Geek Crafts

Matilda is one of the quintessential geek kid’s books; the story of a nerd girl who uses her brain to bring a pinch of justice to the world is bound to resonate with swots of all ages. A couple of years ago I managed to get myself to Stratford ‘pon Avon to see the RSC’s christmas musical version of the book and was completely blown away by it – one of those performances that remind me why I work in theatre. Anyway, since then the production has transferred to the West End, won a load of awards and caused a considerable dent in my finances from ticket purchasing.

Laura, or LollyPolly as she is known over at the Minchin fan forums (the music for Matilda was written by our very own rock nerd Tim, who of course did a fantastic job with Dahl’s dark comedy), made this brilliant cushion commemorating the show’s opening song – which echoes the prologue to the book in that we get to hear about how miraculous all the children except Matilda are. It’s a fantastic example of how effective even simple embroidery can be if the colours, fabric and design are well chosen. With any luck Laura will now have caught the needlework bug and will go on dazzling us with her work in future.

Matilda the musical official site

Angry (Feet) – Tim Minchin’s fan forum

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Being active myself in historical reenactment for many years, the colder months were often spent at the sewing machine prepping for the upcoming events throughout the year. The same can be said for people who love attending Cons. Their creativity and ingenuity forever astounds me!

Working roughly off of a pattern and adapting on the fly, graverobbergirl on Craftster has made a great version of the original Star Trek costume! Even the hair and accessories show her dedication and attention to detail that are sure to make her stand out in the Con Crowd.

What makes graverobbergirl’s costume extra special is that she has planned for the inevitable. She has a patch to sew onto her costume when she finally (and inescapably) gets hit by the phaser aimed for a commanding officer!

The Expendable Yeoman (2-in-1 Trekkie Costume) – CLOTHING.

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One must start at the beginning with The Hobbit.  Which is what Jennifer Ofenstein has done with Fandom in Stitches latest long-term project, There and Back Again.

Announced in August, it officially began with the first block’s pattern, Gandalf,  designed by Schenley Pilgram and posted on October 5, 2011 and subsequent patterns were and continue to be posted on the first Wednesday of each of the following 12 months. Also pictures is The Road designed by Lilja Björk Sigurdórsdóttir.

Haven’t started yet? Not a problem, each month, the links are there to previous patterns released for you to access and download to work on at your leisure. The project is a collaborative effort between four Fandom in Stitches designers, Michelle Thompson, Lilja Björk Sigurdórsdóttir, Schenley Pilgram, and Jennifer Ofenstein.

Never done paper piecing before? Still not a problem as Jennifer has some wonderful tutorials to help you learn. So come along on a Hobbit’s quilted journey to there and back again!

• The Hobbit
• Jennifer Ofenstein
• Fandom in Stitches
• There and Back Again
• Gandalf
• tutorials

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Lovely lady k4tr1n4 has made an amazing new interactive t-shirt perfect for little boys and big boys alike! The little white dots are made of velcro and the super cute ghosts are made out of felt so they can be stuck and unstuck to your hearts content.

Alternatively, the girly girls out there might prefer a little cross stitch with their retro gaming… Craftster CaribouOnTheSea got a little carried away with her Pac Man scheme and made this wonderful and ‘punny’ project.

 Cross stitch on Geekcrafts

 Clothing on Geekcrafts

•  Pac Man on Geekcrafts

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“Drummer, beat, and piper, blow,
Harper, strike, and soldier, go.
Free the flame and sear the grasses
Till the dawning Red Star passes.”
~ from Dragonflight, by Anne McCaffrey

Two weeks ago the world lost an amazing woman, one who had a profound impact on many people and forever changed the worlds of science fiction and fantasy. I will always have a place in my heart for Anne McCaffrey’s Dragonriders of Pern series, which I read, devotedly, throughout my teen years. In her honor, here are a few of my favorite crafty dragons from around the web:

Cthulhu Crochet and Cousins, a long-time favorite blog of mine, showcased a couple of adorable dragons, based on this (free!) pattern from Lucy Ravenscar on Ravelry. They aren’t strictly Pernese-style dragons, but they’re too adorable not to include!

And this one, by Craftster user Faren, is a two-fer: the adorable clay dragon caught my eye (oh how I want one!), but below it, you can also see an embroidered dragon flying across a painted map of Pern. That’s some serious fan-love!

Finally, there are these stuffed “shoulder dragons,” by Cheryl Simshauser, made to look like McCaffrey’s fire-lizards. I love the gold one! She seems to be looking right at you.

As many internet commenters have already said, “R.I.P. Ms. McCaffrey – Long May Your Dragons Fly!”

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Who doesn’t love an adorable Cthulhu? SpookyPooky created this tiny (3 inch tall) Cthulhu stuffy for the One Tiny Stuffie swap over at Craftster. Her lucky partner’s survey said she liked “cryptids, sea creatures/monsters, anything a little unusual, steampunk, Neil Gaiman inspired…She also said she loves anything with a top hat and a mustache.” So Steampunk Cthulhu was born! I love that she added a mustache! You can see more pictures in the post, including his filigree-touched wings and the mini I, Cthulhu biography “written” by Neil Gaiman SpookyPooky made to go with it.

• Steampunk Cthulhu on Craftster
• SpookyPooky’s Profile
• One Tiny Stuffie Round 6 Gallery

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