sweetheart, and her blog is one of those I turn to for those very things, so thank you Alice! She also has a wonderful tutorial section with lots of awesome tips! Gotta love a great tut! Go visit!
I love getting recommendations for new blogs to spotlight here, so please feel free to leave a comment or email me with them!
Alright, I confess! I've been a lazy, bum ass blogger this week! Normally I spend a little time over the weekend, preparing posts so that during the week, I can just click "Publish!" But, I didn't this last weekend, and it's left me feeling like I didn't do my homework for class on Monday! LOL I thought to myself, "Self, how can this still work?" And I came up with something! (This is kind of a big deal, because a lot of times, it's easy to get stuck on the problem, instead of the solution.)I've been doing my Blogger Spotlight posts for a few weeks now, so I thought a recap might be in order. Some you probably know, and some maybe not, but I hope you enjoy them all!
- Warm Fuzzies - Her stories are so adorable, and full of character (not to mention her photography and her stuffies rock!)
- Betz White - (Whose new book is ironically titled Warm Fuzzies! LOL) Makes the yummiest recycled sweater goodies!
- Girl on the Rocks - Karrie's patterns are wonderful for destashing, and she's a serious Whiplash competitor!
- Wee Wonderfuls - Hillary's blog was the very first craft blog I ever visited! I continue to read, she's got the cutest stuffie & embroidery patterns, check out her freebie section!
- Crafty Bits @ Planet June - June has got to be one of the sweetest bloggers I know! And she makes the cutest fuzzy amigurumi pal patterns!
- Posie Gets Cozy - Alicia is such an inspiring talent, her blog is so lovely both in words and images.
- Keep on Knitting in the Free World - Star is such an amazing artist! Her eye for color is impeccable, and I love how much she plays around with her spinning!
I first found Star's blog through her Fiber Friday posts on Craftster. When she posted her Tiffany handspun with pearls, I knew I had to get in contact with her! She also had some amazing yarn with sea shells spun into it! I knew they'd sell fast, (and they did!) so I wanted to see if she'd be interested in a personal trade with me. And she was! We're actually working on items for each other right now, but I knew I wanted to feature her blog her on mine! Her handspun is gorgeous, and she also has an awesome Etsy store. I'm in awe every Friday, and each Friday she has something new!
Consistency has been a real focus of mine over the last couple of months, and I really admire how consistent Star is with her craft. It's hard to do anything over and over again, consistently I think. You go girl! LOL I also really love how much she plays around with different things. Colors, textures, bits & bobs to add in, there's always something new on her blog! I love how much fun her yarns are, and I'm so glad we decided to swap with each other. I can only hope she likes what I'm making as much!
I've really enjoyed featuring different blogs every week, but I'm not sure if I've accomplished what I set out to, in that I wanted to share my favorite blogs, in the hope that you might too! But, I haven't gotten that many links to new blogs (or ones I already read,) so I'm not sure how long I will continue with it. Got an opinion? I'd LOVE to hear it! I wish I had more time to look for new blogs and bloggers, but starting a new store is very time consuming, and I just don't have the same amount of time to surf around that I used to. Pretty please leave a link to your favorite blog, or yours! Pretty, pretty please with a cherry on top???
Alicia's blog, Posie Gets Cozy, is amazing! Her latest project, the Ripple Blanket, has spurred a huge online community to ripple and de-stash, all at the same time! I'm not very good at crochet, otherwise I'd probably already have started one for myself! LOL Her posts are truly heartwarming, and they really captivate me. I've always been a visual person, so when I started reading a blog with multiple paragraphs per post; I knew she had a special quality, that I both admire and aspire to. Don't get me wrong, her photos are GORGEOUS! But her words are so touching and personal. I should say positively personal, because I sometimes struggle with feeling like the personal things I share on my blog are too "fishing for sympathy/compliments/attention" or negative. I try and keep things happy & light, but life doesn't always go along with those plans! I don't want to come across as a whiner, but I think there's a balance in between not sharing anything negative, and sharing too much. Alicia's found a balance, and it's refreshing for me to see (that it can be achieved.) Go check her out, and the Ripple-along! (She's also one of the judges for the Softie Awards! Good luck Wee Curvy Kitten!)I'd also really love to hear what you're favorite blogs are! I'm always looking for new ones to read, and it's a little tougher now that I don't have time to Google for them! Who's your favorites? How bout yours? Link them here! Pretty please?!?!?!
June's blog, Crafty Bits @ Planet June is a great source of inspiration to me. I found her through Whiplash, and her great projects including a denim hair band, autumn bracelet, crochet & satin evening bag and quilted tea cozy are just a few of my favorites!
