TGIM!!

Okay, so I can come out of hiding, January and February are over!!

I don't know about you, but these are my least favorite months of the year, for several reasons.

But really, the biggest is my own fault.

Up until hopefully this year, I've really only done any significant amount of business September through December.  Last year was kind of nuts because we developed an entire new product line and were dealing with a lot of materials we hadn't used before.  Long list of excuses short, I didn't do any of my books until after Christmas.  I do not recommend this!! =)  I've spent the last 2 months doing 2 things:  reorganizing my studio-house from the chaos that ensued Nov-Dec. and entering a pile of receipts resembling that Vonage commercial  into Quickbooks.

But now the light is at the end of the tunnel!  I ripped apart the studio and reorganized everything so that the materials I intend on using most often are the easiest to get to.  I finally feel like I can breath in there again.  It was a lot of work, took more than a few Venti iced coffees to get through, but was totally worth it.

So this weekend I'm back to work on some new stuff.  Will  have pics to post soon!

In the meantime, my current big inspiration:  Harry Clarke Illustrations.

Things are Getting Real Serious...

So, as Murphy's Law would predict, I was THIS close to having my big Halloween order finished, and right in the middle of one of the very last table runners, the sewing machine needle screeches to a halt mid-stitch, horrible grinding sound, alarms going off, lots of blinking, disaster.  Mind you, I have 2 days left till this is supposed to be delivered.  I run to the laptop and frantically start searching yelp for sewing machine repair shops.  Amazingly enough, one of the top rated just so happens to be about 5 minutes from me. They also just so happen to be one of the few authorized Bernina dealers in the city.

Soooo, I take in my $300 Target special machine.  The tech calls me back the next day and says he can't bring himself to even attempt to fix it, it's not worth the labor in and of itself.  At this point I've come to realize not only do I need a REAL sewing machine, I also need a back-up.  So I buy the most basic one they have knowing I'm coming back to look at a Bernina.  Mimi Kirchner sews on a Bernina.  I mean, lets face it, even the name is exotic and professional sounding.  I don't know how I know this, but somehow I've got it in my head that Bernina is the best of the best.  So I start doing research. 

Looks like it comes down to this.  Avid sewers are either in Camp A-Bernina, Camp B-Pfaff, Camp C-Viking, Camp D-Vintage Singer, Camp E-Babylock.  Another interesting thing I learned.  Almost everyone writing a review of a top of the line machines cites buying from a good dealer as being as important as the machine itself.  So I find a reputable Pfaff dealer.  They happen to be about 15 miles away, only open from 10-5 and in the worst direction possible for me to ever get there, even leaving work early.  I go check them out on a long lunch break anyway.  Very nice ladies, nice machines.  Go home for more research.  Review of Pfaff TOL's seem to be about as good as Bernina TOL's.  Looks like most people love them,  a handfull got lemons, and some bad reviews seeminlgy due to user error which is understandable when you take a look at these things.  HOWEVER, the Bernina software is really a step above.  You can digitize Jpegs, embroider on top of embroidery, and the coolest freaking thing ever, they have a Cutwork tool, basically a blade that replaces the needle and cuts out anything you want. I have been looking for this since I bought my Silhouette die cutter, which I LOVE, but it doesn't cut fabric.  So, I need a Bernina.

So back to the Bernina dealer, which is open till 6 (makes a huge difference).  Pricing is more or less about the same as the Pfaff's, excepting the TOL 830e.  I narrow it down to either the 640e or a used 730e they have in the shop.  Then talk to my husband.  Now there's a long list of great things I love about him.  One really important thing I've learned from him regarding business in the recent past is to not skimp on business equipment.  If you're going to use it, get the best you can, you'll get your money back.  He says he wants to go with me to check them out. So, we get there, and they happen to be demo-ing the 830e.  I can see it sucking him in.  The guy is trying to tell us all about the 640e, and he's all but falling out of his chair in the other direction, watching the 830 embroider. 

