Construction Zone

The problem with living in a house that is over 100 years old is that the work on the house is never done.  We bought this house believing that there was 20 years of work to do on it and that we would probably be here for 20 years.  Now we have been here for 5 (in two weeks!) and we are not so sure we want to be here for another 15.  So that 20 years of work?  We are trying to cram it into two.

 And you can never just do one thing.  We needed to have some sidewalk panels replaced - In Philadelphia, homeowners are responsible for the sidewalk that borders their property - and the end of our driveway repaired...  And why not replace the front steps that are starting to crumble?  Oh - and if we're replacing the front steps, this is probably the best time to replace the front door so that the steps can be finished without the old door in the way.

So the old door was pulled out yesterday.  And The Dad leaves town today for a work conference in Puerto Rico...  Which means we have fabulouly beautiful plywood in place of our front door until he comes back.  Ahhh...  Living in a construction site.  It will all be beautiful when it is done.  But it is never as easy as you first think it is going to be.

Our new door is slightly wider than the existing opening.  And the existing opening is made much more solidly than we expected.  So I see some serious wood planing in my future.  Hopefully we can get the new door in by the end of the week.  Until then, the kids are having a fun time drawing and writing on the plywood.

While the masonry crew is here, I am holed up in the house which is actually helping me get some work done!  I am participating the Philly Waldorf School Holiday Fair again in November - my first show in a year- and have really been able to get revved up in my studio.

I'm making some new things to add onto a smaller collection of my old favorites.  This show tends to be better for smaller gifty items.  I'm really liking this new pencil roll.  It needs a little tweaking but it is almost there!  Then back to my Treasure Totes (that made the Holiday Fair postcard!) and a larger version that I'm calling Library Bags.  It's funny how what I make evolves as my kids grow.  Two years ago, I made tons of the Treasure Totes.  They were the perfect size for my 4 and 6 year olds.  Now they are a little older and need something a little bigger (though they still use the Treasure Totes as their snack bags for school) so voila - the Library Bag is born.  What will I be making when the are 8 and 10?

Recovering

I think we are all recovering from the last couple days right now.

Art Star was a great success and a really fun weekend.  I met some cool people, purchased a fabulous set of prints, saw some repeat customers, and was reminded repeatedly why I do this.  And then I got home to face the aftermath.  Hmmm... 

Next up, Thanksgiving.  And my 20th (Eek!) High School Reunion.  And lots of thought and discussion about balance and benefit.  While I will keep sewing, I will also be starting on a new project when we return home: Six Months of Homemaking.

One of the things I love about reading some of the crafty/family/lifestyle blogs out there is the inspiration.  They help me clarify how I really want to be living my life.  I've been doing a lot of soul searching (while sewing, mostly) since the kids went back to school and I've found some focus lately.  And some motivation.

About eight months ago, I totally changed the way I eat.  Cold Turkey.  And it has had amazing effects on all of us.  Monday, I am changing the way I spend my days.  And I am hoping it will have an even greater effect.  There are multiple pieces to the equation.  I'm guessing they will be factored in slowly.  But it will happen.  And life will change.  And really, I'm so excited.

I figure the more I write about it here, the more likely I am to stick with it.  Some come visit!  Leave a comment!  Suggestions, questions, all are welcome.  I'm diving in.

Holiday Art Star Craft Bazaar - This Weekend!

Down to the wire, as usual, I am still making just a couple more things.  And awaiting the arrival of the rest of my hangtags...  that are supposed to arrive on Thursday, just in time to price and attach for Friday.  No, I've never been a procrastinator...

I'm so excited for this show, though.  I've had so much fun at the Spring shows that I've done.  They do such a good job and draw such an eclectic group of people.  If you are anywhere near Philly this weekend, definitely come and check it out!  The very first Holiday Art Star Craft Bazaar at the 23rd St. Armory.  Parking may be difficult, but it is just a couple blocks from 30th St. Station - I, personally, will opt for Septa Saturday and Sunday mornings.

If you go, make sure you come say Hi!  I will be at Booth #16 along the back wall.  Can't Wait!

As excited as I am, though, I may be even more excited about what will come after Art Star.  Things are going to change around here, with a shift of focus.  And no, I'm not pregnant.  I just feel like I spent the last two months cramming, to the detriment of the rest of my home, and am excited about some solutions I'm planning to remedy that.  6 months of solutions.  Stay Tuned...

Striving for Balance

I'm beginning to realize that you can spend your whole life striving for balance.  Balance between work and life.  Between income and expenses.  Between time spent on the computer and everything else you need to get done.  Between working and taking care of your house and taking care of your family.  Between the attention you give your children and ...  There are a lot of balls to juggle in life and I think balance - or near-balance - can only come intentionally.

