Homemade Chai Mmmmmm

I recently became obsessed with making a real masala chai at home. The obsession was worthwhile. I'm home sick right now, enjoying quite a few decaffeinated cups.

Here's the recipe for a batch:

6 cups water
2 cups milk
3 tablespoons sugar
6 tea bags
herbs:
6 green cardamom pods
6 cloves
4 peppercorns
2 star anise
1 cinnamon stick

In a stovetop pot, bring water to a boil, and dissolve sugar 
completely.  Add tea bags and spices.  Turn off heat, cover 
and steep for ten minutes.  Add milk and enjoy!

If you are unfamiliar with some of these whole spices, here's a picture. They are so pretty and good smelling.



I found the star anise in the ethnic foods aisle. McCormick sells cardamom pods, but they were crazy expensive. I actually found mine for quite a bit cheaper at Whole Foods. Yes, that Whole Foods. They have surprisingly good prices on spices, as they only sell their own label.

Belated Birthday To Me

Last month I took part in a "January Birthday Swap" on Craftster. I made a present for someone else born in January, and then someone else made a present for me.

I made my person this book-inspired pillow:



The pillow is inspired by this beautiful work by Patchwork Pottery. The book exterior is quilter's cotton, and the "pages" are corduroy.



I admit my literary ignorance, that I did not know there was a writer named "A. Trollope" but I did giggle a little bit as I embroidered this.

I got an awesome blue scarf from Craftster user Yelutci:



Again, sorry it has been SO LONG since I have last posted. Expect more of the same, unfortunately, as I will be working heavy overtime until May, and barely have time to wash my underwear, let alone craft. Sadness :(

Yummy Bath Salts

Sorry it's been so long since I've posted! The longer it went, the harder it became. Like a giggle loop. So, here, I'm just going to go...


I made bath salts for Christmas. They are shockingly easy! Here is the recipe.

3 cups epsom salt
1 cup baking soda
1 cup sea salt
Food coloring
Essential oil

In a large mixing bowl, add 3 cups of epsom salt, 2 cups of baking soda and 1 cup of sea salt into the bowl, and mix them with a wooden spoon. Add food coloring of your choice to the mixture, one drop at a time, until salt is desired color. Then add essential or perfume oil, to taste.


I made cutesy labels using my recycled linen paper, and packaged them in ziplock bags inside white lunch bags. Easy present.

That's a Wire Wrap

I love wire wrap, but I've always been too intimidated to try it. Still, I had this beautiful beach stone that I picked up at my friend Charlotte's wedding, and I really wanted to make it into a necklace for her. So romantic! And worth learning a new skill.



I used All Wired Up, by Mark Lareau, to get started. It was the only wire book available at my local library; luckily it was quite good. The illustrations are clear and the writing is simple. I managed this pendant in an hour or two, and I think it's pretty swell.

Despite his advice to buy fancy German tools, I made do with a set of tools I bought for $6 on Black Friday at Joann Fabrics. They actually worked well enough. The wire at Joann, however, is not so good. At the first bend, the copper began to show through the silver. Next time I try this, I will invest in some real metal.

LOLOLOL

Have you seen Teh Yarn Bukkit, by Craftster user angelbum? It's awesome!



Not only is it practical and cute, it's also flippin' hilarious If you still think LOLcats are funny (I do...). Plus, bonus, it's recycled. check out the needle storage:



I copied the basic shape to make a Christmas present for my knitting mother in law. It's a little more classic than hilarious, but I'm still going to share a tutorial with you as soon as I get one together.

Christmas backlog pt 1.... Sock Jareth

I made a lot of presents for Christmas this year, and I got a little craft fatigue. Trying to catch up with them now.



Sock Jareth, the goblin king! Your embroidered eyes can be so cruel. I vowed to stick to my stash as much as possible this year, so this cuddly, underendowed plushie uses my stash of... mismatched socks.



This is the beginning of his body. His arms are made out of the rest of the tan sock, his shirt is white muslin, and his hair and vest are craft felt.



Katie is a big Bowie fan and the toy was a hit. Phew. I finally posted something kinda geeky ;)

CPSIA - Action Needed NOW

A new law is about to destroy all small businesses that sell handmade items to children under 12. It goes into effect February 10th, so action is needed ASAP.

