March and April... Shake and Make

Hey all... alive here...

So I've decided to do 3 posts that get me caught up. At this point I either get back up to date or stress myself out about making detailed posts about every single thing I have done in March and April (not going to happen...). To be honest, this has been a fantastic lesson in itself. I think I will feel really good about just getting caught up and back on track. I apologize for the lack of detail and when I get a chance I will come back and elaborate. In the meantime, if you have questions about what something is or how I made it or what links are... please comment and I will let you know. Here we go!

In this post I am just going to upload pictures of things that I have made over the last two months (honestly I do not remember the exact dates.) Also... there are more so I will continue to add pictures. Some things I gave away so I will have to find a way to get pics. Thanks for your patience! 

Photo I took at my sister's house. Edited with Instagram iPhone app.  

Made this crocheted wrap bracelet for my sister for her birthday.

This crocheted wrap bracelet for St. Patty's Day!

Made this T-shirt scarf for a friend for St. Patty's Day

This is an old braided leather belt that I strung chain
through and added a finished end and a snap.

Crocheted hippie headband with a large button for added pizzaz!

Flexible metal ring with gold string wrapped for a summer wrap bracelet!

Another crocheted headband with large button.

4 different kinds of chain connected to create a staggered necklace.

Green and brown T-shirt scarf - kickin' it old school.

Part of a chain cut, leaving 2 rings with gold string wrapped for a wrap bracelet.

Green t-shirt necklace - crocheted part doubles as a headband.

Crocheted summer wrap bracelet with metal bead.

Crocheted wrap bracelet with pear-like bead for closure.

Old belt made into mens cuff with the word "possible" stamped in. Made this for a friend who shares the obsession with all things possible!

Two strips (soon to be cuffs) made from sewing scraps sewn together.
This is really cool and is made using water soluble paper! Link to come. 

This is a small bag (maybe used for cosmetics?) made by ironing old plastic shopping bags together.
The designs are pieces of yarn and small cutouts of words from magazines. I put them between the plastic bags that I ironed together. After ironing it all together I sewed a button on for closure :)

This is made of strips of magazines woven together and then taped in place using clear packing tape. I think I could use it for the cover of a notebook or as a placemat? Other ideas?? I have 3 of them.

This is a simple old industrial chain with strips of leather from my dad's shop
 woven though it. It makes a cool wrap bracelet.

Simple yellow T-shirt headband.

This is a close-up version of a T-shirt scarf. I don't love it but it is something I wanted to try to do for a while. Instead of weaving one shirt I took 2 different shirts and wove them together. I think I would like this one better if I had the lighter color on the inside. Thoughts?

This is a sampling of all of the leather belts that I have scored. Time to make more stuff from leather belts! I swear I'm not a hoarder! My mother taught me to always claim "collector." :)

February 6, 2012: A-CORDing to Me!

Neck-wear, neck-wear... all about it. My very first creation of this year, and first post on Period Ten is a crochet cord scarf. Well, now I have several of them because I love them so much and always get fantastic compliments. They can be wrapped around to form a bunchy, warm wrap for your neck or they can be worn loosely, acting more like a necklace. I wanted to make some that had a different stitch. So I looked up other ways to make a crochet cord. I found one that was exactly what I was looking for. It would create a lighter (thinner) cord and looked decorative - and looked harder than it actually is - always a plus!

This is the first one I made. It took me about an hour - one episode of House on Fox :)

 Since that only took an hour... I figured, why not bang out another while watching American Idol - wait no... it was Hoarders!

And then I got a little crazy with some RHS Rams themed ones... who will be the lucky recipients?

 How did I learn how to make this cord you ask... well...



Yes this is in some other language... (pause for serious Internet search...) It's Russian!! Haha. Figured it out. Ok, so I am adding YouTube tutorials to my list of things to "make." Stay tuned!

January 15, 2012: Berry cinchy cowl :)

To be completely honest, I am not great at crocheting. As it turns out... I really do not like following patterns of any kind. Even in cooking, with recipes. I generally look at the basics of how to do something and then get creative with it. (FYI People do tend to like the things I cook... and no one has died, yet.)So, my crochet projects are generally cinchy - great word - and basic... but with a twist. I love the Threadbanger YouTube channel for learning cool DIY projects. This was the first crochet tutorial that I learned from. It is actually teaching how to make a slouch hat but you get the idea. With my limited crochet skills... I made some simple cowl scarves for my mom and sister this Christmas and they were a hit... and I wanted one for myself. When I made it, I thought it was a little to long; I wanted it tighter around my neck to keep me warmer. With that in mind, I incorporated a draw string in this one, where the strings come out of a little flower (which I have to get better at making). It slips over your head and then you can pull the strings to tighten it up for a warmer feel. Then, tie a little bow inside the flower. Cute and comfy.

January 12, 2012: It's a bird, It's a plane... It's an i-cord!

Disclaimer! PLEASE excuse these pictures! The attempt at zero expression, as ridiculous as it is, will hopefully allow you to focus on the piece and not my silly face. (Those of you who know me know I cannot take serious pictures...)
Now, I love this thing! It is a simple crocheted i-cord (similar to the very first creation on January 1st but shorter and with a lighter yarn size. (Here is a link that explains yarn measurements and descriptions, as it can get very confusing!... I have much to learn.) The coolest thing about this creation is that I do not really know what it is. It's a necklace... or a headband... or a choker-scarf-thing. Anyway, it fits nicely into my style and I think it could be worn across seasons so I just love it, alright!? :)

January 1, 2012: I-Cord Necklace... or is it a scarf??

This is my first creation of 2012. I saw it on Etsy and wanted to learn how to make one. So, naturally (as most people would do) I Googled it! Specifically I searched "crochet cord." This led me to a YouTube tutorial on how to crochet an i-cord. I grabbed a giant crochet hook, turned on the miserable Jets game :( and crocheted away. By the time the Giants were running away with Dallas, I was done! Check it out!