Hummingbird Design

Rejected

2006-08-04T09:52:00.000-07:00

It's official. Crafty Bastards won't have me. I got my official rejection email a couple of weeks ago but haven't felt like cluttering up the site with negativity. Typically, I'm the kind of girl who would just give in and move on to another of my "projects". I don't do well with rejection. However, I'm kind of fond of making things and see this as a challenge. I wasn't really prepared to be accepted anyway. So, for now I continue to craft and to build the website that I will soon be ready to launch : )

Calamity Jane Revisited

2006-07-13T13:22:00.000-07:00

(official entry)

Calamity Jane was a hard-drinking, swearing woman of the West who just happened to be handy with a gun. Just so happens that she is known for her kind heart, too, and nursing the sick during a smallpox plague in South Dakota. I don't nurse the sick or wield a gun, but I have been known to swear like a sailor and have a little drink every now and then. As a girl who works a full-time job, another job part-time in a bookstore, and loves to have hobbies, I get a little Calamity Jane every once in awhile. Imagine working from 8 am until 4:30 pm at a nonprofit you find fulfilling but frustrating in the workload and then turning around and heading to a night of thankless retail from 6:30 to midnight. Rather than hire an adequate number of booksellers to staff the place, they rely on less than the bare minimum to run around like addicts in search of a crack dealer helping people remember the alphabet, playing librarian and research assistant and cleaning the place up. You can see how the edgier side of Calamity Jane would come out, no? This particular night I started to think about how the modern girl should be prepared for all situations wherever she goes. A flask to add a little spice to my Diet Coke wouldhave made my night a smidge more tolerable and at least fun to try. Seeing as how I was unprepared, I started thinking about how I could better next time and help others in the process. Jane carried a gun in a mighty fine holster, but I knew violence wasn't the answer. The modern girl needs a flask holster, something cute and handy. Needless to say, I was inspired and raced home to knit away.

Calamity Jane Flask Holster

Care to DIY? I'm not a pattern writer, but feel free to email me and ask how to do it. It's easy. The hardest thing for me was the buttonhole for the strap.

Axel Rose isn't the only one who needs to know patience!

2006-07-09T17:37:00.000-07:00

Baby steps. I purchased web hosting space, a domain name and finally (after several hours of frustration and a nice guy in 'support') figured out the very basic basics of building a website from scratch. You will not believe how much hair I think I lost in the process of trying to figure out even how to begin. I've always considered myself a patient person, but now I know I've been kidding myself. I want what I want when I want and don't want to have to wait. I'm also to stubborn to considere hiring a professional until I try it myself. Well, I've begun and hope to have a hoppin' site up soon. In the interim, go visit Smack It! Crafts and Cupcakes and feel good for me for just figuring out how to get that beginning page up.

Smack It!

2006-07-01T11:38:00.000-07:00

Many thanks to Scarlet for taking fabulous photos of the beginning of the Smack It! Crafts line. I've got my fingers crossed that Crafty Bastards accepts us and that I can get this new website up and running.

Foolish game

2006-06-19T14:04:00.000-07:00

A change is brewing. Hummingbird Productions began as the home for all of my video endeavors. Slowly (or not so slowly) it evolved into a space where I did my creative rambling, tried setting up an online store, ect. Well, I crave order in my life and have to attempt it somewhere. Hopefully in the next couple of months, this site will morph into a site that can handle everything I want it to but under a different moniker. Hummingbird Productions will simply be one piece of that larger pie.

Stay tuned.*

*Just don't hold your breath. I'm notorious for how long it takes me to actually do these kinds of things.

Never enough

2006-05-19T10:42:00.000-07:00

Sometimes I think I have to be the geekiest person ever. I get really excited over things the average person might cringe at. For example, I nearly peed today when I found Craftivism and Massive Knit.

An oddity wrapped in a conundrum

2006-05-03T06:48:00.000-07:00

I have an odd obsession with graffiti...seriously. This is one craft project I'm definitely trying...

LED throwies

Get your geek on

2006-05-02T09:47:00.000-07:00

The geek in me has discovered and added two new shows to my weekly dvr* lineup, Knitty Gritty and Stylelicious on the DIY Network. I don't watch most of them all the way through, but I can't turn away from some of the ideas. Where else would I have discovered how to knit this cool scarf that I'm currently trying?

knittersWknockers update: I successfully tagged a gas station in Fredericksburg, VA and got some nonknockered cohorts to help. Alas, no pictures.

*The best thing since sliced bread.

2006-04-20T14:15:00.000-07:00

I've discovered the secret to continued knitting...I knit to stay awake late at night watching TV.

Our knitting graffiti tag...

2006-04-17T13:36:00.000-07:00

Rock and Craft

2006-04-15T07:51:00.000-07:00

Last night was another "craft experience" night. I think we're actually semi-serious in giving this indie craft fair/online hub a go. We* succeeded in creating two super cute bags out of t-shirts.

Allie also made these intricate designs in plum (p)leather to use as embellishments or as the beginnings of a necklace. A silent third partner** gave some good advice to get us on our way. We have the makings for a few different items to kick this venture off but stuck primarily to perfecting the bags last night.

