fattycakes

....new etsy items

2009-04-04T15:50:00.003-04:00

check my etsy shop for new listings....finally!

fattycakes.etsy.com

...whales, version 3.0

2009-04-04T09:30:00.004-04:00

I decided a couple of weeks ago to go back to making the felt whale that I originally started with but with a few tweaks. The ones I had been making out of fabric were really adorable, but people seemed to not know what they were at craft shows and such. There was lots of turning them from side to side and holding them upside down while pretending to know what it was. I hope this new version is a little more clear.

So on my plate for this weekend is restocking my etsy shop. I have been saving some things up to list and will hopefully have those added by the end of the weekend while doing lots of new sewing projects in between. We'll see how it goes....

Etsy + Handmade on CBS Sunday Morning...

2009-03-30T06:12:00.003-04:00

Yesterday, while I was watching my favorite news/lifestyle show, CBS Sunday Morning, Mo Rocca featured a piece on the founder of Etsy and handmade. I can't believe how far handmade and craft fairs have come in the last 10 years. Remember when a craft fair was country quilts and doilies? Books like Faythe Levine's Handmade Nation document our journey along the way. I'm so happy to be a part of such an important tradition: making.

p.s. i love you etsy.

where i've been.....

2009-03-24T11:46:00.007-04:00

Pizmo's corner in the den....she's going to hate when we get rid of that carpet....she really enjoys it (but we don't)

lots 'o painting...and taping....and painting

check out all that painter's tape....this is one of Pizmo's favorite perches

i have been away from the fattycakes blog for a while now. months in fact. there has been a lot going on between making our house a home and working my full time job, so fattycakes took the back seat for a while. now that it's spring and the weather is getting more and more beautiful (and the days longer!) i have some renewed inspiration and my spring crafting has begun.

it has been great getting to know the house and really getting settled in. we love it, especially Pizmo. she loves all the windows that are low enough so that she can watch the world go by outside. we have done a ton of painting and projects. jeff has been tackling some amazing bookshelves for the basement (where we have some big plans), and we are so happy that we chose the perfect house for us. our project list keeps growing, but that keeps things interesting!

here's where you can read more about what we've been up to with the house (mostly courtesy of Jeff who has done almost all the posting on this blog while i was feeling overwhelmed):

Home Sweet Split-Level

For the Holidays....

2008-11-30T17:48:00.003-05:00

dining room ready for thanksgiving!

new stumps...

robots!!!

my new favorite....

I am so excited that the holidays are here! We had a fabulous Thanksgiving with our families and Jeff cooked an amazing meal. His food never disappoints and this year was definitely no exception....the menu was huge and it was all delicious. I ate way too much and induced myself into a food coma by dessert (which was homemade personal cheesecakes with banana flambe' and cinnamon ginger ice cream). YUM. I also really enjoyed my few days off and got to work re-building my inventory after the recent shows. I made a couple of new robots (I love the gray and orange one!) and several new sticks and stumps. I am trying to work hard to restock my etsy shop which has been low on inventory for a while now. Check out the shop for all the new stuff....more coming soon!

Wishing everyone a Happy Holiday season...can you believe tomorrow is December already???? I can't wait to get our tree!

fattycakes in the news....

2008-11-20T16:45:00.005-05:00

I.C.E. was great last Saturday and I really enjoyed talking with everyone and seeing all the great handmade items. There was so much talent there and great handmade gifts! I bought a few things for myself and great illustration for the guest bedroom. Pictures to come of my booth!

fattycakes has been kinda in the news lately.....check out these links

http://www.pnmag.com/blog/haute_mama

http://homemadegrits.blogspot.com/2008/11/ice-winter-2008.html

These two links are from my good friend Lesley, who is an avid blogger. Check out her blog Homemade Grits for everything from family to babies to organization!

And I met a super nice new friend and fellow plushie maker Fluffy Flowers at I.C.E. She blogged about I.C.E., featuring a great mini octopus picture from my booth. See it here http://fluffyflowers.typepad.com/fluffy_flowers/2008/11/ice-atlanta-holiday-08.html

I'm also on pg. 29 of the Creative Loafing Holiday Guide out at newstands now. They have a great section on money-saving d.i.y. for the holidays featuring an article with myself and Shannon Mulkey of Patina and I.C.E. fame (she is one of the two wonderful organizers). Check it out and learn how to make this felt toast ornament!

