hitchhiking ghost embroideries

I get asked pretty frequently about my hitchhiking ghost embroideries and if I sell a pattern. I don't sell a pattern, but that's because I don't have one. As you can see below, I start with a light pencil outline that is the "skeleton" of each image and then I embroider it from there. All the stitching is done by me, from memory so there isn't anything to sell!

. : * ~ * : . _ . : * ~ * : . _ . : * ~ * : .Interested in owning a piece like this? Check out my Etsy shopor email me for a custom order!. : * ~ * : . _ . : * ~ * : . _ . : * ~ * : .

semi-home made for the holidays

Remember all those great "read along" books from your childhood? Back when I was young, the audio was on a record and I'd lay on the floor next to my record player and flip through the pages, waiting for the pixie dust sound, when it was time to turn the page. So great!

My 5 year old nephew now has the more modern version: read along books on CD and MP3 which got me to thinking...

Christmas is here again and I have it on good authority that Santa is going to be delivering toys aplenty so I decided to give him gifts that AREN'T toys, but books! And to increase the fun quotient, I've decided to read the books aloud and record them on CD to include with the books. The idea is to give a bit more of a personal touch to these store bought gifts and, hopefully, encourage him to listen to them more -- what's better than a book read by Tia Mia? (don't answer that!)

I have an external microphone for my computer that I'm using and capturing the audio can be done in LOTS of simple ways. I am using Camtasia, because it's software that I am familiar with and is dead simple to use (there's also a free 30 day trial, if you want to test it yourself). I've also found a "pixie dust sound" to insert when it's time to turn the page (this particular one cost $1 to license and came with 2 sound effects). There are oodles of free audio software (and mp3 sounds!) available out there and they're all made 'for dummies' so it's really easy to create your own recordings.

After they're done (I'll post pictures when everything is complete), I'll burn each story on to it's own CD and print a full-face label that matches the book so that it's easy to see which CD goes with which story (he's an early reader, so these visual cues are helpful, but if you have an older child you can probably just write the book name on the disc).

This gift is fun for kids of all ages! Think of how much the toddlers on your list would like hearing you read them a story! Even teens and tweens will think it's cool -- especially if you get creative and do "voices" while you're reading. Imagine Twilight narrated by grumpy uncle Ryan! Such fun! Your files will be digital already, so you can even send by email rather than by disc, and they'll be ready to download onto iPods and taken everywhere.

As you can see, this is a quick, fun and inexpensive way to personalize your holiday gift giving.

Supplies:

* audio software (many free versions available online) - cost: $0

* microphone (many laptops have them built-in, but you can find them online for as low as $0.01!) - cost: $0+

* CD (depending on number purchased, the cost goes way down. I have even seen small spindles available at the dollar store) - cost $1+

* book - cost varies

more light boxes!

I just read another great idea for a light box (unfortunately, the article isn't online so I can't link to it - but it's the Dec/Jan 2011 issue of Family Fun Magazine) that I thought I'd share with you!

You might even already have these things around your house!

Materials needed:
Fluorescent light (or other bright lamp - the link is for an Ikea lamp ($9.99 USD)
Clear plastic storage container (larger than your light fixture)

Simply turn the plastic container upside down, put the light inside and viola! You're done!

Tips:

• Your container doesn't have to be completely "clear" - you could even use a colored container, as long as it is transparent enough to let the light out!
• Most plastic storage containers are flat on the bottom (and lid) to allow them to easily stack, so you should be able to work right on the container
• If you find that you need more/brighter light, you can use a shallow box OR simply stack up some books and put your light fixture on top
  

Light Bright!

For my embroideries, I prefer to use pencil rather than carbon paper for transferring designs to fabric. One of my most useful tools is a light box. They can be really spendy, but don't be discouraged!

Ryan had an old home made version that his father made that was crafted from leftover particle board that worked great, but weighed a ton, so we decided that we'd invest in a light weight/easy to store light box. Lucky for us, the prices are Amazon are really fair! This one, for example, is a 10x12" light box for only $26.54.




Even if the price sounds a bit steep, think of it long-term. We've had ours about 4 years and Ryan uses it a LOT (ours is actually one of the slightly larger model, since he works on 11x17" paper) and we've never had to replace the lightbulb. And I use it nearly every time I transfer a pattern for embroidery, so in that sense, we've gotten our money's worth for sure.

But if you'd prefer to do it yourself, you can make one for just a few dollars and probably using stuff you already have around the house. This tutorial shows how simple it really is, although I'd substitute plexiglas for actual glass if you can (glass is heavy! And more prone to scratches). In a pinch, you could even prop glass across something elevated, like a stack of books with a desk lamp pointed directly underneath with a piece of glass (an empty picture frame?) laid across the books. Or, the old standard: the window when the sun is bright outside.

