Colorful Wool and prepped for teaching kids to wet felt!

By:
On:
In: Blog, Craft Projects, Homeschool, Kids Crafts
With: 0 Comments

I mentioned in my blog post Lately, that my son and I have been spending two days a week at a fun school for homeschoolers. I spend some of my time there teaching the kids various fun crafts and recently someone wanted to learn how to felt beads. We had a massive amount of wool donated so I took in some soap and taught them what to do.  Setting Up First I just pulled all sorts of wool out of our bin and made a big colorful pile. Once your hands get soapy it’s hard to get fresh wool without making a mess so IRead More →

Vintage Needlepoint in Progress - from a Kit

By:
On:
In: Blog, Craft Chatter
With: 0 Comments

November completely disappeared around me. It was here and now it’s almost gone. Like the autumn version of a hummingbird. I went to my parents house early in the month for their big annual camp out. Nothing much to report there, except I got a box full of new to me old magazines (you’ll see those popping up here sometime) and one needlepoint (shown below) but it did really effect my month in general. I was getting ready to go, then came home just in time to shop for Thanksgiving, and then cook for Thanksgiving, and then here we are, month almost over.  Besides theRead More →

Finished plastic canvas Birdie Welcome sign-- My Workbasket

By:
On:
In: Blog, Craft Projects, Crafts
With: 0 Comments

I’ve mentioned a few crafts I was working on, and finally they’re all assembled. I had a stack of plastic canvas crafts and a crochet snowman just sitting and waiting to be put together. Here’s the plastic canvas pieces, a stack of Jack-o-Lantern magnets and a Welcome sign: Both of these patterns came from the same place, Annies Archive. I joined this site a month or so ago and still really like it. It’s a subscription service for just $2 a month and you get access to thousands of retired Annies patterns. I admit some of them are quite dated, but there is still MORE thanRead More →

Recent batch from the dyed pot. Handdyed wool that looks just like clown hair.

By:
On:
In: Chatter, Craft Chatter, Crafts
With: 2 Comments

Really, what else can you even call that??? The best part is that it didn’t get dyed in that stripe pattern, that happened as I rinsed it. It was dyed in clusters of color. I’ve had my dye pot going constantly for the last few weeks. I pretty much start a batch in the evening, turn it off to cool in the morning, then rinse and dump in the evening and refill it. I have about 15 pounds of my own stash to dye, PLUS the homeschool center got some amazing donations. Since we have limited time at the center I’m trying to dye someRead More →

Plastic Canvas Garland made from a kit

By:
On:
In: Chatter, Craft Chatter, Craft Projects, Homeschool
With: 0 Comments

I’m not sure if I mentioned over the summer what our school year would be like. In June we (my son and I) attended an open house for a new homeschool center. It was a dream come true, the same idea I have been wanting to build for years. I jumped on board the same day as a founder and facilitator. So in September, we opened for the school year and my son and I spend Monday and Tuesday with about 20+ kids and 3 other facilitators doing all kinds of fun stuff! This post contains affiliate links. If you follow them and make aRead More →

By:
On:
In: Craft Chatter, Crafts
With: 0 Comments

Several weeks ago on my Facebook page, I shared that Interweave had a magazine subscription sale. (It’s over now, but certain magazines were $15 a year.) I thought it would be fun if I took the three I subscribed to (Spin Off, Piecework, and Cloth Paper Scissors) and did a magazine flip through video. Just a page by page glance at what was in the issue, what stuck out to me, what peaked my interest, or even what was just fun to look at. Here are the three videos for each one.  Usually, when I do a video it is uploaded to my YouTube channelRead More →

A flipbook flip through! Video shows the parts and pieces of my recent flip book and talks about what I did. A fun paper craft and snail mail item!

