I hope those of you who celebrate it had a lovely and appropriately filling Thanksgiving yesterday!

Well, another day, another promotion. This weekend, from 12AM on Black Friday morning through 11:59PM on Cyber Monday evening, I will be offering FREE SHIPPING on all orders in my Etsy shop. Even family trees and lettering projects. Oh, but keep in mind: the deadline for holiday orders was yesterday. But any trees or lettering projects ordered now should be completed after the Christmas/New Year holiday (aka, once I’m sane again).

I also have a couple new items in my shop, which premiered this evening: two new sets of smaller gift tags, involving red and green paisleys (I love paisleys) and baker’s twine. And buttons if you like. Because apparently I’ve acquired a slight button obsession.

A couple pics:

Did I mention that the first set pictured above is only $1.50? And that there’s free shipping all weekend? What the freak are you waiting for?!

More images and info HERE.

My Buttons & Beads

Now that I have been doing some knitting, I need fun beads and buttons for purses and hats, but they are usually quite expensive in yarn shops although the variety is amazing. And after reading a Squidoo lens about working with clay, I decided to try my hand at creating my own funky buttons.
This is what I came up with.

Finished and Ready to Use

If the bug bites you too, here are some helpful links to people in the know.
Sheryl aka “Noadi” has written a great lens full of information: Click Here…and find lots of links and don’t miss this site with tons of buttons and pages about “caning”  which is AWESOME!

Miss Maree placed an order with me for four custom-designed draft snakes for Christmas.  One for each of her brothers and their families, and one for her Mum.

Would you like to meet the family?

This is Florence!

Likes: Fairy floss, flourescent felt pens and flavoured fudge

Dislikes: Foul smells, figs and feral cats

And this is Herbert!

Likes: Hemingway, hummingbirds and hotdogs

Dislikes: Hermits, hunting and having to hurry

And this is Hunter!

Likes: haggling, habaneros and hula hoops

Dislikes: haggis, Halloween and housekeeping

And lastly, meet Cordelia!

Likes: Cordial, crumpets and cat naps

Dislikes: Car racing, cabbage and cellphones

Maree picked the family up last night.  She said that if she didn’t already have lilith she’d have snake-envy for Florence!

]]> http://mixedbusiness.wordpress.com/2009/11/26/ai-yi-yi/ Wed, 25 Nov 2009 23:29:07 +0000 amber http://mixedbusiness.wordpress.com/2009/11/26/ai-yi-yi/

Well, tonight is the first of the night markets up at the town hall in Northcote! My bags are packed, I have checked and double checked and am starting to include all the things I might possibly need, mirror, sticky tape, pins… I think I better stop before I include the kitchen sink.

So a reminder to swing on by and see what we’ve got! Earrings, brooches, necklaces, bangles, platters…. yep, we’ve got it covered.

Ja, die liebe Post hat mir ein paar Sachen gebracht. (: Schon Ende letzte Woche. Ich kann die Sachen niemandem vorenthalten, darum leg’ ich einfach mal los (;

Dieses wunderbare Deathstars-Shirt kam am Samstag an. Ich habe es von einer sehr lieben Userin von Schwarzer Markt im Tausch gegen ‘nen BH bekommen. =D
Mir gefällt es echt sehr. Einziges Manko: Es ist ein wenig arg kurz. Mir geht es nur bis knapp über den Bauchnabel *gg* Aber in Verbindung mit etwas mit Ausschnitt sieht es richtig gut aus..

Ich glaube Freitag waren diese beiden Schmuckstücke in der Post. (: Sehen sehr nett aus, wie ich finde.

Und heute kam etwas, über das ich mich wahnsinnig gefreut hab.. Hab mir auf oben erwähnter Seite einige Buttons bestellt. Und einen Schlüsselanhänger. Dann hieß es, der Schlüsselanhänger ist verschollen. Oder doch da Jedenfalls hieß es am Schluss entweder ist dann mein Geld oder der Hase in der Post. Nun.. heute kamen die Buttons.. erstmal diese für alle zum Bewundern (: Ich find sie wahnsinnig toll..







