Search results (tags) for: "howto"

How-Tuesday: Knit a Postcard with Knitknit

2008-08-04T15:28:00-05:00

MP4 | Blip.tv | Youtube | Subscribe in iTunes

July's live How-To Month was a smashing success! While we had some Etsy royalty here at the labs we took the opportunity to make videos with them. In this second video, the lovely Nguyen Le, aka Knitknit teaches how to make knitted post cards. If you are teaching yourself how to knit, you will love this video. This is also a great way to use your knitted test swatches to make a special something to send to someone!

We hope you love these quick, fun videos and craft along with us! For this project you will need the following supplies:

Two types of bulky yarn
Hole punch
Scissors
Size 10 knitting needles
Tapestry needle
4" x 6" postcard material

Looking for more Etsy Labs how-tos? Check out what we've been up to!

How-Tuesday: Fizzy Bath Salts with Sudzi and the Etsy Labs

2008-07-28T11:15:00-05:00

During the month of July, Etsy Labs hosted a how-to every day and we took the opportunity to make videos too. In this first video, the lovely Mary Helen of Sudzi.etsy.com teaches how to make persimmon fizz bath salts, which is a fun project to do with kids by the way (comes in handy with science fair projects too!).

Mary Helen is a bath and beauty whiz and she'll be teaching a class on beginning soap and toiletry making here at the Etsy Labs in Brooklyn. Mary Helen also works at FromNatureWithLove.com and has arranged for a 5% discount off your bath and body supplies by using the code ETSY4847. Thanks Mary Helen!

MP4 | Blip.tv | Youtube | Music by Charlie Parr | Subscribe with iTunes

We hope you love these quick, fun videos and craft along with us! For this project you will need the following supplies:

1/2 cup Citric Acid

1 cup Baking Soda

1/2 cup Dendritic Salt

1 cup Sea Salt, Medium

1/4 Ounce Persimmon Fragrance Oil

1/4 Teaspoon FDA Coral Mica Powder

2 16 Oz. PET Jars

Measuring cups and measuring spoons

Mixing bowls

Looking for more Etsy Labs how-tos? Check out what we've been up to!

How-To Video: Becka's Running Stitch

2008-07-10T14:00:00-05:00

Becka, aka beckarahn, made a great video about how to make a running stitch and then make it even snazzier by making it a double threaded running stitch!

Check it out! She's got a great lighting setup that looks fantastic and she made great use of close-ups.

Looking for video tips? Check out the rest of the Getting Started in Video series! And if you're making videos, join our group! Subscribe to the Etsy podcast in iTunes.

Fix Up Your Ripped Jeans

2008-05-21T17:43:00-05:00

Last weekend as I was making the roof of my apartment into a squirrel-proof fortress, I ripped the knees of my jeans. After wearing the shredded dungarees around for the rest of the day, I decided I wasn't the type of guy who can rock the ripped denim. The jeans fit me perfect and it seemed such a waste to let them go, so I decided to fix them up. After some research I came up with this solution to my ripped jean dilemma.

MP4 | Subscribe in iTunes | Blip.tv | Youtube | HD

If you have a different way of reparing your jeans, leave a comment or even better, make a video about it, upload it to Youtube and post a link in the comments!

Do you like Etsy videos? Show your love and be the first ones to see them by becoming a youtube subscriber and setting up your iTunes to automagically download the latest videos.

Getting Started in Video: Pushing the Red Button

2008-05-06T20:19:00-05:00

You've got a video camera...what next?

The basic idea is to put something in front of the camera and push the red button, but there's a lot more. This video is just a few tips and tricks to get you on your way. The main thing is to just start making videos and then each one will get better and better.

If you're going to go handheld, you can improve your stability by holding your elbows in. A tripod will keep the camera steady. If possible have the camera at eyeline or above because people just look more beautiful from above. You don't need to see up my nose.

Jump cuts are when you see lots of cuts without a change in camera position. I use these a lot. It also helps to plan some things out. I make a bullet list of things that I want to make sure I say. When working with other people, I find it's easier to ask them to talk about a list of topics rather than memorize things.

Don't be afraid to shoot it again and again and again. A few people called in today and I'm going to respond to their questions in future videos. If you've got tips for shooting video, leave a note in the comments or leave me a voicemail at 917-720-4197 and I might post your message in a future post!

I also made a video about videos with the Bill and Justin over at Blip.tv headquarters. They have a great video show about the people and shows on blip.tv called "Blip on Blip." Check it out!

Getting Started in Video: Camera Choices

2008-05-05T19:02:00-05:00

There is something special about video that you can't get from writing or photographs. Seeing someone on video is more personal. I really want to see more links to videos on the Etsy site, so I'm starting up this tutorial series to get you started making your own videos. Making videos gives the world a chance to see the personality and process behind the things you make.

