Each summer, after the Costume Institute at the Metropolitan Museum of Art in New York closes its doors on one exhibition (this year’s “Punk: Chaos to Couture” drew almost half a million visitors), it’s time to start thinking of the theme for the following spring.
The path to the nest of spiders - Book cover illustration for Italo Calvino: The path to the nest of spiders – Mondadori 2014 (Ita) by Gianni De Conno
From Nigella Lawson's How to Be a Domestic Goddess Recently I made a double batch, which filled 4 of these bottles nicely. It is so pretty and makes such a nice gift—people are always so thrilled. Here are the proportions for a near-double batch: 3+ lbs. rhubarb to yield about 2.25 lbs. trimmed/cut 2.5 cups sugar 1.75 L bottle vodka Notes: When I made this recently, I realized after a few days the color had been leeched from the rhubarb but the hue of the schnapps was not very vibrant. This was because I had started with rhubarb that wasn't very pink to begin with. So, I bought some more rhubarb—the brightest pink stalks I could find—chopped them up and added them to the jar... worked like a charm. SO, try, if you can, to start with pink stalks.
A curated exhibition at the Robert Mann Gallery in New York this summer explores the approaches of 11 artists who take a needle and thread to photographs.
This practice routine'll help you get from one chord to the next with ease.
What I've got for y'all today is an ensemble brought to you by the exquisite fabric known as pleather. Which I have decided can only be pronounced as "plehh-thahh" in a deep and gravely Barry White voice, preferably followed by a "baby". As in, "I wanna wrap you in plehh-thahh, baby, plehh-thahhhhh." And just who doesn't want be draped from head-to-toe in leather fauxness with Barry White at their beck and call, hmmm? Little known fact: pleather actually comes from the rare and annoying creature known as Twilight Sparkle. Hence the smell of plastic and rainbows shot from unicorn anus. So I got this idea to draw all over my clothing from one of my fave artist blogs Alisa Burke. Y'all. I totally hate it when chics say the have a "girl crush" so, well, lemme just put it this way: I totes have the lady hots for Alisa. She's like a Super Crafty Genius. Sometimes, I visit her site and I'm all "GAH! She's done it AGAIN!" and commence shaking my fists at the heavens wondering why some folks be all touched with the crafty-gene and I ended up with hammerhead toes. HAMMERHEAD TOES, Y'ALL (and, to that freaky-deaky person who keeps messaging me about wanting to see more pictures of my feet, STOP. It's not gonna happen, 'kay?). Life just ain't fair, y'all. As soon as I saw Alisa's jacket, the idea of doing the same with a Keith Haring theme popped into my head (along with "squirrel!" and "unicorn anus!" but that's pretty normal). I scoured the interwebs for super cheap plehh-thahhh (see, I told you, I can't say it any other way. Bet you won't be able to either after this post) and found that Forever21 had this circle skirt on the cheap. Not wanting to pay shipping costs, I decided to venture to the mall (anyone else abhor the mall? Gah, I feel like I'm stepping back into a 1990's time machine each time I enter one. Orange Julius, anyone?) and scooped one up. I gotta tell ya, the last time I wore a plehh-thahh skirt it was my 11th birthday, I was in 6th grade and we were bringin' the house down at Chuck-e-Cheese. I tried my hardest to find a photo from the occasion but, alas, I think I may have taken one look at it, thought, "OMG, why am I wearing maroon pinstripe pleather?!" and tossed it. Sorry, y'all! After my shopping fun at the mall, I popped over to the craft store and scooped up a coupla of Sharpie oil-based pens. I also picked up a couple of terrible fabric makers which sucked unicorn anus. Thusly, I don't recommend them. Once I got home, I did a quick search for Keith Haring/black and white and this is what popped up. I loved it so much (look at the scissor people, people!) I decided it would be the perfect inspiration. I began by sketching out my Haring-inspired designs in chalk but that proved to be too time-consuming and did a number on the tip of the Sharpie. Since Harings designs are pretty simple, I decided to just let it goooo and draw 'em with reckless abandon. Are y'all fans of Keith Haring? I feel like he was such a revolutionary artist not necessarily because of his style but because of the boundaries that his artwork removed. In the 1980's his graffiti