Fabric Jewelry: 25 Designs to Make Using Silk, Ribbon, Buttons, and Beads by Teresa Searle published by St. Martin’s Griffin (January 8, 2008). Distributed in Australia through Allen and Unwin.

A colourful and eclectic collection of fun and simple designs and projects. I am glad that this book made it out there, in the world of mixed media and fibre jewelry books (that I am loving), because there are some good and interesting techniques used to make, on the whole, some lovely projects (if sometimes a tad over the top with extra decorative effects).

I was happy to see the humble yoyo make it into two different designs. The projects in the book use the qualities of different types of fabric to good effect - knitted fabric, woven and raw fabrics, soft and silky chiffons and satins too. There are plenty of techniques to help the beginning sewer learn as well as add some variety to more experienced sewers projects.

fabric car trash bag at allyson Hill [via craft]

gooseflesh has made these see creatures from plastic bags

via whispering pine - gorgeous colourful bag by drikab

pattern for the Charlie re-usable shopping bag at burda style[via bits and bobbins]

home made soccer ball made from old plastic bags [seen on treehugger]

making bags from sheets at wisdom of the moon [via craftzine]

canvas extra pocket by etsy seller callieco

Join the forum and showcase your stuff - make, do and sell…

beruta love the gorgeous cat (gato). Elsa marley with a sewing (book) prototype. The long thread and a fabulous plush rocket (pattern and instructions too). Oh the cuteness with a DIY umbrella light fixture (instructions).

r2d2 beanie pattern by carissa

sukigirl at flickr has made this Tunisian crochet South Park afghan [via crochet me and craftzine]

Just a quick admin moment: Whipup has been hit (worse than usual) by hackers and spammers - all has been fixed - however I have had to delete a lot of bogus users - I apologize if any real users have been deleted by mistake.

at hop skip jump - and boy are they adorable

Cate Anevski - whose illustrations I have seen in a couple of samplers and I just had to investigate more. She is on talented woman - check out some of her work - blog, portfolio site.

Little Heart, Fabric, Thread, & Stuffing

Sleeping Beauty’s Castle, Woodburning on Pine

elf houses book at etsy (was in my last sampler and it was just magical - my favourite thing so far - I just had to share it)

Nina Braun knitter sneakers and Camilla Engman’s design at converse (congratulations!) [all via magpie and cake]

Out of the Ordinary: Spectacular Craft by by Laurie Britton-Newell (Author), Glenn Adamson (Contributor), Tanya Harrod (Contributor), published by Victoria and Albert Museum (November 1, 2007) to accompany the exhibition by the same name. - 13 November 2007 - 17 February 2008 A V&A and Crafts Council exhibition.

Out of the Ordinary - a group of international artists who place craft at the heart of their practice, transforming everyday subjects and materials. … a showcase of examples of meticulous making and attention to detail. Challenging conventional ideas about craft, these artists use tradition to achieve unexpected outcomes. … artists included Olu Amoda, Annie Cattrell, Susan Collis, Naomi Filmer, Lu Shengzhong, Yoshihiro Suda and Anne Wilson.

Catherine Bertola - works with ephemeral material - dust. Carefully collecting and preserving the matter that V&A conservators and cleaners strive daily to remove, she transforms dirt and dead bugs creating a site-specific installation that tells a story about the history of a space.

caption: The property of Two Gentlemen (installation view), 2006, Household dust, pva glue, two Georgian chairs, engraved brass plaques. Photo credit: Douglas Atfield

Susan Collis’s work might at first glance appear to be out of place in an exhibition, and you have to look closely to discover it. Mundane things, seemingly left behind from a previous exhibition, are actually meticulously worked by hand. An apparently paint-splashed dust sheet or ladder which are in fact intricately embroidered or inlaid with lavish materials such as diamonds, silk and mother of pearl. Labouring for many months on a single piece, Collis consciously celebrates both the humility and discipline of making something really well.

caption: Susan Collis, Waltzer Wooden broom, 2007, Opals, turquoise, garnets, seed pearls, mother of pearl, black diamonds, white diamonds, fresh water pearls, coral, black onyx, marcacite, Image courtesy of Seventeen, © Susan Collis, Courtesy of Seventeen.

