OK Go and White Knuckles: Soundtrack for Flint Handmade?

Posted by Crystal

Among my friends, it's no secret that I absolutely adore the band OK Go.  I was introduced to them about 10 years ago on a road trip to a women's issues conference in Connecticut and it has been a musical love affair ever since.  They have just the right mix of intellectual lyrics, snappy beats and boyish charm.  ;)

AND...now they have a wonderfully creative music video featuring doggies!!!

Ruh-roh!  I freakin' love doggies!!!

AND...wanna know the best part? 

The song is called White Knuckles.  As you lovely blog readers know, Flint Handmade's logo features some fabulously badass knuckles!

What I really want to do is create a music video of photos from past FH events with White Knuckles as the soundtrack.  How awesome would that be?!?!

Until then, though, here is the official OK Go White Knuckles video for your viewing pleasure:



If the full video width doesn't fit on your screen, you can just watch White Knuckles directly on YouTube.

Special thanks to my bff Tunde and my bf Tom for bringing this video to my attention...my guys know how much I love OK Go and doggies!

Craft Supply Swap August 2010

Posted by Crystal

Flint Handmade hosted our 3rd Craft Supply Swap in August 2010.  We had our highest turnout yet...about 40 people showed up to swap FREE craft supplies! 

FH Director of Technology Michelle of Aisle 3 shows off the fabulous fabric she picked up.

Mother and daughter both want the FREE beads!

Becky of AudreyBelle1910 prepares to stuff her sweet FH tote with FREE supplies!

Nicole checks out the awesome fabric tables.

Mary rocks her FH shirt and scores some needlepoint patterns!

Ali's friends from Mexico had never been to a Craft Supply Swap before...they LOVED it!

Pat (l) of Pat's Arts shows off her cute bag from Made With Luv.  Becky grins at the NEW style of FH tote that she won in our FREE raffle...and points to one of her AudreyBelle1910 pieces that Pat put on her bag!

Mary (l) and her daughter, April, show multigenerational love for FH!

Steph's daughter, Olive, is planning a future career in silk flower crafting and arranging.  ;)

My haul!  I got SO MUCH GOOD STUFF at this Swap!  Fabric, lace, ribbon, glue, buttons, magnets, stamps, etc.

Our next Craft Supply Swap will be on Sunday, February 6, 2011 from noon-3pm at The Lunch Studio!  See you there!

Progressive Patchwork: Eclectic and Eco-Aware Quilts!

Flint Handmade participated in the Flint Festival of Quilts on September 9, 10, and 11, 2010!

Our exhibition was called "Progressive Patchwork: Eclectic and Eco-Aware Quilts" and featured a mix of modern quilted pieces, including blankets, art quilts and aprons.  Many pieces were made from swapped, thrifted or recycled materials.  A variety of traditional and non-traditional materials in a wide array of colors, textures and patchwork styles were showcased in quilted form.

Check out the pics and descriptions from our exhibition guide!

1. Hip to Piece Squares by Sarah Minshall
Sarah Minshall sells her quilted pieces under the name Hip to Piece Squares. Find her on Etsy at http://www.sarahminshall.etsy.com/ or email her at sarahminshall@yahoo.com.

1a. Patchwork Lunch Sack Dots and Flowers (2010, RAFFLE ITEM)
“The lunch sack was made this summer. I have similar lunch sacks for sale for $35 on Etsy. I got the inspiration to make it because I couldn't find a reusable lunch bag to purchase in a store that I liked enough to buy."

NOTE: Congratulations to Mary (Raffle #2)!  She won the Patchwork Lunch Sack Raffle!

b. 1930’s Quilt (2010, $75)
“I had a small collection of reproduction prints that I really loved, and wanted to make a small quilt that really looked like it was made in the 1930's. The whole piece is make by hand--I pieced, quilted, and bound it without using my machine.”

2. Upcycled Quilted Fabric Art by Sarah Richter
Sarah Richter provided two pieces of upcycled quilted fabric art. She sells her crocheted and fabric items under the name yarnscratch. You can reach her at ms.sarah.mascara@gmail.com.

2a. Recycled Wool Sweater Pillow (2010, $35)
“I received a book at one of Flint Handmade's craft supply swaps that is about recycling wool sweaters into various new items. Christmas ornaments and stockings, hats, bags, pincushions, and pillows, just to name a few. This is my take on their patchwork pillow idea. I love making crafts that I know will be used and I doubly love making crafts that double as unique gifts. This is the third pillow in a series I've been working on. The other two have already been gifted away.”

