all wrapped up!

the holiday craft show season of 2010 is officially done for me!  with shows almost every weekend for the last month it has been a busy season.

on saturday i did the excitingly-named nice balls xmas sale at little mountain gallery on east 26th in vancouver's mid-main neighbourhood.  it's a very cool art and music space and the show united a good selection of hip vancouver crafters. put on by melanie of a farmer's daughter, we had good music, were well-stocked with mind-meltingly delicious treats made by elisha of sweet valentines high tea catering, had awesome vintage clothes from melanie of sassy vintage and many great makers.

and sunday wrapped up the season with the artsy fartsy craft market at the carousel theatre on granville island.  it was a first-time event and a fundraiser for youth theatre. it was also a good chance for me to do some of my own christmas shopping - i am woefully under-prepared this year.  favourites were the sewing kits made by sam of sammade (and i had to treat myself to one of her awesome buttery-soft gold leather pencil cases!), the beautiful environmentally-conscious paper goodies from note + emote and i couldn't help squeeing at the super-cute gnomes and creatures from jocelan at cutesypoo.  i love buying local and handmade, and am even happier giving or enjoying something knowing about the person and process behind the product.

 

a big thank you to everyone who visited these events, who has cheered me on and supported me and all the talented local crafters this year.  and thanks so much to all the fellow makers for continuing to inspire me, for sharing tips and techniques, and for working together to create a vibrant and welcoming handmade community.

2010 has definitely been one of transition for me and i am looking forward to some big changes in 2011 - stay tuned!

grand opening: spool of thread

had to swing past the fab new sewing lounge spool of thread today for their official grand opening.

i'm sure i wasn't alone in singing "hallelujah!" from the corner of fraser and 15th! there is much to sing about: a shop full of hand-picked fabrics and a space where you can drop in and sew by the hour - six machines, room to move, tools of the trade and a welcoming, bright, modern atmosphere. they offer classes too, from sewing 101 to a variety of project-specific workshops. and looking at the row of gleaming machines, i had such an urge to hold a crafternoon in the space!

of course, i had to leave with a little something... cream fabric with aqua dashes for the back of a quilt-in-the-making and some lovely hatched charcoal fabric - possibly, hopefully a skirt for yours truly. or many dresses for little girls. ;-) i suspect i will be going back for more very soon, and a class to boot.

good reasons to welcome 2010

truth be told, i myself am not in the running for the world's best schedule planner. no one has ever glowingly said of me "wow, is that woman ever punctual!" you would never mistake me for a watchmaker, someone who wears a watch or even someone paid to be on time! i often forget things, mistake dates and miss birthdays of folks i adore... this year i am hoping to change all that through the acquisition of an adorable calendar or two! i figure that at least if i'm still putzing around at this time next year, i'll have had 365 days in which to enjoy lovely treats like these:

topping my list has to be this sweet 2010 desk calendar from local cabin + cub. each calendar includes 12 cards featuring prints of valerie's whimsical mixed media collage images and it includes the mini wooden easel!

love this limited edition 2010 letterpressed calendar from ink + wit. the seven dreamy prints were inspired by travels in iceland, england, france and the us, it comes ready to hang or can be displayed framed as well.

if you can find an image you really really like, why not look at it all year? i love this letterpressed sweet mama mini calendar from yee haw. love the colour, the graphic and who can resist cotton candy?


what about something a little softer? there's this swell under the sea calendar in linen from linea carta! my mom always used to have a linen tea towel calendar hanging on the wall in our kitchen, and they can be kind of hard to find nowadays...

for a calendar that serves both it's intended purpose and manages to provide project ideas, you can't beat the calendar from purl soho. it includes photos and instructions for 12 knitting, sewing and patchwork projects from the shop's always inspiring blog, the purl bee.

and, because knowing the date is all well and good, but knowing important dates is even better, there's the fab dutch-themed birthday calendar from another local gem, the beautiful project. it's not year-specific, so you can use it for ages! the perfect place to jot down which person's birthday is on what date.

barefoot for the holidays

i am so, so, so excited to share the news - my stuffed creatures are for sale locally in barefoot contessa, the fab vancouver boutiques located on main street and on commercial drive!

my gnomes, tooth fairy pillows, bunnies and drooling kerchiefs are all there and were specially made just for the shops.they're all nestled amongst the other lovely items - i adore the way the kids sections of the stores are displayed. this is the display in the main street shop

they're up in time for christmas - actually, they were there a few weeks ago, but man alive it's been a busy few weeks and my blogging is catching up! there's only a week of shopping time left, so if you're looking for something fun for the baby, kid or child-at-heart in your life, stop by and adopt one! ;-) i'm sure you'll find loads to fill their (and your) stockings while shopping - the stores are heavenly and filled with lovely treats of all sorts - fashion, jewelery and trinkets galore, many from local and independent designers.

happy shopping!

one of a kind - you must go!

just got back from a stroll through the delightful one of a kind vancouver show. it was my first year making the trip - in the past i've somehow missed it for one reason or another - and it was well worth a visit! it's on for the rest of the weekend - all day saturday (10-9) and sunday (10-5) at the vancouver convention centre (the original site, under the five sails). tickets are $10, or $8 if you buy online and there really is something for everyone.

there was everything from jewelery to fashion, foods and home decor, art and of course my favourite - paper goods and eccentric little creations.

i should have taken photos of all the amazing displays but i always feel kind of conspicuous! thankfully i worked up the nerve to ask permission to snag some photos of these favourites:

the fab hobsnobs booth featured the work of jeannette of the beautiful project, valerie of cabin & cub and sasha of track & field. i loved the way their pieces complimented each other and the simplicity of their display really let their work take centre stage, as it deserves. if you're looking for a beautiful gift, cheeky card or little treasure for yourself it's a one-stop shop right there! i especially love the holiday cards, the collage and woodburned wall panels, the laptop bags and the little bird pins.

i fell in absolute love with the dresses, hooded caps and capes for wee girls at the patouche booth. meticulously crafted and beautifully displayed, the clothes are a dream - definitely the kind that become heirloom pieces. i'm not in the mood for more babies, but the girl clothes would almost make it worthwhile! the small-batch clothes are getting a lot of press, and there's a great interview with creator kessa over at make something.

and i spotted (and sniffed) the most delicious-smelling premium natural skin care products from matter company. i really loved their mama & baby range - gorgeous products infused with essential oils and made with ingredients such as shea butter and beeswax.

just a few of the many other favourites that i didn't get photos for were the organic linen baby slings & nursing covers from toronto-based ollie go lightly, the whimsical creations from roxypop and little red caboose and amazing work from the emily carr university of art + design.

and if all that isn't enough - there's fudge! mmm... going to dig into mine now. maple! i'm hoping to go back tomorrow or sunday to pick up a few things i didn't get a chance to go back for today. once we ran out of crackers it was time to hit the dusty trails... good news though - your admission is good all weekend!

lovely pinecones from lovely design

i was delighted this morning to see that sharilyn of local favourite lovely design has just issued a second, limited edition run of her beautiful conifers of canada and beautiful leaves of canada posters. they're hand-screened on coasterboard and measure 12" x 16".

i've had my sights on the pinecone poster for ages and am really looking forward to getting mine, framing and hanging it in our home.