The Pretty Purple Crafting Room is no more! That is not to say that I don't craft any longer just that the room is no longer purple. Nor is it the same room. And you thought there was going to be drama or a confession. Nope. Just the only constant is change that has been my life for the past year or so. There is no drama but there is saga. I moved and had to condense my operations dramatically. Then, the last of the birdies left the nest and I had a whole, entire, huge, wonderful room that was mine, all mine. I could spread out. I could buy furniture just for crafting supplies. Read that again. Bins, baskets, and work surfaces directly related to crafting. Oh, the things I could do! I could diversify and make all those pins on Pinterest a reality. I could make teacup candles, pin cushions, skirts from men's shirts, little girl dresses from pillow cases, soap, bath salts, sugar scrubs, the list (and the possibilities) were seemingly endless. Did you catch that? Were. Past tense. Yes, less than 6 months after the craft room became a reality, it was snatched from my grasp by the return of the youngest birdy so recently fledged. Such is life. So, I made a plan and crammed as much as possible back into my living space.
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Mastering the hatSo, I'm tired of crocheting in a straight line. One of my fellow crocheters who shall remain nameless has suggested several times that I branch out so, with the help of youtube and my own advanced knowledge of crocheting in a straight line, I have managed to learn to make baby hats! The one toward the top of the picture was, yep, you guessed it made in a straight line and then joined along the side seam then cinched closed at the top. Hey, it's about starting small, people! That being said the one on the bottom was a true magic circle, crochet into the center of the circle and the chain spaces tour de force of lip-gnawing learning. I stuck it out! I did it! I couldn't do it again without watching the same video over and over! Not the point, I know. Now, wait until you see the work of art below.<spoiler alert> It is a Granny Square hat and I made it! Yes, me! It is a testament to the wonder that is youtube. Please ignore the fact that it is an adult hat made from leftover baby blanket yarn. I was afraid it would go horribly wrong but it didn't. Speaking of babies, I'm almost as proud of this hat as I was the day I made my real babies. Wait, that did NOT sound right. I meant making babies. No, that's not it either. I'm really proud of this hat. There! Chemo Caps and matching baby hats and blankets, here I come... Sew...So? Thanks to Pinterest I have a brand new obsession--namely, sewing. I am the first to admit that this might be the one to defeat me. My mom tried to teach me to sew for YEARS. My whole Southern family worked in the textile mills from an early age and all the women and some of the men are accomplished at sewing. My mom made lots of my clothes. Yes, it was the 70's. Yes, there was polyester plaid. Yes, there were scary wide collars. Yes, there were bell bottom polyester pants worn with white belts and white shoes. Yes, I have destroyed all the photographic evidence. It is burned into my brain, why should my children be subjected to it? I digress...yes, sewing. My great-grandmother was a quilter, my mom sewed in a clothing plant, all her nieces, sisters and sort of close relatives also made clothes. I had the best dressed Barbies on the planet. I had a Holly Hobby sewing machine with a tiny foot pedal. It was sky blue with Holly Hobby stickers on it. I mean, in case all you youngsters think that Disney was the first to brand and license everything from Lion King slippers to Snow White toilet paper. I was able to sew 3 of the 4 sides of a square to make dolly pillow cases for my favorite doll, Kissy. I carried that machine around hoping to sew by osmosis than actually applying myself to the learning of such a skill. Maybe it was the tiny size or the fact that functionality was sacrificed for the cuteness factor of my first machine that made my mom think I'd be fine and could learn if I got a little older and could use a real machine. I distinctly recall sitting in front of her 14 stitch Kenmore machine in 1983 holding a giant tangle of thread in one hand and trying to pry the tiny silver bobbin out of the remainder of the snarl while the whole works remained buried in the bowels of that cream colored metal devil-machine. Do you know how hard it is to bend huge machine needles? I did it regularly and spectacularly until my mom gave up one fall night during Halloween Costume creation lessons. There were tears. No, not my tears. I was scarred by the incident nonetheless. Now, I'm a responsible adult and am the architect of my own tear-filled experiences with complicated machinery. I can DO this! Fine, at least I have a plan of my own. I will start small and I will start easy and I will start cheap. In case it doesn't pan out, I will not be out a lot of money or in a lot of pain from piercing my finger with a pointed, rapidly moving sliver of metal. I'm going to sew things like wallets so that my mastered skills of sewing 3 of 4 sides of 2 square pieces of fabric together can be showcased. I will add a snap or maybe a button. I will pin every single easy sewing project I can find on Pinterest. Yes, I will start there...I may not even make it to the embarrassment of an epic fail (as my kids would say). I will not promise that there won't be photographic evidence that may eventually have to be destroyed...
No, there is nothing wrong with your eyes or the photo. We are not suddenly making pre-wrung wash cloths as a sideline, these are a way cooler way of bathing! This is felted yarn impregnated with lovely, scented soap. The end result is like always having a clean wash cloth in the shower. Convenience is the thing and they're very pretty too, don't you think? In an earthy, crunchy way. Or, if you prefer, a sophisticated hippie way. There, everyone is happy. This is Ruthie's new discovery and I am embarking on my own new quirky creation. As the title promises...pom-poms! I found this irresistable gadget from the folks at Clover at the craft store and it's all I thought it would be. So much fun! So easy! So doofus-proof that I did it first try no problems and a quick skim of the instructions. Now I happily add pom-poms to everything. Even things not necessarily benefitting from the addition of pom-poms. Exactly, NO SUCH THING!
