Crafter's Block

 Yes, much like writer's block syndrome, I currently have crafter's block.

    In the hopes to get my crafty self motivated as well as to actually write a post, I have decided to let you in on the secret of which blogs I read to inspire and motivate my crafting-self. I know none of these crafter's personally, but they each have a style that speaks to me; if we are lucky, they will speak to you as well. So here goes:

For Clothing and Accessories:
     I love looking at the new creations from the blog Made By Rae (http//.www.made-by-rae.com). Rae is a sewing pattern maker who posts about her creations. She has the most adorable children's patterns that are also very wearable (at least I'm guessing, since her own kids wear them!)

A purse I made w/a Rae pattern

• One of the neat things about her blog is that she encourages reader feedback through pictures of what they have made with the patterns she sells and gives away. These pictures are then posted to a flickr.com page so that everyone who is looking to use/buy one of her patterns has the advice and modifications of everyone else who has made that pattern.

• She occasionally gives away free patterns, for personal use (in this case, it is a purse). I made my own version of this using some leftover material and it turned out great!   

     For when I want to feel girlie, I head to P.S. I made this (http://psimadethis.com/). This one is pretty famous and honestly, most of the time this blog is too trendy for me fashion-wise, but I appreciate how she re-purposes everyday items into a higher fashion calling.

• I also love the way she puts her posts together in terms of visual appeal: for every new project, she starts with a collage of current fashion trends she wants to recreate, then makes a photo collage of how she accomplished the project. Here is an example of a finished project (of something I would actually like to make!)
• Some of the projects are easy and can be accomplished in just a few minutes, while other projects are a bit more involved. She is also incredibly prolific and averages 10 posts a month! 

For home projects and more:

     I look to Lisa's Condo Blues blog (http://www.condoblues.com/). From her posts, I can tell she is a bit quirky like me, so I like her for that alone. Luckily for the rest of you, she also has really neat projects to look at on her blog.

• Her projects are usually a little bit of everything in life; to dyeing old jeans to making soap and re purposing old furniture. And no matter what it is, she tries wholeheartedly  To get a brief synopsis of the types of projects she does, read her top 10 blog posts of 2012.
• Sometimes she even does video's to go along with her projects, which can be helpful. Lisa also does a lot of product reviews, which can be interesting or annoying (depending on my mood).

For Culinary Inspiration:
     Ok, so I am making a slight exception to my statement early that I didn't know any of these blogger's personally in order to feature Laura's PheNOMenal Phoods blog (http://phenomenalphoods.com/). Laura and I went to college together and she started a food blog as a way to get her inspired when she moved into her own apartment and started to cook for herself on a daily basis. She (and her blog) have come a long way since then.

• Laura has a great eye for photography (see what I mean?)- I've seen her food up close and personal and her photography makes her food look as good as it tastes in real life. 
• She is willing to try any type of food and her site is very easy to navigate if you are looking for a particular category of food to try. And she has started doing some food challenges from other sites, which is a pretty cool way for blogger's to network.

For a Daily Dose of Awe
     I check out the photoblog from the Boston Globe, The Big Picture (http://www.boston.com/bigpicture/). It is a very famous blog that has won all sorts of awards, but some of the pictures just take my breath away.

• The vibe is a very natural geographic realness that I love and the topic ranges from nature to humanity in different parts of the country. It is a reminder of how much bigger the world is than the little box we have made for ourselves and I love that.
• Not much writing and the pictures are so big they fill up the entire screen = High Def! This recent post is a collection of photographs from fashion week's around the world.

Now you've had a glimpse at the blogs and bloggers I aspire to be more like as the new year continues!  And hopefully, I've kick-started my crafting engine back into high gear...