the traveling crocheter: japan is summoning me

news flash: i'm heading to japan on sunday!

after weeks of moving money around, emailing back and forth with contacts, and high-pitched screaming, i finally feel like i can relax a bit and enjoy the packing process. i love to pack. actually, i love to make lists of the things i need to pack and then subsequently accidentally forget to pack the most important items. i roll my clothing items into tight, neat rolls which will later be jarred apart by oily TSA hands and the carefree tossing of my luggage into cargo. as long as they don't tear off a wheel again, i'll be fine. 

this time, i'm heading to okinawa where it's warm, sunny, green, blue, and skin cancer galore versus here in Fairbanks where it is frigid, dry, white, icy, frustrating, dark, glum, and everyone is running low on vitamin d. i'm going to learn the ancient history, visit the war monuments, experience the small island culture, and let's not forget my real reason for going: IT'S NOT COLD! i would have loved to visit the odd, red-butted hot spring monkeys, but they live in the north. and the north is cold.  

http://travel.3yen.com/wp-content/images/jigokudani_hotspring_in_nagano_japan_001.jpg

http://search.japantimes.co.jp/cgi-bin/fv20100103a1.html

perhaps you envision me as a wimp that can't handle a bit of nipple-y weather. perhaps i am. or maybe i've experienced 23 years of fairbanks winters that last 9 months out of the year in constant darkness, dryness, extreme sub-zero temperatures that i feel i deserve a beachy, blue-y, relaxing break from it all. 

i'll hop over from okinawa to taketomi island - a tiny little island complete with traditional okinawan day-to-day living and cow-drawn carts. yes, i'm going to be pulled around by a cow and i'm going to enjoy it.

http://upload.wikimedia.org/wikipedia/commons/5/53/Water_buffalo_Taketomijima.jpg

if i can, i'll continue to post up photos of random cuteness or coolness that i encounter during my travels. keep checking back for some japanese kawaii!! 

http://www.elizabethannedesigns.com/living/2009/09/11/attempt-at-a-new-hobby/

concept drawing: greasy spoon brigade

meet the greasy brigadiers: filthy spoon, oily sunny side up, and burnt toast. watch out, they're rebellious.  these brigadiers are friends with liza the bacon slice and frequently spit grease onto unsuspecting passersby.

free pattern: mini poo

 

now you can boogie the night away with your very own harriet! free amigurumi pattern for a crocheted harold and harriet the poo! click here for the pattern.

lyza the bacon: short for lyza the crispy bacon slice

 

lyza, oh lyza. she's ready for just about anything. film, theater, singing, multiple husbands, illnesses, and philanthropy - she can do it all... with no hands even! here she is lounging in her favorite frying pan at a posh resort called la graisse pot (the grease pot).  

lyza was born from a crochet concept i had a few months back. i didn't have time to make the amigurumi stove, but it's still on my to-do list. here's the concept drawing:

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concept drawing: more poos with personalities

my plan is to create a whole parade of little crocheted poos, each complemented by distinct personalities. i hope you liked harriet the pre-op tranny poo and harold the poo (pre-sexual-self-realization). hmm, do you have any ideas?

cross-contamination: voyeuristic tofu and crocheted poo

the vegan voyeur is in a state of conundrum. he wants to make new friends, but these poos are contaminating his tofu exterior.

scenario one: he makes friends with the poos, but they can't keep quiet so they'll give him away when he's watching you... not eat meat.

scenario two: he's lonely but he gets to watch you eat your green beans in peace.

how ever will his heart decide?

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harold the poo transformed: harriet the pre-op tranny poo

welcome to harriet's world. formerly known as harold the poo, he's finally found the courage to admit to his friends and family that he identifies as a woman, a woman named harriet. she's glamorous, she's fun, she's sassy and everything you wish you could be. she even does a little drag here and there.

harriet's hobbies:

lip syncing

boogying

giggling about boys

taking photos of herself

being an LGBT-rights activist

harriet's role models:

ru paul

hillary clinton

mothers

people that are true to themselves

harriet is so happy she is finally a free and independent amigurumi poo.

work it, girl!

