Better than Paint: Contact Wallpaper makes it easy

I have a huge empty white wall in my apartment I dont know what do do with.  I always loved  this wallpaper

I have been obsessed with it since I saw it in apartment therapy a couple of years ago, its from Cole and Son and is called Birch forrest. Tempaper, makes temporarily adhesive paper in a number of different designs and shades.

“Tempaper is a vinyl coated self adhesive wall decor. Our printing process incorporates the traditional technique of gravure or intaglio copper plate engraving with state of the artmaterials to bring a classic look and feel to the finished product. these designs available for your home or decorating needs.”

So you can stick it , move it, re stick it, and brink things like your nasty fridge back to life.  many of the designs are great, but they arent quite what im looking for, I have been ruined by the birch forest. Do you have any suggestions?

Tempaper.com

Raven Burgos

How to knit an Aran Fishermans Sweater and other Insane Projects Part 1

I was at a friends house a couple of weeks ago and one of get guests had a handknit chunky sweater, I swear you must have needed like 25 gauge needles to knit that thing, it was so thick it mad me sick. It was from The Gilded Age, an incredibly expensive line of high end rugged mens clothing I covet. ( apparently they will be coming out with a ladies line Im sure wont compare to the mens , because it never does)

So I set out to price the thing, turns out I couldnt even locate the sweater online, much less its price. Iits like the thing appeared out of no where to make me sad. Every 100$ cashmere i found  could potentially run me, hmmmm, I dunno 1200.

Like the good crafter that I am I set out to figure out how I would acquire my very own cashmere sweater.  So I decided to knit one, even though I have never knit anything more complicate than a scarf.

I decided on a pattern first, I looked at many many cheesy patterns, lamented that Japanese sewing patterns would be too much of a challenge to me. It difficult enough to decipher sewing patterns. I settled on the eternally stylish Irish fisherman’s sweaters, in my fantasy I saw myself wearing this an an old lady with a grandchild balanced on my knee, in my fantasy I’m also a cartoon, but whatever.

This was perfect, I got the pattern at Downtown Yarns in New York City. Its a Yankee Knitter Design pattern for and Adult Aran Sweater. The pattern seemed complicated, the sales woman assured me it wasnt anymore difficult that any other sweater. I choose to believe her.

Next was finding the cashmere yarn. The pattern called for about 13 skeins in my size, I use a size small. I looked all over the nets and luckily found somebody who was selling yarn on ebay for 16 a skein, which would bring my sweater cost to about 200$. its not cheap but its not 1200 either, and if i was buying a thin cashmere sweater in a store I could expect to pay that if not more. So that’s how I justified spending 200$ on yarn on a project I may or may not finish. if your like me you make preemptive strikes on craft/fabric/and art stores, I am well stocked but rarely finished projects. I have about 20 unfinished projects and a dozen or more possibilities.

So armed with needles, yarn, pattern I cant read, and a case of dyslexia, I go forth!

Listen to this Noisettes

“UK indie rock-ers the Noisettes
might have been armed with an unapologetic, rebel blend of razor-sharp
punk, classic rock, jazz and blues that drew heavy critical praise, and
an eye-grabbing English/ Zimbabwean beauty of a frontwoman with a
background in theater and the circus and an oh-so-cool government tag
(Shingai Shoniwa), but sadly, all these elements combined weren’t
enough to draw them much commercial fortune. With a sleeker
re-formatting of their eclectic style on their latest cycle, though,
the three-piece’s luck seems about to change.”

Via Mixtape Maestro

Raven Burgos

Get FED: Greensbury Market brings the (organic) meat home

Anybody that knows me knows I love eating animals. LOVES IT.

My friend Brad Started Greensbury shortly after his son Elvis was
born, Greensbury delivers fresh meat to your house, Sure some people
like things like
'flower of the month" clubs, but i don't hang out with
those people, im friends with vegans and people who run organic meat
companies, no middle ground. Buy From Greensbury, its local , healthy,
and run by a good dude.

GreensburyMarket.com

Green Porno: Isabella Rossellini wants you to watch her do it

I was working on a tv series when or PA left to go work on what she called" her favorite production ever. " They were just beginning to film this years Green Porno series Staring the great Isabella Rossellini Watch the video here Green Porno. there are 22 shorts i all this one is entitled "Why Vagina" she wants "Penises, species specific penises in her vagina"

Enjoy Green Porno

Raven Burgos

Weird: 82-year-old Cloris Leachman wears Cabbage for PETA

UMMMM yeah, ok. I love vegetarians, I live with one,have had sex with a few, I even did it for two months so that my then boyfriend would go down on me, otherwise he wouldn't. How is she alive without meat?

I prefer the one my friend Concetta aka Princess Superstar (Super-Vegan) did for German Peta ( ha German Peta)

Raven Burgos

DIY LUSH Buttercream Recipe: Make you own super rich, creamy solid body wash

ButterCream Recipe

It took me a couple of tries to get this recipe right. Please enjoy!

Ingredients:

60  grams  cup sodium laurel sulfoacetate
120 grams Cocoa Butter
45 grams Mango Butter
45 grams Glycerin
30 Grams of carrier oil ( Avocado, Almond or Macademia)
3% essential oil

Melt Cacao Butter , and Mango butter in the microwave or double boiler
mix in carrier oil and SLS  mix and wait ten minutes,

Mix glycerin, food coloring and fragrance,add to oil mixture, then slowly whisk in SLS
once mixed, pout into molds and let dry overnight

Depending on the fragrance used i like to mix in rise petals, lavender, this of it as garnish

If you want to buy some of your own check out my etsy shop!

Dollar Store Crafts: This site will make get Crafty for Cheap!

I love this website, it helps you make great crafts on a budget tons of ideas like this neat picture hanger. I  would put this up in my kitchen and hang recipes off of them, I write them on clothing tags so its hard to not get them messy while I cook or bake

"Claire from Poopscape does it again with this super-simple yet classy and modern memo wall project. As she says: “This
is a really good project for people like me who like to pin a lot of
crap on the wall- you only make 8 small holes in the wall instead of
200.”

This project is great for displaying family photos, memos to self
(or others), or inspirations. I can also imagine a really cool monthly
calendar that uses this idea. If you wanted to make it a little less
modern, you could substitute materials for the wire and clips. How
about pretty yarn or lace for the wire, or clothespins for the clips?
If you want to go by the project instructions, you can find a
picture-hanging kit at the dollar store, that includes picture wire and
eyelet screws.

Via Dollar Store

Raven Burgos

Antler: Beautiful New Online Magazine, for Whimsical Crafters and Joanna Newsomfiles

In the spirit of  DIY zines with the spirit  of a Parisian teenager, Antler is an aesthetic delight, a visual praline if you will

"What a fantastic publication. So refreshing! Make sure to check out their premiere issue right here. Their next issue is due out on April 15th so be sure to bookmark them too.

Congrats to their Editor in Chief and Art Director Andi Stand
for such a lovely and inspirational new read. Great job to her and her
team and thanks for the headsup regarding your fantastic new mag!"

via Decor8

Raven Burgos

Pretty Navy bag from Bird

I went to Bird in Carol gardens yesterday and saw this beautiful bag made of canvas and with navy stripes. Im thinking of Re-creating my own.

ShopBird.com