Fried Okra

September's Bag - Blossom Handbag

2012-01-24T10:23:00.000-06:00

September's bag was the Blossom Handbag/Shoulder bag. I was dreading this bag the most on a skill level, so professional! The little handle bits especially freaked me out. Though I'm happy to say it wasn't really all that bad! I might even consider making this again... it is a really great size for showing off fabrics.

Speaking of fabrics! I chose with the recipient in mind :)
Technically from my stash, though they were recently purchased... the stash is ever growing! I ended up not using the black dot print for the interior as I had intended, I felt it might just be tooo dark. So, I went with a basic cream solid for the dividers and used the pink balloons for the lining. I also used a grey twill for the bottom outside panel.

And here we are complete! On an overcast day! I am really pleased with how it turned out, even the tricky handle bits. I had to watch the print directionality and repeating pattern, I am glad I had had my coffee when I cut into the fabric.

The only irritating moment I had with this pattern was step 17(c) where she wants you to bar tack through 8 layers of fabric, 4 layers of fusible interfacing, and 2 layers of peltex. Now I know my machine is old (ahem, vintage) but Holy Smokes. I ended up having to do that bit by hand, puncturing my poor finger through my thimble. Overall though, not bad!
Next up is the Miss Maven Ruffled Handbag!

October's Bag - Everything Wristlet - Complete!

2012-01-15T08:40:00.000-06:00

Hello Style Stitchers! Since I totally abandoned the challenge back in September I figured it didn't REALLY matter if I posted these in order. The bag that should be posted next is a gift for someone for their birthday... and since we don't want to spoil the surprise we will just come back to that one.

The Everything Wristlet. This was my least favorite of the designs in the book, just not my style... at all. Not even a little. Oh well, I chose fabrics from my stash and thankfully the yardage was minimal!

I can't tell you what lines any of them are from (sorry!). The blue is a batik and the purple is fantastic.
As I worked the pattern I started to wonder if AB's publisher set her a character limit, a max number of pages and/or illustrations. Or if maybe the lack of instructions/illustrations is what made this pattern "Experienced". I just don't understand why (WHY?!) she couldn't have included more instruction. I read and re-read, then I Googled. I found this series of blog posts that helped immensely, step by step photos! Hurray!
Even with the added instruction I chose to alter the zipper installation. I ultimately went with an un-interfaced cotton pocket instead of the funny fold thing she tried to pull. I will say I worked AB's zipper instructions as in the book, I did. I tried to sew through two layers but not through the back, which sounds just stupid. It looked straight up wonky so I ripped that right out.

Michael made up a 'Hey Girl' for me the night of the zipper mess.
"Hey Girl. I know that pattern was terribly written, let me buy you a burrito and put on some Breaking Bad to cheer you up." Now, THAT is a good man. :)

So the zipper was done and the next step was sewing the center pockets together. I took my own photo:

So. Much. Fabric. And. Interfacing.
And that very very last step, topstitching around the edge... yeah, didn't do that either. I slipstitched and pressed, called it a day. I think I was just ready to move on, I didn't want to try topstitching then have to rip it out because it was wonky.

I have to say it's a pretty sweet little bag. The fabrics worked out nicely and the button was a perfect fit!
Alllll that interfacing is what really makes this bag.

I ended up using a dark purple on the card pockets, I got stingy with my ladybug print :). In hindsight I should have used white or picked up something a little closer to the purple in the exterior.

One more down! Three more to go! I am picking up the last bit of interfacing (sigh) today to start on the last two bags. I am staying optimistic!

{ Thanks to everyone for the comments on my last post! The squirrel and kitty were Christmas presents for my brother-in-law and his wife. The pigs and pup were just experimental and will go on the shelf with the rest of the first timers. Someday I might show you all my first sock monkey, he's... cute? funny? had potential? has all the required pieces in the corresponding general area. That's it. }

What I've Been Up To....

2012-01-10T20:33:00.000-06:00

I have been taking myself a little break. A break from being industrious. A break from the sweatshop that I tend to create. I can't really SEE anything when I'm in that mode!

: I went thrifting (20+ super awesome sweaters/coats).

: I tried out a few patterns, some with success... some without.

: I spent many a dollar at our local quilt shop AND online for those hard to come by Japanese prints.

: I am trying to spend time with family and friends, at least to say Yes as much as possible (there IS a limit to how many times I will watch a Pirates movie). I am fighting my hermit tendencies.

: I have knocked off two more of the Amy Butler bags for the challenge, separate posts on those of course.

A few projects around the table and on the shelves:

Two little pigs...

One insanely tricky squirrel...

A very handsome cat...

And an onery looking weenie dog.

I am thoroughly enjoying my time off :)

Deluxe 2011!

2011-12-23T12:56:00.000-06:00

I know I'm a bit late on this.
The DAY AFTER Deluxe I came down with a massive cold, I think my body was in some sort of defense mode and held it off till the show was over. I'm still sniffling and sneezing but thankfully the all day sleeping has let up!

The show was a great success (as always), it just gets better and better every year. And like every year I utterly failed to get any photos of anything but my booth before the doors opened. But lemme tell ya, it was a good show! There was a letterpress truck parked INSIDE the building! There was a DJ and at one point a breakdancing battle! A free photobooth, that I completely missed! And over 80 vendors with amazing handmade wares! (This is all to persuade you to attend next years event)

Onto the booth. I changed up my look and design entirely, to go with my new branding and website.
I love it, LOVE IT. It felt like summer... in the winter :)

This is a sign I whipped up for the top of my Sock Monkey stand (plant stand). I uploaded my new logo to Spoonflower and ordered a couple fat quarters. Talk about an invaluable service!

Can we talk about the genius of the internets real quick?!? I have been using bed risers (you know the ones, come in a set of four, very cumbersome) for the past few years to add height to the table. I personally like a tall table, it's awkward to bend over to look through a sellers items. Well, I found this PVC pipe leg extension tutorial online and it worked like a charm! Easy and sooooooo much easier to store/travel/set up. The legs look cleaner and I can have cute short tablecloths! I am a fan :)

The pennant banner was a last minute project aimed to bring the whole thing together. The fabric is a thrifted sheet that matches my logo colors perfectly. Perfectly I tell you, I did a happy dance when I figured that out.

The gigantic pom poms in the frame buckets was a last minute idea for hiding the unsightly cement we were pretty proud of, lots of little ones wanted to take them home :)

The basket of kitty cats was a big hit, all but one found a home!

Miss Violet begged and pleaded to get to help this year, she made it till about one.

This is Team Fried Okra for 2011. Vi, my beautiful sister Alli, and Mr. Fried Okra :)
The matching aprons and name tags are so sweet. Seriously, I would not even consider doing this show without help and these guys are the best kind of help. They know how to make change, and if you have ever seen me attempt to make change you would understand.

Just before the doors open, see the line of people waiting to get in... they are singing Christmas carols :)

I came away from this years show with tons of great ideas on what direction to take my little business. Expanding focuses and tweaking designs. You can't beat one on one interaction with customers to show you where you need to go!
I will be back soon after Christmas to share some of the presents I whipped up after Deluxe. Yay for remembering to take photos BEFORE they were wrapped!

The one where Adrian encourages you to go to Deluxe...

2011-11-28T09:28:00.000-06:00

It's that time of year again!

Deluxe is on December 10th at the OK State Fairgrounds, 11-5

I have been working like mad to make sure I come fully stocked. Lots of new artists participating this year, I'm super excited as a customer. And food, there will be actual, real, good food available!

At this point I have 68 full sized Sock Monkeys and 20 pocket sized. A new personal record :)
It's going to be a great show!

Le Sigh

2011-10-30T18:39:00.002-05:00

I need some cheering up, folks.
I stumbled across a tutorial for one of my designs, something I've been making since 2007 (whoa baby!). Copied down to the tiniest detail. Feeling hurt and not a bit flattered.

I am seriously considering not making this particular item anymore, I'm not sure this is a reasonable reaction though. It's almost like it isn't mine anymore.

I do believe that it is hard to find a genuinely new idea out there in this big world, but copying someone's style and unique tweak is apparently easy as pie.

Hopefully this bummer of a mood won't cause me to eat all the mini Almond Joys in the house before tomorrow nights candy fest.

