Shop Update!

I still have to list my paperboard suitcases and Polaroid emulsions, but for the most part everything is up in my Etsy shop! The MICE show was a bit disappointing as far as traffic and sales (to say the least), but SO MUCH FUN. I always look forward to seeing Taryn, Carol, and Jason. They definitely made it worthwhile. Xoxo, you guys! Plus, I got to finally/officially meet Amanda who's so sweet. The beer and pizza were flowing, and I wish I could have partaken in the former. :)



Hope everyone had a fab weekend!

Liking & Anticipating!

Things I Like Today:

1. Last Christmas by Wham. Wonderfully cheesy and nostalgic. Oh. My. Gawd. I just found this picture. So great!


2. Cosi’s Signature Salad w/ reduced fat sherry shallot vinaigrette, dried cranberries, pistachios, grapes, and stinky bleu cheese (yes, I’m a bad PG woman and still eat bleu cheese)! YUM!
   
   
3. Q’s Xmas Gift that Ryan assembled last weekend. It’s in our guest room (where she plays often) with a blanket over it. Ahhh, the joys of having a 2 year old. Even if she sees it (and she’s never even attempted), she’d forget anyway.


4. My super blunt boss. He just said, “You smell like coneys (= coney dogs),” after eating #2 above. He probably would have also told me if I had greens in my teeth. I actually appreciate his bluntness quite a bit. He’s quite a character and a pretty good boss.
   


5. 30 Rock, 30 Rock, 30 Rock. I’d like to buy stock in the Sheinhardt Wig Company. Can I do that? Maybe I’ll just get one of these shirts.
   


6. http://www.retailmenot.com/. This is the best place to find online coupon codes! Such a great service. I try to add any online coupons I find too to share the love.
   


7. This picture! I didn't take it. Crafty Beaver did! Isn't it great??

Things I’m Looking Forward To:

1. The MICE show tomorrow! I have everything made but decided last minute not to use my Girl Land banner, so I’m going to make a Girl Land tree topper tonight to post my shop name. Not for sale of course. Also have to stamp up some more bags, but then I’m done.



2. 5th Annual Brunch w/ the girls Monday. Four of us take the day off work, have brunch at my house, drink bloody marys and mimosas, then go to Twelve Oaks to shop! Rule is PG people are the DD’s. Yes, we get that buzzed typically. It’s the one time each year that I get to bust out my grandmother’s Spode and entertain. This year, I’m making my favorite breakfast casserole, monkey bread, and a spiced fruit compote.
   


3. My ultrasound Tuesday! Q will soon learn whether she’ll have a little bro or sister coming. My gut feeling (no pun intended) is a boy. Of course I don’t care either way although I’m a bit lazy, so I just keep thinking how much more convenient a girl would be since we have all the clothes, room is already painted girlie, etc.
   
   
4. Christmas strawberries. I’m making cookies this weekend: Buckeyes, Hello Dollies (aka moon bars), frosted sugar cookies, and my beloved strawberries. Check out the comments I made on this recipe (I’m the first one) because the plastic stems are a must (no green sugar!). Warning: though they may look incredibly pretty and festive, besides my brother, cousin, and sis-in-law who have grown to love them, I don’t know many other people who do. Will post a pic after I make them. Need to think of some more innovative ways to package cookies for my friends/neighbors (check out Julie’s super cute idea!).
   

Have a lovely weekend full of fires in the fireplace, large mugs of peppermint hot cocoa, pretty snow that doesn’t stick to the roads, and non-stressful holiday shopping (boy, was that an oxymoron)!

The Girl Land Rubberstamp of Approval!

I'm so excited. I had a rubber stamp made for Girl Land by Miss Farrah of Sweet Papery. Isn't it nifty? I'm going to stamp my bags (with pink or red ink?) for the upcoming MICE show and add a snippet of Xmas-y ribbon to the handles. Fun fun!

I'm also excited because I've been looking for a cute mini address book since I (ahem) inadvertently threw my old one out while cleaning out my craft room. I bought a plain book from the dollar store and had the idea to doctor it up with a piece of Japanese fabric from my stash and a little apple shank button. I think it turned out A-ok, and I think I'm going to make a few more for the show. I wish I could keep the cost a little lower, but that dang fabric is so expensive. Think it still would make a fun little stocking stuffer.

My shop is going to be pretty blah until after the 12/8 show, but I'm going to try to keep clearing out some of my vintage stuff to add here and there. And I'll update with my handmade Xmas stuff on 12/9. I had 5 sets of these cute little ornaments, but 4 of 5 of them sold yesterday, so I was happy.

