Bohemian Mermaid Palace

Etsy Time Again

2011-10-17T11:32:00.000-07:00

I'm back on etsy posting things not available on my web site, like these beading sets. Each set comes with full strands of glass and shell beads with a pretty centerpiece. The possibilities for jewelry sets and crafty holiday gifts are endless.

One Crazy Craft Show of Doom

2011-10-14T11:57:00.000-07:00

I love doing craft shows. Love it. But this season was a tough one. So much so that at the end of it all I was questioning how many shows I want to do next year. I might finally be getting too old for this. I won't get into the ins and outs of it all... but one show in particular haunts me still.

There is a music festival not far from here, in the beautiful forested mountains. For years folks have been telling me I should take my clothing booth there. My booth would fit right in, it's a fun time, etc. The only thing that stopped me was the heat. Like most mermaids, I don't do well in heat. But this year I tried to do many of the shows I had been avoiding for whatever reason. So I went for it.

The venue was a beautiful wooded park. I got there late in the afternoon so the heat wouldn't kill me during setup. There was a tiny slope I had to climb to haul my stuff from my van, but otherwise not too bad. I created a lovely double booth and I was happy. I did notice many other clothing booths, but that's not unusual at a hippie dippy fair like this.

The first day of the show started out great. Fun neighbors, beautiful day... I got up early, made coffee and finished setting up my goods.

By 11am the heat came and I was quickly immobilized by it. I brought my entire hot show arsenal... two battery powered fans, a smaller squirt fan, a hand fan and plenty of ice for my insulated water bottle. But, by early afternoon I couldn't move at all without feeling faint and nauseous.

I had called my hubby to bring me some lights, after learning the show goes late and everyone gets free electricity. It was so hot and business so slow, I figured the real party would happen after dark. I'd better be ready.

When I started complaining of nausea, my sweetie jumped into action. He grabbed two of my cotton bandanas and dipped them in the ice water in the cooler. He put one on my head, the other around my neck, dripping ice water all over me. They would dry quickly and he would repeat. I just couldn't move without total exhaustion. It was bad. So bad, that when my man started caring for me, clearly concerned, I lost it. It was like when you fall as a child and you're fine until your mom grabs you and starts cooing over you... I just started crying. I was so miserable.

And business was slow. Very slow. Still, I figured once darkness hit, people would do more shopping and my body temp would go back to normal. All would be well.

Not so. Even after nightfall, I just couldn't cool off. And business didn't pick up. We estimated maybe 500 people attended the show... maybe a few more. But not thousands. Nothing close to numbers that would support the booth fee. At all. And weirdly enough, I felt like my clothing was a little too mundane for the crowd, who clearly favored elf hats and fairy skirts.

The music was great though. Really great. If I hadn't been suffering so much, I would have enjoyed it more. By 10pm I was ready to close up and go to bed. All the other booths stayed open. Still feeling crappy with a pounding headache, I retired to my van right behind the stage. I laid there with the door open, pretending the thumping bass didn't hurt my head, and trying to meditate myself into a more comfortable state. The music went until midnight, there were still kids running around at that time.

Eventually it quieted down enough for sleep.

Promptly at 6am, I was awakened by the sound of bongo drums. A dawn drum circle. Of course. My immediate response was "you've got to be effing kidding me." I had a few hours more I could have slept... but no. Then I had a revelation, "If I get up now, I can pack my booth and be gone before anyone gets out of bed." I lay there letting that thought sink in. I can't remember a time when I left a show early. Ever. I always tough it out to make the most I can, however bad things are.

But the thought of suffering through another hot day and not making money just killed me. Why put myself through that? So I got up and started packing. I felt so relieved and empowered.

But then, while hauling stuff to my van, I slipped on the little slope and fell, twisting my ankle and scraping my leg. I said outloud "I'm going, just let me go!" haha. I did have a weird feeling like the place itself didn't like me. Maybe one of the other clothing people put an elf curse on me. Who knows, but the pain didn't end there.

A few days later I came down with poison oak. 3 weeks of torture.

A couple weeks after my poison oak cleared up, I opened a box of dresses from that show... and there was a giant bug in it that had actually eaten through a bunch of them. Someone called it a potato bug, it was at least 2" long. It was disgusting and dead and I had dresses with giant chew holes in them.

I couldn't believe it. For weeks this show followed me home and mocked me.

I may never return to that county again.

Project Requests

2011-08-10T10:24:00.000-07:00

So I'm going to be adding more projects to the site soon, and wondering if there's anything you'd like to see here. Crochet patterns and techniques, beading projects, fabric printing and silk painting are on my list so far. Any ideas you would like to see in these areas? Please let me know! I want to make this fall a fun new project time at The Palace.

Where am I??

2011-06-15T08:25:00.000-07:00

I'm around. I come here from time to time and sigh over how long it's been since I posted... then wonder what to post. I guess I'm having some kind of identity crisis regarding this blog. I mean, I like to post the random stuff I'm doing, with my dye work and the craft shows. But it looks like the only folks who actually come here to read it are looking for free crochet patterns. So then I think I should post a few new patterns... but I don't really have time when the craft shows are happening.

And that's when I go back to facebook and talk about what I'm doing. I'll work on it. I do enjoy my little blog... but who wants to talk to an empty room? Of course, if you're really interested in my little clothing business and Mermaid adventures, you can go to the FB link right over there >>>> and read new stuff all the time. Maybe what I should do is connect these two, and start posting on the blog which will automatically post to fb. Hm. I'll ponder that.

Well, I'm here now so... I guess an update is in order.

Things are a little weird right now. I have had 5 shows in a row with rain. 4 with significant amounts of it. The last was just ironic I think. A joke on me. I was feeling a little stressed after so many washed out shows... for which I've been preparing like crazy, with all my resources (physical and financial). The show called for warm sun all weekend and I was excited for a good show. Then I saw the venue... a repurposed elementary school, now a childrens and arts center. Very cool. But to set up my booth, I had a choice of hauling my stuff either across a giant field OR up a flight of stairs. That's like 10 heavy tubs and 6 steal racks, and all I had was my dinky little dolly to help. At the end of the (not awesome sales-wise) show, as I was contemplating the backbreaking work ahead... it started to rain. I couldn't believe it.

If we can recall a few years back, almost exactly 3 years, when a certain van broke down at the shows over and over... and finally culminated into an emergency hospital visit. Then we can see how this pattern of rain might freak a girl out a bit. In fact, my hubby just asked me the other night, "If it rains at the next one, does that mean you will have a heart attack??"

Not an entirely crazy question. I was kind of wondering that myself.

Anyway... all I can do is what I know how to do. Work and make stuff and keep hauling it around to sell it.

It's laugh or cry, and you can't cry all day long.

Once Upon A Time...

2011-04-04T11:25:00.000-07:00

...in a land far far away in the central valley, there were two waitresses not long out of high school. They were both young and fun and, working their crappy waitress job together, they became friends. They even ended up sharing an apartment. The older one liked to go out dancing and partying and would bring the party home with her. The younger one couldn't go to the club, but enjoyed the parties quite a bit herself. The apartment became the standard after hours party place. The story goes, that the older waitress helped the younger one get her first fake I.D. I can't say for sure. But what I do know is that in the end, they had a falling out over a guy. And not much later, the older one moved to Humboldt county. It didn't take her long to forget all about that crazy part of her life, and leave it completely behind her. The two waitresses did not keep in touch.

Fast forward 18 years.

The older waitress is still living in Humboldt county working as the artist and owner of a little dyed clothing business. She'd recently formed a business relationship with a well known local store... and one morning sent the shop owner an email asking about a possible re-order. Not 10 minutes later, she checked her phone messages and heard one from the shop's NEW owner wanting to place an order. She thought that a funny coincidence. But then, at the end of the message, the new owner said,"...and I don't know if you recognize my voice but it's me, Mary. Your young roommate from down south."

What?!? Exactly.

So, the two women, now both Humboldt locals and business owners... began to renew their old friendship. While forming a sweet new business relationship and some great creative energy.

Moral: Never doubt that Humboldt is the nexus of the Universe.

And now I'd like to plug my friend Mary's shop, The Rocking Horse. A wonderful local shop specializing in local and natural children's goods... and now exclusive retailer of Bohemian Mermaid children's clothing in Arcata. Good luck, Mary!!

Here is The Rocking Horse facebook page!

Free Crochet Patterns & Craft Tutorials List

2011-02-26T09:51:00.000-08:00

I thought it would be handy to have a list of all my free crochet patterns and craft tutorials in one place. So here you go!

These projects and patterns are the original designs of Bohemian Mermaid and are in all ways FREE. Go ahead and make them for sale, print and share, do whatever you like. Just please give credit to Bohemian Mermaid and link back to this blog.

