My Happy Place

I love giving gifts! It’s a challenging but enjoyable enterprise to find gifts that will be in some way significant to the recipient. I do admit that most often, mainly due to time constraints, it is much easier to purchase prefabricated items. In this individualization-loving, consumer world there are frequently numerous gift options that you simply can’t believe weren’t designed exclusively for your recipient.

However, there are times that even after extensive searching, nothing seems to fit the bill. So, do I settle? No! Give up? Never! My motto: When the giving gets tough, get crafty! Ditch prefab, and create something fabulous! Crafty giving is all about personalization. What floats your recipient’s boat? Do they have a hobby? What is their favorite color? From small touches to all-out, one-of-a-kind creations, the possibilities are endless.

Over the next few entries, it will be my goal to furnish you with some tips and ideas for creating gifts exactly suited to your recipient. I’m no Martha Stewart. As much as I admire her ability to consistently produce a hyperperfect outcome to everything she touches, I’m much more practical and (dare I say it?) thrifty. Nevertheless, there are some underlying principles to crafty giving that permeate all praiseworthy do-it-yourself gifts, no matter how simple or grandiose. So, whether you’re a Stewart disciple or not, I’m hoping there will be something for everyone.

Here is a sneak peek at the next installment:

I have a penchant for the odd and quasi-creepy. I am definitely a classic monster kind of gal. Dracula, Frankenstein’s monster, Godzilla, the Creature from the Black Lagoon — I love them all! However, while I do enjoy a tinge of creepy, even the fuzzy Wolf Man can’t really be described as “cute.” So, how does one pay tribute to these ghouls without being overly gloomy?

Lucky for me, in the world of crafting almost everything can be cutified. I’ve been getting a charge out of incorporating monsters into my craft projects. One such project was giving life to the simple cell phone socks that my sister scored at her local dollar store. As soon as she showed them to me, we both knew I had a project of monstrous proportions ahead of me. Here is the result (as captured by my incredibly talented sister):

Recommended reading: Have an affinity for monsters? Got mad crocheting skills? Do I have a book for you! Creepy Cute Crochet: Zombies, Ninjas, Robots, and More! by Christen Haden is crawling with friendly little fiends. As the review on Amazon says, “the dolls in Creepy Cute Crochet eat your typical amigurumi for breakfast.”

Today is National Grammar Day! In a world where the lowercase letter “i” is a perfectly acceptable substitute for the pronoun (in most forms of casual written communication), the fight to maintain good grammar is very near and dear to my heart. If a well-crafted sentence warms the cockles of your heart, you can join SPOGG (The Society for the Promotion of Good Grammar) and print your own SPOGG Membership Card.

Happy National Grammar Day!

Honestly, sometimes I just don’t know what’s going on my head. Such was the case when I created Fat Chemists.

What I do know is that I am, at times, a crazy perfectionist. Most often, symmetry is my goal. The outlining on my obese friend here was an attempt at loosening up a bit. A very little bit.

Not too long ago, my hubby and I came home to this:

These fluffy little guys played just long enough for us to snap a few pictures, and then they scurried off into unknown corners of the apartment. We’re pretty sure that they’ve been practicing while we’re out, because they were rockin’ it!

Recommended reading: I’ve been playing with pipe cleaner chicks since I was a wee lass, making little costumes for them and such. But, I have to hand it to Sloane Tanen. She is a pro. I highly recommend Bitter with Baggage Seeks Same: The Life and Times of Some Chickens.