Bleachin' & Flockin'

That sounds like a name of a band or maybe a store if you added an "-N-" instead of the ampersand. Don't ask me what kind of store or band would have anything to do with Bleachin' OR Flockin'. I just thought it sounded funny. Anyway, that's what I've been doing today. I followed Sarah's how-to on bleaching the trees, but it wasn't working fast enough (I'm so impatient), so I took my trusty bleach pen to them. Here are before and after pics of the trees and wreath.

And remember the cute house I bought (for way too much) at a local shop last weekend?

Yeahhhhh, I was pretty P.O.ed because I went to Hobby Lobby whilst visiting my parents for Thanksgiving and OF COURSE they had an almost identical plain unpainted version of the house for a song. I bought it and will make a house of my own for the upcoming MICE show. Mine will be lots cheaper but it's already shaping up to be cuter than the one I bought. Drat. Above you will also see the greeny-blue roof I painted that is now plastered with silver glitter. It's detachable from the house, so you can put a little light inside.

And don't get me started on Hobby Lobby. God bless the HL! We have NONE in the Detroit metro area. It really is the best craft store, hands down. My friend is Business Development manager for the municipality that I work for, and she actually called their real estate division to try to entice them into our city. Unfortunately, a dumb independent grocer (and not a good one, a junky one) just went into a space they were interested in, but they still said they are fully intending on opening a store in the region. Thank goodness!

Hope everyone is recuping from the weekend. We all barely got out of our pj's today, but we had to go rake leaves. And not fun, dry, pretty leaves. Nasty, dirty, wet ones. The three of us were filthy head to toe. I put Quinn in this sweatshirt though from Target. Look at the adorable whale print! So adorably 80s in spirit. That Target...

P.S. I thought I may cry after I left my parents yesterday. We forgot leftovers-- and there were LOTS. :( Boo hoo.

Busy MICE!

Sorry for the short post-- more tomorrow (promise!). Will tell you all about my adventure this past weekend.

I need to get on the proverbial crafty stick here because I am going to be part of the Holiday MICE Show (Michigan Indie Crafters of Etsy)! Yay! It won't be the same without Danielle (sniff, sniff), but Heidi is doing a great job and look at the sweet poster that Jason made!!! Wa-hoooooo!

When Hate Mail is Good!

So I bumped into Carol Sunday at Target (she's a fellow MICE!), and she said she has a new website! I just love her cards. Some of my favorites include "Nice parenting skills, Jackass" written all pretty and flowy also "There's no 'I' in moron". Sigh. Also love her HateMail minis and may buy them to feed my road rage (ie "You park like an idiot"). Love it! Here's another of my faves:

Not only are her cards friggin hilarious, she's super sweet and you can tell she's the friend you'd do nutty stuff with. Oh, and apparently another woman recognized her at Target after I saw her. Her hubby blogged about it here (scroll down to the 7/16/07 post). Too funny.

Make Out Session #1!

Last night was the first skill sharing session with the MICE girls. It was so fun. Thank you, Heidi, Taryn, and Danielle! I was having flashbacks to my west Michigan 4-H roots when, at 12, I used to compete in our County fair in cross stitch, embroidery, baking (I made a mean snickerdoodle), cake decorating, geneology, and photography. I know it sounds hillbilly.

Anyway, I digress-- Taryn taught us to embroider strawberries, and her packets were so stinkin' cute! I think I was the only weirdo who was excited about the dotted swiss strawberries she had gotten at a thrift store. And I liked the gold rick rack around the extra piece of muslin. I live for stuff like that. My finished product left a bit to be desired, and I still need to fill them in and finish the leaves, but I loved doing it! I have some ideas for a few projects which I may or may not get to before DUCF (think anthropomorphic teeth!).

Danielle taught us how to etch glass! I never knew it was so easy. Well, WOULD be easy if I could sketch and use an exacto knife worth a damn. Mine kinda turned out kinda pathetic, but it was fun anyway. I was coveting Alison's deer head glass. You can see more of Danielle's pics here.

Well, a fun time was had by all. It was nice to get out of the house and be crafty with other girls and chow down and drink a little vino. Can't wait for the next one which may possibly be needle felting (!), but I have a sinking feeling that if it's in August, it's going to be on the 18th which I can't do (Brandy's wedding). So here's hoping for another date!

Hope all you loverly peoples had a good weekend! The unveiling of the new Girl Land website is impending! Huggles, and have a great week. Sarah

Father’s WEEK?

My mother always used to tell us as kids that our birthdays were neverending. Well, now I know how she feels. Father’s Day started Sunday with the hubby sleeping in, getting candy, a Zingerman’s basket, and brunch. Yesterday, he worked only part of the day. Today, I drove his car to work to handle his windshield repair and even filled up his gas tank on the way to work (well, I was FORCED to because I thought Q and I were going to run out of gas). I don’t remember Mother’s Day lasting 3 days…oh well, I suppose I owe him these things and then some!

