The Genie Bottle

This year, at Burning Man, a crew of 27 of my friends will be working together and with me to build a 24 foot tall genie bottle.  This artwork made possible due to a grant from Burning Man.

The Genie Bottle will attract travelers along their journeys with its inner glow and the promise of wishes fulfilled. An Arabesque genie bottle evokes the twin spirits of temptation and the fulfillment of wishes. For most of us travelers found along the roads and trails of Burning Man, temptation is always at hand, and the promise of wishes fulfilled propels us further along the road. This genie bottle is a beacon to these travelers. Like a siren, it lures with a sensuous promise of adventure and discovery. And temptation. When found, the bottle provides a soft and cozy protected space where wishes and aspirations can be incubated and called upon.

The Genie Bottle will be 24 feet tall and 14 feet wide.  It will be made from plywood, bolted together with steel.  The plywood will be laser cut with Arabesque designs.  There will be two exits at the base, and one through the top of the spout.  There will be a ladder down about half way from the top, and a pole to slide down for the bottom half.  Inside will be a plush, round sofa, with pillows and fabric draped from the walls.  It will be primarily lit from the inside with strip LED lights.  

I will add more to this post as we progress through this project.
Here you can read Genie Bottle: Update 1.
Here you can read Genie Bottle: Update 2.
Here you can read Genie Bottle: Update 3. Here you can see photos of the finished Genie Bottle at Burning Man.

Lotus Drop Necklace Kits

Last month, I introduced the Lotus Drop Earrings.  Now I've got a Lotus Drop Necklace to show you.  This one is a kit.

The necklace is 20 inches long (51 cm), longer than what I typically wear, but it seems right for the shape of the dangles.  Of course, you can make it shorter if you want by leaving out some of the components.

Then, with the leftovers you could make matching earrings.  Anyway, I kind of really like this next photo.

As I was making this necklace, I was excited when I realized that I could source the beads to make a limited number of kits, all except the blue briolette drops.  So the kits include everything but the briolette drops and the wire I used to wrap them.  I left out the drops because it is terribly difficult and expensive to acquire natural faceted briolette beads in bulk.  Plus, I didn't think the ones I used are particularly the "right" choice, and you might enjoy, just as well, finding your own drops to make your necklace personalized for you. That way, every assembled kit will be a little different.

Here is what this necklace looks like as a drawing.

I used the drawing to help me make the necklace.  With Doceri software on my iPad, it's a lot easier to make copies than it is with real beads.  Doceri lets me design complex bead work quickly and easily, especially for a design like this, where a few motifs are repeated over and over, and there are lots of different ways to combine them.  The necklace I made wasn't the first necklace I designed on my iPad.  Here are a few others.

Here are some small ones.

I have patterns and kits available if you would like to make your own Lotus Drop Necklace.   Thanks for looking.

For algebra homework emergency press play

You might not know this about me, but I used to be a math teacher, a math professor, actually.  I taught math in the American public education system for 15 years.  I still often think of myself as a math teacher, even though I don't work in a classroom anymore.  It's part of me, my identity.  My friends tease me about being a math nerd, which I kind of like.  I have always enjoyed sharing math ideas with other people, and I've been known to do it in the strangest of times and places.  That's why when I was asked this week to make some Doceri videos that address the Common Core State Standards in middle school mathematics, I was happy to comply.  

The first video is about Paulo who peels potatoes. If Paulo can peel 3 potatoes each minute, how long will it take Paulo to peel 20 potatoes? 

What if 5 potatoes are already peeled for him? Then how long will it take?

This video uses ratios to solve the first problem, and a linear relationship in the second problem.  Ratios are taught in the upper elementary grades, and linear relationships are taught in seventh grade. This content address Common Core State Standard CCSS.Math.Content.7.EE.B.4b. 

Here is a lesson on how to prove the quadratic formula that addresses an eighth grade standard.  This is likely the most sophisticated concept that is commonly addressed in middle school algebra.  I can't tell you how many times I proved this for my students.  Many.  And I never taught a full course on 8th grade math.  Even still, this proof came up a lot.   This content addresses the Common Core State Standard CCSS.Math.Content.HSA-REI.B.4a.

