Kerstin's designs

I always knew my mother’s sister had a passion for cats, horses, and riding. I was also well-aware that she and my mother have always been excellent at crafting and sewing clothes and accessories. In fact, I vaguely recall hearing that my aunt had received some form of education in it. I had no idea, however, that she had such a fun stash of designs and patterns!

My favorite was this: a ladybird miniskirt design. She included a little swatch of the cloths involved, and then made a detailed and colorful illustration of the proposed clothing.

Most of the drawings were made in the 70’s, which I think is pretty apparent in the flares and hippy-style of some of the clothes. Perhaps a clue also lies in the rather enigmatic but innocent faces of the models themselves.

There was a binder full of practical examples on how to make this or that stitch, how to sew edges and corners, knit tips and rounded curves, as well as how to sew holes. Sew holes? What a weird concept – in my imagination, sewing generally patches holes instead of forming them!

What shocks me is that probably at least half of the things included in her education were bits of knowledge that every girl was required to know.

My aunt gave me some presents. I got a lovely shirt with flared sleeves, hand-printed with a stenciled pattern. It is made from an old bedsheet. She also gave me two of her hand-sewn bags. One is a patchwork of various bits of leather, and the other is a very roomy green shoulder-bag with a pattern of black diamonds.

10:13 - 4.7.2008 - comments {1} - post comment

Noitapuisto - The Witch Park

Last weekend, I went exploring in Borgå (or Porvoo, as it is called in Finnish. Places in Finland have two names, one in Swedish and one in Finnish) It’s a beautiful little city-town which one of those charming "old town" sections to it. While tromping through the old town section, we came upon a small market square with stalls selling everything from wartime memorabilia, stamps, woolen socks, felted animals, jewelry, and these hand-crafted bags. They were being sold at a stall called Noitapuisto, which roughly translates to The Witch Park.

I fell in love with a tweed shoulderbag with whiskers, cat-ears, and a dangly little tail, but there were bags of all sizes. Some were big enough to carry everything but the kitchen sink, and others were custom-sized for iPods or mobile phones.

While there were also stuffed rats with soft woolen claws, the theme of cats was most prevalent. There were pins, and small stuffed toys, and a deliciously cute little box of mice. If I hadn’t had a two-digit number in my bank just then, I would’ve splurged and bought things left, right and center. When I finally managed to drag myself away from the stall, I came away inspired.

10:06 - 4.7.2008 - comments {3} - post comment

Fat cat wrist-support

I needle-felted this fat little bugger as a graduation present for a friend who was complaining that her wrists hurt from too much typing.

I haven't seen her use it yet, but other people seemed to like it anyway, and it was a fun, experimental process to make.

It's not intended to look like a seal - it's a cat. A very bloated cat. My apologies for the poor photos, but I didn't have time to take a proper picture before I handed it over. Yes, it is in fact wresting on a gravestone, but this is just because it was the cleanest, nicest surface I could find in that particular park.

You can't see it in these pictures, but he actually has a white chin and chest. I think future versions will include more details!



It's needle-felted, which means that I took some 'raw' wool and then poked it with a needle over and over again until the wool became more fabric-like. The inside has a double layer of old tights filled with dried peas. :) I'll try to sell these in the future.

09:18 - 12.6.2008

Button earrings, sequin bracelet

I made two different people two different pieces of jewelry as presents.

The first was this pair of earrings. I used little white seed beads, some blue buttons, and two beads made from shells. This is actually my first proper attempt at making beaded jewelry.

10:14 - 7.6.2008 - comments {0} - post comment

Snake scarf, ninja turtles, and pocket monsters.

Here are a few simply wonderful hand-crafted items I've seen recently:

Snake scarf via CRAFT magazine


Teenage Mutant Ninja Turtles from craftster.org


Stitchpixie monster wallets. I'm in love with these... They're for sale!

11:30 - 3.6.2008 - comments {4} - post comment

The cuddliest Bobba Fett.

Man.. That's the least threatening Bobba Fett I've ever seen. I wish I could make something like this! Inspiring. I think I have to start practicing.

The armor is apparently sculpey and the figure itself is something knitted. This is proof that knitting is also definitely something for guys!

Via CRAFT Magazine

08:45 - 2.6.2008 - comments {2} - post comment