So looking forward to getting creative again. I have this stash of fabulous beads that I've been saving since January-ish. Of LAST year-ish. I love a clearance sell for beads the way I love one for clothing. If you pack it away for a couple of seasons, no one has seen it and it's brand new again! Exclusive even because you can't buy it in any store! This rediscovery of beads I love and hid away months prior makes my creative juices flow! I looked through my stash with an eye for fall and came up with the fall leaf colors in the photos. Those firey reds and brilliant oranges and luminous yellows remind me so much of this time of year. Even the weight of the porcelain and brass remind me of chunky, cozy sweaters and scarves. When the Bradford Pear trees and the maples begin to turn here in Eastern North Carolina, they color shades ranging from saffron to brilliant scarlet so I wanted a similar feel for my fall jewelry. I must also admit that absolutely adore the deep burgundies and oxblood that are the hot colors right now. I feel certain that I will be turning to them shortly when the next show reduces my inventory and I start digging around in, I mean ORGANIZING, the bead drawer again. This is one of my favorite new display pieces. I love the look of the ornate frame against the muslin background. Then there are the shiny crystal pins that you use to secure the jewelry. So fun! This was a piece bought at a store that sells traditional retail fixtures but I love even more those things I find at thrift stores that can be used for display. They make the display more interesting and unique which fits perfectly with handcrafted items. You'll never find something exactly like either of them. I'm looking forward to finding just the right look in the coming months as we do more shows so our visual presentation highlights our jewelry and knits and invites people to shop and have fun with us. I'm looking forward to the adventure!
See I made the mistake of telling Ruthie that I was trying to teach myself to crochet and had mastered the "shoestring" aka basic chain stitch. One row. One really long row... See, shoestrings! Being the natural teacher she is (why she is an accountant I will never know) she said she would come over and teach me. I cannot say enough about her patience and good humor even in the face of adversity. She did a great job and in a couple of hours I mastered two stitches, the single and the double. True to form, I quickly and without haste developed a yarn addiction. Rather like my bead addiction, which continues on unabated in case you're curious. There is now yarn EVERYWHERE. My kids grumble as they move it from the couch to the floor, from the floor to the kitchen table, from the kitchen table to the couch. Talk about your vicious cycle! Now I make scarves and headbands because I remain a master of the straight line! I can't do hats or read patterns to do anything else but Ruthie has promised another lesson when she has time so I hoard supplies and spend hours on Pinterest picking out all the things I will crochet when I learn and I stay hopeful. No, I didn't crochet the flowers in the photo I had to buy them but soon, soon... Meanwhile, see the little felt owl? Yeah, now I hoard felt. When they say addiction can break you, they mean that!
The Indie Fair at The Streets at Southpoint mall was small but profitable. Maybe I should use the term well-edited. I think that's what they say in fashion when they mean small but very selective and exclusive. Yes, that's it. At any rate, it was a fun and successful day albeit a long one. Perhaps the most wonderful part was my visit to the retail fixture store for many of the display fixtures you see in the photos. I can't even decide what my favorite is but it might be the mirror or the the wire lady holding all the earrings. I'm looking forward to doing this event again next year maybe even twice. I think events like this and the Durham Craft Market can help us build a following as well as being exposed to other crafters that we can learn from. The other vendors at a show like this one are always so nice and helpful about how to get your product out and about. They are so friendly and helpful about everything from packaging and branding to POS systems that work (Square and Intuit) for budding businesses. Can't wait for 2013!
When you make things, you never know when and where your next great idea will appear. Above is a great example of this. A co-worker found the single earring--at least I think that's what it is--on her long walk across the parking lot at work. It had been run over and if you look closely you can even see some flattening and rust! Yet from this found object an idea was born. I love working with wire. It feels more creative than store bought beads and findings for me. That is not to say that I don't enjoy buying beads and findings at the craft store but wire waits for you to manipulate it, it's not "pre-formed". Also, you can make almost any finding you would ever want to buy yourself. Fine, I admit, this adds primarily to the "pride" factor you feel when you create. I turned a piece of wire into wearable jewelry...so there! That sort of thing. I've made my own ear wires, clasps, jump rings, chain for bracelets and necklaces and I'm sure there is plenty left to discover. Oh, and the person who brought that slightly rusted inspiration to me? She is the recipient of the silver pair of earrings in the photo above. I've learned that you can take an idea that you see in a store or on Pinterest and make your own version of it and that you shouldn't be scared to try.
Well, we've dipped our feet in the pool and the water was just fine! Ruthie and I went to our first ever show as you can see in the photo. We talked with lots of nice folks and other crafters. It's so much fun to see what's out there. We ate the most amazing Smoked Gouda Pretzel from one of the food trucks at the Food Truck RODEO. The food trucks and the Durham Farmers Market were the big draw. The traffic was lively and the music was great! We even sold some stuff and got some great compliments on our jewelry and crochet hats, scarves and earmuffs. We hope to do this event in 2013 and are eagerly awaiting the 2013 schedule. The folks at Vega Metals at 214 Hunt St. host the YART Sale outside their store once a month from May through October and, from what we saw this past weekend, the hardest part is spending less than you make! The food, the Farmer's Market, the crafts, and all the local businesses make it a wonderful community event. It's like a little street fair when the food trucks roll in and park. Our next event is the Indie Fair at The Streets at Southpoint and I'm looking forward to it as well! Visit us there in Center Court on Saturday, October 20th from 10am until 6pm. |
AuthorDeAlva is the wordy half of Scarlet Fusion Designs. She enjoys crafting as much as Ruthie she just talks and writes about it way more! She especially enjoys referring to herself in the third person. Archives
July 2014
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