Wine Corks Into Cork Board

A while back, I decided that it would be a great idea to make a cork board using a bunch of discarded wine corks. I asked all my friends to save their wine corks for me.  For the past few weeks, they have been sitting around, waiting for me to find the right frame and the right motivation to put them together.

And then I saw this cool wine cork bath mat and felt inspired.

Here's the how-to.

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Gather your corks, a really sharp, non-serrated knife and a self-healing cutting mat.

Be very careful not to cut yourself while cutting your corks in half, lengthwise.

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Arrange them however you like on the back board of your photo frame.  

You can be way more simple than I was, but I wanted something more than straight up and down or side to side lines, personally.  Of course, this required me to cut the corks into a lot of different sizes...

After they're laid out, use your glue gun to glue them firmly in place, one and a time.

I found it easiest to work my way around the edges and then press the middle ones tightly into place.

Amy Sedaris Was A Girl Scout

It's no surprise that Martha Stewart was a Girl Scout.
As was Amy Sedaris.
As was I.

It's no wonder we're all so crafty.

Here's a fun clip from last week where Martha and Amy make Girl Scout inspired Merit Badges in honor of the 89th anniversary of the founding of the Girl Scouts.

image via The Martha Stewart Show webpage

DIY Inspiration: Terrariums

I feel like everyone's been talking about terrariums lately.  My friend Dan made this really cute one, filled with succulents and little rocks and posted this photo (filched from his Facebook page), left, of it in progress.

While I haven't gotten around to making my own yet, I have been giving them a lot of thought.

Should I make an open one, like Dan's and the ones I have seen selling for a pretty penny at Sprout Home?

Or do I want to do something more enclosed and traditional - the whole self-sustaining system?

While I figure out what I'm going to do next here is some DIY inspiration to get you started on your own terrariums.

A really simple how-to on Design*Sponge.

Cute mason and jam jar terrariums on CRAFT.
 

A thorough how-to on About.com.

 And, of course, the Fairyland Terrarium that Martha and Julie Andrews made on the Martha Stewart show the day I shadowed the art department.

Upcycled Undies

A couple of weeks ago I posted a link to Colette Patterns cute mini-bloomers pattern with the promise of posting my own, once they were finished.

Over the weekend, I had a bit of spare time to complete the project and added a cute little bra-top to match.  Obviously these aren't really undergarments - more for lounging around the apartment with your hunny, drinking hot coffee and watching the rain (or, you know, feet of snow) fall.  His cardigan or button-down from last night would be a great robe-replacement over this sweet set.

For my bloomers and bra, I up-cycled an old Dwell duvet cover my friend Sarah had given me - I love Dwell's modern designs and color palette and was definitely inspired to make this set when I saw the fabric folded up in my large piece stash!

The finished mini-bloomers with elastic waist and navy grosgrain at the legs.

I finished the seams on the inside of the bloomers with a Hong Kong Seam.

There is a super tutorial on seam finishes over at Craft Stylish.

 

The bra top obviously offers no support, but it's a cute compliment to the bloomers.

I made a pattern for a triangle top and finished with an elasticized ruffle, as opposed to making a string bikini/halter.

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  I finished the back seam of the top with a flat-fell seam (like you see on the side of your jeans).

The top just slips over your head.

Blog DIY Inspiration: Colette Patterns

I recently discovered Colette Patterns and am so inspired by her patterns, and her site in general.  Designer Sarai Mitnick has lots of fun patterns and links to books and fabric and other craft sites.  She also has a section called Make It Work, all about starting one's own business.

I'm really looking forward to making these cute mini-bloomers from this great website!

Download the free pattern here.


Let me know if you make your own! I'd love to see them!
Send pics to unemployedbrooklyn [at] gmail.com and I'll put them up on the blog when I post my own.

Papercraft

I wanted to make some really special "thank you" cards to send to the creative team of The Martha Stewart Show - to show them my appreciation for the day spent with them, but also to show them what I can do with some paper and an Exacto knife!