And last but not least, fattycakes will be at the Big Angel Blowout at Whitespace this Thursday through Sunday so please stop by for some great holiday shopping!

Things are getting crazy and around here and we are gearing up for our first Thanksgiving in our new house! We are so excited and will be hosting both sets of our parents, and Jeff will be cooking a fabulous meal....I can't wait!

I.C.E. is back for the holidays....

2008-11-10T16:56:00.002-05:00

The Indie Craft Experience's Holiday Shopping Spectacular is coming up this Saturday!!! Can you believe it is already almost mid-way through November and seriously time to start thinking about gift-giving? There are going to be so many great vendors at I.C.E., including fattycakes, so come out and support your favorite indie-crafters. For the holidays, fattycakes has some fun ornaments in the works....your tree will be jealous if you don't get one! And....next week look for fattycakes at the last year of the Big Angel Blowout! My friend Abby got me hooked up with the people who do it, so I'm excited to participate and to shop for myself and friends. Find out more information on ICE at http://ice-atlanta.com. Dates for the Big Angel Blowout are Nov. 15th(Pre-view), Nov. 16th, Nov. 17th, and Nov. 18th. At Whitespace814 Edgewood Ave.Atlanta, GA30307. See you all there!

back from hiatus...

2008-09-22T21:02:00.002-04:00

So with all the recent insanity with moving in, getting settled, painting, and my recent job move things have been busy to say the least. I feel like I have been on a bit of a hiatus on this blog since we have been posting our progress on our house blog Home Sweet Split-Level. Home ownership has been a great adventure so far and our plate is full with future and current projects. I want to do it all at once, but that just isn't going to happen! I finally finished my art room last week and it looks great and makes me very happy and crafty. It is a bit bigger than my old art room, the layout is much better too. Did I mention all the nice sunlight it gets being way up there on the front upstairs of the house. Long story short--I love it...it is just what I pictured! In crafty news, I really need to start prepping for ICE and other shows coming up this winter, so I broke out the felt and got to work on a few critters this weekend. I finished a couple more giant octopi and a couple more robots are finished. I also started making some baby octopi which I will show you soon! (That means that octopi now come in three sizes!) I thought they would be great little stocking stuffers and such and they are just so darn cute. I'm also considering adding a hedgehog to the lineup, but I think he needs to be more jazzy than the prototype I made. There is still lots going on with the Craft Mafia and a lot of great events in the works for this fall, so we will have more info on that soon.

it's finally here....

2008-08-24T20:22:00.004-04:00

Everything has been super crazy recently and tomorrow is finally the big day.....closing day on our house! Boxes are packed, some of the paint has been purchased, and we have been brainstorming future plans like crazy. We can't wait to take Pizmo-dog there after the closing tomorrow so we can see what she thinks. I think she will love it, and so will we. Look for an all new blog soon about the trials and tribulations on our venture into home ownership!

In the meantime, I can't wait to unpack my art room and start sewing some felties again. I am so excited about my sunlight-filled art room! I'll post pictures as I set it up.

We can't wait to be home sweet home tomorrow!

new developments...

2008-08-11T06:18:00.005-04:00

Something fabulous happened last weekend and I am just so excited about it! The founding girls from the ATL Craft Mafia asked me to join them as a founding member! Of course I said YES! These ladies are just the best and work so hard for our organization, I was already proud to be a member and now I'm super proud to be a founding member. Thank you ladies!

If you haven't already joined please check it out. It is a great opportunity to meet other crafters in Atlanta, make contacts, sell your craft, and ultimately grow your indie business and besides all that it is just plain fun!

a few new critters...

2008-08-05T05:33:00.006-04:00

My efforts in packing aren't going so well....instead I seem to be diverting my attention to all things octopi. I have made about 10 since last week! I'm also trying out a bigger, more huggable size that turned out really great. I made my first owl in a long time, which is funny since that is essentially what fattycakes started with. I love how it turned out and I think I will add it my list of critter inventory. Here are just a few pictures of the new critters. Things seem crazier and more hectic than ever with all that is going on and I am just trying to hold on for the ride. I am so ready for the relief of closing on the house. I know I will feel a ton better when that is done with (then the fun can start.....decorating!)

so much to catch up on...