Additional thoughts, 11/28/2011
I did end up sending the offending copier an email.
I'm sure it was full of emotion and was maybe a tad dramatic. It's not the end of the world, or even the worst thing a fellow crafter could do to another, I get that. Sadly her reply was less than remorseful, and honestly I was hoping for a little regret or a sorry at least. So, I'm still sour and prickly.
Maybe this is a cosmic hint that *I* need to evolve this particular pattern :)

These Days...

2011-09-24T12:00:00.001-05:00

Let's just say moving has taken longer than expected. But it's not the moving, not the unpacking or the house stuff. It's the changing schools and organizations that is sucking the time and life from me. New schedules all spaced just enough apart to allow me zero free time. I don't have a second to sit down or make any sort of headway on the massive amount I still need to do to prepare for Deluxe. So the Etsy shop will stay empty and the brick & morter shops I consign with will not be restocked before the new year.
This also means I am going to have to postpone the last four AB bags to the beginning of 2012. I just cannot spare the days (and days) I know it would take me to complete them, especially considering they are going to be much more in depth than anything we've done so far. I am not a quitter though, I will complete the book... just not this year!
Family always, always, always must come first.
Mr. A has a massive science fair project, we had better ace this thing.
Today we learn that little princess is barely pulling C's in all subjects. Not cool.
And Squirt is in a half day program, no full day spots open to new people. Two years in a full day program and now we're half day. Momma is not pleased. So... he is b-o-r-e-d after school and we're struggling to find a nice balance.
Here are a couple photos of the new space, hopefully I will be able to work today!

My girls have not one, but two shelves of their own! They make me happy :)

I fully expect this is a temporary bump in the road. Surely I can find a balance :)

Console TV to Dog Bed

2011-09-06T11:43:00.001-05:00

One of the many DIY-home-improvement-crafty sort of projects I took on before the move was this miraculous transformation, console tv to dog bed.
Inspired (as always) by the internets and enabled by the local Habitat Re-Store.
This beast of a television was only $4.00, what a steal!

Thankfully I had not one, but two very handy menfolk to take the guts out for me :)

Now this is the part I didn't take photos of, I know... terrible. But very soon after we started filling the garage with boxes for the truck. I really didn't need to do anything to the front or the inside, the top however, was a scratched up mess. I ended up sanding it down and painting it a lovely dandelion yellow.
I also attached a piece of wood across the back at the bottom, to better hold a pillow... and so her little behind wouldn't slide out :)

Here we are in the new house with a dog INSIDE the television:

It was amazing how quickly she adopted this bed. I pointed, tossed her toy in, and there we go! It's her spot, in the middle of everything but no one is tripping over her bed. All very contained and cute :)

Fringed Hobo Bag - Complete!

2011-08-29T14:53:00.000-05:00

Even though this bag made me cry I still love it. Love the funny shape and goofy ball fringe. Love that my husbands first thought of what to put in it was "records". Love that the prints totally work, those hexagons rock my world!

But alas, I did cry. That dang 9th step. The final step, after all the work (and let's be honest, money) that has been put into this project, was the most frustrating sewing I have ever done. Every single piece on this bag is interfaced and I used the fusible fleece on both exterior and lining, because of the mid-weight fabric. There was no freaking way I was going to be able to topstitch through ALLLLLL of that mess, not to mention we're sewing on a curve here. I attempted to do the topstitching, I really did, but it was so sad and wonky I ripped that right out.
So I just topstitched the top handle and left the rest to be just as puckery and funky as it wanted to be.

Because I did not topstitch the inside curve, that means I hand stitched the other side closed. Now you know I can hand stitch the hell out of a project so it looks pretty decent, considering. I'm sad to say I will probably not ever, never ever, ever, make this bag again. I could feel myself leaning into the darkness, wanting to chuck the whole mess in the trash.
Next month's bag looks fun, complicated as all get out, but fun!

I am still cranking out the monkeys, if anyone was worried...

Mini traditional red heel monkeys, super dee duper cute :)

August's Bag - Fringed Hobo Bag

2011-08-15T20:42:00.001-05:00

I have been sooo looking forward to this bag! It looks like such fun :) No freaking idea what I will use it for, who carries around that much stuff? Anyways, I'm a fan of fringe and the shape is scary in a good way. I also have had the fabric picked out for this bag since the challenge began...

They are both from the Swoon collection by Melissa Averinos for Andover. Love the colors and crazy patterns. Like it doesn't go together, but it does!

Big print- exterior main
Hexagon- coordinating exterior
Yellow solid (yet to be purchased)- lining
Chocolatey brown ball fringe! Did I mention I'm really digging the fringe?

I'm picking up the last bits I need for this bag then I will unpack the Singer and get it done. Yes, the machine is still packed away... I am going through withdrawls.

July's Bag - Key Keeper Coin Purse

2011-08-15T20:18:00.000-05:00

Helllloooo! Fully aware that this is the 15th day of AUGUST, I am going to proceed with July's AB post. We are still (!!) unpacking and settling in to the new house. Finding a place for all my things is making me really reach and use all my creativity :)
Soon I will have a full on house update complete with photos that won't cause me deep shame.

So, July blessed me with the easiest little bag evah. My sweet little girl called dibs and therefore picked out the fabrics. I'm sure it's holding chapstick, random earrings, and gum right about now.

She's so matchy matchy it kills. Ah well, you're only eleven once :)

And the winner is...

2011-06-26T08:23:00.000-05:00

Randomly selected from the generator:

#4, OriginalRosie! Hopefully you'll see this and email me (adrian@fried-okra.com) your contact info so I can send you this cute bag :)
Thanks to everyone for the sweet comments, I should have picked a topic to discuss... I really wasn't fishing for compliments! I am a work in progress.

Fingers crossed I can get to July's bag before August, it'll be a busy month!

Teardrop Bag - Complete!

2011-06-21T11:17:00.000-05:00

And we're halfway through the book! I really love this print, even more now. I think the stripes work well with the pleat and shape. So symmetrical! The yellow dot fabric is fun, definitely brightens up the whole bag. No problems with the pattern or instructions, overall a pretty darn easy bag. Lots and lots of clipping curves though, I'm still sweeping up little triangles!

Not sure which side I like best! Additional photos on Flickr.

So, as I mentioned last month, this bag is up for grabs! It's cute as heck and could be yours :)
Leave a comment to enter and I'll randomly choose the winner on Saturday, June 25th.

Ch-ch-ch-changes

2011-06-16T15:39:00.000-05:00

What a crazy couple of months! Too busy for my taste.
Now that my Mister has graduated and secured a job it's time for us to move. Not far, just 2 hours down the road but pretty major for our little family. New schools, new friends, new scout troops, and lots of new space. We took a day last month and headed down to look at a handful of houses, doing plenty of background research of course. Let's just say it was weird, way weird. From a buyers perspective, please PLEASE clean your house before potential buyers come to look. Ick.
But we found a shiny gem and are now waiting out the bank paperwork. Hopefully we can get moved before school starts in August! There goes our summer :)

In the meantime, I am taking Jessie's advice and cutting down my enormous stash of Eskimo Joe's shirts I've been collecting for a blanket. Huge space saver! All the extra t-shirt scraps make excellent rags.

And if anyone is wondering if I've completely abandoned my usual crafting fare, fear not! I am slowly working my way through my sock stash and getting ready to splurge on a wholesale account with one of my very favorite sock companies. Gotta get myself all stocked up before December's Deluxe :)

Above is one of two totes full of faceless monkeys.
After last month's yo-yo experiment I have sorta kinda gotten hooked. Making yo-yos has replaced knitting as my favorite tv watching craft, heaven knows I have the scraps to work with!
These will be a pillow with the teal woodgrain print for the back, now to sew all 81 together. Bah.

I have also been helping Miss Violet on her house...

It's going to be epic. She has a lovely turquoise for the outer walls and a bright lime green for the gingerbread trim. So. Many. Little. Pieces.

Then there is this:

Yep, glasses. Squirt failed the simple eye test at his 6 year check-up and turned up to be farsighted with an astigmatism. And if the left eye doesn't catch up in six months they want to patch the right. Yikes.
Of course I am feeling extreme guilt and scheduled the other two exams, figuring it's better to check though I was sure neither had any issues (I'd know, right?!).
Well, Miss Vi is nearsighted. On the way home after picking up her new glasses she actually did the "Wow! I can see that sign! I thought it looked like that for everyone." So cliche!
So now I'm extra paranoid, following them around to make sure nothing gets broken. If it's not on your face, put it in your case. And I'm definitely going to find some inexpensive back up pairs asap.

