Post-Handmade Market Post

Bernadette and Simon

Bernadette is my first Softie with removable shoes!

Moko, a butch ballerina

Neville and Moko

The Bloomington Handmade Market is over and done. I had the greatest time, it made me want to bake all of my neighbors some cookies---the good kind with large chunks of chocolate inside. I have no pictures of my booth (oh how I neglect you, blog). The market in general was very cozy, in the auditorium of this art center downtown. There were about 40 artists there and I felt a little bit like I needed blinders on, so that I wouldn't run around and cheat on my frugal "I'm broke and having a baby" self, which is to say, everyone had very beautiful, unique, well-crafted things---the kind of things I want filling up my house for my child to look at. Everyone that came in was so nice and friendly and responsive to my work which is a special feeling. A few of my plushes even got spontaneously hugged out of delight which made my face muscles hurt from smiling. I did well, but really it was nice to be a part of a community event that so many great people showed up to. Joseph and I have only lived here for a few years, and yesterday was the first time that it felt like home to me. It also probably helped that I saw about a million bright-eyed babies being bopped around in Baby Bjorns or Moby Wraps and my hormones have me feeling warm and fuzzy to the max!

I have a little bit of a surplus that is going into my Etsy shop right at this moment. This includes 2 paper-clay dolls with movable limbs and Simon (the orange haired boy above) who charms the socks off of me.

This post feels completely self-indulgent. I'm sorry!

Giant Update from a Giant Girl

Miriam

Gustav

Bernadette

Sebastian

Tuhlula

Giant because of my expanding belly (and other areas). I have been sewing towards my goal of 10 charming softies for the Bloomington Handmade Market. Which is maybe a low number, but I'm going to be easy on myself. My one and only other craft fair experience turned me into a one-woman sweat shop and I am choosing to never again revisit that version of me (she's a robot). So I took a few (glorious) personal days off of work and I have been drinking obscene amounts of tea, spoiling Albert with too many walks, being a hermit with Joseph, listening to the Talking Heads station on Pandora and sewing. It's been really great---a perfect four days. I sort of fantasize about my maternity leave being like these past four days, only with the addition of a giggily infant and the subtraction of sleep. I made a few different sort of shaped characters, one (which I haven't photographed yet) is charming my socks off and I look forward to sharing him with you. Thanks for sticking around and reading even though I could easily win laziest blogger of the year award. I have to go now, there is Chai to be drunk.

Mustache Totem Pole

I've been really enjoying Matryoshka painting these days. It's a little less labor-intensive than sewing and I get instant gratification when I paint whereas with sewing, even though the build up and suspense too have their benefits, my heart doesn't get happy butterflies in it until I turn the softie form right-side out. I also can't seem to let go of my little mustache men. Maybe it's because I am pregnant and slightly grumpy, and (not so slightly) lazy and I imagine these charming little men with well-groomed mustaches as being my own little chivalrous army. They can march around my house being extra polite. They can slice me up apples and scoop me out organic peanut butter to dip the slices in. I'll have to make sure to paint some with scarves on so that they can run outdoor errands (the kind that involve picking me up pumpkin spice lattes).

I am going to have to start sewing soon, however. It's been awhile. I am trying to build up a stock-o-handmade items for the Bloomington Handmade Market happening next month.

I hope the sun is shining where you are like it is over here! If not though, pumpkin spice lattes are instant coudy-day-blues-busters.

Lovey Dovey

She's getting married! The girl on the left, that is. Her name is Tracey and she is awesome and I love her to bits and pieces. Just so you know, in the picture we are holding our straw wrappers. We did that game where you make a knot and pull it to see if people are thinking about you. If there is a knot, then people are (k)not thinking about you, but if there is not a knot then people are thinking about how lovely you are. At this particular time, everyone was thinking about our loveliness.

She asked me to make their wedding invitations, and this is what the front looks like. They are getting married at a State Park in Vegas. I wanted to do something sweet, simple and fun because that's the kind of couple they are. Congratulations Tracey and Eric!

Surprise!

It's a boy! He's not here yet, and I am exploiting him, just slightly, while he is in the womb by using him as an excuse for my absence. But for these last few months, if I wasn't working (day job, that is) I was sleeping, and when I wasn't doing that, I was too busy eating. I had every intention of posting life goals, like I mentioned 4 months ago in my previous post, but for now I am just going to be satisfied that I am growing a person inside of me and leave well enough alone.

These last few weeks I have been feeling a little more energetic, however. I bought this book at Barnes and Noble last Sunday and I have been staring at the pictures in it ever since! I think Lotta Jansdotter and I are supposed to be best friends. Her family looks so adorable, my goodness. So from the book, I sewed my first ever project from a pattern (which I found both hard and exciting). I spent over an hour at the store trying to chose the fabric for it. I kept hoping that the little fellow inside of me would give my some kind of indication of his choice pattern via some excited kicks, but I think he was tired that day. But I hope he likes this snuggie! Joseph has already asked for a matching daddy one.

It feels good to be able to share my good news over the internets! I promise to blog again soon, I actually have a couple of projects going on to share with you. Take care!

Signing off,
Nichol and bump

Hello June!

And "I'm sorry May!" I didn't sew much during May, sigh. When are they going to invent that pill that allows you to skip sleep altogether so that I can bring more Pink Cheeks into the world? On the note of bringing things into the world, I turned 29 a few days ago. I'm inching closer and closer to 30, but my wardrobe keeps inching closer and closer to my tween years. For some reason, I bought the most obnoxious pair of sneakers--they are fluorescent with hot pink laces and they make me want to skip everywhere. I enjoy them, I also enjoy that I live in a town where people respect fluorescent sneakers instead of just dismissing the sneaker-ee as some sort of color-blind-crazy-lady. Anyway, I need to make up a sort of list of goals, and I want to post it here so that I am accountable, at least in cyber-world. I want to make it good, so I need to let it percolate (spell check made me write it that way, but I sure would have thought it was spelled 'perculate') for a day or so. In the mean time, I want to post a great link to the Happiness Project----if you're in a slump or really want to work on your happiness, it's a really wonderful daily read.

Gregory

Greg polishes the buttons of his suspenders every morning. He believes it is respectful of others to have good hygiene and to wear things that are shiny rather than dull. He's a good fellow though. He doesn't scrutinize others' appearances as he does his own. Greg once spent over an hour ensuring that his mustache curls were symmetrical. He keeps an emergency mustache repair kit in his carry-all which includes a small ruler, a pair of trimming scissors, some mustache wax and a bit of chocolate because everyone deserves a treat once in awhile.

Again, I had arm issues with Greg. I just couldn't bring myself to sew them---it took me forever to motivate myself, but now they are complete and on a whim I turned one of them upside down so that it looks like Greg is in a pose that suggests he is always saying "O'Lay!"

It's rainy where I am and it is making me want to lounge around in my pajamas all day. I am a little bit sad because my husband is gone for a week. It feels strange here without him, I feel slightly lost, but I have a good friend coming for a slumber party today and she will make everything okay. Wine will be drunk and lives will be caught up on and tomorrow I bet the sun will come out and if it does, I will celebrate with pancakes.