2008-07-27T17:31:00.005-04:00

(from the Atlantic Station Market)

I have a lot of blogging to catch up on! I'll start with the Atlantic Station Market that was a couple of Fridays ago....It was great to be there with other members of the Craft Mafia. Overall, it was a really fun night! The weather was nice and it was interesting people watching. I was very happy with what we took home from the show...we actually did better than I had expected. I had a lot of great friends come out to see me at this show, which also made it super-fun! Thanks everyone for stopping by to see me! Another huge thanks to Jeffo for helping me with the booth again!

(Baby smock from Starbugaloo)

(Owl plushie from loveyu)

I also got a great baby outfit for Lesley's shower that was made by Sara (Starbugaloo Designs) from the ATL Craft Mafia. She is a founding member and makes the most adorable smocks from re-purposed and up-cycled fabrics. I really want one of her smocks in my size ,too! And...I brought home a little something for me as well....this adorable owl that Wren (LoveYu) made! Wren is another founding member of the Craft Mafia and I adore her stuff because...well...I just can't get enough of plushies! While I'm on the subject of the founding members of the ATL Craft Mafia, the third founder is Sam (Talulah B.) who makes amazing jewelry. I cannot wait to make a purchase from her as well and I love her button rings and necklaces. A special thanks to these three ladies for all your craftiness and organizing skills. They do such a great job with the A.C.F. and I am really proud to be a new member. Not only are they generally awesome, but they make great crafts!
(Jodi, Lesley, and Emily)

(Baby-friendly robo-buddy)

(Me and Les...why are my eyes so squinty?)

(Hostesses, Emily and Jodi)

Today I went to my friend Lesley's baby shower! I am so excited for her and her husband Sam (oh, and Guinness too) to welcome baby Matilda into the world. Our friends Emily and Jodi were such wonderful hostesses and fun was had by all! I got to see lots of fun people that I don't get to see that often and the gifts were all so cute. I love that babies of these times are so hip and Matilda is sure to be one of the hippest around. Emily's house was the cutest little cottage, which I knew it would be! I also got to see Erin and finally meet Ashley...so we chatted about our little blog circle!

..............................................................................................................

Back at home we are starting the packing process. If all goes as planned we will be closing and moving around this time next month! We are so super-excited about it! The house is a disaster area....there are piles everywhere for the yard sale that we are having soon and boxes are all over the place. It really seems like we have so much stuff, so we are trying to simplify our lives by selling/donating/recycling the things we just don't need. Wish us luck. My parents are also coming for a brief visit this Friday to see the house and drop off some things.

Atlantic Station, Tonight!

2008-07-18T12:56:00.002-04:00

These past few weeks have been really crazy around here. There is a ton of new stuff going on at work and I'm still recovering from my jet-lag from my California work trip. Then there's the new house we are in the process of buying, the thought of having to go through lots of our junk in an effort to have a yard sale and not take it with us, and packing our lives up. We are super excited about this though. The house is amazing and we are so looking forward to building our little nest there. Then there's the Atlantic Station Market tonight too! Oh, and a Braves game with Jeffo and my father-in-law on Saturday evening. So my life is nuts right now, but in a great way. I'm really excited about the new prospects of home ownership and continuing to work on fun projects for fattycakes.

The Atlantic Station Market tonight runs from 6-11ish and is located in the Central Park area. It is a special event for members of the Atlanta Craft Mafia. Here are all the great crafters that will be on hand tonight! See you out tonight for some craft shopping! Don't forget how important it is to buy local and handmade products!

Atlantic Station Market...

2008-07-09T10:19:00.003-04:00

Hello All! Sorry for the lull in posting recently....there has been lots going on lately and now I am in Danville, CA on a work trip. It is super hot....going to be 107 today, yikes! In the meantime I wanted to mention that as part of my new membership in the ATL Craft Mafia I'll be participating in their special Craft Mafia market night at Atlantic Station! It starts at 5 pm on Friday, July 18th. It is going to be fun with lots of really talented crafters (and the weather will be nice to boot!) Hope to see some of you there!