I decided to print out some designs I had drawn last semester for my textile design class at FIT and use them as background for a slim silhouette of a wintry tree. I found a jpeg of a tree online and, using Photoshop, turned it into a silhouette that I would be able to cut with an Exacto and cutting board.  I chose an orange Ginko leaf on a blue background and pink butterflies sitting on pale pink and yellow cherry blossoms for the ground of my cards and cut the trees from traditional black paper.

 

 the template for the tree silhouette (in pink) and the cut out tree on black card stock

 the cut out and folded card with the Ginko leaf designed paper 

(if you can't make your own designed paper, a pretty wrapping paper or piece of scrapbooking paper would work well)

a close up of the completed card, with the butterfly/cherry blossom design

Be Mine

Ah, gentle readers, it's that time of year again, St. Valentine's Day.  A day we either delight in or despise.  Me?  I'm of two minds about it, but you can't deny that there are loads of cute, cool and crafty things one can do with a heart-shaped theme.

I had originally planned to post some of my personal V-day crafts on here - but, as my computer has been sitting at Tek Serve for the past week, my blogging has been...  let's just say I am well behind in all things blog/computer/e-mail related.  So, instead of a something of my own creation, here are a few Valentine's Day to-dos that I have come across in my internet wanderings:

An adorable mini-megaphone from Design*Sponge

Lacy paper Valentines from Craftzine

Jojo's Brownie Bites via Craftster

A Jar of Hearts

A love-themed succulent garden from Ready-Made

A delicious prosecco based cocktail from Martha

Also, for those of you in the New York area, be sure to check out the Greenpoint Food Market this Saturday for a Valentine's Day themed experience - loads of great food vendors, a secret food-mirer wall and a kissing/photo booth should prove fun for everyone - attached or not!

image courtesy The Black Apple (check out her site and Etsy shop for loads of other cool work)

Umbrella Tote Bag

Everyone has one.  A broken umbrella they don't know what to do with.  In New York, it's hard to walk down the street on a cold, windy, rainy day and not see one or two laying on the sidewalk or in a garbage bin.  And, if you get caught in the rain, you inevitably have bought one of those $3 jobs from the vendors who seem to come out of nowhere at the first drop of rain.  We all know that those things never last.

I have, or should I say had, an adorable little pink and white striped umbrella that I picked up at H&M one rainy Saturday, caught in SOHO and not expecting rain to fall.  It lasted a while, but let's be honest, an umbrella can only flip inside out in the wind so many times before becoming obsolete.  So what?  It doesn't work as an umbrella anymore, but what about that fabric?  I could no longer use the umbrella to shield me from the rain, but there must be something, being a resourceful gal, that I could do with the fabric.

So, I made a tote bag.  It's simple, it's light, it's handy.  It took about an hour to make- start to finish.

Start by removing the fabric from the skeleton of the umbrella.

It should look something like this:

Fold the umbrella in half, along the center seam

Then fold it in half again.  Using a straight-edge and a blade, cut your umbrella into a rectangle

Stitch the open edges

I used the scraps from the side to make long handles for my bag. 

Sew them together into a long even tube, right sides facing and open at the ends.

Turn them inside out and press with a cool iron.

I left the tab on so the bag could be neatly rolled and carried in the bottom of my regular handbag.

Here's the finished product, all rolled up and ready to go

Very handy for grabbing groceries or a trip to the store.  Just remember to toss it into the bottom of your handbag before leaving the house!

My Day At Martha Stewart

When I was on The Martha Stewart Show last week, the result of this little blog, they surprised me with an offer to spend the day working in the art department of the television show.  No, it wasn't an offer of a full time position (as many of you have been e-mailing me and asking), but it was an amazing opportunity to get in there and meet some people and learn about the day-to-day activities that go on behind the scenes of the show.

I'd like to thank Anduin Havens, the art director, and her whole team (Hosanna, Robert, et al) for allowing me to spend the day shadowing them.  Everyone was extremely friendly and very helpful and kept asking if I was having fun.  And I was.  I was there to work and I hope that I was at least somewhat helpful.  Behind the scenes of a TV show is an ever changing environment, with lots of movement and last minute changes.