Hoping in two months I have an awesome new house to show off and have made it through this summer in one piece.

June's Bag - Teardrop Bag

2011-06-15T21:12:00.000-05:00

Now onto this month's Amy Butler bag! Teardrop Bag did make me want to shed a little tear when first flipping through the book. The strap seems awkward to me and overall it seems (to be blunt) a little pedestrian and boring for AB. Eh, what do I know... I sure as heck have been wrong before!
Continuing with my goal of using my stash, here are my fabrics:

First I have this random 1/2 yard of Anna Marie Horner's Good Folks that I bought forever ago. The stripes and size of print have made it pretty darn hard to find a project for, I'm going to use those to my advantage :) The yellow is Moda and the pink is a batik, looks red but is hotcha pink :) I'm using the cream for the pocket, just to lighten up the insides.

Brown/Pink/Yellow/Cream Print- exterior main
Yellow Dot- bands and handle
Pink- interior main
Cream- pocket

Back in a few days!

Perfectly Pleated Clutch - Complete!

2011-05-17T14:23:00.000-05:00

Well, that wasn't bad at all! The pleating was very VERY satisfying. I'm a girl who likes to iron, especially batiks... oooh crispy and that distinct batik smell! I think the print started out random enough to stay random. I didn't measure the pleats, really now who has time for that. I love the lines of stitching holding all the pleats in place, that was very satisfying too.

The strap I lengthened (based on other participants suggestions). It still reminds me of a tail.

The front was sooo boring and I couldn't find a brooch or pin that went with my colors so I broke out the ole yoyo makers. These three sufficiently jazzed up the front :)

AB is still off her rocker with the impossible to understand zipper instructions so I just put it in the way that works for me. Adding about 1.5" tabs on each end of the zipper helped.
How about that color matching on the zipper and band fabric?! Spot on.

I think this pretty little thing will be a present for someone :)
But June & July will be giveaways for sure so stay tuned!

May's Bag - Perfectly Pleated Clutch

2011-05-13T21:23:00.000-05:00

I am not thrilled about this bag. I like the prints I have just the way they are and all this pleating is just going to fudge them up! I don't even care for AB's example bags, the dots are too clumpy to my picky eye.

So, there's my complaining.

I fussed back and forth which fabrics to sacrifice to the Perfectly Pleated Clutch for over an hour. Trying to keep the pleats in mind and not pick something with too much direction or pattern.

My thinking is the more random the print to begin with the less weird the pleats will make it look in the end.

So I went batik, nice and random :)

Purple/blue- outside pleated
Blue- outside bands and handle
Pink- lining

Might have to dig through the thrift store jewelry stash for a suitable brooch for the front. Wish me luck!

DIY Announcements

2011-05-10T08:44:00.000-05:00

This past weekend my sweet husband graduated and started a new chapter in both our lives. He's been working on this degree for most of our married life and I'm so proud of him to have stuck it out!
Months ago when it was time to send out announcements he winced at paying big bucks for boring ones everyone else had.
I think I may have rubbed off on him :)
He wanted something that would sort of represent his degree, Computer Engineering. We brainstormed and came to the conclusion we HAD to use giant floppy discs.

5 1/4" Floppy's were purchased off good ole eBay, new in the box! Super cheap... as they should be :)

Nice little sleeves. M wanted to actually put a file on the disk, like a map of OSU or something. We figured no one would have a computer to actually read these bad boys!

Obviously we needed to cover up the 3M and get the actual announcement info on there somehow.

So we got Pistol Pete from the campus media people and I whipped up this little sticker.

Much better! We also used the lined stickers at the top corner to write the names of family/friend it was for.

For the envelopes I made a quick run to the library book sale and found a programming manual for a computer not even made anymore. Lined stickers for the front address and yes, these require extra postage!

And a little custom sticker for the back return address. Perfectly old school :)
We were really happy how they turned out! And I think the sleeve could hold all sorts of other info like a map, tickets, or photo. And cheap, so so cheap.

I have no clue why the other two kids weren't in this... most likely hanging out with an aunt or uncle they rarely get to see.
And now onto more stressful things ~dum dum duuuuummmm~ MOVING! eep.

A humble Kirby's Epic Yarn party

2011-05-02T10:00:00.000-05:00

This past Saturday we had a little (really little) shindig for this kid:

Who is now SIX whole years old. We threatened him with everything in our arsenal to not grow up, to stop right there and stay five forever. Squirt politely explained that he just has to grow up :)

So we had a Kirby's Epic Yarn party at his request. This game is the Cutest of Cute, any crafty momma's dream come true, and a game I love love love to watch the kids play. It is "awwww" inducing cute.

That said, I realized that I am not clever or crafty enough to do it justice.
No way, no how, could I ever live up to this game.

I had several days of gloomy - I'm not a good enough mom to pull this off - he's going to be disappointed - I'm lazy and totally uncreative - SHAME. With everything else going on this month I just didn't have it in me (or in our budget) to have a "friend" party, so it was just family. And it's hard to rationalize going all out for just family.

We didn't have party favors or games. What we did have was cake (and cupcakes) and a helluva lot of streamers and balloons. I went old school and bought a cheap plastic Kirby off eBay for the top, not even the same game... shame.

The big cake was chocolate with vanilla frosting. I made all the little buttons out of Marshmallow Fluff Fondant, so they actually tasted good! The button tutorial I used is via Bake at 350.
And then piped very wonky stitching lines, in Kirby pink of course.

Mini cupcakes are just chocolate with chocolate frosting, the button on top is freaking adorable.

I agonized over the Club Nintendo website, registering games and answering questionnaires to earn enough points to buy the super cute Kirby Patches. I could have made my own, but again, lazy mom... shame.

I used a bunch of the super stiff felt sheets, which I wish came in more colors, and made his hat and stars.

This theme was too big for me though, an endless budget and loads more time would have made this a truly amazing party. But for a six year old I guess it worked out :)
Thankfully I took enough selective photos so maybe he'll remember it being more exciting!

Skirts!

2011-04-28T10:59:00.000-05:00

Last month I took a break and made my favorite little girl some skirts. She's a very *ahem* fashion forward girl with her own sense of style. They needed to be bright... colorful... and not "go" with anything in particular. She despises anything matchy-matchy.
Pockets were a must as was fullness. She may be 11 but she still needs that twirl factor!
I pulled tips from Freshly Picked, MADE, and pure "you can do it" inspiration from Miss Jemellia.
I made a total of 6 skirts. If you have been reading this for any amount of time you have already figured when I do something, I OVER-do it :)

And today's ensemble:

And this is from last week....

The pockets were super easy, nothing like putting in a zipper! I did find that I was still too stingy to part with much of my "good" fabric and ended up buying specifically for skirts. I wish she had been more "girly" when she was little, this is fun!

Beautiful Balance Checkbook Cover - Complete!

2011-04-20T08:57:00.000-05:00

I gotta say this was easy, easy, easy!
Curves, no problem. Magnetic snap, no problem. All that danged interfacing, no problem.
I live for small projects like this. All the fabric requirements under 1/4 yard, heck yes!
Liked it so much I made two :)

If I had this to do over I would probably change the flap fabric, did not realize how prominent it would be!
I am thrilled with the backs though, so glad I went with the matryoshka dolls.

The insides.... Still a little eh on the flap fabric and chickens together, too too much going on.

I'm not saying I don't still love the chickens, I do really, but maybe a little less of them would have been better!
I learned and used a solid for those lining pieces...

Nice, right?! So cute. I am taking Michelle's advice and working on a wallet pattern of my own :)

So, next month is the Perfectly Pleated Clutch, for reals this time! Still not looking forward to choosing fabric for this bag. Still predicting a train wreck!

April's Bag - Beautiful Balance Checkbook Cover

2011-04-15T10:30:00.000-05:00

Alright! April's "bag" is the Beautiful Balance Checkbook Cover. I must confess that I don't actually USE our checkbook very often and I'm pretty sure our checks have our address from 3 years ago. Whoops.
Nevertheless, I know it does not have a pretty cover. So here we go!