Yay...Look!

2008-07-02T06:20:00.002-04:00

fattycakes got reviewed by Miss Serendipitist! She writes reviews for tons of different products, most of them here in Atlanta. Thanks so much for the kind words Whitney!

This Week...

2008-06-24T18:00:00.005-04:00

So far this week I am super pumped about two things....this new robot I'm working on.And these baby watermelons that are growing up a storm! They are so cute!

This is going to be the first felt-bot with "treads" instead of legs (Jeff has been asking for treads on the robots for a while now...). I think he might be funnier with no arms, but we'll see how the treads turn out first. Jeff calls the robots robo-nuggets in this stage which I think is hilarious.

A few more garden veggies are on their way to ripening too!

Back to Craftin'....

2008-06-22T20:20:00.005-04:00

This weekend Jeff and I spent some time hitting up our favorite local thrift stores. We mostly end up coming away with books and I usually purchase some fabric or printed sheets to use for stuffies. We have been on the hunt lately for great mid-century modern home books and furniture books. We found two great ones yesterday, the first is Sunset's Planning Your New Home from 1967. The second is in conjunction with the Parsons School of Design and is called More Furniture in 24 Hours from 1978. I also picked up The Complete Book of Sewing from 1972...which you can imagine, has some great pictures! We also stopped by the Varsity on Jimmy Carter for lunch which made my day!

After we got home, I broke out all the crafting supplies and started whipping up these tiny plush logs. I'm not sure why I hadn't thought to make tiny versions to go with the big stumps. They turned out so cute and squishy! I really am completely enamored with tiny things!

Homegrown...

2008-06-16T17:33:00.004-04:00

Well, I am finally winding down from all the hype and excitement of the ICE show. I took a creative break from sewing and have been focusing my time on reading about small businesses and the like. Not really my idea of fun, but necessary nonetheless! Jeff has been a huge part of helping me with fattycakes, especially the more business-y aspects.

So in the meantime, here are other things I'm excited about!

Our mini-garden! We have corn, squash, watermelon, tomatoes of all varieties, bell peppers, poblanos, serranos, herbs, and zinnias! When I got home from work today Jeff had left me this little grape tomato and then as I was watering I spotted this squash that was ready! There really is nothing like growing something for yourself! We mostly planted our tomatoes and peppers in big pots since we rent and cannot do a full on tillin' of the back yard. They are doing great and have gotten huge already! I know Jeff can't wait to harvest a bunch of tomatoes for a rustic tomato pasta sauce (and I can't wait either....sounds yummy!)

And Pizmo! Pizmo-dog turned 5 this past May and she is just about the best dog ever. She is full of quirks and eccentricities! Loves to crawl around the back yard using only her front two feet to propel her and dragging her belly the whole way. She makes us laugh everyday.

Okay, so on my plate for this week is to start making some fun critters again! I have a pretty full week at work too... and I'm working on some top-secret excitement that I don't want to say yet for fear of a jinx!

My I.C.E. Purchase

2008-06-09T20:29:00.005-04:00

So since I was trying to make money at the craft fair, I only bought one thing.....but I really love the one thing I bought! I made a lap around the booths and noted some things that I wanted to maybe go back and buy, but when I saw this little guy I didn't think twice. Isn't he the cutest? Squirrelly Girl had all the letters of the alphabet with different cute animals. I love her illustrations, too...check out her site! Woodland creatures are just the best! The talent at the fair was great though, and if I had been there to shop I would have definitely filled my (re-usable, eco-friendly) tote bag up with goodies to bring home with me.

I also made this purchase today to celebrate my first craft fair/profit! I already love it so much. I am definitely having a better week this week than last, so yay for that!

I.C.E. was a hit!

2008-06-08T10:19:00.006-04:00

Jeffo and Lerv manning the booth.

