Putting Pep In My Step

For the past two weeks, our family has been fighting a bug. First Bronwyn, then Brian, and now me. I've been feeling tired and a little "blah." But I made a couple of new wallets that really perked me up because they were so sunny and sweet. The first one is a little dedication to the White Rabbit from Alice in Wonderland. I only have enough of this sweet Japanese fabric to make about three wallets, so when they're gone that's it.

The other is made from fabric designed by Kaffe Fassett, and it is nothing if not sunny. It reminds me of those giant jawbreakers that I used to adore as a kid. Each layer was a different color, and I think, a different flavor (although I'm not so sure about that). Both of these wallets are available in my Artfire and Etsy online shops. I'm happier already!

Resting Time

It has been unseasonably cold here for a long stretch. We still have hummingbirds (the Anna's is a year 'round resident) and we had taken to bringing a fresh feeder of food out every morning and bringing the previous day's food in (it was a solid block of ice after being out all night). The little guys would hover and chirp in anticipation of their breakfast. Here is a picture that our friend, Dick Logan, took of a male staying warm. I took one of our little guy, but my camera is a wimp compared to Dick's! Now it is warm and raining, and the hummers are happy again.

I have been very busy with BCharmer, sewing and packaging and shipping for the holiday season. I feel so grateful for all of my wonderful customers, who have kept me busy all year. I have now closed both of my shops so that I can pay attention to my poor neglected family. I will re-open in 2010! I hope to have fresh inventory and a couple of new designs to show off. I recently purchased some new fabric from Joel Dewberry's "Deer Valley" line, and I'm smitten. Here are a couple of examples of items that I've made with it so far:

I wish you all a happy, safe, and healthy holiday. I'll see you in 2010!

Another Giveaway

Despite my best efforts to take a break, there's just a lot going on that I have to share with you! I'm participating in a giveaway on someone else's blog. And it's a big one! We're giving away this new bag that I just finished! If you're interested in playing, you'll have to do a little work. Head on over to Erin's Blog: Pour Some Sugar On Me to find further details. If you don't want to deal with the tweeting and the following (and if you don't know what I'm talking about, this giveway might not be the one for you), that's okay! You can admire my handiwork here and I will try and offer another bag giveaway sometime in the future here in the safety of my own blog. But this is a really great bag, so it's worth a little effort!

Brian and I had a lovely dinner last night together. We ate at a restaraunt called the Iron Rabbit, which serves really delicious fancy food in a casual setting. It was fun to be "out on the town" on our own (thank-You Melissa and James for watching our girl)! Thanks to our friends here for the Birthday wishes!

Wrap Me Up

Happy Birthday to my Sweet Husband! Yesterday was his actual birthday, but we're celebrating tonight because we have childcare. I plan to wear a simple linen sheath dress, which is perfect considering the blazing temperatures outside!

A simple linen dress is elegant, but needs a little *POW* to make it fabulous, don't you agree? I've been working on some new designs this summer that I will be selling this fall in my shops. Namely neck chokers. I just love these! I've got several different styles that I'm playing with, and I decided to make one for myself to try it out (this is how I know what to tweak). I really like the way it came out, and plan to wear it with my dress tonight. I paired Joel Dewberry's arctic buds with a celedon geometric pattern from the same line. YUMMY!

Good Morning

It is overcast and a little chilly today. And poor little Bronwyn; she has a late spring cold, and is very snorkely and is now coughing. She will miss most of a week's school, which is stressful because I rely on her time away to get work done. Oh well. I can pull a couple of late-nighters to make up for it.

We're currently reading the book "Charlotte's Web" aloud and she's really enjoying it! I think I was about 6 or 7 when I first heard it, so the timing is nearly right. We'll probably make it through a couple of chapters today. Luckily, Brian made some sauce from our rhubarb plant and it has that wonderful summery tang that will remind me that summer really is coming and that the clouds will soon pass.

In an earlier post, I wrote that I'm working on a project for a wedding. Here is a prototype of the design that I will use for the bridesmaids' clutches. I'm also making a couture clutch for the bride from that lovely dupioni silk that I scored a few weeks ago. I will be sure to take photos of that!

Story of a Bag: The End

This is the end of my tiny story of two big bags. Remember in my post a few days ago, I said that I wanted to take some better pictures of the Fireweed bag? Well, I sold it before I got the chance! So we'll have to make do with these cloudy day pictures until I make the next one. And while making these bags I remembered a great little tip that was passed on from my Great Grandmother, Ina. To keep her pins sharp, she would scrape the pin lightly through her hair before she inserted the pin into the fabric. The purpose of this was to put a micro layer of oil onto the pin so that it slid more easily into the fabric. I had purchased some new pins and they were very "sticky" when I was trying to work with them. I tried Grandma Ina's trick, and it really works! She actually would stuff her pincushions with the hair from her hairbrush and swore that it kept her pins in fine working order better than anything else.

I also have a little bit of news from my other shop at Art Garage Sale: there's a BIG BIG giveaway happening sponsored by 16 artists from the Art Garage, including me! You can enter the giveaway at ScoutieGirl for your chance to win ALL 16 items! This is a value of over $600.00 worth of great handmade items, including one of my wallets. HOORAY for free art!

Just a Little Bit

I don't have much to say today; I'm feeling tired from being up quite a lot with Miss B in the night. Not sure what was going on, I think she's getting her molars and is extra needy. I'm going to be gentle with myself today. I'll leave you with the newest addition to my small card wallet collection.

Tomorrow is "Etsy Day!" Yes, Etsy is becoming quite the phenomenon! Help me celebrate by spreading the word. I'll write a little post tomorrow.