She's also been working on fun fuzzy crochet animals and you can buy her patterns for fuzzy bears, bunnies, chicks & lambs here. There's a contest on her blog to find a new animal for her next fuzzy crochet pattern; and the winner gets the pattern of their choice! I'm rooting for fuzzy fox next! LOL The contest end on March 10th, so go vote!
And June, don't think I missed your Fimo R2D2!!! I can't wait to see it when it's finished!
Hillary's blog was actually the first craft blog I ever visited last year! I was looking for toy patterns, I'd already made a bunch of home décor items, and wanted something 3D that wasn't too big of a project. I found her Pointy Kitty pattern, and knew I had to jump (headfirst!) into the crafty-blogging community. She's amazingly talented, and her toy & embroidery patterns are adorable! If you haven't seen her blog, quit reading & go now! It's that good!She has a wonderful freebies section in her store, and her items usually go like hotcakes! I've been wanting her robot stuffy pattern ever since it came out; but I have so many projects going on right now, I just couldn't add one more to it! (It's totally on my wish list, I just know I'll spend a while picking fabrics out, though! LOL) She's also one of the judges for the Softy Awards, which I'm super excited about. I don't envy the judges task of finding a winner in each category, though! There's tons! (I threw my Pointy Kitty, and his lil sis, Wee Curvy Kitten in the mix - wish them luck!)Her store is packed with fun crafty items, including these Stitchette embroidery patterns, the Robot stuffy I mentioned, and much, much more! Go take a look!
I found Girl On The Rocks through Whiplash, and I knew I had to add her to my RSS reader. She makes cute and very practical items, and I just love her style! Her atari themed altoid tin had me doubled over with laughter when I saw it - I knew it'd make a comeback sooner or later! LOL Seriously, though - the detail on the tin is awesome! It's even got a faux wood-grain interior! Check out her Etsy store for it and lots more - including bacon buttons! You'll love these Shirley! :P 
She's also written some cool patterns, I love the Drip coasters made from leftover sock yarn; and Shirley recently made a tissue cover from her Sniffles tissue cover pattern. I'm contemplating sizing up her beer cozy pattern, King's Cozy, for a wine bottle - my husband and I love full bodied reds!
I also had to bookmark her because we share the same name (even if she spells it differently than I do, it still starts with a K! LOL)
I really like spotlighting blogs I enjoy, and I'd love to hear about your favorite blogs too! I'm always looking for new ones, so please send me an email or leave a comment with your suggestions! Thanks!
Ok, so admittedly she's already a craft-blogging superstar, but I couldn't resist linking to Betz White's blog this week. She makes the most incredibly delicious looking cupcakes out of recycled sweaters, among many other wonderful goodies. If you have some old sweaters laying around, try her felted brooch tutorial, or her cutie pie! (I'm sooo scouting the right colors for both of these right now!)If you're lucky enough to live in/around the Minneapolis area, she'll be teaching a couple workshops at the Sewing Lounge this spring - one on recycling sweaters, one on shibori felting. I wish I could attend, I absolutely love taking a sharp pair of scissors to old sweaters! LOL
She also has a new book coming out soon, I can't wait! LOL I believe she's shooting photos for it very soon. Betz, I hope you get lots of awesome photos, and you have a wonderful trip! I wonder when pre-orders start?!?! :D
I'd like to try something new this year, and spotlight other bloggers that I enjoy and admire. Some might not be all that new, there's so many superstars out here in Blogland! LOL I hope you'll find both the new and old fun and inspiring, and I'd love to hear what blogs you love, too!
First up is an amazingly talented friend of mine, Shirley from Warm Fuzzies. Her stuffies are absolutely adorable, and I love the quality of her photography. What I think really sets her apart though, is her stories - and how she writes them.
They're never too sweet for me, (I hate super-sweet all the time, I like balanced sweet.) She puts so much personality into her finished objects, through her words; I really admire her ability, and aspire to it myself! I hope you enjoy perusing her blog, it's filled with fun things to be inspired by, and great tutorials!
I think we've all felt this way about a project or two...
But the evil side of my conscience says, "But he was your first intarsia project, he sings the doom song, *and* he can dance. Plus, he can make bacon soap. And he's pink. Just look at him, he's so comfy on your bed already..." And I snapped. I just had to have him. Shame on me.
No shame, Shirley... we really feel you! (Especially because the second of almost anything I make is just a little bit better! LOL) Maybe not so much about that bacon soap, though.... ha!
