I'm just wondering what everyone's preference is. So when you buy some new yarn do you wind it into a ball? Or do you just work directly from the skein? I always just work from the skein. I don't have a ball winder, and I'm entirely too lazy to do it by hand. I have also started pulling from the outside, instead of the inside of the skein. I know that makes the skein roll around constantly, but I HATE when the inside body is gone and you get this limp noodle of yarn :/

I decided to try my hand at ATCs this summer to see what all the fuss was about. Well, now I know...they are so fun and addictive! Here are the cards I made for the June and July Ongoing ATC Swaps:


Super Giraffe!


Katniss: Girl on Fire


Sublime Shower: Crayon Scratching


Owl:


Happy Camper:

I made this kitty for my niece for her 2nd birthday. I used the amineko pattern and used felt and embroidery thread for the mouth. I just winged it for the outfit. This kitty is ready for summer fun and snuggles!

I made this Harry Potter/Gryffindor jar pincushion for my partner, bobbinalong, in the One Tiny Harry Potter Thing Round 3 swap. I've been seeing jar pincushions on Pinterest for a while and was happy to get the chance to make one. It's 4" in height, as per the OTT rules. I've never painted on glass before, but I had so much fun doing it. I used Elmer's Painter's paint pens and then cured the jar in the oven after it dried.

Group shot of the jar and everything I put inside:



I painted Hogwarts against a night sky on the front of the jar. The top is crocheted in Gryffindor colors, and around the bottom of the lid is a wire crocheted border. I used gold wire, red and gold beads, and a lion charm. The Weasley twins box is a matchbox that I made to store some pins and buttons.

Close up of Hogwarts:



On the back of the glass I painted her favorite spell "Alohomora". It's a spell used to unlock things. I always think of Hermione using it in Sorceror's Stone to sneak into the forbidden third floor corridor.



Hope you like it!

This is my second time working with polymer clay, but my first time trying a sculpture. I made these figures for my sister's birthday. I'm thinking of putting them in a terrarium. We are both big Doctor Who fans, so I had lots of fun making them

First, the TARDIS:




For scale:



I'm really excited for how the Weeping Angel turned out:





And of course, a shot together:



I'm still trying to figure out what to do with them, so if anyone has suggestions, that would be great!

I know you guys have seen this Dobby recently, but I told the wonderful LucyRavenscar that I would post a finished picture of him when I got done. Dobby is absolutely one of my favorite Harry Potter characters so I was thrilled to get this pattern. This is my second amigurumi and I had a difficult time getting his limbs sewn on properly. Thank goodness his smock covers the seams Thanks so much to LucyRavenscar for this wonderful pattern!! You don't know how happy it's made me.







Hope you guys like him. Here's the pattern I used:

http://www.etsy.com/listing/85800576/pattern-for-little-folk-amigurumi-elf?ref=sr_gallery_13&sref=&ga_search_submit=&ga_search_query=little+folk+&ga_view_type=gallery&ga_ship_to=US&ga_search_type=handmade&ga_facet=handmade

I'm having a lot of trouble sticking my separate pieces together without smushing the clay. I made a small mushroom last night and couldn't get the cap to stick onto the stalk without totally smashing everything. Is there any kind of glue that can be used? Or do people just use tiny dowels to join things? I'm very lost!

I am wanting to make a 9-12 month simple romper and medium sized tote bag out of a pattern I really like. How much fabric should I get for this project?

Someone recently gave me a Janome sew mini machine and I finally got it all set up last night.  I started to sew and the machine was running in reverse.  I hit the back lever and it still ran in reverse.  Not only is it stuck in reverse, but it's not sewing. The needle is just punching holes through the fabric.  I don't know how many times I rethreaded the machine to fix it, but nothing worked.  Any ideas?

I bought some polymer clay to make buttons for my crocheted and embroidered projects.  This is my first time working with polymer clay so I know the work isn't that great, but I'm still happy with it. I made a jewelry dish to sat on my night stand to stick my earrings and rings in at night. I'm always losing jewelry so I figured this was a good project.


I made some big buttons for headbands, and I made one Ravenclaw themed button to put on a headband for the next movie premier. Thanks for looking!