Enjoy!

~Crochet Patterns~

Crochet Basics: A Handy Reference

~Craft Tutorials~

Beer Can Hat

Making the Daphne Book

Outdoor Dog Bed

Quick Recycled Notebook

Painted Organza Flower (in progress)

RockStar Can Tiara (in progress)

~Wedding Geekout~

Making the Daphne Book - Part 2

2011-02-17T15:26:00.000-08:00

Well, I am long winded as usual, so I'm continuing from Part 1 where I talked about tools and materials I used for the Daphne Book. Now I'll get into the process I used for developing the quiet book pages.

1. Design - I looked around the net a lot to get ideas, which also inspired more of my own ideas. Then I sat and sketched out my favorites. I thought about using different fasteners, counting, spelling, certain designs I knew I wanted to include like a robot and mermaid, etc. Very rough sketches, just to get the ideas down. I came up with 20 or so. Then I chose my favorites and decided I'd make 10 pages.

2. Refine - When I had a page I knew for sure I wanted, I would start a new page in my sketchbook and draw the design in the correct size. My pages are 9"x9" finished. I drew a 9" square and penciled my design, making changes until it was just right including all the details. I kept everything at least 1/2" away from the edges. I also considered how much detail I could add without killing myself... keeping shapes simple and as large as possible. I added little notes about colors or construction when needed, like "folded yarn for grass" or "hand stitch peas". (This is a good time to think about how your page will best be constructed - whether one thing has to be added before another, or a special technique is needed - and note it. Sometimes you will just have to wing it when you get there. That's the fun part!)

3. Print - Next I print out a copy of the design to use as a pattern. For this reason, it's good to get a darker line on your final sketch above. If you decide your drawing needs to be bigger or changed somehow, scan it into your compy and do what you must before printing. I suggest making 2 copies, in case you have overlapping pieces to cut or make a mistake.

4. Cut and Cut - The pieces can now be cut out of paper and traced onto the fabric. I used a ballpoint pen (on the wrong side when possible). Cut 1 fabric and 1 fusible web for attaching to background, or 2 fabric and 2 fusible web for removable parts (front/back). Extra layers or details to be added will also need 1 fabric and 1 fusible web (like the frosting for the cupcakes).

5. Prepare Background - Cut out your background fabric to the finished page size plus the seam allowances. My pages were 9" square with 1/2" seams (x 2 sides, so 1" total) = 10" square. Press.

6. Prepare Loose Parts - For some of my designs, there were pieces that were only partially attached to the background. Like the Veggie Garden pockets and the Cupcake pockets (the oven door was treated more like a removable part, see Batting section below). For those, I cut the pieces and backed them with fusible interfacing. I then zigzagged the loose edges before stitching to the background. For the fancy sheer bug wings, I found out that the best thing to do was zigzag the wing outline on the fabric BEFORE cutting. Seems like a duh now, but it took a lot of swearing before I figured that out. That's on my old school machine, if you have a serger or something fancy, I'm sure you'll have an easier time of things.

7. Fuse - Stick the fusible web to the back of the fabric to be appliqued and position it on the background fabric. Press applique to background per the instructions of the bonding product you are using. Fuse details and extra layers (like stove burners and cupcake frosting).

8. Batting - For most of the designs attached to the background, I did not use batting. All of the removable parts include batting for added stiffness. You could also add interfacing to make it superstiff, but I found the batting to work fine. The way I added batting to small shapes was to use the sticky-back fusible web on the back fabric piece, fuse it to a piece of batting and trim the batting around the fabric (I found this to be much easier than trying to cut the batting into a firm shape before fusing). Then stick more web onto the front piece of fabric, and fuse to the other side of the batting. Now, the piece is ready for the sewing machine.

9. Stitch - Once your pieces are fused into place, it's time to zigzag your little heart out. Experiment first to find your ideal machine settings. All exposed edges must be zigzagged. For the finer fabrics or removable parts, I stitched around them twice. For some details, I used simple straight stitching. I went back later and added hand embroidery, buttons, yarn and fabric pen details.

*Thanks again to How to Make a Quiet Book for the cupcake page idea, super cute!*

That is the basic process for making each page. I just repeated as I went along, sewing and sketching for 4 weeks. I made each page individually so that if I ran out of time, I would have completed pages (just fewer). It also kept me from getting bored with any one part of the process.

Cover - I'm sorry I don't have many pics, but the cover and final construction took some thought, that's for sure. I cut the cover 1" bigger than the pages (1/2" on each side) and made it one big long rectangle. Before stitching the inside and outside cover pieces together, I added ribbon handles and a tab closure to the outside piece. To the inside piece, I added an inscription plate and a pocket for paper & crayons (when she's older) or little parts that fall off. After I got all that stuff figured out and put together, I added batting and stitched, turned, top stitched all around.

Join Pages - I had 10 page designs, sewn back to back into 5 finished pages. Again, I added batting and stitched, turned, top stitched all around. Even though this part is pretty simple, it was a challenge to keep the pages square with all the stuff on them. If I were to do it again, I might fuse the pages to the batting... I chose not to do that because I thought it would make future repairs easier to do.

Finishing - To attach my pages to the cover, I first took two finished pages, lined them up edge to edge, and ran a wide zigzag stitch between them. Then I was able to do a straight stitch down the center of the zigzag, attaching it to the cover. I did that with 2 pairs of pages. The last page I zigzagged directly onto the cover.

Tada!! If you have lots of time and patience, I highly recommend making one of these. I had a blast, and I still can't believe I finished the whole thing! I never finish giant projects like this... but for my little Daphne, anything.

Making the Daphne Book - Part 1

2011-02-17T15:02:00.000-08:00

Man, can I just say again how fun this quiet book was to make?! Seriously fun. I guess I don't make things just for fun much anymore... getting into the zone of all the drawing, cutting, tracing, sewing. Figuring out stuff. It was very meditative, relaxing. I worked on this project for over 50 hrs, nearly every day for a month. And every time I got going, it was hard to stop. I needed that. It really got my happy artgirl juices flowing. Plus, who can beat this first birthday present? Nobody, that's who. It's all part of my plan for awesome auntie domination.

I shared pics of The Daphne Book, and now I'd like to share a little about my process. Let's start with the materials...

Felt or Fabric or Both? After looking at many quiet books around the net, I decided using all fabric was the way to go for me. Certainly, felt is cheaper, easier to work with and could have saved me some headaches. But I just like the look of all fabric, and I wanted to go the old fashioned way. Totally a personal choice. Now, if I had a good stash of fabric or felt or whatever, I would have gone with what I had. What I did was go to the fabric store and buy remnants in every color (red, orange, yellow, green, blue, purple, brown, natural). I ended up with an interesting mix of satins, flat weaves, flannels and nylon. The variety is great for this project, many different textures for baby. Most were solid colored, except for the red gingham and blues. I like the way the prints broke up the solids and added a little more fun.

Fusible Web - I bought a 5-sheet package of this stuff that is sticky on one side, so it sticks to the fabric while you're positioning it for fusing. It's stuck to a paper backing to start with, so tracing and cutting is a breeze. There are so many good products out there for quilters now! I also had a roll of fusible web tape, which was handy for smaller bits.

Fusible Interfacing - I had some scraps in my sewing box and that more than covered what I needed. I really only used it a few times for pockets.

Thin Batting - I went cheap on this too, going with what I had in my stash... a giant piece of polar fleece. Who knows where I got this?! It's maybe first generation polar fleece and very weird stuff. Anyway, I did like that it was not very lofty, plentiful and also free. It gave extra stiffness to removable parts and a little dimension here and there. I also lined all the pages with it. If the batting was too thick, I thought it could be hard to work with or the book too puffy.

Fasteners - Part of the idea of the book is to learn to use different fasteners, or to be able to match things together using some kind of fastener. I used velcro, snaps, zipper, buttons... all of which I had in the sewing box. I wanted to use magnets too, but had a hard time finding some that worked for me.

Trims - I had a bunch of leftover ribbon from my wedding, and a decent pile of random yarns and trims. You really don't need much.

Thread - I bought a big bargain spool each of black and white thread. I was able to use them for most of the sewing. I used a few other colors from what I had on hand as well.

Other tools - For designing, making and tracing pattern pieces, etc... I used a sketch book, scanner/printer, pencil, ballpoint pen, ruler, paper scissors, fabric scissors, fabric pen.

Okay, on with the process... I didn't take many pics of the making, but I used the same process for all the pages. Let's see if I can turn them into a step-by-step in Part 2.

The Daphne Book

2011-02-16T20:18:00.000-08:00

Okay, today I was finally able to give my gift to my niece. The quiet book I've been working on for the past month. For her first birthday, I wanted to make her something special that she could enjoy for a while. This will be something she can use as she grows over the next few years. Each page has a learning/playing activity. I'm really happy with the way it turned out. It was so fun to do and some of the pages I just love. For now I'll post some pics, and I'll probably do another post about how I made it.

