Hello Blog-world!

Summer seems to have finally gotten it's foot in the door here in Portland. Last week I was wearing my winter coat, boots, and scarves....yesterday I wore shorts, a tank, and sun glasses!

Crazy Portland!

I am so happy for the great weather though. So happy. Josh and I had 2 lovely BBQs this weekend, and I took an amazing kombucha making class from Lion Heart Kombucha and now I have my very own batch brewing away in the cupboard!

I am so excited about it that I am telling simply everyone and giving them details like "And did you know that chickens love to eat old SCOBYs? Isn't that neat? They go crazy for them!"

Yep, I'm that friend.

(p.s. a SCOBY is the symbiotic culture or bacteria and yeast that makes kombucha what it is.)

If you like kombucha, or even if you're not sure, buy some from Lion Heart, it's delicious, better than store bought, healthier, and local. (And even cheaper than the store brands if you can believe it!)

I regret only getting a half gallon when I was out there last....

I'll leave you with this photo. Our dog is gravity defying.

This week is so busy! It will be wonderful by the weekend, but in the days counting down to Friday I am working working working!

So here's what's happening:

Friday - wedding shower! (If you need details, dear friends of mine, call me or Joan (she sent the invite). You know I'll be thrilled to see you!

Saturday - The Hip Happening at the Sellwood Masonic Lodge. Come see me! I'll be there all day hanging out and I've got some brand new (the ink is drying right this second!) vintage dyed slips and they are amazing. I could just geek out on the lacey details for hours.

Sunday - Crafty Wonderland at the Doug Fir. Come see me again! I'll be there all day so if you couldn't make it on Saturday you've got a second chance! I'll also have a couple mini-runs of some stripey printed ladies tops, just 3 of a kind each! (I admit I'm keeping on for myself out of the 6...)

I hope everyone is enjoying the brief bit of sunshine we're having!

Wow, it's been a long time since I was here! Longer than I thought actually.

I have good reasons though!

I moved (down the hall, but still a move) and now have my own dedicated studio! Yes!

I turned 25! Yes! And had such a lovely birthday! The best in years perhaps.

I went to Seattle and then the Oregon coast for 2 consecutive weekends. Right after moving, so things were a little jumbled for a while there.

And there's been a barrage of meeting with businesses (Hopeful Monsters now available at Union Rose on NE MLK in Portland! And at Noun on SE Belmont in Portland! More coming soon!), a trunkshow (thanks Blue on NE Mississippi!), and working working working to replenish inventory.

Annnnd, just yesterday I finished addressing the wedding invitations. Whew! They look great and I can't wait to get them in the mail!

In upcoming news, I'll be doing 3 craft shows in Portland during the month of May - The Hip Happening, Crafty Wonderland, and the Capitol Bistro Art & Craft Show.

If you've been meaning to come see me, this will be a great time to do it!

It will be an especially good time to come out because I'll be on vacation from June 3 to July 8.

I know! How lucky am I! It's actually a series of trips with just a few days in between each, but I won't be able to run the shop during that time.

I will however have incredible photos for your perusal after I get back!

Psst! There's also a sweet giveaway coming up! I'll keep you posted!

Leigh Bunkin emailed me this morning with some sweet news that definitely made my day!


She has a blog, Finding My Wings, where she draws something everyday. And my card and button got to be the drawing for April 9!


I love it!

I am so so SO ready for spring. Even chilly sun would be acceptable right now.
But no. Today it is raining with some kind of new vigor for making me want to be a hermit.

Boo.

This Friday is the Portland premeir of the Handmade Nation movie and I am really excited! Then the next day I'm off to Seattle on the train to meet Josh and have a long weekend in Seattle while he takes the police test. I'm hoping to go checkout I Heart Rummage while we're there too.

I'll leave you with this, Josh and I spent a really long time laughing at stupid internet things yesterday and this is possibly my favorite.

Recently, my dad went on vacation to Mexico. And he sent Josh and me.....THESE!

