Monday, December 31, 2012

farewell, 2012

Hullo, friends!

Happy New Year's Eve! I hope you are all enjoying your day. I, unfortunately, am not. I've come down with some sort of sinus cold--but really, I can't complain. What better way to spend a sick day than in your favorite chair, wrapped up in a Star Wars blanket sipping iced Canada Dry? I don't think there is.

I apologize for the lack of posts lately...I've got a lot of things to show you all, I just have to take the time to take pictures and write up the posts.
I promise to post again soon! Until then, enjoy the last day of 2012!

Much love to you all <3



Tuesday, December 25, 2012

{merry Christmas}

Hullo, friends!

Merry, merry Christmas! I hope you all have a wonderful time today celebrating our Savior's birth and His ultimate sacrifice.
We celebrated yesterday, since all of my family couldn't be here today. It was such a lovely time! We went to church, exchanged gifts and had a delicious dinner together.
And today, I am just taking it easy :)

Much love to you all <3
Merry Christmas!

Friday, December 21, 2012

{the frosted, flowery hat}

Hullo, friends!

I saw a very pretty hat on Etsy that inspired me to make this :)
I'm really excited about the look! I love the idea of making the flower the same color as the hat--it keeps it from being too over the top.
The hat is a granny stitch and the flower is lots of FPTCs. And in case you aren't aware, FPTC stands for front post triple crochet. And they are very, very tiring, and very, very hard on the wrist!
It's made with 100% natural wool, which was really interesting to work with.

What do you all think?
It just seems like a really special look to me. Sort of like a flower trimmed with snow.

Much love to you all <3












high 5 for friday

Hullo, friends!

1. Congratulations! You survived the end of the world! :P

2. So, guess what?! I joined Pinterest!
My username is thecraftyjedi (stitchingupastorm was too long. Go figure.) Look me up sometime! :)

3. Another sale! Woohoo! :) This time it was a plain pink hat with some flowers. (Flowers not pictured.)

4. I got a haircut! Like, a major one. I really like it--layers = awesome.

5. My Christmas dress! I found this Joy Joy dress at Goodwill for $4. This is a $100 dress, folks. Total score.

Have an awesome weekend!

Much love to you all <3



Thursday, December 20, 2012

{it's not the end of the world}

Hullo, friends!

You'd better be getting ready--the Mayan's calendar ends tomorrow, so obviously that must mean the world ends with it....right?

Well, although this idea really just has SO much common sense working for it, the Bible has something else to say:
Check out Matthew 24:36:
NO ONE knows the day or hour! Not even the Mayans.

People are always predicting when the world will end--so why are so many people placing their trust in a so called "prediction" by a civilization that eventually fell, anyway?

We may not know WHEN the world will end, but by reading Revelations we do know that it will. And even if the world does not end within our lifetimes, we are still going to die either way.

And what happens then? Are you a good person? Good enough to get into heaven?
Go to www.needgod.com--it will give you an incredibly interesting (and completely anonymous) quiz to find out.

Please, don't wait for your world to end to acknowledge God. You don't have to wait until you think you are "ready" or things are "right" in your life. The time to act is now.

Much love to you all <3

Sunday, December 16, 2012

He has overcome

Hullo, friends!

Happy Sunday! :) I hope you are all having a wonderful weekend.
I'm going to see The Hobbit today (eek! I can't wait!) so my weekend couldn't be better!

John 16:33 is one of my favorite verses--he has surely overcome the world!

Much love and blessings <3

Friday, December 14, 2012

high 5 for friday

Hullo friends!

1. Thank y'all! You are just awesome :) I enjoy you comments so much! Keep it up ;D

2. Keep calm and carry a light saber! Seriously, how cute is that phrase?! Love it. I saw the idea for a necklace like that, so of course I promptly stole the idea and made one for myself :)

3. Yum! I love hot vegetable soup on cold days :)

4. Check out the Piano infinity app--awesomeness!

5. I made these gloves and I really love them. So I made another pair. And I'm working on the third. Best part? I have a PATTERN I'm writing for them! :)

Blessings! <3
                                     

Thursday, December 13, 2012

i <3 thrift stores

Hullo friends!