I am once again pulling fabrics from my stash.
Yes, I will admit to buying the country-iffic peachy chicken print. I thought I would go to the grave with those chickens! But here they are and they go fantastically with my lovely Japanese matryoshka doll print. The brown swirly with teal hearts is just perfect too, hoping I can line it up all fussy like for the flap :)

Matryoshka dolls- outside main
Brown swirly- outside flap
Peachy chickens you all are jealous of- inside print

I am going to be honest and say I am scared of those curves on the flap. And of the magnetic snap, this will be my second time using one of those and let's just say the first time was not so successful. Fingers crossed!

Weekend Finds!

2011-04-03T19:40:00.000-05:00

Ah, Spring! Around here that means Estate Sales.
This weekend was particularly successful, the owner was an avid embroider and hankie collector.
I picked up so many lovely pieces, perfect for little aprons :)

Souvenir hankies!

This is a sweet little table runner with some pretty colorful birdies :)

And this is my shopping buddy. Squirt found himself a velvet remnant he doesn't want to part with :)
No, doesn't want me to make him anything out of it, just leave it like it is so he can snuggle it.

Serging up a storm

2011-03-29T10:59:00.000-05:00

This is my day! Serging monkey bits. Getting ready early (waaaaay early) for Deluxe in December. This summer will be full of packing and moving and complete chaos.

So I'm sewing now because I won't have time later :)

And the winner is...

2011-03-25T10:41:00.001-05:00

Randomly selected from the generator:

#6! Michelle :)
Yay you!

I gotta say I'm a wee bit unsure about next month's bag. All that pleating! I can't imagine what print I'd want to do that to. So don't hold your breath for a home-run next month, might be closer to a train-wreck :)
Thanks everyone for playing along!

* Uh. I'm totally wrong. Thanks J for pointing out that the Checkbook is April's bag. One more month to figure out what fabric I'm going to use on the pleated bag.

Origami Bag Set - Complete!

2011-03-21T11:04:00.000-05:00

--- Just a day later than I promised! In my defense, my daughter and I worked 16 hours this weekend selling Girl Scout cookies at various booths. Those girls are such troopers :) ---

So here we are! All six bags, fabrics are 100% from my existing stash:

Nesting nicely. How bout that hot pink on the inside?! Sear your eyeballs right out :)

And the embroidery!

I love it :) I think a touch of embroidery is just what was needed to perk up such a big space.

Giveaway numero dos! It's true, these lovelies are up for grabs. Leave me a comment and I will use the good ole random number generator to choose the winner on Friday. Don't forget to include your email address.

One winner receives all six bags, pretty dang sweet :)

And since I've got GS cookies on the brain, share your favorite cookie in your comment.

I'm a DoSiDo girl :)

Little bit of stitching...

2011-03-16T17:29:00.000-05:00

Jazzing up the XL Origami Bag with a lil Sublime Stitching. I love the anatomical heart with all the bright Dia de los Muertos-esque prints. I do love me some fat stitches!

This will be the sixth bag in the set. Six. Seems like a lot for one giveaway but I would kinda hate to break up the set (like they're puppies or something, gah what a sap!).
I'll have to give it some thought :)

Either way I will be posting the complete set on Sunday with details about the Giveaway(s). Have a fantastic rest of the week!

March's Bag(s) - Origami Bag Set

2011-03-03T08:39:00.001-06:00

Zipper Pouches! I could so totally do these in my sleep. Relief :)
Like the little tab on the side and the flat bottom.
The XL is really really XL for a pouch, though so far everything Amy Butler has been pretty XL.
Fabric is 100% pulled from my stash, nice!

All mixed and matched, will probably be using a hot pink cotton on the insides.
These will be another Giveaway, I do not have room in my life for another zipper pouch :)

And the winner is...

2011-02-25T17:05:00.000-06:00

Randomly selected from the generator is:

#3! Digital Misfit :)
I'm sure the Everyday Shopper will be very happy with you!

And some good news for everyone else... Next month's bag(s) is the Origami Bag set will also be a giveaway. Yay!

Survey

2011-02-24T09:50:00.000-06:00

I made up a quickie survey, just 3 questions is all I need to help me pick the very best socks for Sock Monkeys. Thanks for playing along :)

http://www.surveymonkey.com/s/QZSWM8K

Don't forget to comment * HERE *
I'm drawing a name tomorrow!

The Everyday Shopper - Complete!

2011-02-22T13:41:00.000-06:00

February's bag is done and lookin pretty :)

Another big honkin bag! Much MUCH easier than the Cosmo. No curves, pleats, crazy handles that you put on backwards. Just straight seams and a motherload of interfacing :)
Love love love this IKEA canvas and I think the orange with lace works.
Left the lace on and added buttons, of course.

This is the first of the giveaways! If you feel like you could give this bag a good home leave me a comment and I'll randomly draw a winner on Friday. Make sure to add your email address so I can contact you.

Comments, comments, comments.... how about your favorite tv series, new or old. I have been spending lots of time with Netflix and the X-Files, the Mulder/Scully tension is starting to really heat up :)

New Website!

2011-02-18T18:37:00.000-06:00

Yes! I finally had something done with my domain I snagged years ago :) The genius that is Erin & Tim Cooper over at Cooper Multimedia have worked their magic and now I have this gorgeously simple website:
http://www.fried-okra.com/
So perfect! I can't recommend them enough :)

A Makeover

2011-02-15T11:49:00.000-06:00

As you can see I am in the process of a full on style makeover :)
The lovely Erin and Tim Cooper are giving my Fried Okra website a fresh faced new look, super excited for the big reveal!

I have also set up a Facebook fan page, 'Like' me!
I give you my promise to not be obnoxious with status updates, pinky swear.

I also have an Etsy shop update in the works! Let me know if there is something you would like to see listed :)

February's Bag - The Everyday Shopper

2011-02-12T22:29:00.003-06:00

I've perked up a little from my last sad sack post :)
I am taking a tiny little break from The Sock Monkey Sweatshop to indulge my fabric in a little Me time.

I'm going to be completely honest and confess I had this February bag done the second week in January. Naughty! I was on a roll and this one looked so easy. It was, compared to the Cosmo for sure.
I am going to string you all along for a bit though and just post my fabric selections.

- The blue is a heavy canvas weight from IKEA and is for the outside main body.
- The orange with awesome orange lace is a thrift store find and will be the outside pocket and inside lining.
- The white and orange print is also from IKEA and was originally a duvet cover, it will be the inside pocket.

I know you're wondering, I kept the lace on :)

Blah.

2011-01-31T15:00:00.001-06:00

I'm in a funk... a rut... hit a dry patch on the ole creativity.
Usually I run through my favorite blogs, check out my numerous crafty crushes, or window shop on Etsy. I'm fine in a day or so. This spell has lasted a good 3 weeks and needs fixin fast!

I'm not one to whine or generally need sympathy from others. I'm logical, this too shall pass. But, MAN, do I need that *spark*... that burst of creativity that you just have to get out!

So here I am... stuffing socks to pass the time. I'm so out of it I didn't even bother to take a photo to jazz up this post. Lame!

Cosmo Bag - Complete!

2011-01-10T21:52:00.000-06:00

Hurrah! This enormous bag is labeled as "Easy". I think my seam ripper has a different opinion. At one point I was just about to sew the FINAL internal seam and realized I had put the handles on backwards. Oh yeah, backwards. I had looked at the photos over and over again and didn't see that my monstrosity looked... wrong! Duh. She cleaned up nice though, glad all my mistakes were on the inside :)

SO. What I learned is to read and re-read every single direction. To look at every single picture/illustration and compare it to my work. To not assume that because I can sew, that I know how to do it without instructions. And I think I need to start talking out loud to myself, just to be sure :)

She sure is a pretty thing though! Perfect fabric for the main exterior if I do say so myself. I was hoping to make a dent in that particular piece of yardage, nope.

I'm looking forward to the rest of the bags in the book, even with my many mistakes I thoroughly enjoyed this pattern.
I don't however plan to keep most of these 12 bags!
Cosmo is going to live in Arizona with my sister, she's a knitter and if there was ever a bag for holding yarn... this is it.
I am sure there will many giveaways here over the coming year! Yay!

New Year, New Adventures in Sewing :)

2011-01-03T22:16:00.000-06:00

Happy New Year!