2b. Flowered and Embroidered Sewing Machine Cover (2010, NFS)
“I bought a sewing machine a few years ago but never got around to buying a case for it. I sometimes wished that I would have, seeing as how there are two pairs of tiny hands who like to get into everything of mine I use for crafting! When I did start looking into buying a case or a cover, everything was boring me to tears so I decided to make my own. I started with the sampler square, which is an iron on pattern from Sublime Stitching (a great independent company! if you haven't heard of them, look them up!) and just worked around that. I had stitched up the sampler months ago and then was at a loss as to what should be done with it...until I decided to make my own sewing machine cover, that is.

All the material is second hand from friends or supply swaps. Even the embroidery floss I used was inherited from my grandmother. The only things I purchased specifically to make the cover was the natural cotton batting and the ribbon. I had a really great time working on this and I can't wait to make some more.”

3. White Wedding Quilt by Eleanor Quist (1989, NFS)
Eleanor Quist made this white quilt for her daughter, Vicki Quist, and son-in-law, Albert Price for their wedding in 1989. Eleanor handstitched the entire quilt, including the decorative heart, leaf and flower design keeping the quilt layers together. The tone-on-tone color palate of the white thread and white fabric give this vintage quilt a timeless quality that is thoroughly modern and fresh no matter the era.

Eleanor is now 89-years-old and in declining health. She is no longer able to quilt, but the White Wedding Quilt stands as a testament to the heartfelt love passed on from generation to generation in the form of handmade quilts.

4. Tie-Dye Quilted Apron by Jan Costea (2010, NFS)
“I made this quilted apron from tie-dyed sheets by trimming them down into strips and then stitching them back together. The back, as I show in the second picture, is made from a different tie-dyed sheet.

I love to watch the quilting shows on PBS! I happened to have this scrap fabric that used to be tie-dyed sheets, but in lots of odd sizes. So I cut them into strips and stitched them back together and then cut out the apron shape. I had one big piece of the purple tie-dyed fabric so I used that for the backing.”

Jan Costea is a local artist and crafter. Contact her at mammamia23@gmail.com if you are interested in commissioning a custom apron for $25 plus the cost of fabric.

5. Recycled Patchwork Purse by Brooklyn Awad and Jessica Nickola Planck (2009, $35)
“This purse can be used as a clutch or worn over the shoulder. The purse was constructed by folding black plastic "Have a Nice Day-Thank You" bags into squares and then patchworking the pieces together. It is lined with vintage fabric and includes a zipper and interior pocket.

This piece was made as a collaborative crafting effort. Brooklyn folded the bags and stuck them onto a self lamination sheet. I did the patchwork sewing, lined, and finished the purse. Brooklyn gave me instructions on how to work with the material. She has made several other purses using the same process. Brooklyn has been making purses from recycled plastic since 2005. We made 3 purses out of recycled material for the 2009 FH Holiday Craft Market.”

Brooklyn Awad makes clothing and accessories. Email her at brookeawad@gmail.com for commissioned pieces. Jessica Nickola Planck is a local crafter and art activist.

6. Patchwork Denim Work Apron by Crystal Pepperdine (2010, NFS)
“I had been wanting to make a denim patchwork piece since 2005 when I slept under a denim quilt that was so warm and heavy I affectionately called it a lead blanket. I was intimidated by the thought of making an entire bed quilt, so I didn’t pursue the idea again until this year when I decided I needed a heavy duty work apron for a lot of the new artisan crafts I’ve been trying out lately.

I asked all of my friends and family members to donate an old pair of jeans that I could deconstruct and piece back together to make the apron. I wanted to be able to point to each piece of denim and remember the loved one who gave it to me. Donors to this piece include Tom Gardner, Tunde Olaniran, April Pepperdine, Mary Pepperdine, Wayne Pepperdine, Anne Pepperdine-Sandmore, Jessica Nickola Planck, Michelle Stolz and Milo Bean Stolz.”

Crystal Pepperdine is the Executive Director of Flint Handmade. She sells her crafts under the name beautiful JUNK and donates half of all profits to the Humane Society of Genesee County. Visit her Etsy store at http://www.beautifuljunk.etsy.com/ or email crystalpepperdine@hotmail.com.

6. Stache ‘Ghan by Nayyirah Shariff (2010, $120)
“With every project I try to challenge myself creatively. I have never made a granny square afghan even though it is an iconic form of crochet. I also never made anything I felt was intentionally masculine. I sought to combine both of these ideas and layer moustache appliqués over each granny square. The result is the stache 'ghan lap blanket!”