The little girl page has a dress that unbuttons and little undies inside. The dolly looks like the one I gave Lil D at her mom's baby shower, Alice Monkey Kitty. Below, the phone page for phone talking. Of course the headset comes off.

I was just thinking of things little kids like, so I made this pet the kitty page. I already had the fake fur. Oh and she can tie the bow on the kitty too. Some day. The one below is so cute! I'll find the link to where I got the idea (this How to Make a Quiet Book blog is full of great ideas and tutorials. Thank you!)... bake the cupcakes in the little oven. I added the numbers so it was also a counting activity.

Next we have the garden pages. Flowers with little bugs to play with, can be matched to the same colored flower. The wings are all 3d. The vegetable garden is probably my favorite of all the pages. The green veggies snap, the root veggies have little pockets. I crocheted the basket so she can gather all the veggies for harvest.

Little Daphne's parents do enjoy their robots and zombies. So, here you go. The robot has a zipper pocket with a little heart inside (general robot design inspired by Homemade by Jill, not shown here is a name page similar to hers as well. Great ideas!). The friendly zombie has parts that snap, for body part learning. Please note the standard tattered suit zombie uniform and the spaced out eyes.

Certainly no craft project of this caliber would be complete without a mermaid. She doesn't do much, but the hair can be braided and there's a real pearl (from my wedding jewels) inside the shell.

What?

2011-02-04T09:51:00.000-08:00

You think I should post more often than every other month? Oh. That's one way to go I guess...

The truth is, I haven't had much to report. The usual winter hibernation activities. Like, uh, nothing. Okay, that's not entirely true. At least for the past couple weeks, I've been going to the beach (we've been lucky enough to have sun and 60deg for a while!) and sewing a top secret project for my little niece's 1st birthday. I think it's safe to tell you it's a quiet book, my brother & SIL don't read this very often. After her birthday, I might post some pics and info. It's SO much fun to do... and turning out really cute!

Back in Dec I did go through all my free crochet patterns and work up new samples of each. The idea was to take pics for a little pattern booklet. Most of those patterns were written years ago and the samples long gone. The only pics I can find are crappy, so I wanted new ones. I figured if I used good yarn, I could then give the hats as gifts... and maybe the crochet booklet too. I got half way there, made the hats and gave away a couple... but didn't take pics. It was a fun excuse to buy wool really.

Anyway, now i have updates for all my patterns...little changes to make them even easier to understand. And a *new* free pattern for what I'm calling my Hip Hat. For mine I used this chunky wool blend yarn that is 'self shading'. It's different from just variagated or 'self striping', as the color change is very gradual. I LOVE this yarn! I will probably be selling it soon...

I was thinking one reference page listing all the free patterns would be handy. So, I guess I'll do that. Oh, and a few people have posted pics of their Bohemian Mermaid pattern projects, so I'll link to those as well.

The Jewels

2010-11-20T10:27:00.000-08:00

Oooooh I had some fun with these! Here is my lovely wedding jewelry, made of all sterling silver, natural mother of pearl, freshwater pearls and Swarovski crystals. In keeping with my beach theme, I love how these worked out. I think the crystals look like little water drops on the shells. Love it!

I used sterling wire and headpins to wrap the beads into links and dangles. It's a little hard to tell (actually if you click on the pics they get much bigger), but the idea was to wrap extra wire around the top to make a sort of bead cap for each one. I think in the future I will do a post on how to wire wrap beads...

I bought bulk sterling chain and attached it to a fancy wave clasp in the front, and I love the look of it! I did the same for my two best ladies, but with fewer dangles and a smaller clasp. They also got simple crystal earrings to match.

I made a matching headband at the last minute, after looking at some online. For this, I used silver colored beading wire I happened to have on hand in 18 and 28 gauge. The thick wire was doubled and bent at the ends so as not to scratch my dainty head. I used the thin wire to wrap the beads onto the headband (alternating pearls and crystals), by weaving it in and out of the two thicker wires. It worked pretty well, but if you work the thin wire too much it can break. Which I found out about 2/3 into this. Ha. Anyway, I think it added something pretty to my hair since I didn't wear a veil... I got lots of compliments on it.

I don't have pics of them, but I also made 3 simple pendant versions for the 2 moms and the carrier of the ring bearer (aka sister-in-law). For theirs I got ready-made chain necklaces (with clasps on them), and added just the shell with 2 crystal dangles. In some ways I liked those better than mine! I would wear them all the time... whereas my necklace feels almost too fancy to wear day to day.

I made some neato little gift boxes for all the jewels, and gave them out at the rehearsal dinner. You can find templates for these online all over the place... it's just a flat shape folded into a pretty little box, one cut out of card stock, another out of paper and glued inside (leftover invitation papers of course). I wrote a little love note inside of each one and wrote their initials on the top.

And here's one more pic with the wave motif, jacket and jewels. I know they're not for everyone... but I have to say these were perfect for me. I loved the simple prettiness of everything. Looking at the pics again, I am still swooning over my wedding day.

The Clothing

2010-10-19T13:35:00.000-07:00

Ok, on to the fun part. You know, it took me a while to come up with a wedding dress design. Getting married is just not something I've ever thought about. I know it's typical to have at least passing fantasies about your wedding or dress sometime over the years... but I never did. I never planned on getting married, never wanted to ever before. Funny. So when I finally considered the fact that we might indeed marry at some point, I did some doodling and came up with a plan. In the end, the outfit looked almost exactly like this doodle.

The basic plan was a pseudo-Victorian-ish outfit made up of 3 layered parts - a ruffly jacket, a short dress and a long underskirt. Using the tan and brown as 'beach' parts, and blue as the watery part to fit my Ocean Wave theme. I decided Stu and I (and my sweet little niece Daphne, the ring bearer) would be the only ones to wear blue.

I made a Wave stamp and printed the design around the hem of my overdress, and added a single print to each of the maids of honor dresses and the pocket of the best men shirts. I kept everyone in rayon, to make sure they would all match.

My biggest challenge was certainly with getting the dye colors just right. You wouldn't believe how hard it is to get a good tan! Sheesh. Not too putty, not too orange, not too dark or light. I was never so terrified as when I finally got to the real dye batches. But I had done 4 test batches and just had to get moving. Somehow it worked perfectly.

Since I was vat dyeing, what I did to pad the sample batches was to buy a bolt of muslin. I cut 2yd lengths and ended up with lots of nicely colored fabric to cover the tables at the wedding. Now, I plan on sewing them into skirts and overdyeing them for sale. Hey, they're all fulla our love vibes now. I can charge double.

The blue was by far the toughest to get right. The biggest problem was that my jacket was 100% rayon, but Stu's vest was a rayon/linen blend. There was quite a color shift between the two... but somehow I managed to get very close in the end. Also, getting that perfect shade of sky blue - not too purple but not too aqua - was tough. Good thing I have skills.

Except for our fancy blue garments and the guys' Carhartt's (my Stu is a carpenter and I let him pick the pants), all the clothing was bought and dyed as is. There were plans early on for more sewing by my best friend Heather, aka sewing goddess. But she ended up moving and being in sewing limbo for a while. Also, it's very very difficult to sew for someone who lives far away. Still, it worked out great. I got all the girl stuff and the guys' shirts from my regular supplier. The jacket was premade, but we shaped the front and added the ruffle. The vest was made from scratch.**

Oh and I got these killer boots too, which looked super cute when I took off the underskirt for dancing. WAY cute. So in total, including store bought stuff and sewing costs... all the clothing came to a little over $500. Pretty damned good, I'll say! And we could have cut that almost in half by foregoing the boots and sewing help.

**Now, I must take a moment to rant. Due to time constraints and my own sanity, I chose to hire out the small amount of sewing noted above. It wasn't brain surgery, I could have done it myself. A vest and a ruffle. I went to Tailor Maid in Henderson Center. I'll try to keep this short, but basically the work they did was horrible. They used tan thread on my blue jacket, then said there was no such thing as blue cone thread. Right. Stitches were coming loose all over the place, some parts were top stitched, but not others (as in the left sleeve, not the right). I asked for 1 button and got 3, etc. The vest looked fine at first (aside from the broken stitches here and there), but then we see that the interfacing was only partially fused, so that there were weird bubbles all over the front that wouldn't iron flat. Seriously?? This was 4 days before the wedding. After they had kept it a week plus an extra day. I could say more about missed appointments and consistent rudeness... but I think that's enough. Don't go there, is my point. I was lucky enough to have the Sewing Goddess on hand, who made it all presentable with 3 days of repairs.