Check out these super-cutesy sparkly silver glitter shoes! (Did that sentence give you a headache, too?)

Seriously, thrift stores are the BEST!
What is your favorite thing you have ever found at a thrift/resale store?

Blessings! <3

Friday, December 7, 2012

bead weaving (?) tutorial

Hullo, friends!

Ok, so I put together this little tutorial for you all because I have sooooooo much fun making things using this method :)
I'm not actually sure what you would call this--it is sort of like weaving beads though, so that's what I'll call it.  (Plus, that just sounds way cool...)


First off, the materials! For the sake of your eyes, as well as mine, I decided to use large-ish beads and elastic cord for this tutorial.  You could really use any sort of string or cord, as long as it is able to fit through the beads you choose. The beads are going to need to have fairly large holes--at least, large enough for the string you use to go through twice.  The number of beads will of course differ depending on what you are making and the size of the beads you use.  In the picture you can see a sampling of the pattern it is going to make to give you an idea of how many beads will measure however long. 
And you'll need scissors.  
Ok, that about covers materials.


2.  Bring out the cord (thread, string, elastic, whatever you decided on...) measure out 2 times as long as you want your item to be, add five inches and cut.  If you are really paranoid about not having enough at the end ( like me!) you can add even more!


3.  Add 4 beads to the cord and push them over to the middle. 



4.  Ok, this is the "hard" part, even though it's really easy ;)  Just hard to explain.  Hold onto one end of the cord, and hold the bead nearest the end in front of you, the hole horizontal.  Take the opposite side of the cord and stick it through the bead so the two ends are both going through the bead and facing opposite directions.  (And yes, I am fully aware that my fingernails look horrible in this picture.  My apologies about that.)


5.  So picture five is really just me really reiterating step 4.  This is just a different view of that step.  See how the two ends go through that bead? Yep? Were good then, because that is basically the bulk of this tutorial. 



6.  Pull the two ends tight, and this is what you get!  Isn't it neat?  Now that you have this little "square" of beads, the rest is as easy as pie. 




7.  Add two beads to one side, and one bead to the other--it doesn't matter which sides you do this to. 



8.  Grab whichever cord you only strong one bead on from the last step.  Now string that end through the closest of the two beads that you strung on the other end.  The picture explains it better.



9.  Pull both ends again.  See where this is going? :)



10.  Continue the pattern (steps 7 - 9) until it is as long as you'd like.  Now tell me the truth, how awesome does that look?!  (Actually, if you are going to say 'not very', please, don't tell me the truth.  I'd prefer if you just lie.)



11.  When the pattern is at the length you'd like, add one bead to each of the cords.  (To make it clearer in this tutorial I used different colored beads.)



12.  Ok, now this part is pretty difficult to word... Basically you are attaching the two ends.  Just slip one of the cords through the bead from the first "square" that lines up correctly.  Now just tie the two ends of the cords together--this is the last step.  You can add a dab of glue to the knot to ensure that it stays tied if you feel the need. 



And now your beautiful item is finished!  Isn't it just lovely?  I think it turned out rather nice :)

Let me know if anything was confusing! :)  And if you use this tutorial, I'd love to see what you make!  You can always email me at stitchingupastorm@gmail.com!

Blessings! <3




Monday, December 3, 2012

my first commission: Twi'lek hat

Hullo friends!

So this week I got an email from someone asking if they could commission me to make a Twi'lek hat. I was SO excited! It was my first *real* sale! :)
In the process of this, it occurred to me that I have never even addressed commissions on my blog! I'll have to add a page soon, but in case anyone's wondering--yes! I most definitely will do commissions! :)
I think the hat turned out really awesome with it--I made a lot of alterations to my pattern and I love how it looks.
What do you all think? :)

Blessings <3

Friday, November 30, 2012

High 5 for Friday!

Hullo friends!

I hope you week is going awesomely! :)

1. Having the Christmas tree up makes me really happy! <3 Christmastime has arrived!

2. Coming up with an awesome little button design for my blog :) now to figure out that whole button making thing. One word: confusing.

