Because I’ve noticed this space has been filling up with all sorts of crafty things lately (and because that’s not really why I write here), I’ve decided to start a sister blog.
Meet clarkuscat!
I will still be around here, so no worries my faithful readers, but I’ll be sure to let everyone know when I’m posting my craftier side over on clarkuscat.
Now, I’m going to see if the snow has finally stopped. Have a great weekend everyone.
As promised, I am finally uploading one of the projects I completed while home for the holidays. This one was also a gift, but I’m thinking I might make myself one or two when I’m home this summer. I found the tutorial here, and although I did change up a few steps to accommodate the materials I had on hand and the final look I wanted, the basic principle is pretty much the same. I found the linked tutorial to be incredibly clear, useful, and instructive. I’ve only included my own step-by-step process here to record exactly what worked for me, and I mean no infringement on the absolute creative genius of the person behind the linked tutorial. Also, as the original post says, the Weeping Angel is a copyrighted character. In order to avoid copyright infringement, please don’t make these to sell in any way shape or form.
Materials:
hot glue gun (hi temp)
hot glue sticks
styrofoam (2 pieces) or craft foam (2 pieces)
masking tape
rubber band
Barbie dress (or material to make a dress)
2 popsicle sticks or doll stand
terra-cotta pot coaster (medium)
wire cutters or strong scissors
Xacto knife or serrated blade
spray primer
stone textured spray paint
Step 1: Draw or trace two wing shapes on your styrofoam pieces. I found an image online that I liked by google searching “gothic angel statue wing” or something along those lines, and traced it out on a sheet of white computer paper. Then, I cut it out, glued it to my styrofoam, and cut out around the shape. Cutting the styrofoam was a bit difficult (and messy) for me (I was recycling some old coolers I had lying around), but if you use craft foam (found at any craft store), you’ll probably save yourself a lot of aggravation and a huge mess. I used a serrated blade to cut my styrofoam because it was pretty thick and dense, but an Xacto knife will probably do the trick with craft foam. I also cut out a small circle to help stabilize my Barbie.
Step 2: Trace the details on the front of your wings with hot glue. This will add texture under the spray paint and help make it look like the wings have actually been carved from stone.
Step 3: Once you’ve finished your wings, chop off your Barbie’s arms at the elbows. I used my dad’s heavy-duty wire cutters, and the arms snapped right off no problem.
Step 4: My Barbie came with a short dress, so I added a little length to be sure her outfit matched the long, robe-esque clothing gothic angel statues – and, more importantly, the angels on Doctor Who – wear. I simply cut a strip from an old pillowcase, stitched into a tube, and used some fabric adhesive to attach the tube to the dress my Barbie was already wearing.
Step 5: Hot glue the popsicle sticks together, so they are about the length from your Barbie’s shoulders to an inch or two past her toes. Glue the popsicle stick to your Barbie’s back. Then, shove the extra inches of popsicle stick into your small styrofoam circle. This should help stabilize your Barbie. Mine didn’t stand entirely on her own yet though. I didn’t get a picture of this step, but imagine you are crafting a doll stand from the popsicle sticks. In fact, I’m sure one of those metal doll stands would work wonderfully here if you’d rather just buy one than fashion your own makeshift one.
Here’s one for sale on Amazon. Click the picture to buy.
Step 6: Dress your Barbie in her new dress. Then, use the hot glue gun to re-attach her forearms in the proper Weeping Angel position. I loaded up the elbow joints with glue and covered her eyes (where the fingers attach) with glue as well. Those arms aren’t going anywhere.
**Styrofoam Only** If you used Styrofoam for your wings, you’ll need to wrap them completely in masking tape. If you don’t your spray paint will eat right through all your hard work in the final steps. The craft foam should hold up to the spray paint on its own, but I did actually like the texture the masking tape created on the back of the wings (You should be able to see this in the next few pictures.
Step 7: Cut two slits in your Barbie’s dress where you want to attach the wings. Again, load up the wings and your Barbie’s back with glue and attach.
I told you I loaded her up. Those wings are also not going anywhere.