The Invitations

2010-10-18T10:11:00.000-07:00

I made our wedding invitations as simple and cheapo as possible. Like I said, some things I just didn't care that much about. I looked online and folks seriously get into their diy invitations... I didn't have the time or the inclination to get off on them that much. Still, I am happy with the end result. Perfectly acceptable. We also decided to send out an evite, using Purple Trail. This way we were sure to cover everyone... most of my friends are online, most of Stu's are not. For some folks we had emails but no street address or vice versa. So, we just sent both types to everyone.

I decided the cheapest way to do the printed invitations, was to format them so they would fit into a standard envelope. I chose the parchment card stock and blue paper to go with my wedding colors and theme. The parchment looks kinda sandy and I liked that. I just cut two rectangles and glue-sticked them together (if I were to do it again, I would use rubber cement for a better stick job). I did spend a good few days formatting the info onto the card, but really there isn't that much info that goes into an invitation. Since I did these in Word, the tricky part was getting my Wave logo positioned behind all the text properly. I also tried printing little waves onto the envelopes (which looked way fancy), but my printer kept eating them. Bummer. Oh and I bought self-sticking envelopes which made the process that much easier. Not pictured are the RSVP post cards, saving even more money on postage and no extra envelope.

Instead of bringing gifts, we asked everyone to participate in our Wedding Raffle, "Win fabulous prizes created by our talented friends!" It was a huge success, with 20+ impressive prizes. The little box on the invite has this info, and I also added a check box to the RSVP for those who wanted to donate to the raffle. I was surprised by how many folks did! I'll do a separate post with more details about the raffle later.

Ok, so the cost of the invitations (card stock, colored paper, envelopes) was about $35, not including postage. There was a ton of extra paper and card stock for the bar signs and info cards for the raffle, as well as thank you cards. Hell, even Mermaid hang tags and business cards for the next couple years.

I made the thank you cards using a quote from our ceremony and our Wave symbol, and formatted them to fit into the leftover standard envelopes.

The Ring and Theme

2010-10-15T12:33:00.000-07:00

When we got engaged, I pretty much demanded a ring. Ha. Our engagement was completely unceremonious... over drinks in the kitchen one night, I suggested we throw onto the table our pros and cons about getting married. We'd been not talking about it for about a year and I could stand it no longer. We discussed it while Stu cooked dinner, and agreed the pros outweighed the cons. I suggested a year from then would be a good time, he agreed. I said,"And I want a ring. Nothing outrageous, just something I can flash around for the next year and say I'm getting married." He said that was reasonable... especially since we'd been together for 7 years and I'd been hinting (not at all tactfully) for some kind of ring or Something for the past couple.

We both know I'm not a gold and diamond kind of girl. I don't need to own shiny things as a general rule... but a sweet sparkly thing from a cute boy is nice to have. So I designed this ring and had it made. I love it. It's the engagement ring of my dreams, white gold with a sapphire. Perfectly me.

I love it so much, I decided to make it the focal point of my whole wedding. I made a sort of logo based on this design, to use on the invitations and to print on the clothing. All the clothing, jewelry and decor was based on the ocean theme. I chose brown, tan and sky blue as my colors.

We also added the meaning of the wave symbol into our wedding ceremony. I thought it was very pretty...

"Bekki & Stu have chosen as their wedding symbol and theme, the ocean wave. Like relationships and life itself, nature ebbs and flows. Let this symbol be a reminder to them of the power of nature's cycles, and that all things in life have highs and lows. When times are hard, be ready to accept the next good thing... when times are bountiful, prepare for the next difficulty. Together you can ride these waves with ease."

Wedding Geekout

2010-10-11T21:34:00.000-07:00

It's finally done. I'm married now... and months of planning payed off with a kickass wedding.

Man, it's been a busy year! Now that the wedding is done and the shows have finished up for the most part, it's time to switch gears. I'm going to get back to posting projects here and I can't help but start with wedding stuff. I had a blast with the crafty parts of the wedding... but I was mostly interested in the clothing and jewelry. Some other parts I did cheap and simple, some parts my friends took over. In the end our wedding cost very little, and not only did we cover all of it with gifts, donations and barter, we actually came out ahead! We're planning a trip to Hawaii next month. Ha.

Anyway, since I have all these fun details in my head and it worked out so well... I thought it would be fun to post some projects and info on how we pulled it together. Our cheap, fun and crafty wedding.

Yes, Father...

2010-09-14T13:27:00.000-07:00

(I realize this pic of my adorable niece is irrelevant to my post, but just lookit her in her Mermaid gear!)

I needed a little kick in the butt. Oh it's true... I've been snoozin on the blog. I didn't even finish posting about my big road trip. Lame. Heh, maybe later, I'm freakin busy!!

I got home from my 6 weeks on the road Aug 14, and 3 days later got sick with a cold. This was me being forced to rest I suppose. Down for a week, that left less than 2 weeks to prepare for Blues by the Bay over Labor Day weekend. Which rocked, by the way. I just love that show... so many friends and beers and tunes and sales. Super fun.

Of course, while preparing for the show, I was also making and sending out my wedding invitations. Did I mention I'm getting married in um... less than a month?! Heh.

Then, right after the blues thing I had to start preparing for North Country Fair, which is coming up this weekend. While still doing wedding stuff. And trying not to freak out on my (now at home way too much) husband to be.

So far, I think it's going pretty well...

Time to Drive... and Drive and Drive

2010-08-18T10:36:00.000-07:00

Man am I behind here! Hahaha... at this point in the Tour, after Renton it was July 26. I was eager to get to my Mom's place in ND and it would take 3 days of driving to get there.

The first day I drove across WA and just over the MT border. I found a wonderful campground (by then I knew National Forests were the best way to go, cheaper and more primitive) that was only $7! I built a fire and enjoyed the silence. I love the different nature sounds and plants you see going state to state camping... it was so beautiful.

The second day crossing MT was crazy. It's so flat you can see forever, and there were thunder storms all around. I could see it's raining over there, and over there it's really dark, etc. I drove right into a pretty gnarly storm... in fact I can say it was the worst storm driving I've ever done. There we all were on a 70mph highway going 35. Zero visibility at one point and everyone was pulling over, it was nuts! Just as I decided I would have to leave the road, it cleared. Freakin scary. I decided not to camp out in the Billings area, but found a motel instead. Later there were storm warnings and rain, so I guess I was smart.

By Billings, things were starting to look like ND. Lots of old men in short sleeved plaid shirts, the accent, the terrain... looking familiar. I drove on the third day to Mandan and arrived in the mid afternoon. You know, I've been visiting ever since high school, every year or two for 20 yrs, but I don't usually drive. It was an odd feeling to navigate to Mom's house and have my own vehicle there to use. But SO great to sit indoors with plumbing and family comfort. Aaaaaah...

Stilt Lady

2010-08-09T20:40:00.001-07:00

Stilt Lady
Originally uploaded by *TheMermaid*

...next to the booth in Renton.

Show #4 Renton WA

2010-08-09T20:34:00.000-07:00

After getting all peaced out in the forest for a few days, it was time to head back into 'civilization' (blech) and my last coastal show, Renton River Days. I had an idea what to expect... and I meditated extra hard to prepare. Ha.

My first clue was that every time I mentioned the show to another artist in the area they would all react the same way, "Oooooh" with a sort of groan. Also I knew it was very close to the Seattle city limits, and so quite urban for my driving tastes.

I was correct about the driving part for sure. It sucked. I hate the city and I don't know how folks can live that way really. I got lost right away... well not lost, but since the show info was sent after I left home, I had Stu read it to me and um, things weren't clear. So I circled the park 3 times trying to figure out how to get in. Grrr. The 'RV' parking they offered was under the freeway, which also ran RIGHT next to the show. Ha. I found another spot for the other two nights (yes, 3 day show *sigh*) so it wasn't too bad.

Really, the event was very well organized and aside from the location, the park itself was lovely. The staff was there to help and very friendly. They gave breaks and even helped haul our booth stuff in neato little trucks... and there was quite a haul distance.

One interesting item there was my booth neighbor, who was from Dickenson, ND. I kinda blew her mind when I told her ND was my next Tour stop. I also talked her into bartering some of her awesome ND Grandma crafts for my wedding raffle. Oh yes! Kitchen towels with the crochet on top, plastic canvas needlepoint coasters and more. Classic.

Unfortunately, the sales were stinky as suggested by my previous art friends. But, I ended up doing ok and treated myself to a motel stay before moving on. Man, that was a long freakin weekend. Good bye Washington!

Ooooo Pretty!

2010-08-03T08:29:00.001-07:00

Ooooo Pretty!
Originally uploaded by *TheMermaid*

View from the campground, right on the Hood Canal. Good spot for clamming and swimming... maybe the best camping of the trip so far.