Und hier das süße Häschen (: (es ist doch goldig, oder? ^^)

Dann hab ich noch das im Umschlag erspäht. Ich dachte, ich krieg mich nicht mehr ein! (: Ich LIEBE die Dark dudes. Und vor allem diesen “So dark so cute” – Slogan. Und diese wunderbare Userin hat mir einfach so einen Button davon hineingelegt (: Hier ist der Button noch an der Tasche befestigt. Mittlerweile befindet er sich am Kragen meiner Jacke. (;

Und hier zum Abschluss: So sieht meine Tasche aus. Auch die ist vom Schwarzen Markt (; Auch an dieser Stelle danke an die Userin für so wahnsinnig tolle Ware (:

So und zum Abschluss von diesem Beitrag wünsche ich allen lesenden noch eine wunderbare Nacht (: Ich werd’ mich jetzt selbst langsam ins Bett aufmachen. Morgen geht’s ersmal schön gediegen in die Stadt zum Shoppen. (;

I would apologise for the lapse since my last post, but I firmly maintain that it is Not My Fault. ‘Tis rather the fault of the WordPress App. Having painstakingly picked out a whole post by means of one-finger typing, I was very upset when it all disappeared during (what should have been) the publication upload.  So here I am trying again.

The day out in question was last Thursday, when my mother and I stopped in Harrogate en route for London and spent an afternoon here at the Knitting and Stitching Show.

Wowee.

There were four large halls of exhibits and retailers and we couldn’t possibly do justice to it all in one afternoon. This may be a Good Thing for the health of the bank balance, but tantalising all the same.  I will just give you a couple of highlights.

First place in the exhibition category goes to the knitted boat, or rather the knitted coat-for-a-boat project led by Ingrid Wagner. I particularly like the ship’s cat, who bears a strong resemblance to a certain little Clio.

I could go on at some length about the shopping opportunities: aktraditions with their Aussie/Kyrgyz (yes, really!) knitting and felting designs – just look at that gorgeous camel; Habu were there, yum yum; and the delightful Toft Alpaca with their yarns, their patterns and some huge wooden buttons. I bought three of the mid-size buttons (3″ diameter): two in willow and one in iroko. Toft have lovely patterns for hats and bags which sport said buttons, but mine are for woven rather than knitted things. Don’t know what things yet, but it will be fun finding out.

“grand day out” was posted by Cally on 25 Nov 2009 at http://callybooker.wordpress.com

• Red Bull TV, Ian Walsh en PPDA.
  
• Joel Centeio remporte la première étape de la Triple Crown dans un joli Haleiwa. Best of de la dernière journée :

• Le légendaire Buttons Kaluhiokalani a lancé du café à son effigie. Sur les paquets on retrouve donc la fameuse photo de Buttons prise par Jeff Divine à Velzy-Land en 1974. Paraît-il que des produits illicites avaient été consommés peu avant…

Pour mémoire :

• Revoilà Joel Centeio, en freesurf cette fois et dans des conditions plus petites que lors des finales à Haleiwa. Et aussi Keko Bacalso, qui nous confirme que les gros poulets savent également voler.
  
  
  

Ce petit tour du North Shore s’achève mais pas d’inquiétude, un nouveau swell est sur le chemin et rien ne nous échappera…

Author Heather Brewer uses symbols from her book covers on buttons for her fans

Young adult author Heather Brewer was not your typical teen growing up.  She wore black, danced under full moons and devoured every book in sight.  She hasn’t changed much.

Heather writes The Chronicles of Vladimir Tod and makes buttons with the imagery from book covers.  Heather rewards her fans with bling when they send her a self-addressed envelope, and writes,

My Minions ADORE their Minion Bling and without you guys, they would not be.

Busy Beaver loves making your buttons, Heather!  Click here to get your Minion Bling from author Heather Brewer.  Click here to check out BusyBeaver.net

Geschenk gesucht? Weihnachtskarte fehlt? Lust auf Musik?

Das MODULAR ist kurz vor Weihnachten zu Gast in der temporären Galerie am Perlachberg. Allen gestressten und verzweifelten Weihnachtseinkäufern, Christkindlsmarktbesuchern oder -meidern bieten wir am Samstag den 5. Dezember die temporäre Galerie als Anlaufstelle an.

In der Galerie könnt ihr euch ab 15:00 Uhr erholen, MODULAR Geschenke erwerben oder die noch fehlenden Weihnachtskarten herstellen lassen. Draußen könnt ihr vor der Stadtmetzg die Sprayer der „Bunten“ bei ihrer Graffitiaktion beobachten. Oder ihr kommt am Abend wieder, denn ab 22:00 Uhr gibt es Musik von St. Vincent & the Grenadines und Rhytm Police, ab Mitternacht warten dann die DJs „Der Bunten“ auf euch.

