Nerdy Needle

E-Reader case

2010-12-28T15:55:00.000-08:00

I spent today making a case that disguises my Sony Pocket Reader as a ordinary hardcover book. Looks pretty cool, doesn't it?

I started with a trip to the Goodwill, to look for an appropriate book. I was careful not to choose a book that might be precious, out of print, or difficult to come by- robbing the world of a book like that would be a sin. It didn't seem to be a sin to mutilate this copy of The Wide Window, which is still in print and very popular. The world has millions of copies exactly like this one.

The choice of book left me a pretty narrow strip of paper around the edges of the reader case- I hope that it holds up to use. If it doesn't, then I'll know that I should have chosen a slightly larger book. I actually had one in my other hand, a Trixie Belden reprint, but I went with the Lemony Snicket in part because I love those books. I also own a copy of this book with the words still in it.

To make the hollow book, I used some very handy instructions from Wikihow. Everything in those instructions worked well except the drying times- the instructions called for a lot less time to dry the glue than it actually took. I started out trying with a box cutter, as recommended in the instructions, but switched to an Xacto knife, which worked a lot better for me.

It took two or three hours to cut out the pages, including the time to shave the edges of the inside compartment. Kind of hard on the back, but what better way is there to spend a day off than making a thing?

Abandoned project

2010-12-28T06:46:00.000-08:00

Can God make a rock so big he can't lift it? There's a paradox with no answer.

But I've definitively answered a similar question: I can make a pattern so difficult I can't sew it.

Okay, that's not entirely true. If I really, really wanted to, I could finish stitching my 'Garden of Epicurus' pattern. But as it takes shape, I can see that I'm not really happy with the palette, and after a few years of frustrating, intense stitching, I'll end up with a finished product I'm not really happy with.

So I'm letting it go. I've learned a great deal from this. If I were to try to re-do the idea, I'd limit the colors a great deal, instead of using so many different colors, and I'd simplify the shapes, as well. In other words... I'd do it completely and utterly differently.

For a long time, I felt like it was an assignment- I started it, so I have to finish it... right? Right? Giving myself permission to just stuff the thing in a drawer and never look at it again is very freeing.

Or maybe I'll just throw it away. How liberating would that be?

My pattern, Gemma's needle

2010-09-11T18:02:00.000-07:00

Gemma, of Crafty and Devious, used my 'Earth' pattern to do this classy framed piece as a gift. She used black Aida, though, instead of stitching a hundred million tiny black x's... I can entirely respect that decision.

Garden of Epicurus pattern

2010-04-25T10:37:00.000-07:00

I'm starting work on a new piece. The image is a flower garden, and the panel in the middle is a quote said to have been at the gate of Epicurus's garden. Epicurus is currently my guide to life, and I'm planning for this to go in a frame in some prominent part of my living room, when it's finished.

There are a lot of different colors here. I hope it comes out well. If you click on the image, you should get the full pattern.

Planets: finished

2010-04-24T17:02:00.000-07:00

I've finished the "Planets" series. I'm pretty happy with how they've turned out- except for Saturn. I don't care for Saturn. That's why I chose it to go under the wine glass in my photo. I'm hoping that you, gentle reader, won't notice its flaws. I love Earth, though, and Jupiter, and I like the visual joke of Pluto with its tiny size and its asterisk.

I made the patterns using MacStitch 2009, and used telescope images of the planets, mostly Hubble photos, that I found on Wikipedia as a basis for the patterns. They are stitched on 18-count Aida fabric, backed with black fabric, and edged in black double-fold bias tape.

I release all of the patterns under a Creative Commons license, which means that anyone has permission to copy, use, and change them- but please don't sell them, or anything you make from them, without my permission. I'm including links to all of the patterns on this post. I made them as coasters, but I would be curious to see what other users people have for them, so if you do something cool with these patterns, I'd love to see it.

Planets by Heather Murphy is licensed under a Creative Commons Attribution-Noncommercial 3.0 United States License.
Based on a work at nerdyneedle.blogspot.com.

Planets: Pluto

2010-04-15T16:01:00.000-07:00

I've finished stitching the last of the "Planets" series- Pluto is marked with an asterisk, since its status as a planet depends on whether you're talking about popular conceptions or science. I didn't like to leave it out, though; it was a planet when I learned about the planets from Interplanet Janet, and I'm a little attached to it. Besides, Jonathan Coulton's "I'm Your Moon" is the best love song ever.