Olympic National Forest WA

2010-08-03T08:19:00.001-07:00

Olympic National Forest WA
Originally uploaded by *TheMermaid*

Finally found my beautiful camping spot on the water... so many mossy roots.

More Camping in WA

2010-08-03T08:06:00.000-07:00

After the Gig Harbor show and my visit in Portland, I was way past ready to be away from cities. And people. After one luxurious night at the Super 8 in Bremerton (oh yeah, where I got busted by cameras running a red light, heh, my first ticket in like 15 yrs) I headed north toward my wonderful highway 101. In case you aren't looking at a map, Gig Harbor and all those other fake small towns are on a bunch of peninsulas and islands west of Seattle in the puget sound and various canals. It's like the SF bay area on crack. And there are only so many ways to get to these towns. Still, I was surprised at the amount of traffic on these smaller forest highways. Weird.

I drove on and on and thought 'where are all these people going?!' Until I turned off on the 101 to go back south... and I was all alone. Aaaaaaah. It was like home. REAL small towns, not even towns really. A store and a gas station and that was it. I was in heaven again. I was almost to Canada at that point, and 101 loops around at the top of WA and just goes back down. As I crossed the bridge over the Hood Canal I was stunned to silence by the beauty of the place. Mount Olympia and the surrounding forest is just sublime. I can understand why people want to live up there.

I found a state campground in the Olympic National Forest that was a bit crowded for my comfort, but managed to get a semi private spot and called it good. It was getting late and I was dying to make a fire cooked meal. The next morning I set out to find something more remote and private... and found it only 2 miles away in Brinnon. Nice spots set apart from each other and it was right on the water. Gorgeous. I had to 'hike' up a rocky little trail to get to my spot from my van and I loved it. I couldn't see my neighbors and felt nicely nestled. I stayed two nights. Of course, the second night I got some obnoxious neighbors who like to play loud 80s rock music while they camp, run their 80s generator all hours to better support their giant flood lights... and it was time to move on.

Show #3 Gig Harbor WA

2010-08-01T13:17:00.000-07:00

After Portland, it was time to move up to the Seattle area... Gig Harbor. Sigh. I have mixed feelings about this place. First a little background...

Back in June, when I had first decided to do this trip, I was vending at the much loved Mateel Arts & Music festival in southern humboldt county. Coincidentally, my booth neighbors were from Gig Harbor, which I had never even heard of before. They told me how hard it would be for me to simply hide out camping in my van as I normally do during a show. I fussed and fretted over that quite a bit... but I had a plan. I knew there were big box stores nearby who are known to be ok with overnight parking guests. So I figured, if I didn't find anything close that would be my last ditch plan.

Well, I came to town and right away hated it. I've since learned that there are many such fake small towns in the area... maybe once it had been a quaint seaside town (sound side?), but now packed full of shiny car drivers who commute to one of the many nearby giant cities. Also, the roads were wonky and narrow and I was easily confused and frustrated. Blech.

Add to this the presence of 'we will tow you if you park here over night' signs at my sure fire parking spots... no bueno. At setup time (too close to sunset for my comfort) I was still wondering where I'd sleep for the night and getting increasingly anxious about it. When up pulled my old booth neighbor friends. I had looked for them earlier where their space was supposed to be, with no luck... but alas! Their booth had been moved right next to mine. No freakin way! Right away he asked if I'd found a place and invited me to park on their property for the weekend.

At that moment, my weird uncomfortable show turned into a pretty fun show. My hosts were so gracious and their home located pretty close by on 3 acres of woods. I had bathroom and shower access, even sunday morning coffee! And they also hosted a little artist bbq saturday which was a treat.

The show itself was fairly successful... I did find the clientele a bit snooty patooty for my taste. But my fun neighbors more than made up for that. Overall, a nice show but I'm not sure I'd go back.

Camping in Mt. Hood OR

2010-08-01T12:55:00.001-07:00

Camping in Mt. Hood OR
Originally uploaded by *TheMermaid*

Post Turkey Wanderings

2010-08-01T12:47:00.000-07:00

Ok, now all my pics are on my phone, so I'll add a couple after... right now I'm at an actual computer. woot.

So after Turkey Rama, I headed east toward Mt. Hood for a couple nights of camping. The rhythm of this trip has been lovely. Work in town and get up to my eyeballs in people contact, then go to the middle of nowhere for quiet time alone camping. Really perfect. By the time I'm getting bored it's time for the next show. The Portland area had been so hot, I was ready to chill... and that's what I did. Since I chose a camp spot near the pass, it was actually cold. Ha. The better to build campfires. I do so enjoy campfire cooking.

A couple nights in a beautiful campground, then back to the actual city of Portland for a visit with my friend Margaret. This was a nice surprise, as I had figured we would only have lunch or something brief. But, she invited me to stay a couple nights in her house, with the ok of her housemates. They live next to a cool neighborhood where we were able to walk to beers, food, coffee, books, movies and even a songwriter's open mic. I was also thankful to have use of an empty bedroom for sleeping indoors, and a huge shower with an open skylight. Really a very fun and mellow time with an old friend.

Turkey Rama

2010-07-23T12:47:00.001-07:00

Turkey Rama
Originally uploaded by *TheMermaid*

I'm a bit behind on my blogging duties here, where does the time go? Well, after the van adventure I went on to McMinnville, just south of Portland. I was lucky to be able to visit with family there which was great... hadn't seen them for oh 30 yrs. Very fun. And my aunt volunteered to be my booth helper, though I'm not sure she knew what she was getting into. Ha. Still it was fun to hang out.

And hot! I didn't know it could reach 95 in that area! That along with the ridiculously long hours made turkey rama a bit painful to do. My uncle & aunt were nice enough to let me han out and recover an extra day... and I was off again.

Van Recovery

2010-07-13T18:12:00.001-07:00

Van Recovery
Originally uploaded by *TheMermaid*

We were determined to have our camping night...and were rewarded with a beautiful secluded spot.

Van waiting ...

2010-07-13T18:08:00.001-07:00

Van waiting ...
Originally uploaded by *TheMermaid*

Waiting next to the river. Also next to the highway, but hidden from view. All in all, not so bad.

First Van Tow of the Tour

2010-07-11T17:47:00.000-07:00

Well, I knew it was inevitable... can't take a trip this long and not have SOME kind of vehicle issues. Still, I was unhappy to say the least when I was in the Willamette National Forest, stopped at the ranger station for a map, and the van wouldn't start. Fuel pump. Great.

However, as far as breakdowns go, it couldn't have been much smoother really. So far, my phone works everywhere... I was able to get AAA right away for a tow. Of course, in the middle of nowhere, I wasn't sure what would come next. A tow the 40 miles back to Eugene? A crappy mechanic who'd screw me over or do a crap job? argh.

Well, the guy who towed me turned out to be something alright. (can you tell I'm at a real computer right now? probably the longest post you'll see in a while. ha.) On the way back to the tow place, I learned quite a bit about him.... first, that he 'feeds' a homeless guy out back who he lets live in an old RV. We stopped for water, beer, smokes and a sammich. The tow driver was also the owner and mechanic of the shop. ASE certified, baby. AND in his spare time, an EMT and volunteer fire fighter. I felt pretty confident this guy would be helpful and competent. He was nice enough to let me camp near the river on his property, where I stayed in the shade while the van was repaired the next day.

While I was paying him, he asked about what I do etc... and proceeded to buy $100 worth of goods for his anniversary. Score! Photos to come...

Seller of the Funniest Joke Book of All Time

2010-07-09T14:13:00.001-07:00

New Message
Originally uploaded by *TheMermaid*

Yes, those are rubber chickens in the wagon...

More Art & the Garden Pics

2010-07-09T14:10:00.001-07:00

More Art & the Garden Pics
Originally uploaded by *TheMermaid*

I can only send one at a time... but wanted to share a couple more from last weekend. Fun times.

Art & the Vineyard Report

2010-07-05T16:23:00.003-07:00

Art & the Vineyard Report
Originally uploaded by *TheMermaid*

Wow. What a weekend! A really nice show in Eugene... 3 Days, very high quality artwork, music, and perfect weather. The hours were pretty grueling, as expected. I'm mostly mush right now. But sales were great, people friendly... the food was excellent and there was a beautiful garden art area where I could have stayed all day. A long but fun weekend.

I am now at my camp on a lake south of eugene... It's gorgeous but not as peaceful as I need right now. Too many boat motors and people. Tomorrow I'll find a remote place to spend a couple nights before I move on. Trees. Birdies. Quiet...

My trip is off to a fabulous start. I don't think I could be much happier...

Rainbow Alert!

2010-07-05T16:23:00.001-07:00

Art & the Vineyard Report
Originally uploaded by *TheMermaid*

Here we go!!

