Category Archives: Miniature Kites

Miniature kites are art projects under 12 inches in width, which will fly when pulled through the air or taken out in very mild weather.

That was such a solid start, it’ll be hard to follow such an act

I tried hard to carry the momentum that I woke with on Sunday through the day, and while I’m proud of how well I did, I definitely hit a wall after a late dinner. I laid flat on the floor, thinking to stretch my back a bit and took a nap instead.

When I woke on Monday, just a couple minutes before the alarm and still feeling the pace from the weekend, I realized that this week is not going to look as impressive as I headed out to the grocery store for a few things to cover the day’s breakfast and dinner.

I won’t have any time in the kite room on Monday, between that errand, the “day-job”, and the Scout meeting.

Tuesday was very nearly another wash. Between sleeping in to the alarm, the “day-job”, a zoom meeting for Scouts, and a couple evening lockouts, I was only able to spend about 10 minutes of the Full of Stars shield kites.

2.5 inch miniature shield kite from cocktail napkin mounted on easel cards

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Wednesday didn’t go well either. I had wanted to put together a kite specifically to share on Thursday for “Star Wars Day” (May the Fourth), but simply felt no motivation.

2 inch Sotich Shield kite mounted on easel card

On Thursday, I finally found some energy once getting home in the evening. I got to put about an hour into framing more of the Full of Stars shield kites, and then posted this gem from the portfolio for 5/4. Then I made some time to enjoy the latest Guardians of the Galaxy movie with my youngest at our local theatre.

Friday morning, I spent a few minutes before work on another Star Wars themed kite and more framing on the Full of Stars shields.

This will probably be it for the week, I’m planning to head out to my father’s place to help him with some manual labor projects

Let’s try posting more regularly for a bit

So, I’m told that I need to start a mailing list. And to have something to send out to that mailing list on the regular. So, I’m gonna try writing a post up every week with what’s coming out of my kite room (and probably some excuses why there isn’t more).

Monday night there was some good light after work, and since I was still spluttering from my cold, I bowed out of the Scout meeting and spent most of the evening hacking up a lung and tending to some yard work that my kids have been unable to get after for me. Then in a fit of raw spite, I made it into the kite room and cut out the rest of a batch from the lovely floral print I’ve been working with.

Set of 2.5 inch pentagon sails

I finished out my brief session in the kite room putting the finishing touches on a new template for the 2.5 inch pentagon sails, and the mask to go with it.

Tuesday started out strong with slipping into the kite room while getting the youngest off to school, and me ready for the “day-job” to select a sail for a one-off to use as a card for an ailing family member. It won’t be all that I want it to be, but I’m so particular, and I’m feeling done with letting such things slow me down much. I’ll try to have it framed up tonight, but while I was waiting to have access to my wife’s trove of cross-stitch floss, I went back to work on some of the kites that I started last week.

I took a moment to enjoy a view that I’m not often exposed to while a job. The wind kicking up waves was calling to the power kite junkie far into my past.

Despite a lockout call that interrupted dinner, fatigue (from the day at work and the cold that just won’t go away), and participating in the call from my oldest, I made it back to the kite room Tuesday evening to continue on the kites from the morning.

Here’s how the one-off turned out.

The work Wednesday morning was hardly worth mentioning. I might have got more than one kite on a card, if not for sleeping up to the alarm and a string of coughing fits. We’ll see how I feel after work. While off at the “day-job” I listened through yet another episode of the Cathy Heller podcast and found her discussion with Donald Miller fascinating. I’ll have to try applying a few of the ideas he brought up, and probably buy his new book.
Wednesday evening started out strong despite the call of yard work. Once I got the kids started on that project, I made my way to the kite room and finished putting the last of the Spring picket Pentagons on cards. I meant to be back after a brief break for dinner, but a couple of lockout calls had me up way past my bedtime.

Thursday started out strong, not on kites, rather with errands. A trip after groceries for dinner, and a quick post to Facebook over a local traffic issue used up any time that I might have before heading out to spend my day waiting.
After the “day-job” on Thursday, I managed to get the youngest started on some chores, and the myself into the kite room. I had a lot more energy than I’ve had recently, but it was frenetic, so I made some progress on a batch of the floral print that I had cut out earlier in the week, but I always want 110% and I didn’t give it.

Friday morning I only made it in to the kite room for a moment before heading out for a short day with the day-job, a check in with my wife’s oncologist, and couple other errands. I spent a fair amount of time putting frames on more of the floral prints, and cut out a batch of the next Rainbow stripe Shield kites between a couple of lockout calls in the evening.

2.5 inch miniature shield kite from cocktail napkin mounted on easel cards

Saturday morning I slept in longer than I wanted, so I started in on my steps at first light, and then got back to the Floral prints. After getting all of them on cards, I made progress on the Rainbow stripes and the Full of Stars print which I’ve had for a while.

