Tea with Lindsay!

Well it's the day before the big craft show so while I get the pleasure of road tripping to Kelowna with a car full of crafty goods, I figure I'd give you a sneak peak of the wonderful framed tea post cards lindsay bought!


I think they look so sharp in those Zeller's great buy frames and I can't wait to see where she hangs them in her darling kitchen! I really like the idea of the multiple use out of the cards and really like the idea of marketing them as "art postcards" just like leslie and lindsay mentioned back when I debuted my postcards a while back (link). They actually sold out a lot quicker than I expected so we'll see how quickly the second print of sets goes...or maybe I'll just sell out of all my goods at the craft sale and need to start reconsidering my career goals...who knows...

Friday Find: Me!

So its 2am the night (well morning) before I head to kelowna for my very first craft show and as predicted I am frantically putting together all the details! Good thing I have a huge amount of lists to keep me organized! Unfortunately, I also realized that I failed to prepare a "friday find" post for you loyal followers - so instead you can find me! At the streaming cafe craft sale saturday from 10-4! (596 Leon) I promise to be more put together by then - look at the state of things right now:


Okay - not terrible...but slightly less than the perfection I was hoping for. Tea cozies got the boot after power outage after power outage foiling my crafty plans and I still have to hammer on some snaps for the coffee sleeves. I hammered on four moments ago until I realized how ridiculously loud hammering is this early in the morning... but I'm hoping I will manage to fit them in after I get some much needed sleep! I also need to stop by the bank and get some change for my float, pick up the labels from the laminaters (aka dad), and pack my overnight bag for my wonderful stay with lindsay! Wish me luck!

ps. I wrote another blog post to go up for today before realizing how I neglected to do my regularly friday scheduled one - so win for you! Double post friday yet again!

Hooray!

If it wasn't overly obvious from the months of my sister's baby related comments, my sister leslie is preggers! This will be the first baby in my direct family (making me officially an auntie!) and the second in the extended fam (oh, I guess more like 6th in the extended extended family - if you include all those 3rd and 4th cousins..). I told her I'd do a post about it once she put up some images and behold - my new niece/nephew at four months(ish):


Can't really tell how cute it is going to be, but I'm sure it will be adorable! This also gives me the wonderful excuse to start searching out baby crafts to get working on! I may have already purchased a super adorable baby craft book a while back in kelowna, but don't really want to write about it here because then my sister will see and ruin the surprise! Same with a few items I've been checking out on etsy. But I'm still all for ideas! Any great baby tips and crafty resources you have to share?

Crafty Preparation!

Well my very first craft show is quickly approaching (eep! It's on saturday!) and as promised here are a few updates on items I have been creating! Hooray! It's so nice to feel semi prepared (I have quite the plethora of stressed out organizational lists and totes! Thanks linds), but there is still a ton left to do so the next few days will be dedicated to working diligently (with help from fraser and mom I hope...). Okay - lets check out a few of the items I have completed though:

1) Fabric Rings

Super colourful and fun - and available in a variety of sizes! Lovingly displayed on the fantastic ring stand fraser made for me too! I told him once the show is over he'll have to start buying me more rings to fill the stand he made...I don't think he agreed with that statement...


2) Felt Flower Brooches

A project I took on last xmas for a few friend's presents - until I realized how difficult and time consuming they are to make! But they are so adorable I couldn't resist! Plus I wanted a few "not overly science-y" items for the show since it is in a coffee shop and that niche science geek market will not be too overpowering. I managed to make 20 of these gems, in varying colours and am so happy with how they turned out! Lindsay wears hers all the time (and I've worn mine on a few occasions) and the response is always wonderful. I'm most fond of the yellow, but the dark grey and dark purple also tickle my fancy - you decide on your favourite:


3) Moo Order Two!

I was weary if these would show up in time - but fortunately they arrived with loads of time to spare (yeah - a whole 4 days!). Thanks to the wonderful hole punching, ribbon cutting, and tying efforts of jim and lindsay I have a whole slew of bookmarks to sell/give away and restocked postcards! (Bethany I'll set a tea set aside for you if you're still interested?). I love how charming moo's packaging is (they even remembered me!), and am always impressed with their super thick, environmentally friendly, cardstock. I may have even snuck in a few thumbs up saskquatchs for a springy edition of the yeti. Take a look:


Yay! I'm still frantically preparing for the show, and am still working on whipping up the sleeves and tea cozies which will hopefully get completed in time. Stupid real job is annoyingly getting in the way but I'm really buckling down to prepare myself for the show. I figure tonight after work I'll finish cutting everything out, get first six sleeves ready for sewing while embroidering the last three. Then I'll magically time warp back in time and get the tea cozies done...okay...not so likely...but a girl can dream. I also need to work on figuring out my layout for the table and make some price tags to get laminated. Whew!

