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LittleBigPlanet

Posted on by Anna

Denise (winner of this year’s Mochimochi Photo Contest) alerted me a while back to the cute knitted main character in LittleBigPlanet, the new PlayStation 3 video game by Sony. Coincidentally, my husband just reviewed the game for The Onion A.V. Club.

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As John was working on his review, I got a sneak preview of the game (lucky me!), which is being released today. LittleBigPlanet has “craft” all over it—every character and object has a handmade look of something sewn, cut out of cardboard, or bolted together in the garage. Too fun!

The game’s biggest features are the tools that allow you to create your own levels for other players to try out. I haven’t attempted this myself yet, but it looks like a great challenge for crafty gamers.

Six Days till Halloween!

Posted on by Anna

Six days is plenty of time to knit up a bevy of Boos. Here are some of my favorites from the 99 projects on Ravelry:

A super color-combo Boo from MsEllaneous is ready to save the day!
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This hanging Boo from emoliver makes me giggle..
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Is your Boo smaller than a stitch counter? This one from Intertwinement is!
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Thank you to these knitters for sharing your photos! (If you’re knitting a Boo but aren’t on Ravelry—or even if you are on Ravelry—please share your Boos in the Mochimochi Friends Flickr group!)

I’ll post a few more of my favorite Boos next week!

Robot Dreams

Posted on by Anna

My friend Calista, who works at First Second, a publisher of graphic novels, was nice enough to recently give me a copy of Robot Dreams, the wordless book by Sara Varon. I loved it!

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Apparently Robot Dreams is meant for younger readers, but it was perfect for me. Reading it felt kind of like watching a silent movie. The story is about a dog and his robot friend who get separated—it’s sad in parts, but very touching, and the artwork is great.

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Reading this made me want to pick up more graphic novels, which seem just right for weekend reading. Thanks Calista!

Knitted Toilet Paper is Catching on

Posted on by Anna

My free pattern for Toilet Paper from October last year has recently enjoyed a little surge of attention, thanks, perhaps, to its inclusion in Whipup’s recent Ultimate Guide to Knitting (and Crochet) for Halloween post. How nice of them!

The funny thing to me is how so many people like to take the intentions of this pattern very literally. It was originally meant to be a silly gag, or perhaps a scarf, but I suppose if you knit it, you can do whatever you want with it…

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As a Halloween pattern, I suggest hanging it in your tree, or using it to dress up as said toilet-papered tree.

Paper Pod Beads

Posted on by Anna

My super-crafty mother-in-law recently made these gorgeous boutique-worthy necklaces from unusual materials: mini cereal boxes (top left), a box containing sweets from Japan (top right), and postcards from the PIT improv theater in New York (bottom).

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(The cardboard recycling pile at the town dump is also great place to find colorful materials, as I learned this past weekend.)

Bonney got the idea from a tutorial on Folding Trees.

Spread the Lead at gallery hanahou

Posted on by Anna

A new show opens this Thursday at gallery hanahou that we’re very excited about!

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October 16 – November 20
Opening reception: October 16, 6-8 pm

What if the history of art began and ended with graphite, and your local art supply store was little more than a pencil outlet? For this group show, gallery hanahou has challenged artists from all backgrounds and mediums to drop their brushes and computer mice and see what they can do with only a B2 pencil and a piece of paper. Just as compelling as the results on the gallery walls will be the visitors’ reactions to so many artistic viewpoints rendered in shades of gray. The pencils the artists used will be included with sale of the artwork.

Participating artists include digital maestro Kenzo Minami, peaceable painting duo APAK, and Robbie Guertin, who plays in the band Clap Your Hands Say Yeah and has collaborated with other artists on album artwork.

Here is a small sample of the pieces in the show:

APAK
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Tina Berning
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Kenzo Minami
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If you’re in NY, please join us this Thursday for the opening reception!

Spread the Lead
October 16 – November 20
Opening reception: October 16, 6-8 pm
gallery hanahou
611 Broadway, Suite 730 NYC
[7th floor of the Cable Building, NW corner of Broadway + Houston]
M-F noon – 6 pm, Sat by appt only