Tag Archives: paper

1

RECYCLED GOLD TOP HAT

by

I am so gloriously busy finishing up projects for Burning Man that I really shouldn’t be starting any new ones. But in the middle of working on one new costume I realized that I needed a pink and gold top hat. Yes, I could have definitely found one at the Beautilities store around the corner, but I also knew I could make it myself. And so, voila, the $1 top hat!

top hat top hat top hat

Continue reading →

I made it out of scrap cardboard, which of course I got from Fabric Planet (EVERYTHING I make comes from that store, even if it’s using trash). I used hot glue and some packing tape to keep the cardboard together. The base was a little rough–you could see the seams and bends of the cardboard very easily– so I covered it with some foam shelf liner I had lying around.

top hat in progress top hat

The hat was then covered in this AMAZING mirror gold that I suspect is actually vinyl wallpaper (wouldn’t it be fabulous in a powder room?). I can’t get over how beautiful the reflections are, but unfortunately it scuffs very easily. For the top I cut out a spiral from a gift bag, which I just can’t wait to see under the lights of the Sensatron on the playa!

top hat garnish

The pink glitter lycras are scraps from a new bodysuit I’m making, as is the ruffle gold. I added on some Mardi Gras beads, and the flower applique came from Fabric Planet as well.

top hat top hat top hat

Now that I’ve got that lagniappe project finished, I’ve realized I need a pink and gold light up cane. We’ll see about that one.

VOTE FOR MY PROJECT IN THE CRAFTSTER REDUCE REUSE RECYCLE CHALLENGE!

0

goings on

by

After seeing Crazy Heart with Jason this afternoon I headed down Lincoln Blvd to Lincoln Fabrics, which is a wonderful slightly grungy warehouse filled with some gorgeous fabrics. There are cute cotton prints, jerseys in many different weights and colors, some fabulous vinyls, and so much more. I haven’t yet devised a project to use some of their awesome woven elastics, but Crazy Heart has given me an idea about how to use this beautiful ribbon. It will be a fun and challenging project that I’ll get a lot of use from.

floral woven ribbon

Continue reading →

When I was in Innsbruck I went to a folk art museum and saw some ribbon on a mini loom, and since then I’ve been eager to learn how to weave. No progress on that front yet, but this ribbon reminds me of that goal. Plus the colors and style will go perfectly with some vintage fabric I got a few months ago at the new Goodwill on Jefferson Davis in NOLA.

I’ve been working on lots of little projects since I’ve been in LA. I’ve got some bigger ones to post soon, but before I spend a few more hours on the interweb I’ve got to cross some things off my to-do list. Tonight’s main goal is to sew additional buttonholes and buttons onto a vintage men’s shirt that I tailored to my ladiness a couple years ago. But just to show that I keep busy, here’s something I did the other night.

octojar

I found a funny illustration of an octopus in the New Yorker and decided to put it on the lid of an empty pickle jar. I glued it on, slit the sides for a smooth fit, and coated the whole thing in tacky glue. I’m not sure what I’m going to put in the jar yet, but I’m sure it will be just the right thing.

Now it’s onto the buttonholes! And then the reverse applique…

to be continued

0

iPod cases

by

Taken from my post on Craftster

So I was hanging around a little house in the middle of France. There was no place in the village to get internet and we didn’t have TV either, so iPods were the only technological source of entertainment. And then… one day mine broke! I freaked out but was able to order a new one, cost quite a lot. Since it was my birthday present to myself I decided to buy new earphones. I picked out these blue ones from Carrefour before I knew what kind of case I was making, so I was quite pleased when it turned out to match perfectly.

Continue reading →

I found some vintage comic books (in French) in an upstairs bedroom and fell in love with a series of black, white, and blue images. I covered the papers in masking tape and cut out the shapes with an X-acto knife, then used more tape to assemble the case.

The next day I made the black and white case for my friend. This one was much more modular, with just 2 pieces–the sides were part of the front and back. Not only was it quicker the second time around, it did come out better. But mine has the matching earphones.

The closure is just a long tab that slips in over the top of the iPod. There is a layer of tape over the clicker wheel and the screen has bits of plastic from our chausson aux pommes box. I made these in March and they are still holding up quite well.

1 2