I need more FOTC in my life

Is anyone else super depressed about the lack of flight of the conchords in their life like I am? Well be sad no more with these lovely DIY brett and jemaine paper dolls from morgan gleave!


These really make me wish I had a colour printer! (oh wait...I do have one, it's just still in the box and there's no space for it in my room). Maybe I'll get motivated enough to go down to office depot and get them done there...then I could recreate my own quirky FOTC episodes! Hahaha! Could you imagine! I better get on this...

Mail Box Bliss

I'm not sure if you're as enthralled by post as I am but mail pretty much makes my day (well...good mail anyways...). So I'm sure you can guess how I felt after running into this:


Hooray! Double parcels! For me! Gigantic ones too! (Please note how annoying Canada Post is and how easily someone could have swiped this) Yay! But it was sort of a mystery what that huge package was since I really didn't recall ordering anything that large. Under closer inspection, it was from the Canadian Broadcasting Company - meaning that wonderful lindsay must have sent our joint purchase to my house! Woohoo! Even though the majority of the goods were hers, it did lead to the arrival of my favourite new fantastic pin. Behold:


I can't wait to casually work this into some every day looks and attempt at becoming CBC Radio 3's biggest fan. Okay...I know I will never actually reach that status - but CBCR3 is pretty amazing! What beats free streaming amazingly talented and catchy independent Canadian music? This is where you answer, "Why yes kate! You are absolutely correct! Give me that link so I can be won over too!" Lovely. Glad you agree. Give it a nice listen then! (link).

In other news - lindsay and I do have some top secret CBCR3 related plans that might actually give us number one fan status...but I'll fill you in on that as it solidifies a bit. Oh, and if you're curious what all that other mail is - sit tight, I'll be posting about my plethora of parcels over the next few weeks while I frantically craft and organize up a storm for my craft show on may 1st! Exciting!

Percy the Cat: An outsider's perspective on a devilish personality

Due to my overwhelming stressed-out-ness from frantically preparing for my upcoming craft show, I've taken the day off from blogging and you get the special treat of a guest post written by fraser! Enjoy!


Greeting Kate lovers!!! My wonderful girlfriend has given me this opportunity to share my thoughts on this most sophisticated house pet. Some of you may have experienced his charming social skills first hand, others may only know him by reputation. Whatever the case, Percy is my most favorite cat in the world, which is saying something as I am allergic to him!!!

First things first. If you are ever going to enjoy an social outing with this feline make sure that you bring lots of Whiskas Temptation brand cat treats. In fact, I just used some of these to lure Percy away from his favorite activity of clawing at my arms while typing this blog post. At least that part of him is predictable. So if you don't have cat treats, I wouldn't bother trying to get on his good side. Second, I would say that Percy takes a long time to warm up to a person. I've known Percy for over 2 years and I still can't make sudden moves towards him. I'm hoping that sometime during 2010 I'm going to be able to give him a nice pat without him hissing at me.

Now after reading this, you might be thinking "How could Percy be your favorite cat in the world Fraser?". The answer is that Percy has individuality. He really is an interesting fellow. I've known lots of cats who do cat things, but I've never met one who not only has to have water drip from the tap at a specific speed, but also needs to drink it by letting it soak into his paws and lick it off. The other thing about him that is great is that he is never predictable (except for treats, see above). Percy most definitely keeps me on my toes around Kate's house. Whether he is blending in with the hardwood floor (conveniently colored for his camouflaged comfort) or hiding on top of the cupboards in a dark kitchen waiting to leap upon me, Percy makes life with a high heart rate easy to find.

And now, I will say goodbye, before a certain cat realizes he is being written about and decides to make some editing decisions.

i heart buttons

Poppytalk's photostream (on flickr) is a world of inspiration. I love sifting through their albums of beautifully photographed imagery dreaming about recreating all their rad projects. One such project I'm quite fond of this framed pinback button heart:


What a sweet idea! I love how bright and colourful it is and what a great conversation piece it could be! I know all my buttons have little stories (much like amy browne's magnets) and you could be pleasantly reminded of all those good memories each time you passed this piece in the hall! The only problem for me would be deciding which buttons to use from my massive collection (believe me - I've been collecting pinback buttons forever). It also conveniently provides yet another use for my scientific culture pinback buttons! Hooray! Now to wait for a micheal's coupon to arrive so I can frugally buy a white shadow box frame...

Welcome back Pseudomonas!

Looks like double blog post Fridays are all the rage so I better keep up with the trend! I'd like to welcome back a nice culture of anthropomorphic pseudomonas aeruginosa to my shop after a brief period of being sold out. Check out these adorable little dudes:


I am so pleased how all their little wide set eye smiles turned out! I even redid the photos of them in my shop so customers can get the freshest most accurate image of the product! So cute! And bonus - one more item crossed off of my "craft show to do make" list! I do have my doubts that P. aeruginosa will really be a huge seller at the craft sale, but you never know, his more popular buddies anthrax, chlamyida, and e.coli will be there to accompany him and might tweak some sciencey interest! Or just someone who likes miny green coloured jelly bean smile plush? Sure...that works too...