Our Christmas break has been wonderful :) Lots of cooking and eating, staying up super late, and lots of Netflix.

Needless to say I'm itching to get sewing again.
Thank goodness Miss Jemellia of JemJam is hosting a year long Bag Challenge!
Amy Butler's book Style Stitches has 12 chapters, one bag a month for 2011.

Join in the fun for one or two or twelve months :) I like to stay in my comfort zone so this will be a fun way to learn some new skills and challenge myself. I am also going to make myself use at much from my fabric stash as possible, I'm the first one to admit it's getting a little crazy in there :)
So here are my fabric selections for January's bag (the one on the cover):

The floral is a piece I picked up on clearance over 3 years ago (!) and haven't done a thing with. The black dot will be the coordinating print for the handles/button and the mustard is lining. I also picked up a still in the plastic bolt of fusible interfacing and used my 40% coupon at the local HobLob, the ladies hate it when I buy the whole bolt :)
I'll be back with a finished photo before the end of the month, hopefully!

Post Deluxe!

2010-12-14T09:05:00.000-06:00

Deluxe on Saturday was amazing :)
We're talking people lined up outside 30 minutes before doors opened.
We're talking selling 23+ monkeys in one hour.
We're talking running completely out of bags (embarrassing!).
We're talking more than double profit compared to last year's show.

With that said, I took only 4 photos. All before the doors opened.
All very boring:

Great booth location, awesome booth neighbors *Holla Ladies! Nikki from Gleeful Peacock and Geri from Revamped*, and all day nonstop shoppers.
Not to mention a super sweet trade with Ashley from Hook Line Sinker, score!
I didn't get to do nearly as much shopping as I wanted, missed several booths I had planned on hitting hard. Ugh!

-----------------------------------------------------------------

NOW for the folks who read this and didn't get a chance to catch the show I have a little offer :)
If you have been wanting an ornament, waiting patiently for one to appear in ye ole Etsy shop, I have one better. Email me at adrian@fried-okra.com and I'll make you a custom Sock Monkey ornament. I'll supply you with photos of the socks I have on hand and the cost is $20. Obviously the days are ticking away and there's no guarantee it will arrive before Christmas, especially since it will be a custom order.

------------------------------------------------------------------

Deluxe Tomorrow!

2010-12-10T10:23:00.001-06:00

One last reminder! If you are in the Great State of Oklahoma I fully encourage you to make the drive to the State Fairgrounds tomorrow for this event. I will give you my top 4 reasons:
1) F-R-E-E admission. Who wants to pay to shop?
2) All Handmade. No mass produced nonsense.
3) Live music and hands on activities for the little ones
4) I'll be there with 40+ monkeys and a minivan full of other assorted goodies :)

My Mister and I are off for a night in the big city so I'll be back on Monday with a post full of photos.
And a special pre-Christmas offer for those non-Okies :)

See you there!

Fancy Mice

2010-12-08T14:57:00.000-06:00

And here we have Sweater Mice with accessories :)
I will have a big (BIG) selection at Deluxe on Saturday! OKC fairgrounds people, be there.

Little velvet bowties with a button/loop closure, for when he's not feeling so fancy...

Fancy silk aprons for the cocktail serving hostess...

And little hankie aprons for the more practical minded.
I'm super jazzed about the apron and bowtie mice, they are absolutely adorable if I do say so myself :)

Deluxe Monkeys!

2010-12-07T16:37:00.000-06:00

Some of the Sock Monkeys I'll have with me at Deluxe on Saturday, THIS Saturday! Eeep.
No need for panic. I'm all done and ready for the show, now I'm working on consignment monkeys for Miss Stela at The Felt Bird.
I feel ahead of the game ;)

How darn cute is this last guy?! Gah, the color combo is so lovely :)
Tomorrow I'll post a photo of the super awesome velvet bow-ties I made for a select few Sweater Mice. Very nice!

Mini Monkeys!

2010-11-16T14:35:00.000-06:00

A handful of the Mini Monkeys I'll have at Deluxe this year

Some are ornaments (with wings) and some are just pocket sized :)

How cute would this guy be peeking out of a stocking?! Sweetness.

Deluxe Mice!

2010-11-09T15:01:00.000-06:00

Just wanted to pop in to share some of the sweetness that will be in the Fried Okra booth at Deluxe on Dec. 11th! Just four of the dozens of little Sweater Mice:

Little blue has really fun ears, it's a funky little bit of salvaged woven fabric. And his green friend (really really thinking about naming them!) is made from an angora sweater, he's so furry.
Hopefully I'll have some monkeys to share next week!

Crazy Sock Day

2010-10-28T13:22:00.001-05:00

Puh-lease.
We've sooooo got that covered :)

Oh! She's wearing her Deluxe shirt that was custom done AT the show last year! My favorite of all the hands on booths :) Remember your shirts/bags this year people!

2010-09-23T14:45:00.000-05:00

So, almost a month later and this is still my view :)
New batch, well parts of them anyways.

Deluxe swiftly approaching in December and I am determined to not only have an *awesome* supply of monkeys ready but also be able to update any of my consignment shops if needed.
This is the plan, crazy crazy plan :)
Not interesting. Not inspiring. Not in any way worthy of your time but I felt like sharing cause this stack is huge :)

The Stash

2010-09-01T08:20:00.005-05:00

I've been working on monkeys non stop for the past few months and there is no end in sight!
All three of the wonderful stores with which I consign requested more in the same week. No, I'm not complaining :)
I have taken a little 2 day break from monkeys to re-organize my fabric. It's like I was going through withdrawals, just had to *touch* it!
It looks a wee bit OCD... heck I probably am a wee bit OCD.

So pretty and organized!

Like having the black/white near the Japanese/way-too-colorful-to-fit-in-one-color-group prints.

Blue is not my favorite color but I have by far the most blues...

Little foam board bolts, idea courtesy of The Little Green Bean, so genius :) Of course it looks like I'll have to buy another bookcase if I buy any more fabric.

And this is what my table looks like. Back to work!

Jack

2010-08-03T11:05:00.004-05:00

He's so cute :) He has sweet little innocent felt eyes.

How pretty is this monkey *ahem* crotch? I love it! When sewing crotches, one hopes for pretty :)

Jack and this monkey with the pretty crotch are heading to Dwelling Spaces in Tulsa! Stop by and say hi :)

Winner!

2010-07-28T17:36:00.006-05:00

Time for a winner!
Folded up scraps of paper in a bowl, always a favorite :)

This sweet little boy begged to help, who could say no? Even with that funky fake tattoo :/
And the winner is:

Yay! Trisha! I'll shoot you an email and we can get this party started!

Only 3 away from the big 400 in the FriedOkra shop! I get all sappy and super generous around milestones so take advantage!

Giveaway!

2010-07-25T09:33:00.007-05:00

As promised, it's time for a little giveaway in celebration of 3 years on Etsy and *almost* 400 sold!

:::::::::::::::::::::::::::::::::::::::::::::::::::::::::::::::::::

Details!
I am giving away one custom ordered Half-Pint pouch. Yup, custom! You pick the colors, word, font, and all that good stuff. It could be a name, nickname, inside joke, you know... customized! Half-Pint's are 6x9 with a patchworked front and a print on the back. Buttons, rick rack, and hand embroidered patch. Shipping is free too! Even to places like Okinawa :)

Example for sale in the SHOP:

Just leave me a comment to enter and I'll randomly draw a winner on Wednesday (July 28th)! Make sure I have a way to contact you!
In your comment if you have any suggestions for names I haven't used yet for a Sock Monkey that would be fantastic :)

Oh! Check out the SHOP for the details on another little giveaway!

Silver Dollar City!

2010-07-21T11:40:00.003-05:00

We celebrated the eldest of my offspring's birthday at Silver Dollar City this past weekend.
He rode in every #12 on every ride he could.

Growing up too fast.

Squirt was quite the charmer :)

A sweaty good time was had by all :)

Obviously I have unintentionally taken the summer off, from blogging and sewing. School is just around the corner and there is still so much to cram in these last few weeks!

For reals I'm planning a late-Happy-Etsy-Anniversary-to-me-giveaway. I'll post the details on Sunday!

2010-07-05T19:17:00.003-05:00

Just a little Sweater Mice update to let you all know I'm still alive and sewing :)

100% lambswool with corduroy nose and ear bits

Angora with velvet, so furry.

