Garth Johnson of Extreme Craft may finally help us understand what hardcore taters look like. (SFW) [more inside]
posted by fontophilic on Sep 19, 2009 - 10 comments

There are few things a man needs in life: a sense of purpose and ambition, a clean bill of health, and a fully detailed hand-sewn puppet of himself. Puppet Artists, Marnie & Bill Winn, create soft sculpted puppets that range from real people (from their photographs), to celebrities, to storybook and fantasy characters. PA also makes similarly detailed sets of 4-inch-tall finger puppets. (via)
posted by netbros on Aug 11, 2009 - 19 comments

By now, you've probably heard of Etsy (previously), a website that has been called a "crafty cross between Amazon and Ebay." The site is enormously popular, among women in particular, but some are asking is the buy handmade movement a good thing? Does the site peddle a false feminist fantasy?
posted by lunit on Jun 12, 2009 - 108 comments

Lots of video game cross stitch designs.
posted by mippy on May 22, 2009 - 9 comments

Making Something New Everyday ; a blog where old-time MeFite Alison tries to make something new everyday. With over 100 projects posted so far, there's plenty for you to gawk at, such as a Robot Tea Cup and Saucer, a Color Perfect Pitch Tester, a Hidden Chamber Hamburger, Capacitor Bugs, Accidentally Gay Cardinals, a Fibonacci Petticoat, Marzipan Birds and Laptop and, erm... poop (possibly NSFW). Something for everyone, then! [via mefi projects]
posted by Effigy2000 on Apr 19, 2009 - 19 comments

Polyvore is a website that lets you mix and match online images to make fashion sets and collages. While it has received favour from Web 2.0 pundits, fashion bloggers, and major craft blogs, it has also drawn massive ire from artists that claim copyright infringement and use of personal photos. The anti-Polyvore pressure mainly comes from Etsy sellers, with some support from artists on DeviantArt, Red Buddle, and independent artists - all coming together on Flickr. We Heart It and Ffffound! are also seen as suspect. While Polyvore tries to assuage copyright fears, amidst growing pressure to shut down, many of Polyvore's current users are counter-petitioning for the site to stay.
posted by divabat on Jan 10, 2009 - 16 comments

So, you have some old books lying around you don’t read and that you're pretty sure no one else will ever read because they have pages missing or they’re hopelessly outdated technical manuals or they never should have been published in the first place. What to do? As always, crafting is an option. You can make a wrist cuff, or a purse. Book covers can be made into clocks, or photo frames, or photo and card stands. They can become CD and DVD cases, or a hiding place for valuables or necessary contraband, Shawshank Redemption-style. [more inside]
posted by orange swan on Jan 4, 2009 - 20 comments

I made you a beard.
posted by serazin on Dec 13, 2008 - 30 comments

Feeling the crunch? Need to get a bunch of gifts for people on the cheap? Why not go down to a thrift store, pick up some old vinyl and make a bowl*, a candle holder (suitable for advent), or a cuff bracelet? If you have more to spend and are more adept in the craft department, try a record purse or a deconstructed album book. [more inside]
posted by piratebowling on Dec 2, 2008 - 26 comments

The bacon-and-fried-egg scarf. The Bad Clam. First Prize. Some tasty dreams, but mostly nightmares, are made of the abominations and inspired works found by the bloggers of Craftastrophe. [via MoFi]
posted by not_on_display on Nov 19, 2008 - 16 comments

As much as you may enjoy using your discarded tin cans to have top secret conversations make yourself taller, you'd like to know if there's anything creative to do with tin cans. Here are some ideas to get you started. [more inside]
posted by orange swan on Nov 9, 2008 - 31 comments

Corpse Craft is a flash game -- a puzzle/ strategy hybrid that's one part Same Game and one part Tower defense and one part Edward Gorey. Decent art, sound, story and gameplay.
posted by boo_radley on Oct 29, 2008 - 19 comments

Continuing Curve , brings together an unprecedented collection of designers and objects of different eras to celebrate the joyful and liberating spirit of rococo. [more inside]
posted by hortense on Sep 26, 2008 - 7 comments

Robert A. Talbot makes guns out of wood.
posted by Fiasco da Gama on Aug 10, 2008 - 14 comments