Friday Find: Fox in the Woods

This week's find is thanks to sweet sweet life. She so lovingly pointed out how distractingly cute the crochet amigurumi goodies at fox in the woods are and I wholeheartedly agree! Here are my favs:


That baby yeti in a tea cup is too cute for words! And the little party dresses and skirt on the bunnies and fox are extra darling! The patterns are available in the shop as well so if you're feeling crafty and adventurous you can create your own! Just in case you don't have enough projects on the go...

April Showers

Time for a little extra celebration of one of my favourite button sets of my new design bunch - rain! Nothing beats a nice downpour to cool off a hot summer day and there is nothing like a little april sprinkle to help melt away the snow and bring out those spring flowers! Apparently I'm not the only one that thought so since Hearts Run Free snagged an april shower's themed treasury:


Darling! Check it out here until later tonight, or just check out the image above for long lasting rainy enjoyment!

And if that wasn't enough I also got a nice mention in AJ's blog as she received her rain button set from my giveaway! Glad to see she's enjoying her buttons (and her mini moo bookmark too)! Hooray! I got an email from kate (another of my giveaway winners) who said her microbe pins are enjoying their stay on her backpack. Cute!

Oh - looks like my woodland creatures made it into treasury form too (Yay!). This one is particularly cute - thanks Abject Craftility!

Anthropomorphic creatures are my fav! Check it out here for some click and comment love! What a wonderful day!

Matchbook Notepads Perhaps?

I'm always looking for fun new products to make using my illustrations and have been craving a dabble in the world of notepads for some time! I've never been very adventurous in the ways of professional print shop products since (looks like list time):

1) I'm not familiar with what print shop to go to

2) I'm not exactly a photoshop pro and am not totally sure how to set up the files to get printed

3) I don't want to look like a complete idiot when I try to talk to a print shop person and have them potentially swindle me

and
4) I wouldn't want to pay butt loads of money to get something printed up b/c then if I went to resell it in my shop it would be too expensive to be profitable (bad business move)

However - I did come across this wonderful staple free matchbook notebook tutorial I am dying to try out. Look at these gems:


I totally think I could pull these off and the sewn line is such a good alternative to staples (leaves a nice perforated edge if you tear out sheets too)! Now I just have to decide what images to put on there...any suggestions?

Tackle box planter

I stumbled across this amidst my daily internet surfing and boy so I ever think this is neat! Behold - the tackle box planter:


I feel like this is the epitome of dad & mom hobbies combined into fantasticness! It would look so awesome on the porch or patio (hint hint lindsay) and would be cool as a little herb garden too! I'm extra fond of the little lours hidden in there for extra authentic detail. Even though I am sure we could all figure out how to do this without instructions, the wonderful people at craftzine provided a tutorial for your crafting ease. How upset do you think dad would be if I stole one of his tackle boxes for this project? How about if I just snafooze a few extra lours? Flies? Okay...maybe not...looks like I need to check out some garage sale/flea markets this summer. Probably a better idea...

Project: Craft Show!

If I haven't previous expressed how fantastically awesome lindsay is - this is sure to convince you. She has single-handedly become both my biggest fan and my fantastic PR girl and is a constant source of motivation (even though she lives 2 hours away)! She has swindled me into doing my very first craft show (which, along with banjo-ness, is my 2010 goal) by sending me an emailing telling me that, "this has you written ALL over it":


Ahaha - oh lindsay. Who could resist with such an entertaining email? So I've signed up and have been spending the last week attempting to organize the crap out of this endeavor! Long nights of to do lists, craft show research (online, in person, and in print), and slave labor have left me somewhat (but really not at all) prepared. Let me break it down for you (and no, not in a sweet rap way more like a "bunch of lists" way)...


What I've figured out so far:

- Where I'm staying and how I'm getting there (since the show is in Kelowna - hint hint to anyone in close proximity)
- What I need to bring, and what the show is going to provide
- When they'll be open for me to set up
and
- That I pretty much have to craft as much as humanly possible (using tiered price points, catchy staging, and a variety of kelowna cafe friendly items) to prepare for the show!!! Eek!


