Tuesday, March 31, 2009

Geeky Cross Stitch Project #1 (preview)

Hello! My name is Kevin. Earlier this year I took up cross stitching. Below is a preview of my first geeky project. This was taken a week and a half ago, but I've made significant progress since then.

Can you guess what it is?

Monday, March 30, 2009

Plarn Making, Version 2

Oh my, but I have been slacking in my posting! In any case, I've come into possession of a ridiculously large amount of plastic. Indeed it is the same plastic used to make the snowflakes in the previous post. However, these bags are really too slender for my preferred method of making plarn to be practical. Thus, I give you version 2. In reality, this method is far more common than the spiral method I use, but in case you haven't seen it, here it is.

Step 1- Once again, acquiring and flattening your plastic bags is the first step. This method is especially suited to slender bags such as those in which your newspaper is delivered. Flatten your bag and snip off the handles if there are any and the bottom most edge which is often fused. This way you will have an open cylinder of plastic.

Step 2- With the open edges at the right and left, fold your plastic over once or twice vertically to allow for quick efficient cutting.

Step 3- Cut strips. Straight through this time! Don't leave a strip at the top or stop short, but simply cut all the way through. When you open up this cut pieces you will have loops. I have had success with strips as thin as a half inch and as thick as two inches. There's every reason to experiment here!

Step 4- Make a chain a follows.
a) Begin with two loops.
b) The left loop will go inside the right loop.
c) Then the lower edge of the right loop will be pulled through the left.
d) Use the newly made chain as the left loop and a fresh loop as the right to continue this pattern from (b) until you have as much plarn as you wish to use.


Or you could just ask me for some. I think I have more plarn now than any human on the planet ever has.