January 6

Friday Roundup: Crafts With a Bite

Hello, all! It’s time for the Friday Roundup!

As part of this week’s post, I have a confession to make: I really enjoy reading what I call “stupid vampire novels.” The good ones are more in the “urban fantasy” genre, but a lot of them, to be honest, are best characterized as “paranormal romance.” (Let’s step back a minute and reflect on the fact that that’s a whole genre unto itself. Right? I know.) I’ve read all but one of the Sookie Stackhouse books (and watched a season or two of True Blood), all of the Anita Blake books, all of the Kitty Norville books (yeah, she’s a werewolf, but it counts), and, yes, that other series that I’ll leave unnamed. That other series could be its own roundup, I’m sure. This isn’t that roundup, though.

As much as I’d love to share some Kitty Norville crafts, there aren’t any (or, if there are, they are well hidden from Google)! I was shocked! We’ll all have to band together, as a Geek Crafts community, and remedy that. ;)

Happily, though, there’s a wealth of Sookie and Anita Blake craftery out there, and I’m here to bring you some of my favorites from Etsy.

First up, these very fun Sookie Stackhouse book cover earrings, by maryfaithpeace. It sounds like she puts a lot of work into these—there’s even “page ridge detail”! You can mix-and-match or buy two alike! I love it!

Next, a charm bracelet, admittedly based more on True Blood than on the books, by Creative Accessories. (Who, by the way, has a coupon code up right now—and offers a plethora of geeky jewelry. Nice!)

Here’s one for any ladies wanting to do some easy cosplay: a Merlotte’s waitress t-shirt, by Scarlett Fabric (also sporting a coupon code!). A couple of red marker dots and this shirt makes an easy Halloween/convention/costume party getup!

If you’re really into the costume, you might want to add another element: scent. Mannaia Frangrances has you covered, with “Bon Temps,” which she describes as “A dark, distinctively southern scent for the vampire, fairy, or fangbanger with taste. Includes notes of magnolia, sweet iced tea, wisteria, bougainvillea, and a good dose of peach.” I’m … kind of intrigued. It sounds nice.

The next one, I admit, I hesitated before deciding to post. I’m a little tired of the “Keep Calm and Carry On” thing—it’s a fun historical reference, but, for the time being, it’s probably been played out. I think. Then again, I laughed when I saw this pendant by Red Hot Kitten, and I would totally wear something like it. So maybe there’s a bit of play left in that meme.

Now, on to Anita Blake. Perhaps because she doesn’t have a TV show or a movie, there are fewer Blake-themed crafts out there. But she has a comic (there goes that paycheck), so crafters do have some imagery to work with. Here’s a card holder (ooh, a library card!) with an image straight from the comic, by Japip:

A different print from the comic appears on these earrings, by WenSi Shop. The guns dangling from the photos of Anita make it much easier to identify her, I think. ;)

Alternately, she could look more like the Anita Blake in this print by Tara Fortin—which I love, by the way:

And, finally, to leave you with something just a bit macabre, here is a necklace by Bottled Up Creations, featuring a “hand sculpted human heart” in a bottle, with a note saying “My heart belongs to Jean Claude ♥ [signed] Anita Blake.” This one kind of creeps me out. It probably wouldn’t be everyday wear for me. But Halloween? Oh yes. I would totally rock this necklace on Halloween!

A few of our past vampire-themed craft posts:

November 25

Doctor Who Friday Roundup

This week is the 48th anniversary of the one, the only, Doctor Who. I wish I had the patience to do 48 items but alas, you get ten.

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First up we have an awesome decal of Doctor Who’s name in Gallifreyan from Perfectly Aligned.

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Next we have an amazing pewter sonic screwdriver necklace from Urban Industries.

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Is your fridge looking boring lately? Refrigerator Prose has got you covered with this Doctor Who themed magnet word set.

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For the chess loving Whovian in your life, there is no greater gift than this handcrafted set by Emmi’s Geeky Arts and Crafts.

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Foxwise has some fabulous hand stamped timey wimey earrings.

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Keep track of the spoilers in your life with this journal from EarthFire Arts.

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What better why to turn business casual into business awesome than with this TARDIS tie from Binary Winter Press.

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Show your allegiance to our future evil overlords with this Warhol inspired Dalek shirt by Geekcetera.


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Doctor Who has taught us that the only robot that can be trusted is K-9. Get your very own from The Plushie Emporium!


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No excuses for bare and boring walls with prints like this from Say it Again Design.


November 18

Friday Roundup: Minecraft!

Today is the day.  I can hardly believe that Minecraft is not a full game yet, but it’s true.  Today Mojang AB, the creators of Minecraft, will be releasing the official Minecraft 1.0 version live at MineCon in Las Vegas.  I wish I could be there.  However, since I can’t be there, lets look at some truly awesome Minecraft inspired crafts.

