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Kitten Krafts

Harp Adventures

Boy did I go on an adventure....On Saturday last week, I took my harp into Lynchburg for it to be regulated by the world-renowned "harp whisper-er": Howard Bryan. I came by his studio in the morning, and I ended up staying for about three hours. I got to play all of these amazing harps-- it was like being a kid in a candy store. I can't believe I've been living so close to a harp legend all of this time, and I didn't even know it!! Here are some pictures of me playing some of his harps-- I feel so spoiled now. I don't feel like I can go back to my Salvi after playing these AMAZING Erards from the 1800's.


This is an Erard scroll-top from the late 1800's. It has to be the best harp I've ever played. I feel like I've tried on cashmere for the first time, and now I just cannot bear to wear cotton again.... Sigh... I think this harp is my soulmate.  If I had the money, this would be my harp.

This is an Erard gothic style, this is the same style harp that we have in the Sweet Briar museum-- Daisy played the harp, and this is the same harp that she had!

This is an Erard Grecian style. I liked how petite this harp is...it was just my size! It actually has an eighth pedal which opens up the doors on the back of the soundboard to let the sound resonate. Howard said that was more of a marketing tool the harp makers utilized in the 1800's, and it isn't done anymore because it really doesn't have much of a use--it was more just for show. Still, it was really darling.

There it is-- me in harp heaven!! If anyone has an extra thirty-thousand dollars and is interested in buying me a harp... I'm going to point you Howard Bryan's way! HAHA

Transferring Text

Okay, so I have a secret...Remember my: "Valentines Day Cards" post?

When I was doing that project, I probably went through three cards trying to perfect my handwriting. I was getting so frustrated, I decided I would use a trick I learned in my middle school art class to transfer text from one paper to another. I thought it would only be fair to share that trick with you all!

1. First, print off the text you would like to use:

2. Flip your paper over, and use a pencil and color over the  the area of text you'd like to transfer:

3. Flip your paper over again, and place it directly over the sheet of paper you'd like to transfer the text to.

4. Get your pencil back out, and use it to trace over the original text.

5. You'll see that the pressure from the pencil is able to transfer onto whatever is underneath it.

6. To make it look professional, I went back over the pencil with a sharpie marker, and then used an eraser to get rid of any rouge pencil marks.

This is what my text looked like when I was all done! Pretty close to the original from the printable template right?

Knit Scarf

I really wish I had the patience to start up crocheting again when I see fun scarves like this:

When Bad Crafts Happen To Good People

My friend, Lauren, wanted to make a chandelier using her string lights. She isn't the most: "crafty" person, so I was impressed to see her working on an art project. Lauren was inspired after seeing a picture where someone made a chandelier with only a wire hanger and string lights. This is a picture of her creation:

I do like that it looks like a halo above her head!

Needless to say, Lauren asked for some help to make her chandelier look a little less...homemade. haha

After having some painful belly laughs, we added some tulle and an extension chord. I think it made the whole thing look much more put together...what do you all think?

Valentines Day Cards

Hey Everyone! I'm a big Valentines Day fan, and I was looking for a fun, "grown-up" valentine I can make for my friends and family! Isn't this a fun valentine?

Credit has to be given to Sherelle Christensen and her adorable blog: My Crazy Life as a Farmer's Wife, because she created this project! She graciously has included a printable template so everyone can make these cute valentines:

(Click on the picture to follow the link)

How to make these Valentines:

1. Print off your template:

2. Cut out your shapes

3. After cutting out your shapes, cut a little trigger hole for the gun.

4. Use a fun punch for your holster's embellishment: 

5. Glue the edges of the holster shut, and glue your punch embellishment on the holster

6. Write your little sayings on your valentines (check out this post before you do!). You can include a fun little heart sticker like I did, for some added texture. 

7. Attach a stick of gum with double-sided tape, and you've made your own fun valentines!

How fun right? I'm sending these out tomorrow! 

Thank you!

I have a giant smile on my face because I'm checking out the: "stats" for this blog and it has a CRAZY number of pageviews!! I feel so popular! haha. Thank you everyone who reads my blog :)

...if they ever make a movie about my blog and me (a la Julie and Julia) I'll make sure you all are written into the script somehow!