By:
On:
In: Craft Projects, Crafts
With: 0 Comments

I recently decided to spend a lazy Sunday working on some paper crafts. I have only recently been getting back into it and acquiring all the papers and bit and bobs required, so I really felt like “Could I pull of something nice? With what I have??” Of course to be playing around is the best way to figure that out, so I set out to make a “flipbook.” These used to be called folios, and you also see them tagged outgoing mail, snail mail, paper crafts, etc. It’s really just a fun crafty way to send a letter. After creating one I was prettyRead More →

Making Perler Bead crafts from the Vacation Crafting book

By:
On:
In: Crafts, Kids Crafts
With: 0 Comments

I believe that children are our future, teach them well and let them craft away…. A while ago I was sent two great books of kids crafts to review. I’m a bit delayed in posting about them, especially since one of them is titled “Vacation Crafts,” and says it’s for summer. The thing is though I did that intentionally. I don’t believe crafts should just being during the summer. I think they should be every day, especially as a homeschooler. So I wanted to feature these books after everyone was kind of over summer break and while homeschoolers are planning and prepping for next year.Read More →

Four finished crochet projects on My Workbasket

By:
On:
In: Craft Projects
With: 0 Comments

I haven’t been sharing a lot of crafty stuff, but I have been doing some! I’m working on a new crochet scarf pattern that I’m excited about. I also got some new yarn for Mother’s Day (two large Caron Cakes) and made a poncho from it. Remeber when I said that I like to make small things and things to prepare for winter? ( I said it in my 10 Perfect Summer Crochet Projects post.)  The only problem was that the scarf and the poncho were both big, so the crocheting combined with the shoulder movement of turning it around to work on took aRead More →

10 Perfect summer crochet Projects- All free and great for working on while on the go!

By:
On:
In: Craft Chatter, Craft Projects, Crafts
With: 0 Comments

Summer is here! Well, it’s supposed to be. I don’t know about you but the weather here does not exactly feel summery. It’s raining a lot (a nearby town had a catastrophic flood) and it surprisingly cool most days. I’m sure it will heat up though. In the summer there are two types of projects I try to work on. Small, handy objects that travel well and don’t cover you with yarn in the sticky heat, and large warm winter gear that is nice to work on in the air conditioning. The benefit of course to working on winter gear is that you aren’t in aRead More →

How to use "Woodchips" of time to enjoy hobbies -- My Workbasket

By:
On:
In: Chatter, Craft Chatter
With: 0 Comments

I’m pretty sure that I’ve mentioned (probably many times) that I grew up in a crafty family, or at least surrounded by crafty females. I remember at a young age reading a story in a craft magazine that has really stuck with me. Keeping in mind that I may not have even been double digits when I read this that really means something. I’m fairly sure it was an old issue of Nutshell News, a miniatures magazine from many years ago, but I could be mistaken. It’s about finding time for hobbies, and I found it very insightful. I’ve told this story many times overRead More →

A blog post to show of my purchases and faves from the 2018 sheep and wool festival -- My Workbasket

By:
On:
In: Craft Chatter, Crafts
With: 2 Comments

How has it been more than 12 days and I haven’t managed to tell you about the Sheep and Wool Festival?!?!?! Well, I know the real reason why, but it’s still surprising! The real reason is that I took a few quick photos of my purchases to show them off to some friends (and I think on Instagram) but never time to actually photograph them well to show you. Which is wrong, because you’re my friends too, and you deserved better. I just wanted to give you quality shots so you can drool over the pretty stuff. Truth be told some of the photos stillRead More →

Fun and easy thank you cards using Faber Castell Gelatos!

By:
On:
In: Craft Projects, Crafts
With: 0 Comments

When I recently got some new gelatos I knew I would be using them for all kinds of things. I saw a pack of simple “Thanks” cards in the value section at Michaels and one craft practically designed itself. I knew I would use the gelatos to take the simple plain cards and spice them up a notch with a handmade splash of color. My cards say “Thanks” but your cards can say anything at all, or even just be colorful and fun! These easy to make simple cards make it possible to whip up a bunch in just one sitting! It’s great because youRead More →

An assorted stack of bowl woven on the Wild Hare Loom-- From My Workbasket

By:
On:
In: Craft Projects, Crafts
With: 0 Comments

When I went to the Homespun Yarn Party one of my purchases was the round weaving loom set from Wild Hare Fiber. You guys, I am LOVING these looms! So much so in fact that I am planning to buy the new jumbo size at the Sheep and Wool Festival. (Which I’ll be going to in four days.) There are of course ways to make your own loom, but if you have the money save your time, support an artist, and buy the looms at one of their shows OR at their Etsy Shop. You can find the looms HERE on Etsy.  (Affiliate Link, IRead More →