2010-06-29T09:36:00.001-07:00

Here we go!!
Originally uploaded by *TheMermaid*

Ha! I am right now blogging from my phone thanks to the genius of flickr.com. My first almost-tour post. Here is a pic from the waiting room of the car place yesterday... The AC is now ready for anything!

Yet another test!!

2010-06-29T09:16:00.001-07:00

Yet another test!!
Originally uploaded by *TheMermaid*

Please save me, flickr...

It's all Tour updates from here...

2010-06-29T08:18:00.000-07:00

Ok, here I am at T-48 hours and I'm still not in freakout mode. I think it must be some sort of defense mechanism... I'm way too calm. I suppose I do have a good handle on all my packing stuff, though there's still plenty to do.

I'm pretty bummed that I can't get my mobile photo blog thingy to work. Well I can post photos to Facebook, but not my fan page. So my mom can see my pics, but not my customers. Argh. What I might do is have someone else post in my stead, via emails from me. Or I might see if I can post to Flickr and link to it. We'll see. I might also have access to a couple friends' compies on the road.

Anyway, right now I'm taking my pile of half-crossed-off lists and forming a final list, or punch list as Stu would say. Today is mostly printing clothing and finishing up some flyers and brochures. Tomorrow will be gathering and van packing day. Somewhere along the line I have to get groceries too.

This first show in Eugene will be a bit grueling... it's a 3-dayer and goes until 8:30 every night. Our campground is over 30 minutes away, which means some late nights. Luckily, Stu will be joining me on his motorcycle and has volunteered to leave the show early each night in order to prepare dinner ahead of me. That will be nice. Although we won't be there much, the camp site is on a lake with showers and all. Should be pretty cool.

So far it just feels like I'm going to any other show, with more camping gear. I know it will sink in after the show when I don't have to drive home. Heehee, this is so much fun.

New Message

2010-06-28T17:58:00.000-07:00

You have a Picture Mail from xxxxxx@pm.sprint.com

Well, this stinks. Part of the whole reason for getting a shiny new phone was so I could blog a bit while traveling. I can send a photo, but here's how it looks. I had to edit it, cuz it shows my phone number and a big Sprint logo and all this other junk. So... if I'm unable to make it work, I can at least post text. Which is lame, but it's something. I CAN, however, post pics on facebook. At least to my own account, maybe not the Mermaid page. *Sigh* Crap.

Message:

View Entire Message

Send and receive Pictures and Videos through Picture Mail^SM. For more information go to www.sprint.com/picturemail.

Please be aware your friends can forward your picture, video, and album share invitations to others or post the unique Web link to your share invitation on any number of sources (e.g. blogs), through which others could also gain access to your online photos. If you have private or sensitive photos you are sharing, please share them only with those you trust.

And now?

2010-06-27T15:28:00.000-07:00

2010-06-27T15:17:00.001-07:00

How about now?

Testing 1-2

2010-06-27T09:44:00.000-07:00

Trying again... Posting from my phone. Lookit me! How about a pic. Uh, nope.

T-1 Week!

2010-06-23T11:16:00.000-07:00

Oh my. It's coming up so fast... one week from today, I'll be packing up the van and checking my lists for departure on the Mermaid Tour 2010. I'm working hard not to have a freakout (like I often do when on my way out for a show trip). Doing my walks and taking care of bidness. But, each day my excitement level ratchets up a notch. I fear I'll be unbearable by next week. Anyway, I have all these travel details cluttering my brain. I figured I could bore you with them here... that's what blogs are for. Ha.

As I have been preparing for my 6+ week craft show/camping trip, I have formulated a basic living plan. During the shows, I will hide out in my van as I normally do... somewhere close to the show. This is easy, as the van is empty and I can park it anywhere and go unnoticed. I'm usually so worked and tired, all I do is eat and go to bed anyway.

Between shows, I'll camp in the beautiful forest lands. Tons of fabulous camping all along my route. I'll find a lake or river to camp near... if it's very hot, I'll opt for the coast when in OR & WA.

Actually, for the first two shows, there are already exceptions. For the 4th of July show in Eugene, I reserved a nice campground on a lake south of town a bit. Stu is riding his motorcycle up with me, so I wanted a good hangout space for us. And showers, for a 3 day show, are very nice to have. Then, the next show in McMinnville, I'll be parking at my Aunt & Uncle's place nearby. I'm very much looking forward to visiting with them... it's been many many years.

Since I know I'll have showers and comfort those weekends, I can seek out more isolated camping for the days between. I invested in my own little portapotty, quite a luxury! Hahaha. Sorry, but that is one of the hardest things to deal with when camping, esp in town. It will be nice to be able to camp wherever I wish, completely self contained.

My general plan is to bring home as much money as possible. This is not a cheap trip. I anticipate spending a couple thousand bucks on gas alone. I have no plans to get a hotel. I will probably eat out a few times with friends, but mostly I'll be eating out of the coolers and cooking over campfires. I don't mind that one bit... I plan on hitting every fruit stand and farmer's market I come across.

My other plan is to make my trip as comfortable as possible. My big concern is dealing with heat. I am a wuss who overheats easily, so that's a big one. Here's a list of stuff I've been collection and preparing:

- Porta potty :-)
- Battery/plug powered fans (for van and booth)
- Additional small cooler with wheels (for booth toting)
- Bigger 'drinking ice only' cooler with spout
- Van back windows tinted
- Van AC fixed ($ouch$)
- Smaller 1-burner cook stove
- Extra tubs for storage
- New kickass phone like the rest of you have... for web updates and navigation
- Smaller fold-up dolly
- AAA card updated, maps, guidebooks
- Oil changed, general inspection of van
- New sandals
- Better first aid kit (more organized and complete)

Oh, and I'm also still making clothes for sale. This week, I'll finish up the last dye round, then print as many pieces as I'm able. Next week will start the final van packing and list checking.

Eeeeeeeee!!

Mateel Arts & Music Report

2010-06-08T13:07:00.000-07:00

Success! A good time was had by all, and sales couldn't have been much better. Woot! I can always count on my SoHum peoples to come through. Really fun to see everyone... thanks to everybody who visited my little booth over the weekend!

The weather turned out great, even too hot for me. A tiny bit of drizzle, but mostly it was sticky humid. The sun did come out here and there, so we were able to achieve that good summer festival feeling. I was about as close to the stage as one could get. I love being by the stage, but being SO close it was pretty loud even for me. Especially at breakdown time when the metal band played. Kinda hurt my head.

I had a few hiccups with my girl party/helper plan. Sigh. But hey, I gave it a shot. Anyway... I did have some friends hang out for a bit, had enough help to do some shopping on Sunday which was a luxury. I was on my own for setup and tear down and that was a little rough. But the crazy sales, cool neighbors and friendly customers kept my attitude in check.

I also scored some sweet Mermaid booty... in the form of a handmade bead necklace from my neighbors, and the coveted Carnival Girl pendant. Woohoo! A few years back I got a couple of her pendants for my two best friends and regretted not getting one for myself. So now I have one and the world is right again. I also picked up a few items for a certain bff who is turning 40 tomorrow, but they're top secret. OH and the pan flute with Andean music CD was left in my booth by a customer. So, I'm thinking of making a 'pile of stuff left in my booth' raffle prize for the wedding. I already have a Gold Beach wine glass, who knows what else I can score by then?

So now I am recovering and making to-do lists for the Tour. Also, I suddenly have a bunch of inquiries for orders... I think a day spent updating my web site could be a good way to go. Onward!

5 Essential Tips for Craft Fair Selling

2010-06-03T09:55:00.000-07:00

I think I started doing this a couple years ago, listing tips for craft selling... then felt a little weird about it for some reason. A bit know-it-all-ish, I guess. This past weekend though, I found myself surrounded by new sellers and pouring my wisdom all over the place. People were taking notes! haha. It occurred to me that this is my 10th year of selling at festivals, and maybe it's ok to know some stuff. Since I really do enjoy sharing what I've learned over the years, and possibly helping someone out on their path, I thought I'd post here.

So, here are my 5 essential tips for selling at craft fairs. There are plenty more where this came from...but these are the biggies in my book:

1. Stay Positive. I think if I hear one more discussion about these 'tough economic times' I might lose it. As craft vendors, we know every show is different. It's always something... gas prices, the weather, the promoter, the advertising, the location, the local population. Argh. Get used it and give me a break.

Personally, I believe you create your own reality in many respects. I met a vendor recently who was KILLing me with her constant talk of how hard things are. She can't find a good show, can't get a part time job anywhere, can't get orders online... blah blah blah. Guess how much fun I had talking to her?? Not only that, she spewed it out to her customers too. Do you think that's good for business? No. It's exhausting and boring. Generally, customers feel better buying from a successful vendor. Fake it 'til you make it.