Before I start finishing the coasters, I'll upload the charts for Pluto here, in case anyone else wants to use them for anything.

Uranus

2010-03-26T12:36:00.000-07:00

I finished stitching Uranus while watching old episodes of "Angel" on DVD in my pajamas, enjoying a richly-deserved day off. As usual, I'll include the chart for anyone who wants to use the 'planets' patterns themselves.

Planets:Saturn

2009-12-31T06:43:00.000-08:00

I'm not sure about my colors on Saturn, and I never did manage to get the ring entirely to my satisfaction- I tried several different strategies, but nothing worked quite as well as I hoped. Nevertheless, here it is, with the pattern for anyone who wants it.

Planets: Jupiter

2009-10-18T13:56:00.001-07:00

It's been a while since I updated the blog, but I do still want to use it for housing my own work. Maybe I'll get around to using it as a real blog again someday, or maybe it'll just be a once-in-a-while collection of my own work. Whatever. Either way, here's Jupiter, and here are the charts for it. On 18-count Aida, it makes a three-inch square. The chart has the colors for the whole series of planets, and includes colors that aren't used in this chart.

Planets: Neptune

2009-08-25T16:06:00.001-07:00

Here's the fifth of my planets: Neptune. I'm adding the charts for it, in case you want to make one. Stitched on 18-count Aida, it makes a three-inch square. The color chart includes the threads for all of the planets patterns, not just this one, but the colors for this planet are indicated. I'm releasing this under a Creative Commons license; feel free to share or change it, but not to sell it.

Planets: Venus

2009-08-16T04:35:00.001-07:00

Here's another of the planets: Venus. I finished that one at Pennsic. Picture it: We're all dressed as gentlemen and ladies of the middle ages (I was dressed as a gentleman, because I hate skirts). We're sitting in class, learning about the arts of the middle ages. Around me, other ladies have baskets with them, and they're knitting Viking-style socks, or tatting lace, or reproducing Elizabethan embroideries... and then there's me, making planets.

I'll add the pattern for Venus here. For 3"x3" coasters, stitch on 18-count Aida. Click on the chart to enlarge; the thread list includes the colors for all the planets series, and the colors used in this chart are marked.

Planets: Mars

2009-08-10T13:06:00.001-07:00

Here's another in my series of planets cross-stitch patterns: Mars. The pattern is below: notice that I've included the color palette for the whole series, and not all the colors are used in this specific chart. I stitched this on 18-count Aida, and it's a square of about three inches, perfectly sized for coasters. Feel free to use, share, or change the pattern, but please don't sell it.

Planets: Mars by Heather Murphy is licensed under a Creative Commons Attribution-Noncommercial 3.0 United States License.

Planets: Mercury chart

2009-07-27T05:57:00.000-07:00

Here is the chart for "Planets: Mercury." Feel free to use it and modify it, but please don't sell it. Click on the images to enlarge and print. I stitched it on 18-count Aida, with which it makes a 3 inch square. That color palette is for the whole "Planets" series, not just for this one, so many of the colors are unused in this chart.

Planets: Mercury by Heather Murphy is licensed under a Creative Commons Attribution-Noncommercial 3.0 United States License..

Planets: Mercury

2009-07-27T05:53:00.000-07:00

The second in my set of drink coasters based on satellite photos of the planets. Mercury's color scheme is all gray (that's how it looked in the picture I used as a reference), but I like it despite the lack of color. Chart to follow.

My DMC collection

2009-07-24T14:11:00.000-07:00

I'm not obsessive-compulsive.

I just like to know that if I want a color, I have it. And that I know where it is.

That seems perfectly normal to me.

Planets: Earth chart

2009-07-15T14:15:00.000-07:00

Here's the pattern for the Planets: Earth cross stitch. Since I'm going for a drinks coaster, I stitched it on 18-count aida, with which it makes a neat 3-inch square. Just click on the images to enlarge. Feel free to use, share, or change it, as long as you don't make money by selling it.

Planets:Earth by Heather Murphy is licensed under a Creative Commons Attribution-Noncommercial 3.0 United States License.

Planets: Earth

2009-07-15T14:09:00.000-07:00

This is my own design, and I'm happy with the way it turned out. It's one of nine, which are eventually going to be a set of coasters.

This is my new blog

2009-07-12T17:37:00.000-07:00

This blog will be a place for me to share pictures of my cross stitch work, and to publish my original patterns for others to use.