Brrrrrrr...

 

So here is the least fugly picture of me I could find. It was taken yesterday on the way back from running errands. I am wearing my Shredlocks, which is a new product I am working on for the shop. They are hair falls made of vintage items. I still have a few kinks to work out...

Its freezing here today. We are going to attempt to go to a sheep shearing at Wauka Valley Farm. Its been raining too so its muddy. Doesn't look favorable for a day of outdoor family fun.

Last night, we participated in the one hour no-light deal. We built a HUGE bonfire down by the creek and had a nice time. The creek was a big reason we picked this house. Its fun for the kids and fun for us too.

Got my mammogram results back and it was positive for boobies. lol Seriously, I got the all clear. That was a big relief. Still waiting on cholesterol and thyroid.

I am hoping to get some vintage stuff listed today. Ugh.

Forget the Calgon, Jack Daniels - please take me away!

Good grief, I am not sure if its the full moon or what but my kids are insane. And they are driving me insane. They can't seem to go more than 5 minutes without one whining or screaming or complaining or being sassy. When they play well together, its like the angels are singing but that is so rare.

I scored big today with the vintage slips. I managed to buy 17 total. Now, I just have to buy some more dye. I definitely want to do more green and orange, maybe some purple too. The Tart slip sold, as did the brownie one.

I have a few chicken paintings that I did on old cookie sheets. Those will go up soon on electricbluebird. With any luck, I can get my vintage stuff photographed and get http://allskate.etsy.com up and running with vintage and destash.

I really, really need a vacation. We haven't had one as a family ever. A long weekend at the beach would be soooo nice.

Ah, Daddy is home. The girls are watching a Care Bears movie. I need to rustle up the grub - egg salad sammies and apple slices and herbal iced tea. Easy cheesy.



Did I mention I married a clown? lol

I think I set a record...

I listed this altered vintage slip dress tonight and it sold in less than 5 minutes. Holy crap! I have another one done in light turquoise with yellow and seafoam trims and vintage fabric dots. I have several more ready to embellish. I am doing all of the sewing by hand so its tedious but oh, so FUN!

Spring has sprung?

I had fun yesterday with Fern. The day before, all four of us went to a local school and picked up tennis balls around the tennis courts. We do this every few months, and we take them to the Humane Society for the dogs.

So Fern and I got to give the balls to the dogs ourselves. She loved it. I think I saw about 8 dogs that could just take home right now! I especially love to visit the older dogs. I mean, puppies are cute and all but the older dogs need love too. We also held a couple of the cats.

I would love to have another cat. I really miss having one around. I don't miss the litter box and the vomit and the hair. Scott is dead set against it and he is right. Unless we got one that was mostly an outdoor cat....maybe?

We are making plans for the vegetable garden. Last year, we had tomatoes, okra, squash, zucchini, hot peppers, bell peppers, green beans, eggplant, potatoes, Swiss chard and corn. I am hoping that we do less (none) okra since no one eats it and more Swiss chard. Scott also planted some apple trees and the grapes are coming back.

We had a nice time yesterday afternoon with my BBF Christine. We went to the park with our girls and played on the 'beach', which is the really just the shoreline exposed by the drought. The girls got thoroughly dirty and muddy and we had a blast.

Brand Spanking New!

I found some hair combs at Hobby Lobby today for 15 cents and thought I would give them a try. I love them! I made Lolligoth and then a second one but it walked off on the head of a child and has not been seen since. I am having so much fun making these things. Its a nice change from the hats. I am sure between now and the fall, I will be inspired to bring the yarn out again.

I spent tonight making violet and lilac colored polymer clay flowers. I would love to try and make some other things with the clay, expand my horizons a bit. I poked around etsy today and was just blown away at all of the things folks do with this stuff.

I have absolutely nothing to read right now. I must have started 5 books and cannot get into any of them. I think I might head to the library tomorrow. Its actually painful not to have something to read.

What a night!