The whole place was, to no surprise, extremely organized, with all the drawers and bins and cabinets labeled with a P-Touch as to what was inside them.  Ribbons organized by colors, dinner napkins apart from lunch napkins and everywhere that could be used for practical storage was.

The day I was there the team was finishing up a long week of shooting but, though tired, were moving at full steam.  They start at about 7AM and go till the work is done - the day I was there, this was at 6PM.  At the end of the day the team was to change the set over from it's January theme to Valentine's Day, so there was a lot of hustle and bustle - moving clear jars to fill with pink and red and white candies, arranging jeweled crystals in little glass containers so they looked just perfect, separating colored stones - all this on top of keeping the show moving and looking just right.  While I didn't get to see too much of the creative process, the development and pitching of ideas (simply because of the type of day I went in on), I did see a bit of it - and got to spend some time wandering through the aisles in the art department.  Think the most organized craft supply store you have ever been in.  I also was able to see the team working on some ideas to pitch to Martha for Valentine's shows.

There is so much that goes on there, and it is so varied from day to day, that one day was not really enough to see the entire creative process.  And, after spending the day there, in such a bustling and creative place, I am even more determined to find that kind of work environment.

Image of Martha Stewart Living crafts room from The Martha Stewart Website

Easy Apron

This summer, dear ones, I cam across this cute fabric - pale pink polka dots and dark chocolate birds on a creamy yellow background.  I bought it without knowing what I could make of it - perhaps a cute summer top?  I searched for the right top inspiration, but never found it.  So, I folded the fabric away, still keeping an eye out for that perfect pattern to make a summer top (for that far away day when summer returns).

When baking bread the other day, I decided I needed a new apron.  I was wearing a very cute, yet utilitarian apron from Anthropologie.  I like the apron I have already, but it's just kind of... blah.  It's an unbleached linen with orange embroidery and trim, cute, but fairly plain.  And, to be honest, sometimes a girl just wants a little flounce when she's whipping up cupcakes for a birthday or hors d'oeuvres for a dinner party or, you know, re-heating leftovers.

I went searching online and came across this 1951 pattern that was exactly what I was looking for.

one square = one inch

First, transfer the pattern.  I pretty much always use pages from the Sunday New York Times when I make patterns - it's a great way to recycle - and for something I am going to make over and over and over again, it's fairly durable.

Using a ruler, make a grid pattern based on the above diagram.

Then transfer the pattern.  It's really easy - that's what the grid is for!  If you haven't done it before, just take a deep breath and go slow, one square at a time.  This, by the way, is the most time consuming part of the whole project.

After you cut out your pattern, lay it on the fabric, something like this:

Make pleats according to the pattern - lining up circles and triangles - and baste along the top edge.

I decided to use this hot pink grosgrain around the edges.  Measure about 5" up from the bottom and mark lightly with a pencil or a disappearing sewing pen and pin the ribbon (or whatever trim you decide to use) and top stitch.

Once you have the trim on, it time to pin and sew the waistband pieces.  It should look something like this:

 

The original pattern called for a pocket, but I didn't love the way it looked when I pinned it on.  It would be great to have a pocket on this cute apron, but I am really happy with the way it looks without!

Handmade Holiday

The past few weeks have been a hectic whirlwind of holiday preparations and parties and the holidays themselves. This year, I wanted to approach the holidays with the mantra, local and handmade. Some things I made myself, some things were made by others and still more things were purchased locally. My family - really the only people I purchase Christmas gifts for these days - are pretty easy and most of their gifts came from great North Brooklyn shops like Word, Catbird and Houndstooth.

