Friday, October 23, 2009

holiday fairs

I am pleased to announce moth and squirrel will be selling at Urban Craft Uprising in Seattle Dec 5&6 and Crafty Wonderland in Portland Dec 13. These big shows are increasingly competitive (300plus and 400 applicants each)and it feels like an honor to be selected. I have been setting aside product since august in hopes of getting in, but even so I feel there is a lot of work to be done. My UCU stress dreams started this week and resulted in me getting up at 6am to get my day on and sew.

Wednesday, October 14, 2009

manimals



Last summer I made this special order bunny suit for James Kraus. He is using it in some photo projects and, I suspect, regularly wearing it around the house.

Steeb was quite jealous of the pale yellow chenille suit and requested some cozy breathable outfit of his own. I said it would be a birthday gift and six months after his birthday the blue flannel jackalope is beginning to take shape. I have completed the hood and now just need to tackle the body which I promised would be ready for Halloween.

For James' suit I just made it all up as I went along, but for Steeb's we decided to reference an actual pattern. We thought it would make it easier to properly fit his larger proportions. But I hate pattern paper. I have spent almost as much time cursing and refolding the tissue as I have sewing. On one hand I loved how all the pieces really fit together perfectly. And by following instructions I did pick up some tips on how to piece it together more smoothly. But the pattern itself was not tailored the way we wanted, so I ended up going back and haphazardly cutting and re-sewing most of the seams. So I seem destined to curse and make up my own rules and find my own solutions no matter how I begin a project. I think that's what gives my work it's charm.

Friday, October 02, 2009

hat season



Steeb, Clancy and I have been wearing our new Harlow Caps around town and I am getting great feed back on them. I wore my wool one in the pouring down rain yesterday and stayed warm and dry. Even my glasses. They are taking me a bit longer to make so I just have a handful.But you should try one on at the gallery walk tonight or the farmers market.