We went out for Xine's birthday last night. She picked me up in her pimped out 300 and we met some other friends at Wild Wing Cafe. It was a BLAST. I think we need to do that more often for our sanity. The wings were tasty, the beer was cold, the conversation was outrageous!

As spring approaches, its time to clear out the winter hats in the shop. I think I will start moving them all to the clearance section and marking them down to move them out. I will list a few headbands today. I can't wait to get my beads!

Shhhh......

I've been buying beads. Not for making jewelry, but to add to my crowns. I need more shiny, sparkling stuff. A little Paypal money is a dangerous thing....

I sold my first crown yesterday, and I have 2-3 custom requests. I am very excited! I think these will do well.

My friend Christine came over yesterday to get some pull tags. She is making the cutest shamrock pins! Check them out here: http://xinedurkin.blogspot.com. She is heading up a group at ravelry.com for extreme fiber. I am still waiting on my registration to go through so I can join.

I had this big idea that I was going to talk her into trying to crochet with chitlins. I mean, they are pig intestines right? Long strings = yarn-like? We could film and be youtube stars, drive traffic to our shops and get on Oprah. Me and my chitlin scarf would be famous!

Well, it turns out that chitlins aren't perfect long strings and Christine was not feeling the chitlin love. I will have to come up with something else.

New Items!

 

 

 

 

Rain all day here today so its a good thing I was able to get out and take some pictures of my new tiems yesterday. I found an excellent old fence post in the woods next to the creek and its perfect for hat pictures. I am still going crazy trying to get really really good pictures of the fairy crowns.

I've been buying vintage slips with plans to dye and embellish them. I have one that has a few spots and tears that I will use for a tester. I want to try and write on them so I will have to see what pens work best.

There will never ever be enough time to make all of the things I want to make. I have an idea for a t-shirt and a keychain wallet and altered clothing and on and on and on....

One thing I do need is a dress form. I think it will be critical to photographing clothing for my vintage shop and the slips.

In the meantime, laundry piles up...

Craft ADHD

After putting down crochet for a while, I have sort of picked it back up again - just a few hats here and there. I listed two and one sold already. Sales have been slow - the economy, the approach of spring, who knows.... I have so many ideas raging forth for hats but I think I will wait and list them after the summer. At some point, I will put all of the hats on sale to clear old old inventory.

I made a market bag last night in shades of light blue, lime, and brown. I am not happy with the straps and I am still working that out. I am wondering if perhaps some knitted i-cord might be the way to go. I've never knitted i-cord but it doesn't look like rocket science.

I was unusually productive with my housewifely duties today. I culled a bunch of the shoes from the baskets at the front door, saving some for Fern and putting others away for summer. After I swept, it looked much improved. I also cleaned the oven. Ok, it is self-cleaning but I had to clean out some grease so as not to burn down the house and then I had to wipe out the ash afterwards.

Tomorrow, I get to go have my massage that I got from Scott for Valentine's Day. I cannot wait. I think it involves hot stones...

I have nothing to read right now. I just finished No Reservations by Anthony Bourdain and it rocked but now I have nothing. I usually get books from paperbackswap.com but I haven't received anything lately. I might just have to break down and go to the library.

Going outside for a hike with the baby...

Another Toof Gone!

 

Lulu has 'lost' another tooth. I say 'lost' because it was actually pulled by the dentist. It had been loose for a while and sort of got stuck sticking out horizontally and on top of the other tooth because the new tooth was coming in behind it. We gave her two weeks but it never came out. It was not a happy scene in the dentist's office but its over with and she looks quite goofy.

 

 

 

 

These are new for 2008. I call them my Spider Web hats. I've sold one so far, which is a little disappointing as this is a completely original design that you will not see anywhere else - unless of course, someone decides to copy it.

I think that is something most folks don't know about my shop. Everything I come up with is original and not from any pattern. I have stuff you just will not see anywhere else. I know I would make more sales if I followed the crowd and made easy to sell stuff but its so much more fun trying to stand out and be original.