Step 8: Put your Barbie’s hair in a ponytail on the very top of her head. I used a regular rubber band to secure it. See the pictures above for placement. Then, chop all the hair off as close to your elastic as possible. Next, using your hot glue gun, layer glue in strips across the top of her head until you are satisfied with the look. There really isn’t a right or wrong way to do this, just start pumping the glue and go with the flow.
Step 9: Hot glue the bottom of your small styrofoam circle to the bottom of the terra-cotta coaster. I don’t have a picture of this step either, but just flip the coaster upside from how it would sit under a pot. It should make a little pedestal shape kind of like this: /—-\
Step 10: Take your nearly-complete Angel to a well-ventilated area and blast it with your primer. I think I ended up using about 3 coats of primer total (waiting about 10 minutes between coats for it to dry) to be satisfied. Your Angel should be all white and looking pretty awesome by now.
Step 11: Once your primer is dry, blast your Angel with the stone textured spray paint until you are satisfied with the coverage.
My apologies for the terrible camera glare.
And, drumroll, you’re done! Find a nice place for your new Weeping Angel, wrap it up and give it as a gift, or run in terror as fast as you can. Whatever you do, don’t blink.
And here’s mine all finished and gifted with a nice new home in my friend’s apartment.
I’m so close to being completely done with this semester! So close! After Thursday, all will be done, and I’ll finally be free and clear for a weekend of Christmas partying and New York City-ing. I can’t wait.
On a completely unrelated note, I finally have time to start some embroidery again. I’ve missed it so much. I used to mess around with thread crafts when I was younger, but I lost touch with my stitchy side during my undergrad years. Recently, I pulled it again, and I’ve loved re-learning all the stitches as well as learning some new tricks too. I have so many pretty patterns on my computer now! I’ll have to spend every second of Christmas Break stitching in order to complete them all!
In order to make sure I don’t lose touch with this great hobby again, I’m planning on committing to stitching at least one project a week from now on. The last project I completed was a very belated birthday gift for one of my best friends. It really challenged me to use the new stitches I learned over the summer, but he loved it, so it was all worth it. I almost didn’t want to give it up, I liked it so much. But, in the end, knowing that my friend appreciated it so much made me happier than hoarding it for myself.
Maybe I’ll make myself a Ravenclaw one…
I just finished last week’s project not too long ago, but since it’s a gift and hasn’t been received by the recipient yet, I’ll wait to post pictures. Last week’s was a series of three coordinating smaller hoops, but I really love how the grouping turned out. I also can’t wait for my friend to receive them. Hurry, USPS! Hurry!
I haven’t started anything new for this week yet, and I may decide to wait until I get home to my parents’ house for the break to start something new. I’d hate to have something half-finished when I need to leave since I’m pretty sure I can’t bring my needles on the plane. If only I could – what a great way to pass the time in the air! Oh well.
I’m also struggling to find some good material on which to stitch. I think I may pick up some tea towels while I’m home for the holidays and work on those because I’m getting a little bored just stitching up hoop after hoop. Maybe I’ll try to look for some canvas tote bags too. Some of the craft stores might have sales after Christmas, right? If any of you guys have suggestions for material or even projects, let me know! I’ll do so much better if I’m not on my own to make the decisions about what to stitch.
This is going to be a fast post because I have about 900 pages of reading to finish before 4:00. Oh, Ulysses. Anyway, this is a quick little craft I threw together last night. The lovely cat tree my parents got for Clark for Christmas had this metal plaque with the name of the manufacturer right across the front. It was bothering me, so I decided to replace it with a new name.
In an effort to keep myself busy over the past few days I’ve spent at my parents’ house, I’ve once again taken up my crafting habit. I also had several in-the-works projects I needed to finish before they were ready to be packed away for the big move. I finally finished up two of the four throw pillows I was making and also made a lamp
just for fun. I’m quite impressed with the outcome of all three items and can’t wait to try my hand at a few more one-step-above-basic projects.
My dad also helped me plan out the arrangement of my new apartment. I feel like I should explain that my father and I have been fascinated with architecture for years. One of the best memories I have of growing up is drawing floor plans on graph paper with my dad. I have a whole binder full of dream houses from different stages of my life. Needless to say, we had both the materials and basic skills to make a rather detailed plan.