So, how do you stay positive when you just spent 3 weeks and all your cash to make stuff that only 4 people have bought so far? Think about the next show, draw in your sketch book, dance around to the band playing, get a glass of wine, chat with your neighbors about what other shows are coming up. Smile. It's a festival, have a little fun.

Craft shows are a gamble, but there's always another one. Faith in yourself, your product and your customer is essential if you are going to do this type of business. I do this because it's fun and I love it... please allow me to enjoy.

2. Be a Good Neighbor. #1 is a good start here, but there are many facets to being a good booth neighbor. A huge part of what I love about doing festivals, is meeting other vendors. Where else do you meet your peers, folks who do exactly what you do for similar reasons? Artists, travelers, small business folk... so much to learn and gain from these friendships!

So, be a friendly neighbor. Offer to watch the booth of a solo vendor so they can grab a break. Don't just stand by as someone's tent is collapsed by wind. Move your vehicle asap so others can load/unload too. Do NOT encroach in any way on your neighbor's booth space or the path to it (or get their permission first). Be aware. We are a community and these are your peoples!

Talk to other vendors and you will be AMAZED by what you can learn. I still am every time. For example, last weekend I was at a very slow and tiny show in Oregon. I made a point of talking to most of the other vendors to find out what shows are actually really GOOD in OR.... since I have never found one. I learned of 3 shows I hadn't heard of, got the scoop on a show I'm doing for the first time next month, and input on a show I didn't want to try again but now maybe I will. I also met a vendor who has done shows in Montana, where I'll be passing through on my tour. I had no idea there were any shows at all in MT, and now I have 3 to choose from! I'm just scratching the surface here... I have made lifelong friends doing this, been offered showers and places to stay, bartered for some wonderful handmade goodies, shared stories and dinners, found wholesale accounts and material suppliers.

Communicate, connect. That's how magic happens.

3. Use Your Space. Recently I was setting up my booth at an indoor show. I was along a wall with about 5 other vendors... only 1 other booth used their full 10'x10' space, while my booth looked like a beast in comparison. Well, at least I was visible. They all had one table sitting in the middle of their space and that was it. Most of these folks were new to selling, so they didn't have much inventory. Still, you are paying for the space, why not use it and spread out a bit??

Now for me, it's easy to spread out in all directions because I use 6ft panels. Everything is vertical. For the table user, I have this advice: figure out a way to use your vertical space! Think about the customer walking by in a crowd... they should be able to see what you sell as they pass, or they might not stop for a closer look. Make a banner with your name/tag line or giant photos of your work and hang them up. For SURE find a way to add levels to your table display. I have seen some sad little table booths out there. Use boxes under tablecloths to add levels, hang lattice on the side of your booth for easy wall displays, keep your eyes open for interesting racks and baskets that fit with your work.

If you are doing outdoor fairs or plan on long term selling, invest in a nice canopy. I hang and strap things to mine like crazy, and my first one lasted for 7 years for about $250. (edit: I should specify, I have only used EZ-ups and they have held up very well. In fact, the one I 'retired' at 7 yrs is still used indoors minus the cover. As I said, I hang lots of clothes & heavy racks on them with no problems, even in wind. Here is one vendor's review of the Caravan canopies sold at Costco, which are about the same price.)

Refer to #2, visit your neighbors for great display ideas and resources.

4. Price Fairly. Jeesh. I can really go off on this one... first of all, I guess my first tip for craft selling should be to get a good book. I have a couple and I read them cover to cover many times before I started my business. Go buy anything by Barbara Brabec. One thing I learned from her is the importance of fair pricing. Fair means fair to YOU.

My biggest pet peeve with new sellers are their low low prices. This is not a flea market. Yes, some people are only looking for bargains, but that's not your best customer... people who appreciate quality handmade goods ARE. Please trust me on this. Low low prices often just make a thing look cheap. Some might say 'what a deal!', but many will think 'what's wrong with this?' Think about it. The consumer mentality says, better things cost more.

The best way to make sure you are getting paid a decent hourly wage for your skills, is to use a formula. At a show you are selling retail, so there should be a good mark up to cover your retail costs (booth fees, gas, time selling, booth structure, credit card fees, food, etc). You should also be able to cut your price in half (or close) to sell to a shop wholesale. Mine looks something like this: (materials cost + labor) x 3 = retail price. That works for me because my materials cost a lot... for you, the big cost may be labor. CHARGE FOR IT! Pay yourself at least $10/hr. You have skills and abilities that others don't have. That is worth plenty.

Now the other side of low low pricing is (read carefully please) that it HURTS your neighbors and the crafting community at large. Underpricing your hard work just makes mine look outrageous by comparison. It brings down the worth of the whole show, really. Have some dignity and pride about what we do. It is valuable.

One last word about pricing... higher prices mean you can sell fewer items and make more money. The dinky show I did recently only yielded about 10 sales, but that was about $400. The guy next to me selling $10 candles did about the same but had to sell 40 of them. Just ponder that for a while...

Printed Rayon Poncho and Organic Bamboo Wrap (both $45)

5. Quality is Key. When I FIRST first started out selling crafts (circa 1993), I crocheted. But, crochet is labor intensive for the amount people are willing to pay for it. What I did figure out quickly is that takes just as long to make a hat out of wool as it does acrylic. And I can get much more for the wool hat.

Now as a dyer and printer (surface designer) of clothing, I still use the same principles in my work as far as materials. I mean... I could do Tshirts and shorts for the masses, like many tie dye folks (who sell much more in quantity than I do!). But I focus on women and get the best quality fabrics and nicest styles I can find. That helps set me apart from other dyers. People comment all the time 'ooooh this is the good stuff!'. That's what you want.

Spend a bit more on materials and price accordingly. Your best customers expect quality. Give it to them... don't waste your talents on crappy materials.

Mermaid Tour Update

2010-05-18T09:24:00.000-07:00

Wooohoo! It's officially a GO!

Back in Feb I had a brainstorm to do an extended craft show trip this summer. I have talked about doing this for years. Although, my fantasy is more like a year long trip... but this is a good start! Somehow I managed to find 4 shows in a row, both by time and geography, that are juried and look quite good. AND happen to lead up to the big craft show in Bismarck, ND where I have family. Then I waited to see if I would be accepted to at least 3 out of the 5 to make the trip for sure. I mean, the gas alone will cost about $1000. If I'm going to do it, I need it to be worthwhile money-wise. ND is far away!

As of yesterday, I have been confirmed in 4 of the 5 shows. I've yet to hear from the last one, but my fingers are crossed!

Now that I'm talking about it as a reality (rather than a possibility), I'm getting more and more excited. You can see the individual show details on my Facebook page over there>>> I'll see if I can embed the map again... basically, I am in Eureka, CA. I will head up to Eugene for the 4th of July, then one more OR show, 2 in WA and that leaves me 2 wks to get over to ND and visit my peeps before the Bismarck show. That's 5 shows in 6 weeks and 2000 miles one way.

Here's the map, if you go to the link below it, you will see the shows and dates.

View Mermaid Tour 2010 in a larger map

What happens next is still up in the air. I may head over to Washington DC for a visit with my bff and wedding dress maker for a final fitting and last single hoorah. I would fly, then drive home afterward. Or, there is a good possibility that I can coerce my boyfriend into going with me on his new motorcycle... just so happens that Sturgis is only 5 hrs from Bismarck and the timing is right.

Actually, convincing Stu to go with me is getting easier. That would be great! The man needs a vacation... and he's been itching to travel more and more. Could be a very memorable pre-wedding time for us.

Anyway, now I'm looking at campgrounds and battery powered fans and how to fit 5 shows worth of clothes into my little cargo van. heehee. I smell an adventure...

The Process

2010-05-10T12:05:00.000-07:00

I was reading an article the other night about selling crafts wholesale. It assumed you would have plenty of orders, and asked basically 'Are you ready to do your craft constantly day in and day out to fill orders?' The production end of things can be tedious and possibly ware on a person over time... makes sense. For many crafts, the creative art part is a small percentage of time compared to the crafting of the item itself. You choose media and materials, sketch, design, maybe draw or paint elements of the final piece... the rest is molding, firing, sewing, beading, dyeing, (insert your craft here) and then finishing, packaging and the like.

So I started thinking about the past week, up to my elbows in dye every day for hours. I'm doing 10 batches which is about 100 pieces. Oh it's repetitive alright... but not only don't I get bored, I actively enjoy it. I find the routine soothing, almost meditative. I listen to music, often dancing and singing. Or I listen to stories from This American Life or The Moth. I have fun. I also love touching the fabrics, looking at each piece as it comes out of the dryer... I really enjoy what I do. Add to this the depth of gratitude I feel for being able to do this day in and day out and get paid, well it all makes me one happy artgirl.