The crafty goods I plan to sell:

- pinback buttons/magnet sets (cute, affordable, I have loads of them)
- post/art cards (stressfully scheduled to arrive the week before the show - come on canada post!)
- my mini moo bookmark/gift tags (leslie suggested this one as a super inexpensive impulse buy. I can hang into a nice display and give them out with sales too!)
- plush microbes (colourful, 3D, and almost finished - just need to stuff and seal the last of the pseudomonas)
- quilted rings (fun, stylish, and thankfully completed - now to con dad into making a stand for them)
- felt flower brooches (charming, fashionable, but time consuming. Luckily I've got them all cut out and ready for a few hours of embroidering! I might break down and whip out the glue gun for this one)
- coffee sleeves! (perfect for the occasion, and hot sellers. I have all the supplies and am hoping 2 weeks is ample time to whip them up. Also hoping I can swindle pro-seamstress mom into helping me with these too *eye lash flutter*)
- tea cozy (attempt at a higher price point item, thinking of doing a love robot one and a tea set one...still open to suggestions for a third design)
- veggie totes (already have the prototype and pattern for these babies but will only make them if I am oozing with time)


And finally - what is still left to be done:

- figuring out a table cloth/sign/prices sign(s) option
- making a nice chart to track sales of items
- whipping up a snazzy cash holding mini apron (mom to the rescue!!!)
- craft show promotion (letting my wonderful fans, friends, and family know what the heck I'm doing - although this blog post is a good start...)
- pick out what outfit to wear (you laugh, but this is serious business!)
- getting a few pro star storage bins to tote my wares to the show in and keep me organized
- figure out how I'll package up items (I've got some nice recycled brown bags to use but am really hoping fraser will help me make a stamp to customize them with *hint hint*)
- planning and staging my display (with multi-levels, loads of eye catching interest, and looking full and friendly without being overstocked)
and
- hours of crafting (obviously...)

Whew! Is that all? What have I got myself into!? I figure if it ends up being an epic disaster it is all experience regardless and it is only a one day show so I don't need to fret about running out of items for a second day or anything. I'll try to keep you all posted on my fantastic progress and crafting endeavors, but chances are until I feel ahead of the game I will be a little preoccupied with preparation! I'm also dying to know if anyone out there has any tips for me? I'm eager to hear! Wish me luck!

Sbux Cacti

Starbucks often carries some of the cutest tea cups and mugs out there! Being a mug hoarder (I must have 30+ mugs at this point...and the collection continues to grow...), I feel like I've developed "cute mug radar" and am naturally drawn to attractive cups. As soon as I saw the adorable nesting tea cup set starbucks, I knew I had to snap it up! Recently my mug selecting abilities have teamed up with my mom's cacti collection to come up with this creation:


Aren't they darling? I bought the cacti at "the greenery" in kelowna last time I was there and I am so happy with how well they fit these tea cups. I also really like how my mom put aquarium rocks on top of the cactus soil for a more finished look. Perfect! One more wonderful thing? How easy it was to take that picture! Yet again I've managed to photograph while stinkums (percy) is napping! And boy did he ever look cute...until I woke him up trying to capture his cuteness...


I think at this point he was still deciding whether or not to come attack me, but that glare is priceless. Maybe he's just upset that I brought cacti home and not more spider plants he very much prefers to munch on...tough toots bubba. Those cacti are staying.

Oh Internet...

Oh internet...how I love you...


Thanks to the random site generation of stumble upon we've been blessed with this adorable darth on cat image. I wish mini darth would ride percy around our house...because we all know percy is sith. Sure he's cute, but there is no denying how evil he is. Seriously...

In other wonderful news - Rachel did a sweet "i heart science" post on her blog and included my plush microbes! (link)! Woohoo!

Clean Sheets!

When I got my spout of extreme illness a few weeks ago, my poor compromised immune system was working overtime! In its elevated weakness, opportunistic pathogens dominated my skin's defenses and I got the glorious pleasure of contracting impetigo. Gross. Reflecting back on the infection has reminded me of one fantastic thing - clean sheets are the best thing ever!


Mmm. Nothing beats crawling into crisply laundered linens (especially with fresh jammies) and having a highly contagious skin infection means I had to have clean sheets every night! Now that I'm back to semi-perfect health I'm really missing that fresh sheet luxury! It was so nice! But when it comes down to it, I'm much too lazy wash my bed linens every day to get that feeling back...and it would be so bad for the environment! But even still...it was nice...

All this clean sheet discussion makes me wonder:

- How often do you change your sheets?
- How many different sets of sheets do you own/use?
- Do you make your bed every morning?
and
- Can you think of a bigger daily luxury? (Uhh...within reason...)

In other news - my rain button set got featured on sand fiber's blog! Yay! (link!)

Multiple Post Friday!

Yup - once again it looks like I have so much to spill I need to do multiple posts! I guess that is the thrill of being so wonderfully blog post scheduled in advance - plus I'm sure no one minds my extra musings after my friday find thing right? (And if you do mind - then why are you reading this!?)

Here we go:
1) Hooray! Thumbs up yeti made it into a treasury east!


How lovely! 42 Things was nice enough to include me in her "wild, warm, and whimsy in the north" collection from loads of fellow Canadians! Check it out live for some comment and clicking love! I didn't even know "treasury east" existed! Or it's crazy more horizontal format! Neat! But I'm not sure how long it will be sticking around...so better click on that link quickly if you'd like to catch a glimpse...