To start things off, take a look at this Creeper Purse by Blindmoon on Etsy.  Now you can look stylish and still send everyone around you into PTSD induced seizures.

Creeper Purse

*****

Or how about this absolutely adorable Minecraft Chicken made out of Fimo Clay.  StarPhoenixx from Etsy makes tons of cute clay figurines but this chicken made me squeak.

Clay Minecraft Chicken Mob

*****

The cake doesn’t have to be a lie with this Plush Minecraft Cake by EeeBeeDee on Etsy.

Minecraft Cake Plush

*****

We all know how much I love coffee cozies.  I can’t get enough of the things, yet strangely I don’t use them on my actual coffee.  Either way, you have to love this Creeper Coffee Cozy by LilacsLovables on Etsy.  She calls it a “Mug Cozy” but I don’t think you can even USE mugs for anything other than coffee…right?

Creeper Coffee Cozy

*****

How are you supposed to dig around in your mines without the proper tools?  Well, diamonds are expensive, so how about these Perler Bead Diamond Magnets by GumballNinja on Etsy?

Perler Bead Diamond Toolset

*****

Have you ever looked at your tissue paper dispenser and thought to yourself, “What am I doing with my life?”.  Me too.  You can solve that problem by pimping out your dispenser with a cool Minecraft Grass Cube Tissue Box Cover!  But where could you get one?  How about from sockmonkeyfun on Etsy?

Grass Cube Tissue Cover

*****

I bet that, like me, you don’t have any friends.  What?  You do have friends…can you share?  No….right then.  Well, since you have SO MANY FRIENDS, I suppose you must collect them.  Why not add one more to the list, you friend hog.  This Minecraft Pet Wolf Statue, by DandelionBlow on Etsy, won’t ever pick you last for dodge ball…again.

Minecraft Pet Wolf Statue

*****

Since you  have so many friends, why don’t you marry one?  All you need is a diamond ring like this Minecraft Inspired “Diamond” Ring by tinybackpack on Etsy.

Minecraft "Diamond" Ring

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Alright.  As usual, I have saved the best for last.  This Minecraft Plush Pig is Adorable.  I love it.  I want to own it.  ClosetMonsterstoys on Etsy make all kinds of awesome pop culture plushies, but this pig is just too awesome for words.

Minecraft Plush Pig

*****

That’s it for this week.  I’m off to patiently refresh the Minecraft page until the full version is released.

November 4

Friday Roundup: Muppet Crafts!

Quite aware that I am dating myself, I have fond memories of watching “The Muppet Show” when it was actually on TV (which premiered in 1976 – groan…). As my husband also shares an affection for the distinctive puppets, our kids have grown up with the movies as well – one of our Christmas traditions is to watch The Muppet Christmas Carol. Good times. We’re quite looking forward to the next installment, when “The Muppets” launches on November 23rd.

So for today’s roundup, I thought I would offer up to you a bounty of Muppet-related craftastic goodness. First up, a fabulous crochet Animal hat, from Etsy shopowner, TeeterTotterTot.

Animal hat

*****

This Miss Piggy Cameo hairpin from Katey Bree Designs is really interesting – where would one get a Miss Piggy cameo??

Miss Piggy cameo hairpin

*****

Beaker is one of my favorite characters, so I love the idea of the two of these guys “peeking out” from a framed cross-stitch (PDF pattern available from LizzyStitches). How could you look at this on your wall and not smile?

Beaker and Professor Honeydew cross-stitch pattern

*****

This Kermit the Frog cup cozy looks like a quick and easy Muppet craft – and kid-friendly, too, since it’s from Disney Family Crafts.

Kermit the Frog cup cozy

*****

Made up of 16 different blocks, this Muppet quilt by Roxy Nova is one impressive project! Be sure to click through to revel in close-up shots of each block.

Muppet quilt

*****

The sweet fuzzy bits on this crochet double pom baby hat by Naturally Hooked would really make any baby look like a sort of muppet!

Double pom Muppet baby hat

*****

I almost wish I wore glasses so I could have a reason to make this Professor Honeydew glasses holder amigurumi project! Heck – maybe I don’t need a reason!

Muppet glasses holder

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I’m going to have to start soon, if I want this Yip Yip costume for next Halloween – which I do! Love these!

Yip Yip costume

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Finally, give your own Muppet shows with this fantastic Muppet puppet theater from Someday Crafts!

Muppet theater

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OK, OK – I won’t leave it that. Here’s a little bonus: OK Go’s version on the Muppet theme song.

Links of Interest: