Happily, all parties involved came through unscathed.
Saturday, October 31, 2009
A family production
Brett, a dragon, and three very unhappy cats prepare to make a massive family visit to the vet this morning.
Happily, all parties involved came through unscathed.
Happily, all parties involved came through unscathed.
Thursday, October 29, 2009
The only problem...
...with a dragon suit is that it's really hard to sit in a chair with a tail.
Thank goodness the chair had a hole in the back.
Thank goodness the chair had a hole in the back.
Wednesday, October 28, 2009
Sofie dragon, ready to party
It just occurred to me that there's no way she can fit in her carseat with this great big tail! Oh well. We'll figure it out.
Sofie dragon, modeling her tail
Just finished the dragon suit today, in time for her school halloween potluck tonight!
Sunday, October 25, 2009
Tutter's New Room
Sofie, who now insists on being called Tutter (on a good day) or something more complicated like "Oh Tutter Grand Poobah Of The Universe" (on a bad day) has recently gotten rid of her lovely big girl bed and moved into a two-person camping tent.
She stopped sleeping in her bed probably two months ago, insisting instead on sleeping on the floor. We moved her mattress down there in an attempt to make her more comfortable, and gave her a sleeping bag since it's drafty down there, and from a sleeping bag it was really only a logical step to go for the whole tent experience.
And, of course, she loves it! It's blue! It's tenty! She can put all her animals in it! What's not to love?
Here's a closeup of the animal party we had in there today.
I'd like to say her bed will be reappearing soon - it's so cute! But somehow, I have a feeling we're going to be cleaning around a ginormous tent until she's ten.
She stopped sleeping in her bed probably two months ago, insisting instead on sleeping on the floor. We moved her mattress down there in an attempt to make her more comfortable, and gave her a sleeping bag since it's drafty down there, and from a sleeping bag it was really only a logical step to go for the whole tent experience.
And, of course, she loves it! It's blue! It's tenty! She can put all her animals in it! What's not to love?
Here's a closeup of the animal party we had in there today.
I'd like to say her bed will be reappearing soon - it's so cute! But somehow, I have a feeling we're going to be cleaning around a ginormous tent until she's ten.
Friday, October 23, 2009
Gardening Season Is Over...
So I'm creating a new line of veggie-inspired bodysuits in my shop. Here's a sneak peek.
What do you think?
Wednesday, October 21, 2009
Blue Tutter
My daughter and a friend tonight playing with makeup at Molly's house, and living her dream of actually turning into a living, breathing blue mouse.
Isn't she pretty?
(Taken with my phone, sorry for the low res)
Creative Efforts - What I've Been UpTo
Just sharing a few of my recent creations!
Weather-inspired coffee sleeves, at left - of course I made these on a gray and rainy day here in Seattle. I love rain! Use one when it's sunny, one when it's rainy, or match them to your mood!
$19 for the set, which you can view here.
I realize this turquoise and orange crayon roll is just crazy bright. But doesn't it make you feel happy?
I made and listed two of these but I think I'm going to take one of them out of the store and keep it for myself - Sofie's trusty crayon roll, which we've been lugging around in my purse for over two years now, is starting to look a little bedraggled, and I'm wanting a new one. And I think this is just the thing to get us through the winter.
And finally, I got my hands on some more of that gorgeous Paris linen that was so popular a few weeks back, and made a whole new set of Parisian pencil rolls, this time with a sweet cornflower blue interior with carnations, which I thought was a perfect fit.
Business is great these days - I'm working on a big baby shower order right now and the second half of an order for a preschool class that will soon be enjoying a set of nature-themed pencil rolls, as well as fielding orders from all over the globe. My most recent far-flung orders went to Damascus, Ontario, Australia, and Russia, all in the space of a single week. Not quite the four corners of the globe, but I'm getting closer!
Thanks so much for looking, and as always you can see all of these goodies and lots more in my shop at Bellflower Textiles!
Weather-inspired coffee sleeves, at left - of course I made these on a gray and rainy day here in Seattle. I love rain! Use one when it's sunny, one when it's rainy, or match them to your mood!
$19 for the set, which you can view here.
Magenta and orange makeup roll with 3" foldover tab - I never would have expected to put together magenta and orange and have it come out so pretty, but I love this color combination! I've made a few versions of this one and they always sell - only two left.
There are 11 pockets in this version - one 2", one 1.5", four 1", and four .75", to hold a variety of different brushes.
Lavender sachets, in one of my favorite fabrics - this sweet little cream and green trees print with the bright, bright leaves. After making a whole, whole bunch of pencil rolls from it recently, I had just this one 3" strip left and couldn't bear to see it go unused, so I put together these little lavender pillows. Just perfect for a drawer or bag!
