Never underestimate violence as a crafting technique.

[mel_redcap]

I threatened my sewing machine with a mattock yesterday.

It seemed to work.

In other news, whenever possible, try out a new technique on a project that you don't care about. If you care about the results, even if it goes well it's going to be wayyyyyyyyy too stressful. :P

----- Originally posted at my Dreamwidth account, feel free to comment on

Comments

[fallconsmate]

back in the days of the Frankeputer (the one the guys put together with parts obtained at the computer show and sale) it would hang up QUITE a bit.

and i'd lean over to the tower and whisper in a sultry voice....

"sledgehammer"

and for SOME reason it would act nice for a week or more!

[mel_redcap]

I once threatened a computer at my then-place of employment with unspecified Doom. The computer next to it, which had also been working at the speed of an arthritic mollusc, started behaving. So I threatened that one, and mine started behaving. Hostages! 8D

[snakesshadow]

*Glomps Mel* Violence is useful. You could also try having a picture of a technician taped to the inside of the housing. Has worked for at least one computer owner.

In other news (also of crafting): The yarn bowl SURVIVED! it was glazed, and SURVIVED AGAIN! It looks awesome!

[snakesshadow]

oh, by the way, ....what's a mattock?

[mel_redcap]

Yay on the yarn bowl! *\o/* <--pompoms for your success!

I think the guy who services my sewing machine would look at me funny if I asked to take a picture of him to use as voodoo maintenance materials. *snicker* XD

A mattock is a gardening/farming implement, sort of a cross between a hoe and a pickaxe. It's used to break up heavy soil and clay, that sort of thing, and is really good if you need to work out some temper, because you swing it over your head and bring it down with a good solid WHACK. It's dangerous, and apparently my sewing machine knows that. ;)

[snakesshadow]

You could always pose it to him as an experiment

...Mattocks sound fun...

As it turns out, wile the yarn bowl and a few other items turned out great, anything meant to have food in it didn't. All four (!) of the school's indoor kilns are broken. Hypothetically the gas kiln could be used... but apparently it's flue is broken. And apparently one of the raku kilns is bad, but the other one is fine (except for the cable to take the top off breaking erlier in the year, but that got fixed shortly after. It didn't need a specialist)

Now, all I need to do is apply a few layers of varnish (to smooth out the roughness) and the bowl can be used!

[cailamaia]

XD I do things like that all the time. Sometimes it works, sometimes it doesn't. I suspect based on how much I mean it at the time.

But it's funny. I talk to my car and praise her, and she's never let me down. My brothers, who also drive her, don't, and have had multiple breakdowns. Overheats, flats, coolant issues, you name it.