Thursday, December 6, 2007

Sweater for Meg

This sweater took a bit longer than the doll version, but I think it turned out okay. Meg likes it.


American Girl Doll Sweater and Hat combo

The brown/pink sweater inspired me to do another. The hat was a learning experience, as I've never made one.









Weimaraner Love






Meg is overcoming her fear of dogs. She was pettting Max, and said to me, "I'm trusting my fear of biting, Mommy." Translated, she meant overcoming her fear. Hey, she's six.






Wednesday, December 5, 2007

Pink Polka Dot Weimaraner






Meet Max... he's our newest family member. 12 weeks old, with a sweet disposition. He's already learning to walk very politely on the leash when I walk him. And, strangely, after initially being afraid of the fireplace, he now stares at it for minutes on end. Hey, let's face it, dogs don't do much of anything for hours, except sleep.

He's a doll!

Monday, November 26, 2007

Turkey Day Survival Stories

Just a few snaps of the aftermath of our Turkey Day.

A couple of tired turkeys.





Even the cat was exhausted. Meg decided that Black & White Meow should pose with Tuxedo. Tux was so not amused. I think she may still be carrying that cat around when she's thirty. He's pretty beaten up after 6 years of love.

Sunday, November 25, 2007

Freecycle Northern Virginia Rocks!

Yup, Freecycle in Northern VA is the best.
I got this amazing fabric from a freecycler today. She says it's 2.5 yards all together, but it looks more like 2.5 yards of each.

Perfect colors for pillows in the living room. I can't wait to find some braid trim in my sewing box, and get to work.

Some pics... of the fabric, and of the living room, so you can put it in context.



Wednesday, November 21, 2007

longhorn sweater


longhorn sweater
Originally uploaded by
pinkpolkadotpoodle
I made this sweater last year for my nephew, Jake. I thought it turned out really well. Don't think it got much wear, though, because they're in such a hot climate.


Some other views.

The back... he was 5 last year, and this was for his birthday.




Pink Polka Dot Poodle crochets a doll sweater


doll sweater
Originally uploaded by pinkpolkadotpoodle

For my daughter's American Girl sized doll. I started this during her field trip to the one room school house. Because technology was outlawed, it gave me something to do while chaperoning. I finished it last night.

What do you think?


It's okay to tell me that it's hideous, just try to be polite about it. ;-)

Sunday, November 18, 2007

Storque Article ~ Race Car Bed Makes the Big Time!


I'm thrilled to finally make a page in something other than a user created treasury on Etsy.


Check out the Storque Article.


Yup, I took screenshots.


Hand crafted Wood Race Car Bed

Okay, so I'm not holding my breath for this to sell, but I just know someone out there wants a custom, hand crafted, wood racecar bed for their little Mario or Marion Andretti!

And, it made it into a treasury to boot.
Vanessa built a lovely treasury for boys. I'm extra flattered, because she works on the Storque for Etsy. So, I guess that makes it extra special. ;-)

Saturday, November 17, 2007

Pink Polka Dot Poodle Product Placement Pride

LOL, gotta stop doing the alliteration thing, I suppose.

Anyway, brace yourself for more bragging, and a dash of shameless promotion of others shops.

Treasury spots are always fun, so here are two...

This was put together by DesignedByLucinda who has a keen eye for manly man gift ideas.



Check out her shop... and this in particular is gorgeous. Black and White Delight












Next up, a nifty compilation of treasures compiled by bagsbyann


Ann offers this tasty tidbit in her shop. Black animal print velvet drawstring bag.

Thursday, November 8, 2007

Pink Polka Dot Poodle Products to Ponder


chrome stock top view
Originally uploaded by pinkpolkadotpoodle
Just a sampling of the stoppers we have in stock.

If you are interested in buying one, let me know, and I can put up a listing for you on ebay or etsy.

Friday, November 2, 2007

Media Room


Here it is. A shrine to the 80's.



This is an old photo... there is now a tv, a couch, and a comfy leather chair, instead of a bed and living stuffs.

Tuesday, October 30, 2007

Giving eBay one more try...

So, I've decided to give eBay one more try. The first round of stoppers I listed there were viewed many times, but only one was bid on, and purchased. The silly woman who bought it made such a mess of the whole transaction, that it was a very unpleasant experience. Seriously? You thought you were getting FOUR nearly identical handcrafted, exotic wood, bottle stoppers for $9.99? Really? I never cease to be amazed by the level of ignorance in this world.

But, I digress.

I'm going to list several stoppers in my store inventory, rather than pay the heinous listing fees for an auction. To drive traffic into the shop, I will be listing some household items which would either go into the yard sale, or eventually be freecycled. I know, I know, freecycling is better. But better is in the eye of the beholder. Right now this beholder has an empty wallet, and is finding it increasingly difficult to keep up with the bills. Yeah, unemployment sucks rocks.

Here is the first eBay listing. I'd love feedback on how it looks, or on my auction listing wording. I've yet to figure out how to link a snapshot thing like the etsy mini... so click the linky...

eBay listing


It's this stopper, btw.

Tuesday, October 23, 2007

Phototutorial ~ turning a bottlestopper on a lathe (for Dummies)

I spent most of yesterday afternoon turning stoppers, trying to get ready for a craft fair I'm attending on Saturday.

In the midst of it, I had the great idea (or maybe not) of taking some pics along my journey, to document how it goes.





1 ~ We start with a simple block of wood. In this case, Cocobolo, approximately 1.25" x 1.25" x 2".














2 ~ The block is screwed onto the lathe mount.



3 ~ Tighten carefully.



4 ~ Position of the tool.


5 ~ the lathe spins fast, don't forget to wear protective eyegear.



6 ~ Initial rounding with the large gouge. All flat surfaces from the block form should be gone, and the wood should look rounded now.




7 ~ Shaping with various sized gouges, this is the creative part of the journey.


8 ~ Final detailing - I generally use a small gouge to clean up the details.


9 ~ Sanding is one of the most time consuming, labor intensive parts of the process.



10 ~ I use a fourpack of ascending grits, and then finish up with 600 grit.



11 ~ Dry sanding in process looks like this.



12 ~ The pile of used sandpaper from this stopper, and the one I made just before.



13 ~ This is the end product after paper sanding.



14 ~ On to wet sanding. This stuff smells yummy to me. My kids hate it though.



15 ~ Slop it on. It melts like buttah when you apply it to the warm, freshly sanded wood.



16 ~ Make sure you get good coverage.



17 ~ Back to spinning, rubbing the wet sanding compound with the folded papertowel or cloth.



18 ~ At the end of the wet sanding, you have this look.



19 ~ Next, the polishing stage.



20 ~ And Voila! After polishing, a beautiful, shiny finish.



21 ~ The other sides are beautiful, also.



22 ~ So shiny.



23 ~ Attach to the stopper mount, thusly.




24 ~ And back to where the block started its humble journey to becoming a beautiful adornment for any bottle.
















Remember the Before shot?







Oh, one final shot... the cleanup.

That missing wood from the original block? It's now dust. Not all of it ends up in my nose.



To be fair, that isn't from one turning, but several. Still. I wish I could think of something to make with the sawdust. Resin + sawdust = firestarter bricks? Hmm.