My other lighting must-have is an Ott light. If you're not familiar, an Ott bulb gives "true" light - like sunlight - so your colors are more exact and it's a GODSEND for saving your eyes. I have this small model that frequently is on sale at Joann's or Michael's for around $30-$40. It's a desktop lamp, that allows you to adjust the light fixture up and down and gives off a powerful, bright light (that doesn't strain your eyes - which is weird for such a bright bulb). I set mine on a TV tray and aim it toward myself when stitching on the couch (it's especially great on the desk when I'm painting).

Hope these tricks and tips help you too!

Kate made this video of my peg people

I love it, of course! And it's an excellent demonstration of what can be done with my silly little peg people!

Dr Zoidberg embroidery now in my etsy shop

Hooray! Someone is paying attention to Dr. Zoidberg!!

Through 10/17 I am donating 100% of my etsy sales to Childrens Hospital of Orange County (CHOC) to support their annual fundraiser, the CHOC Walk in the Park. Each sale will be credited on my fundraising page at http://chocwalk.net/giddygirlie




. : * ~ * : . _ . : * ~ * : . _ . : * ~ * : .Interested in owning a piece like this? Check out my Etsy shopor email me for a custom order!. : * ~ * : . _ . : * ~ * : . _ . : * ~ * : .

Get 2 Birds Stoned at Once cross stitch

One of my favorite "Rickyisms" from the TV show Trailer Park Boys.

100% of my etsy proceeds will be used toward my fundraising for Childrens Hospital of Orange County. Or you can donate directly: http://chocwalk.net/giddygirlie





. : * ~ * : . _ . : * ~ * : . _ . : * ~ * : .Interested in owning a piece like this? Check out my Etsy shopor email me for a custom order!. : * ~ * : . _ . : * ~ * : . _ . : * ~ * : .

Giddy Giveaway - we have a winner!

THANK YOU to everyone who entered the first (of many!) Giddy Giveaway! You all are so much fun, I wish that I could come to your house and carve pumpkins with you! Hey! Maybe that should have been the prize! The winner gets to host ME for the weekend while I watch you carve pumpkins! ;)

I took the number of comments (8) and plugged them into the Random Number Generator at random.org

And it randomly selected #4...
...which belonged to kittykill!

And although this was truly random and totally impartial, I'm so glad to be giving a little something back to kittykill, who gives us all so much! If you don't know her already, start at her darling blog and then head over to Craftster, where she is a moderator and all-around craftspiration! I'm currently gaga over her sugar skull video tutorial as part of the Craftster Quickies videos.

Congratulations, kittykill - and thanks again to everyone who entered! I'll be doing this again for sure!

Tiki Parrot prototype - now available in my etsy shop!

Inspired by the precocious little parrots of the Enchanted Tiki Room at Disneyland. Hoop is 2.5" and holds a unique parrot made from felt, then appliqued with hand-embroidery. Please note that this piece was a prototype and used as a test, so the others will look slightly different and this exact design will not be repeated.

Through 10/17 I am donating 100% of my etsy sales to Childrens Hospital of Orange County (CHOC) to support their annual fundraiser, the CHOC Walk in the Park. Each sale will be credited on my fundraising page at http://chocwalk.net/giddygirlie





. : * ~ * : . _ . : * ~ * : . _ . : * ~ * : .Interested in owning a piece like this? Check out my Etsy shopor email me for a custom order!. : * ~ * : . _ . : * ~ * : . _ . : * ~ * : .

Tiki Parrot #3 - now available in my etsy shop!

Inspired by the precocious little parrots of the Enchanted Tiki Room at Disneyland. Hoop is 2.5" and holds a unique parrot made from felt, then appliqued with hand-embroidery.

Through 10/17 I am donating 100% of my etsy sales to Childrens Hospital of Orange County (CHOC) to support their annual fundraiser, the CHOC Walk in the Park. Each sale will be credited on my fundraising page at http://chocwalk.net/giddygirlie





. : * ~ * : . _ . : * ~ * : . _ . : * ~ * : .Interested in owning a piece like this? Check out my Etsy shopor email me for a custom order!. : * ~ * : . _ . : * ~ * : . _ . : * ~ * : .

Craft Time

watch image via handmadeforyoushop.com but site does not seem to function properly. Buy.com has a similar watch for sale, if you're interested. I know I am!

When I tell people that I craft daily, or they check out my shop or my Flickr and see how prolific I am (I can say this without any sense of bragging. I usually complete 5-10 projects per week. I think that's pretty dang good!) they invariably ask me where I "find the time." Because of that, I am very interested in how/when other crafters "find the time" to work on stuff. What's your schedule like?

