Posts tagged ‘community’

Akron/Cuyahoga Falls locals should put this date on their calendars. June 24th from 9am-4pm there will be a Barn Sale (as in buying things in a barn, not buying barns) at my good friend Mary Beth’s Portage Trail Barn.

Mary Beth is a crafter/repurposer extraordinare! There are items to fit anyone’s fancy, whether you are a cottage crafter or a hipster.

I’ve been eyeing her aprons and flowers. Those are right up my alley, and I’m in need of a new apron to match my new kitchen.

Or the Momme and Poppe Shoppe.

Saturday the 30th from 10 to 6 you can find me doing my thing at Crafty Mart. I’ll be selling things from my Templeton Line, again. And adding a couple of new items for the men folk, as the theme is shopping for Mother’s and Father’s days.

And I will be having a special guest at my booth! My twelve-year-old Sister-in-Law, Emily, is an art prodigy. She’s going to be selling her own original art in coloring book form. I am so excited to be involved in the beginning of what is going to be a very bright artistic future for Emily. Her designs for the book have not been released yet, but here is a quick teaser of her talents.

See you there!

This past Wednesday was the Anniversary party for our local Stitch N Bitch. Good ol’ group has been around for 7 years now. I got my second year pin, which is a tiny hand knit bear. I’ll have to photo him later, since I think he’s still attached to the sweater I wore to the party and that sweater is in the laundry chute.

Our group celebrates the event with a blind scarf swap. To participate you just need to knit or crochet a scarf and bring it wrapped up in non-descript wrapping paper. Then everyone just takes turns picking a scarf at random and everyone says, “OOOOoooooo, AAaaahhhhhhh!!” as they admire our talented group’s handi work.

I wanted to participate, mostly because I wanted to get a fantastic new scarf that was made with love, but I didn’t have time to commit to the knitting. I tried to wing it at the last minute and wet felt some hand died wool. Let me just say, it didn’t work and so I didn’t swap. I was going for a dark bluish green and I ended up with this bright spring green. Then when I felted it the scarf was too thin and it split down the middle. Craft fail.

Now I have this long piece of green felt. I think it might be salvageable if I cut it into leaf shapes and sew it together into a scarf. Maybe I will work on that this weekend… Or maybe I will just put it in the limbo of my closet in the studio…

I have this truly wonderful vintage fabric, gifted to me from my friend Martha, that has been sitting in the dark corner of my brain waiting to be turned into a shirt dress. Though I haven’t been able to muster up the time and gumption to follow through with my inspiration, and so it has remained un-cut in my fabric closet waiting for me to get my act together.

Well, thanks to the lovely

Craftzine, I was introduced to Casey’s Elegant Musings and her Swing Dress Sew-Along. Hello, Destiny! This is the perfect dress, and the perfect timeline for me. I am PUMPED!  I’ll be getting the rest of the supplies this week so that I can hop right in. I’m downloading the pattern right now!

Colleen and I are really blessed with generous and thoughtful friends. They also happen to be very talented and thrifty. Every year our friend Hilary throws a family Christmas Party and we all celebrate together and exchange small gifts.

The gifts we share are not the most obvious. Many gift exchanges are filled with lotions and scrubbers and massagers and gift cards. Those are good gifts in a pinch, but not meaningful between friends. So we have somehow managed to set a higher standard without adding any extra stress to our holiday shopping. We also haven’t really added to the shopping budget. But what we do add is a personal touch to the gifts and ensure that each gift will be used by the recipient, because the gifts are handmade and useful.

This year we exchanged sucanat, home made vanilla extract, home made peanut butter, home made lentil soup mix, home canned peaches, and a bent silver fork hook. I can guarantee that each of these items will be used, happily, within a few months. They will not waste away in my closet or cupboard. And each one was made using my friends’ unique talents, so each time I use it I will remember that I have wonderful friends whom I love.

I hope that you all have as much generosity and love in your lives this Christmas. Just a few more days left…

This is a big one. My daughter is a Daisy Scout. My mom was my Girl Scout leader for 5 years, and it is one of the best memories I have of childhood. We learned to build fires, camp in 3 feet of snow, ride horses, sew, and change the oil in a car. I would work on badges in my free time just to fill up my sash (did you keep that, mom?).

And now it’s Olivia’s turn. The craft for this week is one that might make me tear up. I get to sew the troop number and Girl Scout badges on my daughter’s first vest.

Last night at our meeting we worked on the Promise, and learned to finger knit using those fun little knitted loom loops. Some of the girls really got it quickly! Olivia made a bracelet/headband for her doll, Rachelle. If anyone out there in Crafty-Land has some Girl Scout activities experience, let me know, I want to make this experience fun for everyone.

Does anyone out there remember the Girl Scout Promise? Three fingers up!

I am simplifying my palette for my Templeton line and Crafty Mart this year. Trial and error has convinced me that I had overshot what I make and mostly left buyers confused as to what it is I offer at my booth. So this year I am making many of the same items, but only using men’s clothing fabrics that I have upcycled.

I have made flower pins many times in the past, and even made a tutorial on it. But this time I did box pleating and cinched it in the center, which I think makes a fabulous flower shape I hadn’t achieved before. I also have some other broach shapes I’m experimenting with. I haven’t decided if they are turning out or not, so no pictures at this time.

I have some other ideas brewing, this week is a big making week, so you’ll see how they’re turning out in a few more days.

Here is my awesome Elise, modeling her big sister Olivia’s witch costume. I had so many ideas for how to sew this costume, but in the end, Olivia’s opinion had to win out. She wanted the basic black, broom carrying, hat wearing witch, and I had to push for the frilly tutu. I didn’t want to make just a plain black frock.

It ended up being a good challenge though. I had to sew with stretch velvet for the first time. It wasn’t as hard as I feared, once I got going. Gotta love my serger! We’ll be trick or treating twice this weekend, so this should get some good use. And I made the velvet top separate, so we can use it as a church outfit shirt later. I love the irony of wearing a witch costume to church.

The other two girls are wearing clothes from the dress up box. That was a blessing since I’ve been working on the basement so much I haven’t had a lot of sewing time.

So what are your plans for the weekend? Any moms or dads dressing up? If all goes well, I might have a costume for myself to post here, too.

I know you’re excited. I’m excited because Crafty Mart is my favorite local event of the whole year. I love seeing the creativity that North East Ohio has to offer, and I love feeling that electric vibe right in Downtown Akron.

All the details are the same as before. Awesome work for local artists and crafters, for sale to you on November 13th, from 10am to 5pm at Musica downtown. If you come later rather than early the bar is open, too, which makes for extra fun while browsing.

I’ll be there as Templeton Goods as well as representing Craft Akron. Which will be fun because I get to do the two things I like best: sell stuff I really like made from repurposed clothing, and teach people how to make some very cute, very quick crafts. Do come. I can speak for all the vendors- the more the merrier!