Thursday, August 28, 2008

New Cuffs and a Bowl





I have slowly but surely been adding little things here and there to my etsy shop. I have a few new cuffs I would like to share~ Purple on purple and Black with Red-Violet. The last one is a custom cuff and I am terribly excited how it came out. And I love this new green dresser bowl!

Wednesday, August 27, 2008

Featured


I am having short term memory issues! I was contacted by the sweetest gal who recently purchased one of my upcycled cuffs (my favorite one I might add). She featured me along with 2 other wonderful etsy artists on her blog Dirty Footprints Studio. Here is the post called Stitches. She also has an Etsy store also called Dirty Footprints where she sells stylie grocery totes like the one shown here.

Tuesday, August 26, 2008

Featured Etsy Seller: misskitty0218







What better day than a Tuesday to launch my Getting to know your Friendly Etsy Seller
series?
Today I am featuring the lovely Kirin aka Misskitty0218 aka KittenBritches who creates the cutest most hug-able plushies. Kirin is another Colorado Springs gal whom I met at a craft fair a couple of months back and now share booths frequently along with the equally fabulous Amy of Beanpicklesprout, but that is a whole other story. Here is what Kirin had to say:

Being born in Japan and named after a Japanese beer, I guess I cannot help but be drawn to manga and Japanese artwork. This includes Asian-style stuffed animals! I don't know if it is the super big eyes, or the quirky faces...but these dolls have pulled me in! I am an elementary teacher who is taking a one year break and really loving my new crafty lifestyle. I have met some fantastic fellow crafters and am having a hoot of a time selling at local farmer's markets. (Buy local and organic!)
www.misskitty0218.etsy.com
I do want to mention that Kirin uses organic and earth friendly stuffing and fabrics almost exclusively and there are no parts that can choke a small child. I also have it on good authority that they are machine washable and come out looking fabulous.

In honor of this her first blog interview and the fact that I asked her to do it because my son latched on to one of her germs and wouldn't let it go, I am giving away one of Kirin's germs. They are the cutest germs you will ever get your hands on not to mention the cleanest. All you have to do is drop a message at this here blog (make sure you mention the germ). I have posted a picture of Seamus with Germ. I tried to help him give it a name: "germy? germ-aine?" Heck no! the kid would have nothing to do with my ideas so his new little blue friend will be known simply as Germ. So drop me a message and let me know that you are reading this and that you want your own germ. I will have Seamus draw a name in 2 weeks.
Cheers~

Thursday, August 21, 2008

Clara's Bowl Revisited

Nona of Everyday Yogini fame has blogged about the purse and nature bowl. Check it out! This is perfect proof of why I love custom orders: you get what you want. I can't wait to create custom items for all of you ~*

Friday, August 15, 2008

New Etsy Store!

I am so excited to announce that one of the moms from our playgroup has opened an Etsy store and it is fabulous: EenieBeanieThreads. I insist you check it out! She also make ring baby slings in addition to cloth baby wipes, diaper inserts and those amazing rattles ( I had no idea wood turning was in her repertoire). So really, I insist check out the talent~

I admit it

I lied about my non-interest in the Olympics... Synchronized diving has to be one of the coolest things ever and last night I was glued to the set when those amazing gals competed for the Gymnastics all around. So it is true. I am humbled by those amazing athletes.

Tuesday, August 12, 2008

Featured

I just got an e-mail from a wonderful gal on etsy: her store is CrownOfStorms. She has a blog called Etsygems that I am adding to my blogroll right away. My Poppies Bowl has been included in a wonderful group of poppy related items. It is worth checking out her blog, she has a terrific eye if I do say so myself.