My favorite! Love the teal on teal.

The little ones and I watching soccer last week, it was finally time for noses :)

Since I totally blanked and forgot my Etsy anniversary (3 years!) I'm thinking of a super awesome giveaway on this here blog. Something custom.... Sweet!

Fluffy Nostrils

2010-06-21T08:53:00.003-05:00

I love this one, the colors are great and the nostrils are handspun loveliness :)
Fluffy nostrils, that's what I like in my monkeys!

Both of my embroidered portraits are finished (woo hoo!). Gary is in his frame and looking simple yet handsome. Shannon is fighting her frame, I have a feeling she doesn't like to be still for very long. Talking about them like they're actual people has helped me not chunk them in the trash every time they didn't cooperate :)

I'll be updating the shop today and tomorrow with the last 5 monkeys I have made. The sweetie above too :)

2010-06-13T16:39:00.002-05:00

Stitching away...

I'm really really happy with this already :)

Weekend

2010-06-07T09:06:00.003-05:00

The Husband was home all weekend and I sewed, and I sewed, and I sewed.
I finally found myself a thimble that I like (and can operate!) so my finger is still attached.

Monkeys, only monkeys.

Yay! Mohawk Monkeys! Love stuffing those toes :)

Here's a little sneak peek of my embroidered portrait :) Finished this two weeks ago and I think I'm happy with it, better than the first one for sure!

Here's to hoping the rest of the week is as productive as the weekend!

School's Out!

2010-05-25T09:22:00.003-05:00

Friday was the last day of the school year so as we were rushing out the door I remembered my camera. So glad I did cause these two photos are killing me :)

This is August '09 (technically the 2nd day of school) :

And this was Friday.... May '10 :

Looks like they've all grown a foot! Well, one's hair has anyways ;)

With my babes home I've taken to working on my Stitchalong project... she's coming along splendidly. Just as I thought, the hair is my most favorite part :)

Elephants

2010-05-18T14:39:00.006-05:00

Would have preferred Donkeys but in Oklahoma, I'll take what I can find :)

I promise I haven't been spending all my time thrift store shopping. I have been busy, I swear! See, a basket full of assorted monkey bits.
I got a wee bit sidetracked with cutting up the big bunch of sweaters I had accumulated. Of course I didn't count or plan how many mice I wanted to make, just went with it. Got into the groove, went on a little Wes Anderson movie vacation and checked O.U.T.

Well, I have 63 mice bodies ready to be stuffed.

Not that I have enough stuffing for 63 mice, or enough fabric labels for 63 mice, or ANYWHERE to store 63 mice.
So they sit in a tote, empty and lifeless. I need to step back, pick a few and quit trying to be so darn efficient. I am not a mindless sewing machine.

On another note, I listed a bunch of pouches in the SHOP on major sale. It's spring!

Thrifting

2010-05-03T15:55:00.005-05:00

Last week I hit all the thrift stores in town and came home with a bounty of sweaters, soon to become mouse-ified :)

The one on the bottom is United Colors of Benetton (sweet!) and second from the bottom is angora (oooh, furry!). There are actually two more sweaters but I already had them cut up before I thought to take a photo. I heart summer!

I also scored these sweetly serious cat portrait plates...

This one creeps the kids out...

I think he could sport a bowtie or a little cap and be quite dashing :)

Dustbowl

2010-04-26T09:50:00.004-05:00

Dustbowl Arts Market
My first outdoors show, whoa nelly. It was so insanely windy words cannot describe, and photos cannot show... Trust me, I was holding on to that tent with all my might :)

I made this string of black and white bunting just in case I couldn't use my curtain. Glad I did! As soon as we hung the wall and curtain it acted like a sail and we could feel the tent start to move (with 40lb. weights on all four legs).

Mice & Monkeys, Buttons & Bags...

Love this :)

Dustbowl Arts Market

2010-04-21T08:22:00.002-05:00

Corner of Crawford & Gray, 11am-5:30pm

The forecast is excellent, gonna be a beautiful day!

I'll be there along with this little lady and about 30 of her friends :)

A pre-birthday party...

2010-04-18T21:16:00.005-05:00

My baby won't be 5 till the 27th but we had his Mario party yesterday, dang you busy April.

"Blue Velvet" jumbo cupcakes as requested. And yes, that's Red Velvet with blue food coloring in place of red... don't ask me, the kid is 4.
Awesome Super Mario Bros figures and little star cookies.
The cookies were a stroke of genius, I must say. Tiny star cutter and regular ole sugar cookie dough. The frosting was your standard powdered sugar/butter/milk recipe tinted yellow. I did make it pretty thin so I could just flip and dip, so they would be nice and smooth. After they were dry I used a tube of black gel icing for the eyes (THAT took a little practice to keep them neat).

My technically still 4 year old and his Yoshi :)

Little day trip...

2010-04-16T20:11:00.004-05:00

Went with Squirt on a field trip to OSU...

On the field at Boone Pickens Stadium and I'm making him stop to take a picture. Geez!

And they got to meet "Mr. Pete" ... ah, 4 year olds are so cute :)

They had the longest discussion on whether or not Mr. Pete was a real person. They never did agree...

Otherwise I'm busy as ever working on my booth for the Dustbowl Arts Market on April 25th. Only feeling mildly stressed and insane, that's good :)

2010-04-05T17:18:00.004-05:00

It's crunch time! Dustbowl Arts Market is in 20 days! (eep, what am I doing in front of the computer!)

But since the family insisted on a little Easter I had to oblige :)

She can't take a bad photo :)

He's "trying something new" with his hair :)

Goodness, I want to pluck that little eyelash right off his cheek and wish he never grows a day older :)

2010-03-23T14:28:00.000-05:00

One of my favorite springtime treats :)

2010-03-14T16:19:00.002-05:00

Front row, dinosaur shirt...

That's my boy :)

Freckles!

2010-03-13T19:35:00.004-06:00

Just had to share this little guy:

The grippies on the heel made freckles :)

Sweater Mice

2010-03-10T08:22:00.004-06:00

Just a quick little update on the Sweater Mice :)

Aprons for some

The Sweater Mice are 90% finished, just waiting on a trip to the thrift store searching for a few more hankies. I'm being very patient :)

Thank you Spring for at least making some sort of attempt at showing your face! I love not wearing a heavy coat and slippers. But man oh man do these dark clouds have to go away, they make me all sleepy and lazy!
Sock Monkeys don't make themselves.

Progress and my conscience :)

2010-02-23T12:06:00.006-06:00

Coming right along :)

Ears... oooh, velvet!

Miss Holly got it right! Mice they are (well, not yet... but soon!)
Once I get going on a project that I'm really into I go all in. I bet I have 20 in process right now. Crazy or sad... the jury's still out. But if they don't do well, I may have to call an exterminator.

I think what I'm loving about these is how clear my conscience is :)
I'm using thrifted sweaters and suit coats. Thrifted t-shirts for some of the tails. I tried my hardest to find velvet (in more than black) second hand but ended up buying at our local HobLob. I couldn't help myself, who knew velvet came in so many colors?!
I'm saving the best part of the Sweater Mice for another post :)

2010-02-18T11:28:00.000-06:00

Intrigued?
I bet you are :)

This is me sewing from a pattern

2010-02-05T08:25:00.007-06:00

An *actual* pattern! With pieces to cut out and a 9 year old girl to measure. Hems out the wazoo and gathers till the cows come home.

The traditional 4th grade field trip to Rose Hill, the little one room school house just south of us. I really had no choice in the matter, what kind of crafty momma would I be if I DIDN'T make her a prairie dress?
I would have been a disgrace ;)

This I can say (without any kind of shame) is my first successful dress. And I'm not going to lie, I was scared. Necklines scare the bejezus out of me. I still have all the patterns I bought when Vi was just a baby, what I don't have is all the wonky dresses I made from those patterns! This success story is not likely to have a sequel any time soon though, at least not till October ;)

And I'll leave you with a rare non-blurry photo of one of our little Gerbil friends, who looks like a sweet little bunny (if you squint). I think it's because you can't see his rodenty tail ;)

Love Monkeys :)

2010-01-22T22:07:00.003-06:00

One of the many Sock Monkeys I have ready to list in the SHOP. I'll most likely get on that tomorrow so keep an eye out if you've been waiting for some fresh monkeys (ew, that sounds kinda wrong!).
Several are all varieties of pink and red, hint hint :)

Yarn & Coffee

2010-01-10T14:05:00.004-06:00

Finally my days are getting back on track. I love vacation, don't get me wrong. I love having everyone home, baking yummy treats, and making hot cocoa for after snowball fights. But boy oh boy am I happy as a clam to have everyone back in school and most of my day to myself :)
I've been thoroughly enjoying my new yarns Hubs gave me for Christmas...