**OoO! Update! It's true! Treasury east is new! I snagged a spot in a super quirky mad scientists of etsy feature too - take a look:

Double hooray! Can you spot my darling little wide set eye smile influence? Don't forget to comment and click it up!

2) Misobel's blog post of her order!


I find it amazingly flattering that a customer (especially such a great blog following/facebook fan/twitter friend like Mary) took the time to document the arrival/appreciate of her goods! I think the mustache kitties look awesome in her photograph and I'm glad to see the tea pot mini moo is enjoyed as well! Yay!

3) My current to do list:

As a listing fiend I am feeling slightly overwhelmed with the amount of items I've decided to take on. Here is my documented goals for the day:

- photograph some sweet mail arrivals for future posts
- write a few more blog posts about the exciting things happening in my life! (to be scheduled into the next few weeks or so)
- chose an amazing outfit for the art show I'm going to tonight (any suggestions?)
- attempt some belated pen palery
- finally get around to those blog featured interviews I've been procrastinating!

Five things doesn't seem too unrealistic - here's hoping I can successfully manage the truncated list! What are your plans for the rest of the day?

Friday Find: Digby & Iona

I'm not exactly sure how I ended up stumbling across Digby & Iona, but I'm sure glad I did! They've got quite the collection of bold nature and vintage style pieces of jewelery sure to augment any wardrobe! I'm particularly fond of the stump ring:


It has such great detail and is available in sterling or sterling brass with or without engraving! Lovely! I also really like some of their bolder animal rings (like the fighting bears, octopus, 14 point stag, and giant hare) but they might be crossing over to a little too much for my style. Maybe not...but I bet you'd get loads of compliments (or wide eyed "what is she thinking" stares) wherever you went! What do you think?

Molecular DNA Art!

A while back I did a post about dna 11's sweet gel electrophoresis art pieces, which in all honestly, I'm still super in love with. The article caught the attention of Dr. Rich Taylor, a scientist in a small art studio that offers a scientific art based on the atoms in your DNA. He asked if I would write a follow up article to my first DNA art one and I aim to please! (I think it's awesome that someone actually emailed me with a blog post idea by the way - Leslie! take note please). Similar to dna 11's method, dna-images uses your very own genetic blueprints to make personalized artwork, this time to the molecular level! Take a look at a few samples:


I think it's pretty awesome how you can get all of that biological goodness from a little swab from your cheek! After all, DNA is pretty much the coolest thing on the planet, it's about time we celebrate it in art form!

Brahbrah

Do you ever watch a movie and instead of just enjoying the film, you spend the whole time obsessing over where you know that actor from? I'm definitely one of those people. I don't want to admit defeat and run to the computer to check either, I'd rather have the satisfying realization on my own, you know? I had one of those moments the other day when I was watching Whip It. I really enjoyed the movie (being a sucker for girly feel good flicks) but I just couldn't pin point where I knew the roller derby team captain "Maggie Mayhem" from! Here she is on the right:


I knew she played some odd-ball character in some quirky show but which one was it? After many moments of torment I figured it out! What other show am I that obsessed enough with to sculpt remotely referenced characters from and sell them on etsy? Why flight of the conchords of course! I quote that show daily! How could I not have an intimate imaginary relationship with each episodes' characters? That's right - Kristen Wiig played Brahbrah in season two (that crazy woman who lost her epileptic dog). There she is:


*Sigh* I feel so much better now for solving that puzzle! Until next time...

Plant Neglect Works?

My mom is an avid gardener. In fact, my parents ripped up their front lawn to make more room for plants (well...and because front lawns are useless). However, even thought the exterior of our house is a flourish of flora (man alliteration is awesome), our inside plants live a rough life of neglect, cat munching, and drought! In fact, pretty much the only plants that survive are cacti and the occasional "neglect friendly" flowering something or other. Well to my utter amazement, the orchid my mom saved from the compost at my grandma's a few years back is blooming! Seriously. Orchids are notoriously picky and it's supposed to be super difficult to get them to rebloom! How in the world did she manage to have this flower! And look how pretty it is:


That might just be nice enough to be my new desktop image! It is so gorgeous! Although when you look at the actual plant, it does have one ugly blemish - those awful stinky air roots that mom didn't trim. I think that is actually probably why it flowered. I'd imagine most people would see those gross wormy shoots grow out of the pot and cut them off. Ick. Here's a full potted picture so you can see them:


Okay, they don't even look that bad in that picture. But I think it's because you're distracted by the pretty orchid blooms. Imagine how ugly that plant was for the last few years with only those crazy wild roots and four measly leaves popping out. Ugly roots aside, apparently orchids will flower if neglected. Way to go mom!

300th Sale Giveaway Winners!

What a wonderful success my giveaway turned out to be with 119 comments, 22 new blog followers, and a boat load of twitter and facebook fans! Hooray! Now onto the winners (thanks to the fantastic randomness of random.org)

Drumroll please...