Treasury

I haven't gotten a treasury in awhile! I looked out the window trying to figure out what the theme should be and there was our pumpkin patch. So check it out while you can Sweet Pumpkin

Monday, August 11, 2008

Festival a success

The Black Forest Festival on Saturday was a success and a great time to be had by all. I took my camera intending to get some pictures but it just didn't happen. Please check out the shops of the 2 ladies I shared shelter with: Kitten Britches and BeanPickleSprout oh and I can't forget our talented young button entrepreneur theTaylerBean who is always a charmer with the ladies. We had a great spot with a view of the parade and got to meet lots of wonderful people!

Hiking Hiking Hiking




I probably need to modify the name of my blog since we have been hiking so much and I love to share about it along with my knitting. We are blessed to have 2 sets of doting grandparents nearby and they love to take the boy for overnights which enables my hubby and I to set our alarms early and start hiking before the summer heat sets in.
I remember the days (not long ago) when we used to take these opportunities to go out to the bars etc. :-)
On Thursday we climbed Grayback Peak (1st picture) which is south and west of Cheyenne Mountain. We were in the clouds and drizzle almost the whole time which was a nice break from the 90 degree heat we have had for over a week.
On Sunday we hiked to Pike's cave which is on the side of Mt. Rosa almost directly west of Cheyenne Mountain. Cheyenne Mountain is the hollowed out Mountain that Norad resides in.
Although the 14er is named Pike's Peak, Pike failed to reach the summit mostly because he attempted it at the End of November 1806 and ended up climbing up nearby and much shorter Mt. Rosa. This "cave" is where he and his team stayed on a very cold night on November 26. 1806. The sign does say that Mt. Rosa was the first recorded mountain climbed in the American West. we didn't get a chance to go up there due to some strong storms moving in, but we will be back soon I am sure.

Wednesday, August 6, 2008

Ginkgo



I love Ginkgo trees and everything they stand for. Here is a little bit of info on their symbolism. The leaves were the symbol of our wedding- we are going on 5 years this September! So the question is: "Why don't I needle-felt more ginkgo leaves?" I have no answer for this. Here is a bowl I finished a bit ago and finally posted in my Etsy store today. It is also my EtsyFAST August Challenge entry. The theme this month is the summer Olympics in Beijing.
The Ginkgo tree is a very important part of Chinese history and mythology and I have read much about how it is grown around their temples. Did you know that Ginkgo trees don't grow in the wild?
I am not going to go into my political views here or on my apathy toward organized sport. I believe that Chinese History is a long and rich one with beautiful imagery that has influenced some of my favorite movements in Art such as Art Nouveau and Arts and Crafts.

Tuesday, August 5, 2008

Workin'




Here are a couple of pictures of me with one of the 5 aerial panels and the GPS receiver. We were just outside of Grand Junction, CO. Strangely beautiful country it is out there we hiked in a little over 1/3 of a mile to this one. The last picture is of my dad starting to walk back to the truck which is parked by the big power pole in the distance.

Interview

Hello! I have been out of town working for my Dad for the last couple of days. Wanted to drop by and mention a couple of things.

First of all I have am the featured team member on the EtsyFAST Blog. Go check it out. Graham took my picture.
Second of all, I will be at the Black Forest Festival this Saturday the 9th with fellow Etsy sellers BeanPickleSprout, Kitten Britches and Floating Bazaar I Will post more information as I get it so you locals can be sure and come visit me and meet these other wonderful and talented ladies.

I will get back on and post a picture of two of me hard at work and of my new favorite bowl that I have been waiting to post.

Saturday, August 2, 2008

Clara's bowl


My wonderful friend Nona i.e. Everyday Yogini contacted me about a bowl for her 3 year old daughter: a colorful bowl with a low rim that could sit on their kitchen table and show off her beautiful finds. It is high summer in Italy and they are spending a great deal of time at the beach and Clara (a girl after my own heart) collects beach stones. The bowl measures 7" across and 1" tall. It is knit from my favorite yarn to felt called Freedom Spirit in the Fire colorway. There is more color variation in the yarn but I had a hard time capturing it. The 3 stones on the right are my own Italian beach stones. There are more pictures on my Flickr page