The rest of my holiday was handmade. A few images:

glitter covered snowflakes for holiday cards

piparkakut in the oven

piparkakut cut out and waiting to be sprinkled with sugar and put in the oven - 

pigs and squirrels (I also made seahorses and skull&crossbones)

 

Swarovski crystal and felt bib necklace

stuffed pork loin roast for Christmas dinner 

(I know it could've been prettier, but I had never frenched a roast before) 

a row of Les Enfants Terribles elephants to fill holiday orders

Craft-acular

This Saturday, dear ones, Martha Stewart is hosting her holiday craft fair in NYC.  I'm remiss that I will have to miss it, as I already have too many plans for that afternoon - but I recommend that you go and check out the crafts (many of them by people who work for Martha Stewart Living Omnimedia) - and hey, if you happen to be chatting with them, tell them about my little blog!

I love the idea of craft fairs before the holidays - it seems to me, however, that most of the craft fairs around these days are chock-full of silk-screened T-shirts and tote bags.  Now, don't get me wrong, I like a good graphic and a girl needs a lot of fun Ts and totes, but there is so much more to crafting!

As I have been unemployed for a year (or so) now, I am trying to figure out the best way to keep my holiday spending at a minimum.  I know that no one is expecting anything expensive or fancy from me this year, but I love the art of giving - picking out a gift for someone that is thoughtful and all about them.  Something that they might not think to get themselves or something they really admire.  I am lucky to have friends and family who also love the art of the gift - some of the nicest presents I have ever received were found objects from flea markets or old framed photos of us together.  These things need not cost a lot, but they mean so much.  The gift really is in the thought (the actual thought) that goes into it.

So, this year, I will be taking a cue from Martha and making as many gifts as possible.  I will be making my Christmas cards (I send them out every year).  Also, to raise a little cash for the Holidays, I have been taking orders for my little stuffed animals - you can look and buy on my Etsy shop - or, if you're in the 'hood, message me directly.  Today is a gorgeous and unseasonably warm day here in Brooklyn, so I'm going to take a walk to the little Greenpoint yarn store and see what they have and get a little inspiration for my holiday crafting.

And if you are in the area, next weekend is the Greenpoint Hearts and Crafts Affair at Cafe Grumpy.  It's been going strong since 2006 and I coan only imagine that it will be better than ever this year.  Stop on by and check it out and by some unique presents for the people on your shopping list!

Stitches/Craft

© Briana Campbell, 2009

I made this little octopus (it's yet to be mailed) for my dear friends Jen & Tony's newborn son, Maxton.  On my Etsy site, you can see a different octopus I had made - I think it's cute, but it didn't come out exactly how I was imagining.  For Maxton's new friend, I enlarged the pattern a bit and made the tentacles a bit fatter.  I also decided on closed eyes - I think it's a softer, perfect for a newborn. 

Hire Me Martha

Gentle readers, your MatchGirl has been alerted to the job she must have at Martha Stewart Omnimedia. Associate Designer, Crafts.  How very amazing would that be for a crafty girl like myself?  To make crafts, to come up with ideas, to organize the intense library that already exists at MSO...  That is something that I would love doing every day.  Absolutely love!  It was posted a month ago, so the likelihood of me getting this job is pretty slim, I'm sure (and I'm not sure any of the other jobs listed on the Martha Stewart website are quite right for me at this precise moment). But, let's take a look at the description and I'll let you all know why I would be an amazing fit for this job.

Associate Designer, Crafts
Posting Date: 10/15/2009
Type: Full-Time
Description: Assist in the development of thematic concepts, color palettes, style guides, create original artwork, and generate applicable product suggestions utilizing our design resources, archives, market research, editorial, and television content.

Assist in the development of Crafts / Weddings / Celebrations / Stationary products. Design select artwork, products, and create initial samples.

I can totally do this. As readers of my blog know, your MatchGirl is quite the crafty girl. In addition to my Etsy shop, I have a degree in Fine Arts and am currently taking classes in textile design at FIT. I've been making things my whole life. I've woven baskets, sewn everything from doll clothes to my clothes to stuffed animals. I'm a whiz with a paintbrush and pencil, I've silk screened, made paper, bound books and made masks for a black and white ball.

Manage the artwork library and leverage it for different product types and businesses.