I realize this turquoise and orange crayon roll is just crazy bright. But doesn't it make you feel happy?
I made and listed two of these but I think I'm going to take one of them out of the store and keep it for myself - Sofie's trusty crayon roll, which we've been lugging around in my purse for over two years now, is starting to look a little bedraggled, and I'm wanting a new one. And I think this is just the thing to get us through the winter.
And finally, I got my hands on some more of that gorgeous Paris linen that was so popular a few weeks back, and made a whole new set of Parisian pencil rolls, this time with a sweet cornflower blue interior with carnations, which I thought was a perfect fit.
Business is great these days - I'm working on a big baby shower order right now and the second half of an order for a preschool class that will soon be enjoying a set of nature-themed pencil rolls, as well as fielding orders from all over the globe. My most recent far-flung orders went to Damascus, Ontario, Australia, and Russia, all in the space of a single week. Not quite the four corners of the globe, but I'm getting closer!
Thanks so much for looking, and as always you can see all of these goodies and lots more in my shop at Bellflower Textiles!
Tuesday, October 20, 2009
Chaos and more chaos
Not a lot to say today since it's impossible to concentrate, given that we're in the midst of the second full day of having the house full of guys working on our now-defunct, 39-year-old furnace.
Last Friday someone came and spent 11 hours cleaning out our vents, a truly unpleasant experience that involved much chaos and equipment and moving of nearly every piece of heavy furniture in the house. Worth it, but truly a pain in the patooey, taking over the entire house as it did.
Reports of me being extremely grumpy about this were unfortunately not overstated. Many thanks to our very kind friend who took us all in for dinner that night when it became apparent that this was not going to wrap up until the wee hours of the night.
Today, another crew is taking out the old furnace (which essentially overheated and melted) and putting in a new one. Much less disruptive, in that the chaos is mainly constricted to the basement this time (and the dining room, later, when they change out our ancient thermostat - yay!) but still, loud as all get-out and difficult to ignore.
But tomorrow we will have heat! And not the puny, paltry heat that somehow never managed to reach all rooms of the house, leaving areas like our daughter's room freezing cold every day of the year, but REAL heat. Definitely worth putting up with some banging.
Seattle is still lurching around between fall and winter. One day it's 60 degrees, one day it's 40. Rainrainrain, then sunny. Fog this morning. I kind of like it, not quite knowing what kind of weather you're going to wake up to. We've still got tomatoes in the garden, which is very unusual - but aside from one week when it got cold enough that we quickly brought in the most valuable tomatoes to ripen inside, it's been warm enough to leave the cherry tomatoes out there to keep on keeping on. I think this might be the latest we've ever been able to go outside and pick a few ripe ones off the vines.
Soon it will frost, I'm sure. But we've already brought the 20-or-so yellow brandywines that hadn't ripened in, so if a quick frost destroys everything else we'll be fine, and just be grateful for the last few weeks we managed to squeeze in.
Last Friday someone came and spent 11 hours cleaning out our vents, a truly unpleasant experience that involved much chaos and equipment and moving of nearly every piece of heavy furniture in the house. Worth it, but truly a pain in the patooey, taking over the entire house as it did.
Reports of me being extremely grumpy about this were unfortunately not overstated. Many thanks to our very kind friend who took us all in for dinner that night when it became apparent that this was not going to wrap up until the wee hours of the night.
Today, another crew is taking out the old furnace (which essentially overheated and melted) and putting in a new one. Much less disruptive, in that the chaos is mainly constricted to the basement this time (and the dining room, later, when they change out our ancient thermostat - yay!) but still, loud as all get-out and difficult to ignore.
But tomorrow we will have heat! And not the puny, paltry heat that somehow never managed to reach all rooms of the house, leaving areas like our daughter's room freezing cold every day of the year, but REAL heat. Definitely worth putting up with some banging.
Seattle is still lurching around between fall and winter. One day it's 60 degrees, one day it's 40. Rainrainrain, then sunny. Fog this morning. I kind of like it, not quite knowing what kind of weather you're going to wake up to. We've still got tomatoes in the garden, which is very unusual - but aside from one week when it got cold enough that we quickly brought in the most valuable tomatoes to ripen inside, it's been warm enough to leave the cherry tomatoes out there to keep on keeping on. I think this might be the latest we've ever been able to go outside and pick a few ripe ones off the vines.
Soon it will frost, I'm sure. But we've already brought the 20-or-so yellow brandywines that hadn't ripened in, so if a quick frost destroys everything else we'll be fine, and just be grateful for the last few weeks we managed to squeeze in.
