Some Geek Stitch
It’s Friday Fun time again! Me thinks this is gonna become a regular thing. Especially as it’s getting colder and I’m cuddled up on the couch wrapped in blankets!
So today I’m going to show you some nerdy stitch fun.
I often say to people who wonder why I’m convinced that cross stitch is cool that cross stitch is just like pixel art, just heaps slower.
So I loved it when I found this one:
It’s from the Subversive Cross Stitch photo pool at Flickr but I found it at this site, which has a lovely wee feature of this website! I don’t quite get what the post says ’cause it’s in Italian and I couldn’t get a very good translation of it all.
But I also LOVED this stitch.
If anyone can tell me where it came from, I’d be really interested to know.
OK so back on to the nerd theme… Im sure I’ve pointed out this site before but if not, check out spritestitch.com which has this AWESOME Teenage Mutant Ninja Turtles pattern. I was about 9 when the original series came out so there’s a real special place in my heart for the Turtles. Although I could never figure out why my pizza wasn’t as stretchy as theirs. I used to think I had to go to america to get stretchy pizza, but then I figured out animation…
I can’t wait to see this one finished!
Which brings me back to pixel art and quite possibly the most amazing WIP I’ve ever seen. So the story goes like this: I was at the Craft Cartel market in the beginning of February and one of our lovely stall holders said ‘hey check out this cross stitch’ and pulled out this bit of fabric wrapped in plastic.
It was this:
Which is a pattern design by Tea Party Revolution from the original drawing of aforementioned stall holder Lilly Kitten
I was floored! It is done on the tiniest canvas (22 count!) and it’s amazing. It’s even got silver thread accents in it. Which we all know is more unpleasant to work with than the plague.
Here’s an up-close of a small part of one eye lid to give you an idea of the level of detail
So I emailed the genius behind it all and this is the story she gave me:
It’s a piece known as Dirty Angel and her pattern is a work in progress (she is made from the original pattern, the revised and better pattern is being worked on). The original design is one of the LillyKitten design range, an original of which you can see here (and above):
As for her – she is roughly 43″ by 34″, and stitched on 22 count Aida using just over 180 different colours from the DMC colour range of stranded cotton. None of the colours are blended, at the moment anyway. So far she has taken roughly 2 years to do, since she enjoys frustrating the hell out of me as I attempt to change colours. She also enjoys making me frog her.
180 colours!! That is absolute insanity! 2 years! eek! holy crap wow! I wish I had the patience for stuff like this. I’ve started two big projects and that’s as far as they got… started.
Tea Party Revolution also sells her own cross stitch kits which we’ll hopefully see soon at the Craft Cartel and online. Will let you know when that happens.
There’s more WIP shots and other stuff here
Finally for Friday Fun, this one is slightly off topic but it’s still xstitch, or should that be X-Rated stitch, and also from the SCS pool:
Says it all really.
Have a good weekend!
xox
Sayin It Like It Is
I love the BLF. This is the sort of stuff I would love to do if I was organised and clever enough. I tend to restrict my billboard liberation to the occasional scrawling on tram shelter ads. And then only when I get really incensed by offensive condescending advertising. Especially the stuff that tells me how much of a better mother I’d be if I bought more stuff*.
So yeah, love this one. Here’s their press release:
FOR IMMEDIATE RELEASE
February 27, 2008
San Francisco, CAThe Billboard Liberation Front today announced a major new advertising improvement campaign executed on behalf of clients AT&T and the National Security Agency. Focusing on billboards in the San Francisco area, this improvement action is designed to promote and celebrate the innovative collaboration of these two global communications giants.
“This campaign is an extraordinary rendition of a public-private partnership,” observed BLF spokesperson Blank DeCoverly. “These two titans of telecom have a long and intimate relationship, dating back to the age of the telegraph. In these dark days of Terrorism, that should be a comfort to every law-abiding citizen with nothing to hide.”
