Strange Folk Festival

Last weekend Pete and me made it out to the local craft fair - Strange Folk Festival. I have heard about it a few times but I was living in PA at the time and had no way of getting there. I'm so happy I finally made it out and could share it with Pete. He seemed to have as much fun as I did. 

I also wanted to check it out as maybe a future place to sell my own crafts with a friend of mine. We both have been looking at sharing a table/etc. at a event so I was checking it out for us too. Everyone was so friendly and I talked to a few sellers/crafters for awhile. New ideas popped in my head on future craft projects looking at everything, which always make me happy. It's hard for me at times to buy things because I know, I can make whatever I find but I still want to support that crafter on his/her amazing work.

They had alpacas! Someday when I have the land, I will have my own little herd.

Of course we had yarn bombing.

So many people which made me happy because running your own business is very hard work. Sure everyone made some good sales! Keep crafting.

Some amazing yarn I found. Both spinned and dyed by the ladies selling them! Check them out on Etsy at DyeabolicalYarns and YarnGeekFibers. I talked to both ladies for awhile and loved it. They were so friendly about everything and fun to talk too. I can't wait to work with the yarn I got! 

I found some amazing things at Tangerine Designs. She had some awesome knitting/project bags which every crafter needs. Also, some great Doctor Who items! Go and check her work out at Tangerine Designs.

Halloween Love

 As I have said before... I LOVE Halloween. I love that it's fall and pumpkin/apple picking has started. I am waiting patiently for the leaves to start changing around here so expect tons of photos from that too.

(Me very happy to find the huge pumpkins already.)

I also love the DIY tutorials that run wild on my blog feed this time of year too. Here are a few I have seen and just had to share. Wanted to make sure everyone saw them.

Wild Olive has a awesome tutorial on making your own pumpkin rings that can be used as napkin rings too! Plus, you can have them out till Thanksgiving! Awesome idea.

Awesome DIY skeleton shows by the amazing MyPaperCrane! Pretty easy and simple to follow. Being so tall and having big feet, finding the right shoes is such a pain! Wanting those perfect shoes to match my Halloween outfit is another pain so ideas like this make me happy. Great idea!

Let's not forget Martha Stewart DIY craft ideas for Halloween! There is a ton of tutorials on her website and worth checking out - Martha Stewart.

It's Fall!!!

I love the fact that it's finally Fall!! I celebrated over the weekend by having some of Dunkin' Donuts Pumpkin flavored coffee. I also added some whipped cream and cinnamon on top which made it even more amazing. Lets not forget the pumpkin butter on toast and fruit for my breakfast. I can't wait and this time of year means more pumpkin flavors are out in stores/restaurants/etc.

Another thing I am in the mood for is baking! With it becoming cooler it is easier to be in the kitchen. I already started baking candy corn popcorn balls, pumpkin flavored popcorn balls, and pumpkin bread. I have a few other recipes I want to try out as well.

Fall also brings my favorite holiday! Yes! Halloween!! I love mostly everything about Halloween. So when I get a chance throughout these weeks I will be posting about it. I have a soft spot for vintage Halloween decorations or art. I am not a big fan of anything too scary like we see now.

I will also be posting awesome Halloween DIY tutorials I find. Check out this awesome tutorial on how to make a Bat Chandelier by MyPaperCrane!

I also found some awesome vintage Halloween postcards that are free to download. Go check Vintage Holiday Crafts for more.

Gen Con: Part 2

More Gencon fun ahead! This post is going to be mainly about what I was wearing and my amazing friend. I am all about dressing up/cosplaying now thanks to Pete. Funny, after so many conventions Pete was the first boyfriend to convince me to actually do it. I have had a blast so far coming up with what to wear and having a hand in making a few of the pieces or asking friends to create them for me. I was so shy about the whole thing but with enough "poking" from Pete, I finally gave in. Pete cosplays as well so it's another plus to do this together. It also makes me talk to people because of random people asking pictures or about what I'm wearing.

I love how easy it is for me to be able to craft. I see something in a store that I find overpriced and I just make it myself. I get images in my head on what would be a cool thing to make and I easily make it myself. That makes my day and I have a craft journal filled with ideas. Cosplaying and figuring out how to do it has been so much fun for me.

For Gencon I had 3 outfits to wear and couldn't figure out what to wear shoe wise. I have been friends with Lindsay at Em & Sprout for a number of years. I have seen her shop grow and her work. It is truly amazing and she is a awesome person to work with. I came up with 3 separate shoe ideas and brought them to her. She was so happy to do them for me and got them in the mail in time for GenCon!

