Notions Design Contest

The notions contest is live on Spoonflower. My design, as pictured above,  is called Lovely Notions. There will be one person chosen from the top 10 community voted designs to be featured in an upcoming issue of Love Patchwork & Quilting!

Buttons, Buttons, Buttons

If you didn't already know, buttons are almost like currency. Have you looked at the price of buttons lately? Crazy. I love stopping into Loft Antiques on 50th & Xerxes to look at the buttons there, but at 20¢ each, it can get pricey when all of them are screaming to be taken home! I signed up for a free class called Button Box through the library* where we made elastic bracelets with buttons. Naturally, I love free and crafty so, when I found this class while perusing the website, I decided it was something I needed to do. I'm not usually inclined to do things by myself, ever. I was really nervous, but I ended up having fun. I was the youngest person at the class, but I think that just gave me an advantage to obtaining the most colorful and quirky buttons in the box. 

Do you see all these buttons? I didn't finish mine before the end of the class so I was allowed to take some home to finish. The few that didn't fit onto the bracelet got to go into my newly assigned button jar. It's mostly buttons that I got when my maternal grandma died, but she had a weird obsession with white, so most of them are boring. But, according to the class, stack a boring button with another and it creates something interesting! How adorbs are the typed buttons? My bracelet ended up being my life's color scheme of pink + green and very flower-centric.

Since I finally had a little time (one day) to work on the notions contest for Spoonflower, I decided to jump in head first. I had a marathon day of digital design on Monday. Four designs, twelve hours, atrophied leg muscles. When I went to work the next day, the 6 mile round trip bike ride and the 3.5 hours of physical labor was welcomed, but totally killed. This contest opens tomorrow so I'll put up a link then. Obviously with new designs comes new Society6 designs. BJ actually surprised me with a Galaxy S5 on Monday afternoon, which is outrageous and I have to not even think about how crazy it is or I feel guilty. This means I can finally order a case that I designed! We should all be that awesome ;)

Book-a-Week update:

Since we caught up last, I've finished the last three books of the Aurora Teagarden series, and I have to tell you that a couple of the deaths really took a toll on me, but I loved the series and am sad it's over. I also read Charlaine Harris' new short story about Manfred Bernardo (Sookie Stackhouse crossover!!!) and the first book of her brand new series also starring Manfred Bernardo. If you are a Charlaine Harris fan, then this is the ultimate because there is crossover from every series except Sookie, but you get that in the short. I squeed outloud every time. I was like a rap battle hype man. I can't wait for the next one to come out!!! That brings us to the current book which is definitely not being read in one week, but since I'm ahead of schedule (on #34 on week 26), I'm hoping that it won't make much of a difference. If I count graphic novels and the New Girl book I'm on #39. The book I'm on now is S. by J.J. Abrams and Doug Dorst and it's super fun. It's going to take a long time to read though because it's a book but has notes written back and forth between two readers and has things inserted into the pages. I've encountered a couple of things referenced in the notes that I think are missing from the book, but I'm borrowing it from the library, so it's to be expected. The only thing missing from making it seem like a legitimate old library book is the lovely smell that books acquire. 

I'll have a thrift update soon. Spoiler: there are cats. Plural. >^._.^<

*If you are not currently a library goer, you really must start. The Hennepin County Library system is so super amazing; I don't know how I'd live without it! I've watched old + current movies, all of the American Film Institute top 100 movies from both 2000 + 2010, regularly read old and current books from both the physical and digital lending libraries including cookbooks and crafting books (with patterns!), borrowed CD's, get 5 free music downloads per week, took a free class, and just enjoyed being in the comfort of air conditioning on hot days when I was too poor and/or cheap to turn on the A/C. The library is an amazing place that is no longer just for nerds. I just love the library! :)

Souvenirs, Sunshine, and Free Shipping

First off, I'd like to let everyone know about the artist promotion I've got going on over at Society6. If you click that link, you'll get free shipping until June 8, Midnight Pacific Time. Offer excludes framed art prints, stretch canvases, throw pillows with inserts, and rugs. If you happen to be lucky enough to have a Samsung Galaxy S5, they now carry covers for them. I'm so jealous of you because I have a crappy MyTouch that doesn't have any cool covers and mostly doesn't listen to anything I tell it to do.

Well, with that out of the way, I can share my takeaways from BJ's business trip. I've been obsessed with Kidrobot since I discovered it way back in high school. When he asked me if I wanted anything, I told him he needed to visit the Haight Street location. He picked up a Dunny that he said he just been released, the Keith Haring Munny that I had ogled at the Japanese store here a few months back, a small Yummy toast plush by Heidi Kenney, and a little blind box zipper pull. He got two packages of these B-Boys for free. They come with "carboard" to break on- hilarious! The zipper pull is a lemon and lime riding on a scooter with sidecar.

He mostly took pictures of seals sunning themselves on docks and plants that he found interesting. Clearly he's been with me too long, haha!

Speaking of excessively taking pictures of animals. There is a turf war going on on my balcony. First it was just the sparrows and my cats. They want to live in my fern and the mushroom bird house. Yesterday, a third gang moved in. This lady pigeon was making herself comfortable in my freshly planted alyssum. The sparrows squawked until she left, but she came back in the evening. I can't blame her for trying to move up in the world, but come on, Birds. The cats win because they have humans paying for them to live here...

The balcony is looking pretty amazing. The cats love spending the day under the cart. I had today off, and it was so nice to finally get to sit down and read. I know you're probably worried that my crazy schedule has put my off my reading game, but I'm starting book 31 of the year tonight. Since I last updated my list, I've finished the last three books of the Harper Connelly Series, the last four of the Lily Bard Series, the first five of the Aurora Teagarden Series (I read the second book in one day!), Dress Your Family in Corduroy and Denim by David Sedaris, Melissa Joan Hart's autobiography, and Chelsea Handler's latest. I'd recommend all but the Melissa Joan Hart book because I think she comes off as obnoxious as her Sabrina character.

Johnstock was this past Saturday. All the bad weather went right around us the whole day until I got the last of it packed away in the car! It was really hot and humid, but sales were decent. I stayed up too late the night before making last minute preparations including cutting out these cute recipe cards.

During the show, I finished hand-embroidering the cat sleep masks I'm making. You can see a picture of the first one I made on Instagram to the right. (Follow me!) Not great photos though because they were taken with my phone. I'll have to take new ones with my actual camera. I hear the Samsung Galaxy S5 takes good pictures...

I have a deadline approaching for a show this fall so I'm trying to get some new stuff made up to include in the application. I made a Ouija Board design on Spoonflower to make into place mats. You can order this fabric for a personal cut&sew project. I'm really happy with how they turned out and hope everyone loves them as much as I do. I can't wait to order more and sew them up! I'm considering a cool napkin holder idea, I just need to decide how to execute it.

I'm off to finish enjoying the first of two consecutive days off, tomorrow is the designated catch-up day. >_<