There's something quite satisfying about making a video that answers a question that I have answered so many times before.  Thanks for looking.

I made these videos with Doceri software on my iPad. 

How to crochet a lace scallop trim 3

There's a little lace museum and shop right down the road from my house in Sunnyvale, California.  It's a small place, but it contains an impressively large collection of lace, including tatting, bobbin lace, needle lace, crochet lace and others.  They teach classes there, and they call themselves the Lace Museum & Guild.  If you're ever in Palo-Mountain-Cuperville, you should stop in and take a look.  When I moved to the area, I did just that, and as an avid collector of craft book, I bought a couple how-to-make-lace books while I was there.  One of them was on tatting, but I never quite mastered even the basic tatting knot.

The other book I bought was on Irish Lace Crochet by Therese de Dillmont (1846-1890).  I had a lot more success with her book because I already knew how to crochet from childhood.  Dillmont's designs are great.  Over a century old, however, the language in the book is archaic.  The terms for things have changed since she wrote her book, so I had to really study her photos and rewrite her text before I could make out what she did and duplicate it with my hook and string.

After much fiddling, I made a how-to video on Dillmont's layered flower.  Then, I rearranged her basic scallop technique to make a simple lace scallop trim.  And then I made a different trim using the same technique, which is now my most popular YouTube video.  It's the "lace scallop trim #2" with over a half million views.  See it here:

Now, a year and a half later, I finally made a new one.  This is trim number 3, similar to the first two but with two sizes of scallops instead of just one.  Here is the video.

Below I include selected stills from the video with some further comments.

Hooks and Yarns: use lace weight or fine yarns for a bracelet.  If you use bulkier yarns, you wont have very many repeats around your wrist, and it might be hard to see the pattern.   When using lace weight yarn, use a fine hook and make tight stitches.  If you are making a long skinny scarf, you can use bulkier yarns.  I think this design would make a cute skinny scarf.

Here you can see me wearing the black silk bracelet while holding a beaded Borromean Link.

Here is a closeup of the two pieces, with a drawing of the general method for creating the scallop trim #3.

The purple piece really stretched after the above photo was taken.  It stretched about 50% making an 8 inch strip closer to 12 inches.  While the design still looks nice, it was long enough to be an anklet.  I didn't want an anklet; I wanted a bracelet.  So, to shorten it, I wove the pink yarn through the scallops, tied a loose knot with the ends, and I wove the ends in.  I really like the 3D sculptural effect of the two yarns woven together.

Unfortunately, I found that the way I used the pink yarn removes almost all of the stretch from the bracelet.  A little more stretchiness would be nice, better.  If I were to do it again, I'd probably try knitting an i-cord with the pink fluffy angora yarn before weaving it through the lace scallops.  That would still allow me to make the bracelet shorter while keeping it stretchy and therefore, more comfortable. I might rip it out and redo it later. 

Below are the crochet instructions in text and as a chart, all color coded for your viewing pleasure.
The basic crochet stitches are as follows. 
ch is chain stitch.
sl is slip stitch.
sc is single crochet.
HDC is half double crochet.
DC is double crochet.

Want to crochet this on the train?  Then print the following two images.  Thanks for looking.

How to Make a Rainbow Twist Beaded Bead

I just recorded a new Doceri video on how to make a Rainbow Twist beaded bead, but I'm offering you more than just a video.

Here is the Rainbow Twist as a PDF file. Below the video, I give you the script I used in the video, along with a Doceri drawing of each complete slide in my presentation.  Doceri software allows me to be multimedia in all of these different ways, so I'm doing it.  I have to admit that the teacher in me is pleased with so many delivery options. 

And now for the lesson...

The Rainbow Twist: A beaded bead made with peyote stitch, by me, Gwen Fisher of beAd Infinitum.  This lesson is made with Doceri software, which is the premier software suite for hand drawn communication of all forms, designed specifically for teachers.