2.5 inch miniature shield kite from cocktail napkin mounted on easel cards

I stayed up too far past bed time, but I felt very good about the productivity. I was still abuzz with that positivity when I woke on Sunday morning and started out to get my step well before it was light. It took a while to get the Rainbow stripes  onto their cards after a lockout call threw my off my stride, but with some persistence I finished those, got to work framing the Full of Stars Shields, and cut out a batch of the Pretty on Pink shield kites.

2.5 inch miniature shield kite from cocktail napkin mounted on easel cards

I’m glad to be feeling better. Clearly it helped me get quite a bit done this week.

I didn’t post for a year?

I need to drop an update on my very full year, but if I write it now it will come off very whiny, so instead I’ll just post the miniatures that I have made up this week.

Reach out if you have an interest in getting a box with 13 of these little kites to help you stay in touch with friends and family, and share your love of kites with your community.

I adore this butterfly graphic, and it caught the attention of some of my friends too. This is from the last box of butterflies that was ordered, and will go out in the mail today. I have some more of this material, so let me know if you need to have 13 of these to fly with your friends this spring.

Living in a coastal town, sea stars (also known as starfish) are a big thing. I loved taking this graphic off center. Also, BLUE, deep rich blue, it’s a thing for me. I’m looking forward to finishing the box with 13 of these stars, I wonder where they will fly away to, let me know if it needs to be your house.

I’ve been in search of the perfect birthday graphic. I think this one has some potential, and I think the purple helped to show off the the colorful candles. I wonder if these will be invitations for a party.
Let me know if you need to share these fun kites with your friends.

For each of these patterns, I’m offering 13 miniature kites mounted on easle-cards that can be mailed using one forever stamp. The packages also have envelopes and notes on displaying the card and for flying the kite indoors. I’m asking $200 for each box, priority postage paid (in the US only, please). Please leave a comment below and I’ll reach out to firm up the details.

Some clips

I have been remiss in posting about my miniature kites.

The morning after my last post I managed to get some time to shoot the longest gallery fly I’ve had yet.

My sons and I had spent most of the morning setting up the Christmas tree lot for the Boy Scout Troops big fundraiser, and found the gallery empty and quiet.

Unfortunately, I mounted my camera upside down. After sitting on the frustration for a few days and taking a couple more to figure out editing in iMovie, here are the results.

The show this month is a 2 woman show featuring paintings and collages from one artist that provided a great backdrop for my little kite as it floated by, and assemblage art that unfortunately didn’t always show up well in the background.

Part of the show was an interactive piece that I had to drag Luc away from so we could get to the rest of our list of chores.

What a morning

How many minis?

I think that I’m starting to feel a little better, although I don’t know how that is really possible. I’m still spluttering. I’m still waking up too early (and even staying up too late on calls). I’m not eating as well as I should be.

Despite all that, I’ve found a reservoir of energy that I’m applying to the miniature kites. They are still not perfect (I would like anyone that receives one to help me improve them by helping me with the survey that I posted about last week), but they are good enough to move forward from R&D to limited production.

I woke this morning after about 4 hours sleep (again), and wanted to get right to the work. I had started on this kite the day before yesterday after bedtime, but was called away to a lock-out half way across the county. While I didn’t have a way to keep my eyes open after the call, I jumped right back into it this morning.

After wrapping it up, I still had some time, so I started into another, finished and prepped it to mail out. It is a belated birthday greeting that I had threatened to send out to a friend who has given me some grief over kiting, but especially kite making (it is also an ironic note as he has recently discovered a couple branches of power kiting).

Kudos to me!

As each of these was ready to bundle up, I posted them to facebook and my new Instagram account. No one has found my IG, but several of my friends and family reacted to the two fb posts, which stoked my ego in a nice way.

New material and tools.

On my way home from one of my lockout calls (it’s been busier this week that it often is) I found a new print to work with. I think this might become a birthday card for my dad.

The other day a slowed down for a moment to cut out a new template for a 3 inch version of the pentagon shape. I’m not ready to make one yet, but I am equipped now.

What else is coming down the pike?

This weekend I will take most of the day on Saturday to help put together the Christmas tree lot with the Boy Scout Troop, and Sam has a birthday party that he wants to go to all afternoon and into the night, but with any luck I will have some energy left over to make up some kites to use as samples to take to Winddriven (otherwise maybe a nap is in order).

However Saturday goes, on Sunday I should be able to take most of the day from the family and make a whole mess of kites in a variety of shapes and sizes (including some new custom 3 sticks) from both napkins and tissues.

Once I’ve got that selection ready to show off I’ll mail off a sample to the owners of Winddriven, and then keep making some more to take to OKR and send out to Warm Sands and U-MAKE.

All this productivity has got me inspired to work on some other projects, but most of my sewing room is filled up with this non-sewing venture and all of the other projects will take most of the room. So other projects are on hold until I can first catch up, then get ahead on production, but I do have so many news toys that I am really excited to play with when I can pay for them and dedicate the space to putting them together.

