Sunday, August 30, 2009

Update of Craziness

Hello! I have been creating like crazy lately, but haven't had any time to blog! My wedding is only two weeks away (can you believe it??), so all my energy is going into that. Last weekend I made gifts for my bridesmaids. I don't want to spoil the surprise, so I'll have to wait to upload pics! They're really lovely though, I think. They all match, but they're all different.

Here's a picture of our invitations all sewn up and addressed! I actually had a lot of fun doing the calligraphy (even though it took all day >_<). Reply cards are still trickling in - it's like getting a gift every day! I do so love getting mail, don't you?

In other news, I am teaching preschool this fall :) School starts Tuesday!! I think it will be a good year. I know a lot of the kids already (I taught them swim lessons all summer), so that will make it easier. I keep thinking of all the projects I want to do with them! Here's our first project: self portraits! I didn't like any of the sheets I found in teacher books, so I drew my own! I can't wait to see how they turn out.

Well, I'll be signing off now. I might not be updating much until after the honeymoon, so bear with me! I have so many crafty ideas that are waiting to get out...Can't wait until I have free time again! ;)

Thursday, August 13, 2009

Replies and Pomanders?

A quick update!

So far we've gotten back about a dozen reply cards. About half of them are decorated (not bad, considering we invited old people ;)). I just can't wait to get home every day to see if we've gotten any new ones! So far we've gotten some spectacular doodles and a couple masterpieces. My brother, an artist living in San Diego, drew a crouched and ready-for-action Wolverine, shouting "Am I pretty?" [Because the instructions were to "Draw us something pretty."] Hilarious. We also received a beautiful watercolor of butterflies from some family friends. I really can't wait to see what else people create for us!!

I went to a class last night at Austin Handmade, hosted by Wondercraft. Beth was a wonderful teacher, and she and I brainstormed different ways to make the pomanders for my wedding decorations. It was great! I'll definitely upload pics once I finish. Also, Austin Handmade is such a cool little shop. So glad I finally made it in there to snoop. Maybe one day I'll sell my work there, too ;)

For now, I'll sign off. It's been a really busy month so far, and it's not looking like it'll let up! But I thrive on tight schedules, so you know I'm not too worried. Thanks for stopping by!

Friday, August 7, 2009

Wedding Invitations!

Do you love our invitations? I went through many iterations trying to find a style that I truly loved. We wanted clean, simple, and modern, with accents of our wedding colors. They needed to have big enough print for our elderly guests to easily read and a bold look. I think they turned out quite well! Our envelopes are bright green with a heart cutout and stitching along the bottom as our handmade touch (and to create envelopes the right size for the invitations!).


Our Invitation (to the reception in Austin)
and our program (for those at the wedding in Hawaii)



Our reply card (people can decorate it!)


And our lovely envelopes (before being sewn) :D

I'm so excited....I can't wait to receive the reply cards!! Hopefully people will actually decorate them....

Tuesday, August 4, 2009

Shadow Huggle - Knit Creature

This past weekend (well, starting Thursday) I made a new huggle for my Etsy shop! His name is Shadow, and I adore him. Instead of using plastic eyes, I sewed them on with yarn. Do you like the effect?

As usual, I had fun on the photo shoot! What do you think of it?






Sunday, August 2, 2009

Presents for the Chanithans

Mr. & Mrs. Chanithan (Chani + Jonathan) have two cats. A couple of weeks ago, one of their cats becamely deathly ill. So as not to worry you, I will reveal that now, after a blood transfusion and lots of rest, the cat is very healthy again! But while he was sick, some friends and I got together to make something for them. I made peanut butter fudge (to die for.) and a cat card! Completely silly and goofy, but I love the cat card!

Then the other night, while we were playing games, I knit a tiny white huggle. It's so cute ^_^ In my head I named it Diddle, but I'm not sure what the new owners will call it. It was small enough that I decided to use yarn for the eyes instead of plastic ones, and I even added a little mouth. The Chanithans loved it so much that they decided to take him home. I hope they are very happy with him!

Saturday, August 1, 2009

Paper Cutting and Handmade Fair

It has been a busy week! Lots of social calls and all my spare time has gone to wedding planning. I picked up my invitations yesterday!! They look wonderful. Don't worry, I'll share pics with you soon ;) Several projects are done and waiting to be shown off. For now you can see the paper cutting I did!

After an hour or so cutting on my midnight inspiration, I realized I could design it much better. The curlicues were extremely hard to cut out, and since I'm no expert, they didn't look as good. In the meantime, I spent a while in illustrator designing a piece of Alex and me together. He looks a little girly, but it was my first shot. Next time will be better! Though I do still love this one.

In other news, last night I went to the All Austin All Handmade Bash at the Beauty Bar. It was really fun! TheWonderCraft was there with tutorials (see photos!). I met the president of the Etsy Austin street team, who was very friendly. There were many cool vendors. Some complimented my bag, which made me feel really good. It's really great to be able to go out and actually meet other crafty Austinites!


(I made the flowers and the yellow cuff; Alex made the strappy cuff and a necklace, not pictured)