Wee Wonderfuls

Don't you know you're going to sew the Monkey.

Sorry. Do you know how many bad monkey songs there are? Work on a monkey pattern for a few weeks and you'll feel my pain.

Okay, Fleecy Monkey is in the shop today! He's a Christmas gift making special for only $6. So my quick calculations at the fabric store this weekend have pattern and materials coming in under $20 for what I hope will be a really fun, quick and satisfying cutie for gift giving. I mention in the pattern but let me say again here, I do not recommend using any other fabric than the recommended polar fleece. This is the only fabric I used to test the monkey and it's just the right blend of stretchy but not too stretchy and I'd hate to have anyone cursing me out because they're trying to turn a 30" monkey tail out of stiff wool felt.

I've made about half dozen of these guys now and once you've got one under your belt they go really fast. Fleece is very forgiving. It can also seem to sometimes have a mind of its own but I think that makes them turn out all the cuter, like my one-leg-lower-than-the-other guy above. A little wonky in a monkey is a good thing. If you're hoping for a little more symmetrical just be sure to pin. I've found fleece doesn't sit nicely together waiting to be sewn up like nice flat cotton will. Okay, enough rambling. If anyone has any questions I'll start a flickr group and please feel free to email me!

1001

Dude. I just went to write a post about my progress on the dream bubble embroideries and realized that I hit 1000 posts! Yesterday. That post about my serviceberry was my 1000th post. ha. Not so momentous. I'm trying to decide if 1000 posts in 4 1/2 years is really all that. It's a good thing that I was all gung ho posting everyday back there in the beginning because I've definitely had my slowing down moments. Back then before baby #2, before I was a (very) small business, it was a lot easier to find time to sit and collect my thoughts and check in with everyone. Now I am so scattered it seems all my conversations take place in my head and don't actually make their way out into the world. But I really want to get back to blogging regularly and not just about shop updates. I've always struggled with this blog because if I'm not crafting I'm not posting. I'm lazy with my camera and I don't really seem to have a "lifestyle" life anyway. Sometimes I do. We'll have a robot birthday party or being running through the arboretum on a beautiful day in particularly cute outfits. But lately we're so busy and scooting along and the shoving chicken nuggets in my kids mouth as we're running out the door to music class or preschool life doesn't really seem to be the family life I see people wanting to hear about. Mostly though, it's the lack of babysitter. Whenever things get super yawn dull around wee wonderfuls you can bet it's because my babysitter is on vacation, off getting married, visiting grad schools or completely absent. We've been babysitter-less since school started and I'm eeking by with help from my mom and sister (thanks guys!) but I'm hoping to find some new help and get organized and then get interesting!

I have lots I'd love to write about, all sorts of new inspiration, tons of new toys.. I haven't even shown off my new Blythe doll! Or posted about any of my new ebay finds, vintage fabrics, paper dolls, etc. Lots of stuff to play with.

And I have big handmade holidays plans this year. I got all the Christmas toy catalogs in the mail in the past few weeks and I'm making my lists. "Items I can make versions of myself" being the longest list. And I've got a rant going in my head about completely insane, oversized, over-the-top, bank-breaking, luxury toys for kids. Maybe if you're lucky I'll unleash that on y'all.

I'm also thinking a lot lately about the business of blogging and the direction craft blogs are going and where I'm heading. I've got a few crash and burn stories I haven't shared yet and maybe hopefully soon some success stories.

Big plans for the next 1000! Now the trick is just getting them out of my head and into the typepad.

So now back to regularly scheduled blogging. I'd signed in today to say we're chugging along on fleecy monkey (btw, polar fleece is on sale now at joanns. fleecy monkey takes 3/4 yd of brown and 1/4 yd of gold) ...

cousin maggie hugging fleecy monkey

and also on the dream bubble embroideries. Both will be available by the end of the week in get-right-on-it-PDF format.

Thanks!

I was right

It was snowing (sleeting? slushing? something gross) yesterday and brrrr! So I'm snuggled in with my hot chocolate & my embroidery. Tomorrow is quilting day and I have high hopes I'll have something fun to show and tell on Monday.

How about a last look at my serviceberry from before the rain. Now he's naked :(

kicking leaves

Here I go with the weather again, but honestly it's unbelievable. Warm when it should be cold, sunny when it should be dreary, beautiful colored leaves glittering everywhere when they should be about all blown away. Chicago has seemed a pretty magical place these last few days, as if Mother Nature knew there'd be history made here last night in Grant Park.

so I'm off for just a bit more elated leaf kicking and then I'll be back to business.

xo, from the land of Lincoln & Obama!

it is November, right?

It's been crazy weather here in Chicago. We had a beautiful warm Halloween and it hasn't really let up since. Today is sunny and 70s! I'm passing off my tasks on helpers and spending the day outside with the kids, cause you know by next weekend it'll surely be snowing!