Tutti Frutti

A little something to brighten up these winter days!  I crocheted this round cushion with some yarn I purchased last year.  The initial plan was to make centerpieces for our wedding guests' tables involving Mason jars and hundreds of bright pom poms.  Since it takes my about 10 minutes to make a pom pom, multiply that by several hundred and you get the idea.  Instead we went with a simpler method; flowers and pin favors.  I'm glad to have worked through some of my stash, however there is always more!

We had a great local photographer shoot the event! Check her out!

First Craft Show

This weekend I had my first craft show!  It was great fun meeting the other vendors and chatting with the customers who came out.  This wasn't really my target market, but I still learned a lot about my business, customer and set-up.  Now I'm ready to do more!  I'll keep you posted on future events.

One thing I used a bit was this really great credit card swiper from Square.  You get the swiper used on your smartphone for free, and they only take 2.75% per sale.  One downfall is your amounts are slowly inputted into your checking, but other than that it's a great thing to have if you're doing shows.

Longing for Spring

With 6 more weeks of snow, and another estimated 18 inches of snowfall today, I am optimistically reminded of the future months to come.  I'm excited to get out on nature walks and hopefully participate in some urban gardening this spring.

Below are a few photos from our trip to Mackinac Island on lake Huron this past summer.  This town is the ultimate in simple living.  With no cars or modern architecture, it feels as though you've stepped back into the Victorian era.  For those who live there in the winter, food is often airlifted and delivered.  Perhaps a nice place to live as a hermit during the winter months, though 12 inches of snowfall can do that for you even in one of the largest cites in the Midwest.  We hope to travel back to Mackinac soon.

Gorey

Lately, I've been in love with the somewhat macabre but utterly delightful storytelling and illustration of Mr. Edward Gorey.  Here are several of my favorite pages from Amphigorey.

Golden Thrift #3

Little boxes

Hard at Work

Lately I've been hard at work prepping for my first craft show.  Painting, printing, crocheting and sewing fill my days.  Here are some hand painted text banners in progress!

My drawing table is my companion through these days.  Last year, we drove out to the sticks  to purchase and pick up this gem from a sweet little old woman.  It was such a find.  Below are some super great finds in case I ever have to part with my wobbly-legged, cracked surface love.

Hollywood at Home

Lisa's RetroStyle

Reclaimed Home

Apartment Therapy

For Strange Women

Reclaimed Home Store

I've come across these salvaged gems and couldn't resist sharing.  I stumbled upon Briana's salvaged home back this spring, and still can't get it out of my mind.  It received controversial discussion with the ever-so-modern Apartment Therapy crowd.  Sure, the taxidermy craze, if you can call it that, has turned into a ridiculous hipster phenomenon, but I love the destroyed yet cherished feel of her home.  

Also, I felt obliged to share the ever lovely cosmetic shop For Strange Women.  A truly inspired brand, the concoctions and packaging leave little to be desired.  Very few of us can say no to such beautiful product and brand design.

I found Reclaimed Home Store admittedly via Google image search, but was immediately drawn into this green story in renovation.  This couple has single-handedly renovated many Victorian era properties, and also creates home items out of salvaged materials.  It parallelled quite nicely with a very interesting book I'm currently enjoying called "Castles in the Air".  It chronicles a young Welsh couple's attempt to renovate a 15th century castle.  Though the title is a little campy, it's beyond interesting with loads of historical information as well as supernatural accounts.  Castles and magic?  A total nerd's dream.  

Alphabet Soup

Lately, I've been enjoying the addition of text into my work.  It can create a simple narrative and help illustrate the overall theme.  This week, in prep for an upcoming craft show I'm working on (more details later), I've been hard at work crocheting some word banners!  

Oh My Cavalier

I've also been obsessed with the "Oh My Cavalier" drawing blog.  She successfully uses text to bring her story of woodland creatures and Victorian imagery to life.  Her lovely watercolors are intricate and modest simultaneously.  What a grand collection!  http://ohmycavalier.blogspot.com/

Girl with Green Eyes

Bow to My Arrow

This weekend Dylan and I worked on some linoleum cuts.  In the spirit of St. Val's coming up, I carved this lovely bow and arrow.