Nice and squishy :)
http://whiletangerinedreams.etsy.com
http://Ozknits.etsy.com
http://PumpkinHaus.etsy.com
http://atomicblue.etsy.com
Love them all to pieces!

Our Christmas Theme this year was "On your person" which meant all presents had to be something you could wear. So he said as long as I make *something* I can wear his present passes the test.
That means I get to use the rest for whatever I want, like the Zombie weaving above :)

I made a few small square looms for weaving, and eventually making them into pincushions.

One of my "On your person" presents from my sister, can't help but think of Special Agent Cooper and his damn fine cup of coffee :)

Christmas & Carlsbad

2010-01-03T20:18:00.006-06:00

Short and sweet with lots of photos :)

Made us some new stockings :)

Tree is looking fine :)

This is Oklahoma, right?!

Day after Christmas we braved the snow and headed to Arizona (ha! Suckers!) to see my sister and her family, my favorite furry nephew :)

This is my seat buddy. I was in charge of the DVD player :)

And bugging him with the camera :)

A stop at Carlsbad Caverns on New Years Day :)
(I told him I didn't want a goofy pose for this photo, so I got a grump instead)

My lone good photo of the cave. MAN is it dark down there! :)

Someday I should do a post on all my awesome presents (I totally scored!). I love how everyone shops handmade now :)

Deluxe Wrap-Up

2009-12-14T09:00:00.006-06:00

You plan and plan and stress and sew, then it's all over and done with before you can even take a breath. All that though was well worth it :) It's always such fun to see everyone again! I feel so out of the loop way out here so it's nice to get to chit chat and shop (lots of shopping).
Now for a few photos (more on Flickr):

Hubs and Mom getting ready :)

Monkeys, monkeys, monkeys
My ornaments were gone by 3!

Loops, buttons, and plain jane Mini's

Some of my purchases. I bought lots more but can't share them... for some reason... or another... (hi hannah!)

Looking forward to Christmas break and some stitching :)
Shop is slowly being restocked and for anyone who orders anything before Christmas is gonna get a motherload of extras :)

Long Johns and Snowflakes

2009-12-09T18:50:00.004-06:00

Since I'm pretty much all done with my Deluxe prep I have been experimenting :)
I was going to just stitch my woven rectangles on some bags, though I really wanted to do something different with them. I was picking out fabric and all when hubs came in and said "are you making those into pincushions?". No, but that's a fantastic idea! So here they are:

They reminded me so much of Long Johns (the donut) I couldn't think of a better name, so Long Johns they are. Stuffed with a creamy white polyfil, delish!

I loved Loved LOVED last night's Independent Lens (Between the Folds). I could watch dudes talk about origami for hours :)
Sort of related, I broke out my stash of paper and cut some snowflakes for my fake presents at Deluxe. I also folded a modular star for the top of my little tree I'm bringing to display my ornaments. I forgot to take a photo so you'll just have to come see it your own self, don't laugh at my shoddy origami skills. I never get those corners just right ;)

7 Days

2009-12-05T13:45:00.006-06:00

One week out and here is a little taste :)

I experimented a little with the traditional red heel socks before they were magically transformed into monkeys. I *love* how they turned out :)

A very OSU shade of orange (Go Pokes!) and a super sweet lavender. I am feeling a fondness for purple lately, don't know what's come over me.

Bow-Ties and a peek at one of my favorite pouches of late (see, purple!)

Jotters, super simple notepad and pen set. Patchworked, buttoned, and an elastic strap to hold it closed.

I had the notepads made by Tea & Ceremony , I love love love them :)

How fun is the first page?!? Sandra's so creative :)

And my head is exploding with all this, I can't stop smiling :)

That's better :)

2009-11-23T08:30:00.003-06:00

Now that they have their faces on they feel much better :)

Still here, still making monkeys

2009-11-20T13:25:00.004-06:00

I am a machine. On full auto-pilot. Three band-aids on one finger. Fueled by coffee and marathon Lost. I'm definitely not complaining :) I have a totally awesome "job".

Check the little guy in front :) One of the limited edition (how fancy does that sound?!) sock monkey ornaments I'll have on hand at Deluxe. So sweet and as hubs put it... pocket size.

Halloween

2009-11-03T15:49:00.004-06:00

This year we had a Zombie, San from Princess Mononoke, and a wee skeleton. Squirt is still preferring comfort to creativity when it comes to costumes, boring.

Year after year I get super stressed trying to photograph them in costume as the sun is going down (I absolutely HATE overly flashed out photos). Next year I'm getting them dressed and photos taken BEFORE dinner! I think they were feeling my frustration and forgot to smile :/

And this is a couple days earlier when she was on her way out to a early Halloween party.
We had forgotten the earrings (which really add to the costume in a big way) but she's looking fierce!

She looked so awesome! Still kicking myself for not doing a full on photo shoot, Ha!

Monkeys, monkeys, and more monkeys

2009-10-22T13:59:00.003-05:00

I'm averaging 3 a day, hoping to get them finished be the end of October so I can make some other fun stuffs for Deluxe :)

Oh! I'm gonna have to get me some of these:

Those mini monkey bits are TINY!

DIY Gerbil Habitat

2009-10-06T08:53:00.004-05:00

I've been meaning to post this for awhile. We recently upgraded from the teeny tiny gerbil cage to a big honkin condo of a gerbil "habitat". Max needed a friend and more space to roam :)
It's made from two plastic totes, random plastic bins and wire we found at the hardware store. There is a hole connecting the top and bottom, that was fun. Lots of washers, nuts & bolts, and cursing. But it works! And it's virtually cat proof! We've wired it to his dresser just in case ;)

Max, his new bff Justin is in the hut.
I did NOT name these little rodents btw ;)

Most of my Max photos look like this:

Big brave Atticus ran for Student Council last week, and WON! We were shocked :)
His posters were hilarious, so darn cute :) I'm posting the others on Flickr

Awesome!

2009-10-01T16:06:00.004-05:00

December 12th!
Can't wait :)

Sweet deal & Expo

2009-09-26T06:53:00.007-05:00

Hey! I got my order yesterday from OvernightPrints and just had to share :)
I made up these button cards for promo purposes (Deluxe bags!) and they turned out so sweet:

Of course I can't center the button over the circle but I suppose that adds to the charm.
The coupon code I used got me 250 single sided cards for free, I added rounded corners and had to pay shipping but over all saved 25$. Not bad :)

We also went to the Wildlife Expo at the Lazy E Arena yesterday. It was really interesting watching Ollie with the animal skins. Me being a rigid vegetarian (for animal rights reasons) for 14 some years now I have a severe ICK reaction to the skinned and stuffed little woodland creatures. My little sweet babe is the biggest animal lover and he was a bit weirded out with the skins. He kept petting the head and looking at where the eyes were and the hands, raising his hand and asking the guy behind the booth what happened to the fox. Oh.

But what a great bunch of volunteers they have out there! Anyone willing and happy to push my 4 year old around in a kayak for 10 long minutes is somethin special :)

Going on today and tomorrow, the butterfly tent is not to be missed!

Noodle Salad!

2009-09-23T10:22:00.004-05:00

I finally got around to setting up my second shop! Noodle Salad :) I registered it a loooong time ago!
"Good times and noodle salad", one of my very favorite lines from As Good As It Gets.

I'm going to be moving all my things with knitted bits over there. It's also where I'm placing my new somethin somethin involving my woven rectangles. Yay!

How totally sweet is my banner?! So perfect :)

Took me all frickin morning to set the shop up, I'll wait to move things till tomorrow.
I gotta get up out of this chair!

2009-09-09T10:05:00.003-05:00

Working on custom orders, birthday presents, and inventory for Deluxe :)
Trying to not be irate over my timing belt breaking.