Let's start with some super cheap cameras. If you're wanting to make video on a budget, you have a few options. The simplest option is to use what you've got. You may already have a video camera. Did you know that most digital photography cameras have a movie mode that takes great video? If you've got one of these, you're done looking, start shooting! A lot of time you can even set these to 640x480 resolution which is good enough to make great web videos. If you're buying something, the cheapest option is to use a flip camera. These are pretty inexpensive and they are easy to use. The resolution isn't fantastic, but they are small and light and easy to carry around and shoot things with.

If you're looking to step it up, the next level of video camera is a DV camera. You can find these for around 200-300 dollars. When you're looking for a camera, check to make sure that it's got a microphone jack and a headphone jack so that you can hook up an external mic and listen to the level of the sound as it's recording. Make sure your computer has a firewire port before getting one of these or you won't be able to transfer the video over.

If you're feeling fancy, you can get an HD camera. You can get a camera like the Sony HC1 which records HD video to DV tape (little mini digital video cassette tapes). But my recommendation is that you skip recording to tape. I'm in favor of using cameras that record straight to an SD Card, which is similar to the little card your digital still camera uses. If you've got somewhere between $600 and $1000 to spend, I'd recommend, the Sanyo Xacti HD2 which is a great little 720P camera or the Canon Vixia HF10. I've also played around with this Panasonic HSC1UP camera which is a bit more expensive, but has 3 chips in it which means the colors are a little snazzier. All of these record to SD cards. If you are going to be using iMovie (the video editing software that comes free with Macs), you'll want to get the Sanyo Xacti which records to an easily convertable MP4 format. The Panasonic and Canon SD cams both record to AVCHD which is a wonderful format allowing a lot of hi-res info to fit on a card, but it's not compatible with iMovie 7 at this time.

If you've got a serious budget and you're thinking about shooting broadcast HD, you can get the Panasonic HVX200. We shoot our Handmade Video Portraits on this. This is a professional level camera and it's awesome. There's a bit of a learning curve to dealing with P2 cards though, so be prepared to spend a day or two reading the manual.

A great place to go and learn more about cameras is creativecow.net. The forums there are really helpful and the community is great.

No matter what camera you get, I recommend getting an extra battery and separate battery charger. There is nothing worse than running out of batteries when you are shooting something special.

If a wide-angle lens is available for your camera, get it! I love wide-angle shots to be able to show lots of a room in your frame.

Again, the best thing to get started with is what you've got.

In the forums I asked for camera recommendations and got this message.

My next video is about tips for shooting video. If you've got an idea you can leave a comment, or leave a note in the forums or leave a message at 917-720-4197 and maybe I'll post it with the next video.

Etsy How-to: Make a Miniature Moustache

2008-04-18T16:43:00-05:00

This week, Christine (aka iheartmoustaches) breaks it on down and shows us how to use #6 plastic to create miniature moustaches! (Christine has made a bunch of these in the past, as she is a lover of the moustache in all its various forms.) #6 plastic is not recycleable in New York and so this is a great way to upcycle those strawberry containers and Chinese take out containers and keep them out of the landfill. This project is awesome for people who need a moustache on the go.

MP4 | Youtube | Blip.tv | Subscribe in iTunes

She's also open sourcing two of her moustache designs. You can download "The Professor" and "The Lady's Man" in this pdf!

We did some measuring and the moustaches started out 6 inches wide and ended up 2 1/4 inches wide. That means it shrunk to almost 1/3 its original size!

(music by Barry London )

If you haven't subscribed to our Youtube channel, go check it out and subscribe!

For more how-tos and instructional good stuff, check out Howcast.com! We post videos there, and there's much more to discover!

EGCG | Trashion | EcoEtsy | Environmentally Friendly Gift Guides | Earth Tones Series

Kelly Turns Your Grandma into a Knitting Machine

2008-04-17T18:01:00-05:00

When I first heard about knitting machines, I was skeptical. Then I heard about a model that could connect to a computer and I had to have one.

Kelly breaks it on down here, giving you an intro into the world of machine knitting. This was filmed at NYCResistor, a hacker space here in Brooklyn. I love the close up shots of Kelly casting on and off!

The machine looks incredibly confusing when you first open it up, but Kelly makes it look easy. She even fixes a problem on the fly in this video.

In this video: Kelly Farrell, Eric Skiff (behind the camera / CC-BY music), Raphael Abrams ("this machine is my grandma!"), George Shammas, and Bre's knitting machine. - Link

Update: Here's an MOV version of the video that will look a little bit better! - Link