Check this out. Etsy seller WhiteFly casts actual vintage lace in sterling silver, then molds it into a bracelet cuff.

Start saving your pennies now.

(via @etsy)

maya*made's doily display is about the coolest wall art, ever.

[via Modish]

Sister Diane just linked to these potholders by Flickr user amorabrancasilvestre.

See? Even potholders can be outstanding. It's been a long time since I've felt so inspired!

Check out this awesome crochet desktop background from Dudecraft. He's giving it away for free for personal, noncommercial use. Because he rocks! "We make our own," indeed.

Balbinka the guinea pig in a crocheted hat. There are no words. Click over to pyza*'s Flickr set for more.

[via Cute Overload as pointed out by @avgjanecrafter]

After a month that started with a long trip and ended with five days of festivities for our friends' wedding, I'm only now getting back into the swing of my normal daily routine involving things like email, blogs, well-timed meals and normal sleep patterns.

A post on Modish today about Wren Handmade's lovely crocheted accessories sparked hours of Etsy surfing.

What are your favourite sources of handmade goods for when you're too busy/tired/uninspired to make your own?

When I was in Manhattan a few weeks ago I was delighted to come across the "9th Street Fence" guerrilla knitting project at the PS122 Gallery at 150 1st Avenue. Crocheted webs and knitted tubes adorned the wrought-iron fence that was surrounded by blue construction poles.

I especially enjoyed the notes people left for each other there.

Ever come across unexpected yarn art during your travels?

I'm in love with this series of crochet-covered sea stones by Margaret Oomen. It's such a lovely juxtaposition.

[Photos by knitalatte11; found via some stream of clicking beginning with a tweet from Sister Diane]

Because of my work in the industry, I've considered crocheting and knitting to be my primary hobbies for a long time. Really, though, I've been a fiction reader since I was a kid. I pretty much always have a book on the go. I've envied people who can read and stitch at the same time; I've never been able to master that feat.

A few months ago I started hearing about a couple of competing absurdities on Twitter and in book and publishing blogs. The Slanket vs. the Snuggie—blankets with giant sleeves! For all of us who love to sit under a warm blanket and read or make stuff, these puppies solve the eternal problem of cold arms. I bet you could hem the sleeves so they don't get in the way of your hook.

Crochet Me member katknit posted in the forums the other day that Bernat has just released patterns (one crochet and one knit) for what they call a wrap-ghan. Now you can make your own blanket-with-sleeves* so you can crochet warmly all the time!

*My unofficial personal policy has been to avoid using the term "afghan" (or any variation thereof) in an effort to move away from the negative stereotypes people hold about crochet, in favour of the more benign "blanket". In this specific case, I hope the Slanket wins out, both because I find the name less annoying and because their website is less obnoxious. Though I gotta say, the Snuggie has a whole culture of pub crawls...

I think cozies are dumb. I like things to look like what they are, even if what they are is a roll of toilet paper propped on the lid of the tank or an ugly, worn out vacuum cleaner. If I'm going to crochet something useless, I want it to be useless in its own right, in all its own waste-of-space glory.

Still, I discovered this morning before I even had my tea that sometimes a cozy is necessary. Say, to protect the shiny casing of your new painfully fabulous wee camera. When I bought said new camera last night I did spend some time in the camera-case aisle at the store, but I just couldn't stomach any of the wee black cases. Not wanting to leave the shiny camera casing or plastic-covered lens totally unprotected, though, I took up my hook.

Now, you might be tempted to argue that since my crocheted covering serves a clear purpose, I should call it a "case" instead of a "cozy" and thus not feel the need to qualify my thoughts about cozies and save you the time having to read it. But let's not kid ourselves. This covering might protect the camera from scratches, but it lends no structural protection at all. In fact, I may discover through use that the camera turns itself on while it's bouncing around in my bag, or something. And really, much of my motivation was to make something cute.

So, well. There you have it. Presenting my camera cozy:

This is so ridiculously simple you don't or shouldn't need or want a pattern, but if you do, let me know and I'll post it.