Noch ein Geschenk gefällig?

Dann empfehlen wir die Herstellung eines persönlichen MODULAR-T-Shirts. Oder ihr erwerbt eine der handgemachten MODULAR-Taschen. Bei der Streeart-Tapeten-Aktion „der Bunten“ könnt ihr den Künstlern nicht nur zuschauen, sondern für wenig Geld die Werke auch gleich kaufen und mitnehmen. Wenn’s etwas teuer sein darf, steht im Muhackl natürlich auch jede Menge Kunst zum freien Erwerb zur Verfügung. Und wenn es ganz billig sein soll, bastelt ihr euch einfach einen MODULAR-Button am Stand vom Analogwerk.

Weihnachtskarten sind langweilig?

Auch da können wir helfen: Das MODULAR-Fotostudio lädt euch vor eine bezaubernde schwarzweiß-Kulisse um die perfekten Weihnachtsgrüße für die ganze Familie zu zaubern. Einfach vorbeikommen, sich für eine Pose entscheiden, Gesicht nach Wunsch aufsetzen und sich fotografieren lassen. Die Bilder gibt es dann vor Ort gegen einen kleinen Unkostenbeitrag gleich mit.

Ihr wollt nur abhängen?

Kein Problem, bei einem Glühwein oder Kinderpunsch und leckeren Keksen lässt sich bequem der Trubel drumherum vergessen. Außerhalb der Galerie, vor der Stadtmetzg, könnt ihr am Nachmittag den Sprayern von „Den Bunten“ zuschauen, sie werden ein Graffiti im Muhackl Style sprühen, das zu einem guten Zweck versteigert werden soll.

Lust auf Musik?

In veränderter Besetzung eröffnen St. Vincent & the Grenadines den musikalischen Teil des Abends. Die inzwischen noch drei-, manchmal auch vierköpfige Band wandelt auf musikalisch neuen Wegen und hat sich dem Krautrock zugewandt. Eine Augsburger Premiere wird das unplugged Konzert von Rhytm Police: Der Bass wird gegen eine Gitarre eingetauscht, das Schlagzeug durch eine Holzkiste ersetzt, 8Bit wird zu EchtBit. Die Freude am Spielen wird so noch deutlicher, die kleinen Fehler noch falscher. Im Anschluss daran erwartet euch HipHop, Funk und Soul mit den „bunten“ DJs.

Und das BESTE! Der Eintritt ist FREI!

CY is not the biggest chocoholic but whilst perusing the shelves of Tesco on the weekly household shop, these little naughties caught my eye. As a big fan of Dairy Milk Buttons, I thought it’d be rude not to give these a try. Verdict? Colonel Scrum Yum! Perfect for a little indulgence and a quick-fire sugar fix!

Dee Puddy has a fabulous name. It’s a bit like P Diddy, but cooler. Dee runs a lovely online shop, selling some wonderful little treats…

I like her vintage section in particular (surprise, surprise) and recently bought one of her little 1950s tea tins. You’ll spot some of these soon in our January issue if you look closely… they were originally used for storing thousands of tea samples from North India, Malawi and Bangladesh. A small amount of each numbered batch was retained by the tea company for a year in case of any quality complaint from a buyer then, after the year had elapsed, the old samples would be tipped out and given or sold to staff. The tin I have still smells of tea! But I think I’ll be using it to store jewellery on my dressing table. I also bought a little ceramic ‘Buttons’ tag to tie to my jar of never-ever-used-or-needed-yet-lovely-to-look-at buttons:

And, since we’ve just officially launched Christmas on this blog, Dee does a lovely range of festive bits and bobs, too…

I was tempted by the French goose tape, because it goes so well with the goosey Thornback and Peel inspired (in other words, blatantly ripped-off) Christmas cards I am making. Should I tape each envelope shut? Shall I put a Hobbycraft feather in each card…? Hmmm. So many questions. What a very serious job I have. On a par with being an MP or a surgeon I’d say. Mwah ha ha haa. – Ellie

Last week i created a series of product on zazzle based on my photo, Early Morning Sun Rays #19. The early morning sun beams its rays from the azure winter sky through the leafless maples to the cedars and forest below. The sky is a pristine light blue with a hint of thin white clouds in the background. Darkened outlines of bare branches in the foreground and cedar trees in the background provide stark contrast with the early morning sun. As the rays travel from the sun through the forest, several large sunspots a of lighter and darker red radiate from the sun. One small green sunspot floats like a small orb in the midst of the trees.

