Jewelry Frames

Oh yes, my parents have been very busy this holiday season! This is our newest collaboration, earring holders. Re-purposed Barnwood (and my old maple futon frame, first piece of furniture I ever bought, right here!) along with super cool drawer pulls for hanging necklaces or bracelets or rings on. They are filled with strong screen that allows you to hook many many pairs of earrings onto. Best of all, you get to see what earrings you have, rather than sorting through dishes or jewelry boxes.

BUST Holiday Craftacular 2009 - NY | craftacular

NYC here I come! Mom and I leave this Saturday for the big city. I am so honored, thrilled, and totally nervous to be participating in this amazing event. There are so many awesome vendors, I really hope I get the chance to look around. This week I will be living in my back room at Vespertine making things. I already had a hand cramp that caused me to throw an egg across my kitchen because I couldn't grasp it like I normally do!


BUST Holiday Craftacular 2009 - NY | craftacular

new hairpin color

Some exciting news this past week: I was accepted into the Bust Craftacular in NYC on Dec 6th!!!!!!! Wow! More about this later. I am so excited, and nervous...... But, I digress.. This little post is about some new flower hairpins I've been working on.. This color combination was so yummy to me, I had to take a photo.. Lovely teal, fuchsia tulle, crisp white, with berry colored beads in the center! It looked really good on my tray too...

Ad in Pinestraw Magazine

Yes, I'm so pleased with my photoshop classes! I'm showing off again, this time an ad I got invited to submit to the lovely Pinestraw magazine in a special Pittsboro Promo section. I can't even begin to say how exciting it was when she showed me the measurements, etc. to know that I could make something myself to fit!

basket of kitties

The other week I was having a conversation with my mom about something unrelated to crafting...like, banking, or something... and all of a sudden this image popped into my mind of a fleecy kitty that was filled with rice to be a heating pillow and new product for Vespertine.

This weekend we collaborated with mom sewing up the inner muslin bag filled with rice and lavender and I ransacked her polar-fleece supply to make the outer kitty shape.

When you microwave them for 3-5 minutes they produce a really moist heat that is wonderful for sore muscles and cramps. I can also see myself curling up with one some cold evening to keep warm, or draping across my cold feet..... Delightful!

new washi paper mini-magnets (with real packaging!)

The objects here are very very exciting to me because they represent two things: 1. my new mini button machine arrived and I've been cranking out one inch buttons and magnets and 2. this is my third week of Photoshop class with the lovely Emma Skurnick and I was able to put an image that I drew together with some text to make a label for these sets of Mini-Magnets.


This is my current store window that I am most proud of! Hot Pink everywhere with a lovely garland of butterfly stamps on baker's twine~ very fun to make, and i have several for sale at the shop.

new soap label

Welcome to my first foray into "outsourcing"! I commissioned these fabulous letterpress labels from the guys at Blue Barn House in Asheville, NC to replace my handwritten and goccoed label for Hannah's goatsmilk soaps.

I had a fantasy of saying to them "okay, I'd like an art nouveau style decoration, nature themed, with art nouveau style font saying this" and they would then email me something fabulous in a week. What happened was I was informed that that would cost $600 and that if I drew the design myself it would only be $100 for them to stick the font in. (sigh) However, it actually came out really well (I think) and I do actually still really like having a hand in the label.

I'm hoping they will be more legible and we won't get anyone else at a festival saying "Soup?" or "What is this?"; or, after they take a bit of a soap sample saying "Oh, this isn't for eating?". Granted, I don't think my handwritten label was responsible for *all* of that...

Also, my new way of wrapping affords more smelling room on the ends and also uses less paper, and is a more streamlined process. Very exciting!