AT&T initially downplayed its heroic efforts in the War on Terror, preferring to serve in silence behind the scenes. “But then we realized we had a PR win on our hands,” noted AT&T V.P. of Homeland Security James Croppy. “Not only were we helping NSA cut through the cumbersome red tape of the FISA system, we were also helping our customers by handing over their e-mails and phone records to the government. Modern life is so hectic – who has time to cc the feds on every message? It’s a great example of how we anticipate our customers’ needs and act on them. And, it should be pointed out, we offered this service free of charge.”
Commenting on the action, and responding to questions about pending privacy litigation and the stalled Congressional effort to shield the telecoms from these lawsuits, NSA spokesperson [REDACTED] remarked: “[REDACTED] we [REDACTED] condone [REDACTED] warrantless [REDACTED], [REDACTED] SIGINT intercepts, [REDACTED] torture [REDACTED] information retrieval by [REDACTED] means necessary.”
“It’s a win-win-win situation,” noted the BLF’s DeCoverly. “NSA gets the data it needs to keep America safe, telecom customers get free services, and AT&T makes a fortune. That kind of cooperation between the public and private sectors should serve as a model to all of us, and a harbinger of things to come.”
Come see the improvement at 14th St. and Valencia St. in San Francisco
The BLF (www.billboardliberation.com) has been improving outdoor advertising since 1977. Prior campaigns have included work for Exxon, R.J. Reynolds, and Apple Computers.
AT&T (www.att.com) is America’s favorite telecommunications trust. Based in San Antonio, Texas, it has over 300,000 employees and annual revenues of $117 Billion.
NSA (www.nsa.gov) is the largest intelligence organization in the world. Headquartered at Fort Meade, Maryland, its budget, personnel, products, and services are all classified.
Blank DeCoverly
BLF Minister of Propaganda
More including video here. Props: Just Seeds.
* And to the wanna-be cop at Parliament who thought he had the right to give me a parenting lesson, stop being a tool and start being a spanner. Prick.
More on Poo
This one isn’t quite so fun…
As someone from Aotearoa living in Australia, I get really fired up when I see people back home with such blatant disregard for the future of our environment. Especially in the farming community who KNOW how hard it is for the farming community over here when it comes to water shortages.
I agree that it’s time for Fonterra to get serious about this issue. They obviously understand the importance of a clean environment for the future of their business. It’s about time they started giving the farmers some serious incentives to sort their shit out, so to speak.
The Onion takes on owls
Oh how I love The Onion.
I also really love owls (it’s my one cutesy indulgence).
So I love, love this tshirt!
It brought tears to my eyes.
Knit, Poo
People who know me know I get really amused by poo. Don’t ask me why. I don’t find farts anywhere near as funny. I’ve even been known to cross stitch a poo or two.
So check how cool this is
But wait there’s more. It’s full of pot pourri! How good is that?
It’s by knitter knitphomaniac. Sorry I can’t find the link to the original post. (props: Whip up).
So speaking of nice smelling things…
I have a wee product I’d like to share with you. I made these a little while ago and I’ve nearly sold them all. I might make some more, not sure yet…
So presenting, the Ninja Wardrobe Scenter!
Lavender-filled
Keep your clothes smelling nice
And protect them from pirates.
I really, like these. They’re heaps of fun to make, although my craft room stinks of lavender. Should I keep making these?
Unfortunately since these are full of lavender I can’t post them overseas so they’re exclusive to the Craft Cartel Market. If you really, really want one, you should be at Section 8 Bar on Monday night!
I have another similar item in the development stage at the mo, stay tuned.
xox
I want! I want!
I’m not one of those people who collects bags and shoes. I did try to be one of those people once but I failed.
But seriously, how awesome is this bag?
Hand tooled, dyed and stitched. Bag Dimensions, roughly: 7″ tall, 9″ long, 3″ thick. One of a kind….
All stress points are both riveted and stitched to make for an extra sturdy bag. Closure is a magnetic clasp. Celtic rivet conchos accent the strap and body of the bag.
The design is a combination of the Peace symbol and the Anarchy symbol, which i enjoy calling Peaceful Anarchy.
It’s made by Etsy seller oakandacorn and I love it. I just wish I could afford it!