Yoshihiro Suda creates hyper-realistic flowers and weeds from wood. He carves and paints each piece, using traditional Japanese tools, taking many days to complete a single petal or leaf. His work has been compared to a haiku poem The carved pieces of magnolia wood that become flowers in his hands are whittled down to paper-thin petals, stamens, sepals, leaves and stem with incredible realism, in the same way that language is stripped in haiku, to a very small and pure thing; something momentary. Also, there is a structured and skilled approach to describing nature which exists in both; and further, a fine haiku is able to be very small and exercise a great deal of power. (from circa)

caption: Yoshihiro Suda, Weeds paint on wood, installation view at Naoshima Contemporary Art Museum 2002 , Courtesy Gallery Koyangi.

These are just three of the artists whose work appears in the exhibition - the book which accompanies this show is extraordinary as well, images and text give further information about heach artist, there are interviews with the artists as well as images of their studios and work practices - absolutely fascinating. Only a few days left to see this show - if you are in London you must go! more info here

As part of our alt craft month, we will be posting links to cool ideas and inspiration as well as tutorials and articles. We are still taking tutorial and article ideas for the month so please email your ideas and stories to me at whipup[at]gmail.com. what is ‘alt crafting’ anyway? Making unconventional choices (materials + methods); taking different approaches to the problem, not conforming to accepted rules or standards; out of the ordinary and unexpected; slightly odd or even a bit weird. - Yes indeed its going to be a month of FUN!

More interesting inspiration found via ravelry.

this sea monster [pattern] from fiber fool

count cucumberla by libertine knits

Craft in America: Celebrating Two Centuries of Artists and Objects by Jo Lauria and Steve Fenton. published by Clarkson Potter (October 9, 2007). This is the companion book to the documentary series.

This book may be a companion to the series, however not having seen the series, I didn’t feel like I was missing anything, the book stands on its own. Its an incredibly high quality book with luscious images, of artists in the homes and studios, historic images, and plenty of images of beautiful objects.

This book discusses the importance of craft in current culture and its place in history. It discusses craft as ”our” inheritance, it is the personal collections of the people, it holds our identity, it is both functional and fun and is about experimentation.

Craftspeople that are included in the book are both the self taught and University educationed, urban and rural. The very first chapter looks at the place of craft in religious communities - Shaker furniture, Amish quilts and further chapters looks at Native American crafting. The book continues on to look at various communities, craft colleges and universities and spends time looking at the mediums of craft such as textiles and weaving, jewelry and fashion, pottery and glass and furniture.

Its an incredible journey - a fabulous resource.

Whip Up is now taking article and tutorial submissions.

We are looking for tutorials and submissions that fit within our feel - read our Manifesto for more information.

We are looking for thematic articles and tutorials to fit within the months themes - see monthly themes below - but also timely articles outside of these themes will be considered such as exhibition and pattern reviews, craft memes, fun, frivolous and extreme ideas, etc that cannot wait and do not fit within the theme.

Submissions now being accepted for January, February and March 2008

- February: Alternative crafting
- March: TOYS - changed theme for March
- April: Home

To learn more about how to submit an article read the submission guidelines here

ps. What is alternative craft? Making unconventional choices (materials + methods); taking different approaches to the problem, not conforming to accepted rules or standards; out of the ordinary and unexpected; slightly odd or even a bit weird.

During New York Fashion Week, 28 top designers dazzled New York with cutting edge eco-friendly fashions on the runway. Renewable, reusable, non-polluting fabrics such as organic cotton and wool, bamboo, corn-based fibers, recycled fibers and biopolymers were transformed into everything from elegant couture to street wear. [from earth pledge]

Abigail Doan attended the event - she says:

The show’s tagline, ‘It’s not about this season - It’s about every season’, is an indication of where we might be headed in terms of our outlook on style, attitudes towards dressing, and our intimate relationship with the planet that we harvest our clothing’s fibers from.