Got some time to kill? Well then, maybe you should start exploring the exciting world of papercraft! To get you started, here's a link to 100 free paper models and toys. Once you're done there, you might want to start checking out card modeling, build some skyscraper models, animals and motorcycles and when you get really good, faces of real people such as these. There's even some creative paper modeling websites out there for the kids and people who like Pokemon and Nintendo. And if all those links still aren't enough to satiate your new found lust for papercraft, check out this papercraft search engine for even more designs.
posted by Effigy2000 on Jul 25, 2008 - 12 comments

"We create sewn art and artifacts based on the drawings of our two children using only thrifted and recycled materials. We also make custom pieces with a child's drawing provided or requested by you." Via plsj tumblelog.
posted by nthdegx on Jul 8, 2008 - 8 comments

A supportive blogging community of mainly women cross-linked on each other's blogrolls and leading an increasingly compelling marketplace of small-scale goods and handmade lives , green-living ideas , product promotion , and lifestyle-making suggest that the internet may be able to foster a localized economy model of living on an international scale--or at least gain the attention of that other idyllic-life icon. [more inside]
posted by rumposinc on May 12, 2008 - 20 comments

Dyeing with Kool-Aid basic how-to. The best thing is the color chart. A good idea for a party, maybe? As usual, the folks at Flickr have got the goods: Kool-Aid dyed yarns in the Hand-dyed pool [1], [2], and the Yarn Porn pool, [1], [2]. And if you're one of those people who just hates to do things the easy way? Multi-colored custom yarn with Kool-Aid tutorial part 1 and part 2.
posted by taz on May 2, 2008 - 29 comments

"When I get the time when I'm not raking, whenever I'm near water, I'll beach comb for bits of wood, feather or anything else that appeals and make some boats."
posted by nthdegx on Apr 21, 2008 - 13 comments

DIY Ceiling Cat. That is all.
posted by armoured-ant on Mar 26, 2008 - 41 comments

Ron Murphy cut records, but not just any records. Responsible for cutting the actual vinyl master plates of much of the now revered Detroit Techno including Jeff Mills, Carl Craig, Underground Resistance's seminal Knights of the Jaguar, and much more - he demonstrated impeccable craftsmanship and skill in both mastering records for sound and aesthetics at company known as Sound Enterprises source link AKA National Sound Corporation. Schooled in Motown, dubplates and jukeboxes, he is the bespoke-crafted, analog link between the digital future and analog past that is the roots of Techno music and modern techno DJ culture. [more inside]
posted by loquacious on Feb 13, 2008 - 15 comments

I pledge to buy handmade this holiday season, and request that others do the same for me. Why? Better gifting experience, better ethics, better for the environment.
posted by divabat on Nov 23, 2007 - 95 comments

Got some spare time? Then let's learn origami! Check out this large collection of origami designs (suitable for beginners too), and here's some instructional origami videos to help you along.
posted by Effigy2000 on Nov 17, 2007 - 6 comments

With winter's cold touch around the corner, some of us may need a little something to keep us busy by the fireside on those chill winter evenings. With the abundance and variety of craft blogs to be found, everyone from the novice to the expert should be able to find inspiration (and even great tutorials!) for a fun and cute project. Enjoy!
posted by honeyx on Nov 14, 2007 - 11 comments

Up here in the Northern Hemisphere, it's time to break out the sweaters. Wool too itchy for you? (It is for poor Simon Cowell.) Cashmere and alpaca are easier to wear; a surface comparison shows why. But you can also steer clear of animal fibers altogether and opt for fabric made from wheat. For that matter, while you're at the greengrocer, also pick up some bamboo (1, 2), soy (1, 2), bananas, corn (1, 2), pineapple, milk (1, 2, 3) and rice. (Vegan yarns previously in AskMe.)
posted by GrammarMoses on Nov 6, 2007 - 13 comments

Making a Transformer out of KFC buckets and custard pie boxes. [more inside]
posted by of strange foe on Sep 7, 2007 - 32 comments

Barnaby Barford cuts up china figurines and rearranges them in amusing ways. Shary Boyle's art is similar, but darker.
posted by WPW on Jul 6, 2007 - 6 comments

Peggy a redo of the Lichtenstein modern classic using 2788 hand cut, sanded, and painted dowels mounted on a wall, forming a 3 x 7 foot work of art.
posted by mathowie on May 29, 2007 - 38 comments