Early Morning Sun Rays #19 by dlmtleArt
View more Forest Postage

Early Morning Sun Rays #19 by dlmtleArt
View more Forest Photo Cards

Early Morning Sun Rays #19 by dlmtleArt
Make personalized stationery on zazzle.com

Early Morning Sun Rays #19 by dlmtleArt
View more Forest Magnets

Early Morning Sun Rays #19 by dlmtleArt
View more Forest Mugs

Early Morning Sun Rays #19 by dlmtleArt
Many more Keychain designs at zazzle.com

Early Morning Sun Rays #19 by dlmtleArt
View more Forest Buttons

Early Morning Sun Rays #19 by dlmtleArt
See more Forest Stickers

Early Morning Sun Rays #19 by dlmtleArt
Design custom tee shirts at Zazzle

Early Morning Sun Rays #19 by dlmtleArt
Create custom t shirts at zazzle

Early Morning Sun Rays #19 by dlmtleArt
Shop for another greeting card on zazzle

Early Morning Sun Rays #19 by dlmtleArt
Make post cards on zazzle

Early Morning Sun Rays #19 by dlmtleArt
Browse more Forest Mousepads

Early Morning Sun Rays #19 by dlmtleArt
View other Forest Aprons

Early Morning Sun Rays #19 by dlmtleArt
More Forest Bags

Dawna’s Gallery of Greeting Cards, Matted Prints, and T shirts

Dawna’s Fine Art Prints at

Dawna’s Zazzle Gallery of items featuring her Art and Photography

These beautiful masks were made during the Masks and Wings class on Tuesdays.  They are mixed media (buttons, glitter, feathers and fabric…all of the good stuff!)  Next class we are going to fit the masks to each childs head.  Can’t wait to see them on!

Last week I created a series of products using my photo,  Sunrise Over the Columbia River #5. As the sun rises over the Columbia river, a masonic lodge and church steeple rise above the forest of the surrounding hills in Rainier, Oregon. Silvery gray and luminescent white in the early morning light, the clouds blanket the pacific northwest sky.

Sunrise Over the Columbia River #5 by dlmtleArt
View more Church steeple Magnets

Sunrise Over the Columbia River #5 by dlmtleArt
Browse more Church steeple Keychains

Sunrise Over the Columbia River #5 by dlmtleArt
View other Church steeple Mugs

Sunrise Over the Columbia River #5 by dlmtleArt
View other Church steeple Buttons

Sunrise Over the Columbia River #5 by dlmtleArt
Design a custom sticker at zazzle

Sunrise Over the Columbia River #5 by dlmtleArt
Browse Church steeple T-Shirts

Sunrise Over the Columbia River #5 by dlmtleArt
View more Church steeple T-Shirts

Sunrise Over the Columbia River #5 by dlmtleArt
More Church steeple Cards

,
Sunrise Over the Columbia River #5 by dlmtleArt
Design photo mugs with zazzle.com

Sunrise Over the Columbia River #5 by dlmtleArt
View other Church steeple Postcards

Dawna’s Gallery of Greeting Cards, Matted Prints, and T shirts

Dawna’s Fine Art Prints at

Dawna’s Zazzle Gallery of items featuring her Art and Photography

An international crackdown on the use of woods from the world’s rain forests to make musical instruments bubbled over to Music City on Tuesday with a federal raid on Gibson Guitar ’s manufacturing plant, but no arrests.

Assistant U.S. Attorney John Webb said the search warrant was obtained based on information in a sealed affidavit outlining the investigation.

Agents of the U.S. Fish & Wildlife Service made a midday appearance and served a search warrant on company officials at Gibson’s Massman Drive manufacturing plant, where it makes acoustic and electric guitars.

Some hardwoods traditionally used in making premium guitars, such as rosewood from the rain forests of Madagascar and Brazil, have been banned from commercial trade because of environmental concerns under a recently revised federal law.

Under the U.S. Lacey Act, trading in such banned woods is a federal offense, punishable by civil and criminal penalties or the seizure of property. Last year, the U.S. Congress amended a turn-of-the-century wildlife protection law (the Lacey Act) to extend its reach to endangered timber species and plants. See the next post Where Were You When Wood Became A Felony?