So, God love him, he is now convinced I need the 830e.  I'm by no means arguing, but not completely 100% sure it's worth double the money.  What in the World, the things you can do with this though.  I can't think about anything else at the moment.  It would literally open up a whole new world of product.  The ability to personalize things in and of itself is amazing.  If anyone has any experience with an 830e or 640e, I'd definitely appreciate any opinions/advice.

In the meantime,  here are some pics of my upcoming Halloween line in progress.  I'll let you know when these are available on Etsy, I'm shooting for Labor Day weekend. 

P.S.  If you're looking at sewing machines,  this site has plenty of reviews on just about everything:

http://sewing.patternreview.com/

Memorial Day Sale!

So stoked that a long weekend is coming up!!  The first week of June is probably my favorite time of year, lots of family birthdays, super long days, and it's finally almost summer.  On that note, I decided to celebrate and have an etsy sale! Now's your chance to grab some last minute grad gifts, all napkin sets and wine bags are 31% off and all dolls will ship free on purchases made Thursday May 27th through Monday May 31st.  Check out the store to do some shopping.

I'm so excited for my new Halloween line!  I'm hoping to start putting items in the shop early September.  They'll also be available in store, I'll list the info as soon as I have all the details.  We've been working hard and have really broadened our range of products.  I have learned SO MUCH in the past few months.  Lots of trial and error.  There is a huge pile of some really kind of hideous attempts in the studio, everybody needs a scrap pile, right?  There are some really fun things that came out quite nice though.  Really different new wine bags, table runners, place card holders, utensil holders, napkin rings, witch stockings, decorative blocks, etc., etc.  I'll start posting some teasers here shortly.

In the meantime, Barney licking a fish. I never thought I'd be one of those crazy dog people, then I bought a boxer. =)

Moon Face Blog Wine Bag Giveaway!

Please check out the very sweet Cassie's blog Moon Face here to see some really great stuff and enter to win a Trapeze Lady Winebag!

What I did this weekend.

Last week was a little insane, what with the hail, thunderstorms and crazy wind and rain.  Then both of us getting sick. Then, this is really weird, but my husband and I were talking on Saturday night and he told me he'd woken up with really weird feeling the night before and couldn't go back to sleep.  Barney had been acting kind of weird earlier that night, barking at something that we couldn't find, and kind of sniffing around the perimeter of the house.  He's pretty predictable so when he does things out of the ordinary we usually pay attention.  We attributed it to the weird weather and went to bed.  The next morning when we went to get coffee, I noticed weird handprints on my car, then saw they were on all the cars on our side of the street.  My car was fine but E's GPS was stolen and after talking to the neighbors it appears over the last couple of weeks there's been some shadiness going on and stuff being taken.  We then realized we actually heard them shut the car door but had thought it was the heater turning off.  Point is, if you have a gut feeling, go with it.  We should have checked it out.  For whatever reason our street seems to be prone to theft in the wintertime and we need to be more diligent about not leaving stuff out.  Still infuriating though.

Regardless, I did get some stuff done.  I'm working on some felt flowers for the Halloween store, this is new for me so probably going to be a little frustrating for a while.  Pretty much everything I'm working on right now is new stuff, that can be really hard.  I need at least one project to work on that I'm comfortable with, and I don't have one right now and that can make it a little hard to stay motivated.  Anyway, I think I finally have the Heart Garland figured out, I listed the first one in the Etsy store this morning!  I'm hoping to finish a few more this week.  I also finally finished my poor niece's doll that I've been promising her for months.  I hope she likes her!   I was hoping for more napkins but the screens need to be remade (they should be a little bigger) so I'm not sure if there will be any more before V Day, we'll see.   Regardless, here are some pics of things accomplished.=)

Napkins Listed Tomorrow!

Sorry for the delay!  Cool new Valentines Napkins will be listed by tomorrow morning (possibly tonight).  Here's a little hint:

Stockings, stockings, stockings!

I've been super busy making stockings and haven't had a chance to get to any of the clothespin dolls.  Sunday was eaten up by a little excursion to get the best Christmas present ever that ended up being about an 8 hour trip. So worth it though.  After Christmas I'll post a pic, no hints just in case the lucky recipient is reading.=)

I did get a new batch of stockings finished and will have them listed by this evening, as well as a new wine bag.  New bag designs are in the works, a little different than the ones listed, they'll be posted by Saturday night.

