Woven Basket for Toys, etc

If you're a parent you can probably relate to the amount of clutter (ah hem, toys) we have found ourselves surrounded by. I've bought bins to put the toys away in, and there's bookshelves for the books, but we still find ourselves in a house filled with books and toys all over the floor. 

Sure we could put stuff away after the baby's gone to sleep but we don't risk waking her. Oh no. Never wake a sleeping baby! We could practice putting things away, true... but she's just not quite at that stage yet. Right up to the point where she falls asleep, she's pulling books off the shelf and asking us to read them to her. 

So if we don't put stuff away, why would I bother with storage solutions? Well, maybe because I like the illusion of being organized? I DO put things away when I get the chance!! Well that, and for when we have visitors over. 

I like this woven basket because it's got a look that can work for kids' toys, or for things like throw blankets down the road. It looks grown up, would look cool as a living room decor, and yet it's functional even for life with a kid. Oh and this particular basket comes from Israel and is made from weeds from the Sea of Galilee. Cool.

Etsy Source

Felted Octopus Purse

I like objects of art and I'd consider this to be one. It reminds me of some really neat felted fish I saw at a local art studio last year. It's really neat what people can do with hand-felting. My only experience with felting was when I accidentally threw a 100% wool sweater in the washer. It shrunk into a tiny, thick felt sweater not even an infant would fit into. So I have appreciation for people that can take wool, add water, friction, and turn it into something really neat to look at.

What I like about this felted octopus is that it's also a purse. Even though I'd never buy this, I like the fact that it's multi-functional because IF I were to buy it, this would make it easier to justify the cost. Two things in one, it's a bargain! That's the way my brain works.

Imagine pulling this octopus coin purse out of your bag at the check-out counter. Can you imagine the look on the sales person's face? I'd know I have a like-minded friend when the person gives me a genuine smile or a genuine comment of appreciation. But unfortunately for me, too many people would just think I'm super weird. And a purse like this would be quite impractical anyways. Then again it's art and it's not meant to be mainstream or practical.

I won't be carrying a purse like this, but I do hope to see someone carrying a purse like this some day. And I'd think that person was so cool. In my mind, we'd be instant buddies.

Link to Etsy page for this purse

Drunktard

Drunktard: Known to say some stupid stuff after a few beers.

Oh haven't we all been there? 

I say some stupid stuff even without a drop of alcohol so I have to be extra careful once I start drinking. 

So given that, I'm not sure if having a beer stein like this would be a cautious reminder to me or a drunk pass, encouraging me to just say whatever.

This might be a fun beer stein to have around for parties. I think a clear glass version would be neater though, since there's something about being able to see the beer through the glass that I really like. But that would make it harder to read the words. Oh, so a T-shirt would probably make the most sense. There we go. Way to show up at a party announcing you're gonna get drunk and make a fool out of yourself. Haha. 

Link to Etsy page for this stein

Gumball Beta Bowl

As much as I don't like clutter, I LOOOOVE knick-knacks. And as much as I love my house, I just wish there were more places to display knick-knacks. Because I'd love to be able to have things like this gumball machine transformed into a beta bowl!

I'm assuming the gumball machine has been modified so that the beta can be fed from above. And obviously you'd have to seal the bottom so that the water wouldn't leak. I saw a comment on this picture that said marbles should have been used so that it looks more like a gumball machine. I agree! 

I love the look of this vintage/aged gumball machine and I love how it's been re-purposed in such an unexpected way. It would be so much fun to do this some day. 

Radiometers

I love radiometers. They're such a simple yet beautiful object. 

I first learned of them in my high school physics class and vowed I'll own some of my own. I even pictured having a room in a house one day that gets lots of light, full of different looking radiometers.

I liked them so much I was mesmerized. I got caught in the hypnotic spin of the radiometer. Somehow one radiometer made its way from the science room into another classroom and I just stared at the radiometer all during class. See, I can't even remember what class I took in that room since I only paid attention to the radiometer. 

Unlike some childhood dreams that never came true, my dream of owning radiometers has come true. 

