Rabbit Girl Crafts

Hey there! Every week I share my weekly round-up of needlework, art, and book news from around the web.

After talking about it for at least a year–if not longer–my colleague and I held our very first stitching group get-together at the library where I work this week. Two students came, which is a great start. One student is an accomplished crocheter, and she brought her own projects to finish. The other student took advantage of one of the cross-stitch kits I put together, and I gave her some pointers to help her get started on the project. It was really fun, and I got to put some stitches in my Prairie Schooler ornaments, too. We plan to make it a monthly event. Yay!

I hope to have some more updates and stitchy stuff soon! In the meantime, here are this week’s links:

• Did you know that documentary filmmaker Ken Burns collects quilts? Some are now on display at the International Quilt Study Center & Museum in Lincoln, Nebraska.
• These miniature food embroidery designs by Japanese artist ipnot are incredible.
• I love the idea of keeping an inspiration sketchbook. It would be nice to collect everything in one place.
• TNNA experimented with a hotel suite format for its Winter 2018 show, similar to the Nashville Needlework Market, and this reviewer was not impressed.
• Spoonflower shares ideas for embellishing maps with embroidery.
• This retrospective of the art of Ed Emberley at the Akron Art Museum is a great excuse to travel to Akron, Ohio before July 15.

Video of the Week

I’m in the mood to do another theme this month, so let’s feature (what else?) some favorite love songs for the month of February. My husband and I danced to this one for our first dance at our wedding.

Friday Finds is my weekly round-up of needlework, art, and book news from around the web.

Oh, there has been no stitching going on around here recently. The spring semester started at work and I am teaching two classes in addition to my full-time job as a librarian, and I am barely keeping my head above water. I love my classes–and the students–but course preparation, teaching, and grading is taking up all of my free time in the evenings and weekends.

I am trying to keep in things in balance, but since this is only week two of the semester, I need some time to adjust to the new workload.

In the meantime, here are this week’s links:

• Adorable story about two friends and their mutual love of needlework.
• The 112-year old Cone Denim White Oak plant, “the last major manufacturer of selvage denim in the United States,” is being closed.
• The finalists for the 2017 National Book Critics Circle Awards have been announced.
• This interactive sculpture made from clear packing tape on display at the Des Moines Art Center is both fascinating and terrifying. I’m not sure I could climb through that.
• “Textile Artist Creates Nature-Inspired Embroidery Art That “Grows” Beyond Its Frame.”
• This is how I feel about my cat right now.

Video of the Week

Rob Thomas “Someday”

Friday Finds is my weekly round-up of needlework, art, and book news from around the web.

Here are this week’s links:

• I soooo needed to read this article over at the Textile Artist: “Diagnosis: Artistic paralysis” doesn’t just accurately describe the feelings of creative paralysis but also provides tips for how to break out of the cycle.
• Sweet profile of a local needlepointer who recently won an award for her work from the American Needlepoint Guild.
• I’ve featured the work of Ulla Stina Wikander before, but she has some new sculptural objects covered in needlepoint and they’re pretty cool.
• A woman in the U.K. creates amazing felted wool tapestries depicting scenes from the Middle Ages.
• So, apparently people are shelving their books backwards? Moby Lives shares some hilarious responses to the backward book-shelving trend.

Video of the Week

Another fun song for the new yer and fresh starts: “Best Day of My Life” by American Authors.

Friday Finds is my weekly round-up of needlework, art, and book news from around the web.

Here are this week’s links:

• Author and illustrator Meera Lee Patel shares 3 ways to channel your fears into creativity.
• Are you a maker or an excuse maker? The Textile Artist blog has some tips for reaching your creative goals in 2018.
• Do you love SALs? Stitching the Night Away has a comprehensive round-up of stitch-a-longs happening this year. Beware: This list is massive and may cause out-of-control stash enhancement. You’ve been warned.
• Shea Goitia creates colorful abstract embroidery pieces inspired by coral reefs.
• Need some lighthearted books to get you through the rest of winter? Book Riot has a list of top 25 favorite cozy mystery series.
• Have an old pair of jeans you can’t bear to toss? Give them a facelift with this tutorial for embroidering jeans through a combination of appliqué and free-motion machine sewing.

Video of the Week

I’m continuing the theme of “fresh starts” with this week’s video. You’r life doesn’t need to be falling apart to dance along to this upbeat tune by Jason Mraz.

Friday Finds is my weekly round-up of needlework, art, and book news from around the web.

Can you believe we made it to 2018? Seriously, where does the time go?

Here are this week’s links:

• “Finding Creative Activities that Save Us” is about how our creative hobbies also form the basis of good self-care.
• “Embroidery not just a craft anymore, it’s an art form” is a nice profile of a Texas needlework shop.
• I finished a chicken scratch embroidery project not long ago. Here is a free bookmark project with a tutorial that I missed then.
• Ah, I love this list. TED put together this lovely list of “70 Books to Make You Feel More Hopeful.” Each book is paired with a related TED talk, too, which is neat.
• Artist Arounna Khounnoraj transforms delicate watercolor paintings into punchneedle embroidery.

Video of the Week

January is often a month for new beginnings and fresh starts. This song is the anthem for new beginnings.

Friday Finds is my weekly round-up of needlework, art, and book news from around the web.

This is the last week of classes at the university where I am a librarian. Next week is finals week. Due to a combination of work stress and being over-committed in my personal life, I am feeling very rundown and burnt out. As a result, I have gone into hermit mode online — not posting here or Instagram or anywhere else. I need some time to rest and regroup. I will post some stuff here, but I am taking it easy right now and hitting the pause button. I would like to return full-strength after the holidays.

But, for now, here are this week’s links:

• Sew Mama Sew has a gift guide for sewists of all kinds. There are some great tools on this list.
• Brown Paper Bag features the colorful embroidery of Vesha Parker.
• I love full-cast audiobooks, so I enjoyed this list of “10 best full-cast audiobooks” from Book Riot. I added a couple to my Audible wishlist, but one of my favorites, which is not on their list is The Guernsey Literary and Potato Peel Pie Society. The audiobook is so, so good.
• Craftsy has a quick tutorial on “How to Choose the Right Thread for Any Hand-Sewing Task.”
• This gift guide is filled with amazing gadgets and educational toys for kids of all ages.
• When digital doesn’t make everything better — an argument for balance and a return to analog tools. Yes to this. I love my technology, but I also love my paper planner, print books, and attending live music concerts, among other things.

Video of the Week

I love Christmas music, and I am very attached to certain songs. Actually, it’s not just the song — it’s the specific singer, too. “Christmas in Killarney” is one of those songs. It HAS to be Dennis Day, or I don’t want to hear it. :D Enjoy!