Browsing “DiYVR”

DiYVR is a weekly spotlight on all things handmade, done-by-oneself, crafted and hacked around Vancouver, featuring profiles of makers, event announcements, exhibits and general DIY fun. Know someone or something we should cover?Email me!

A couple of years ago, local authors Leanne Prain and Mandy Moore wowed the arts and crafts worlds with their book, Yarn Bombing, from local publisher Arsenal Pulp Press.

This month, Leanne is promoting her second book: Hoopla: The Art of Unexpected Embroidery. Like its predecessor, it’s an impressive tome filled with full-colour photography, profiles and patterns. It’s the kind of non-fiction book I love the best – it’s gorgeous, informative and inspiring.

Even better, embroidery fits right into our October DiYVR Challenge to mend, alter or embellish! Just saying. Arsenal Pulp even has a free pattern (PDF) from the book available, should you feel inspired.

I caught up with Leanne over email, and even if you don’t know a cross stitch from a French knot, her answers will make you want to know more. …READ THE REST OF THIS ENTRY>>>

DiYVR is a weekly spotlight on all things handmade, done-by-oneself, crafted and hacked around Vancouver, featuring profiles of makers, event announcements, exhibits and general DIY fun. Know someone or something we should cover? Email me!

Back in June I wrote about Chris and Kyla and their first backyard vegetable garden. I caught up with Chris over the weekend, and the photos of their bounty tell the story better than thousands of words. …READ THE REST OF THIS ENTRY>>>

DiYVR is a weekly spotlight on all things handmade, done-by-oneself, crafted and hacked around Vancouver, featuring profiles of makers, event announcements, exhibits and general DIY fun. Know someone or something we should cover? Email me!

We’ve started a series of do-it-yourself challenges! Did you miss the first one? That’s okay. I’m determined to make sure there’s always a DIY thing going on, and you’re welcome to join in at any time. The idea is that a city that does stuff together is a happy city. Join the Flickr group to ask questions, seek advice, or share your tips and tricks. Take photos before and after and share those with the group, too! I’ll round up each challenge here on VIA.

The second challenge is of a sartorial nature.

Mend, Alter or Embellish!

Darn that sock, patch those jeans, sew those buttons back on. If your wardrobe needs no repair, hem those pants, take in that shirt, or make that old jacket into a vest. Or, if alterations are a bit too daunting, embellish an article of clothing – anything more involved than sticking a pin-back button on it will do. You can embroider, bedazzle, puffy paint, whatever!

If you need a hand getting started, I highly recommend asking for help in the comments or on Flickr. I’ve learned a ton of stuff watching YouTube videos, too. Like, did you know it’s not actually all that complicated or time-consuming to hem jeans? For real.

To sum up: We’re spiffing up our wardrobe, here. All by ourselves. Together.

The deadline is Monday, 24th October. When you finish, remember to upload your photos and share your notes in the Flickr group so I can be sure to include your brilliant work in the round-up I’ll post on the 25th!

DiYVR is a weekly spotlight on all things handmade, done-by-oneself, crafted and hacked around Vancouver, featuring profiles of makers, event announcements, exhibits and general DIY fun. Know someone or something we should cover? Email me!

Well kids, it’s been just over a month since I threw down the gauntlet and asked you to join me in tackling a long-put-off home-improvement project.

Did you do it? Tell us about it in the comments! Share pics and notes in the Flickr group!

I’m pleased to say I did meet the challenge. And in that vein of do-it-yourself that’s best done with others, my partner Greg helped a whole heck of a lot.

For the last eight months, I saved formula canisters with the plan to follow my friend Lee’s tutorial on how to mount them on the wall for some nifty, repurposed crafts storage. Though I’d intended to follow Lee’s duct-tape plan, once Greg got in on the game he deviated from Lee’s method, screwing some of the canisters directly into the wall and sticking all of them together with hot glue. He did it way faster than I would have, but I got my nifty storage, so I am happy.

For my part, it took me forever to decide which yarn to put in the small installation. Suffice it to say I didn’t have my act together enough to fill what I like to call the large array in time for this challenge. Still, I’m so glad we got this done. In my ongoing effort to tame my crafts stuff and get my home office in order, this is a big leap forward.

Given that this was our first challenge, I wasn’t too surprised to only hear from one other person who tackled it. Since local artist Rachael Ashe plans to do a similar yarn-tree installation in her home, I figure we can credit her office amelioration as a big-ole home-improvement win.

Next week I’ll throw down the next DiYVR challenge. Get ready for the adventure!

DiYVR is a weekly spotlight on all things handmade, done-by-oneself, crafted and hacked around Vancouver, featuring profiles of makers, event announcements, exhibits and general DIY fun. Know someone or something we should cover? Email me!Don’t forget! We have till September 19th to complete the first ever DiYVR Challenge!

Urban farming is becoming more and more a part of food culture in Vancouver, and beehives are popping up alongside backyard and community plots. What with the important role bees play in gardening – that would be pollination, for the uninitiated – this makes perfect sense. Of course, beekeeping isn’t exactly as accessible to a first timer as planting a row of peas.

Enter Melissa Cartwright and Backyard Buzz. Working with her elementary-school classmates and the Inner City Farms project that has them transforming backyards around Vancouver into small-scale organic farms, Melissa installed beehives in a couple of the yards. …READ THE REST OF THIS ENTRY>>>

DiYVR is a weekly spotlight on all things handmade, done-by-oneself, crafted and hacked around Vancouver, featuring profiles of makers, event announcements, exhibits and general DIY fun. Know someone or something we should cover? Email me! Don’t forget! We have till September 19th to complete the first ever DiYVR Challenge!

A new shop called Bird on a Wire Creations opened up at Main and Broadway several months ago, and despite their mandate to carry items handmade within a hundred miles of Vancouver, it was only last week that I made it through their doors for the first time. To sum it up, it’s like a high-end indie craft fair all year ’round.

Thursday evening, shop owner Karen Unger-Strickland launched a monthly series of artist highlights. Each month, a different pair of artists will have their work featured in the shop’s windows, and a kick-off event with live music will be held on the first Thursday.

September’s artists are Rachael Ashe and Lori Dean-Dyment, both of whom attended the soirée, and singer-songwriter Jodi Doidge played a couple of sets.

I’m confident this series will grow to become a staple of accessible art in town, and that fills me with glee and gratitude. More photos after the jump. …READ THE REST OF THIS ENTRY>>>