Plugging Away

These really should have gone out days ago, but I keep running into obstacles which prevent me from finishing them. Like leaving all my tools and supplies at the office.

I have 10 completely finished and a few more on the way. I'm going to fall short of my goal (20) but hopefully will make it to the mid or high-teens. They have to be in Puerto Rico by November 1st!

Weekend Fun

On Sunday my mom and I decided to check out a local craft fair, the San Francisco Craft Mafia Winter Trunk Show! It was small, but just the right size. We were some of the first people in and received a goody bag filled with all sorts of cool stuff, including whole sets of Sublime Stitching embroidery patterns! We ended up with El Diablo and Krazy Kitchen.

There were so many great artists! I forgot to take any pictures while we were there, but I came away with a pile of fat quarters from Peapod Fabrics and a couple of cute plushies from Planet Tokki. Please enjoy pictures of my new cuties:



Birdit, the Birdie Bandit


Fried Egg, the comfortable resting place (lives in my office)


In use

I almost bought some "Squeaky Poo" from them as well (for my dogs, I swear), but I managed to keep my head.

Ravelry!

I just realized that I forgot to post this. My invite to Ravelry arrived about a week ago! My username is Breaksville, so add me to your friends list!

Rubber Stamp: Kitty Reading

I carved this one a week or two ago to stamp on my friend's birthday card. I got the design from this book, which I LOVE! It has so many designs and ideas for how to use them, it can be a little overwhelming. I had it for almost a month before I actually made something from it, there was just way too much to choose from! Unfortunately, I forgot to take a picture of the stamp before I used it several times and it got covered in red ink... Next time? We'll see...

Amigurumi Kingdom-Inspired Cupcake Bears

Lately I have been working on a few cupcake-style bears. I felt ambivalent posting about this since it is really someone else's design... But I suppose there is no harm in it as long as I give her credit and don't try to sell what I make? Let me tell you, it is a lot quicker than sitting through crocheting and putting together an entire bear. I just made the head and ears, embroidered a nose on some felt, then hot-glued it all-together. My results are nowhere near those of the original artist, whose site can be found here. She's got some AMAZING designs, although I haven't seen much activity on her Etsy site lately, which is a shame. Basically, all this cupcake bear making is really just an excuse for me to buy a hot glue gun. Just so you know.

I made the first one for a friend's birthday. It was predictably lumpy and misshapen - it's what happens when you don't know what you're doing, but you're pressed for time and can't go back to fix it! You can't really tell in the picture, but it is regular cupcake sized.


The second was done at the last minute as well. But this time I kinda had an idea of how things would work, so it turned out much more symmetrical. This one was for a co-worker's birthday.



Now I start on the biggest project of all! 20 mini cupcake bears for Omar's sister's baby shower. (!!!) And they have to be finished by the end of next week. Yes. But it should be fine. Really. I think I can do it. Probably.


I finished the first one.


Only 19 more to go!

Terry Cloth Teddy Rug

He's a little smaller than the others, but still cute!




I put both his front claws in at a weird angle by accident so they look extra grabby!

Polar Bear Rug

I finally coaxed my camera into taking pictures of my Polar Bear Rug. He's been waiting patiently for a few weeks now:



I worked on the pattern a little bit and I'm much more pleased with these results, although I still like the first one. Omar has been following me around trying to snatch this guy from me. He says his Teddy Bear Rug needs a friend...


I also tried out my idea for felt claws, Omar had insisted on vinyl ones before. I really like the way these felt ones look!

Too Much to Do

Arg. So, Etsy is on hold while I finish several looming projects that crept up on me suddenly. My boyfriend's sister needs 20 handmade favors for her baby shower at the beginning of November (!). This is do-able. Then I get a call from a friend inviting us to his birthday party. This Saturday (!!!!!!).

Now it seems as though I will have to put the shower-favors on hold for a few days while I figure out what the heck to make for the aforementioned friend! On top of all this, work has been getting increasingly hectic lately as, apparently, the "lighting season" has set in. I was not aware that there was such a season, but the calls I have to field are becoming more and more frequent and orders I have to place more and more rushed.

Etsy, you will have to wait.

And boo to the fact that I already have A LOT of unfinished projects languishing around the house and ideas for more...

Fish, fish

Fish embroidery! I found the pattern on Needlecrafter.com . There's loads of great free stuff there. Now I just have to figure out what to do with all these scraps of embroidery I keep making! I think I should start embroidering on actual things. Like tea towels.

Etsy Shop: I Ran Out of Eyes

That is not meant to be cryptic. I really ran out of 9mm black safety eyes for the bears and teddy rugs. Actually I misplaced them, so it is even more aggravating. I'm sure I put them somewhere very safe. All I wanted to do last night was work on finishing the shop items, but it came to a standstill when I couldn't find any of the eyes. Instead, I worked on some embroidery I had been meaning to do for a while:


I just traced a couple of doodles I did during the last staff meeting I had. I like the house so much that I think I will embroider all the other little crooked houses I have been drawing on my notebook!

Closeups: