I was recently approached by a brick and mortar store called Bento in Honesville, PA to carry my cowls. It looks like a really neat store, so I said sure! Here they are, all packaged and ready to go.
This weekend I asked my mom’s husband to help me make some wooden buttons. My mom and I took Ash out back on “an adventure” and found some old cherry wood branches from a couple of years ago that were dry. Derek brought out his miter saw and through a bit of trial and error, we were able to cut through them without the pieces flying away, never to be found again.
I brought the pieces home, dremeled some holes and sanded them with a couple of different strengths (or whatever you call it) of sandpaper and finished them with some pure beeswax, which made them extremely gorgeous, and voila. Done. I just love the way they look!
I’m going to handsew them onto the next series of cowls that I make. I’m even starting to sew children’s ones, so stay tuned!
I’ve started on my new collection of autumn neckwarmers (aka cowls), and they’ve been great at making it into the treasuries. Or maybe people just like the pictures of my chin, haha.
Here are a few great print screens of the treasuries who’ve featured me.
Pieces of Yesterday by DreambyDay
A Touch of Grey by CallMeCaptain
We’ve been in our new apartment for a couple of weeks now, and last week I unpacked my boxes of fabric and even destashed a LOT of it (but then I went shopping and found some real treasures… it’s a never ending cycle…) but it wasn’t until this week that I was really able to start sewing again.
There have been issues with the kid not wanting to fall asleep early, or me just needing to do chores around the house, or feeling just so wiped out at the end of the day the inspiration to sew just doesn’t come. Once I get started, though, the enthusiasm to see the finished product soon actually becomes overwhelming and I start daydreaming about being able to bring my sewing machine into my day job, or sticking Ash in front of some vintage Sesame Street just so I can get something accomplished (neither of which I do) (Cookie Monster youtube videos are strictly reserved for when I’m showering!).
I found this black and white fabric the other day and immediately fell in love. It’s so hard to find either black or white when second-hand shopping, so I scooped this up and made three bags out of it. I bought some sliders (to make adjustable purse straps) on Etsy a while ago, but they haven’t arrived yet, so I went to our local shop and bought a few so that I could finish these sooner than later. I don’t know why I didn’t learn how to do it sooner, it is surprisingly easy to make purse straps adjustable, but I can’t learn everything at once.
These are the most well-constructed bags I’ve ever made in my life, and- dare I say it- don’t even look handmade (not that my other ones did, but these REALLY don’t). As someone who is completely self-taught, I feel pretty proud.
This body form (and the barn wood wall) is from my day job, I went in there today for a couple of minutes to take some shots, and I love how it looks. It’s going to have to be something I do from now on.
Clive was awesome and took care of Ash for most of the day (he went fishing last Sunday for about four hours while I took care of Ash, so he owed me… also: tag teaming is AWESOME) so I was able to complete over a dozen new cowls. I have added a few on Etsy, and will be adding more in the next couple of days. Believe it or not, it often takes more time to photograph them and then do the required editing than it takes to sew the damn things.
Our bedroom (not shown: one king sized, one twin mattress smooched together to form a happy co-sleeping environment cause it’s not pretty)
Our kitchen. It’s very retro, with wainscoting, mustard paint and floral wallpaper. I love it though.
The flooring of the kitchen and my favorite part of the hardwood. Instead of all going in one direction like most houses nowadays, you get this puzzle-piece sort of look that adds so much more character.
Ash’s bedroom doesn’t have a bed since it’s beside ours. Instead, it’s full of his toys. We found this shelving unit on the side of the road a couple of years ago, and we brought it in and I painted it a dark camo green. It was in our living room at the last place even though it was ugly and I bought another can of paint (I love cheap reject paint!) and now it’s in Ash’s room and I have fallen back in love with it. It’s solid wood and HEAVY.
I found this at Value Village about a year ago for $7.99 and it reminds me of my elementary school days. I couldn’t pass it up.
I found this table and chairs (wooden, of course) at a second hand store for $15 this spring. Ash finger paints on it, and I’ve never bothered to wash it off. There’s an inscription in the bottom, some little girl got it as a present in 1992.
The day before we moved to our new house, I went to Salvation Army and found this old, old, old (and very loved) doll house for $1.99. It came with a few pieces of wooden furniture and some plastic dolls. I’m getting Ash some Plan Toys dolls for his birthday, so I’ll be giving those back to the Sally Ann soon.
The day we took Ash home from the hospital we passed by this old record player on the side of the road, and as soon as we took him inside I ordered Clive back out to pick it up and bring it into our apartment. We’d just moved from Ontario and had no furniture (it took us six months to even get a couch), and so I was desperate for SOMETHING to fill the house with. We kept it in its crappy state until just recently, when I went to the paint store again to look for more reject paint, and found a neutral beige/ivory. A couple of coats, and it’s nearly done. I’m going to cover the speakers with some foam board with an old map of Paris, and it’ll be complete! I can’t wait to find time to do that. (It’s moved from our front entrance in the last picture to the office/dining room.) The total cost for this piece is $7.
The window above it I found about a month ago, outside of our apartment. I scooped it up immediately and ranks as my very favorite piece of street treasure. It’s filthy and has duct tape glue on the window pane and I absolutely fucking love it. We’ve got to rig it differently because right now the fishing line is showing and we don’t want it to. But it’ll do for now.
I’ve been focusing on artwork for this new house and made a couple of Etsy purchases, including one from my sister, and so I’m happy that this piece by Shannon Larratt has company on our walls.
Our backyard is overrun by weeds, but Ash loves going out there and “peeing in the grass.” He’s naked except for socks and shoes in this picture. Anything is better than peeing in his diaper, as far as I’m concerned. I mourn summer already.
So, that’s pretty much it. Our office/dining room isn’t very exciting, and the basement wouldn’t show well in pictures, so you don’t get to see those. I absolutely LOVE where we’re living and I feel so lucky to have found this gem of a home. It’s cozy and huge and I’m inspired by its every nook and cranny.
Here are a few images of our house, not showing the mess or unpacked boxes. Even though I may hate them come winter when I’m paying outrages oil heating bills, I love these old heaters. They’re in every room.
