love

i'm loving these cuffs I found on etsy:

1. Triple strand cuff bracelet in gray and white floral @ PonderandStitch [Amy was one of the first people I 'met' on Etsy. She is sooo sweet and she makes the prettiest cuffs from vintage feedsacks and trims.]
2. HARRIS bracelet @ OrangeistheSun  [love the look of the stamped writing on linen with the vintage button]
3. EcoCuff - Giant Crosscut Vintage Button on Soft Leather Band @ greenbelts [LOVE this button!]
4. Which Way To The Beach Brown Leather Wrap Cuff Bracelet With Arrows @ Batwings&Battleaxes [I am immediately drawn to anything with arrows... at Cornell College I joined the social group Alpha Sigma Pi (kind of like a sorority) and the members are called Arrows.]


I spent a lot of the weekend crocheting orders and granny squares. What kind of fun did you have this weekend?

sport

oh great football gods, how could you not send this face to the Super Bowl?!

image found here

now i must wait another eight months to see that smile every week...sigh! we used to be Colts fans but after the debacle last year, we decided to go straight New York [we are BIG Yankees fans too]. and i swear my choice of a new team had nothing to do with what the quarterback looks like...their running back Shonn Greene played at Iowa, ya know!

do you 'celebrate' the Super Bowl or any other major sporting event? 

organize

remember how i said my new beginning would require some additional organization? well, these planner pages are where i'm starting...
 
have you ever been to Tricia Rennea's blog, trillustrations? [i credited her last year for creating the great free red, white and pink graphics on my handmade valentines.] she develops very pretty and practical stationery, labels, invitations, scrapbooking pieces, coloring pages, origami papers and so much more. if you can print it on paper, she has probably created something just like what you need! and get this...she has a whole section of print-at-home items, some of them even customizable!
so go drop in and check out all of Tricia's goodies. you won't be sorry.... i will be anxiously waiting for her to provide the planner pages online later this week so i can get organized!

love

here's what i'm loving this week

1. Sliced Au-Go-Go - au naturelle A4 Giclee Print at inaluxe [love every one of the prints in this shop]

2. Vintage Blue Plaid Metal Thermos at CathodeBlue [i cannot say enough about the vintage sold here- fantastic]

3. Gustavsberg Bersa Plate by Stig Lindberg at JollyPollyPickins [sold but still a great shop to check out]

4. Large Cathrineholm Striped Yellow Bowl at thewildplum [also sold and another great vintage shop]

have a great weekend everyone!

community

i'm sure many of you follow Sarah London's blog and are already aware of her new project to gather granny squares for afghans to be provided to those impacted by the flooding in Australia, but i wanted to continue spreading the word... if you can help out all, please sign up here and get hooking! [and if you need help with crocheting a granny square, please let me know.]

hook

i haven't been feeling up to snuff in the last four days. i twisted my back- not sure how but woke up with it all knotted up on Sunday morning. then on Monday, i started feeling flu-ish in the afternoon. needless to say, i've spent the last two and a half days with an electric hot pad on my back and a cool wash cloth on my forehead. awful!


i'm hoping to get back on my feet and back to work tomorrow- just in time to have Friday off for a three day weekend and do the things that didn't get done this past weekend. i haven't been out of the house yet this week and would really like to have a chance to wear these fingerless gloves i made...

i was going to just do the simple quick rectangle sewn up the side leaving a hole for my thumb but then i thought 'why not try stripes?'. which the led to small scallops on the top and larger scallops on the cuff.

and when they were finished, i read my husband's mind which was saying 'oh god, another gray/black item in her wardrobe- imagine that' and i knew i needed to add a little pop of color to throw him off track. 

i'm thinking that the next pair i make i will sew on a small round button and then make flowers in various colors and interchangeable. i'm also contemplating making this my first ever tutorial...would you be interested?

remembering

"Life's most persistent and urgent question is: 'What are you doing for others?'" ~ Dr. Martin Luther King Jr.

list

new in the shop...

community

wow, i've been fortunate on the treasury front, considering how i haven't listed anything in what seems like ages. i want to mention a couple of the most recent...


if only i had more room in my cupboards for more pyrex [link]

and here is one that features members from the newly formed Des Moines Etsy team [link]

and i agree with the caption...winter white is OUT! and i'm sure that people in 49 states agree with me this week. if you so desire, link over to Etsy and check out all these great items!


have a great thursday!

a new year, a new beginning

i don't know if anyone is still out there, but I am back [and I really mean it this time- not like last AUGUST]! i haven't quite figured out the reason for my absence.... because i not only neglected my own blog and flickr, i also wasn't reading or commenting on others and i neglected my etsy shop too. i think i got too wrapped up in all of the online stuff that i overwhelmed myself. i was over-inspired by what others were doing [and there is sooo much good stuff out there!] and not taking any time for myself to hook, sew, take photos, etc. i was literally spending my entire evenings just reading blogs and nothing else. the break was definitely a good thing and allowed me to MAKE things- not just read about making things.

so, the new year brought with it a new perspective, lots of organization and planning and a new drive and focus to not only grow my vintage business online and locally, but to also add handmade items into the mix.


so here's to a new year and a fresh start! i am so excited to be moving forward and i would love to have you join me!