On a crafty note, I am taking a glass etching and embroidery class with some other MICE this weekend. Maybe I will be able to turn out some new wares using my new skills for…..(drumroll please)…..THE DETROIT URBAN CRAFT FAIR! Yayyyyy, I got accepted. I am seriously in shock. I am half thinking they might have sent it to me in error. Hopefully not. Now I’m trying to figure out when the heck I’m going to have the time to make all this stuff I said I’d make. I’m real good about buying the supplies—actually making the stuff is another story. And still plodding along on my wholesale order of these. Gawd, do they take forever! Between the painting/drying, tea staining/drying/flattening, cutting, pasting, and sealing, I’m door-knockered out.

Last thing, Q and I have a playdate scheduled with Amy and her cutie petootie daughter who is only 2 months younger than Q. Probably no crafting involved, but a park and a “ride” (Quinn’s word for slide) definitely will be. How fun!!!

MICE Craft Extravaganza Part Deux

What was I saying? Oh, sorry didn't post yesterday. Got lazy. And I'm getting overwhelmed! I'm working on a wholesale order for this company and maybe more. Whoo hoo! They ordered some door hangers and I promised delivery in July sometime. Plus, I also applied for the Detroit Urban Craft Fair. Dunno if I'll get in, but will need to make more stuff if I do. Good thing is that I have MUCH left over from Saturday.

I was all bummed that I felt too nerdy to take a picture of my table, but then I discovered that the NY Etsy girls had taken one and posted it on their Etsy Lab Blog! Yayyyyyy!!! That's my beady head peeking up over the green trinket box and blue pail. My (imaginary?) friend Kristin is behind the person in black. To my right is Katie aka RedThread DIY whose cute parents showed up and I think they brought her cookies too or something.

So the rest of my stash bought at the Micetsy show-- a HateMail card from Carol Lee Designs (not THIS exact one, but I like this one too), an aqua/red card from Christine Carol, an owl kitty toy from Design Chic, and a sweet bird necklace from Relishdress. Mr. Owl has already lost a wing in the line of duty. Damn cats.

Not to change the subject, but...had a big idea to try to make a Yo Yo Clown that went down the pooper today. What's a Yo Yo Clown? Here is a pic of a scary duo. Aren't these freaky cute? They'll haunt your dreams, but maybe in a good way? This is from an eBay listing, so I stole the pic (sorry). But please, someone BUY THEM! I can't justify, and they need a home.

For those as sew-illiterate as I am, a yo yo is a little gathered disc of fabric that makes up the arms, legs, and body of these dudes. Anywho, went to the quilt shop to buy a few fat quarters, came home and realized I'd be having to make like 70 yo yo's per doll. Uhhhh...so I'm going to just make some other stuff with yo yos. I'm sure I'll think of something. Ohhhh, the fat quarters are just loverly! I am going to have to post pics of those later this week.

MICE Craft Extravaganza Part Une

The Craft Extravaganza was yesterday, and it was great! I met some really great people and was told about the Detroit Urban Craft Fair on August 4, so I think I just may apply! How exciting. There was a steady stream of people. I sold like 15 things, so I was HAPPY with that. Should have made more of some things, less of others, but now I know.

Forgot to post this article from the Royal Oak Mirror last week! I was quoted and they showed a pic of one of my trinket boxes. I felt prettttty cool.

A hello to all my new friends (especially tablemates Chain Chain Chained & RedThreadDIY, Sparklepants, organizers Precious Pups and Design Chic and cool dude Kill Taupe), to my friend, Kristin, who helped me man my table in exchange for free sushi, and thanks to everyone who bought stuff and those who complimented my stuff and display. That was pretty dang awesome. Sigh.

Oh, and I will also post tomorrow about the SWEEEEEET stuff I bought. One of my faves is this little ditty from Citizen Jane (photo courtesy of her as well). No, model is not me (I wish I were that skinny).

The Crafties Are Coming, The Crafties Are Coming!

I cannot WAIT! Oh, the anticipation. Plus, we have a nice sized ad on Page 9 of the Home Universe section of the Metro Times thanks to Danielle and Heidi.

Speaking of 93.9 The River, I am listening to it right now, and I am never turning the channel. When did they stop playing easy listening??? I'm out of the loop. They are playing my Amy Winehouse song right now. I've heard it a zillion times before, but I never get sick of it. Other songs I never get tired of: Smile by Lily Allen, Wake Up by Arcade Fire and Phantom Limb by The Shins!