Before I dive into this weeks web roundup, I want to share some inspiration from my very back yard. I looked out into my “garden” today, and there was a second flower! I had some spiderwort blossom earlier, but it didn’t hold for very long. I also have a single purple cone flower that’s hung on for most of the summer. But today, one of my prarie onions bloomed! It looks like some of the others will soon as well! I was so excited that I ran outside with my camera to take a picture for you.
Ok, now onto web inspiration. Today I thought I would share with you some of my favorite blogs. These are the people I mentioned in my first post that write so well I feel like they are my friends. But if I showed up at their house, they would probably think I was some weird stalker chick, which wouldn’t be good. It”s their blogs that have inspired me to start my own. These are not all craft blogs, however I hope that you will visit each and every one of them and get some inspiration from one of their many posts. I know I have a long way to go with this blog, but I’m glad I’ve started it. In alphabetical order, I present to you my favorite bloggers. Each title links to their home page and I have chosen a post for each blog to send you to as an example of their work. Enjoy!
Epbot was probably my first introduction to a blog that makes you feel like you know her. Jen is also the creator of Cake Wrecks. On Epbot she writes about the things she loves, which includes (but is not limited to): steam punk, cosplay, book reviews, video games, crafting, and pretty much anything geeky. She is currently on sabbatical, but promises to return soon. As a link, I am sending you to her most recent tutorial, Down the Rabbit Hole, where she shows how she made this gorgeous steam punk leather rabbit mask. Go Jen!
Evil Mad Scientist is a blog about electronics. It’s pretty cool. They don’t post as often as many of the other bloggers I follow, but they also run their own electronics store and do lots of other cool things. And when they do, it’s always an interesting post. Among other things, they create their own machines like the eggbot, a machine that engraves or paints on eggs. Pretty cool! Recently they finished up a kickstarter for their watercolor bot which, as you might imagine, paints with watercolors. They are all about diy electronics. They also post about vintage electronic parts they come across. Occasionally they will post really informative information, like how to understand what resistance is. I highly reccomend them for anyone who is interested in those crazy people who solder their own circuit boards and stuff like that (*cough cough me cough*). Below, please enjoy a link to their post about vintage chemistry manuals!
The Flog is/was a video blog that Felicia Day did where she talked about pretty much whatever she wanted and tried to do pretty much anything she wanted as well. Right now they say they are on haitus, but I hope she brings it back. Felicia is an extremely creative and talented person who works in acting and directing, is internet famous (whatever that means) for being a seriously geeky girl, and is all around awesome. Her current big project is running and creating content for the Geek and Sundry channel on youtube. In her flog she learned to blacksmith, did prop creation, cooked/baked food such as Dragon Bread, learned how to do yo-yo tricks, and so forth. Currently she blogs an occasional show called “Co-optitude” where her and her brother Ryon play video games from when they were kids and they didn’t have a console. If you have the time, I suggest you watch one of my favorite flogs: Felicia Day and Colin Fergusson (From Eureka!) crochet.
Shoes and Craft is written by Marcell Mrsan. He is a master shoemaker. He talks about his experiences teaching and making shoes as well as puts up some instructions for shoe making. Occasionally he teaches shoe making in person, and I would dearly love to attend one of those. It would be awesome to actually make my own shoes at some point of time. One of the things that I really love about this blog is that it gives an insight into how a master craftsman works. I could go on more about that, but let it suffice to say that I find people making things in general to be fascinating. Below, please find a link to his flip flop tutorial.
Ok, so truth be told, The Thinking Closet is the blog that closed the deal on my own ambitions. The work she does is just lovely, and the fact that she’s only been blogging for about a year convinced me that I could do it too. I have thought about this before, but was worried that no one would be interested in what I had to say because there was so much chatter already out there. But, after reading her blog, I realized that that’s not what it’s about. Writing something and putting it out there is the first step. As long as I provide good content and provide an interesting environment for others to participate in, it’s ok! Anyways, this blog is mainly a craft blog. She does some really cool sewing projects for infants, though I have none of those, and has a huge love for the silhouette cameo. Yeah, one day I will have one of those. Now is just not that day. She was married before the days of pinterest (as was I) and is currently sharing some of the things she did for her wedding. Don’t worry, you’ll get a glimpse into my wedding soon enough (paper flowers anyone?). The Thinking Closet also found it’s way onto my blog last week with her fabric filing. For her blog, I thought I would send you to her most recent tutorial: Animal Place-card Holders. I know a few people who would get quite a kick out of this (and one that would love a giraffe version).!
Young House Love is DIY house blog. They pretty much blog about everything they do around their house, and it is super inspirational. Their design aesthetic is awesome and the personal touches and family feeling that you get from their writing make me looking forward to each and every post. As for house work, they have taken on everything from replacing a part of the deck, striping the deck, paint, custom built-in bookshelves, you name it. They also talk about things like their design decisions and what it is they look for when deciding what to buy for different projects. Below, you can read about their most recent bathroom change, replacing the faucet, and see how far they’ve come with their “temporary” bathroom remodel (paint, light fixture, mirror, pictures, and faucet).
Wil Wheaton is last only because he starts with “w”. He’s a pretty big deal in many of the circles I travel, but he’s also very inspirational to me. He is also the host of Tabletop over on Geek and Sundry, a show that gives you the basics of how to play a game through actual game play. His blog is another one of those that follows his own interests. Most often he talks about what is going on in his life, gaming, conventions, or the like. I like to read what he writes, and he continues to write it, so read it I shall. One of the things that I love about him is his interactions with the fans. Another thing is his love for learning I will send you to this post of his about why Discovery Chanel doing a ‘documentary’ about the current existence of the megeladon (a now extinct species) is such a horrible thing. If he didn’t already have my respect, this would definitely have gotten it.
There you have it. Some of my favorite blogs and my inspiration to make this blog the best place it can be. What are some of your favorite blogs? Are there some that I’m missing and should be following? I’d love to hear your suggestions! Also, don’t forget to join me on Monday for my next tutorial!
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