Nayyirah Shariff sells Crochet Science at local craft markets and online at http://www.crochetscience.etsy.com/.  She teaches intergenerational crochet classes at the Brennan Community Center and afterschool crochet classes at Urban League of Flint. Contact her at crochetscience@gmail.com or 810-610-3681.

7. Such Is Life by Michelle Stolz (2010, NFS)
“I've become a collector of vintage and other forgotten fabrics that eventually find new life in the bags and accessories that I make for Aisle 3. When I found stacks and stacks of precut fabric squares, some mini blocks salvaged from an old quilt, and a variety of sweet vintage linens at the last Flint Handmade Craft Supply Swap, I knew the quilt I had always thought about making was soon to be created.

As usual, I didn't use a pattern and really had no idea what I wanted the quilt to look like in the end. It's difficult to explain without sounding like a complete weirdo, but I was motivated greatly by the patterns which evoked memories of my childhood, and by the disbelief that people had discarded such useful materials. I know, weird. But this is it. My very first quilt. A hundred little pieces and no plan. Such is life.”

Michelle Stolz is the Director of Technology for Flint Handmade.  She sells her crafts under the name Aisle Three at http://www.aisle3.etsy.com/. Email her at aisle3@comcast.net.

9. Chirp Dittle by Stephanie Bills (2010, NFS)
“The 'Chirp Dittle’ quilt was made after Easter for my daughter Olive Mae. She was born July 7, 2009. The quilt is backed with terry cloth, so it’s very warm. I hung it in her bedroom as a wall decoration during the summer and will use it in her crib for the winter.”

Stephanie Bills crafts under the name Frankenstitch Productions and sells her products online at http://www.1stephbills.etsy.com/. She can be reached at stephbills@hotmail.com.

10. Starry Night by Julie Faust (2010, NFS)
“This is my first art quilt. I was reading online about sewing with LED lights and knew I wanted to try adapting Van Gogh's Starry Night painting into a quilt. The finished quilt is made with a variety of free cut batik appliqué pieces and free motion quilted. I stitched in three yellow LED lights with conductive thread and a battery holder on the back.”

Julie Faust blogs at http://www.daisysewing.wordpress.com/. You can email her at julie.faust@gmail.com.

11. Art Quilts by Jill Hamilton-Krawczyk
Jill Hamilton-Krawczyk creates buttons, mirrors and magnets under the name Barrel of Monkeys. Find her on Etsy at http://www.barrelofmonkeys.etsy.com/ or email her at wwwjnhk@earthlink.net.

11a. Entomology (2003, NFS)
“This quilt was created for an exhibit with the theme ‘garden party’. I wanted to create a quilt with an image that wasn't what you would first think of for this particular theme.”

11b. Moon Beam (2006, NFS)
“The idea for this quilt came from the piece of reverse dyed fabric (that I created) used for the moon.”

11c. Day of the Dead (2006, NFS)
“This quilt was inspired by the Mexican holiday Dia de los Muertos and my need, at the time, to do an excessive amount of hand stitching.”

12. Art the Iguana by Donna Hamilton (2000, NFS)
“This quilt was created with a personal challenge in mind -to use photographs printed on fabric and the incorporate three-dimensional pieces in the quilt.”

Donna Hamilton is the mother of Jill Hamilton-Krawczyk. She has been making and displaying art quilts for years. She can be reached at drhart@ameritech.net.

13. Soothing Waters by Marcia Clark (2010, $350)
“I began making quilts many years ago for babies of close friends which over time became both an artistic and stress-relieving outlet with more emphasis on color, texture and design than practicality.

My quilt is made from 100% cotton fabric, thread and batting. I think the colors and the random layout have a modern, eclectic feel. First, I fell in love with the fabrics. Then, I saw what I thought was the perfect pattern to use. I really liked the random quality of the design."

Marcia Clark makes custom quilts and handbags. She can be reached at marcialee@chartermi.net.

Second Saturday Giveaway: Win Daisy the Owl by Steph of Frankenstitch Productions!

Posted by Crystal

For our first ever Second Saturday Giveaway, we are featuring Frankenstitch Productions by Steph Bills!

This is Steph and her daughter, Olive, in Steph's Dining Room/Workspace.  I asked Steph to tell us about her workspace:

"At the moment my workplace is a transformed dining room.  I usually only do the machine sewing in there, it's also good for stow away.  I usually do the cutting, stuffing and hand sewing in front of the t.v. with a strong iced espresso drink in hand while jibber-jabbering my husband's brains out." 

Above is another view of the cubbies in Steph's workspace.  She also has a large cabinet to store all of her fabric.