It must be so nice to make these wonderful things and know that one day someone is going to come along that it was just made for. And that person will treasure it for the rest of their lives.
Ah handmade bliss.
Hoop-La #1 & 2
Finally I got round to putting this one online. I put it together in September…
So presenting Hoop-La! The zine for radical cross stitch and craftivism.
Issue 1 is full of pictures of finished work and rants by various people. I used photocopied fabric as the backgrounds for the different pages and it looks real pretty.
You can pick up yourself a copy here. Let me know if you want a copy to copy for a zine store or library and I can send you an un-stapled version.
This is also a call out for Issue 2. So if you have a little rant written about craft and politics or you’ve got some finished stuff that needs to be seen, please send it in by March 31.
Issue 2 is also going to feature an exclusive pattern!
Awesome site
This one is a big heads up to all the cool kids in Melbourne who like to keep up with all the latest alternative fun things going on and places to visit.
Underground Melbourne is a blog that will keep you up to date with the best shops, bars and happenings. They were lovely enough to feature the Craft Cartel!
A blog homage to the hidden corners and less-traversed beauties of Melbourne. Covering food, shopping, architecture, subcultures, events and whatever other small pockets of oddity seem endearing and exciting. This blog will be an evergrowing ode to all that is small scale, passionate, uncompromising and even challenging about Melbourne – and defines it as the city I love.
So send their rss the way of your favourite feeder now!
Art Jam is #1!
In the weekend I went to the innaugural Art Jam at Section 8 Bar (yip, same place where we have the craft cartel markets). Art Jam is a giant DiY fest.
We provide the materials – you provide the creativity
It will be like the bastard love child of the Iron Chef & Melbourne’s fartsiest artsiest scenesters – a little bit freaky looking but nonetheless deserving of our unconditional love.
And there’s prizes!
Each week there’s a mystery object which needs to be included. This week it was a condom.
We got there a bit (ok a lot) late and things were well and truly under way and there was heaps of amazing finished art and tons of buzzing artists furiously creating. I thought there was plenty of cool people doing it already so I could be happy just sitting on the side watching and drinking champagne.
But then I had a quick flash of inspiration and whipped up a creation to enter.
It was the first time we sent the kid off to the grandparents for the night. So it was kind of an in-joke. It certainly got a few laughs.
I even managed to win a couple of drink vouchers!
And afterwards I decided to stick it up in the alleyway. I’m turning it into my own wee gallery.
I had so much fun and I can’t wait to enter again. Luckily it’s on EVERY WEEKEND! So if you want to have fun being creative while hanging in a cool bar with lots of cool creative types, then Art Jam is definitely for you!
Oh and I totally recommend Agwa, especially if it’s drunk from these super cute wee shot glasses. If only I could remember the name of the bar…
Upcycling greatness
let me introduce you to one of the stall holders at the Melbourne Craft Cartel Market. Dan is the man and he has a label called Nearly Roadkill.
Nearly Roadkill is a bag and accessory label established in 2006 by Dan Vaughan. The bags are made out of recycled car uphoistery, just saved from their fate as roadkill.
Dan makes wallets and messenger bags, back packs and hand bags and they’re all handmade.
And they’re really hot!
(so is Dan incidentally, I always get a couple of people come up to me and ask me what his marital status is. I don’t know, for the record. And I hope he doesn’t mind me saying this. Hopefully he’ll be flattered that lots of people think he’s hot.)
I can’t show you any pictures, you have to go look at his site. Or come and see them in person at the next Market (March 3, diaries)
And while we’re on the theme of ace upcycled bags, check these babies out
The brain child of Motor City Handbags, they’re made out of that orange stuff they use on construction sites. Super cute and very, very strong. I could definitely see one of these in action at the Footscray Market.
They also make seatbelt bags, like this diaper bag (or nappy bag as us who don’t live in the US tend to refer to them as).
I love people who think of the parents!
For those of you who don’t know, upcycling is a term which means to take an objects (usually waste, or unwanted) and reconstruct it into something of value. And it’s a super, brilliant, crafty way of saving the planet.