Here you can see three views of the rainbow twist.  Although it might look huge on your computer screen, its biggest length is just one inch, or 24 millimeters, so about the size of a quarter dollar.  It makes a cute little pendant, and if you’re so inclined to make a matching pair, it’s even small enough for an earring.

The Rainbow Twist might look like a Mobius band, but actually, it’s a little different.  Like a Mobius band, it’s a strip with a twist, but this one has a full twist and a Mobius band has only a half twist. You can tell by looking at the edges.  When we trace out the edges, we can see that there are two of them, and they cross each other twice. This shows that the rainbow twist has 2 edges and 2 faces.  In contrast, a Mobius band only has one edge and one face.

These are two more Rainbow Twists I made. 

The one on the left has 10 different beads in it, and the one on the right uses just 6 different beads.  You can make one with as few as 3 different beads, but in any case, you need seed beads in sizes 15, 11, and 8 to make a Rainbow Twist.

In particular, the materials you need include 4 feet of beading thread. 

You’ll need size 15 seed beads in three colors.  These itty bitty beads lie right in the middle of the strip.  There are size 11 seed beads in 4 colors, but I cheated and just used three here because I didn’t have the right purple, so I used the pink twice, and size 8 seed beads in 3 colors.  These are the big ones on both edges. You also need a beading needle, or maybe two because we will be working from both ends of the thread, but you can get by with one if you’d rather thread your needle a couple extra times than get out of your chair.  As my dad used to say, only you know what’s best for you.

To start beading, pick up 32 size 15 seed beads, ABABABAB and so on, until you have 16 pairs. 

Pass through the first bead to make a loop, and then center the beads on your thread.

For Step 1, use peyote stitch to add size 15 seed beads in color C between the size 15 seed beads in color A.  By “Peyote stitch” I just means that you pick up a bead, and then sew through a bead, pick up a bead, and sew through a bead, pick up, sew through, pick up, sew through, and so on.  Notice we always skip the green beads and sew through the yellow beads. Go all the way around like this until you get back to where you started.

In Step 2, you need to step up to the next round, and what I mean by THIS is you just pass your needle through the next B bead, which gets you ready to start the next row of peyote stitch.  Normally the “step up” means that you sew through the first bead in the last round you added, like the C bead, but this first time, things sit better if you step up to the other side. It’s a tension thing.  Just go through the B bead.  Trust me.

For Step 3: Use peyote stitch to add size 11/0 seed beads in color D between the size 15 seed beads in color B.  Be sure to stop right before the last stitch. Notice how the beadwork in this photo is lying in a flat circle, hence the name “circular peyote stitch”.  This is also called tubular peyote stitch.  Tubular, the Californian in me is pleased.

Now we need to add a twist.  Here you can see a half twist.  Notice that when I trace the edges, they cross each other once.  That’s how I know it’s a half twist.  If I joined the ends this way, I’d have a mobius band. 

But what I really want is a full twist, like in this second photo.  I can see it’s a full twist because when I trace the edges, they cross each other two times.  Also, the green beads match up with the greens, and the oranges match up with the oranges.

So in Step 4, you twist the beaded ribbon 1 full twist, and you’ll probably need to pass your needle through the hole in the center.  Or maybe the tail end, depending upon how you twist it.  Now you can add the last D bead between the B beads, and then step up by passing through a D bead.  This is a normal step up.

For step 5, thread the tail end of your thread onto a second needle.  If you have a second needle for this, you won’t have to thread any more needles. 

Then step up through a size 15 seed bead in color C.  Then peyote stitch by adding size 11 seed beads in color E between the size 15 seed beads in color C. Be sure to step up by passing through a size 11 E at the end of the round.

Before doing Step 6, let’s look at what we have so far.  We did rounds A and B together.  Then added C to A,  Then, D to B where we did the twist, and then we added E to C. 

Staying on the E side, now add F to E, which you can see here on the beadwork.  More specifically, peyote stitch by adding size 11 seed beads in color F between the size 11 seed beads in color E.  Be sure to step up by passing through a size 11 F at the end of the round.  Continue using peyote stitch to add more rows to the edges of the beads. Add G to D; H to G; I to F;

and J to both I and H.

