I was at White Rock Local Market today and it was so much fun! I have a terrible sunburn from being outside from 8 a.m. to 1 p.m. but I'm so glad it was such a nice sunny day. I split my booth between Modest Ambition and Hip Hazel Hoops, which made for some chaotic moments, but seemed to work pretty well. I wore my crocheted shrug and demo'd hula hoops. Kids love to play with the hoops, but really we focus on adult fitness hooping. The colors did sparkle in the sun. I'm experimenting with my display; I debuted my brooch board. Which worked great, until a great gust of wind knocked it over. Oh well. The hoop rack came down once too. Yikes! At least it wasn't as windy as yesterday. Some of the booths had tents and others didn't like mine. While I benefitted from the warmth of the sun in the early morning (like in the picture) when it was in the 40s, by the afternoon we were getting cooked but still it was only in the 60s. I'd say that was a perfect March day.
So a bit of news to catch you up - first, Etsy Dallas announced their 2010 team roster and once again I am proud to be part of this group! I hope to become even more involved this next year, participating in the spring and fall bashes, writing for the team blog, and promoting team projects.
I am also excited to announce that I have been juried into the Renegade Craft Fair in Austin, May 15-16. This is a very competitive show and I know many people that were disappointed not to be selected. I am so honored that they chose my shop and I'm going to be working very hard to take advantage of this opportunity. I know I need to completely rethink my booth display and I have some exciting ideas. Think installation art / scene setting with a heavy DIY emphasis. I want to present my designs creatively and thoughtfully, but never in an overly commercial pre-packaged generic way. I know this show means I have to step up my game and consider the entire exhibition space as an extension of my work. Excited!
Finally, I am so happy for my friend Regina who is the featured seller for this week on Etsy with her amazing soap shop Soapopotamus. She gave me a shout out as the maker of her favorite handmade item - a custom hood. I've mentioned this hood before in my blog (Post-Pop Anime Hood), but I here it is again. I thought I was going to go blind while working on it because I was using so many colors at the same time. I wish I had taken more photographs of it, but I'm working with 3 skeins of alternating colors for just about every row. It was so much fun! Congratulations to Regina for being the featured seller!
This picture is dated 1975. That's me on the left and my older sister Karen on the right. The weird line across the picture above is from the plastic sleeve of the photo album. I didn't want to take the picture out to scan it. I love the weird compositions in snapshots. Karen's face is clearly in the center. I'm off to the side, but still nicely in the frame. The pink chair on the side and the bottom of the picture frames, well, those add interest to the side and top, right? Or, for me, it firmly locates the picture in my grandparent's formal living room. I remember fondly this coat, and later Karen's coat when I grew into it, and the detachable hoods with faux fur lining and black drawstrings.
I've been a hood-kick lately. Designing and making hoods for adults that are playful, nostalgic, warm, and one of a kind, like this one. I love red and blue together and I've been inching my way towards more complex color switching and patterning. After finishing this project I can confidently say that I have this skill. Images are next! Playing with the geometric patterns was fun and easy. No mistakes here. The gusset is new too. I've been creating blunted points for the hoods by angling the last few inches and knocking off the sharp point. Here I stitched it up straight, as usual, then repositioned it and stitched straight across to create the gusset, which I tacked to the side-back, rather than the top. On the whole, I'm very pleased with this project. I can't wait to think of my next design.
After working on this piece for two weeks and three attempts at photography, I finally listed my newest item. I'm not totally happy with the images, but maybe I need to walk away from it. This is a kind of bizarre piece - not your normal hat to toss on when it's cold. I wanted to push myself so I completed the alternating zigzag pattern by counting stitches and rotating yarns. After the piece was felted I started to work on the brim and embroidery. I'm new to embroidery so it may appear a bit rough, but this is a lovingly handmade piece and I figured that would add to the quirkiness. It was made to be an exception to daily life, a kind of talisman providing escape to a world that actually does get cold, where are there forests to walk through, and wildlife to wonder at. It's still January, but it has been in the 70s this week already. I imagine this hood with a layer of powdery snow across the brim when extended. I can dream.
After attending the SASSY Virtual Labs critique last week and receiving some much needed advice from a member (thanks CricketsCreations!), I just had to do something about my photography. It's just a start, but here are my NEW photos of the leaf pins. I reshot the flowers too and the combo images. Whew, thank goodness the photos are actually getting better. I was so relieved to have the lightbox that I didn't realize the photos just weren't there yet. Now, I feel like I'm a bit closer. It feels so good to make progress! This lovely mild sunny January day has now been pressed into my leaf pin photos.
Happily my hands have been busy and I've posted a few new items today from the Everyday Circle Scarf series. I have five completed and one more in black that is almost done. The circle scarves were really fun to play with. I did notice that some are much longer than others! They range from 28 to 40 inches. Oops. I'll probably make a few more since they are so fast.
Other projects I'm working on include a hood in olive green and coral with a zigzag pattern created by alternating colors and some new crocheted button pins with rusched fabric bits. I'm trying to challenge myself to incorporate new materials into my crocheted pieces and to try to master new techniques. I am stretching my ability to concentrate on the hood, counting and switching colors frequently, but the pattern itself is very easy. In the end I plan to felt it, so mistake-forgiveness is built in.
I'm also happy to report some numbers. My Etsy shop is just shy of 800 hearts, my shop now has 63 items, and my highest viewed item is almost to 3600. I'm still mulling over my goals for 2010 and how they might look in hard numbers, but I'm encouraged the recent activity. Also, as part of my 2010 plan, I sorted out my bookmarks and revisited some of the great links that have been recommended, which led to my reading a 25-page guide to SEOs. Finally, this trip down the rabbit hole of links lead me back to Craftster.org, a website I discovered and joined in 2005. Amazingly my login still works! And my avatar was a platypus skeleton? What?! Oh yeah. Well, we all change over time. I'm looking forward to exploring the "new" Craftster and showing off my super-duper skills. I remember how comforting it was to first find Craftster. I spent so much time there. I've come a long way since 2005.