One of the projects completed last week was a series of products on zazzle which feature my photgraph,  Sunrise Over the Columbia River #4. The Columbia River shines radiantly in the sunrise as it flows tranquilly towards the pacific ocean bordered by dark silhouettes of evergreen trees standing like sentinels on the Oregon shore and mist shrouded mountains beyond in Washington.

Sunrise Over the Columbia River #4 by dlmtleArt
View more Columbia river Stationery

Sunrise Over the Columbia River #4 by dlmtleArt
Get your own magnets on zazzle.com

Sunrise Over the Columbia River #4 by dlmtleArt
Design a custom travel mug at zazzle.com

Sunrise Over the Columbia River #4 by dlmtleArt
Create a custom made key chain on Zazzle

Sunrise Over the Columbia River #4 by dlmtleArt
buy buttons at zazzle.com

Sunrise Over the Columbia River #4 by dlmtleArt
View more stickers on zazzle.com

Sunrise Over the Columbia River #4 by dlmtleArt
Browse other bumper stickers on zazzle.com

Sunrise Over the Columbia River #4 by dlmtleArt
See more Columbia river T-Shirts

Sunrise Over the Columbia River #4 by dlmtleArt
Design customized tee shirts on zazzle

Sunrise Over the Columbia River #4 by dlmtleArt
Create a coffee mug with zazzle.com

Sunrise Over the Columbia River #4 by dlmtleArt
See more Columbia river Postcards

Sunrise Over the Columbia River #4 by dlmtleArt
Design a personalized mousemat at zazzle

Sunrise Over the Columbia River #4 by dlmtleArt
Make aprons on zazzle

Sunrise Over the Columbia River #4 by dlmtleArt
Design canvas tote bags from Zazzle

Dawna’s Gallery of Greeting Cards, Matted Prints, and T shirts

Dawna’s Fine Art Prints at

Dawna’s Zazzle Gallery of items featuring her Art and Photography

The following is a excerpt from the Classical Values Blog. It is very interesting and I highly recommend you read the entire article at http://www.classicalvalues.com/archives/2009/10/where_were_you_2.html

The 2008 Farm Bill (also known as the Food, Conservation, and Energy Act of 2008, aka Public Law 110-246).

This amendment [to the Lacey Act] deals with illegal plants — the primary thrust being illegal wood. Henceforth, all wood is to be a federally regulated, suspect substance. Either raw wood, lumber, or anything made of wood, from tables and chairs, to flooring, siding, particle board, to handles on knives, baskets, chopsticks, or even toothpicks has to have a label naming the genus and species of the tree that it came from and the country of origin. Incorrect labeling becomes a federal felony, and the law does not just apply to wood newly entering the country, but any wood that is in interstate commerce within the country. Here are some excerpts from a summary:

The Lacey Act now makes it unlawful to import, export, transport, sell, receive, acquire, or purchase in interstate or foreign commerce any plant, with some limited exceptions, taken in violation of the laws of a U.S. State, or any foreign law that protects plants. The Lacey Act also makes it unlawful to make or submit any false record, account or label for, or any false identification of, any plant.

The definition of the term “plant” includes “any wild member of the plant kingdom, including roots, seeds, parts, and products thereof, and including trees from either natural or planted forest stands.”

[...]

Anyone who imports into the United States, or exports out of the United States, illegally harvested plants or products made from illegally harvested plants, including timber, as well as anyone who exports, transports, sells, receives, acquires or purchases such products in the United States, may be prosecuted. In any prosecution under the Lacey Act, the burden of proof of a violation rests on the government.

[...]

Violations of Lacey Act provisions for timber and other plant products, as well as fish and wildlife, may be prosecuted through either civil or criminal enforcement actions. Regardless of any prosecution, the tainted plants may be seized and forfeited.

Everyone means everyone, which includes every reader of this blog.

Obviously, this means that in the future, the Fish and Game guys will be able to accompany SWAT Team raiders to check all wood in homes and businesses for possible violations. Even if they’re wrong in their suspicions about the wood, it can still be confiscated. (Might that be a goal? To beef up employment at Fish and Game?)