So the kids have been in school together for two and a half weeks, now.  And I know it will take some time to catch up on all that was neglected over summer vacation, but I am still floundering.  I think I need a schedule.  The two largest pieces of my day should be made up of sewing (I was recently accepted into Art Star's very first Holiday Bazaar!  WooHoo!) and cleaning/working on the house.  By cleaning, I don't mean just dishes and putting laundry away.  I mean deep purging and organizing.  This house is messier than it has been in a long time.

I can break the day (really 9-230) in half.  I can stagger going back and forth.  But really, I just need to do it.  And do them both.

So I am going to pick one room each day (on top of the regular dishes, laundry, picking up) and spend two hours on that room - I am deciding this as I am writing it, but let's see how it goes.  I will start at the top of the house and work my way down.  Since things from the first floor tend to make their way up and stall on stair landings where we look at them everyday when not tripping over them.  This way, things can work their way down and then out of the house.

I have more - about what happens after the Holiday Bazaar - but I'm going to save that.  Let's see how this goes for starters.

** These pictures have absolutely nothing to do with the post.  I can't very well show you pictures of my incredibly messy house, can I?  They were taken a couple weeks ago up at a Girl Scout Camp nearby.  See the image in the sky in the third photo?  We watched, amazed, as a pilot practiced painting smiley faces in the sky.  Pretty cool...

Coming Up For Air

The Germantown Friends School Craft Show was fabulous.

So fabulous that I didn't have much left at the end.  

So fabulous that it has taken me a week to recover - The Dad came and helped out for a little bit at lunchtime and laughed at me afterwards - "I think you are a closet extrovert!"  I am SO not.  I love meeting people at the shows, though.  I could talk about fabric and the things I make, who people are and where they come from, forever.  But I will admit, it is exhausting.

But it is also always a reminder of what a small world it is, too.  It's neat to meet people who own one my dresses already.  There are enough of them around that it happens at every local show, now.  Some have bought directly from me, some have bought in a local shop, and some have received as gifts.  I love it.

This show had even a bigger 'small world' oddity - It turned out that the woman doing publicity for the show is an old friend and neighbor of Liesl Gibson of Oliver + S (who I love and have done a couple workshops with) and that her daughters are in Liesl's book (which have finished my first project from - pictures tomorrow!) - so we marvelled about that through e-mail beforehand.  But then she brought her husband over to meet me at the preview party and we started talking.  Turns out we grew up in the same area of Minneapolis and went to the same elementary school!  A rare find here in Philadelphia...

So I really do love these weekends.  Even if they take me a week to recover from!

Twirl On

Sometimes, the best laid plans...  Is that how it begins?  And then life happens.  And so does the flu.  And snow days...

I've been cranking away at the Twirly Skirts for the GFS Craft Show.  My goal had been 15, but work time has been short changed over the last couple weeks and I am actually pretty happy with nine right now.  Well, eight and a half at this moment.  Nine by the time my head hits the pillow tonight.

It is here that I struggle with the idea of production.  And how much time I can dedicate.  And how I want to spend the little bit of the time that I have.

So, every once in a while, I do a little re-evaluating.  And I keep coming to the same conclusion: I do really enjoy this.  And while I would love to be sewing O another pair of pants right now instead of one more Twirly Skirt, I am still having fun.  And am really looking forward to the Craft Show (that is just coming up way too fast).  And I am tweaking and improving both my designs and my skills.  Which makes me feel productive, even if a bit slower than I had planned.

But if there is one thing I have learned as a parent, it is that as much as you plan, things rarely go how you expect.  And you can plan for contingencies out the wazoo, but it's not really worth the time and energy.  So I'm learning to plan a bit, hope for the best, appreciate what I have, celebrate when things go well, and just...  well...  Twirl On.

Design Week at Casa C

So last week the kids went back at school and my New Year officially began.  We were away for the week between Christmas and New Years so there was a little re-acclimation going on over the weekend.  My goal for that first week was to create a sample of the skirt I will be making for the Germantown Friends Craft Show in March.  For over a year, I have been wanting to add a design for older girls to my collection of standards.  Yet I have just kept making the Reversible Roundabouts because people love them.  And they keep selling.

This year I told myself I was going to take a break from the Reversible Roundabouts and come up with some new designs.  Last week turned into Design Week in the studio.  I posted Monday on Facebook (eieio is on Facebook now!) that I was heading into the studio to start a batch of Storybook Skirts.  Based on a design I did a long time ago - a simple skirt with an attached apron.  As I started constructing it, I changed my mind.  And changed my mind again.  What came out of the studio on Thursday is the new Twirly Skirt.  Which I am very happy with.

I think one of the things I struggle with in a design is keeping it simple in a way that allows the design to show off the fabric. And the child wearing it. Because really, to me, that's what it's all about.  I used to love the boutique look, but lots of ruffles and layers don't excite me as much anymore.  And really (again) eieio is about keeping kids looking like kids.  Clothes they can play in and clothes that they love.  And clothes that are easy to put on, take off, and wash.  Right?