Love the purple-fade-to-pink :)

Have Fun

2009-08-24T11:41:00.007-05:00

Turn with me to page 144 in your copy of A Light in the Attic by Shel Silverstein.

Have Fun

It's safe to swim
In Pemrose Park.
I guarantee
There are no sharks.

Perfect. Down to each little dot :)

And for your viewing pleasure:

Yarns by my girl Rachel-Marie, the uber talented, queen of all things knitty, and all around super duper friend :)
I am totally enamored with weaving, the texture is amazing. I'm looking forward to stitching these babies on pouches reeeeal soon ;)

Wednesday Randomness

2009-08-19T13:26:00.005-05:00

Just wanted to catch up on what I've been busying myself with :)

A few faceless monkeys chillin with the fabric stash. Since I snapped this photo I've added 3 more to the pile :)

Buttons! I'm head over heels (love me some Tears for Fears!) in love with my button machine. Love, I tell ya :) This was my Downtown DIY project but now that they're all done and packaged I'll have to come up with something else equally as portable. Hmmm.

Finished up this custom order, I *love* how her flower turned out :)

Working on some custom orders, playing catch up! Saving my pennies for this little slice of sweetness :)
Heather, it will be mine!

Picking up my baby in 45 :)

Do Over

2009-08-17T12:34:00.007-05:00

The kids started back to school last Wednesday. I took the first day of school photos like always.

Vi was wearing the outfit she's had picked out for two weeks, it was... well... pink. Pink shirt (with glitter), pink skirt, and pink striped leggings.

Squirt was so excited he was posing like crazy. Jumps! Karate chops! Sticking out his tongue! Ugh.

And big-man-first-day-of-middle-school was a wee bit nervous. He was so quiet and barely ate anything! Those darn locker combinations.

Let's just say the photo wasn't the best.

So I re-took it this morning, before the storm blew in :)
I think they all look alot less
1) Pink 2) Excited 3) Nervous

I can get a little bossy when taking photos of my kids. Smile! A *real* smile! Your eyes were closed! No, they *were* closed!
Sometimes they get confused ;)

Frankoma

2009-08-07T12:43:00.004-05:00

A week (or two?) ago I scored this gorgeous hodgepodge set of Frankoma pottery at our local Salvation Army. AND it was Crazy Days so I got it on sale! More photos on Flickr...

Not particularly rare or anything just flippin awesome! Yellow is and has always been my favorite color, it's a happy color :) And the rectangular "sandwich platters" are so sweet, I was so excited there were so many of them. I contacted the Frankoma guy and he said the whole lot was worth at least 3 times what I paid, nice!
I was super excited to see lots of fun pieces on Ebay in the same glaze. A deviled egg plate! A bean pot! Tumblers! A planter! This could get bad ;)

A big wind blew through a couple weeks ago (man, I'm late!) and knocked our woodpecker hacienda out of the tree. Thankfully they were done with the place! They've been using that same branch for at least 3 years :)
Hopefully they come back next spring, Squirts all time favorite spring activity is watching the "red headed pecker" work on his nest.

1-7-1

2009-07-28T18:02:00.006-05:00

The custom order I mentioned a bit ago is finally finished! Here are the final wrapping up photos, then it was off to celebrate :)
Seriously, I went out to eat with the girls and got myself a sweet tattoo (I'll take a photo when the sun comes out)!

Humongous stacks:

Side view:

Close up:

Lots of boxes:

171 total! Wowza :)

Double Yay!

2009-07-11T20:59:00.006-05:00

I finally got my lens back! My sweet-unsuspecting-never-done-nothin-to-no-one camera was a hit and run victim in a cat chase. My lens wouldn't auto-focus (or manual for that matter) so I had to send it all the way to Olympus to get fixed.
Now it's back and I can take photos! Woot! You don't realize how much you miss something till it's gone.

I had Marissa over at FeelingisMutual make me up some designs for new buttons! Aren't they fantastic?!?! I *love* them :)

My new print from TheBlackApple came the other day! It's so unbelievably perfect in the sewing room :) Here's the LINK

I took sooo many grumpy face photos of Squirt this afternoon, then *finally* a smile!

Which he tried to hide, unsuccessfully I might add ;)

Happy 4th!

2009-07-04T14:53:00.003-05:00

Happy 4th of July!!

watched National Treasure...
working on Cold-Fashioned Potato Salad....
playing outside...

thank goodness the rain moved on!

Last Day!

2009-07-02T10:01:00.004-05:00

Remember, today at midnight the sale is over! If you know me, you'll be quite aware that I really only have sales on my anniversary (I'm a sap).
ALSO! I'm swimming in custom orders so I don't know when the shop will have another update. Then there's Deluxe in December...
Not to be pushy or anything ;)

Anniversary Sale!

2009-06-28T23:40:00.003-05:00

It's Monday!

I decided to go with a BOGO 1/2 sale :)

Buy one and get something equal or lesser $ for half price. I can either send you a revised invoice OR if you go ahead and pay I'll shoot you over a refund for the sale. Sound good? Okay!

Sale ends at Midnight on Thursday July 2nd!

Then I will be officially 2 years old :)

I'll be listing all week (yay!)

Sidetracked :)

2009-06-23T09:12:00.005-05:00

Last night I was all ready to list a couple more things to my Etsy shop and work on Sale stuffs.

Nope!

This American Life (season 2) is Watch Instantly on Netflix! Forever it had a status of "unknown", from unknown to watch instantly?! Awesome :)
Needless to say we stayed up and watched the entire second season, totally worth it. Ira Glass... swoon :)

Ideas?

2009-06-22T13:10:00.003-05:00

Hey :)
Next Monday I want to start a week long sale to celebrate my 2 year anniversary in my Etsy shop! I need to get busy listing (I have a bunch!), my least favorite part of all.
Any ideas on what kind of sale to have?

Yay!

2009-06-06T17:15:00.006-05:00

What a sweet and totally unexpected surprise! Logged on and whose smiling face do I see ;) I love how Buster's just chillin, happy as a clam to be included. Ha!

You know, I really should check the Treasuries more often!

And I totally figured out how to use Screengrab! Go me!

Ahoy!

2009-06-01T20:14:00.008-05:00

I'm adrift in a sea of Pirate fabrics :)

A big ole order for a super awesome longtime customer, it's my summer project. I think I used 12 packages of rick rack!

And while I'm in a Piratey sorta mood...

I am so in love with this embroidery pattern! The waves, the angle, the big fluffy cloud :)

Last Day of School!

2009-05-20T17:45:00.005-05:00

So tomorrow is the last day of the school year for my two oldest kiddos, they are beyond excited :) I can never understand why though, within a couple days they'll be "soooo bored".
Little do they know I have signed them up for every camp, program, class, etc that has come my way! Muahahahaha!

Anyways... I thought I'd share our Teacher Appreciation gifts for this year!
For my oldest's two teachers we did mugs and coffee :) I had him peruse Etsy and this is what he came up with:

From Circa Ceramics

From Scrumdidlyump

And little Miss wanted to make her present (awww! that's my girl!) so we came up with an embroidery in a hoop. She did the drawing and I traced it out onto the fabric, love all the smiling faces :). She and I took turns with the stitching, she's not half bad I tell ya! The flowers are paper and then we used alphabet beads to spell out "You Rock". These photos are before I glued it into place and trimmed the extra fabric:

Too sweet :)

Screw you sunshine...

2009-05-12T21:36:00.004-05:00

I made myself a lightbox! We've had almost 2 whole weeks of dreary rain, very irritating for someone who depends on the sun to take photos for her Etsy shop.
Followed the tutorial and voila!
Paid a $1.50 for the box, the rest I had around the house :)

I still needed to tweak the brightness a little bit (I think I need a brighter bulb?) but overall I'm super happy with it! If only I could find a box big enough for a monkey ;)

Deluxe!

2009-05-12T08:28:00.004-05:00

Had a fantastic time at Deluxe this weekend! Loved meeting so many of the folks from the street team and checking out everyone's booths :)
Here's an early shot of my setup (I fixed the crooked sign) and one of the little girls from the booth across the way. More photos on Flickr...

Now I'm working like crazy to get everything leftover photographed and listed in the shop, it's breaking my heart cause it looks so sad and empty!

How awesome is this?!?!?!
She's H-U-G-E!