Just think about the law enforcement possibilities alone. After kicking through and impounding your illegal wooden door, a federalized army of government termites could literally strip all wood paneling and flooring from every raided house as suspicious contraband, and haul away all the furniture, wood carvings, picture frames, tools, musical instruments! I can’t think of a better harassment tool. The list of potentially regulated items is mind-boggling:

the scope of products that will require a declaration under the Lacey Act is broad and includes certain live plants, plant parts, lumber, wood pulp, paper and paperboard, and products containing certain plant material or products, which may include certain furniture, tools, umbrellas, sporting goods, printed matter, musical instruments, products manufactured from plant-based resins, and textiles.

[...]

After September 30, 2009, based on experience with the implementation of the electronic system for declaration data collection, we will phase in enforcement of the declaration requirements for additional chapters containing plants and plant products covered by the Lacey Act, including (but not limited to) Ch. 12 (oil seeds, misc. grain, seed, fruit, plant, etc.), Ch. 13 (gums, lacs, resins, vegetable saps, extracts, etc.), Ch. 14 (vegetable plaiting materials and products not elsewhere specified or included), Ch. 45 (cork and articles of), Ch. 46 (basket ware and wickerwork), Ch. 66 (umbrellas, walking sticks, riding crops), Ch. 82 (tools), Ch. 93 (guns), Ch. 95 (toys, games and sporting equipment), Ch. 96 (brooms, pencils, and buttons), and Ch. 97 (works of art). We will announce a specific phase-in schedule for those chapters in a subsequent Federal Register notice.

Did they mention shipping pallets and cargo braces? Wood is not only in stuff, it’s in the stuff that the stuff comes in! Nearly everything is regulated.

Oh, and you firearm owners out there, let’s not forget gun handles!

Ch. 93 Headings (arms and ammunition).
9302 — Revolvers and pistols.
93051020 –Parts and accessories for revolvers and pistols.
Ch. 94 Headings (furniture, etc.).
940169 — Seats with wood frames.
Ch. 95 Headings (toys, games, & sporting equipment).
950420 — Articles and accessories for billiards.
Ch. 97 Headings (works of art).
9703 — Sculptures.

Glad I don’t own an art gallery, but my picture frames are not labeled, which means there are probably multiple potential felonies in progress in my home. (Perhaps I should be more careful about what I say.)

And while the NRA might not have noticed the impending crackdown on gun handles, at least IKEA is starting to speak up.

Between Wood Control and the Consumer Product Safety Nazis, I pity anyone in the secondhand business, including all Ebay and Craigslist sellers as well as people holding garage or yard sales.

In short, I pity the American people. This is not their fault, though, for no one has any control over what is going on. Not even the despicable fools we call “legislators” who cannot read the “laws” they pass because they are not meant to be read. As to the enforcers, they are only doing their job. They have to earn a living. And we are supposed to respect them, because they lay their lives on the line, “protecting” the public! From felonious wood!

Obviously, the full implications of this dramatic loss of freedom are beyond the capacity of a single post. After all, I am just one blogger, doing this by myself, without the kind of access to data that media organizations and think tanks might have. So, I cannot possibly hope to analyze everything. As things stand, I became exhausted last night just reading through the Lacey Act Amendment stuff pertaining to wood — and that was one mere fraction of an execrable, unreadable monstrosity. I don’t mean to whine, but slogging through such horrors is not exactly my idea of Saturday night fun. But who the hell else is going to do it? Flooring and furniture industry blogs? Who the hell reads them except people in the business? They’re all greedy tree haters and have no credibility. Besides, all big business is the enemy right now. We need to stand up not only against Big Cereal, but now Big Flooring! Big Siding! Big Furniture! (Is there such an industry as Big Chopstick?)

To read the entire article please go to: http://www.classicalvalues.com/archives/2009/10/where_were_you_2.html

I have a dear friend. I loved his plaid shirt – it was oversized, cozy and reminded me of the laughs we shared while on our travels together. We met while working the press junket a few years ago and became fast friends.

He came to visit me in Toronto one year and left behind his plaid shirt for me. It was a nice surprise to find it nicely folded under my bed.
Although I loved the shirt, I never wore it.

What to do with it? Well, I decided to create an oversized stocking for my boyfriend. I think it turned out fabulous. I kept one side buttoned, and maintained the collar too. So I was able to create this great Christmas Stocking AND keep the memory of this shirt alive and make it part of a special time of year. It’s fun, it’s friendly and it’s got a lot of room for lots of stocking stuffers.
I think my good buddy would love what I made of his shirt. In a funny way.

