The Ungalled Hart

  Prayer beads are not found in the Bible, nor are they required for faith, but for centuries, Christians have found them to be a helpful tool during prayer. Many Protestant denominations do not use prayer beads, as they associate them with the prayer repetitions warned against in Matthew 6:7. However, the original intention of medieval prayer beads was simply to help monks keep track of their place while reciting through the Book of Psalms ( or the Psalter) . Of course, not everyone could read or memorize all 150 Psalms, so an alternative was created: the Paternoster (Latin for “Lord’s Prayer”) and other short prayers could be recited instead. This practice helped medieval Christians meditate on and reflect on the word of God, as encouraged in the Bible. And - just in case you were wondering - the Paternoster was the foundation for the Catholic rosary as we know it today. I decided to make my own Paternoster, one that could be used while reading through the Book of Psalms. I also ...

Using an image I generated in Midjourney a long time ago, I decided to test several AI programs to see if I could really bring the image to life. I also wanted to see if I could have the siren sing a song. First, I needed a song. I tried using ChatGPT for lyrics, but I wasn’t thrilled with the results—very rhymey, very amateurish. However, it was useful for generating words associated with the sea and sirens, which was helpful. In the end, I had to write my own dark little song about luring victims into the sea. (I’ll put the lyrics at the bottom of the post.) Next, I used my Suno account to create the song. I found out that the key to getting the sound I wanted was adding “soprano” to my prompt. Unfortunately, their AI associates “soprano” with opera rather than just a high singing voice, so it took a while to get a result I could use. With the song ready, I tested out several AI programs: Immersity AI, LivePortrait, PixVerse, and Kling AI. The image I used is at the top of this page....

“ Through the fathomless deeps of space swims the star turtle Great A’Tuin, bearing on its back the four giant elephants who carry on their shoulders the mass of the Discworld…Exactly why this should be may never be known. Possibly the Creator of the universe got bored with all the usual business of axial inclination, albedos and rotational velocities, and decided to have a bit of fun for once. ” - Terry Prachett from the book Wyrd Sisters As a fan of Terry Pratchett’s Discworld series, I thought it would be fun to crochet the Great A’Tuin as a Christmas gift for a friend who is also a fan. The Great A’Tuin has three parts: the turtle, four elephants, and a flat Discworld. Although there isn’t an official pattern for A’Tuin, there are plenty of patterns for turtles and elephants available across the internet, and a fellow fan of the series has kindly provided a free pattern for the Discworld. This is a great moment to mention that crocheters should always take a second to look for fre...

I keep stumbling across the same knit frog online, always dressed in an adorable little sweater. Since I’ve never tried knitting an amigurumi before, I thought that this would be a good challenge. The pattern is by Claire Garland. I got it from her Etsy shop DotpebblesKnits but it is also available on her own website. I believe there is also a crochet version of the same frog for those who don’t knit. First, I made the frog’s little striped sweater using 5 double-pointed needles (DPNs). It turned out ridiculously cute. If you're new to knitting or working with DPNs, I definitely recommend trying to make the tiny sweater. It’s a great way to practice color changes and try some intermediate work with DPNs. The frog itself was fairly straightforward to knit, and the pattern included instructions for adding wire to make him posable. I’m happy with how the frog turned out—he’s now my little desk buddy at work. I even did a little photoshoot with him during my break.

Recently, I’ve been crocheting a few gifts, and I decided to get a little creative. Instead of using different colored yarns, I experimented with fabric paint to bring my amigurumi to life. I was really happy with the results and thought I’d share my experience. A coworker sadly lost her adorable pet rabbit, and I wanted do something special for her. I already had a crochet pattern for a rabbit , but this time I decided to sculpt the face with a needle and thread. The outcome was a much cuter and more realistic look than last time. Here is a picture of the rabbit unpainted: I lightly painted the rabbit, giving it a soft watercolor look. The photo doesn't quite capture how nice the greys with a touch of brown looks in real life. I hope it brought her a little comfort during a tough time.   Later, a family member requested a crocheted hen for their birthday. I found an adorable pattern called “Flora the Hen” from an Etsy shop called Airali. The pattern was well written, tho...