Back to kite making

I’ve slacked off making miniatures for a little bit, but I think it is time to get back into gear. I have a handful of cards cut out and figured out photo corners for some of my older kites, so now I just need to buckle down and make them.

This is the latest to come of the bench. I’m particularly fond of the swirl at the heart, I find it reminiscent of the eagle from the German State crest.

2 inch Sotich Shield

I do wish that this pattern was available in colors other than pink. I would love to see it in a bright blue or green, or a medium brown, but I am enjoying the swirls. On my next kite, I think I may play with part of the swirl from off center.

2 inch Sotich shield on card

Smooth Winds

The shape of things to come

I have a train of indoor kites that are loosely based on the classic Eddy kite, but to keep from having tails on the train I extended the sail straight down from the wingtips allowing that excess sail to be the drag to keep the kites flying right.

Recently I decided to try applying the theory to my miniatures as well. Unfortunately it was not effective for eliminating the tail for this scale, but I like that it allows for greater exposure of the graphics.

This is the first kite with a new print that I found, and it just wouldn’t work quite as well as an Eddy or Shield. Look for more of this shape with other graphics.

This  one is ready to go to Winddriven for sale, although the graphic works so well that I may just mail it to the owner as a sample.

Survey says?

Hello ImagineNation,

I have been listening to the Don’t (Just) Keep Your Day Job podcast for a few months, hanging about the FB group (trying to be supportive where I feel my 2 cents might be worth 3), taking notes, and creating to do lists. This post checks off the first line on a list that I’m excited to get started on.

Among other things, I am a kite maker, and I’m currently obsessed with miniature kites like this.

2 inch Sotich Eddy kite

Miniature kites mounted to cards.

Being small, they are relatively quick and easy to make, but that leaves me the problem that they pile up. I have spent time, off and on over the last couple years developing a means to mail these gems to interested parties in my far flung communities, and would like to check that I’m doing my best to serve a need.

To that end I would like to include a survey or a link to a survey with the card.

I would appreciate your suggestions on survey questions to include. These are the questions that were obvious to me:

  • Did your card and kite arrive intact?
  • Would you send this card as a gift?
  • Have you flown your kite?
  • Did you need to look for flying instructions on crossedlineskites.com?
  • Address of a friend you would like me to forward a card to.

Thank you for having a look, and thank you in advance for any suggestions. Lastly, thank you to Cathy Heller for all the inspiration pouring from the podcasts, music, and this community she has helped to create.

“Life is too short not wake up everyday, excited”

So I didn’t make the headway this weekend that I wanted to. I made some, just not as much as I wanted (I want it all). Although the head cold hasn’t let go of me, so I shouldn’t castigate myself, I spent too much time with electronic games so I will (just a little).

I did get Sam most of the way to caught up with his school work, and Luc set up and rolling with some online learning platforms. But I didn’t get my homework for Scouts done.

I did spend some time with miniatures, templates for them, cards to mount them on and new cellophane sleeves for packaging them. Not as much as I should have, but I did take steps. The most exciting one (for me) was a template for a pentagon (not a star) shape that I’ve used with some larger indoor kites

This morning however, I woke up raring to try using photo corners to hold the miniatures that I made during National Kite Month a couple years ago. On the newer kites I leave the spreader longer  so that a hole in the card will hold the kite in. The older kites don’t work the same way, which leaves me with something like 50 kites that I don’t have anything to do with (except to keep and fly myself).

I’ve tried the corners on a couple of the tiniest ones, but most of my collection was sitting in the car (parked at the day-job, as I’m on call this week). I’ll be trying on some more if I  can keep my eyes open when I get to my sewing room tonight.

My next step will be to send some of these (only my favorites) out to beta testers with a survey (that I haven’t figured out how to make electronic, Zach should expect a call).

Getting in to the season

I have trouble finding good material for the minis for this time of year. Halloween, Thanksgiving, and Autumn in general are represented by large gourds, large leaves, large birds… You get the idea, Fall is about things that have grown all the rest of the year.

The other day I found a package of this really busy design, but I liked the simple colors (besides I have to support the Oregon State Beavers whenever possible). Here it is mounted on one of my new cards.

Yesterday I had the awesome opportunity to introduce myself and my approach to the miniatures to the owner of the local kite shop that I had stopped off at last month. She had come in to the day job to ask about some work she was interested in having done at her shop, and once we were done discussing her project I took the liberty to show some pictures. Later on, again after the work was done, I took the opportunity to show off the pictures to her store manager.

They are interested in having a better look at the kites, so I need to make some time for cards and mail out some kites. I also ordered in some plastic sleeves, I have been dragging my feet on that for some dumb reason.

I was energized by the progress, but an hour and a half Scout Committee meeting that took two and a half hours sapped me of most of my energy. I’ll try again tonight after the Troop meeting.