Completed penguin iPod case!

So here's the completed iPod case for my mom. See the work-in-progress post here. It took a long time to figure out how everything would fit together. The clasp mechanism (aka embroidery floss and button) ended up being pretty useless, but I don't really have the gusto to redo it. It would have been a lot better if I just did a fastener like the thread around the button (like those legal envelopes!) but I only thought of that after. I did get that puffy look in all of the penguins as I wanted. There are lots of layers on that back pannel! The adult penguin was 4 layers, the baby was 5. The ice at the bottom isn't as 'icey' as I wanted it to look. It was supposed to be sort of a cross section of the ice, but it looked a lot better on paper. It's also a little too wide for an iPod, but I couldn't really fix that by the time I figured that out! I think I just thought about this project WAY to hard, haha. Anyways, here are the pictures.

The back of the case!

Felted iPod case WIP

I figured I should post the 'in progress' photos before the finished product. So here are the pieces of the iPod case I was making for my mom's belated birthday present! Penguins? Yes.

Mamma penguin + intense iPod schematics. I did a lot of work trying to plan out how to construct the case itself. How it turned out was less spectacular than what I had planned, but on well!!


Mamma and Baby penguin!!

Some baby penguin love!

Stay tuned for the completed case!

Plaaaants + Butt Dance.

So yes, I have become a plant freak. Here are some photos I took late January of my (comparably small to now) plant collection!!

Dwarf Sunflowers!! They are amazing. They also grow like weeds. Which is also amazing.

My windowsill set up of Mason jars! Also: the gorgeous view of the house across from us. Not.

Books books, lovely books!

Last night I just finished reading this tasty little mystery by Alan Bradley, The Sweetness at the Bottom of the Pie. It was recommended to me when I was working at Cafe Books by a coworker! This book is just quirky enough for me to love it. The character of Flavia de Luce is an 11 year old chemist, enthralled with the art of poisons and chemical compounds. She's clever and sneaky, but can she solve the murder of Buckshaw and prove her father's innocence?

Anyways, this is a super fantastic book for anyone who's looking for a fairly quick read filled with old fashioned alchemy and the rich writing style that Alan Bradley has. The next book, The Weed that Strings the Hangman's Bag is due out this March!!

Check out the Flavia de Luce fanclub!

In other news, I'm just sewing away at my mother's belated birthday present. Close to being done, it has been a frustrating one. I just hope the end result turns out better than I expect! Pictures to be posted shortly.

Christmas Gifties!

So I thought I'd post a bunch of the Christmas felties I made, at long last. This year I decided to do a theme, after much deliberation, I decided on marine animals. Each ornament came with a card with a little inked sketch of the animal plus a list of facts (from Wikipedia, no less!).

One, unfortunately, seems to have gotten lost in the mail, so I'll be making another one to replace it before long. But most of them turned out pretty fine and I did make a lot of them!! I'll also be posting some gardening pictures a little later on. I do love to garden (well, as much as I can garden in a town house, anyways). And I just landed a job at a local gardening center! Oh happy day!

Enjoy!

Dad's Birthday Card!!

I've had the concept for the front for a while, and it didn't really turn out the way I'd imagined it to. I can't draw bicycles very well, as you can clearly see. I should have layered the front a little more, raising the bike frame so it could overlap the buttons and not just look like two buttons with scribbles behind it!