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concept drawing: bacon and stove - a pair in love

the cutest couple you'll ever meet! my coworker asked me to crochet something for his girlfriend for christmas. his gal LOVES bacon and so we wanted to incorporate it in a cute way into something amigurumi. i can't wait to crochet the stove. don't they just look so happy?

monday night mustached voyeurism

it's monday night and the vegan voyeur wants to beat that slummish feeling  that typically accompanies the beginning of the week by relaxing in his favorite chair while watching you... not eat meat. 

a teapot cozy: mishaps and extra flaps

did you miss me? 

probably not, but the reason why i haven't posted in so long is because i have been working on above mentioned teapot cozy for my so-sweet co-worker that just got married. to be honest, i was going to whip up a scarf for her - easy and fast. after i purchased the light blue THIN yarn, she asked me for a teapot cozy instead. i got to thinking: should i go buy new yarn for the cozy that is thicker (so that it would take less time) and darker (to hide stains)? i was either too lazy or just stubborn (truthfully, i am both) and i ended up crocheted the cozy with what i had. i had a vague idea of what to do and how to do it. there were no patterns online for a bodum teapot cozy so i knew i had to wing it. increasing and decreasing my stitches as i went up the curve of the teapot, and, literally weeks later, i ended up with a nice round pouch with an opening for the handle. 

my plan for the top flap was to have JUST ONE with a cute button. i sewed on the flap and giddily put back on the cozy... and to my horror the flap was on diagonally. i immediately shriveled up and pitied myself for my mistake until an idea hit me like an elephant kicking your face with its hind leg. i'll just make a criss-cross pattern and she won't even know it was a mistake! and here is my product with a few blips here and there, but i was careful not to show them in my photos. ;)

 

 

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the vegan voyeur: a tofu in disguise

he's watching you... not eat meat.

lady gaga wore meat... i'm disappointed.

a curious house cat inspects the vegan voyeur
 

hi

the vegan voyeur was born from an idea that my friend and I had late one night sans alcohol - i know! surprising, right?? a voyeuristic tofu with a mustache?? YES! what an AMAZING idea! i whipped him up, threw on eyeballs and a mustache, and VOILA! he's perfectly creepy-cute. i used super chunky lions brand white yarn with fuzzy black yarn for the amigurumi style mustache. he's actually only four pieces because the sides are an extension of his front piece, but normally, one would crochet six pieces and sew them together to create a square. he's all free-hand - i didn't have a pattern... consequently, his right side of his mustache is a bit larger than the left side, but i'm going to blame it on his own poor mustache trimming abilities.

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pick of the week: OhMafelt - just in time for halloween!

 

oh. my. guh. these felt stuffies are so adorable! i love them because they're not the typical cutesy, wide-eyed, pink and frilly stuffy. these are unique, a little odd... and so i fell in love with them. visit OhMafelt's etsy shop and see what other goodies they have. the shop is located in port townsend, oregon... yet another reason i must move to oregon.

ベッドを占領する子猫

i need to get me a neck ring for our resident house cats, stanley and nigel. i'll pretend stanley is a lion - he's got long orange fur and he's a bit neurotic, to put it mildly. :)

bears: i'm done with them for now

 

sigh. remember when i was gung-ho about making an adorable amigurumi zombie bear line? well, that concept died and will never come back to life (pun!)... i can't find the motivation to finish my black bear! he's just going to have to remain head-less for the time being. they're just not that unique and my interest level is dissipating as quickly as the lindsey lohan news rolls in. i'm now working on animating inanimate objects - i'm very excited to introduce my new line! i won't tell you what it is... yet. hopefully i'll be finished with him by tuesday. until then, at the edge of your seat i shall leave you.

adorable amigurumi books from japan!

yes! my amigurumi books have finally arrived! I asked my mother's friend if i could ship two books to her when she went to japan to visit family and if she could bring them back to alaska for me, and she said yes! i'm very excited to make the kangaroo with pouch and all the little vegetables: onion, eggplant, asparagus... so kawaii! i can't wait to crochet them!

pick of the week: tiny terrariums

have you ever looked a little glass container and thought, "gosh, i want a tiny gnome to live in there..." well, now your desires can be fulfilled! ...to an extent. etsy crafters: OneGiftOneWorld and The Little Red Door sell adorable little terrariums and miniature ceramic houses. the terrariums fulfill my love of glass and the color green and the ceramic minis satiate my hunger for small, disgustingly adorable tchotchkes. 

i plan on crocheting an amigurumi gnome in the near future. maybe i'll crochet him a terrarium for him to play in! 

the place where my ideas come to life

   

my room, my inspiration: welcome to the place where my ideas come to life. this is where i crochet, browse etsy stores, felt, flip through amigurumi and other craft books, dress, un-dress, and put my face on. it's a busy little room. can you believe that these walls were originally a blindingly hideous glossy brown wall-paneling circa 1970s?? ugh. thank goodness the landlord let me paint over it. i installed the wall shelving, the treasure boxes and mirror for my "vanity" area, and the wall mounted desk. i bought the paper lamps dangling above my bed online at Asian Import Store. the black frame was found at a local thrift store, spray painted black and hung neatly on my accent wall. i successfully manipulated this space into one in which i am comfortable, brightens my mood even during the darkest day of the alaskan winter, and inspires me to create.