artwork could be seen by anyone who happened by it, not just those "in the art world". He removed the mystic of the artist by working out in the open on grimy subway walls in his cartoonish hand. Not only that, but his artwork brought to light issues that were close to Haring's heart: AIDS awareness, sexuality, apartheid and war. Dude was Banksy before Banksy. Suddenly art became by the people and for the people, thanks to Keith Haring. Once I was finished with the plehh-thahh skirt, I decided a biker jacket was needed to top it all off. Barry White insisted. Gotta tell ya, I've been wanting a vintage biker jacket for ages. However they cost exactly One Million Dollars and, despite my ginormous art teacherin' paycheck, I just ain't got that kinda dough. So a plehh-thahh biker from Forever21 it 'twas (dude. Do you know how awkward it is to shop in a place called Forever21 when you are really Forever 39?). For this jacket, I really wanted to stress Harings more popular images like the people holding the heart, the barking dogs, the radiant baby and the cartoon face on the television. Other than that, I had seriously no plan at all, didn't draw in chalk or nuthin. I just went at it. And the result is pretty busy, I gotta say. However, I kinda dig that it doesn't match the skirt. I like that the skirt has more negative space so you can see the images better. By the way, do you even know how stinkin' hot head-to-toe plehh-thahh is?! And by "hot" I don't mean "hawt", I mean butt-sweat hot. You can thank me for the visual imagery in the comments. Once the temps dip a pinch, I think this will be so much fun to wear. I'm thinkin' I will get a lotta mileage outta that jacket. OMG, I just realized, I look like The Fonz! Who has two thumbs and loves plehh-thahh?! Eeehhhhhh. This guy. Oh, Fonz. You so cray. And with that, one more artist-inspired ensemble in the books!
Make a classic ratatouille using a seasonal mix of vegetables, garlic, and olive oil.
A healthy alternative to french fries baked to crisp perfection right in the oven!
Creative Knitting 2014 01
Transportation is a big theme in our family right now. Since we just moved into the RV that we are supposed to be living in for the next two years and we've just started our nationwide travels, we've been checking out all the different vehicles that we pass on the roads. So I've made a series of Transportation Theme Free Printables that I will be sharing over the next few blog posts. Be sure to check back to get the rest!
Creative Knitting 2014 01
One of my favorite memories about being a kid during the summer was the summer reading program put on by the Kalamazoo Public Library . The ...
School has officially started for us! We are several days into the school year and I am loving my new class! It's a big group but they are...
After such a long project to complete these beauties I wanted my 4th graders to have a really fun, stress free, extension for those that were done on our last workday of this project... enter Roll-A-Picasso! I did this last year after my 4th and 5th graders finished up this project. And it was a huge hit, entertained for the entire 45mins! I made these sheets up ahead of time after finding a not so great version online awhile back and borrowed some dice from a classroom teacher.... Just a few minutes to explain and do examples and then they were hard at work creating these slightly creepy but awesome drawings. They had the option to just draw faces or draw and add on to the faces, and then color if they wanted too...they always get to take extensions home day of so I snapped a ton of pictures! Try not to pee your pants laughing :)
Learn how to make a working pumping heart model with kids. This pumping heart model demonstrates how a real heart pumps blood in and out of its chambers!
learn to make an adorable little girl's romper with this free sewing tutorial. free printable pattern in size 4T included.
Put on your Awesome Mix Vol. 1, grab your crochet hook, and crochet yourself your very own baby Groot. This adorable Free Crochet Groot Pattern was inspired by the 2014 summer blockbuster, Guardians of the Galaxy. Whether or not you've seen the film, it's impossible to resist this cute little dancing tree. In addition to worsted weight yarn and embroidery thread, you'll also need pipe cleaners, safety eyes, stuffing, and of course, a small pot to complete this crocheted Groot. Make one for yourself and also make one for a friend -- everyone needs a dancing Groot in their life!