Congrats to kate stumpter (comment 94) , aj (comment 28), and lindsay (comment 26)! Please give me a shout and tell me your addresses so I can mail away your awesome winnings! Thanks again to everyone for your kind words and entries! And if I manage to stumble into excessive funds in the near future I'll be sure to spread it around (in the form of wide set eye smile buttons)! Yay!

Scarf Update & The Wrath of Percy

Back in january, I whipped up a scarf organizer I modified from one I saw on the internet and was super stoked on my newly achieved closet adornment! (Check it out here). Well I've been living and enjoying this contraption for quite a few months now and a few days ago I came across the most horrifying realization - percy (el gato diablo) has been EATING THE BOTTOM OF MY SCARVES! ACK! I told you that cat was evil. My poor scarves! Look:


*Sob* What a stinker he is! I hope they were tasty! So now I have I've had to modify my scarf organizer to this:


Because clearly that is as attractive as the original...and when I went to give percy heck for his awful doings this is pretty much what I stumbled across:


Yeah. He's adorable. But his cuteness isn't getting those scarf tassels back anytime soon...looks like I need to go shopping for more replacement scarves...what a hard life I live...

Vinyl DIYs

Threadbanger just might be my new favourite website for crafty inspiration! I don't know why it took me so long to stumble across it! They've got a weeky roundup of DIY projects that are ridiculously inspiring! I need a good three months off and some disposable income so I can attempt every single one! I am particularly drawn to the crafty projects made from old vinyl records. Here are a few I'm tempted to try out:


I'm sure all of the projects they have in the vinyl diy roundup would all be super fun to try out but the pictures of these ones were most appealing. Check out that mail organizer! Post and thrifty crafting? How could you go wrong? Which ones are your favs?

We interrupt your regularly scheduled program...

I've been working really hard at making up for lost sick time and have been buckling down on those blasted to do lists! (and by blasted I mean wonderful?) All this productivity has resulted in scheduling a nice boat load of blog posts for the next few weeks too! Hooray! Overachiever-y progress!!! All this blog preparedness has actually left me with a surplus of articles to share so just like last friday, I've got some bonus posting for you! Here's the stuff I felt necessary to add into my blog today:

1) Square-dancing Mushrooms from Articulate Matter!


Who doesn't love a little fungus and gingham crinoline? (Okay, so they're not wearing fluffy skirts - but that is one of the best things about square dancing). I've really been enjoying all the clay sculpted goodness from Articulate Matter ever since I stumbled across them back in March, and find it refreshing that the dikarya she chose are strangely familiar to my very own mushroom button set:


2) Mother's Day Treasury Feature!

Thanks to Slitely Askew for including my tea buttons in her awesome picks for mom! I loved this treasury so much I even purchased something from one of the shops featured! Any guesses on what I bought? The treasury is up until saturday evening so give it some click and comment love or view the timeless page capture here:


3) Wide set eye error messages from etsy!


Yup - pretty darned cute. I love how the yarn is sad the sweater has three arms too. I find I often end up in craft-astrophes like this and have no clue what I did wrong! Much like no clue what I clicked on etsy to get this image! Oh well! At least it's cute!

4) Fantastic/Crud-tastic developments!

It seems like every time I get one thing right something conveniently counteracts the awesome thing. Way to go life. Stop playing around. The list of good/not so good things includes:

- Great craft and dollar store finds/being sold out of the one thing I actually needed
- Finally getting over my plethora of infections/bombardment of more chronic incurable illness (rats!)
- Action packed crafting and indie rock May/doubfulness of being able to get the time off work
- Crazy amount of packages I'm expecting in the mail/only bills in the mailbox
- Epic brainstorm of ideas to blog and craft/No time!

Okay...I think everyone runs into that "not enough time and money" thing once in a while (or, you know, all the time?), but that is all part of the fun challenge of life! If you didn't have a few dozen hurdles to jump over then it wouldn't be as fulfilling when you get to the finish line. Or at least that's what I'll tell myself. Maybe you should just scroll back up to those mushrooms again and I'll pretend I left this post on a positive note...yay! Adorable mushrooms!

Friday Find: All I really want is squirrels Necklace

I'm not sure if you've ever taken a look at Orchid Grey, but it is certainly a charming blog to read! Julie shares all of her wonderfully creative (generally thrifted) outfits and is an inspiration to frugal fashionistas everywhere. A few days ago she was wearing this "all i really want is squirrels" necklace from mod cloth (here's julie in her rad outfit) and if it wasn't for their outrageously inflated shipping costs, I bet it would be on its way to me via mail at this very moment. Take a look:


Pretty ridiculously cool if you ask me, and who doesn't love squirrels? Especially gold ones!? It seems to be a common trend in my blog lately where I pine about wanting loads of cash to spend frivolously on awesome accessories...maybe more crafting is in order? I think so...better get back to work then..

Yeti time!

