Blogger Spotlight: The Long Thread

I am amazed that I have only just discovered the long thread: a blog about handcrafted goods in an age of mass production. It is absolutely gorgeous, and has a goldmine of free craft tutorials for babies, children, and the home.

Clockwise from top left: Lucy Goosey, Miss Mouse, Glitter Eggs, and Peasant Blouse

Blog founder Ellen also has an etsy shop, featuring many of her own sewing patterns and embroidery designs. Her most recent post, Top 100 Tutorials of 2008, is crammed full of links to very cool free craft projects on the web.

I must share two of my favorite ideas from this lovely site:

1. I wish I had read this Class Projects post when I was teaching preschool! Each child paints or draws on their own little shape (could be anything; maybe hold a class vote to decide what shape to use for the repeated design?) What a simple and beautiful idea – I think it would be great as a class project to be auctioned off, or as a gift to a teacher at the end of the year.

2. This Artwork Collage reminds me of many of the projects in Alicia Paulson’s fantastic book Stitched in Time: Memory-Keeping Projects to Sew and Share, which I wrote about here. What a genius way to preserve your child’s favorite artwork! Just choose (or have your child choose) a bundle of favorite paintings and drawings, scan them into the computer, and print on same-sized cardstock. You could even include photographs of more 3D projects like sculptures, gingerbread houses, forts, and block structures. This way you are honoring the memories without having to keep all of the messy, glittery, overflowing boxes and folders of treasures that we all collect.

Related posts:

1. Etsy Finds Friday