You may have noticed that Steph has TWO sewing machines...well, actually, she has three!  One is in the entryway to her apartment.

Considering the fact that she has THREE sewing machines and so much fabric, I had to ask Steph about her favorite crafting tool/material:

"I would have to say the scissors are my favorite craft tool/material, but at the same time give mad props to my right hand man the sewing machine!!  I love all of them equally - each is used during a different mood, depends on what I feel like getting into that night.  My favorite materials would have to be fleece and poly fil, they are what I use the most."

With all the sewing that Steph does, she has to have a LARGE collection of thread!

Steph actually has lots of little craft supply collections, including...

...knitting needles...

...colored pencils...

...sidewalk chalk...

...and all sorts of odds and ends in glass jars!

Considering her many creative outlets, I had to ask Steph how she got into crafting:

"I got into crafting in girl scouts I guess.  I got into sewing by accident.  I was broke one Christmas and needed to get everyone gifts, I decided to hook up on some fabric at Jo Ann fabrics, and wing making everyone a little something, from that day on I was hooked and never put the needle down.

I believe the first 3 years of sewing were all done by hand, I was very intimidated by the machine.  The 4th year of sewing, I received a sewing machine for Christmas bringing my soon to be right hand man into the picture.  I swear I cried with it and over it the first month, we were not friends.

The same year I joined Red Ink [an art studio/gallery space currently on hiatus in Flint], it was a chance to expand my media and start thinking outside the box. At Red Ink there were themed shows so my I was forced to think a little harder as to how I was gonna pull it off.  Before I just cut whatever - I was now bringing theme and meaning into them, which in turn brought in more than just cute plushies."

But, Steph still makes super cute, clever and creative plushies!  They live in baskets and totes in her dining room/workspace until they are sold at craft markets or on Etsy at Frankenstitch Productions.

Steph calls her creations "monstas" and I asked Steph how she came up with Frankenstitch Productions as her company name:

"I decided on Frankenstitch because it was at a time when I was hand sewing only and so many people told me they recognized my Frankenstein stitches from anywhere.  So it was just fitting I guess."

These days, Steph is a very busy wife, mother and server at The Lunch Studio...where she loves to take orders with her signature Sharpie markers shown above!  When I asked Steph what projects she would like to work on in the the future, she laughed and said:

"Ha!  I work minute to minute these days.  I usually do the projects as they come to me so, I have no big on on the back burner at the time.  I would like to get into making cloth baby diapers, shoes, baby dresses and monsta hats.  I would like to get better at linocut prints and also improve my monster-making skills."

Well, we at Flint Handmade think Steph's monster-making skills are already top notch...and we are excited to have one of her creations as our very first Second Saturday Giveaway!

Meet Daisy the Owl.  According to Steph:

"Daisy brings the sun shine when she walks in the room, Daisy reps joy from others happiness.  Daisy is a peacemaker and a healer.  She's drawn to peoples pain and wants to help heal them and the world.  Daisy is a wanderer seeings how she's on a mission, she may disappear on you, but know that Daisy will always love you."

For YOUR chance to win Daisy the Owl (valued at $23), just complete these two simple steps:

1) Follow Flint Handmade via the blog, Twitter, Google Reader or whatever newfangled "following application" tickles your fancy.  Or, if you don't do the whole following thing, email us at flinthandmade@hotmail.com and we will add you to our email list.

2) Leave us a comment in response to this blog post by 5pm on Saturday, September 18, 2010 letting us know how you followed us and answering the following crafty question: Which local crafter would YOU like to see featured on our next Second Saturday Giveaway?
 
That's it...so simple!  The winner will be selected at random and contacted by whatever means of communication you leave for us (twitter, blog, facebook, email, etc.).

We hope to hear from YOU and we hope you enjoyed our first ever Second Saturday Giveaway!

New Blog Feature: Second Saturday Giveaway!

We're soooooo stinkin' excited to announce a new monthly feature on the Flint Handmade blog:

SECOND SATURDAY GIVEAWAY!

On the second Saturday of every month, we will feature the bio and etsy of a local crafter with workspace and project photos.  AND...we will give away a FREE handcrafted item made by our featured crafter!

If this feature proves popular enough, we will expand it to a bi-weekly or weekly post...which means more crafty content and giveaway items for you!

You may be asking, How will FH know if it's popular enough?

Excellent question, you clever, crafty folks, you!

Well, you will be required to enter the giveaway following these 2 simple steps:

1) Follow Flint Handmade via the blog, twitter, Google Reader or whatever newfangled "following application" tickles your fancy.
2) Post a comment in response to the giveaway blog by the given deadline letting us know how you followed us and answering a crafty question that we include with each giveaway.