[image of hemp fibre from Abigail Doan left and eco spun (made from from recycled soda bottles) from Etsy labs right]

Whiptips craft advice column for readers to ask questions or offer advice by leaving comments. Whiptips archive here. Ask your whiptips questions at the ‘tips and tricks’ section of the forum - right here.

jrobichaux asks this question at the forum

Hiya. I’m interested in making myself some maternity clothes, but there are so few patterns available from the big companies. I’m wondering if anyone can point me to a source for something a little bit funkier, or tutorials on how to convert a standard-sized pattern to be maternity-friendly. Thanks for your help.

Kathryn Spence makes use of scrap fabrics from clothing and household linens, material from disassembled furry toys, as well as other scraps such as plastic bags trash to create these wonderful Owls and other birds.

[via dear ada + Ullabenulla]

As part of our alt craft month, we will be posting links to cool ideas and inspiration as well as tutorials and articles. We are still taking tutorial and article ideas for the month so please email your ideas and stories to me at whipup[at]gmail.com.

am loving these Still life wallpaper - iron on transfers that osci bear sent in.

As part of our alt craft month, we will be posting links to cool ideas and inspiration as well as tutorials and articles. We are still taking tutorial and article ideas for the month so please email your ideas and stories to me at whipup[at]gmail.com. what is ‘alt crafting’ anyway? Making unconventional choices (materials + methods); taking different approaches to the problem, not conforming to accepted rules or standards; out of the ordinary and unexpected; slightly odd or even a bit weird. - Yes indeed its going to be a month of FUN!

More interesting inspiration found via ravelry.

Norah Gaughan’s ‘beet’

And more knitted veg from in stitches

The Pocket Paper Engineer, Volume I: Basic Forms: How to Make Pop-Ups Step-by-Step by Carol Barton published by Popular Kinetics Press (1 Spi edition (October 1, 2005) pt 2 due out 2008)

A brilliant book which explains in detail how to make popups. Starting with a short history into paper engineering and the mechanics of how to make 3D forms come alive. The simple concept of a pop up delights everyone. From the easiest of folds to the more complicated constructs with layered movement that pulls out from the page when opened.

Its a must to start at the begining of this book, as all materials and directions are neatly explained. The language is aimed at a young audience, but this is great when introducing precise techniques needed to make pop-ups work. The design of the book, with its oversized portrait DL layout and
spiral bind gives the reader the feeling they are entering into a great hands-on instruction manual rather than a sit in bed under the covers kinda book.

Infact, the foldouts, and card pockets (which contain illustrations to cut out) make this book the kind you sit at the craft table with. Its neatly organised chapters (triangles, squares, variations etc) are neatly tabbed giving the whole book a real scrap-booky feel. I did get lost occasionally, as the page numbers get hidden in the folds and it would have been good to include a few 3D examples, although the illustrations are very precise.

It is a book designed to teach the techniques of pop-ups and then armed with this new knowledge and skill, the reader is invited to explore their imagination. Enjoy the adventures!

Author website: popular kinetics

About the reviewer: Heather is a designer, film maker and generally crafty creative person. She loves to invite her friends round for a craft jam and craft-a-noon - and has a website which she occasionally updates with her adventures and experiments in design.

Whiptips craft advice column for readers to ask questions or offer advice by leaving comments. Whiptips archive here. Ask your whiptips questions at the ‘tips and tricks’ section of the forum - right here.

Pamdover asks this question at the forum

I am putting together a proposal for an art workshop fundraiser. The money will go towards a playground for my church. My plan is to have a workshop every few months. In my planning process I have decided Art journals or art prayer journals would be a great idea for the first workshop. Being a mixed media collage artist I have some ideas to offer to the workshop but looking for any suggestions on techniques to teach to make the workshop unique. Also how much I should charge to participant?