:-D

This was the first radiometer I bought. I can still clearly remember finding it. It was at the Somerset Mall in Michigan that I went to while I was visiting my aunt during a college holiday break. And I knew it was meant to be, because it was on sale! This radiometer sat proudly in my college dorm, spinning and spinning and it has travelled with me from abode to abode ever since. 

My husband has added to my (now our) collection since, and while I won't post every single one we have, here's one of my favorites, a hanging 3 parter. 

But there's one radiometer I really want that I can't even find a picture off the internet to post here. It is a double-radiometer. It's a standing radiometer like the first one, and it has two bulbs one right on top of the other. And the vanes in the bulbs spin in opposite directions. One of these days I'll find it, and it will be mine!!!!

PS. If I remember my physics class correctly, scientist aren't 100% sure what makes radiometers spin! There's various theories, but nothing proven. Pretty cool if you ask me!

Morse Code Knitting

On a recent drive up into Michigan I was scanning the radio stations and caught what I thought was NPR. It had that intellectual sound of NPR so of course I assumed it was Michigan Radio, Michigan's branch of NPR. Well, after doing some research online I came to find out it was Canada's Spark radio. So, surprise surprise, I Was listening to Canadian radio stations. I guess that makes sense since we have some Canadian TV stations through our cable network even where we live.

What I caught on this station was a really neat story about binary code, morse code, and knitting. They were interviewing female academic/scientist, who does morse code knitting. I didn't catch the entire story since I caught the story mid-way, then drove out of range, and caught it again on another frequency a few minutes later, so I'm a little vague on the details. They were talking about how binary's everywhere in our lives, and that even though most of us only think of binary in terms of computers, it's been a part of human history for ages. There was one particular story that stood out about how an 18th century Jesuit missionary to China had used the I-Ching's binary nature to explain to the Chinese Emperor how God had created the universe out of nothing. This was his master plan for converting the Emperor to Christianity. This didn't work, but how neat that he came up with this idea.

And for this lady, Kristen Haring is her name, knitting in morse code was a way of taking something like binary that is so intangible and turning it into something warm and fuzzy, literally. She said that it was actually really easy for her to learn morse code, that it was designed in such a way that it was easy for people to learn, and that she didn't have to think about it when she knitted. Morse code has the dashes and the dots, and she assigned a different stitch to each one, and she would knit a morse code message using these stitches.

If I haven't lost your interest already, I'd be impressed, and I'd urge you to listen to the interview. It's long, but it's really cool!! Here's the link: Link to Spark's Audio for "The Beauty of Binary"

Anyways, this got me wondering what morse code knitting would look life. Of course, they couldn't show that over the radio so I had to do some Google searching and this is what I found:

I think I like the gloves the best. The site says that each mitten clearly identifies which hand it should go on, and the thumb says, "thumb". This knitter used the fair isle knitting style and adapted the morse code to it. The blue one is a cowl neck and it says, "I wool always love you." The hat says, "I'm not wearing underwear today." Classy.

There were actually quite a few websites that talked about morse code knitting so it seems to be a lot more popular than I thought. The next time I see a unique looking knit item I'll be checking it out to see if it's got a hidden morse code message in it. 

I want to make a rug

I really need to learn how to sew. There's an old sewing machine in the basement that came with the house. I should check it out and see it if works. But would it be easier to learn how to sew on a newer sewing machine? I've used sewing machines a couple times in my life and they don't seem too difficult. I think the most difficult part would be threading the bobbins (?) and making a straight line.

See I need to learn to sew because there's so many things I want to make. One of them right now being a rug. I could buy one, but the crafty side of me wants to make one. I think it would be neat to make a rag rug out of old t-shirts from Goodwill, or old bed sheets. We try not to hold on to unused things so I have to either raid my in-laws' closets or go to Goodwill for these things.

How neat it would be to make a rug like that. I've found a version that doesn't require sewing though. And I think I might like this version better. I wonder how hard it would be to make a big one of these. Like, 6 x 4. 

I also think a shag rug would look cute in my baby's room. I'd make this out of old t-shirts too, with all sorts of random colors throughout the rug. 

I'll have to decide what I want to do and do it. When (or if) I get around to making one I'll post the progress here.