Skateboards

(This post went up last week but the photos weren't showing up - I took it down and tried to fix it, so hopefully they're working now).

I saw a few of these pictures over at Orchid Grey. I clicked over to the Life website to look at the full set - they're great. These are my two favorites:

We have multiple blank and partially stenciled skateboard decks laying around our house and garage. Last year, my husband began making designs for skateboards, and it's a good creative side project for him. I think of crochet and sewing projects as being "old" hobbies, but I tend to think about skateboards as being so modern. It's fun to see them as vintage.

Inspiration: Beaded Sleeves

Last week was one of those weeks that just wasn't productive. I didn't feel motivated to do much, so the time I did spend working on things went towards a gift (yet to be finished... I had to redo a good chunk of it). I realized today I had this post sitting around half-written.

So, two weeks ago the Coletterie linked to this Threads article showing a pair of beaded and embroidered sleeves. If you haven't seen it, do! They're absolutely beautiful. The detail is amazing.

It got me thinking about how cute it would be to add sheer beaded sleeves to a simple top or dress. I lack the experience or ability to make anything quite like the inspiration, but I have done a bit of beading and rather liked it. The Alabama Stitch Book even has a little info on beading, and the stencil patterns from it would work for beading patterns.

I started looking for examples, and while they weren't all over the place, I did find a few (quite a few wedding dresses, too). Here's one:

Photo at tomandlorenzo.com

I like that it's more modern, with the very plain bodice and bright colors, but the beading is a little heavy.

This is example from Flickr is on a sweater and different beads than I'd use, but I like the random, scattered style with a stronger concentration at the hem:

http://www.flickr.com/photos/onthevraydar/6425678691/

I'd use a simple bodice and little cap sleeves for this. And wouldn't the Truffle dress look good with beaded sleeves and matching detail on the ruffle?

12 Days of Christmas - Part 4

The final days of my Christmas treasuries:

by thetimeisnow

Tenth Day of Christmas:

Eleventh Day of Christmas:

Twelfth Day of Christmas:

12 Days of Christmas - Part 3

More Etsy treasuries!

by alyssaettinger

Seventh Day of Christmas:

Eighth Day of Christmas:

Ninth Day of Christmas:

12 Days of Christmas - Part 2

Here are the treasuries for the next three days of Christmas:

by SecretCharm

The Fourth Day of Christmas:

The Fifth Day of Christmas:

The Sixth Day of Christmas:

12 Days of Christmas - Part 1

I put together 12 treasuries on Etsy over the last couple weeks, each featuring one of the twelve days of Christmas. Here are the first 3:

by rawartletterpress

The First Day of Christmas:

The Second Day of Christmas:

The Third Day of Christmas:

You might notice at this point, some of the items are gone - hopefully they've all been sold!