This is my awesome Batman outfit and the shoes that Linds made for me. The story that goes along with this is I wore this outfit on Thursday. After spending over 6 hours in the Exhibit Hall, Pete and me decided to have a early night. While trying to leave the convention center we noticed it was raining. Pete was nice enough to head back to the car and get my umbrella so I wouldn't get soaked. When he got back with the umbrella, he also warned me about the huge puddles around the entrance to the parking garage. I thought nothing of it till I got there and noticed no dry land for me to skip across. I then took my amazing Batman shoes off without thinking and walked through all of this. Getting into the parking garage I did put my shoes back on but sadly I still got dirt on the inside. I ended up telling Linds and my embarrassment which she responded on how to clean them. I was more worried about these amazing shoes then what my feet were stepping in!

My awesome Tardis outfit! I am a HUGE fan of Doctor Who and of course I needed a outfit. It's pretty much based on the episodes, "The Doctor's Wife" from the 6th season. Not exactly what Idris was wearing but I made my own version of "Sexy". Linds did a amazing job making the shoes as well and everyone loved them. I went over to the Doctor Who booth in the exhibit hall and all the workers there talked to me about my awesome outfit. The story I have for this one is about a man working at the Doctor Who booth. He informed me that the Tardis was his very, VERY favorite thing in the show. He loved my skirt and then I pointed out my shoes. He became very excited and asked if he could touch my shoes. I agreed and watched this man get on his knees and rub his finger over the Tardis key on my left shoe. He made really shrill girl sounds of excitement. I reported this all to Linds to inform her, how happy her shoes make people.

My last outfit which I wore on Sunday so few people got to see it. I have been a HUGE Nintendo fan for years and Yoshi is my favorite character. I even have a pink Yoshi tattoo on my left foot. Even though not a lot of people were around I still I had a number of comments on it and people loving my shoes. Linds, was even nice enough to put Yoshi eggs on the back for me too! I don't really have a story for this one. I did pass by the Doctor Who booth again and enjoyed my time talking to the people working there as they loved my outfit. 

That's about it for this post! My last one will be mostly random pictures taken at the convention and what I bought of course. What other things we did and panels/events we went too.

Go and check out Lindsay's Etsy Shop - Em & Sprout to see about getting your own pair of shoes!!

Craft Shopping

I wanted to share some of my craft buys so far this year. While on vacation with my boyfriend a few months ago we stayed with his family in Idaho. I did a little search on the wonders of google and found a local knitting shop. My boyfriend without batting a eyelid said, "Yes!" to finding the shop. We always find the local comic/magic card shops where ever we go so it makes me happy he doesn't mind the yarn shops either. He came a long with me while I drooled over the yarn. He did find a chair and entertain himself with games on his phone of course. 

The place we stopped at was called CDA Yarn And Fiber. It was amazing and I had a blast. The owner also has two pugs that we enjoyed petting and playing with. I also talked with the owner a bit and she is very nice and I highly recommend this shop. I love the fact her nails were dyed different colors from hand dyeing the yarn. It made me love the custom yarn spun, dyed, and sold there even more.

My other buys of yarn throughout the year. All are hand spun and dyed which I love. Also, here is a random fact about me and yarn - It's rare I buy darker colors. The two on the left I bought from a lady at the St. Louis Ren Faire. Another amazing summer adventure for my boyfriend and me. The lady selling the yarn told me, that sadly she didn't have a online shop yet.

On to some other craft purchases so far this year! Below are some of the amazing fabric I purchased so far this year in craft stores like Michaels and Jo-Ann Fabric & Craft Stores. I wait for the fabric to go on sale and pounce. I'm hoping this will get me motivated to finally learn how to use the sewing machine?

 

Finally, I am completely in love with Mollie Makes magazine and even though it's expensive I find the extra buy worth it. I read the magazine from cover to cover and gain tons of new crafty ideas. I find this magazine more aspiring to me than any craft magazine you can find in the United States. It's visually pleasing to me as well and I love the layouts on each page. Usually on my trip to Jo-Ann Fabric & Craft Stores to purchase the monthly magazine I have a look around at the sales. Of course the last time yarn was on sale so when is there not a good time to stock up on yarn?

Cosplay Items

GenCon is getting so much closer and I can't wait! My nerd heart is filled with excitement as I count down the days. I have four cosplay outfits that I am bringing with me (YIKES!). I'm not sure if I will wear them all yet but I will make a attempt. My boyfriend will be with me and he got me into cosplaying so I'll have that support when I become a spaz. Yes...spazzing over the fact if I have enough time to wear each one even though the Con is for 4 days. I even have little lists full of groceries, clothing, cosplay items, and whatever else I need. I love to be prepared, easily to tell huh?

