PiNight – An evening on Pinterest

Last night was excellent for “pinning” – there was heaps to be found on Pinterest!

{I doubt you haven’t heard about Pinterest – but in case you really haven not clue: It is an online Pinboard on which you can “collect” links and images}

I found so many exciting things, recipes, photographs and now I feel like sharing some of the coolest stuff I found.

But let’s talk about personal hygiene first, shall we?

Don’t worry, I don’t really want to talk to you about personal hygiene, I just wanted to tell you that I quite like loofah sponges (who doesn’t!) – and apparently, these ladies like them, too:

For instructions on how to make yourself a loofah costume for halloween (or any other occassion, like a bath-themed costume party or whatever else you might be up to) have a look here, on the razmataz blog.

Speaking of D.I.Y. … over on “I Spy DIY” is a great tutorial on how to make your own star stamped shirt: {click image for direct link}

You probably know by now that I have a thing for… porn. Not what you are thinking! I’m talking about food porn here! Pretty photography of even prettier food. ^^ Like this:

And especially this one:

Doesn’t it look heavenly? *swoon*

The recipe (and lot’s of other pretty things) can be found over on Jelanie’s Blog, go and check it out NOW!

There are tons of other cool pins I could tell you about but why don’t you head over to my pin boards and have a look at what else I’ve discovered yourself?

Enjoy your PiNight/Day!

Crochet Craziness II – Amigurumi Ambush | WEEKEND WIND UP#8

A little while back, I showed you some crochet basics and promised you to tell you what these newly adopted skills are good for.

It took a little longer than expected to write this post, but it also turned out a little longer than anticipated, so I hope in the meantime you practised a lot to be ready to go and try some of the following stuff.

[From Wikipedia, the free encyclopedia:]

Crochet (pronounced /kroʊˈʃeɪ/) is a process of creating fabric from yarn or thread using a crochet hook. The word is derived from the French word “crochet”, meaning hook. Crocheting, similar to knitting, consists of pulling loops of yarn through other loops. Crochet differs from knitting in that only one loop is active at one time (the sole exception being Tunisian crochet), and that a crochet hook is used instead of knitting needles.

So what can you crochet?

I. Amigurumi – the real reason why I picked up the crochet hook again after years of abandonment

[From Wikipedia, the free encyclopedia:]

Amigurumi (編みぐるみ^?, lit. knitted stuffed toy) is the Japanese art of knitting or crocheting small stuffed animals and anthropomorphic creatures. The word is derived from a combination of the Japanese words ami, meaning crocheted or knitted, and nuigurumi, meaning stuffed doll. Amigurumi are typically animals, but can include artistic renderings or inanimate objects endowed with anthropomorphic features.

Aren’t they cute? I found this adorable picture on Juicefairy, a blog that seems to point out all things beautiful.

I got myself an amigurumi-book (picture right) with patterns when I first started making them, but there are also some good tutorials to be found online.

To start with, I bought this book. It is in German, but there are great opportunities in English books as well.

It takes a little practise and I would recommend to start with big amigurumi, before trying the mini amigurumi, but don’t worry, they’ll all look cute eventually, even if the first one turns out to be a bit… hm… you know… my first one looked like this:

The simplest form of amigurumi consists of a ball and a face, maybe a flipper and voilà – you’ve got a cute little amigurumi fish. Later you add arms and legs and accessories and you’ve got a kitten, a bear or a rabbit.

More online tutorials here and here and here.

Another cute conclusion of what amigurumi is can be found on Linsy’s Blog

So after I did my fair share of practise, I figured it was time to move on and try something new.

And that was how I found this book from NeedleNoodles and made my very first own ninja.

I reckon it turned out pretty good (especially in comparison to that blue and white bear-meant-to-be-a-tiger above!), have a look:

Now the patterns in “Creepy Cute Crochet” are a bit harder to understand than the ones in the book before, but that is simply because the author uses “crochet language”.

Crochet language is pretty much like shorthand: once you are able to remember what the short letters stand for, it’s easy.

But the great news is: NeedleNoodle keeps explaining on her blog whenever you have a problem. In her HELP section, she has a collection of useful tips and tricks, tutorials and even videos that make things so much easier.

Currently, I am working on this little guy – without pattern, just intentionally. Not sure if he looks like a hamster yet, but we’re working on it. ^^

I think this is enough for today. Preeeeetty sure there is heaps of information and inspiration here for the moment.

I have a whole list of other crochet-stuff I’d like to show you, but this will have to wait until next time.

For now, I’ll get myself a cup of coffee and get ready to head off to work.

Have fun indulging yourself with cuteness!

Until next time

~Sabrina~

COFFEE TIME: Amigurumi coffee cup (pic: linsy.nl)

P.S.: If you like the idea of amigurumi but are certainly not a crochet-person, there are also lots of possibilities to buy the little cuteness attacks online. For example on Amigurumi Kingdom or on Etsy.

{Pics top from left: Kaboodle, Linsy’s Blog, The Happy Mountain , Blogarsay, Juicefairy, Lydia Ashe’s Weblog}