My response is typically this: Firstly, crafting is like anything else that you like to do -- you make time for it. If you're a Bejeweled junkie or a fan of reality TV or running enthusiast, you work out a way to fit it into your life. Secondly, the projects that I work on are, in truth, not that time consuming. They might take several hours stretched over multiple days, but I choose my projects based on the amount of time they take, which is my preference. I don't have the patience for projects that take months or years to finish, I need quick satisfaction! A lot of the things that I made take an hour or two to complete. Which also ties in with the materials I usually work with. Projects like embroidery are easy to pick up/put down when time allows. It's not like oil painting which requires mixtures and tinctures and blended colors that you get just right and then - whoops! Time's up! Go to bed now! Finally, I multi-task. Since I started crafting more in the past couple of years I have completely destroyed my attention span. Now if my hands are idle for more than 10 minutes I start to fidget. Going to a movie in a theater is nearly torture - 2 hours with nothing to do! (I need to learn to crochet in the dark or finger knit or something) At home, I watch TV, listen to podcasts, listen to music, converse with my cats (Aw, shut up! You know you do it too!), and craft at the same time.

Basically, while you're watching 30 Rock and eating popcorn, I am watching 30 Rock and stitching popcorn.

A typical day for me:
8am: get ready, get set, go! (to work)
9am-6pm: work day
6pm-7pm: play "crazy time" with Rocket (his preference)
7pm-8pm: dinner
8pm-10:45pm: watch movies/TV, work on crafts
10:45pm-11:45pm: bath time (doubles as "reading time"; I generally read one book per week in the bathtub)
12am: get in bed, sometimes continue reading
1-2am: fall asleep (I'm not good at falling asleep)

I'm very lucky that my husband works at home and has a creative job, so generally after dinner, he's at his art desk and I'm on the couch and we're both crafting away, which gives the whole house really good energy. Our living room/dining room area is our studio space, and his desk is about 15 feet away from where I work, so we're near to each other and can be social, so it's actually really fun.

Tiki Parrot #2 - now available in my etsy shop!

Inspired by the precocious little parrots of the Enchanted Tiki Room at Disneyland. Hoop is 2.5" and holds a unique parrot made from felt, then appliqued with hand-embroidery.

Through 10/17 I am donating 100% of my etsy sales to Childrens Hospital of Orange County (CHOC) to support their annual fundraiser, the CHOC Walk in the Park. Each sale will be credited on my fundraising page at http://chocwalk.net/giddygirlie





. : * ~ * : . _ . : * ~ * : . _ . : * ~ * : .Interested in owning a piece like this? Check out my Etsy shopor email me for a custom order!. : * ~ * : . _ . : * ~ * : . _ . : * ~ * : .

Tiki Parrot #1 - now available in my etsy shop!

Inspired by the precocious little parrots of the Enchanted Tiki Room at Disneyland. Hoop is 2.5" and holds a unique parrot made from felt, then appliqued with hand-embroidery.

Through 10/17 I am donating 100% of my etsy sales to Childrens Hospital of Orange County (CHOC) to support their annual fundraiser, the CHOC Walk in the Park. Each sale will be credited on my fundraising page at http://chocwalk.net/giddygirlie









. : * ~ * : . _ . : * ~ * : . _ . : * ~ * : .Interested in owning a piece like this? Check out my Etsy shopor email me for a custom order!. : * ~ * : . _ . : * ~ * : . _ . : * ~ * : .

Chewie is that you? Now in my etsy shop!

Chewbacca wookie! Now in my etsy shop! 100% of my etsy proceeds will be used toward my fundraising for Childrens Hospital of Orange County. Or you can donate directly: http://chocwalk.net/giddygirlie



. : * ~ * : . _ . : * ~ * : . _ . : * ~ * : .Interested in owning a piece like this? Check out my Etsy shopor email me for a custom order!. : * ~ * : . _ . : * ~ * : . _ . : * ~ * : .

Star Trek peg people! Wesley & Geordi - in my etsy shop

Now available!



. : * ~ * : . _ . : * ~ * : . _ . : * ~ * : .Interested in owning a piece like this? Check out my Etsy shopor email me for a custom order!. : * ~ * : . _ . : * ~ * : . _ . : * ~ * : .

H.I. from Raising Arizona - swap piece

This was the piece that I sent to my swap partner for a recent Phat Quarter swap, themed "movies." My partner - the illustrious Mafiosagrrl - told me that she likes the Coen Brothers movies, so I picked a favorite and got to work.