Here are labels for the bead sizes.  So, if you really understand how this whole thing works, this chart is all you need to make rainbow twists.

There’s one optional step at the end, which is to make exactly one J bead shared by both edges.  I’m not sure exactly how I found the middle to make it symmetric, so I can’t explain it to you.  You’ll just have to figure out that step for yourself, or leave it out entirely.  You might not even want it there anyway. 

Step 7 is tightening the last row on each edge and then tying off.  That’s it, you’re done.

One last note on twist: On the left two pieces, you can see the twist has the same handedness.  Yarn spinners call this S twist. 

On the right is a Z twist.  You can’t turn an S twist into a Z twist without cutting the beaded bead or passing it into the fourth dimension, which is hard to do without super powers.  So if you’re making a pair of earrings, you probably want to make one of each.  Enjoy, and as always, if you make something nifty, please show me what you make!  Bye now.

Seifert Surface for a link with 3 unknots in beads

Last night I was playing with herringbone beaded ribbon with four beads in each row.  I made three pieces of ribbon attached at one end, and twisted each piece (all with S-twists) before joining them at their other ends.  I colored the three edges orange, blue, and gray using size 8/0 seed beads, and I used black size 11/0 in the interior of the ribbons.   I ended up with this Seifert surface for a link with three components, in which each pair is linked.  I wasn't sure precisely what I was going for, so it was a fun challenge to identify what it was after it was finished.  This piece has two faces and three edges.  It's a little lumpy and crooked, but I was just fiddling around with a new idea, so I'm not going to worry too much about aesthetics.

Video on Mathematical Bead Weaving Talk G4G

I finally recorded a video of the talk I gave at the Gathering for Gardner in March, 2012.  My audience was mostly mathematicians and puzzle designers, and I created this talk with that group in mind.  I assumed that most of them had never seen bead weaving before; so I tried to make this a quick overview, showing a large range of mathematical concepts in the short time they gave me to speak.

Since there were so many speakers, the organizers gave most of us just five minutes, and they joked that you get a silver dollar for each minute under five that you used.  This video is just under six minutes, so no dollar for me.  I hope you like it.

Boo Kitty Speed Painting on My iPad

Last time I showed you this Doceri painting of my cat.

I recorded a video of the speed painting so you can see how I did it.

By the way, she's not angry, that's just the way her face was made.

Painting on my iPad

I went to a few art galleries recently, and it left me wanting to paint.  Today I painted pictures of my pets.  Meet Walter. 

Walter is not actually purple, but he is the nicest animal you will ever meet.  He's a lap dog, and weighing in at about 90 pounds, he makes me wish I had a bigger lap.  Fortunately, he knows the command "move."  Good doggy!

This is my cat Boo. 

You could say that Boo is less sociable than Walter.  I always wondered what little Boo would look like if I dyed her pink.  Now I know.  Notice that Boo is so poofy that her fuzziness overflows into the air around her.  She's that fuzzy.

I painted these pictures with Doceri software on my iPad.   I took a photo, and then colored over the top.  Fun stuff.

For the Love of Silk Ribbon and Lace

Last time I was preparing to visit my friend Jennifer to teach at her bead shop, Naturally Jennifer's Gallery and Beads, she asked me if I had any clothing that I wanted to tie dye.  See, Jennifer had something around 30 buckets of dye set up in her garage because she was filling a large order of tie dyed t-shirts for a local music festival.  As luck would have it, I had just won a HUGE lot of silk charmeuse remnants on Ebay.  The fabrics were gorgeous, but some of the colors were a bit boring, like khaki, pale lavender and tan, and this was the perfect opportunity to make them beautiful with some hand dying.  Could Jennifer's dyes work with silk?  Sure they would!

I wanted a mottled look rather than a traditional tie dye, so Jennifer taught me to "artfully wad" my fabrics in large plastic tubs.  With over 30 colors to choose from, I poured maybe six different, related colors of dye into each tub.  Here is a photo of one little corner of the purple piece.   Pretty, isn't it?

