Haha I got some awesome free stuff from party city that way. Got a nice pair of platform heels in my size for absolutely free because one buckle was broken. That was it. Such an easy fix.

Idk again I guess what I go for just isn’t as much at Michael’s as it is at HL or JoAnn. I shop those two the most.

Yeah and see I don’t make clothes/big projects so things like yarn cakes, while pretty, are of no use to me because if I’m using a variegated yarn I was faster color changes.
That’s pretty much all my JoAnn’s has. I used to get safety eyes there because HL didn’t carry any but the ones they have now are horrible and I can’t get the backings on. So amazon here I come lol

I like to go to Michael’s for embroidery floss and that’s about it lol (they have a bigger section and it’s slightly cheaper which is good when you buy so many at a time like I do)

I would like to actually suggest glasseyesonline.com for safety eyes? I like them a lot because of the variety they offer I get some great slit-pupil eyes from them that are absolutely perfect for dragons, cats, etc.
But I suppose for plain black eyes in bulk, Amazon probably has better pricing. I just prefer to support smaller independently owned shops over major corporations whenever possible.

Ah, see the Michael's here has a pretty small embroidery floss section. The one at HL and Joann are much better.

Yeah I definitely think it’s just a regional thing. Kinda whatever they have more in stock lol

Oh cool thanks I’ll check them out. I tend to shop amazon because it’s convenient. And my mom has prime soooo free shipping lol and I don’t usually use specialty ones. I just need the backs to be usable OTL

I will say that I find the backs a little tough to get on, though that's more likely just because the yarn of my plushies is generally pretty thick, which makes it tricky. But for thinner materials it would probably be fine. And they also sell a tool I find handy for snapping the backs on without too much struggle.

Ooh there’s a tool to help? Gotta get me one of those.
The Darice ones I got at JoAnn, I pushed as hard as I possibly could, my fingers were white trying to press, and they wouldn’t go on. And I wasn’t trying to attach it to anything.
Id tried to use it on a project and it didn’t work, so i was gonna sacrifice one to see if i even could get the back on. Nope.
Eyes so safe you can’t even use them xD

If mom can ever get off the register she's gonna clean up the yarn section at the one she works at
At the one she used to work at, if she's there to buy stuff or see her former coworkers they can and will direct people to her for yarn. Did that even when she worked there lol

Some people know their stuff xD

Yup
Confuses other customers when they go "talk to her it's her department" and she doesn't have the vest on
For even more fun, I'm by yarn because the local one has the sketchbooks nearby and I hear someone looking for an employee
"MOOOOOOOM SOMEONE NEEDS HELP IN YAAAAAAARRRRRRRRRN"
Once dad and I were picking mom up cuz car was in the shop at the time so only the SUV, I went in, found one of mom's coworkers and went "heyheyheyheyheyheyheyheyheyheyheyhey" until she turned around and snapped "what?!" at me. Then she got an oh shit face cuz hey this isn't Kitmom, and I'm not at all surprised and go "where's mom"
Turns out she and mom had been having fun and she thought I was mom cuz sometimes I sound a lot like her

That’s a cute story haha

Yeah, I'm kinda the "yarn expert" at Joann too. Whenever someone need yarn help, if I'm there, they usually get sent to me. XD

Ruby: So, the eyes I buy do take a bit of force to snap together (I sacrificed one this morning to test it), but at least can be snapped together. But the safety eye tool is a lifesaver! It's basically just a wooden ball with a metal tube in one side. It doesn't come with instructions, but I figured out that the best way (for me anyway) was to put the eye side down on a table, with some fabric for padding so the eye doesn't get damaged, and use the tool to press on the back of the eye until it clicks into place. Basically sandwiching the eye between the table and the tool.

I checked out the site. Looks like the backs I used to have, not these new tiny little white ones that don't work. I never had a problem with the kind they show haha.
And the ball tool has a how to pic in the pictures of it haha doesn't really look like something I'd need.

Good prices for the specialty they offer with their eyes. It's pretty cool to see so much variety. But yeah, I'm more interested in bulk straight black eyes.