I love the scene in Raising Arizona when H.I. is robbing the convenience store with pantyhose on his head and stealing Huggies. Things go awry and he has to hijack a car and the driver tells him "son, you've got a panty on your head" in a thick southern drawl and it just cracks me up every. single. time.





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Interested in owning a piece like this? Check out my Etsy shopor email me for a custom order!. : * ~ * : . _ . : * ~ * : . _ . : * ~ * : .

Fartist

We use the term "artist" and "fartist" interchangably and so it made me giggle when I noticed that in the final episode of season three of Mad Men, the art department door was festooned with a big F. Yay for the Fart Department!

Giddy Giveaway!

Fall is here and even though the local temperatures are in the 90's, it's time to start thinking about autumn and Halloween is just around the corner! That's why I was inspired to have a Giddy Giveaway!

I'm giving away a hand-embroidered jack-o-lantern, based on vintage clip art. His happy face glows in the dark, so you can see him smiling at you, no matter what time of day it is! This piece comes in the frame shown (faux woodgrain, flex-hoop frame) that is 3.5" tall and approx. 2.5" wide. The fabric has a tone-on-tone white print with leaves -- perfect for Fall! There is also excess fabric around the frame, so that you can remove it or re-frame it, if you'd prefer.



To win:

1. Leave a comment, letting me know you want it!
2. Tell me - what's your favorite kind of jack-o-lantern? Do you like "classic faces" or do you prefer to use your pumpkin in a more creative way?
3. Please note: unless your profile allows for everyone to view your full Google profile and email address, I cannot see it either. If you're unsure, please include your email address in your comment.
4. I'll draw the name on Friday, October 8th and I'll contact the winner to get their mailing info.

Some photos taken at Disneyland, made by their master pumpkin carvers on display throughout Halloweentime.

thrifted butterfly cross stitch

I found this beautiful butterfly cross stitch piece at a thrift store and it's one of my prize thrift store finds. Look at the gorgeous detail! It has been custom framed, but there's no indication of who might have made it or where they came from, but I wish I knew so I could thank them personally!

beaded cross stitch

I made this beaded cross stitch of a popcorn bucket, based on a pattern that I picked up at Designer's Desk. This is the first beaded cross stitch project I have ever done and it's challenging! Slow going but I really like the end effect. It's got a great dimensional quality, plus it sparkles a little!



. : * ~ * : . _ . : * ~ * : . _ . : * ~ * : .Interested in owning a piece like this? Check out my Etsy shopor email me for a custom order!. : * ~ * : . _ . : * ~ * : . _ . : * ~ * : .

There's always money in the banana stand!

3.5" x 2.5" hand-embroidered banana stand.







. : * ~ * : . _ . : * ~ * : . _ . : * ~ * : .Interested in owning a piece like this? Check out my Etsy shopor email me for a custom order!. : * ~ * : . _ . : * ~ * : . _ . : * ~ * : .

Floss Porn!

I've been stitching a lot lately so I have some empty slots in my box - time for a refill!










. : * ~ * : . _ . : * ~ * : . _ . : * ~ * : .Interested in owning a piece like this? Check out my Etsy shopor email me for a custom order!. : * ~ * : . _ . : * ~ * : . _ . : * ~ * : .

Fleeting Immersion

Friday night was the Fleeting Immersion show, which was great! The opening was pretty busy (below is an early photo) and there were lots of folks that I recognized (TV, comedians, etc.) so that was exciting. But the best people that I recognized were people who came to see ME! Lori and her friend came by (and found some must-have items).



Miss Bliss and Kate (the photographer) also came. They're the best!

Ryan and Bliss are as excited as I am to see my art installed (next to Mr Toast!)

And then Giggly Mama and the Family! Her husband and brother-in-law came along too -- a 6 hour drive! I couldn't believe it! So exciting to see them!

I even had the opportunity to meet Chris Hardwick (aka: the Nerdist) who was super warm and charming and pretty much exactly what you'd expect. I think I even cajoled him into letting me make him something so that both members of Hard n'Phirm have a piece of my artwork.
After the show, the group went over to the French Market for a late dinner. Kate and Bliss brought me birthday gifts (!!). Miss Bliss stitched this adorable piece that says "I craft so no one has to die" - so perfect!

And Kate brought me these adorable breakfast keychains! One is French Toast and one is a Happy Waffle - seriously, could these be any cuter??

Me and Shannon after eating our late night breakfast.

The whole group was laughing and chatting. It was so much fun to see everyone!
A HUGE thank you to everyone who came out to the gallery opening! And don't forget that all of the pieces will be available for sale online after the show closes -- go take a peek at the Tinklark Gallery and sign up for the mailing list to be informed when everything is available to buy!