Organize all design components to hand off to partners. Assist in the communication regarding product specifications with partners up to the final sample approval. Keep designers, merchants, and product mangers updated in all communications. Create and maintain formalized record of designs, design revisions, correspondence, and approvals. Maintain product communication consistent with current department standards.

Research trade shows, antique shows, and retail stores for inspiration and to keep abreast of craft trends and competitive landscape. Purchase market samples as reference.

Collaborate with brand management in the development of packaging and collateral. Confirm all details of the products and projects are accurate.

Maintain library of all MSO publications, artwork, and inspiration tear sheets.

Develop a strong sense of Martha Stewart design aesthetic throughout the design of all merchandise. Stay informed of the latest editorial and television content through appropriate channels. Use inspiration to create viable product suggestions where appropriate. Research and develop new ideas that will in turn inspire editorial and television.

In my last position, as the operations manager for a start-up cosmetics company/photo studio/event space (Think on the Smashbox model), I wore the mantle of manager of several businesses, all running under one roof. I believe that my former employer would say that I handled this with an enormous sense of organization, style and grace under pressure. When one is in a management position at a start-up, gentle readers, the ability to know where everything is, how everything works and what everyone else is supposed to be doing (and whether they are doing it or not!) is a great asset.

In my apartment, the books on the shelf are divided in categories (fiction, art books, cooking books, etc...) and in alphabetical and chronological order by author. The same for the CDs on my CD shelf. The clothes in my drawers are neatly folded, with everything at my fingertips and my closet is hung by category. Lest you think I'm a little OCD, I'm not. I'm not going to have a melt down if something is out of place. I'm simply organized. And, I've found that it's a lot easier to get things done quickly and well if you're organized to start.

So, even though the job was posted about a month ago, dear ones, your MatchGirl is going to give it a go - use her networking and her resources and see if she can't get herself this job (or one a lot like it)! Wish me luck!

Hire Me Martha

Ah, gentle readers, as many of you know, your MatchGirl adores Martha Stewart. I've written about it here before. And last week, thanks to one of our fellow unemployeds (yay, Tony!), your MatchGirl had the opportunity to attend the taping of Martha's Brooklyn show (which you can watch here, if you missed it!).

The studio was totally big and beautiful, with a huge kitchen area, crafting area and humongous "greenhouse" looking section where she films her outdoor and gardening segments. Thanks to, I dunno, sheer luck, we were seated in the front row and had a prime view of Martha and her guests (and, of course, Joey, her warm-up guy). Martha was everything I had hoped she would be - please no jokes about insider trading or that you know she's difficult - she was totally self-deprecating and professional (and, once or twice, funny).

It was an amazing day. Who cares that I had to get up when it was still dark outside! It was so worth it! Beyond worth it.

As many of you know, I want to work for Martha.

So, dear ones, I have decided that I am going to launch a campaign, via this little blog, to get hired by Martha Stewart. Once a week I will write a post about how much I want to work for Martha and the reasons that she should hire me. Maybe someone who works for her will see it. Maybe not. But when I think about my job hunt - and where the past year has taken me, and the kind of job that I'd like to do on a regular basis - every day - I want to be doing things that I enjoy. I want to be able to work in a creative environment and get to be creative and to be surrounded by creative people. I want to work somewhere where creativity and a passion for all things creative (crafts, arts, sewing, baking cooking, gardening) is the status quo. And that's hard to find, even in New York.

Many of you have messaged me or e-mailed me to attempt to get me a connection at her company, and I really appreciate it. Many of you have said that she is a bitch, but the simple fact of the matter is that I've worked for a bunch of real tough people, and taken a lot of crap, and not one of them was as successful (or had really any excuse for being so rude, except that power had gone to their heads) as Martha Stewart. And, a few of you have said that she has a hiring freeze (which is probably very true - so many places do!), but that can't last forever, can it?

I'm a great manager and would happily take an administrative position somewhere in her company. Anything. A foot in the door is all I am asking for - it's the hardest thing, of course - but it's all I need. Once I'm in... Martha will see how much of an asset I can be to Martha Stewart Omnimedia. Seriously. Just leave it to me.

So, hire me Martha!