This is the back of the Christmas Stocking

This is the front side of the Christmas Stocking

This is Mike's Stocking hanging

This one was a nail biter. OK, it was for me . There was no former project to scavenge for this sample, so I ordered some Cascade 220 in Burnt Orange from my LYS. In mid-August. Granted, not the time they usually stock wool, so when they said it would be about a month to get it in, I didn’t sweat it. Heck I was way too busy in September to knit this up anyway.

September came and went, no call. October came in a flurry, and even though I didn’t have time then either, I did call to check on the status of the order – nothing in yet, no ETA. Then I started to get worried – I mean, much of the reason I chose the burnt orange was to compliment the fall colours (which can be notoriously fickle in both onset and duration) – things were getting pretty vibrant out there… I call again the end of the 3rd week of October and YES! The order is in!! Fabulous. Oh, wait, my colour is back ordered. So not good. No ETA on it. But they did have a popular Heathers colour called Provence that was rust/orange/flecks of green and yellow that was similar to a burnt orange, did I want that?

Ummm, YES!

I think by the time I picked up the yarn and wound a few balls, it was around the 23rd. We’re talking one good wind storm away from all the leaves disappearing. I start whipping up a sleeve… only to find out that my gauge was different with the Heathers than with the Cascade 220 Wool I swatched with. Panic or different fibre tendencies, I have no idea, but back up to 4.5mm needle I went, ripped, and started over. (Sleeves are such good gauge swatches!)

Sleeves done in a couple of days, excellent. Start the body. Flying through the lace – realize I’ve missed the start of the decreases for the Petite version. Ah, well, cardigans are great when they are longer, aren’t they? So I made up a standard size C (one size larger than the Pullover and Tee samples).

And sewed in all the ends on October 29th. There’s something to be said for knitting up something similar to two other things I’d made, but still I think that’s a finger speed record for me. I was surprised I didn’t end up with wrist problems after that!

So DH and I go off on Oct 30th, looking for a spot to take pictures. And in the suburbs, all the leaves had hit the dirt . So we start driving downtown, where DH saw lots that morning – and then exclaimed as we were driving in that “those trees were covered 6 hours ago!!”. By the time we made it to a park beside campus, we were very relieved to see at least a few leaves still around – we cut this down to the wire!

In the end, the standard size is actually too big on me (it looks like the waistline is actually on my waist, when it’s written to be an empire), but oh, is the Cascade ever soft and warm. Especially when I’ve done the first half of the photoshoot in cotton . The colour is a rich rust/orange, perfect for fall, and has no pink undertones in it (that my monitor kept showing me when I was trying to pick out colours from online catalogues!).

(Click on the pictures, or on the link in the sidebar, for more info on the pattern and buying options.)

This weekend . . .

. . . there was some serious Thanksgiving shopping going on — fresh turkey, country ham, “city” ham, veggies and all the ingredients for pies.

. . . still searching for buttons for the Ribbed Baby Jacket.  Decided on the little lamb button and then discovered that there was only one.  One button would be OK, but it needs to be pretty big and the lamb was just too small.  Here’s what I brought back from the fabric store.  Still trying to decide?

The top button matches the colors perfectly. The lamb and duck come together on the card, but it's the lamb that would look really cute.

. . . finished knitting the baby jacket and ready to seam.  I need to block the acrylic as best I can before starting the seams.  It’s really curling up.

. . . DH repotted the white and lavender mums and brought them inside for the winter.  Surprise . . . they already have new growth and a couple of buds.  Yea!

Bright green new growth and a tiny bud.

. . . a little progress on the cross-stitch lamb.  No pictures because it really looks pretty much the same.

. . . started the November dishcloth (from the Monthly Dishcloth KAL).  No.  I don’t need to start anything else.  I just can’t help myself

November Monthly Dishcloth KAL

Thanks for visiting today.  Hope you have a great day!

uttons are amazing. You can buy them or make them yourself. There are so many things you can do with them. They are a versatile component to add to many different creations besides being an amazing design inspiration. A pile of buttons can be the beginning of many projects. You can…

Make bracelets…

Kraplap designs make an amazing selection of button bracelets
and purses. Visit her shop today to see her selection.

Sew or glue them on designs…

All these items are available at Bella Luna in Bremerton, WA. I also do commissions.