Shop Update and Weekend ReCap

Is it really Thursday already?  Which really feels like Friday since we are going into a four day weekend?  I swear it was just Sunday...

So I did the Highland's show last weekend.  It was fun.  And a bit different.  It was a show where you had to pay admission (a fundraiser for the historical gardens) and the bulk of the exhibitors do this full time, travelling the circuit of higher end shows.  I have to admit that at the end of the weekend (technically 3 days with set up Friday morning and a preview party/opening that night), packing up, I felt a bit like a Carny.

And then all the sudden the weekend was gone and it was Monday.  And then we said good-bye to The Dad as he set off for conference #1.  And tonight we welcome him home.  And tomorrow is Friday!!

While the week has flown by, the skies today cooperated and time stopped for a moment. I found this perfect spot of sun on the side of the house with a picnic bench conveniently placed right in front to stand the mannequin on, and I grabbed some new dresses and my camera and snapped and snapped.

And then, with still some more time before I had to pick up the boy at school, I actually sat down at the computer and got them posted in the shop.  Five of them.  I think I may be on a roll.  Now if the weather could cooperate tomorrow, too, so I could get the bibs shot and then the Treasure Totes, and then the SnackMats (formerly the Lunchbox Napkins)...  Whew, I'm tired again already.

Happy Long Weekend!

Nature Does Not Hurry...

...yet everything is accomplished.

I bought this little bowl for myself last year at Artista and this week it has become my mantra.  Especially in the morning when I keep watching the clock as the kids get ready for school.  I've noticed that less worry and less hurry gets me there at exactly the same time as rushing around and fussing at the kids about not wanting to be late.  Hmmm...

I was also happy to see that the artist, Sharon Bartmann, will be showing at The Highlands with me this weekend.  I have been coveting her pears.  Her work is just beautiful.

On another note, thanks for the comments on my last post.  Have I ever said how much I love comments?  They make me feel a little less like I'm just sitting here talking to myself!  I think those bags may just be Treasure Totes.  You're right, Kathy, that's exactly what they are used for.  Thanks!

Introducing the Itty Bitty Tote Bag (That Needs A New Name)

So I wanted a couple new things for The Highlands this weekend.  My hope had been to have a design for a larger girl's dress (size 4-8) but it just wasn't ready in time.  So instead, I bring you the Itty Bitty Tote Bag.  Reversible like the Roundabouts.  Some match dresses, some don't.

O saw them in my studio and immediately said "I want one!"  He calls it a "Church Bag", as in bring it to church stuffed with little things to keep him occupied.  I made a couple in non-girly prints, too.  I know first hand that the desire to carry around a little bag stuffed with treasures (that some may call a purse) is certainly not gender specific.

One ended up green with orange handles.  I looked at it.  And looked at it again  It screamed Halloween at me.  So off to the fabric store I went for some Alexander Henry Halloween fabric.  While The Dad had the kids up in NY for the weekend, I whipped up some little Trick or Treat Totes.  Hooray for new ideas!

The only issue I have is with the name.  While Itty Bitty Tote Bag is what popped into my head while I finished the first batch, it has evidently popped into lots of other people's heads, too.  So I need another name.  I thought of The Reversible Out-and-about (sounds cooler when said with a Canadian accent) but it doesn't quite roll of the tongue.  Or the Kiddo Tote.  I'm kind of leaning toward that one.  Any ideas?  What do you think?

In the Studio

I've gone from no time in the studio to spending what feels like every waking minute.  The kids have been kind enough to come in and join me, playing at my feet and creating what E has dubbed their 'Book Nook'.

I'm preparing for the Highlands Craft Show the first weekend in October.  I'm excited to be doing something different.  I'll be sharing a booth there with Jahje of Baby Jives.  We'll be outside in the tent, Booth #8, if you're in the area and can make it!

I'll have a huge stash of Reversible Roundabouts, including a small batch in corduroy, plus bibs, lunchbox napkins, and some new surprises.  Stay tuned!

Art Star Recap

Sorry I'm a week behind.  This week that has disappeared since the Art Star Craft Bazaar has been filled with a birthday, a birthday party, a school field trip, and some general family recovery time.

The show was fabulous.  

A bit windy, but clear blue skies and perfect temperatures.

Unfortunately, the lighting wasn't great inside my tent...

Now, back to work.  Keep your fingers crossed for some sunshine so I can get some photos for a shop update!

Spring? A Pile of Park Slope Makes It Feel Closer!

You get one nice day around here and it feels like Spring is coming.  And then I remember that it is indeed only the middle of January.

Still, I am starting to prepare for this year's Art Star Craft Bazaar (May 15th and 16th), in an effort to not feel the need to cram for inventory at the end.