Please sign this Petition
And this petition.

And please, please, write and call your Senators and Reps. I have contacted mine and heard nothing, because of course this is a terrible time to try and get any action from government. They are in transition, and busy with the desperate economy. However, if they don't do something now, the situation will get much, much worse.

There's a reason they are calling this National Bankruptcy Day.

I want safety for all children, but there is so much wrong with this law! For starters, it requires lead and pthalate testing of ALL items intended for children under twelve -- even if that item is made of materials inherently free of lead or pthalates. Organic cotton diaper users, get ready to pay for useless testing, or face huge fines and possible jail time.

It also requires that each item of each line be tested individually, even if the components have already been tested. So if you use the same blue zipper in twenty different pillows, you have to test it twenty different times. And these tests are ridiculously expensive - up to $4,000 each.

I imagine this law had good intentions, hoping to save our children from the (relatively small amount of) dangerous toys and clothes from China, but I assure you, this law will have the opposite effect. The only retailer who will be able to afford these extreme tests will be Walmart. And we all know where they get their swag.

Please take action now, if you have any interest in handmade goods. Thank you.

TARDIS travels through time and web

Thank you Geek Crafts, for posting my Tardis tissue box cozy!

Merry Christmas!

Hope you've got something good under the tree ;)

Cuteness Advent Calendar

I'm working on so many crafty things, but they are all secret until Christmas. Can't risk a family member destroying their surprise.

Here's one thing... I made an advent calendar. I hear they are all the rage this year, although I did not know that when I started. I only knew that craft felt was ridiculously cheap at Joann Fabrics this Black Friday.



I decided to do it with the Holy Family, even though I'm not religious, because that's what an advent calendar is traditionally about.



Cute little Holy Family. Don't they look like weebles?



Much, much chain stitching, which I was guilted into by this project on the Purl Bee.



And the pockets are just the right size for Ghirardelli squares. Not an accident!

Here's the applique pattern if you are interested:


The tan felt is 27.5" x 33",folded in half over the dowel, and the squares are each 3" x 3" (there are 6 in each color). If you attempt this, I would recommend changing the numbers so that they are evenly distributed on each side of the picture. As it is, it tilts to the right as you eat the candy....

"Good People Have Things That Are Handmade"

Joss Whedon, the wunderkind behind Buffy et al, has finally been interviewed by CrochetMe. If you didn't hear about their original call, they've been crafting as hard as they can to get his attention, and it paid off.

The best part is, Joss himself is well versed in craft. His wife is a quilter and a crocheter, and he has been known to pick up the needles himself. And he uses the word "decoupage." Got to love that.

Zzzzzzz.......

Here's the pillow I was working on just before I left (the one with Jigglypuff). It worked out great, as you can see. This fabric was much softer than most commercially available pillows, making it extra comfortable.

The special secret behind this pillow is that it isn't a pillow, it's an empty sack. When you want to sleep on it, you fill it with soft clothing that you are already taking, so you don't have to give up any precious carry-on space. Take that luggage fees!

If you think this is as cool as I do, I've got a few of these in my store here and here. The store versions are made of flannel and they are a little bit smaller -- I tweaked the design after flight testing it. While they are totally lacking in Jigglypuffs, they are still quite handy to have around.

Black Friday (and Satuday)

Joann fabrics always has the best deals on the weekend after Thanksgiving. Practically the whole store is half off, or more. If you haven't gone yet, you might wanna.

• Buttons, 50% off (all of them!)
  
• Notions wall, 50% off (and it is actually fully stocked for once)
  
• Craft felt, $1.99 a yard (this stuff is 72" wide!)
  
• Jewelry supplies, 50% off
  
• Polymer clay, $0.99 a package
  
• Fat quarters, $0.99
  
• Butterick patterns, $0.99
  
• Embroidery Floss, 4 for $1
  

I also slipped over to Michaels, and while their deals are not quite as good, they did have 50% off most of their frame stock (and they have great frames) and also 50% their Bead Gallery brand beads, which were already a pretty good value.

Have at it!