I got the wonderful pleasure of being interviewed for an article Michelle did for her blog indie smiles. The two part feature was all about yeti and bigfoot and their constant appearances on etsy! She stumbled across my thumbs up yeti button set and thought I was a perfect candidate to be included in the article! I've been meaning to blog about this for quite some time (seriously - the article was posted in march...) and I figure no time like the present! Especially since it gives me the excuse to show off my super limited edition (didn't even put it in my shop) thumbs up yeti postcard I made:


Isn't he cute! I sent him to a very special sibling of mine (in fact my only sibling!) and I certainly hope leslie is enjoying him!

As for the blog article, Michelle asked us all a few questions and the answers are both hilarious and very much give you an idea of the unique personalities of the crafters who sell on etsy.

Here are a few answers to the question, "What would you do if you ran into Bigfoot or Yeti?" (see if you can pick out my answer):

- "Hopefully shoot some non-shaky film, get some un-fake-able photos, and throw a press conference."

- “Offer him a cupcake. And then run."

- "compare shoe sizes."

- "I’d ask him to have a drink with me so we could get acquainted in a relaxed atmosphere. Then, if he was up to it, we’d go shoe shopping and he’d buy a pair of Onitsuka Tigers if they had his size (royal blue ones with white stripes and red accents). If things were still going well, we’d go out for a pasta dinner and then maybe catch a concert if someone good was playing. At the end of the night, I’d send him home with a plush Domo to keep him company in the woods and a promise to call within a week."

- "(Hope they recognize the fur-less me and) give them a big hug, catch up on all the bigfoot gossip, and tell them about my city adventures."

- "As a scientist, fact and logic always seem to override any possibility of imaginary undiscovered North American creatures so if I ran into bigfoot or yeti I’d be sure to give him a killer high five and request a small fur sample for microsatellite genetic species analysis! Interestingly enough, during my undergrad I actually performed genetic tests on hair samples collected from scientists in attempt to identify the unknown species of Sasquatch. Unfortunately the fur ended up being black bear…but it was exciting nonetheless…"

- "Give the dude some space. I’ve heard they’re pretty smelly."


Okay - it's pretty obvious. And I do like to ramble don't I? Well I certainly recommend checking out the articles (part 1 here, part 2 here) and some of the other rad bigfoot/yeti goods! What fun! Anyone not able to guess my answer?

Sprout Card

I've always wanted to experiment with sewing on paper and this sweet "sew-a-sprout" tutorial is the perfect place to start! Look how darling this card is:


How wonderful! I love the simplicity and great greens they chose and the fact that the sewing lines aren't enormously difficult (so I could potentially even pull this one off!). Perhaps once I tackle a few more pressing items on that crafty to do list I'll whip this one up and send them off to a few deserving pen pals (you know who you are!....I think?).

MSOE FB FP

I've been a proud member of the mad scientists of etsy (msoe) team ever since I started selling on etsy back in october of 2008. It's a great group of scientists and science enthusiasts who sell their wares over etsy and I've had such a good time being part of the team. We have monthly science-related challenges and interesting science-related features and interviews on our blog too! This year we've opted to split up the team tasks and thanks to Julie D'Arcy - we now have a facebook fan page! And boy was I ever surprised and honored to be included in the profile picture! Take a look:


Isn't that awesome! My cute little lab ware buttons are officially one fourth representing the msoe on facebook! Yay! I'm excited to see how the fan page goes over and hopefully it will draw a little more attraction to the group.

The fact that my labware pins were picked also reminded me how insanely popular they have been from my new wave of pinback button designs. Seriously! I'm almost sold out already and they've barely been available a month now! The lab ware postcard set also sold out quickly. Whew! Yay! But whew! Obviously I'll make more of the buttons (in fact I have a top secret new and extra exciting plan for my pins), but I'm not certain of what to do with the postcard situation! I've had a few requests for reprints (bethany = tea, linds = veg) which is awesome but I'm not sure what else to do! Looks like list time!

Questions that come to mind include:

- Do I mass order sets so I have loads on stock? (good for craft sales too but bad for the pocket book)

- Which sets do I get reprinted (obviously tea, veg, lab ware - but what else)?

- Should I change up any of the designs? Add new ones?

- Should I remarket them as art cards over post cards? (I like the dual option - but I think ppl would be more willing to pay $8 for art than post)

ACK! Too many decisions! Any and all feedback would be greatly appreciated...

300th Sale Giveaway!

In celebration of my 300th sale I've decided to add some extra excitement to the week and hold a giveaway! After all, I'm stoked on my etsy progress and who doesn't like free stuff? The freebies up for grabs? Some wide set eye smile pinback button sets! Here's the bunch to choose from:


Winnings are as follows:

First Prize = Button set of your choice (from above)
Second Prize = Button set of my choice
Third Prize = Random set (that I have the most of...)

Yay! Here's how it works - leave a comment on this post telling me what you like most about my etsy site, blog, or me and you'll be entered to win! I'll be randomly selecting the giveaway winners at the end of the week (meaning the afternoon of sunday april 11th)! Easy enough right?