We had a great time yesterday at the Indie Craft Experience! fattycakes got tons of positive feedback and people are loving the cacti and poop pins....my top sellers of the day! We exceeded my goal for the day and all in all it was a wonderful first craft fair. A very special thanks to Shannon and Christy of I.C.E. for organizing such a fantastic event! Thanks to everyone who came by the fattycakes booth and especially those who took home a friend! I truly appreciate your business! And...last but not least a super thanks to my lovely husband Jeff and brother Lervis for manning the booth and being my hype men (your giant felt clock pendants are on their way)! I couldn't have done it without you guys!

Check the shop soon for all the great felties that were left....they need homes too!

It's here!!! The Indie Craft Experience

2008-06-06T14:44:00.006-04:00

So tomorrow is the Indie Craft Experience! I am really excited and proud of all the work I managed to do in such a short period. I have tons of new inventory that hasn't been on Etsy just for the fair. Whatever doesn't sell tomorrow will be posted on Etsy next week so that should give my shop a much needed face-lift. I have been ignoring it a bit in prep for the fair. I took the day off today to tie up all my loose ends. I got lots done already, but there is still more to do!

Here are a few pictures of some of the new stuff for tomorrow. Check back for my re-cap and to see how the booth turned out! I haven't had to talk about how fabulous vacation was either, so stay tuned for some pictures from that including all the great mid-century homes on Jekyll Island!

Felt Cactus Garden!!!

My new favorite Felt-bot! I want to keep him so bad...I love his color!

Look for the fattycakes booth tomorrow! It is going to be a hot but beautiful June day! Look up more info about the event here This has great info on where to park, etc for the event. It starts at 11 in Centennial Olympic Park....see you all there!

Countdown is on...

2008-05-21T20:43:00.004-04:00

So I've definitely been really busy lately trying to tie up all the loose ends for the show. It will be here so soon! And....we're going away to the beach next week so I really have to plan what I can work on there and what I have to do when I get back. We are planning to set up a mock version of the booth the weekend that we get back from vacation to test flow, etc. I got my booth assignment and I am booth #83 which is on a corner, so it should be nice! I made the banner tonight and I thought it turned out pretty cute for my low-budget version. We are just going to add grommets and sew up the bottom. I spent last Sunday sewing whales on the machine, since that was something I can't do at the beach......the final count was 12. Pretty good for half a day of work! I used all my polyfill on them (8 bags!) so I have to make a craft run to get more before the beach. Still on my list of things to make are: more robots, assemble cacti, toast+poop keychains, grab bags....and I'm sure there is lots more.

I can't wait for vacation....it's going to be wonderful!

Octopi, Oh My....

2008-05-12T17:00:00.004-04:00

I altered my octopus pattern a bit this weekend and started making the tentacles a bit shorter, and the head more bulbous. I think I like the way they turned out. Very cutesy, less creepy (but I do like mild creepiness)! I think these are really cute for kids since the safety eyes are in there good. With the prompting of Jeff, I started making more robots. This one turned out really well, but the robots seem to take a lot out of me as far as all the different parts I have to sew together. They are definitely one of those things that I need a break from after making one. We also bit the bullet and purchased a faux e-z up 10' X10' tent today for I.C.E.. We thought we knew someone that had one to borrow, but that fell through, so I looked into renting one. It was at least $75 to rent and we bought this one brand new for $82. It was between a blue and khaki roof color, and we went for the khaki since I was worried about a possible blue tint happening inside the tent. I need to start working on my banner as well. I bought a canvas drop cloth to use and I want to use cut out, mismatched, fabric letters on it with a possible painted on faux wood grain. Jeff has also promised to help on this project after he is done with all his fun coloring!

Where do the weekends go? There is just not enough time for all I want to make and do! Oh, and the countdown is on til our Jekyll Island vacation!!!

10 days and counting.....

Whales and such...

2008-05-09T18:53:00.004-04:00

I'm still trucking along with all the makings for the craft fair. This week was a bit slow as far as my productivity...I'm going to have to catch up this weekend with some double-time crafting! My husband and I spend most nights this week making these tags that are for the 'swag bags' at I.C.E. (The first 500 attendees get a cute bag filled with all kinds of goodies and such!) I did most of the cutting and punching and Jeff did the majority of the coloring. I think he really enjoyed it and by the end of these he was wanting new critters to color! He was even coloring when I came home from work today!

