more heat

This July has been the fourth hottest one here ever.  Also, it's so insanely    h u m i d.

It's not so bad when your not moving...but unfortunately the kids aren't content to just sit in front of the fan.  In fact, this weather hardly slows them down a bit!

I hope you had a good weekend and are staying at least little bit cool.

sailor

We have a new little friend living in our house...meet Sailor the parakeet.  We are still getting to know each other but the boys are so kind and sweet to her, it's amazing to watch.  By the way, you can't determine the sex of a parakeet until he or she is older (and Sailor is still quite young) but I made the executive decision that she is a girl.  A little girl bird baby. 

about renegade (part two)

I've been meaning to do a special post here about some of the really lovely work I saw at Renegade.  As I said before I didn't get nearly enough time to explore but here are some of the shops I did manage to see and I'm so glad I did.

Hillery Sporatt's work is so darn good.  Her pieces are beautiful and detailed and sweet but also quirky so very thoughtful.  They feel modern but also have a strong connection to folk arts and history making them feel like something from another era.  I missed my opportunity to buy a piece at the show but I know it's just a matter of time before I pick out something special from her shop, Specks and Keepings.  Also she is a total sweetheart.

Also included on my list of Very Talented And Also Super Nice Gals I Met is Nora Aoyagi.  Her work is lovely and kind of dark in a really elegant way.  I was particularly fond of this print I saw and I hope whoever picked up Summer Bear (above) knows how lucky they are!

And finally, I was pleased to meet the lovely Emily Martin of The Black Apple.  She is incredibly talented and prolific and must have just about the best collection of vintage dresses in the world because both days I saw her I thought to myself "Damn, that is an amazing vintage dress."  I love this Portrait With Prize Toys (above).

Want to see the presents I bought myself?

 

A small print by Hillary Bird:  Together.  It's hanging in my kitchen and feels like a good sentiment to keep in mind in my (sometimes) crazy house.  Also this pretty bracelet/necklace from Cursive.  

Lastly,  a friend of mine from my book club directed me here for a really nice mention of my work.  Go there if you want to see a (sadly) typically awkward picture of yours truly!

about renegade

Well I've been back from San Francisco for just about a week now...and I still haven't completely unpacked.  Why should I?  It will just add to an already huge amount of laundry that need to be done!  Thank you so much to those of you who stopped by my Etsy shop on Friday and in the last few days.  I'm so happy so many toys have found homes.  There are still a hand full of really good ones in the shop and they will be the last for a little while.  Before I went to Renegade I was so frazzled trying to make so much work and at the same time fulfill all my other obligations.  I promised myself and my family I would take a nice big break from it all for the rest of the summer.

Okay, so about Renegade:  In my ragged state just before we left for San Francisco I was cursing myself (and just cursing a lot in general) for ever taking on so much and was convinced it wouldn't be work all the time, money and effort I put into it.  But I was completely wrong.  Just getting the opportunity to meet so many kind, enthusiastic, talented people made it totally worthwhile.  I've been realizing that in the past year or so that I've been doing so much work in my house that I've become really kind of isolated.  This sale was such a good reminder to me that I actually do like meeting people and talking to them.  As far a selling toys goes I did better than I thought I might and of course that makes the experience even more of a positive one.

One of the best parts about doing the fair was meeting other vendors.  I met so many kind supportive people and there was some really beautiful work there too.  My only regret was that I didn't have nearly enough time to look around at other peoples work as I was oftentimes at my own booth by myself.  I want to show you some of the lovely things I saw but I'll save that for later posts.  For now I'm going to put some of my favorites on my blog list so you can visit them yourselves. 

As usual, I wouldn't have been able to do any of this if I didn't have such an amazing family.  They are just the best.  I took very few pictures at the fair.  The ones above are from the beginning of the second day (I think I was simply too shaky and nervous to take pictures the first morning).  As you can see I have just about the cutest booth helper a lady could ask for.  In fact I was notified by the organizers that I won the Cutest Kids Award that weekend.  Sure, they probably say that to all the moms...but I'll take it!

late entry!

I thought I might have had a home lined up for this special bear (the coral one with the creme overalls) but it turns out she needs a home!  Come see her and the others in my Etsy shop in just a few minutes!

in the shop tomorrow

 A preview of the toys I'll be adding to my Etsy shop tomorrow at 12pm CST:

 I have a few of these Waldorf-inspired baby toys to put in the shop as well.

home again, home again

We are home!  I have so much to say about our trip I don't know where to start.  I love San Francisco.  I got to see dear friends and family.  The sale was exciting and successful and mostly just really fun.  I met so many amazing people:  Vendors, fair organizers, and fair goers, I was blown away.  I'll talk more about some of the great work I saw at the fair and show you more pictures in later posts. 

I still have some toys and I'll be putting those in the shop on Friday at noon CST.  Look for a preview here tomorrow. 

going on a trip

There are a couple more I still need to photograph before we go.  I'll be so happy when we are ALL actually on the plane.  I'm going to try to take all the toys for the sale in my carry-on so yes, I'll be one of those people whacking others with my big bag and hogging more than my fair share of space in the overhead compartment. 

I like to imagine what they will all look like when my bag is x-rayed! 

last night

Benji and I screen printed some t-shirts!

 

Thank you to our friend Gip and KICKSTAND PRESS for his help with the screen, and again to John Vogt for his design work!!