Erik, being the great display maker that he  is, went all out last night after bringing out all the tubs of decorations.  I don't even try to help.  He gets in the zone and I would really just be a hindrence.  Last year Erik's mom brought us giant plastic bins of things she had left over, it really was amazing.  I'd never seen so many cool Christmas decorations.  Our living room looks like an Anna Lee Elf bomb went off.

We also went all out with the tree.  We got the biggest one we thought we could fit in the house.  Somehow the two of us got it up the stairs.  I think it weighed 200 lbs.

So tonight is tree trimming time! We have some really cool new ornaments we got over Thanksgiving.  So exciting!

Will post pics tonight!

Clothespin Dolls Coming Soon!

Everything's been a little nuts because November is always crazy for us.  We don't go anywhere all year, but somehow we're always gone almost all of November.  So vacation's are now officially over and it's time to get to work!  Vacation was great, but it's actually kind of exciting to focus on getting things done.

We found probably one of my favorite stores ever while in the Ballard area of Seattle.  If you get a chance, go to this store.  The best collection of Christmas ornaments I've ever seen.  I could've been in there for hours.  I'm not really a HUGE Christmas nut, but I do really love the Christmas season, especially the decorations, the scents, the drinks and food.  However, I cannot stand Christmas music.  I think it started especially early this year.  Kind of weird, but then, I guess I'm kind of weird.=)

I've been really fortunate and am staying busy making stockings.  I'm out to the Salvation Army tonight after work to pick out some sweaters for a new batch.  I had no idea these were going to be so much fun to make.  Picking out the sweaters is one of the best parts.  A lot of them are really kind of hideous when looked at as a sweater, but are fantastic as a stocking.  It's like going yard sale-ing, it's the thrill of the hunt.=)

I'm really excited about my new project.  I'm working on some clothespin girls that are actually made out of the stocking scraps.  I have one almost complete, I'm hoping to have a few listed on etsy by this weekend.  I had a little trouble gettting the faces worked out and for whatever reason couldn't figure out how to make a good paper cone. Seriously? It's like the easiest thing to do ever, I remember making them in like 2nd grade, but could not figure it out, to the point that I had to google it.  Anyway, finally got it and should have some done by Sunday.

We also have a suprise Christmas present that we're super excited about but can't post yet.  It's nice how as you get older it really does become more about giving then receiving.

View from the Balcony

There's been a serious lack of posting the past couple weeks.  I was considerably lucky the week before I left for the honeymoon in that the Craft Fair was a "great success" in Borat terms, and the nice people at Etsy put me on 2 gift guides which is so awesome and finally got my sales into the double digits.  I think I slept about 10 hours all week.  Then we left for the Honeymoon on Thursday night.  

Since last year they've added free WiFi, so I've been able to check on things which is totally fine since the husband is surfing all morning anyway.  We've made a couple of trips to Barnes & Noble, had a really nice day laying out an reading, and yesterday hiked a  new trail they built along the coast.  It happened to be a little longer of a trail than we thought, and it also happens to be pretty windy and rainy up north, and we got caught in an almost torrential downpour. No problem, we warmed up by getting in the water at the beach at the end of the trail.  Seriously, the water is that warm this year.  I was in serious need of a burger (I only eat burgers about once every year or two.  The last time was when we ran the Rock & Roll marathon.  When I need one,  I need one.)  We found the only place around that was open, and got some apps and aforementioned burger, then decided to run all the way back.  A serious adventure, but that has been an integral part of our relationship from the beginning.  We really should try out for the Amazing Race.

So things are great here.  It's already halfway over, I can't believe it.  Then we go home for 4 days, and off to the Pacific Northwest for Thanksgiving, always a fun trip.  Then it's back to serious work.  I'm going to try to get as much done as possible the first week of December seeing as USPS first class Christmas deadline is Dec. 11.  I'm hoping to have a few more designs/products up by Dec. 6.  Aloha!

B&B Featured in Etsy Gift Guides!

