Trying to perfect a Blythe doll bonnet and a new bookshelf

First one came out too large, maybe for a baby human?  All the other attempts fit fairly well, I just need to add some button closures.

Here is the latest addition to my home office. I actually ordered a white lacquered bookshelf, but I was sent this "espresso" one. I decided to keep it because it sort of matched my desk/computer/printer. I think the white would have been nice though, it would have disappeared into the background more.  : /

Major shoe-gery.

Right when I was nearing the finish line to this pair of sandals (working on these a little at a time since the last week of January) I realized that if I continued with this design I ran the risk of TOE CLEAVAGE exposure! I can sense you are horrified as well. Who could prance around town carefree with the looming fear that people might think that their feet are slutty? I definitely do not want my toes to send the wrong message. I am a good catholic girl. [insert halo shine effect]

Here is the original sketch:

I'm extra sad because it was starting to develop just as I had envisioned. In the top photo you can see I have already unstitched the toe cap and piping and added a piece of leather to the vamp. The sandals are currently in rehab receiving a modesty overlay and hopefully will get soled next week so I can move forward to a new project, start prancin' (hopefully), and do better next time.

No such thing as a design mistake, just a design opportunity. Right?

Sewing Pants from my own pattern- Round 2

Testing out my 80's prom dress neon pink fabric on a modified pattern. The waist is much more comfortable and there is less of the "front butt" situation, but unfortunately still suffering from "wenus projection" (censored in the photo for your protection).  Next round I will try a front zippered fly and figure out exactly where I have to deduct from to get the projection under control.

My first pants!

 I guess these are my first "proper" pants. In the past I've made leggings for my Blythe doll, and a pair of leggings out of my sweatshirt jacket for me, so these are the first dressy-ish pants. They came out okay, a little snug on the waist after I added the waistband in the inside, and unfortunately I drafted the front piece too high so it looks like I have 2 butts. If 2 heads are better than one, maybe 2 butts are better than one as well?

Meh... back to the drawing board! I will have to modify the pattern today and try again. I definitely want to make another one with side pockets and use the new neon fabric I purchased to make piping. My seam binding tape actually got used for binding seams, which was very exciting. I usually just use it for wrapping packages!

D.I.Y. wood veneer table (first attempt)

The D.I.Y. in this scenario stands for Don't Irritate Yourself.  Have you ever thought that cheapy weirdly-hard-to-clean-surfaced Ikea laptop table would look awesome covered in cheapy cedar shelf liner...maybe not a good idea.  Self adhesive veneer sheets or tape would have been a better bet, but they are pricey.  If I try this again, I would first flatten out the lining with heavy objects for a day or so and then glue it on. I already had the glue,varnish, and pressure roller thingy in my studio, so for a $6 investment in the liner I thought it was worth a try.

Handmade Christmas Gifts ~ better late than never :D

Here is Sal modeling the hat and the backpack I made him.  This hat was my third attempt. The first one was more suited for an old Russian lady from my neighborhood, the second came out too small so I am using it as a travel beverage carrier, and then I made this one out of a fine weight wool. I tried some texturing at the base of this one, but nothing exciting.  The backpack I made out fabric remnants I had in my studio. I wish I had thought it through a little more and not mixed all these colors and kept it super simple. Next time, next time...

What I learned this past week:

Craft-wise what I learned this week was not to put regular acetate into my ink jet printer because it will be a ink drippin' money wastin' blob when it comes out. Also, I learned that trying to ink designs by hand is messy (I'm trying to get crisp lines for this particular design) and tedious, especially if you are trying to use india ink from 10 years ago. I ordered some transparency sheets for ink jet printers, it should be arriving today. Let's see how that goes.

In other news... why is black printer ink so expensive? I don't understand. It would be awesome if Epson (my printer) came out with vegetable/soy based inks for home printing use. Does this exist already?