That's it!  That's all you have to do!  So easy, right?

Our first ever Second Saturday Giveaway will post THIS SATURDAY, September 11, 2010!  Be sure to check it out!

Flint Festival of Quilts THIS WEEKEND!

"Progressive Patchwork: Eclectic and Eco-Aware Quilts"
Flint Handmade Exhibition at The Lunch Studio
2010 Flint Festival of Quilts
Thursday, September 9 to Saturday, September 11
9am to 5pm

For the 2010 Flint Festival of Quilts, Flint Handmade will feature an eclectic mix of modern quilted pieces by local, regional and national crafters. Eco-aware quilts handmade primarily by women in their 20s-40s will be on display. A variety of traditional and non-traditional materials in a wide array of colors, textures and patchwork styles will be showcased in quilted form.

Detail of Stache 'Ghan by Nayyirah Shariff of Crochet Science

 

Lunch Sack by Sarah Minshall of Hip to Piece Squares

We will also have a FREE raffle for a quilted lunch sack by Sarah Minshall of Hip to Piece Squares.  Need not be present to win.

Check out the Flint Journal Article about our quilt exhibition.  More information on the entire Festival of Quilts is available on geneseefun.com.
 

Flint Journal Article on Quilt Festival

Birth of a Craft: Resin Bottle Cap Magnets

Posted by Crystal

You know how you have those craft projects that you have always wanted to try but never got around to doing?  Maybe it's embossing or quilting or soapmaking?

For me, it's resin.

I've been wanting to work with resin ever since I saw the table tops at The Lunch Studio several years ago.

A few of the tables have photos glued to the top and covered in resin to form a smooth, rock hard surface.

I decided to start small with resin bottle cap magnets.  I already had tons of bottle caps on hand from my regular beautiful JUNK bottle cap magnets. 

Much love to the lovely ladies at The Lunch Studio for saving the bottle caps for me! 

Instead of gluing the magnet to the inside of the cap, though, I planned to put a picture inside the cap, cover it with resin and glue a magnet to the outside. 

I decided to use very thin, but very strong neodymium rare earth magnets.  I bought them on Etsy from Karen's Craft Supplies.

I measured the inside of the bottle cap and found it to be about an inch in diameter.  I remembered an excellent circle punch that we used in the Flint Public Library Holiday Papercrafts Workshop: the Fiskars Round 'n Round Squeeze Punch. 

This punch is easy on the hands and the punch hole is on top so you can see exactly what you are punching out.

I already had the perfect book for punching the circles called Window to the Future: The Golden Age of Television Marketing and Advertising.

The book features TONS of old print ads for radios and televisions from the 1940s-1960s.  Punching out the circles takes time, but not that many tools, so it's a great project to take to a crafting circle like craftLAB.  You just need the book, the punch and scissors to cut the pages smaller to position the punch where you want it.

I punched out dozens of circles and stored them in a plastic 35mm film canister.  Then, I glued some of the circles into bottle caps with Mod Podge.  Mod Podge is a decoupage glue, so I also sealed the circles by gluing over top of them so that the resin didn't get to the paper and discolor it.  I let the them sit for a few days, just to make sure the Mod Podge was completely dry.

Then, I took the bottle caps with circles glued inside, measuring cups, a popsicle stick with one end cut straight across and the resin onto my front porch.  I used Envirotex Life Pour-On High Gloss Finish.  You need good ventilation when working with this product, so try to go outside if you can.  

I had found an awesome vintage television ad in Window to the Future featuring a cross-promotion with 7-Up, so I used the eight circles I got from that ad for my resin test run.

I discovered that 1/8 cup hardener and 1/8 cup resin equal mixed together will fill about 24 bottle caps...but I only had the eight 7-Up caps ready to go.  Uh-oh!

Never fear!  I remembered seeing some resin bottle caps filled with sprinkles online.  I ran in the house, grabbed some sprinkles out of my cake/cupcake decorating basket and poured the sprinkles into more bottle caps before the resin/hardener mixture dried.  I didn't want to waste any of the Envirotex Lite!

I let the resin dry for about 3 days and then glued my super strong neodymium magnets to the back with E-6000 adhesive.

I waited about 3 days for the E-6000 to completely dry before I packaged up my magnets into sets of 4.  Now, they are all ready to go!

Crafty Tip:  If you decide to try working with resin, just be sure to read the directions completely. I learned about exhaling on the resin to remove air bubbles from the directions and it actually worked!