One of my wine bags was just featured in Etsy's Hostess Gifts gift guide, along with some other really cool gifts, check it out here:



Hooray!

Some Good News, Some Bad News

I wouldn't say I'm a pessimist, however, I'm definitely a realist, so let's do bad news first.

Poor Barney has a (hopefully) mild case of pancreatitis.  He's been acting really funny, not eating as much as usual, had that look on his face like he really didn't feel well, actually got up in the middle of the night and hid in his crate, which he only does if he thinks he's in trouble, or something hurts really bad.  So I took him to the vet yesterday and she did some bloodwork, I guess his pancreas is irritated. So he gets boiled chicken, rice and cottage cheese for a week or so.  She gave him some anti-naseua meds yesterday and last night he was a whole different dog.  I was worried that it was a reaction to the previcox (for his dysplasia) but it doesn't look like it.  I guess it's usually caused be eating high fat foods. The only thing I can think of is a neighbor gave him a bone that was possibly fatty? Or he got into the trash or something outside that we didn't catch.  But he seems to be feeling better.  So scary.=(

Good news, I finally took some decent pics. I'm pretty happy with about half of them, the others came out slightly blurry. Work in progress, but definitely getting there. 

Today I'm going to get some different colors of fabric paint and should have the first set of napkins finished tonight.  I also finished shoes for 3 dolls last night, hopefully I'll get some good pics this evening and can list tonight or tomorrow.  No more days off until Nov 2.  So only 1 weekend off then we go to Hawaii.  I'm going to have to figure out how to get more done on workdays!=)

Photography Woes!

Good Resolution, Not so Good color

Decent Color-Bad Resolution

I'm not sure if I mentioned this before, but I suck (sorry, there's no alternate word that conveys such frustration) at taking pictures.

The only C grade I was given at UCSD was in photography.  And the sad thing is, I actually tried, and honestly didn't know what I could have done differently.  It just doesn't click in my mind.

So taking pics for Etsy has been rough.  I read through my camera manual the other day, figured out how to change the white balance and EV and actually in the last few pics the color came out much better than the first round.  However, somehow I'd adjusted the pixel size so everything came out blurry. It wouldn't be so bad, except that the best light I get is right before sundown, so it's race home, get everything set up and shoot, shoot shoot.  I hate being in a rush to do things.  But I have tomorrow morning too, so hopefully I'll have some decent pics posted by tomorrow afternoon.

Sidenote, we're going to family dinner tomorrow night and it's a costume dinner.  I haven't gotten to truly dress up for Halloween since Erik and I started dating, and consequently working at the Halloween store, 6 Halloween's ago.  We're so excited.  I've decided I'm going as Amy Winehouse.  It would be weird to dress up super hot & sexy since it's family dinner, and if you're not going hot and sexy, you've got to do something fun.  Can't wait!

My first sale!

I made my first Etsy sale yesterday, so exciting!  It was actually a wine bag, which I started making as gift bags for the dolls but then thought they would make a good side project, plus a nice excuse to paint a little.

It really is a lot of work figuring out how Etsy works.  The tagging, the listing, the shipping, etc.  Very cool and really exciting though.  I didn't realize how many great tools there are for checking stats.  Here are some great ones:
http://www.craftcult.com/
http://www.cr8tvity.com/

However, it's been hard getting new things done in the meantime.  Tonight I'll be working on new pics of existing dolls (I finally read through my camera manual and figured out how to adjust the white balance) and  on finishing four girls that just need shoes and shirts.  I'm also working on a doll for my psuedo niece that I'd like to have shipped off for her this weekend.  I had a hard time finding the right colored plaid, so I'm dyeing the undershirt to sort of liven it up.  Some samples:

And finally, I'd really like to finish the two witches by next week, seeing as it is almost Halloween.  That really is hard to believe.  I feel like summer just started yesterday.
Almost Finished:

And I almost forgot, I also need to reorganize the loft:

Etsy Shop is Open!

I can't believe it, I finally opened my etsy store!  I  have 8 dolls listed and am working on wine totes/gift bags right now.  Please click at the right to check it out.