3. Making animal hats :D They are just so adorable!

4. Jamie Grace, you are just the best. I could listen to your cd over and over and over again.

5. And lastly, I leave you with a pic of what is quite possibly the creepiest looking crochet project ever. I know, right now it just looks downright weird, but I promise, it will be cool in the end. Think Star Wars ;)

Blessings! <3

Monday, November 26, 2012

awesome deals @ F21

Hullo friends!

Happy Monday! :)

With all the sales floating around today, I just wanted to highlight the great deals going on over at Forever21.   

Only today, F21 is offering free shipping on everything--no minimum purchase!
Here is a sampling on some of the markdowns they have going right now:


The Essential Striped Cowl Neck top
Color Options are Black, Jade and Hot Pink
Normally $15.80
Marked down to $4.74!


Rhinestone Flower Flats
Color Options are Pink, Taupe and Cream
Normally $19.80
Marked down to $9.90


Feathered Wool Fedora
Color: Burgundy
Normally $15.80
Marked down to $10.99!

Go by F21's website to check out some more deals! :)

Blessings! <3

Saturday, November 24, 2012

simple pleasures

Hullo friends!

Some things make me happy.
And some things make me very, very happy.

Long weekends
Watching season 4 of Star Wars: The Clone Wars
Sipping a smoothie made in your own blender (a lifelong dream fulfilled this very weekend--thanks mom!)

And now that Thanksgiving is over, the Christmas season can begin...

Lovely times <3


Friday, November 23, 2012

High Five for Friday!

Hullo, friends!

I hope you are all enjoying your black Friday ;)

1. Thanksgiving food is the best!!! :) I don't eat meat so my amazingly awesome mum cooked up some lovely meat-free dishes for me <3

2. Crocheting never gets old! I'm working on a test pattern for Andromeda--so much fun! :)

3. My friend sent this funny/adorable quote to me :D Totally had me doubled over laughing!

4. Learning some new beading techniques-- tutorial soon to come! :)

5. Road trips are awesome! ;)

Have a lovely weekend!

Blessings! <3

Thursday, November 22, 2012

give thanks with a grateful heart

Hullo friends!

Happy, happy, happy Thanksgiving to all of my friends in the U.S. :)

Today we celebrate Thanksgiving, the day that we set aside each year to spend time with family, have a big meal and watch football.

Wait... wait, I have that wrong don't I?  My bad--what I meant is, it is the day BEFORE Black Friday, the best sale day like, ever. 

Still not right? ;)

Thanksgiving is a day we set aside each year to GIVE THANKS for all that we have.

I'm thankful for...

...butterflies
...sunsets
...my family
...my lovely friends
...my church
...icecream
...music notes
...flowers


...the king of kings...lord of lords...prince of peace...creator of the universe...keeper of my heart...lover of my soul...forgiver of my mistakes...my savior...

Jesus Christ <3 

What more is there to be thankful for?

Want to know more about the king of kings?  Check out Chat About Jesus.

What are YOU thankful for today? :)

Blessings! <3

Thursday, November 15, 2012

let's talk style: mismatched earrings

Hullo, friends!

So, here's yet another trend I am finally catching onto...
I love mismatched things. Really, I just love things that completely break the rules of style--who says polka dots and stripes don't work together? They throw each other off perfectly! Who says "old" is bad? Label it "vintage" and it'll sell like hotcakes.
The mismatching rule, however, is by far my favorite. I just love how stylishly quirky it looks!
It had definitely been a widespread trend. Pretty much everything that has ever been matched has also been mismatched.
But for me, earrings take the cake. I am a firm believer that accessories make an outfit. You can have an incredible top, but if you don't style it with the right accessories the awesomeness of the top won't show. Below is a lovely example of mismatched earrings.
Beautiful, right?! Other than the obvious coolness, there is another plus to this trend: think of all the earring options I have now! Will totally save some money off of this! ;)

Pic found here: http://4.bp.blogspot.com/-q-jsjq1a9Eg/Tqo8EnEeQ6I/AAAAAAAAAVc/XUeQu8v9omg/s1600/_DSC0381.JPG

Blessings! <3

Tuesday, November 13, 2012

Shaak Ti Costume

Hullo friends!

