Mixed Embroidery: Your Sexist Jokes Are Boring

My sister recently gifted me a packet of vintage flour-sack-towel patterns that my grandmother had kept from the 1940s. This pattern (sans words) was included. I wanted to fill in the vessels, and I figured the easiest way to do that would be to mix felt with embroidery.

And, of course, I added the words. :)

Vintage Postcards: von Schiller and Monty Python

I ordered a bulk pack of 100 vintage postcards (mixed! surprises!) from an ebay shop. It was super fun to open up the cards and find inspiration in whatever popped up. In this case, Friedrich von Schiller, philosopher and poet, needed a little extra bling and a quote (original postcard from the 1910s):

This postcard--a MN original from the 1960s that was in my Great-Aunt Anne's scrapbook--demanded the addition of a guard. So we get the French Knight from Monty Python's Holy Grail and a trojan rabbit for good measure:

I'm a little bummed about my scale choices for this (the knight! So big!) but the detail would have been REALLY hard otherwise. So I guess it will do. You live and learn!

Fleabag Ornaments

I love Fleabag--a brilliant show created by and starring Phoebe Waller-Bridge (on Amazon Prime). There are a lot of great parts and elements (and it's consistently funny), but my favorite thing is the truly loving, complex sister relationship. 

In part? I think Fleabag's character stating "This is a love story" at the beginning of Season 2 is just as much in reference to sister-love as it is to romantic love. 

And so? I made Fleabag sister ornaments. 

Fleabag:

 Claire:

Featured Project: Ally Bracelets

I was SUPER pleased when I proposed this project and the publisher was all-in. Showing support and kindness is important and can mean the difference between someone feeling alone and someone feeling like another is a "safe" person.

These ally bracelets can be made with any number of color combinations--pictured are LGBT rainbow and Trans pink/white/teal.

If you want a 15 minute (max) craft, then the bracelet style on the left is all hot-glued--super quick and easy. If you want a funkier look and want to dig into the embroidery thread, the bracelet style on the right has the color bands stitched together. That's my personal favorite, though both look nice.

Featured Project: Malala Journal Cover

The story behind the craft for the Malala journal cover is that not everything works out perfectly the first time. 

For instance, when designing this pattern I overestimated the spine piece by a full inch. Which doesn't seem like too much until it's flopping all about. This was an easy adjustment to make and the pattern ended up being perfect in the end--but it goes to show that trial and error is definitely necessary sometimes. 

Also: this gives an opportunity to dig into the holiday ribbon and decor; anything sparkly or shiny makes a nice accent where the gold ric-rac currently is.