Read this tutorial on my new website!

It's here folks!  This is a remake of my original birthday explosion box with a couple of changes. Some things I kept to the original like the party horn and the birthday hat, cupcake, pockets, gift box, etc.  














This box was made for my dad's 56th birthday which just passed.  He's an avid fisher so I make the cake fishing themed.  The white boat is a simple origami boat (he taught me how to fold it as a kid ^^); the fishing rod is made from a tooth pick, thread, a bead, and some paper; the cooler is made from a simple rectangular prism net.

You can find the video tutorials for different elements of the box here:

Tealight Cake Part 1

Tealight Cake Part 2

Box Layers

Lid

I was testing out a couple of setups throughout filming of the box so please excuse the choppy set cuts.  I've officially found my permanent set up though for all craft videos :D

Happy Crafting!

So it's almost September and for almost all my life this is the time when I get excited about another school year and a fresh start (similarly to that pre new years excitement). This year however will be the second year that I won't be going back to school. Last year I still had convocation to look forward to but this year it seems as though I've been living in a very long blur of nothingness.

Don't get me wrong, this time off from school, work, and responsibility has pretty much been heaven for me but with it I became lazy and unmotivated.  I really dislike the saying "money is freedom" but this past year has taught me that money does give you some degree of freedom. Thus, the pressure is on to find employment or head back to school.

I've been debating which I'd rather do for awhile now. At times I think to myself, school isn't that bad, I can go back for a year or two for a post-grad program and I'd be set for a job once I graduate. But that was what I was told about my undergraduate degree - get your post-secondary education and you'll find yourself a comfortable career...BULLSH!T (I ain't mad...) And on the other hand I've been applying to jobs in my field and have had no luck in even getting a call for an interview.

Life's sad when not much is going your way.

But I'm taking a new leaf to life's challenges and instead of dwelling on what isn't, I will work to make the changes I want to see in my life.

Staying positive and working persistently is the key to success. Don't forget that 😊

-KT

Lace Stockings Pattern knitting Too bad I'm terrible at knitting. I would make SO many. And all the thigh high leg warmers I could handle!

Tutorial 

Credit goes to Patraw

A playing card soldier that made his first appearance in Disney's 1951 Alice in Wonderland animated film, which was based upon the Alice's Adventures in Wonderland and Through the Looking-Glass children's books penned by Lewis Carroll. Ace of Spades has the misfortune of serving the Queen of Hearts, which is a dangerous occupation, as the short-tempered matriarch is infamous for ordering her subjects to be decapitated for trivial, or even imagined, infractions on
a daily basis.

I've been seeing this on pinterest lately and wanted to share my version of it! It's super simple to do and my keys have withstood the test of time.


Almost 2 years later and the nail polish still has held up; a bit of chippage on the edges but that's to be expected (it chips in a week when I paint my fingers!)

 Give it a try and let me know how it goes for you!

Happy Crafting!

In the Vietnamese tradition a baby shower is held after birth once the baby reaches 1 month old; it's called day thang.  So for my newest baby cousin I decided to crochet her an afghan.

The lazy in me scoured the web for an easy and quick pattern to follow and that's where I stumbled upon the Bernat Baby #410 pattern.  I had a ball of Bernat Baby Sport in the colour Baby White ($12 from Wal-Mart) and off I went with my 4.5 mm crochet hook.

All my crochet projects start the same, slow and boring, constantly staring at the pattern instructions not knowing which row is which.

Approximately 2 weeks into the project, I wondered when I would finally reach the halfway point >.<

But the more I worked on the afghan the more I understood how the pattern worked and was able to distinguish rows without looking at the pattern.  Nothing could stop me then

I lugged the blanket everywhere I went, the beauty of baby projects is that everything is small enough to pack away in your purse

Finished project laid out on a single mattress for size reference

Pattern close up

Picot edging - first time being done and I got to say, I'm in love with how simple it is!