A couple of delirious hours were spent in the early morning hours of this venture trying to teach Ravena and Allie to knit. Ravena was all thumbs and soon gave up and headed home. Allie is well on her way to picking it up and succeeded in knocking out a piece to aide in the beginnings of our criminal streak. Yes...in the early morning hours my obsession with graffiti led us to a life of crime. Inspired by the ladies of knitta and our love for the odd, we went on our own tagging spree, adding knit accoutrements to two places about town. Any good graffiti artist has a unique tag...a calling card. Let's just say you're now reading about the exploits of Knitter'swithKnockers ; )

*craft partner in crime, Allie
**experienced older crafter (eoc)

KnitterswithKnockers

2006-04-14T05:58:00.000-07:00

Allie's first knitting project....

The tag...

NC-17 Crafting

2006-04-06T06:20:00.000-07:00

Allie and I had dinner with Ravena (see scarf photo below) last weekend, and the conversation we had sparked a desire to take on a new kind of craft. Ravena was showing us a flogger a male friend of hers had gotten her for her birthday. Sadly, my first reaction was that I could make one of those. I think I just thought it would be fun to try...and try I did on Saturday night. While normal people go out on Saturday, I felt like being creative after a long day at the Barn. A trip to Wal-Mart yielded the necessary supplies. Armed with wood for a handle, purple pleather and glue, I set off for Allie's to commense NC-17 crafting (while Allie took a tamer route and made a really cool wallet). Since I was just after a prototype, I didn't put much effort into accuracy and things like cutting straight lines. Regardless, about an hour later I had a purple pleather flogger with felt hearts on the handle. Once the photos are developed I'll stick one up here for a laugh!

Jem...the E! True Hollywood Story

2006-03-30T05:58:00.000-08:00

Hummingbird Productions hasn't given up on the moviemaking. We, personally, thought Readers Advantage was great fun and liked the way it turned out. You can stop your finger biting because a sequel is definitely in works. Before we take you back to our latest spy shenanigans, Hummingbird will begin production on Jem and the Holograms: The E! True Hollywood Story in mid-May. We hope to give you a behind-the-scenes look at where all the band members are today. Did Jem really try out for Rent? What really happened to Synergy? Were drugs ever a problem? There is even a surprise appearance by the Misfits. And, in case you were wondering, she really is truly outrageous!

A craftier DC

2006-03-30T04:20:00.000-08:00

I want a craftier D.C., or maybe I'm just out of loop. Other major cities like NYC, SanFran, Boston, Austin and the like have these amazing crafty groups that meet up, hold alternative craft bazaars, etc. I want something like that in DC! All I hear about around here is the Sugarloaf Craft Festival. This is not what I'm talking about. Is DC so conservative that the alternative craft movement not hit here? Can we make it hit here? I've seriously been thinking about trying to start some kind of small-scale group here but don't want to recreate the wheel if it already exists. San Francisco has a freaking craft gym for crying out loud! Join their gym, and you have access to studio space, camaraderie, and even lockers to store your stuff. How cool is that. Like a regular gym they also have classes, albeit on crafting, that you can sign up for. I want these kinds of creative opportunities, these options. Am I just out of the DC loop?

Bonding through crafts

2006-03-16T10:08:00.000-08:00

I can't help it. I like doing crafty things. Blame my mom and genetics since I grew up with a couple of crafting (albeit more country) women in the house. Last night Allie and I decided to have a night of crafty things, and we had a pretty groovy time. I managed to buy D.I.Y.:Design It Yourself; get my pictures developed from last weekend; buy a really cool sticker maker; and keep pushing Allie to finished the damned paper flower she was making. Low key but fun.

Knitting Happy Hour

2006-02-27T04:34:00.000-08:00

The knitting happy hour at Teaism was a success. Kind of a funny way to kick off a night but fun nonetheless. I made some serious progress on the scarf I've been working on and was lucky enough to have people there to remind me how to switch to a new ball of yarn. In other quasi-creative news, I think I've narrowed down how I'm best going to capture Geospatial with this month's MailTunes. I'll have to do some research but am excited about the challenge!

2006-02-24T05:42:00.000-08:00

Ravena sporting the scarf I knit her for Christmas. Tonight I hope to make more progress at a knitting happy hour at Teaism.

Kidnapped by the holidays

2005-12-27T11:20:00.000-08:00

I'm not sure if this is a real blog or simply a space for me to play in. Regardless, while the holidays kept me busy, they did allow me to revisit one of my favorite ways to get creative. I started knitting again. Cold weather and the thought of gifts to give inspires me to pick up the needles. Unfortunately, I gave away my two most recent items before I had a chance to grab a picture. I'm working on a scarf right now and will hopefully be able to snag a pic before sending it to its new home.

In other news, I almost went into a creative coma on Monday, when I ventured forth to Paper Source. I managed to walk away with only an adorable little suitcase for my dv camera, some notecards, and (oh yes) a procedural dating kit. I am such a geek!

Spies like us

2005-10-05T12:32:00.000-07:00

Have you been wondering what modern film noir is? Hummingbird Productions' first film short, Reader's Advantage, is now available to download and watch online. Approx. time to download film is 30-45 minutes.

Casting Call

2005-09-22T08:15:00.000-07:00

Like speaking Klingon

2005-09-15T21:18:00.000-07:00

I feel it...just out of my grasp. I know that (X)HTML is something I can get. However, moving through this book slowly is painful, and every paragraph or so I get to a phrase that reads like greek (or Klingon). Deprecating tags for example. Why put that at the beginning of a book when I don't even know what it is? Explaining it would be one thing, but we haven't gotten there yet. Perhaps I'll try to change the color and font.

Test Blog

2005-09-12T22:08:00.000-07:00

This will serve as a test blog as I sharpen my web design skills (well, attempt to acquire them in the first place).