I am hitting the gym again today. I have two orders to mail as well. I am in charge of the snack for Lulu's class tomorrow. She asked for grapes and string cheese.

And this weekend, I will be enjoying an hour long hot stone massage courtesy of my darling husband. It was my gift for Valentine's Day. I cannot tell you how much I need it right now.

This morning, I finished up 6 more fairy tiaras. They are really fun to make. The hot glue is killing my fingers though.

If you are reading this:

Bonnie, email me A & L's sizes.

Tammy - I'd be happy to make something for ya!

PHONYTAIL Hat

 

 

 

 

This is called my Phonytail Hat. Is that cute or what? Oh, and a picture of Big D. It was so nice and warm here yesterday that we spent a lot of time outside.

 

 

 

 

My poor neglected blog. I knew it would happen. Sigh. Its been since October? Well, for now I will share loads of photos of all of the things I have been making.

I have been making spring and summer items since crocheted hats are sort of a winter item. I will have a table at the local Farmer's Market this summer. It will be full of tiaras, hair bows, art, altered vintage items, and maybe tutus.

Google Eyes and Hats Galore

So I have had this obsession with google eyes of late. It all started when I found a vintage google eye in a jar of vintage buttons I purchased at an estate sale. I used it to create my first Monster Eye Hat. I subsequently created a line of Monster Eye Hats using a really yummy chunky yarn and I named them after Greek female monsters and mermaids.

When I couldn't satisfy my google eye lust with Wal-Mart, I searched ebay and purchased 3 packs of 155 assorted google eyes each. Honestly, it wasn't as many as I thought it would be but it was enough to create the Spy Bag.


And so now I am on the prowl for my next google eye victim.

Sales on etsy have been a little slow of late. One can only hope that folks are gearing up for some big holiday shopping. I did have my first wholesale order. I shipped them off yesterday and I hope they are well-received.



I did take a couple of new paintings up to the gallery. They are not currently listed on etsy but they are based on an ACEO I did. One is on the canvas formally known as Chicken a la Larry King and the other is one a scrap of wood Scott found:

What is this wet stuff falling from the sky?

So it rained yesterday and its currently raining. We are in the middle of the worst drought in recent history so this is big news.

In other news, I painted another goat painting yesterday. Not quite as happy with it as goats go but I love love love the impressionistic style that I acheived. Its for sale in the shop if you are interested...

I am currently negotiating a wholesale deal for a dozen hats. I am beyond excited because a) this means a chunk of money, b) it means getting my name out there beyond etsy and to a funkier crowd, more of my target audience and c) I HAVE to go to Hobby Lobby today for yarn. Hahaha. Gotta love the day that going yarn shopping is part of your 'job'.

I also have 24 cupcakes to bake today for the Fall Festival at Lulu's school. She made cute little cupcake toppers for them.

Art from found materials...

So, a few weeks ago my friend Christine and I were riding down the road. While at a stoplight, I spotted a nice piece of plywood in the road. I warned her I was jumping out of the care to get it. She said, "What the hell are you going to do with that?" I replied that I didn't know but that it would be good to paint on for sure.

Yesterday, I painted a sign for her soap business. It turned out really well. I have quite happy with the goat but I wish I had done more of a stylized font for the lettering. I didn't want to take the chance on messing it up though. I hope she likes it! Its pretty big, about 20 inches tall and about 3 feet wide. I think I am going to paint the back in a darker blue and do "Handmade Soap" in a while stylized font.

We finished making the muscadine jelly last night. I had to add 2 cups of regular grape juice to the last batch to get a full 4 cups of juice. That is a lot of jelly! We'll give most of it away at Christmas to teaches, bus drivers, etc.

Etsy Commercial!