One of my cosplays is my Tardis outfit from Doctor Who. I ended up making a hair piece to go along with it and I'm loving how it turned out. Hopefully I can post pictures later of my full outfit. Here is the Tardis inspired skirt I'll be wearing.

The hair piece I made to go along with my Tardis cosplay outfit. I used some Doctor Who inspired yarn that is named 'Sexy'. The name fits well with my cosplay outfit. I got this amazing yarn from the website Nerd Girl Yarns. I pretty much used a steam punk theme as well with the clock and gears.

I also have a Super Mario themed outfit I'll be wearing. I guess you can say both my Mario and Doctor Who themed cosplays are based on Lolita fashion? I'm not sure because I never sat down and really thought about it. I pretty much did what I thought in my head would look great and went with it. Here is the Super Mario inspired skirt I will be wearing. Both skirts I purchased from CorsetWonderland on Etsy. The seller is amazing to work with and very friendly.

I remembered making this hair piece awhile ago and got it out. It would go perfect with my Super Mario themed cosplay. A cross-stitch piranha plant that I made into a hair piece.

I also commissioned a friend of mine to make Mario and Doctor Who themed shoes to match both of these outfits. I can't wait to see what she creates and show everyone!

My next attempt is to post more because really there is a ton of things I could be posting but I am taking the lazy rode. I will post more soon and hopefully breath some life into my blogger. This year seems so busy and when I get a chance to breath I end up reading a comic or knitting. 

My Plushies!!!

Created this piece for my Boyfriend for Valentine's Day this year. He actually got me into playing Magic this year. I'm learning and with his 13+ years of experience I am being trained well. I fully admit I enjoy the game and the strategy to it. It's addicting and I love beating my boyfriend when we play.

Mana Pattern:Sprite Stitch
Words Pattern: The Domestic Scientist



I fully admit the only person I will buy plushies from is Lisa over at Ambitious Love. I have know her for years and her work is out standing/amazing/awesome/etc. She takes great care and pays attention to detail with everything she creates. She will make a plushie that you can cuddle for hours too. Personally experience based on that last comment.

Recently I commissioned her to make Captain Jack Harkness from Torchwood/Doctor Who and Cole MacGrath from Infamous. The other guy is Alistair from Dragon Age: Origins. Yes, both games mentioned can be easily named my favorites. I'm also a HUGE Doctor Who fan and fell in love with Captain Jack when he was first introduce. I started watching Torchwood but haven't finished. I secretly hope that Captain Jack makes an appearance in Season 7 of Doctor Who.

Loving The Geeky/Nerdy Items.

Just wanted to post a few of the things I have seen in the past week over the internet. Not something I will do all the time but I wanted to share the love.

This just feels the comic book geek side of me full of love. Comic Kapow headband by the lovely Janine Basil providing Burlesque, comic and retro inspired hats and headbands.


DIY Cross-Stitch iPhone 4 Case. How awesome is that!? I love the fact if you get sick of the current cross-stitch on the case you can easily replace it. So whatever mode you are in you can show it off.

I've been playing a bunch of inFAMOUS2 lately so Lisa at Ambitious Love made me very happy when she listed for sale a Cole MacGrath keychain on Artfire.

Final Countdown!

I am all done with Sara's "Feel The Burn" pattern. There should be a update soon over on her blog, The Split Stitch.

I highly suggest everyone to watch Sara's blog as there will be a big giveaway starting tomorrow as well. Up for grabs is the 10 patterns that have been featured in the series. Anyone can join so watch for it! Not just because I'm a Stitching Angel but I've read a few of the ladies blogs in this group and it's worth watching.

What are the Stitching Angels? A group of ladies that volunteered there time and materials to stitch up a few of Sara's patterns that she will be listing in her Etsy shop soon.

So make sure to follow the giveaway on Sara's blog, The Split Stitch.

Captain America Shield & Pattern Tester

About a week ago, I was showing Ambitious Love a crochet pattern I found that had to do with Captain America. Lisa is someone I love talking too because she shares her love of comics and video games with me. We both were looking forward to seeing the new Captain America movie so when I came across the pattern I had to show her! After claiming she wished she could crochet, I then volunteered myself to make it for her.

What did I make? What every girl that loves comics needs! A Captain America Shield Headband! I did modify the pattern a bit and loved how it came out. Lisa over at Ambitious Love seemed to love the outcome. I can't wait for her to get it in the mail! Pattern can be found here at Colliding Universe.Now I need to figure out how to create a Batman version for me.

I also have been working on my pattern for Sara atThe Split Stitch. There should be a update sometime next week of everyone's progress. I did not transfer the pattern on a towel as I originally wanted. It was not working well for me and after a hour of trying I finally gave in. Here is what I have so far.