I got an email a couple of months ago from a lovely young lady who wanted to know if I could help her with making a crocheted Shaak Ti headdress for her Halloween costume--I was of course really, really excited! :)

She was kind enough to allow me to post pictures--didn't her headdress turned out incredible?!  I am so happy that I got to help out a bit! 




And below is the finished costume--I am SO impressed!! 




It looks so professional!  The attention to detail is awesome--she even remembered the dark grey fingernails! 

The Force is strong with this one! ;)

Blessings! <3

Monday, November 12, 2012

Makeover time!

Hullo friends!

I decided the blog (once again!) needed a new look!

What do you think?  I think gives it a much cleaner, "professional" feel! :)
I'd love to hear your opinion! 

Also, just wondering if anyone could give me a heads up on how to make a button for my blog--I can do the pic, but actually formatting it to link back to my blog confuses me.  I'd love any help! :) 

Blessings! <3

Wednesday, October 31, 2012

Happy Halloween!

Hullo friends!

Happy Halloween my friends :)
I hope you all have a lovely day--be safe!

With happy thoughts <3

Friday, October 26, 2012

High Five for Friday!

1. Pretty fabric--I love taking old things and salvaging the fabric for something new!
2. Star Wars <3 Need I say more?
3. Any day with Hot Chocolate is a good day in my book!
4. Sometimes it is nice to have rain around! :)
5. The moon is up in the sky and all is well! :)

Tuesday, October 23, 2012

Chain Dangle Earrings

Hullo, friends!

Below are some earrings I made the other day, as mentioned last post. I really like how the chains look on this! I think they turned out pretty cute! :)

Blessings! <3

Sunday, October 21, 2012

One of those days...

Hullo, friends!

I had a bad day today.

I just needed to get that out in the open ;)  Reminding myself to TRY to be thankful for EVERY day:

Psalm 118:24 This is the day the LORD has made; let us rejoice and be glad in it. 

I am really glad that a day isn't any longer than 24 hours!

I'll check in again tomorrow to show you all a little finished project.

Until then,
REJOICE and be GLAD <3

Saturday, October 20, 2012

Eli the Elephant

Hullo, friends!

So I follow Happy Together.  And it is like, one of my favorite sites, ever.  And when I saw this, that was totally set in stone.

Cutest. Idea. Ever.  I love that she used her daughter's idea and then made it with her--how sweet is that?!

So of course--despite my lack of sewing skills--I had to make one.  And I did!  Just this morning--it was incredible how quickly this little guy was made!
Say hello to Eli:



Such a cute pattern!  I highly reccomend it! :)

Have a wonderful day! <3

Friday, October 19, 2012

High Five for Friday!

Hullo, friends!

Today I am linking up with From My Grey Desk for a fun little weekly roundup :)




1.  Finished projects! Yay!  I made this little baby dress and hat the other day--they were nice to work on because they whipped up so fast :)  Now just to find a baby girl to give them to!

2.  More finished projects!  Yay!  I made a couple of crocheted masks this week just because.  I really like how they turned out--I liked to make one sometime in crochet thread, it would be so nice and lacy!

3.  Getting all dressed up with nowhere to go!  Wearing pretty shoes around the house just makes me happy. <3

4.  Kari Jobe singing in Spanish.  Love, love, love her voice.  Currently loving "Somos la luz" --A.K.A "We are."  She has some serious talent!

5.  Faux feather earrings!  I made a pair of faux feathers out of shrink plastic--Fun, and so pretty!  (Idea stolen from Trish over at Genuine Mudpie.  Trish's looks prettier of course! :D)

This was fun :D  So, what do you all think?  See ya here same time next week?

Have an awesome weekend! <3



Tuesday, October 16, 2012

Photo Editing

Hullo everyone!

I am so loving editing pictures on my phone! The best thing about it? I don't actually have to be good at taking pictures. (Which I can assure you, I am NOT!) They can be blurry and out of focus and all together ugly, but once I bring out my new favorite photo app (BeFunky: best free photo app ever!) it doesn't matter a bit.

Have a happy day, friends! <3