Tuesday, October 13, 2009
EtsyTwitter Team Shop of the Week: MindyG Jewelry
EtsyTwitter is a team I'm part of that helps promote each other's shops. Each week one shop is featured and gets blog, twitter, facebook, and other promotion by the rest of the team members. This week I'm excited that it's one of my favorite jewelry artists - I feature MindyG in treasuries I create on etsy all the time because her work and her photography is so lovely!
The shop happily offers flat rate domestic and international shipping as well as custom designs. "I offer something for just about everyone-birthdays, anniversarys, for moms, sisters, and teacher gifts. "
You can discover Mindy's many treasures in her etsy shop: http://mindyg.etsy.com/ or on her blog. On Twitter, www.twitter.com/mindyg.
Owner Mindy Greenville finds inspiration for her work in nature, fashion, music, and traveling with her family. "Its a great outlet for my creative side," she says." In addition to her online boutique, Mindy also designs custom bridal/bridesmaids jewelry locally in the San Diego area.
Introduced to Twitter when she joined the Etsy Twitter Team, she discovered a whole new way to connect. "I started using Twitter as a way to help promote my business and other artists that have amazing products to offer to the public. The power of online networking is a huge tool and a great way to meet others of like mind, those in the same trade who can offer advice, or just find some neat art!"
The shop happily offers flat rate domestic and international shipping as well as custom designs. "I offer something for just about everyone-birthdays, anniversarys, for moms, sisters, and teacher gifts. "
You can discover Mindy's many treasures in her etsy shop: http://mindyg.etsy.com/ or on her blog. On Twitter, www.twitter.com/mindyg.
One free “surprise gift with each purchase” 10/12/09-10/18/09. At checkout please type “ETT Gift” in the message to seller notes.
Monday, October 12, 2009
Underway... nature and kid fabrics
Just wanted to show half of a really fun order I'm working on for a preschool in a neighboring state - they want ten pencil rolls in fabrics that are both kid-friendly and whose patterns reflect the natural world. How cool is that? Here are the first five all finished up and ready to send out later this week.
This has been a fun way to use up some older fabrics that have been languishing unused for a while. I decided I was going to "shop at home" for this order, and dug around on my shelf to find things that fit the bill. So far, from left to right, we have Robert Kauffman frogs, a gorgeous little fat quarter I had with apple trees, a yellow Japanese canvas print with ladybugs and clover, a fun zoo animal print, and the last little bit of a beautiful 1940s tulip print I made a quilt out of long ago.
So pretty and cheerful, and I just love that these are going to be used in a preschool classroom!
Now on to shopping at home for fabric for the other five for this order!
Pretty Things From All Around
Seemed like a good time to highlight a few of the pretty, pretty things I've been running across lately, and to point out some lovely handmade crafters out there!
First of all, I just found this awesome store, KittyBBLove, which sells great little molded crayons, coloring books, cat-shaped chalkboards, and other goodies. I ordered a copy of their downloadable kitty coloring book and have hearted their cat-shaped crayons for Christmas. Because you know, we're all about cats here.
I've also got my eye on this as a potential Christmas present for my now also mouse-obsessed little one, from one of my favorite artists, BarkingBirdArt:
Sofie has several of her prints in her room already and I suspect this will be joining them before long.
And for those of you who love intricate stitchery, take a look at this little gem from Kale Handmade:
It's 1.25 by 1.5 inches. Amazing work!
I took advantage of someone else's free shipping special this weekend to order this gorgeous big bag from a seller in Paris named Ikabags - I can't wait until it gets here:
And for a sushi addict like me, the idea of having my own nice pair of chopsticks in a sweet little houndstooth chopstick cozy is just so fun - I want! Stocking stuffer, honey? From BLoveClothing:
Happy shopping!
First of all, I just found this awesome store, KittyBBLove, which sells great little molded crayons, coloring books, cat-shaped chalkboards, and other goodies. I ordered a copy of their downloadable kitty coloring book and have hearted their cat-shaped crayons for Christmas. Because you know, we're all about cats here.
I've also got my eye on this as a potential Christmas present for my now also mouse-obsessed little one, from one of my favorite artists, BarkingBirdArt:
Sofie has several of her prints in her room already and I suspect this will be joining them before long.
And for those of you who love intricate stitchery, take a look at this little gem from Kale Handmade:
It's 1.25 by 1.5 inches. Amazing work!
I took advantage of someone else's free shipping special this weekend to order this gorgeous big bag from a seller in Paris named Ikabags - I can't wait until it gets here:
And for a sushi addict like me, the idea of having my own nice pair of chopsticks in a sweet little houndstooth chopstick cozy is just so fun - I want! Stocking stuffer, honey? From BLoveClothing:
Happy shopping!
Thursday, October 08, 2009
A layoff, a reorg, and a long overdue promotion
Well, let's see, what's new?