I’m pretty excited about the way it turned it out. I was starting to become a little terrified of the move, but now that I can see something tangible and I can feel like I’ve worked out at least one tiny part of the puzzle, my excitement is beating out the terror. Things will work out okay after all. The other day I heard that Andy Grammer song “Keep Your Head Up” on the radio, and a few lyrics stuck out to me as I was driving home:
I’m buyin in the skeptics,
Skeptics mess with the confidence in my eyes.
I’m seeing all the angles start to get tangled
I start to compromise
My life and the purpose.
Is it all worth it?
Am I gonna turn out fine?
The other day these lyrics resonated with me, and I gave in once again to my fears. I started to wonder if this crazy path I’ve chosen, pursuing an esoteric field and a position in academia that may be hitting its expiration point soon, is worth it. Then tonight after dinner with some old family friends who asked me all about my new school and campus and my crazy, wacky love for what I study, I realized that I could talk to them about my passion all night. They just answer with blank stares and nods most of the time as I go off on some tangent about an obscure poem I read or about an idea I had for my Master’s thesis. Everyone tells me that they can see how happy I am and how much I love what I do all the time. I guess I never realize because I never feel like I’m working when I’m doing what I love. I feel like society has taught me that work is supposed to feel onerous and painful, but I’ve never felt like that while dissecting the use of medieval motifs in Harry Potter or while reading Shakespeare or while learning Middle English. I’ve never felt like I’m working or killing myself to get a paycheck. I find myself going back to it, reading articles, finding new books and authors to investigate, during my down time. And that, right there, is when the rest of the song’s lyrics hit me:
This is just a journey
Drop your worries
You are gonna turn out fine.
Oh, you’ll turn out fine.
Fine, oh, you’ll turn out fine.
Yesterday, after a wonderful lunch with some great friends whom I am going to miss dearly when I move, I decided to venture out to the craft store once again. A new friend of mine mentioned on Wednesday that Joann’s was having a button sale and that bunches of buttons were selling for $0.50. She had made several pairs of adorable earrings from them, but I couldn’t help but think that timing was perfect on this one. Just a few days ago I had seen a cardigan decorated with all sorts of vintage inspired buttons on sale for about $50.00. I knew I could never spend that much on a sweater, so I admired it for a little while then kept walking. Now I find out that Joann’s is having a sale on buttons. This alone would be great, but added to the great timing of such a revelation was the other revelation by one of my friends at lunch that another Goodwill store exists about 10 minutes down the road from campus. Hooray. Putting two and two together, I headed out, loaded myself with buttons from Joann’s, and headed to Goodwill where I found not only the perfect cardigan to house my buttons but also two dresses and another brown sweater. Add to that the fact that both sweaters were the color of week (and therefore 50% off), and I was quite satisfied with my luck that day.
I instantly came home, removed the cardigan’s old teal buttons, and replaced them with my own. The finished product is not exactly what I had pictured in my mind, but I’m pleased with it all the same. 
When I told my mom about my new cardigan and the fact that I had embellished it all on my own, she said “Well, aren’t you becoming quite the crafter.” I laughed and told her that I simply enjoy making things. I like having an idea, figuring out how it will work, and having a finished product about which I can say “I made that.” It makes me feel accomplished and it’s fun as well. I talked a while back about creating a personal style for myself, and now I’ve realized that it might be fun to take that “create” quite literally.
It’s a funny thing – my getting into crafting. I enjoy it truly and I’m starting to realize that I can tap into new hobbies and ideas, that I can develop latent sides of my personality. The major life change of graduating, gaining free time galore, moving to a new state, and beginning graduate school has brought out the crafter in me. Right now, it works to fill my lazy days with some sort of activity and to help me feel productive, but I have a feeling I have found my new stress reliever. I can’t tell you how many times my mom has told me that I need a way to vent, a way to relax and to feel happy when I’m at my worst. Now, serendipitously, I think I’ve found it.
Developing this new hobby makes me wonder what else lies latent in my personality, what else will I discover I enjoy over the next couple years. How much will I change and grow? I’m at the tipping point of becoming anyone I want and I’m excited to discover what lies ahead. I guess things have a way of working out and lining up even when we least expect it. We live. We grow. We change. We adapt to what we’re given and as long as we keep an open mind and embrace the eccentricities of this life, we truly can be happy.