FabIndia becomes a Harvard Business Case study It's a brand that does not advertise. It, in fact, celebrates the success of its copycats. And now Fabindia, the craft-conscious enterprise, is a Harvard Business School (HBS) case study. "Founded in 1960, Fabindia makes the cut for being an example of a corporation that does not just aim to do well, but does good too. "A strong mission can be both an opportunity and a constraint on the growth of a firm," points out Dr Khaire. However, the private retailer's unique value proposition has not come in the way of it being recognised as big brand today. And this in spite of the fact that Fabindia has never advertised, points out Dr Khaire."
posted by infini on Apr 15, 2007 - 8 comments

The art of sugar: flowers, lace, birds, sculpture, cubes, gardens, construction site, houses, paintings, underwear. In Britain. In Mexico sugar skulls are created to celebrate the Day of the Dead. Amezaiku is a Japanese candy craft and wagashi the art of Japanese confection.
posted by nickyskye on Mar 11, 2007 - 14 comments

EZ does it. "Unventor" of the Möbius scarf and the Pi Shawl, "ur-geek of knitting" Elizabeth Zimmermann will be honored at the University of Wisconsin's Design Gallery in the retrospective exhibit New School Knitting: the Influence of Elizabeth Zimmermann and Schoolhouse Press (opening Oct. 27). "EZ" has been called "the Jerry Garcia of knitting: jolly, kind, unconventional, endlessly creative, often quoted, and much-loved by countless people." More than all those things, however, EZ was an Opinionated Knitter who urged her fellow needlepersons to think critically and inventively about their craft; in her 1999 obit the New York Times said she "brought a penetrating intellect and a sculptor's sensitivity to revolutionizing [this] ancient art." Plus she was funny. The Wisconsin knit camp she founded is now run by her daughter, Meg Swansen (heir to the throne in more ways than one); it was featured in a Wisconsin Public Television segment that aired last December (warning: RealPlayer format; transcript here).
posted by GrammarMoses on Oct 19, 2006 - 11 comments

Much of the “jobs of the future” rhetoric surrounding the eagerness to end shop class and get every warm body into college, thence into a cubicle, implicitly assumes that we are heading to a “post-industrial” economy in which everyone will deal only in abstractions. Yet trafficking in abstractions is not the same as thinking...
posted by Kwantsar on Sep 7, 2006 - 54 comments

Free printable cardboard lens hoods. Not only are they free (except for the cost of printing/cardboard), but they are collapsible. [via iStock]
posted by jonah on Mar 23, 2006 - 14 comments

ThreadBared.com is the Go Fug Yourself of vintage sewing, knitting, crocheting, and crafting patterns. Some highlights: Lord of the Bellbottoms; behold the Golliwog; That Linebacker Look; Return to Traditional Values; You Should See His Ball Peen Hammer; Never EVER make fun of a man who is both wearing cableknit mittens and holding a shotgun.
posted by Gator on Feb 6, 2006 - 7 comments

This ain't your grandma's DIY crafting. (most links NSFW)
posted by heatherann on Apr 29, 2005 - 30 comments

Kartenfalthelme. Work getting you down? Feel assaulted by schedules, bosses, unreasonable demands? In an imperialist mood? Order your KuK Atelier cardmodel helmets today! Für Vergrößerung klicken! [All content in German, but don't let that stop you!]
posted by mwhybark on Oct 13, 2004 - 4 comments

There is no spoon.
posted by Wet Spot on Oct 4, 2004 - 10 comments

Roll Fold your own giant paper robots! Many delightful designs, including the Whale-Copter(?), the Kanga-Bot, and a suprisingly familiar little guy. Hours of fun, at least until you pass out from blood loss following massive paper cuts. (Link courtesy Pixelsurgeon by way of Veer.)
posted by 40 Watt on Jun 19, 2003 - 8 comments

Some nice origami
posted by rdr on Feb 25, 2002 - 9 comments

Download a Dinosaur - just print it out and get yourself some glue and scissors (careful with the scissors) and you got your very own dinosaur. Hours of fun!
posted by semper on Nov 22, 2001 - 3 comments

Eat yer face! DIY life cast gelatin molds! [via 50 cups]
posted by plinth on May 16, 2000 - 1 comment