I got a great kick start today with this fabulous collection of Park Slope.  I've loved this fabric before, in a different colorway, and was so excited to walk away with a whole pile of it this morning.  A matter of being in the right place at the right time - as the quilt shop owner was putting it on sale.  Hooray!

And on top of that pile?  My astroturf pocketbook.  One of the best Christmas presents ever from The Dad.

It's A Crafty Advent - Day 8 : Noel Gnomes

Besides the tree and the advent pockets, we don't do a whole lot of Christmas decorating around here.  One thing I added this year, though, is these little Noel Gnomes I fell in love with at the Waldorf Holiday Fair a couple weeks ago.

Every once in a while they get pulled down and played with  - especially the "O" one.  For the most part, though, the kids have been good with my explanation that these are mine.  They're not always happy about it, but they're learning...

"The Felt Lady", as I call her, was talking about all the ways these could be modified - including birthday ones that spell out a child's name.  I look forward to seeing what else she comes up with!

Countdown to Art Star Craft Bazaar

I had a rare moment this afternoon where they had both fallen asleep in the stroller. Combined, they are heavy enough to make it not quite safe to pull them up the steps and into the house. And, to be honest, I liked having a little bit of time where I couldn't run into the studio and get just a little more work done. I greatly appreciated a sit on the front stoop with a couple magazines...

3 more days until Art Star. Three evenings of cramming. A couple more things to sew. Tagging. Packing. Planning. And continuing to keep the house running (as it's state seems to exponentially decline as my inventory increases).

O's new room finally has a rug and some curtains, though only one curtain rod (and two windows). The Dad has been away for the last two days, returning tonight and beginning his working from home (out of what is currently a disaster of an office) tomorrow.

I am really looking forward to an evening (next week!) when I can put the kids to bed and then just sit in front of the TV without having to multitask and sew, cut, tag, or prep anything at the same time. And then we can try to get this house put back together.

Really, though, I am so excited about the fair this weekend. There has been some great press and I am so honored to be among one of the "most talented emerging artists" at this cool and funky show. Really? Me?

So, I know I've been MIA, but promise lots more about everything that's been going on around here on Monday!

If you're anywhere near the Philly area, come by and say Hi! Admission to the show is free. I have Booth #37. Live music all day, yummy food from local restaurants, and loads and loads of fabulous goods.

Take Care! And thanks for checking in.

Make It Snappy

Ahhh, my snap press. My reward to myself after the holiday fairs I did last fall. It weighs at least 20 pounds and looks so positively industrial. So, so, SO much easier and more efficient than the plastic snap setter and hammer I was using before.


And my overflowing pile of scraps.
There really is a box under there, attempting to contain it all.
The impetus for a new project to debut soon.

Things here are stressful, bordering on frantic. We have had some health issues with the kids, which seem to be all resolved, on top of The Dad changing jobs and the countdown (3 1/2 weeks to go!) to Art Star Craft Bazaar which I am feeling less and less on top of.

So, nose to the grindstone and a few more late nights coming up.

We're going to get away for a couple days next week - to a truly remote island with no banks or ATMs and no cell phone service! Just lots of time playing on the beach and exploring.
Then back for the home stretch.

Thanks for checking in!

Those Transitions...

The dresses are starting to pile up. I have very ambitious production goals for this upcoming fair but some changes in circumstances may actually make them doable! I'm hoping for dresses, bibs, skirts, and some fun little family home decor additions.

Now for those changes in circumstances. And the huge transition I alluded to here:

This week, The Dad gave notice at his job. Two and a half weeks notice. To be followed by two weeks of vacation, which will double as totally rearranging the house so that he can work from home.


Ahhh, yes. I said work at home.

He's thinking "Hey! Nooners!" I'm thinking "Hooray! I can shower every day!" But really, we are both incredibly realistic in regards to imagining a life where he works upstairs in a house with 2 rambunctious pre-schoolers that always want to be thisclosetoyou.

So, before we begin the transition of actually working at home, we do the physical transition of moving the playroom downstairs (and no longer in spitting distance of the office) and the den upstairs. I see this as a great opportunity for some fun and new decorating!

Anyway, my hope is that while The Dad is 'on vacation', between arranging these new spaces and moving furniture, I will be able to get some solid, consecutive hours at the sewing machine. And have everything done when he heads (upstairs) to work on May 26th.

I was accepted for my first big outdoor fair this week.

Art Star Craft Bazaar is the fun and funky 'not your grandma's craft show' at Penn's Landing in Philly. I'm really excited but have a lot of work to do. Will try to post regular pictures on here as I build up my inventory for the show.

The show will be the last weekend of May. Really hoping for nice weather. Live music, tents full of crafty goodness... Mark your calendar if you're in the area! And be sure to stop by to say Hi!