These dyed silks have been sitting in my closet since Spring, patiently waiting for me to figure out how to use them.  Last night, I was browsing hand dyed silk ribbons on Etsy, and I saw that a few different vendors were selling ribbon with serged edges.  I realized that I could make ribbon by CUTTING strips of of silk from selvage to selvage, and then SERGE a rolled hem on both edges.  OMG!  I CAN MAKE SILK RIBBON AS WIDE AS I WANT!  See, if you've ever shopped for wide silk ribbon, you know it costs a small fortune, often around half the price you'd pay for 45" wide fabric.  Silk ribbon is a real luxury item, especially the wide, hand-dyed stuff, and as a consequence, I don't own any wide silk ribbon... until last night!

On my first try, I made a gorgeous yard of silk ribbon in purple and burgundy with black serger thread.  At nearly an inch, it's significantly wider than the narrow ribbons I own, and the fabric is a bit thicker as well.   Once the machine was set up and the strip was cut, sewing it was pretty quick and easy.  It's a little under an inch wide, over a yard long and I tapered both ends to a point.  I strung some beaded beads on it, but didn't love the way they hung because they weren't heavy enough to weigh down the ribbon,  So, I ruffled the ribbon by sewing a zig zag like in my Doceri drawing below.

I rolled up my silky ruffle to make flowers, folding and twisting it, this way and that.   I made some wiggly lines with it.  I sat at my cutting mat, rather mesmerized by this little ruffle, all soft and squishy with undulating colors that shimmer in the light like only silk charmeuse can do.  I became inspired:  I dug through my bags of lace, cut some pieces, and arranged them under my ruffle.  I tried some ribbon flowers.  Deciding a cuff would be a good project, I found a scrap of black rayon jersey fabric leftover from the lining of my new mini dresses, and I cut a rectangle about 8 inches wide.  Starting with the bottom layers of lace,  I sewed my appliques to the jersey, layer by layer.  I started with hand sewing, and switched to my machine where I could.  After all of the lace and ribbon was attached, I sewed on a few pressed glass flower beads.  Then, like making up a pillow, I attached a lining made from some purple cotton corduroy.  The corduroy lining makes the back soft, adds a little warmth, and hides all of the stitches and thread ends.   I left open a side seam to add elastic button loops, pinned the loops in place and finished the last bit by machine, which you can see running vertically below in black thread.  I finished it by attaching the buttons, sewing through all of the layers for stability.

As I sewed, I just kept thinking about how super girly girl this cuff is.  It's purple and rosy, with flowers, ruffles, and lace.  It's beyond girly.  It's not my normal style for sure.  I've heard people call it a "romantic" style.  My boyfriend called it "too much," but the girly girl in me really likes this kind of explosive overabundance of ribbon and lace.  A little part of me wants to be dressed head to toe like this, maybe just for a little while.  Yes, this style is a bit out of my normal aesthetic, but I like that it all started with a piece of beautiful purple, hand-dyed wide silk ribbon.  Yeah for Etsy.  Yeah for silk ribbon.  Yeah for inspiration.  

Click on the photos for more photos and information about purchasing this cuff.

How to Video on Cubic Right Angle Weave with Beads with Doceri

Cubic RAW (also known as three-dimensional right angle weave, or CRAW) is an extremely versatile weave.   I used cubic RAW with size 11/0 and 15/0 seed beads to make this "impossible" triangle, "impossible" square, and actually quite possible jack.

Here are some other variations I found in my big box of beaded beads.

More simply, with cubic right angle weave, you can also make nice cables for necklaces and bracelets, like the following examples.  From left to right, the four samples below contain 3.4mm seed bead drops and 11/0; 8/0 and two colors of 11/0; two colors of 8/0 and 11/0; four colors of delicas.  The leftmost version with the drops is my favorite.  It's got a nice bubbly texture.