I also whipped up a couple of fabric, machine-sewn whales last night. I think they look pretty cute....it's also a good way for me to use up some of my fabric stash. A lot of the fabrics I'm using for these are vintage or thrifted (and washed of course) and the Ikea fabric was used at my wedding last year. I bought many yards of it and I've made quite a bit of things from it. My favorite is a giant tote (overnight) bag that has a wine stain ring on it. It reminds me of how fun that night was and how hard Jeff and I worked to do it all ourselves! Here are a few pictures from our wedding since it is almost our 1 year anniversary (but 7th year together!!)

Busy Busy Bee...

2008-05-06T05:22:00.004-04:00

Things have been a bit hectic around here for the last few days. I took a break from some of my craft time this weekend to help my husband with yard work and planting our veggie container garden. In the meantime, I did finish all these little bird pins which means I think I am done making all my smalls and can move on to bigs (robots!). I did manage to squeeze in making this new bird too!

Silly Birds

2008-04-29T17:20:00.004-04:00

I have been wanting to make a new stuffie to join my other gaggle of critters (robots, octopus, whales, tree stumps, toast) so I made these two bird stuffies last night. They look a bit silly, but I actually really like them. I already make a small pin version, so why not blow them up to a bigger huggable size! I think the red one turned out especially nice!

Robots!

2008-04-28T16:25:00.004-04:00

I finished carving my robot linoleum block this weekend and wanted to try him out, so I printed up these cards. They are all hand printed (I love hand printing....it makes me feel really connected to the materials and reminds me of college when I had unlimited access to a print shop....I should have lived there). I also printed some robots onto a linen canvas to frame for prints. I think they would be so cute in a kid's room (or my room for that matter!) I also prototyped the cards I will be making to pin my toast pins and poop pins to for the craft show.

Who could that be at the door?

2008-04-27T14:28:00.002-04:00

Weekend Work....

2008-04-27T14:14:00.006-04:00

I've been really trying to gather my thoughts and ideas for the craft fair, while still actually making things in whatever time is leftover. I managed to make a few tree stumps today and I bought all the terracotta pots yesterday to "plant" my lil' cactuses in. I also (finally) updated my flickr with recent projects (thanks to Jess who added me as a contact which led to me logging in and realizing that the pictures were very old)! Oh, and I made a custom order cupcake keychain that turned out really cute! The whipped cream and cherry dollop is a detachable pin!

Toast Army

2008-04-23T16:36:00.003-04:00

Ever since I found out that I got into the craft show I've been a one-woman sweat shop on my lunch break and in the evenings. It's been fun and I'm producing a good bit of stuffs. I started small with making tons of these toast pins so that I will have something affordable for everyone to be able to buy. I'm also planning to make lots o' stuffies, robots, cactus, poop pins, cactus prints, work aprons, and possibly bags. I'm still so excited.....but I have lots to do to prepare. In the mean time I will let the toast revolution take over.....

My Bag Cares...re-usable grocery bag

2008-04-21T20:24:00.003-04:00

I just read about these great bags from the Arbor Day Foundation in a magazine. They will plant a tree for each bag purchased! I have been using my own re-usable grocery bags for a while (some grocery stores still don't get it and look at me like I'm crazy when I pull out 3 big 'ol bags and ask them to "use these instead please"....!). I love the way this one looks with it's natural goodness (linen and natural cotton), jute handles, and great quote. I can't wait to get one, especially knowing it's for a good cause. They are only $20 and so far they have planted over 10,000 trees. Get them here http://mybagcares.com !!

I'm a Vendor at ICE!

2008-04-20T17:57:00.004-04:00

I am completely pumped and excited! I just got the email that I was accepted to be one of only 100 vendors at the Indie Craft Experience in ATL! It will be my first show, and I cannot wait! There is so much to do in the meantime, though....I have lots of craftin' to do to prepare! Come see me on June 7th!

