hello

Apparently I've been neglecting my poor blog much more than I should be and have decided to pop back in and share a few of the crafts I've been working on in the last while.  I've been buying up vintage sheets from thrift shops for a few years now (why yes - I do tend to hoard) and decided to bite the bullet and start hacking them up and using them! Turns out it wasn't as painful as I thought it was going to be because now I get to enjoy a snippet of vintage goodness every time I walk through my front door! How lovely! I also decided to go with "hello" as my greeting instead of the traditional "welcome" because it seemed to suit me better (for some unknown reason). Now I just need to get around to putting the rest of that vintage sheet stash to good use. What have you been up to lately? 

At long last - an update!

Yesterday morning I was one determined lady. After the past few weeks of a complete and utter of productivity I was sure that I would get at least one thing crossed off my to do list! The verdict? Success! I finally got around to listing my embroidery hoops in my etsy shop! I even had some nice filtered natural light to photograph in too. Check out my babies that are up for grabs:

Hooray! I forgot how time consuming making etsy listing is, which totally explains why I've been focusing on craft shows and consignment these days. It does feel good to refresh the shop up a bit though, I even redid the shop sections for easier searching too! Yay! Just in time for the holiday buying season! You can take a peek at the listings in my embroidery hoop art section (link)! Yipee! Happy buying! 

Guacamole Aspirations

So my "week of embroidery hoops" sort of spilled over a bit, but I was just so crafty last weekend! Here's the final hoop in the series - another former brooch inspiration - avocado!

I really love making fruit and veg themed art and totally love the thought of them hanging in someone's kitchen! Wouldn't you like this little puffy happy dude smiling over you while you're cooking?

 

I think he'd be great with some veggie friends but what pairs with avocado? Garlic and red pepper perhaps? Hmm...here's one last glance so you can see the scale of this one:

Well I hope you enjoyed my week(ish) of hoops around here and am extra appreciative of all your supportive comments! So now that they've all been revealed, which is your official fave?

I don't get out much these days...

I don't seem to do a single embroidery project without forgetting my long time pals the love robots. Looks like Clamps, Al, and Wheelie are back to spread the binary and bitmaps all over the place:

I really enjoyed doing this group on a slightly darker background for a change and think the coral-red fabric really lets their little hearts pop!

Aww. So Al's over-enthused hands sort of look like he's trying to cop a feel (oh dear, did I just type that?), but I still love them! They're such a rad little trio of geekiness and I love seeing how they transform each time I make them. Clamps seems to be defying the laws of physics a bit with those spindly little legs, but boy are they ever darling:

Yaaaayyy! (Kermit style) Robot love for all!!!

Sunday Fox

We're almost nearing and end on my embroidery hoop reveals for the week and am I ever happy with how this one turned out! The colours really pop and its wee 3" form is just darling! Take a peek:

I know I keep saying this, but I feel like every time I make one of these I like it the best! They're like snugly little offspring I feel torn about ever selling off to a new home! But alas, more hoops can always make their way onto the horizon and I'm sure this little fox will be thrilled to hang in anyone's home.

I'm also finding that as soon as I make one hoop, I immediately imagine it in a set of three! Maybe it's all these years of pinback button set creating but wouldn't this be cute in a row with two other woodland friends?

Perhaps I'm getting ahead of myself on making hoop sets - but if these little friends are a hit I'll certainly consider making some! What sort of designs would you like to see stitched and hanging on your wall? Would you be willing to make the investment in a set of three? Oh! And what do you think of wee foxy?

Amanitas!

It's no secret that I've got some serious love for amanita mushrooms. Who can resist those bright red caps and spots? They're so charming and mischievous (well...more poisonous, but that's the same thing right?) and even better with little smiles on! Behold their loveliness captured (and interpreted) by me in wool felt, hand stitched, 5" hoop form:

Yay! What a sweet little family of toadstools! I really had fun making this one and like the idea of using a darker background to switch it up a smidge. As with most of my hoops, it was pretty time consuming with all the little bits to cut out and stitch on, but I am really pleased with the details of the finished piece:

This one totally makes me want to go for a nice nature hike and do some fungi hunting, but with the huge list of to do's I've got going on this weekend I can't see that one fitting on the agenda. Alas. I'll stick to handmade mushrooms for now! What do you think? Do you have a favourite hoop yet?

Bloomin' Friday

Yay! We made it to Friday! We also made it to another day of hoop art (surprise surprise)! Today's piece is for those of us who aren't into anthropomorphism - but still like handmade stitches. Check out my pinking sheared row of flowers:

For some reason I couldn't get the colouring quite right when I was taking pictures of this one, and since I wasn't up for lots of photo editing (which I am far from skilled at) I'll just let you all know that it is much lovelier in person! Here's another peek:

This is also the biggest hoop I've done so far and although I am not quite ready for any 14" masterpieces, I am pretty happy with this 7" one!

Hurrah! I'm hoping that this sunny bright blooming hoop will bring us some summer sun this weekend despite what all the forecasts are calling for... What are you up to this weekend?

the happiest cactus

Today's embroidery hoop is one of my favourites! Much like many of the hoops I've whipped up, this one is based off a felt brooch I made a while ago! I switched the colours up a smidge to go with the coral background and finished it off in 3" form:

Yay! I love cacti and this one is even easy to keep thriving - it's even blooming:

I think the muted pastels look nice, bright, and cheery and are perfect for summer! Just look at that wide set eye smile:

Ah! Overload of cuteness! No wonder I love this one so much - what do you think?

Primary Pups!

Hoop week continues with a 6" piece inspired by some brooches I made last year:

As I was brainstorming ideas of designs to embroider I went through some ziplocks of paper patterns I've made over the years and figured some primary coloured dogs would make a great hoop! I love how cheery and bright this one is and am really seeing improvement in my stitching skills. Here's a close up:

 

I think this baby would be super fun for a kids room or above a hook where you keep your dog leash! As with all the hoops I've made, it's finished and ready to hang. 

Now to figure out a nice way of displaying them at my craft table and attach some price tags! What do you think of this one?

What's all the hoopla?

Great news blog readers! I am on the mend! I may still have some monster headaches, but the majority of my cold symptoms are subsiding and I've got a whole whack of embroidery hoops to share! So to celebrate my jump back into almost health I'll be sharing my creations all week long! Yay! Take a peek at my favourite sea friends (also available in pinback button form too!):

Hooray! I'm really loving hoop making and by mixing in some muted toned wool felt they can pack quite the punch! Here's a closer shot of lil' buddy crab, squid, and sea star:

I'm thrilled to say I even worked out a way to finish off the back of the piece using some cardstock, custom made stamps, and felt:

I think it is quite the improvement from the mess of stitches and lets me throw a name and website in there for good measure. Now for one last picture with my hand in there so you can get an idea of the size of it:

I bought five sizes of hoops to play around with and this one if of the 4" variety.  I figure this way I will have more variety to each of the hoops and makes it easier for tiered pricing! Yipee! So what do you think of the sea life friends?

yeti loves tea!

Being sick on the couch all weekend means two things, 1) I didn't schedule any blog posts like I normally do and 2) In my zombie ill brainlessness I whipped up some cute embroidery hoops! I mean look how enthusiastic yeti is about that cup of tea:

Maybe it is actually a cup of chicken noodle soup (which Fraser has been nice enough to keep me in supply of) and he had a cozy weekend just like me! Yay! I'm hoping one more day of rest is all I need to heal up then I'll be back at it tomorrow! In the meantime - I hope you like yeti. I wanted to set a few of these up for my craft booth - any suggestions for pricing on my hours and hours of handmade goodness?