Blast from the Past - John and Yoko

I did this terrific portrait of John Lennon and Yoko Ono when I was in high school:



The signature at the top right is "mchic" in between two wings. The explanation? The wings symbolized my love of the rock band Aerosmith at the time. "M Chic" is an abbreviation for "Misery Chick", after an episode of Daria, where she incurred the nickname:


"Misery Chick" goodness appears around 7:20
(Unfortunately, part 2 seems to have been removed by Viacom. Too bad.)

Anyway, the medium is drawing paper and pencil (probably both low-end, as I was in high school with no job).
I was thinking of doing a "blast from the past" spot every month, just to put a spotlight on what skills I've improved, my change of subjects, and my changes in medium.
The changes? For one, I've stopped doing portraits (for the most part). My choice of medium has improved to encompass classier pencils and paper, and I'm more acquainted with the human form and structure of the face now.
I'll give myself at least a B+ in the improvement department.

Yummy Omelet

I made this omelet a week ago, and it looked so pretty I had to grab the camera and take a good picture of it.



It's turkey pastrami and colby-jack cheese with green onions sprinkled on top. Did I mention that the eggs are organic, fertilized brown eggs?
It was yummy, by the way. :D

Moo-Cow Madness!

So, it was a choice between roosters and cows for my new kitchen motif. As my grandma said, "everyone has roosters" - so I decided to do moo-cows.
So, I did this cross stitch:



I can't remember, unfortunately, where I found the cross-stitch pattern. If I find it, I'll make sure to post the link to it.
I have something interesting planned for this - it'll be an embellishment on a pot/pan holder, like SO:



(I just whipped that out in less than 15 minutes with Microsoft Paint. Impressed? You should be.)

BBW Alice

Do you guys remember Alice from the video game (and subsequent movie) Resident Evil? I've always wondered what she would look like if she were a little (ahem) bigger, so I decided to go ahead and indulge my curiosity by drawing this:



This work is on drawing paper, in pencil and color pencil. I'm a little rusty when it comes to color pencil art, but I think this turned out first-rate! I tried to make it a bit cartoon/comic like, as I always foul up genuine portraits when I start to work them in color pencil.
I worked from a picture on the Internet Movie Firearm Database for the H&K G36K with the AG36 grenade launcher. I found a picture of the Springfield Mil-Spec 1911A1 randomly online (I managed to find an obscure pic that gave me a good idea of what the firearm would look like viewed from above). I used a reproduction of the US film poster for my Alice's pose and props, and I worked from a DVD case of the movie to get the font for 'ALICE' on the right hand side.
It was a lot of work and a lot of reference, but pretty damn good for a figure drawing, if I do say so myself.

Tapestry Crochet Bone Pattern

Here is my tapestry crochet pattern for a bone, for your crocheting pleasure:



When it's done, it should look something like this:



I designed this bone so that it could be tapestry crocheted onto my dog's kerchief.
I hope you enjoy!

Loki's Leash Rack

I bought a wooden plaque with my birthday money, because I decided that Loki had so much stuff, that he needed a rack of his own. I mean, literally - the hooks on our key rack were almost falling off from the combined weight of our keys and his various puppy paraphernalia! (leashes, collars, a harness, etc)

Here it is:



and here it is, in action:



Not only did I make a completely new rack for Loki, I replaced the hooks on our old key rack, to give it some new life.
I'm quite proud of myself - I made something that has a purpose AND is decorative, rather than something that has no purpose other than looking pretty.
A job well done.

Don't Worry, Be Happy Key Chain

Here's my happy face keychain:



I absolutely loved crocheting this little guy! He was really fun to make. Over my long trek in the world of crochet, I have learned how to make many things - and I'm starting to be able to make things from scratch (no pattern!!!). Although, this is a simple ball, it actually took a lot of time and effort to complete. It's done with worsted weight cotton yarn, with the face embroidered on with cotton embroidery thread.
When I finally do go out and get those jump rings, I'll make sure to add one or two to this guy - I've been having the same problem that I had with the eyeball keychain; the yarn gets caught in the part of the ring where things are taken off/put on.
This one is also a prototype for my Etsy store, whenever it does make it's appearance. I really want to build up my "inventory" before I decide to start a store, however small that storefront will be.

Eyeball Key Chain

Here is my prototype for the eyeball keychain:



I've had only one problem with it - when the yarn gets caught in the narrow portion of the keyring (where things are taken off and put on) it refuses to make it's way back onto the keyring proper. I've decided to see if I can fix this problem with what jeweler's call "jump rings", metal rings that are used as an attachment (among other things):


If I have any luck with the jump rings (when I actually go out and GET them...I've been putting it off), I'll definitely post an update.
I'm kind of at a loss what to do with this...keep it and display as a prototype? Give to a friend? Give to my ophthalmologist as a wacky gift? Keep it as my own keyring?
One thing is for sure - I'm gonna be making a few more of these bad boys. And I might even sell them on Etsy, once I get my s#$% together and find out a name for my little venture. Then I can actually create an account, and start business. JOY!

A Soap-making Adventure!

I got a big hunk of Goat's milk soap at Michael's:



Plus some more awesome molds. I cobbled together a double boiler (my sole solitary metal bowl on top of my saucepan, 1/3 filled with water),and got this:



Fun times! Now I can take a shower again without my skin drying out. :D

Cross Stitch Skull and Crossbones!

For my birthday, I went to the craft store, and blew the $30 that my grandparents gave me on crafty crap.
Among the craft items was this terrific, blank, black tote bag...that I could decorate HOWEVER I WANT. WooHoo!
So, I cross-stitched this super awesome skull and crossbones onto it:



I got the pattern for this at supermitten.com.
I had a few problems in the beginning stages - mainly, with the waste canvas, which doesn't seem as easy to use as the package (and many cross-stitching websites) would lead you to believe. The combined thickness of the fabric and the waste canvas, as well as the inflexibility of the canvas itself, led to the impossibility of getting the fabric + waste canvas stretched over the damn hoop to make it easier to work with.
I ended up abandoning the hoop and the waste canvas, and went for my 14 aida. It was easy enough to apply, the stitches look uniform - and when finished, it actually LOOKS like the pattern. Unfortunately, it was a bitch to remove out from under the stitches. I'll make sure to attempt the waste canvas again - although, I'll definitely have to plan better.

A little off the subject...
I really can't figure out what to do with this tote bag. I have a couple ideas:
1. Run with the pirate theme, as I love pirates, and they are awesome and stuff,
or
2. Make it an 'Audrey Awesome' tote bag, covered in everything that I love: frogs, Folk Art Hearts, Happy faces, crochet patches/pockets, Peace signs, guns...you know - all the stuff that makes me ME.
OR (this just occurred to me)
3. Make a theme on either side (e.g. frogs on one side, pirates on the other)

I love themes, and I'm willing to run with one - but an amalgam of the awesome things that I ♥LOVE♥ really brings out the artist in me!