Crafts Beyond Crafts

In addition to painting and sewing I've had a few other crafty projects on the side. I've got some older clothes that I decided to dye in order to make them new again, and I've also been experimenting with recipes containing interesting ingredients. Here is one I love. It is from the Moosewood Cookbook...

ODESSA BEETS

5 to 6 Beets, 2-3 Tbs. of Lemon Juice, 8 to 10 Prunes sliced, 2 Garlic Cloves minced, half tsp. Salt, Black Pepper to taste, half cup Walnuts, 1 cup chopped Pineapple preferably fresh.

Roast the beets in a 400 degree oven for 45 minutes. Let them cool, rub off the skin, and chop them small. Mix them with the rest of the ingredients. Enjoy.

I also happened to have some fresh mint in my yard that I mixed in as well, and it was awesome.

Also, as I mentioned in the Germany Journal my next one is strawberry-basil parfait.

Sometimes though, fun and quick craft projects take longer than they are supposed to. They end up turning into crafty-headaches. Take my new shirt for instance. My mom often sends me photos of my little brother's newest drawings. 

I liked this one so much I decided to make a T-shirt out of it. I've got photo transfer paper that I purchased online from Joann Fabrics. I printed his artwork on the transfer paper. That was the easiest part. Next I needed a shirt. Two hours later I was back from H&M. It was impossible to go there and just buy one white shirt, so I also got a dress and two other tops... which required four trips to the dressing room. 

Once I got home I thought the project would only last another 5 minutes; just long enough to heat the iron and press the image. This is relatively true, but when I looked in the mirror I felt like the shirt was missing something. Frank's name needed to go on it. I thought it would only take me another 5 minutes to print out 5 letters and press them on the shirt...Wrong. I couldn't just print it as a text document, because I couldn't flip the letters. I wasn't about to iron the letters on backwards. So I had to open my old, broken computer which took 10 minutes just to boot up. I then had to open photoshop and make his name, backwards. Then I had to size it right so it would print correctly. By the time I had the font, size, and color correct, and I had printed it on the transfer paper, and ironed it on the shirt, 45 minutes had gone by. It was frustrating, but in the end I think it was worth it. The only problem is that now my mom wants one too. Let's see how much quicker I can make round two. At least I don't have to go in the dressing room again.

I'm also working on making myself a new rug. This sort of thing isn't really my crafting style, but I was gifted with a new idea from the craft gods and I couldn't refuse it. I was in the dollar store and I saw the no-slip mats you put under your rug. It's a lovely grid. I got an idea to take my old T-shirts, cut out millions of tiny strips from them, and knot them into a rug. I didn't realize how long it was going to take. I may not forgive myself for starting this. I may actually put it away until Winter, when I am stuck inside more.

I do think it is off to a good start though; and I would recommend this to anyone with basic crafting skills who has a lot of free time and little money. It's probably good for kids with huge attention spans; if they even exist. If, and when, I finish this I'll let you know.