(and for anyone concerned about animal safety - we did not actually bodyslam our small dog.)

I love this!



Originally seen on Gala Darling's Icing

I've spent the last few days obesessing and being upset about the postcard quality the printers has presented me with, and I am sick of it. (I can't wait for it to be resolved!)

Sooooo....instead, and as promised, new things I love!

Fatzilla and Fat Kong! (by Robin E. Kaplan)

I love it! I even got Fatzilla in a necklace!

And the girls from Robin's booth (one of whom was Robin I think...) were so sweet and excited about my slips. It made the day so nice to have such lovely people around!

Which also brings me to another very sweet girl whose name I've already forgotten...but not because she wasn't adorable and sweet as could be! I traded with her for an incredible feather fascinator:

Love it! It looks great and once it stops pouring rain every 10 minutes, I am going to get dolled up in it and go do something. I can't wait!

I also bought a fantastic present for my mom's birthday (Today! Happy Birthday!) but I don't want to give it away since she hasn't received the package yet. (Read: I haven't sent it yet. Yes, I am that person.)

Tonight Josh and I are heading over to a friend's house for corned beef, cabbage, and Irish car bombs.
Now, I had a conversation with some British friends not so long ago about the general inappropriateness of that name. Yes, we could also make a drink called 9-11, but for the life of me I can't figure out if there is a better name for the carbomb drink.
Any insight, send it my way! Maybe we could call them Irish Milkshake Booze Drink. Or, curdled cream, whiskey, and beer drink.

On the other hand...no one would be the least bit enticed by my names for drinks...so I guess we'll stick with it.

New things:

1. I re-homed the guinea pigs. This means, they belong to someone else now who will love them like crazy and not have a predatory 15 lb. dog trying to eat them.

2. The Hip Happening was good. Due to a scheduling issue, Scout (the dog) got to/had to come with me to the show. He slept in his crate most of the time. The other part of the time he spent tied to the crate and jumping on my lap. He was a big hit. I got some aMAZing (imagine my voice getting high with the "MAZ" part) stuff that I will take pictures of and tell you all about, it's amazing and you will definitely need to check it out. I will do all this once I am not so tired and waiting for the pizza to be delivered.

3. I'm moving into a 2 bedroom apartment next month, so I can have a little room for my studio. This means no more clothing racks in the living room! I am not the only one who is really excited about it.

4. Went to a great clothing swap party the other night, got some fantastic things. Pleated plaid skirt! Lilac colored satin skirt with pockets! Floral button-up shirt! Teal corduroys!

Ok, maybe those things sound incredibly wierd. But they are great, assure you. And hot.

I'm off to space out, relax, and drink pizza and eat beer. Even Scout is asleep in the closet right now. It was a big day with lots and lots of loading and unloading of boxes, tables, and clothes racks. We are tired. But very happy!

So far, today is not my favorite.

9:30 am

Dentist. 2 cavities. Thinks my neck problems/jaw grinding is very serious. Numerous appointments to come.

12:00

Home from dentist. Call the printers about the bad color on my new postcards. Only course of action is to drive over to the east side and discuss. How much do I not want to do this? A lot.

2:00 pm

Must be in lower SW for work at the toy store.

8:00 pm

Dodgeball game.

I am just not that excited about this whole schedule.

But, the giant inflatable crab is back on top of Jakes.

I do like that.

This Saturday I'll be at the Hip Happening in Sellwood. Come see me!

I did it - I am now going to experiment with this new fangled thing called Twitter.

Follow me!
I'll follow you!

Let's do it!

Yesterday we were featured on Modish! How exciting!! Thanks Modish!!!

Somehow I've found myself in the midst of a little shopping flurry this week.

Maybe it's the need to get out of the house, killing time waiting for the restaurant (where I went to work on taxes yesterday) to open, or just realizing I am in close vicinity to some store I haven't been to in ages.

But all excuses aside, this was a really successful shopping flurry!