Yeah, for most thinner things, the tool isn't necessary. For my loom knit plushies I do kind of need it just because I don't have the finger strength to get the backs fully on. They always click like they're on but they're not fully snapped down past the first ridge and end up popping off. So it's nice to be able to apply my full weight to it to squish the yarn down and pop the back on properly.
XD

Yay! Working on knocking out some of my WIPs so I can then focus on new projects! Gonna try really hard to finish at least 3 of them today or at least this weekend. Especially since 2 of them are very nearly done. And the other is about half done, but easy to make.

at any store that's part of a chain, some branches have different things/items/sections as other stores. example - my Michael's doesn't have a baby shower section, but the Michael's about 20 minutes away does.

i don't really like the HL that's about 20ish minutes from me, so that helps with the fact i don't like some of their corporate stances either.

when i'm looking for new yarns, my first choice is JoAnn's, even though i work at Michael's. for a while, i was the only yarn expert, now there's a few more of us there. :D

The local Michael's to me is a baby size, and if they want to try out new layouts on a small scale, it's one of the ones they used
Or used. The layout of it has been consistent for quite a while now

I wish I had a LYS/LFS*... It would make things so much easier for me.



*Local Yarn Shop/Local Fabric Shop

Where my aunt lives there’s a cute little small town yarn store and its awesome haha they even have a store cat

Smaug's done! Here There Be Dragons....

https://images4-f.ravelrycache.com/u...836_medium.jpg

I wish the LYS here was more affordable. They have gorgeous yarns, but most are 4-5x more expensive than buying from the bigger craft stores, so I can't afford to buy from them as often as I'd like.

Omg, I want to go there now! Store cat is the best cat!

That is the cutest Smaug I've ever seen! Very pretty!

thanks Kaderin! it's part of a larger work, which can be found here. there's more info there than me just posting the pic. (let me know if you can't access the project page)

I’ve been crocheting a cactus plushie

Trystan: the page is taking ages to load on my phone, but if it's the same stuff you shared on Instagram a while (a couple weeks or a month ago? I'm bad with time, but it was fairly recently I think...) back, I've seen it and it looks cool so far.

Ruby: Nice! I've seen some stuff like that and they always look so cute!

it's a flat pattern too so you make two halves and crochet them together

that sounds cool, Ruby!

yeah, i shared it on IG a little bit ago. the pic is the center panel of four smaller panels put together. Smaug is on top of that center panel now.

and i'm awful with time as well!

working on Dad's birthday gift... i really should write stuff down...

I got one whole half done, probably would have been all done by now but I ordered some hook grips and hopefully they’ll be here some time today.

Go finish!
Lol

I haven't done too much crafting lately. Did finish up a dragon though. But that was just sewing on some already finished wings. XD
Am gonna try to finish another one this weekend though. It just needs a few parts made.

I can't until I have my grips because the way I hold my hook, I keep pressing into a nerve in my thumb and I don't want permanent damage xD

And yes I've tried other ways to hold it but it's just not as productive. The way I hold it now isn't even the way I was first taught but now I can't figure out how that ever worked xD

Oh damn. Well in that case...I guess I can allow a break.
XD

Ah, I should work on a project when I get home since I have about 5.5 hours between jobs. Though I'll probably head up early so I can swing by the mall to check a couple stores (mainly just Famous Footwear and Ross, everywhere else is a bit out of my price range until after next week when I get paid) for new shoes. Because my BEST pair has a hole in the bottom of the sole.

Thanks! xD I’ll post a pic of it whenever I get it done xD

Ross is awesome!
Ugh i hate shopping for new shoes. Ive been wearing generic crocs the last few years because my tennis shoes wore out and anything new was too narrow to even get my foot into >:(

Yeah...the Ross here is pretty much garbage. The last time I was in, there were only 3 pairs of shoes in my size and they were just super ugly and had the god-awful foam soles that I can't have because I walk everywhere so I need proper soles that won't fall apart after a few uses.

Working on designing a few BJDs. :3

Oooooh that sounds awesome

Yes that sounds quite awesome ^^

Idk what I'm making next but I gotta finish some things for others ;u;

another panel for my Geeky Heirloom Blanket~

https://images4-g.ravelrycache.com/u...228_175814.jpg

'Ello! *gigglefit*

did you say 'hello'?

(I actually called the project "Allo!") ;D

*high-fives a fellow 'Labyrinth' fan*

That’s super cute! I don’t even really like labyrinth, but that creature is one of the best~