A New Etsy Shop

2008-04-19T19:23:00.006-04:00

I opened up a new etsy shop today with some of my paintings. I'm definately excited about it as I tend to get really attached to them for some reason. It will be good to let some of them go finally. The imagery and connotations are so important to me, but I'm ready to move on and let some of them go. Here it is!

http://mutatingcells.etsy.com

I.C.E. ATL

2008-04-18T17:15:00.003-04:00

I just applied to be a vendor at the Indie Craft Experience in June. I really hope I'm accepted, but whatever happens, I'm just excited about it in general! It will be in Centennial Olympic Park on Saturday June 7th. Sounds like fun to me. Check out I.C.E. here http://www.ice-atlanta.com/

Craft Magazine

2008-04-18T16:30:00.004-04:00

I am in love with Craft magazine right now. I get so excited when it comes in the mail and see the plastic wrapped goodness. It is seriously amazing and if you don't have a subscription it is well worth the money. I remember when I read on craftster.org about the first issue coming out it sounded so good.....but I couldn't afford it at the time. I told a co-worker about it and she subscribed and brought an issue for me to look at....after that I had to have it! It is the only magazine that I get and I think that shows it's worthiness (not because I'm anti-magazine...believe me I would love readymade, nest, oxford american etc. but I don't have a lot of extra money to spend on those)...so if you're going to spend the money spend it on Craft magazine.

Get your subscription at http://www.craftzine.com/

I hope my next issue is on it's way!

The garden grows....

2008-04-13T15:01:00.005-04:00

Yep, more cacti this weekend! These are all new ones that I made this weekend. I can't stop! I also stumbled onto a new friend for my cast of felt critters.....Toast Buddy! I love how plump and toasty he is! I will definately be making more of him!

I am also experimenting with sewing a "fattycakes" label into my new work. I really am liking the way it looks. It is just simple twill tape that I stamped with dye-based inks. I prefer my d.i.y. version far better than the ones I looked into buying. Plus, those were expensive and not as fun!

My Cactus Craze Continues....

2008-04-07T18:23:00.003-04:00

I'm still loving the cacti and trying to think of other things I could do with cacti on them, so this weekend I bought some lino blocks and made some cute little block stamps. I printed up these cards for my etsy shop yesterday. They are just stamp ink since I really didn't have the time to get out the printmaking inks and hand print them. I am saving up to buy a gocco at some point, but with tax money due soon I don't think it's going to happen for a while. One day you will be mine, gocco! (Side note: I have a printmaking degree so the thought of being able to screenprint again sounds so fun, since my art room just doesn't have the space for full-scale real screenprinting.)

Felt Cactus Garden

2008-03-31T17:26:00.004-04:00

I have fallen in love with making these felt cacti. Perhaps it is because they are completely irreverent and useless, but they sure do look cute! I started making really tiny ones to satisfy my need for all things tiny, but last weekend I made these big guys and I really liked how they turned out. I love "planting" them in real terra cotta pots! I want to make a ton of them and have them all lined up on a shelf (as if I had space for that...) Hysterical.

Octopi...

2008-03-26T19:56:00.006-04:00

I have been obsessed with octopi lately! It somehow all started a while back when I made a tote bag to use for work with some felt octopi on it, and now it is full-blown octopi everywhere! I just finished a great Octopus and Squid swap over on http://craftster.org. It was so fun! I got the most amazing purple amigurumi octopus (from my awesome partner yelley). He is sitting on top of my doll (ranch) house. Isn't he cute? Here are a few of the octopus stuffies I have made since the obsession began...

Lil' Fatty.....my craft muse.

2008-03-24T19:31:00.006-04:00

So, I've decided to start blogging as a way to further connect and explore my love affair with the indie-craft movement. I adore making things. Any kinds of things. Sewn things, painted things, irreverent things, any things.

I thought I'd start by talking a bit about my muse. Lil' Fatty.

Lil' Fatty is the cutest, cuddliest, grayest, softest, squishiest hamster in the world. We adopted him as our work hamster so he could be a mascot of sorts at my job. You should see the way he hordes a baby carrot. It'll bring a tear to your eye. Anyway, I picked him cause he was a little chunky, some might say fat, and now I've taken to calling him Fattycakes, which is also the title of this blog and my etsy shop http://fattycakes.etsy.com I'm pretty certain that I love him the most, since the thought of his little rotund gray body makes my heart want to melt right out of my chest. So here he is so that you can imagine squeezing his cute little face too.