I went to Target to find a folding table for craft shows - there is no telling how many folding tables I have bought that seem to disappear when I move! And....well, I got a cute strapless swim top for my honeymoon, a summer dress with pockets (dresses with pockets! must haves!), a pair of rather impractical but hot gray high heels (I've been dying for gray heels and for $20, well, I went for it), and Lip Smackers Vanilla Frosting lip gloss.

Now, Lip Smackers was the go-to lip gloss when I was age 8 through probably 14. My question is: Why did I stop using it? It's fantastic! Vanilla Frosting! A little sparkle! It doesn't leak in my purse! I am a re-convert.

It does seem like the selection is smaller than I remember. The local cosmetics corner store when I was a kid had nearly half an aisle devoted to Lip Smackers. Now, only a couple rows. Hmmph, maybe todays preteens are more sophisticated than I am even at 24!

While we're on the topic of shopping - most of you have probably heard of Mohop shoes. If not, go check them out! Or check out their Etsy shop. And the big news is, they are now HALF the price they were last year.

You know, last year when I bought them for my upcoming wedding.

But this hasn't soured my love for their new wedge style. And I do love ribbons.

Besides, they were worth it when I bought them, so that must mean they are DOUBLEY worth it now!



(Ha! Now that I've finished printing and doing my taxes I've managed to write an entire post about shoes and lipgloss....I promise this does not mean I am not working hard!)

The new collection can now be viewed in all it's glory on my website!

I'll be working like mad today to get everything listed for sale in the shop, so be patient and check back - I'm busting my ass to get it up there!

I'm so happy to have finally gotten to this point, I was so excited I kept waking up last night!

The photo shoots are done. The website is so close to being done. I'm still working on some plans for some kind of launch event, but I will definitely be at Crafty Wonderland (in Portland at the Doug Fir) on March 8. Come see me!

In the mean time, and because we all want to see photos anyway - out takes / behind the scenes of the photo shoots!

Steaming slips with the (not so) trusty "Steam Buddy".

Mimosas for all!Katie (day 1 photographer) and Maeve.

Anna thugs out.

Leah (day 2 photographer and fantastic helper, supporter, and awesome.)
Colleen the stylist.
And then, me.

The first photo shoot has taken place. It was amazing. I don't to give away the awesome-ness yet, so for now you just get this fantastic, blurry, colorful teaser.
I know, it looks like so much fun! It was!

P.S. I'm having a buy one get one half off SALE! Now!

March is nearly upon us! This means two things: the new collection will be launched really really soon, and I am freaking out just a little.

Naturally, I have left several rather large steps to the last and am now racing around in both life and my brain trying to will things into getting done.

I am soooo looking forward to a little breathing time after the launch. And it will definitely be little - I've got to start making wedding invitations pretty much, well, now. (This is the moment I curse myself for deciding to do it myself!)

In other news,

1. New typewriter! Love!

2. My epiphyte is blooming! Which means that I have not killed it, but in fact it is thriving! This is a major victory in Amelia vs. the black thumb.

3. Sneak Peek!

Portland has been lovely and sunny these last few days and its been hard to stay inside working. I've been talking about how much I've been making and working on without any proof for months now, so I've got a couple snaps just to show that I'm not alllll talk.

Check it out! A huge stack of clothes! All printed! All really neat if I do say so myself!

And look at these! Candles! They smell terrific and they make your home look super snazzy and loved.

I'm actually in the process of looking for a photographer who would like to shoot some photos for the new collection's lookbook and web site. Email me if you know someone! Or you are that someone! Or you take cool pictures and have recently decided to call yourself a photographer!

In other, wedding related, news...I visited the English Department this weekend on my hunt for a little shrug. This dress makes me wish I hadn't bought a dress yet! (Mine is great too, but this one - the buttons!! the net straps! le sigh. its also a size small, which I am not so much able to fit into.)

I'm on my short (albeit self imposed) lunch break and now I'm back to sewing tags.
I'm going to leave with a list of new things I am doing or like very much:
1. thermals all day long
2. hula hooping in the living room
3. epiphytes
4. melatonin
5. Mad Men