OMG This is wonderful! If only it was aired on TV!

http://youtube.com/watch?v=v2g31xjdfhQ

Just got home from my trip to Athens. I had a nice visit with my friend Sondra. She has a gorgeous new home in Madison County. What a wonderful house for her family! Her kids are so great. Lucy loved seeing Kyle and Kelly again, and Fern was quite smitten with Kelly as well.

I need to take etsy pictures but I am wiped out!

Fall is here!

I still don't have the hang of pictures on this thing but the Picasa program I downloaded from google makes it so much easier to upload a batch of pictures to my blog. I highly recommend this program!

I've added several pictures of the girls. I cannot believe how fast they are growing up. They are a couple of goofballs.

Scott and I processed the muscadines last night and with the exception of the exploding jelly bag that flung purple pulp all over the kitchen, it went well. We now have 16 cups of juice, which will make 32 small jars of jelly. I found a package of Certo in the box of canning supplies from Nana's house but its dated 1989 so I think I will splurge on some fresh.

Yesterday, I received my order from SugarLips (http://sugarlips.etsy.com). OMG how decadent. The Brown Sugar and Fig vegan deodorant smells good enough to eat. I also got some body butter samples and a couple perfumes. I think the Chinatown perfume is my favorite. It really smells 'right' on me. It has just enough patchouli to remind me of my youth but with some floral and citrus notes to update it. I love the Olive Blossom too. Hilary has the very best customer service and I am already planning my next order since I got a coupon for 10% off. It will probably include a Brown Sugar and Fig perfume and an Olive Blossom perfume for sure. The body butters are to die for and have made my skin sooo soft. I cannot recommend her stuff enough!

The other day I was, ummmm 'shopping' the trash heaps in town and came across 3 awesome pieces of wood from an old bed. I came home and painted them up with a Christmas theme. I hope to post pics this afternoon. They will be on sale at Aunt Faye's Attic - they are too odd to ship easily.

Festival Mania!

What a wonderful weekend! I shared a booth with two friends at the 2007 Turning and Burning Festival in Gillsville, Georgia. This festival celebrates the pottery of the Hewell Family. My friend Christine makes goat's milk soap (www.threesisters.ecrater.com) and my friend Tina is a spinner and knitter. I was sort of the wacky tagalong with the funky stuff. We had a blast! I sold some hats and scarves, a few dishcloths, some magnets and a painting. Our booth looked wonderful. It was fun talking to folks and people watching. Scott brought the girls up and they got to ride the ponies - always a hit.

Yesterday, we took the girls to Suches, Georgia for the Indian Summer Festival at the Woody Gap School. This is apparently the smallest public school in Georgia. Lulu got to hit a teenager in the face with a pie as part of a fundraiser. She also got to to the bungee jump. Lulu and I bought some homemade lip balms made with local beeswax and Scott bought 2 lbs of local sourwood honey. We had a great time.

I am working on some new stuff for the shop, mostly scarflettes. I need a neck (real or not) to photo them on. I am also working on a top secret project that is sure to be a big seller on etsy.

When 20 mo olds blog....

Fern hit the keyboard and got my entry posted before I was ready.

So I am in the process of listing 8 or so more Monster Eye hats my etsy shop (see linky-poo to the right). I have had a good response to them so far. I guess the google eyes are now my 'thing'.

Sales have been wonderful. I just missed my September goal of 10 sales by 1! I have set a goal of 15 for October.

I sold a painting last night - Little Miss Voltrina is heading to Colorado this morning. I am sort of sad to see her go, but I think she is going to a very good home. I have to get her from Susie's gallery this morning and ship her out! In fact, I need to pull all of my art.

I am going to be at the Turning & Burning Festival this weekend in Gillsville, Georgia. Its going to be a blast! I am setting up with two friends, Christine of Three Sisters Soap and Tina, a knitter and spinner. Susie from Aunt Faye's will be there as well. Its my first big festival and I am so excited. I hope to meet some other etsy artists. I hear 50,000+ folks are expected!

I am trying to talk my mom and dad into having an etsy shop. My mom is all about ATCs and ACEOs right now.