and other craft related stuff

Here’s an example of what Flickr can do for your creativity.

One of my favourite photostreams on Flickr is Planeta Amigurumi’s. She makes the most wonderful, colourful, kawaii amigurumi I have ever seen, and every time I see one of her creations, I wish I was as talented.

The above cats are one of my favourites and I wanted, needed to have them instantly. Because that wasn’t possible, I decided to make my own version of these cats. And surprisingly, it really wasn’t that difficult. Only two tries were needed for me to be happy with the result.

And behold, my phat cats are born. Clearly inspired by Planeta Amigurumi, but definitely originally mine

Why the name, you ask?
Well, I initially wanted to call them fat cats, because they are kind of obese, but I also think they look pretty cool. And a slang word for cool is – yes, you guessed it – phat. And that’s the story behind the name.

And the story behind the cats?
Well, inspired by Planeta Amigurumi’s cats, I just started crocheting and forming a general shape. I wanted to be inspired by her cats, but I didn’t want to copy them. So instead of going for the square look of her cats, I decided to go for a softer, rounder look.

My first attempt resulted in the cat on the left. I wasn’t really happy with that cat, because I felt he was too short and too plumb and weird. So I started a new cat, based on the pattern I wrote down for the first cat, but adding rows as I went along, finally giving me the cat on the right.
Now the cat on the right is bang on my vision for the cat. He’s fat, but definitely has a curvy figure, making him look more elegant. I’m really, really happy with the way that cat looks. And his presence even makes the failed cat look cool 8)

Right now, I’m still experimenting with the pattern of my new cat; playing with colours, making changes in the shape, trying to make a cat that mimicks on of my favourite cats of all time .
I’ll keep you all posted on how that turns out .

But for now, what do you think of my cat? Phat or not? Please vote!