I just uploaded a new Doceri video on how to weave cubic right angle weave like I did in the pieces above.  I'm not sure that this is the best way to teach this weave, but somebody requested that I make the video, and last night around midnight, it seemed like a really good idea.  So I drew a bunch of pictures in the wee hours, wove up the four little samples above, photographed the older pieces in the first two photos, and recorded it all the next morning for YouTube. 

Since I REALLY don't enjoy recording my voice for these videos, this one is silent.  Sorry, but this time, you'll just have to add your own sound track.   The payoff is that it's much shorter when I don't blabber on and on, just 3 action-packed minutes of mathematical beady goodness.   

If you like this post, you should check out the pattern and kits for the beaded Borromean Links, made with CRAW.  You might also want to read about twisted cubic right angle weave.  I also have a tutorial for the Highly Unlikely Triangle. 

How to Make a Digital Flipbook Animation on How to Tie a Slip Knot

The first stitch to start crochet or knitting is typically a slip knot.   Here is what a slip knot looks like.

 

I illustrated how to tie a slip knot with this Doceri video.  To make this movie, I created a digital flip book of sorts, and the video shows different ways to play it back.

 

To explain how I did it, here I show you what my Doceri control panel looks like when I am authoring or playing back Doceri files.  Specifically, here is what I see at the end of the 8th page of my 13-page digital flip book.  

At the top of my iPad screen, you can see lots of buttons and ways of controlling my presentation, both for authoring and for playing back my drawings.  The relevant controls are labeled below (with the help of Doceri, of course).  

At the beginning of the video, I played the file, frame by frame, by touching the "forward to next stop" icon repeatedly.  I similarly touched "back to previous stop" to play the file backwards.  Later in the video, I showed the file by repeatedly pressing the "play" button.  There, you can see each frame played out separately, where each stroke plays separately.  I did not design this file to be played back with the play button, but I wanted to show you the difference, since I play most of my movies with just the play button.

To make a flip book movie like this, I drew several layers for the knot at a time, one right over the next.  After I got at least two layers drawn, I went back in time on the Doceri "time line," and I added a "white stop" by touching the "windshield wiper" icon on the top right of the control screen.  The 12 different white stop markers on the time line above each indicate that the screen is cleared at that point in time.  In the images above, you can see that our point "you are here in time" is just before a white stop.  White stops can be added and deleted just like any other stroke on the time line.

Since the screen clears after each complete image of the knot is shown, when I play back the file by forwarding to the next stop, an animation results.  It's just like the flip charts I used to make in the corner of my notebooks as a kid.  But since it's a Doceri file, I can easily color and edit my work.

How to Make an Easy Tutu without Sewing Part 2

Last time I presented part 1 of making an easy no-sew tutu.  This is the second half.  


Next I added strips of tulle from the 6 inch wide roles.  My strips were about 2 feet long for the blue.  I added them with the same kind of knots I described in part 1.  Then, I added 1.5 foot strips of white tulle.  In each case, I equally distributed the strips around the waist.

Notice how my strips keep getting shorter on each round.  The layering creates a nice rounded skirt shape.  At this point, I decided I didn't like the look of the blunt ends.  So I cut the corners into points like in my Doceri drawing.

This photo shows most, but not all, of the blunts ends cut off.  I definitely prefer the look of the pointy ends.

Next I cut strips of ribbons.  For the ribbons, I cut off corners or I folded the ends to cut notches in the ends of the ribbons. Here is my Doceri drawing showing my method for cutting notches.

I knotted strips of the various ribbons to the grosgrain waistband, just as I'd done with the strips of fabric.  The thinner the ribbons, the longer I cut them.  I pulled the ribbons down into the skirt so that they would hang from the inside.  Here is the finished tutu and headpiece.

Here is the bridal nymph in her natural habitat.  Isn't she beautiful!  This was Day 1 of our bridal shower weekend.

On Day 2, the bridal nymph ditched the silly headpiece I made her in favor of sunglasses, but still wore the tutu on our daylong hike.   

Yes, tutus are suitable for hiking, as long as there's no serious rock climbing.  The netting might catch a few bugs, however.  Fortunately, this is a pretty bug-friendly group of nymphs.