Make brooches…

And cover your own…

Any way you use them, they will add that special touch to your projects.

Immersion is one of the greatest goals every game tries to achieve. It is more obvious in what I call character based games. When you play Gears of War, you feel you are in Marcus Fenix’s shoes. When you play MGS4 you feel the drama of the dying hero as if it were your own. In Modern Warfare 2, every drop of blood on the screen makes you worry and get cover.

But it is also true for impersonal games; that is, the ones whose focus is not on characters. It is easier to notice it when I replace the word immersion for involvement. When playing Lumines or Tower Bloxx for example, you feel involved in the game: frustrated after a mistake, excited when a new level is reached, defiant when the score of a friend is beaten. Note impersonal and casual games are not the same thing at all. Chess is impersonal as are, heroes aside, most RTSs: replace one Zealot for another, there’s no difference at all. All sports games are like that too, with the exception of modes like EA’s Be A Pro.

Now, there’s a multitude of factors that contribute to how immersive a game is. I recently mentioned one talking about Demon’s Souls: challenge. A challenged player is an involved player. There’s also the connection between player and game at the fundamental design level: some people like puzzles, some like shooters. I will not get in the merits of each one, but if you like a type of game, you will be more into it. Style also plays a big role: when graphics and sound suit the game and your mood, they also improve immersion. In fact, I would say immersion is the reason behind most graphical updates in the games industry. From polygon count and texture size to shaders, in the search for immersion graphics chips are always evolving to provide better and more artistic or realistic visuals.

From here we get to the other facet of immersion I want to talk about: controls. No matter what game you are playing, connecting to it requires controlling it without trouble. You only get into Tetris when you learn how to move and rotate the pieces the way you want, you only appreciate Geometry Wars after getting used to moving the ship with the analog stick, you only feel like Sam Fisher when pulling all his moves gets easy, you only enjoy Fifa 10 when passing, dribbling and shooting becomes second nature.

Over the years, games became more and more complex. And with game complexity came complex controls. The Atari had 1 button. The NES had 2. The Genesis had 3. In the current generation, both PS3 and 360 have 4 face buttons, 2 shoulder buttons, 2 shoulder triggers and 2 clickable analog sticks. And I am not counting dpads, select and start buttons.

Most gamers are used to it. Hell, controllers could have more buttons and that wouldn’t be a problem, not to me. But with the last generation of consoles, we saw a big move in the opposite direction coming from Nintendo. The Wii has less buttons and makes up for it trying to detect something everybody knows how to do: move and point. When I first heard about it, I was very interested, both as a gamer and as a robotic perception researcher. To me, that meant games would become even more immersive, shooters would feel even more realistic.

It is curious that while it is true the Wii controllers increased immersion, that change did not affect most hardcore games. Nintendo correctly (from a business perspective) focused on using the more approachable controls to bring a new crowd to the video games era. And it worked very well for them.

Nintendo’s approach was so right that others have been following it ever since. After the success of the Wii, many game platforms started exploring new and more natural input methods. Touch screens and accelerometers became very popular.

But we will soon reach a new apex. Something I personally have been waiting for since I started studying computer vision. And Microsoft is the one about to pull it off: no controls. No buttons at all. If you haven’t heard of Project Natal before, go check it out. It is awesome.

The idea of a vision system in games is not new, the PS2 had the EyeToy. But there were many technical limitations: from sensor capability (one still eye won’t give proper perception of depth for example) to processing power, as robust computer vision algorithms require a whole lot of processing. Project Natal solves these problems in a very interesting way: a single camera is used for “texture” detection. And instead of stereo vision, they achieve 3D perception with a depth sensor. As for the processing power, Project Natal’s device features a custom processor, which is certainly there to reduce the load on the 360 hardware.

Like Nintendo did, Project Natal’s first efforts will probably aim the casual market and bring more gamers to the table. But that does not change the fact that immersion in video games will take a big leap. Imagine playing Lumines by grabbing the blocks and rotating them with your hands. Or simply using your empty hands to select your playlist. Wouldn’t it be cool? Heck, in Minority Report Tom Cruise needed cool glowing gloves to do what we are about to get with our bare hands. The future is here, my friends.

Anyway, as the number of buttons get close to the limit, after all we only have 10 fingers, new input methods are here to stay. I don’t have a Wii. But I will need a bigger living room when Project Natal becomes available.

See you space cowboys…