Etsy, we're almost there!

(More pics on Flickr, click on sidebar at right.)

New Dolls!  I've gone a little plaid crazy, I've never really been unordinarily drawn to plaid, but there's something about it on the doll clothes that's so sophisticated and amusingly absurd that it makes me really happy.  That and I love the colors.  You can find almost any combination of complementary colors in a plaid, and somehow they look chic.  It's really fun to make the outerwear, then pick a couple of colors out of the pattern that seem so wrong, yet somehow they work when layered underneath.  So there will be more plaid girls to come.

Okay, so I've pushed my etsy deadline back soooo many times now.  It's like construction.  Take the deadline, then mutliply the amount of time by at least two.  My first deadline to list was August 1, that seems hilarious now.  Of course, Halloween ate up most of July, but we got to do some really cool stuff so it was worth it.

Regardless, my goal to start listing is now October 3.  Last weekend I took Monday off of work, Erik went fishing so I had the house mostly to myself, and believe it or not actually got a lot done.  My last tasks for these week are to figure out how to make doll boots, finish some sandals, clean up a few loose ends, make up some gift tags, screen images onto the bags and sew them up.  I have all the silkscreen transfers ready, I'm hoping Erik will show me how to make the screens tonight.  The bags are fairly easy to sew, they take a little time,  but I think if I make a bunch at once I should be able to get quite few done in a short amount of time. 

Last week I got all the boring business stuff done, license, permit, etc. etc.  So all is official now. 

I have this weekend off, I'm hoping to get the dolls listed Saturday morning, afternoon at the latest.  Then hopefully I can work on some napkins and bags on Sunday.

Mimi Kirchner Handmade Portrait on Etsy

Mimi is one of my biggest inspirations in doll making (besides my grandma=)) and her new handmade portrait on etsy is really great. When I first started thinking about making dolls her Purl girl pattern was one of the first patterns I came across that I was really interested in. I love how each one of them is so unique, and such a simple basic pattern, but the personality that comes across in the details is so intriguing. Anyway, I could go on and on, but this is really cool if you're into sewing or really any kind of craft.

Coming Along

I've decided I'm never going to reach my goal deadlines unless I get up earlier and work on things before I go to my day job. I'm not a morning person. I wish I was. I'm not one of those people that want to sleep until 11 a.m., but I'm not one of those people who wake up and the crack of dawn ready to go either. So I'm starting slowly, I'm getting up at 7 (45 minutes earlier than I absolutely have to.) I digress. On to Dolls!

I finished everybody's hair last night. These pics are from yesterday morning. Tonight is clothing night, my favorite part! Hopefully more pics tomorrow!

A Little Background

Hi Everyone!

Thanks for reading. I guess I'll start off with a little about myself. I didn't think I had that much to say, but my profile started getting kind of lengthy so I figured I should re-direct.

First off, I'm starting this blog as an off-shoot of my brand spankin' new Etsy Store, BloomAndBarnacle. Yes, I did indeed name my store after my dog, Barnacle (Barney). I haven't always been a crazy dog person. I had dogs growing up, and I was always a "dog" person, in the sense that I would much rather own a dog than a cat. The crazy part developed about 2 years ago when I became a boxer owner. As any boxer owners out there know, a boxer is not a "dog", but a four-legged, furry, better-than-human best friend. And seeing as he sticks by my side through countless 15 hour Saturday sewing/painting/crafting sessions, he should get some kind of retribution. More about Barney later.

I've blogged a little here and there, mostly while I was planning my wedding purely to keep track of all of my inspiration pics. My family is always giving me a hard time about being a "clipping" junkie. As in having a million torn out magazine pages and printed photos from websites all over the place. These blogs were essentially e-clipping binders with a few journal entries thrown in to keep it interesting. Regardless, that is the opposite of what I'd like to do here. I'm hoping to keep an organized, readable, interesting literary account of my artistic pursuits in order to keep myself on track. And seeing as my entire wedding was planned through the generous posting of pics and diy tricks from others, I thought it was time I put some of my own ideas\inspiration out there and hopefully someone else can get something out of it.