A Layoff
I've laid off the diet coke once and again. Yes, I'm once again giving it up, mainly to try to get away from aspartame, which gives me headaches and makes me cranky and is really a horrible, nasty substance. I've been addicted to Diet Coke in legendary proportions for years, and given it up a few times along the way, but it never really sticks.
But here we go again, quitting it, which leaves me cranky and headachy and in dire need of something else to drink. Bleah.
I love diet coke. I love diet coke. I love diet coke.
The cranky and headachy is probably more due to the fact that a side effect of this project is that it cuts my caffeine intake way down, by accident. It's not that I don't like coffee, really, I just don't like it terribly well. I'll drink it sometimes, but it's nothing I want to make every morning and not something I have any desire to drink all day long. Real soda has too many calories (although I did suck down a non-diet Coke today out of desperation for caffiene when I realized my head was about to explode) and tea just seems like too much work.
Oy. I'm sucking down pellegrino today when I have a strong jones for carbonation, but it's a weak substitute. Bleah.
***
A Reorg
In other news, Sofie has decided that she will no longer answer to Sofie and will now only be addressed as Tutter. Mommy has been renamed Ojo, Daddy is Bear, and Grandpa Shult is Pip. These are all characters from the totally awesome Jim Henson series, Bear in the Big Blue House, which she's currently obsessed with.
Boy, does this kid stick to her guns. I haven't been addressed as Mommy in weeks. Even when she wakes up in the middle of the night, she yells, "Ojo! Ojo! I need you Ojo!" up the stairs. Her preschool teachers are corrected. And even at the doctor, yesterday, after she got her flu shot and was struggling hard not to cry, she managed this little exchange:
Nurse: "Oh, aren't you just the best little kid?"
Sofie: "I not a kid. I a mouse named Tutter."
How long will this last? I'm guessing a few months.
***
A Promotion
Sofie has a toy horse that her Dad and I goofily named "Bad Horse" in homage to the brilliant Dr. Horrible webcast we're in love with -- and because we thought it was pretty funny when she went along with it and even sang some of the lyrics in her tiny, little girl voice.
Alas, it's not to be any longer. Yesterday at naptime, she was quietly dressing and undressing bad horse when I left her for an hour of quiet play. When I returned, she loftily informed me that his name has been changed to Good Horse. She's sticking with it today, so I guess it's official - Bad Horse has earned a promotion. Pass along my congratulations!
A Layoff
I've laid off the diet coke once and again. Yes, I'm once again giving it up, mainly to try to get away from aspartame, which gives me headaches and makes me cranky and is really a horrible, nasty substance. I've been addicted to Diet Coke in legendary proportions for years, and given it up a few times along the way, but it never really sticks.
But here we go again, quitting it, which leaves me cranky and headachy and in dire need of something else to drink. Bleah.
I love diet coke. I love diet coke. I love diet coke.
The cranky and headachy is probably more due to the fact that a side effect of this project is that it cuts my caffeine intake way down, by accident. It's not that I don't like coffee, really, I just don't like it terribly well. I'll drink it sometimes, but it's nothing I want to make every morning and not something I have any desire to drink all day long. Real soda has too many calories (although I did suck down a non-diet Coke today out of desperation for caffiene when I realized my head was about to explode) and tea just seems like too much work.
Oy. I'm sucking down pellegrino today when I have a strong jones for carbonation, but it's a weak substitute. Bleah.
***
A Reorg
In other news, Sofie has decided that she will no longer answer to Sofie and will now only be addressed as Tutter. Mommy has been renamed Ojo, Daddy is Bear, and Grandpa Shult is Pip. These are all characters from the totally awesome Jim Henson series, Bear in the Big Blue House, which she's currently obsessed with.
Boy, does this kid stick to her guns. I haven't been addressed as Mommy in weeks. Even when she wakes up in the middle of the night, she yells, "Ojo! Ojo! I need you Ojo!" up the stairs. Her preschool teachers are corrected. And even at the doctor, yesterday, after she got her flu shot and was struggling hard not to cry, she managed this little exchange:
Nurse: "Oh, aren't you just the best little kid?"
Sofie: "I not a kid. I a mouse named Tutter."
How long will this last? I'm guessing a few months.
***
A Promotion
Sofie has a toy horse that her Dad and I goofily named "Bad Horse" in homage to the brilliant Dr. Horrible webcast we're in love with -- and because we thought it was pretty funny when she went along with it and even sang some of the lyrics in her tiny, little girl voice.
Alas, it's not to be any longer. Yesterday at naptime, she was quietly dressing and undressing bad horse when I left her for an hour of quiet play. When I returned, she loftily informed me that his name has been changed to Good Horse. She's sticking with it today, so I guess it's official - Bad Horse has earned a promotion. Pass along my congratulations!
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