Bonus ways to enter:

- follow my blog! (and post another comment - if you're already a wonderful follower post a second comment reminding me for your second entry)

- fan me on facebook! (and comment telling me your facebook name)

- follow me on twitter and tweet about my giveaway! (comment with the link please)

- blog about my giveaway (comment with link again please!)


Hooray! I've even created a darling little reminder badge at the top of my blog to nag you for the next week to sign up (he he). Good luck!

**UPDATE - The giveaway is now closed - thanks to all who entered!**

"Egg-stra-special" Easter Tutorial

In grade 9 I had an extra odd Australian math teacher who would:

1) show daily Australian comic strips on the overhead before starting a lesson...which no one would ever get but he would laugh loudly at whatever the joke was ("hahaha! dog ran into the fence!")

2) play Beatles albums in silent reading

3) tell us that if you put something in quotations it is allowed to be spelled wrong. Then he'd try to make every example an "egg-sam-pill"-y spectacular pun. Hence the title of this post, and the quotations, and this prologue to the tutorial...

Now onto the post!

I'm not sure about you, but this picture certainly inspired me to want to make this craft!


But then I realized that (wow another list!):

1) I have way too much on my enormous to-do list after being ill for so long

2) Sending something this large in the mail would cost way too much for what it's worth. Boo Canada Post. Be cheaper please!

3) It's easter today! So even if I did manage to make this it would be a little late...so maybe next year?

So even if I don't get around to making it, I felt compelled to share it regardless. Behold - the cutest eastery pen pal tutorial yet:


Thank you poppytalk for being wonderfully inspiring and such great photographers! But if anyone feels like attempting this and sending it to me late I'd be okay with that...or perhaps I should track down Mr. Walker and send it to him? I wonder if he ever moved back to Australia...

Shine a light on my home

A few months ago I got the wonderful pleasure of visiting my dear friend lindsay and attending the most wondrous adrian glynn/aidan knight/dan managan gig! I had high hopes on purchasing an aidan knight album at that show (since I missed out last september at rifflandia because I was too busy rushing off to see mother mother) but unfortunately he was sold out! Rats! His new album (versicolour) hadn't been released yet so my hopes and dreams of physically owning/supporting the awkwardly fantastic musician had been crushed...temporarily. He assured me I would be able to get his album soon and if I bought the LP I could get the mp3 files free of charge (cool right?) plus he plans on coming to play in kamloops in may (which I totally can't wait for by the way...even if I can't find evidence of this show existing).

Well - two months have passed and I still haven't figured out how to get a copy of his album (that isn't on itunes, I feel physical copies are required for this one), so I decided to google him the other day and came across the most awesome discovery! If you sign up for his mailing list he'll send you two songs from versicolour for free! How unbelievably cool! I've been listening to "jasper" on repeat for the last few days now (obsessive much? I know) and hope it can tide me over until I can get my hands on his cds in may. I've also been enjoying the stop motion cereal quirky video from his website:

Yup. Pretty awesome. I also feel like the hugest creep by following him on twitter... which fraser reassured me is the whole reason they have twitter in the first place...but then I followed neil mangan (dan's brother/marketer extraordinaire) and felt like an even bigger creep...not that it stopped me...and at least I'm openly admitting to it...

Anyways, since I'm apparently all about rambling on about creepiness in this post I thought I'd show you all how much I think aidan knight is secretly heather ramsay's musical twin brother:


Perhaps not the most convincing picture but I'm sure you can see the similarities (sorry to steal a picture of you off facebook heather I figured following you around with a camera until you held a bowl of cereal might be a little much). They even have similar mannerisms and hilarious stage presence! I think my life will be officially complete once they meet and realize how separated at birth they both are...until then I think I'll go back to listening to jasper for a few more hours...

Freebie Alert!

Looks like I'm breaking my "one post a day" rule like crazy today and going for a fourth post! Oh my! This one is really worth it though - craftyFOLK (the awesome etsy shop I used as a friday find way back in november) is giving away 12 packs of her lovely owl stickers to anyone willing to blog about how wonderful her shop is! (Check out the freebie offer here)! All you have to do is write a post about your favourite item from her shop! Well - I couldn't chose one favourite so here are four:


Man her stuff is darling! In fact, I made a purchase from her shop a few weeks ago and am painstakingly waiting for it to arrive! That is one thing about long weekends I despise - no post! I'm sure I'll be doing a post on how much I love my new necklaces when they get here so keep your pants on, they'll arrive soon...I hope...

It's a three post kind of day.

I really need to start checking my flickr account more often. Not only did my moo.com products get a butt load of views but I also got quite a few flattering comments and a feature on cuteable! Take a look:


How charming! I think that jackelope feltidermy is extra cute too. I figured since I already did two posts today I might as well make it three and share this exciting news! Happy Friday to all!