That being said, expect to read about a few varying ventures here. Anything from painting, sewing, papercrafts, etc.

However, I'm hoping that the gist of this site will be in reference to my new venture, Dollmaking. I guess it isn't exactly new. I started making dolls with my Grandma when I was probably about 6 years old. I'm from a tiny town in the Mojave Desert, and it gets unbelievably hot there in the summer. I'm talking record temps of 130 degrees. There were three options that my brother and I had as children during these months: talk someone into taking us to the river where we'd spend the day happy as fish in the icy water, find a friend with a pool, or stay inside. When we resorted to option three, we were making something, and most often this was at my granparents' house.

We were very lucky as children in a lot of ways, one of them being that our family was incredibly creative. My dad can build/fix anything, from playhouses to real houses to trucks. My mom is an incredible painter who had a day job as a hairdresser and can build a killer float and sew an amazing Halloween costume. My grandmother is an incredible seamstress and made a career out of doll crafting. My Grandpa is a carpenter/welder/taxidermist and makes some of the most incredible knives you'll ever see.

I digress. So I started making cloth dolls as a small child under the expert tutorage of my Grandma. Eventually I moved onto Barbie clothes. I honestly got a little scared as a pre-teen that I was never going to grow out of Barbies. I know now that there are more of us out there, but at the time I really thought I was kind of a wierdo. I would still secretly get Barbies for Christmas when I was like 12 years old. I would only ask for the collector's editions because I figured that was slightly more excusable. Anway, my Barbies had the most eclectic wardrobes of anyone I knew. I was crocheting Barbie bikinis before Ashley Paige had ever been heard of. In college, one of my last projects was an installation involving two different Barbie houses. Okay, maybe I am a weirdo.=)

So, now that I've graduated from college, I'm happily married, and have finally purchased a house with the incredibly gracious help from the best father in law ever, it was time to sit down and really think about what I want to do with my life. I had a short stint with a faux finishing studio right out of college, and had thought that maybe I'd be a mural painter. And although I did enjoy it, it never felt quite right to me. When I decided to leave that venture, I sat down and had a heart to heart with my fiance, and told him what I wanted to do, my ultimate dream, my goal in life: I wanted to make stuff.

I'm not an eloquent person. It's not that I couldn't be, it just doesn't interest me, I don't have the patience for it, I don't like the hoity toitiness that it ephemerates. (Ironic?)

The problem was, I couldn't figure out how I was going to make that work. I don't know anyone else who does anything like this in the big city. (My family made their entire living through local craft fairs and word of mouth). More importantly, I wasn't sure what I wanted to make. I like doing too many things. And I couldn't bear the thought of being pigeonholed into one idea for the rest of my career.

More and more, as I was looking up wedding ideas, I kept coming across tutorials for rag dolls. That's something I was actually really interested in. I could make rag dolls with the coolest freakin clothes/hair/personalities you've ever seen. Then I discovered Etsy. Pure brilliance! The thing is, I didn't realize there were that many people interested in handmade products. There are millions! And believe it or not, there are people that are actually doing this FOR A LIVING! Now I'm not naive. I know that probably like .05% of Etsy sellers are making enough money to live off of their handmade products. But I am determined! I was not meant to be an Office Manger, I can tell you that. With my 30th birthday looming, there's no time like the present. If it is possible, I'm going to make it happen.

(I also found a great book, Craft Inc., through one of my favorite sites, DesignSponge. They say that many times you can identify the one moment/idea/inspiration that you set you on path in life. I have to say, this book set me in motion. Sorry if this sounds like a shameless advertisement, it's not, I'm just really happy that I found that little push that I needed.)

So my goal is to make a quality, handmade doll that will blow your socks off. Something that you can buy for that kid who has EVERYTHING. Or that adult who has everything. Dolls that are quirky, that you can't find anywhere else. Dolls that are inspired by historic sources and current social trends that are just right for your friend/cousin/co-worker with that eclectic personality.

So please stay tuned! I'm hard at work to have a line of about 30 dolls debut late July/early August. I also have a hand-painted kitchen textile line in the works that should be ready shortly after the dolls.