Am I the only one who is ready for this Winter to be over? Spring Break is right around the corner and we still have freezing temperatures here!! This week we have been looking at the ugly, freezing, dark skies and rain. We wanted to turn it into something beautiful! Begin with a white crayon and draw the horizon line. there should be a big emphasis on drawing OVALS instead of circles. Students figured out that you can see the white crayon BETTER when the paper in on their stool UNDER the table! So I let them draw on their stools! Can you see the white crayon in the picture? Some students added a rainbow, lightning bolt or other details Then I swiped the ENTIRE paper with a wet rag to begin the wet on wet watercolor I used Sargent Liquid Watercolor Magic for this. I use it ALOT because of the vibrant colors. We used turquoise, Blue, and black Ovals should be very small at the top of the horizon, but gradually get larger as they go down the page. Use a straight edge for the rain drops. The must TOUCH each puddle First, paint some large blue "blobs" on your paper. Then paint around the blue with black and watch it blend with the blue and the wet paper!! I have some siblings at my school working on a special project and they painted the background with the rain idea and it turned out great! Here is a link to the kind of watercolors I use for EVERYTHING! There are different sizes if you want a smaller set. You can put them in muffin tins or ice cube trays on the tables. You can see the link " liquid watercolors" on the sidebar to see many other projects I have used these with
You need to dress up the windows and give your house a perfect ghoulish look. we are giving some Halloween Window Decorations Ideas here.
My most popular tutorial of 2014 was my guide to creating a realistic money effect in Photoshop, which explained the steps to achieve an authentic engraved illustration style. The process is quite time consuming, so I figured it would be useful to follow it up with a ready made Photoshop Action that produces the effect […]
We were really excited to see this piece by artist Leslie Gabriëlse at the 2014 AQS show . Featured in the SAQA Masters II exhibit , Woma...
This comic strip template is a free printable that is perfect for kids. Kids of all ages, particularly preschoolers, elementary aged kids, even middle
Start with a square. Cut the top and add to the right (90 degrees). Cut the bottom and add to the left (90 degrees). Trace your design on paper and rotate! Click here to see how to create a translat
I said no to surgery and healed my knee naturally. I'm sharing the ligament tear in knee home remedy that worked for me.
Though my lingerie pattern B6031 comes with separate cup sizes (up to a D cup), you may still find yourself needing pattern adjustments if you're smaller or larger in the bust. Without further ado, here are instructions for a full bust adjustment. Read these if you're doing a small bust adjustment, since the alterations are the same, just reversed (more on that at the end of the post). 1. Start with the D cup pattern piece for your size. (I'm using the C cup in the photos below, so just ignore that). Mark in the lines shown in the picture below. 2. Slash along the lines, leaving a hinge at the top of the pattern piece. Open the slashed lines the amount you need to add to the bust. I added 1", which should gain you 1-2 cup sizes. Tape the pieces to a fresh sheet of paper. 3. Redraw the center front line. 4. Re-draw the dart legs, from their original leg points, to a new end point in your slash. Your dart will be much bigger now. When this pattern is sewn, the dart excess gets cut away, so you don't need to worry about all that excess fabric. (Another option is that you could gather the lower edge of the cup piece rather than having a dart. This is pretty common in slips.) 5. True the dart legs: close the dart as it will be sewn. Even up the bottom edge of the pattern piece if needed. Roll over the lower edge of the dart with a spiky tracing wheel. Open up the dart and draw over the perforated marks left by the tracing wheel. This is your new cutting line. 6. That's it! Test out your new cup piece in a cheap 2-way knit fabric. To get the correct fit, it's very important that your fabric for the test and the final garment stretch in the lengthwise and crosswise directions. For small bust adjustments: you can use these same steps, but instead of spreading the pattern piece apart, overlap the pieces, making it smaller. Your piece will get narrower and shorter, and your darts will be smaller. Let me know if you have any questions. Next, we'll be cutting and marking our fabric! Previous sew-along posts: Slip Sew-Along #1: Inside the Kit, Plus Other Supplies Slip Sew-Along #2: Pre-treating Your Fabric Slip Sew-Along #3: Picking a Size and Making Adjustments
Of all the images that I sent to magazines as slides when we were all still shooting film, the line-ups were what I personally treasured the most and so often they were never returned.
