Squirrel Picnic

Handmade with Love and Stuff


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Charm Exchange Part 4: Community

Our bracelets and necklaces are nearing completion as my friends and I met for another round of the charm exchange. I really admire how each artist has chosen to address the different themes, and it’s been really interesting to see how the variety of mediums used work together in each collection.

One of the things I have enjoyed most about this experience is the sense of community. Most artists spend a lot of time working on their craft alone in their studio or workshop or craft space. Collaborations like a charm exchange allow us to meet up with other artists, share our talents and expertise, learn about new mediums and techniques, and be inspired by the work of others… in addition to chatting about life and enjoying a good meal together.

Have you started a charm exchange like ours? Do you get together regularly with friends for craft nights? Let me know how you have developed a community around your craft and I’ll share your experience next time when we wrap up this series with our final charm exchange. Stay tuned for photos of our completed jewelry pieces and more information about how to start an exchange of your own. Until then, here are the newest additions to our charm bracelets and necklaces. Continue reading →


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Charm Exchange: The Teeny Tiny Crochet Continues

Crochet Kokeshi Doll Charms_Squirrel PicnicI have been looking forward to working on the charms for Alexandra’s charm bracelet since the beginning of this exchange, because I’ve been dying to try out the kokeshi doll pattern in Sara Scales’ book Mini Amigurumi.

It was so much fun to crochet these! For the first time, I feel I am starting to get the hang of mini amigurumi. The learning curve is greater than I originally expected. I mean, it’s crochet. I can crochet, so why is this so hard? Well, here is what I’ve learned…

It takes a lot more patience, dexterity, and keener eyesight than regular crochet. Good lighting really helps too. You have to be very conscious of your tension. Because I was working with fine thread (No. 8 crochet thread), I found it a little more difficult to get the same grasp I would with yarn. I wanted my tension to be tight enough that you wouldn’t be able to see the stuffing through the stitches, but not too tight that I would have to struggle to insert my hook into the stitches. I also discovered that invisible decreases don’t work as well with thread or maybe with this scale. It created larger holes than a standard sc2tog decrease.

So now that I’ve had a few months of practice, I’m ready to try out all the mini amis in Sara’s book. They are all so cute! But first, follow me as I show you how I made these kokeshi doll charms. Continue reading →


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Patterns, Plans, Polls, and Smiles

If you’ve visited the picnic over the last month or so, you’ve probably noticed a poll I installed in my sidebar to gauge what readers enjoy most about this blog. I admit, I put it up out of sheer curiosity and to make sure you all are still having a good time. Here were the final poll results (gathered by PollDaddy.com). Continue reading →