Since I don't talk much about my dye and prep process, I thought I'd share. Here's how it goes:

- Prep Dye Batches - I go through my inventory and figure out which color each item will be. I try to make sure that each size of each item (or type) is balanced between purples, greens and earth tones.

- Separate - I separate the clothes into their dye colors and bag them.

- Dye Stuff - My method of dyeing is a lot like cooking. Lots of mixing and measuring and timing. I dye 2 batches in tandem, which takes about 4 hrs. Each batch is rinsed, dyed, rinsed, dyed again, rinsed, washed and dried.

- Labels - I sew a Bohemian Mermaid label onto each item and put on a hanger.

- Iron - Well I just got a steamer, so change this one to steam. Only the rayon gets a little ironing along the seams. This can take a while, though, if I have lots of skirts and fancy stuff. The steamer helps a TON.

- Print - I use my print blocks and fabric paints to print designs on some of the clothes, then heat set with an iron.

- Price - Each new item needs a hang tag and price tag, which has the item code, size and price. I usually run late and have to scramble to do this part at the show.

I call this a dye session. Usually I do 4-6 batches per session, which takes about a week... another week to order supplies, so about 2 weeks start to finish.

I know some would find this boring. Call me a fabric nerd, but I enjoy every minute.

New Mossy Prints

2010-05-06T10:21:00.000-07:00

I've been having fun playing with some new print designs. In the past, I've had some color issues with printing on the Moss colored fabric. These prints I think look perfect on this background. I'm also combining these with my other designs for different effects... I'll take more pics after I do some printing next week.

Currently, I'm preparing to head up to Gold Beach, OR for the Art, Wine & Music Festival next weekend. This will be my third year and I am really looking forward to it. Beach camping, nice people, high quality crafts... and I'll get to see my friends at Moose Creek Bath & Body, who have been carrying my clothing for the past year. Super nice ladies! My man is considering joining me on his new motorcycle. Huh. If I knew it'd make him want to travel with me more, I'd have been on board long ago. Ha.

For now, back to the dye tubs.

Painted Organza Flower

2010-04-10T15:27:00.000-07:00

I was inspired by my friend Mary, who held a flower making workshop, to play with this organza flower. I wanted to try painting the fabric first and it worked out nicely! It was really fun to do, I'll be posting the instructions shortly...

Studio Time

2010-04-02T12:25:00.000-07:00

Oh I've been busy alright. You know it...

First off, my studio is now clean and organized. Somehow it had devolved into a barely workable pile of junk. Then a completely unworkable pile. NOW a beauuuutiful and functional work space.Oh it makes me feel so good to be in there! During the cleanup, I came across these old test fabrics and teaching projects.

My man put me on artistic orders one day, and it was weirdly just the push I needed. I so often forget to play and just enjoy art... it was great. I goofed around with some printing ideas. A granny square and a plastic doily.

Then I worked on making these little silk scarves I sell (or don't sell, very often) into pretty rose pins.

For my next trick, I'm going to play with this poor man's silk screening method... if you hit youtube, you'll find lots of tutorials. Woohoo! Ready to play!!

First Festival Confirmed!!

2010-02-26T09:38:00.000-08:00

Ohhhh it's getting close... spring is right around the corner. And you know what that means. Craft show season begins. Can't wait!

So, I have my first confirmed show of the season, which is the Sebastopol Apple Blossom Festival, April 24-25. This is my first time at this show... well except once when I was working in that kid's booth in college. As I recall, it's a beautiful park setting. There's a parade and wine/beer tasting. Plus I have a couple friends I can visit in town. Should be fun!

I'm sending out applications for may and june as well... I'll be adding them to my cool little google calendar (>>>) as they are confirmed. Woot!

Is It Spring Yet?

2010-02-24T11:15:00.000-08:00

Just thought I'd check in here, between all the crochet pattern stuff... about how real life is going here in The Palace. Still slow and wintery, but whiffs of spring are here and there. The daffodils & beach visits are up. That's certainly a sign. I have sent out 2 show applications already, and I'm filling out my calendar for the season. Yay!

Have I mentioned how much I love traveling to craft shows? Probably. Anyway, I do. Love it. This season I am seriously considering at least one extended festival trip, ending in ND where my mom lives. I'd be gone over a month... starting in Eugene the 4th of July, hitting a show each weekend as I work my way up to the Seattle area. Then, cruising across the north to Bismarck for their big show in Aug. How fun would that be?! We'll see how it pans out...

View Mermaid Tour 1 in a larger map

I've also been working hard to get my etsy store (look over there>>>) stocked up... while working to promote through facebook (>>>) and various online forums. I may or may not be completely addicted to these forums, I'm not saying for sure.

Here at home, since I'm off the dayjob kick... Stu has me on domestic duty, which is not usually my strong suit. I'm working on it lol. We did accomplish our biggest goal of moving the office out of the cubby hole, and into our spare junk room. It rocks! Very comfortable and we can both hang out here together if we wish.

OK... that's the update from The Palace. Carry on.

Rockstar Can Tiara - Part 1

2010-02-18T20:03:00.000-08:00

Well I did it. I set out to make myself a Rockstar Tiara for my birthday and I succeeded. I had plenty of fun figuring it out... but it was by no means a simple little project. I did take plenty of photos and notes and will do my best to pass on my tiara knowledge in some understandable way. I'll apologize right now for using black yarn again. Not the easiest to see, but it really was the best color for the project.

Materials:
3 tall Rockstar cans (I used the one above for my sample)
3 oz worsted weight yarn
H or I crochet hook
utility scissors
paper hole punch
60 Large pony beads
yarn needle

Cut out each star as shown, leaving a bout 1/2" border and rounding the tips. You'll notice one corner of the star hits the edge of the can, so you can't add a border there. We'll address this later to make the stars look symmetrical, for now just round the corner as shown in the photo.

Cut out the vertical Rockstar word from 2 of the cans as shown. Leave about 1/2" above and below the word.

See the photo for hole placements. For the stars, I punched a hole at each tip (except the weird short one), at each indent, and one in between. Try to put the holes outside of the star shape if possible, but not so close to the edge that the can will tear.

Stay tuned for Part 2!

Erica’s Tweed Cloche Hat Pattern

2010-02-17T14:18:00.000-08:00

Another free Bohemian Mermaid crochet pattern for you, the Erica hat. This one truly is very fast and easy to make. The 'tweed' doubled yarn makes it thick and soft. See my Crochet Basics for stitches and abbreviations. Woo!

Erica's Tweed Cloche Hat

Description: Loose-fitting hat with small angled brim worked in a tweed stitch. Looks great on men and women.

Materials: Worsted weight yarn in 2 colors (2 oz each), K hook.

Pattern: Instructions are for average/large adult size. Work with both colors together throughout.

Start: (Both threads on hook) Make the Base as written in the Basic Hat Pattern BUT start rows with ch2 (not ch3) AND use hdc in place of dc. Work until the underlined number is 4.

Rnd 7: Ch 2. Hdc into next st and into each st around (60 sts total). Sl st into 2^nd ch of ch2.

Rnd 8 - 13: Repeat Rnd 7 , 6 times.

Rnd 14: Ch 2. Hdc into same st, hdc into each of next 5 sts. *Work 2 hdc into next st, hdc into each of next 5 sts. Repeat from * around (70 sts total). Sl st into 2^nd ch of ch2.

Rnd 15: Ch 2. Hdc into same st, hdc into each of next 6 sts. *Work 2 hdc into next st, hdc into each of next 6 sts. Repeat from * around (80 sts total). Sl st into 2^nd ch of ch2.

Rnd 16: Ch 2. Hdc into same st, hdc into each of next 7 sts. *Work 2 hdc into next st, hdc into each of next 7 sts. Repeat from * around (90 sts total). Sl st into 2^nd ch of ch2. Finish off. Weave ends into work.

More Beer!!

2010-02-05T11:25:00.000-08:00

Alrighty... now that my basic Beer Can Hat pattern is being circulated, I'm inspired. I just picked up some PBR and I'm ready to get started on the PBR Pimp Daddy Hat, which I made for my brother's 21st birthday lo those many years ago. Back then, as college students, we all drank it so the cans were easy to come by. These days I tend toward bottles... not sure I'll be able to stomach actually drinking the Pabst. But the cans still hold some party magic, rest assured.

I'm also working on an idea for a Rock Star Can Tiara for my birthday next week. Oh, and a granny square hat. It's way too much fun...

Hoping to have a new pattern ready by the end of this weekend. Rock on.

Beer Can Hat – Part 3

2010-01-29T13:30:00.000-08:00

(continued from Part 2) See Crochet Basics for stitch descriptions and abbreviations.

5. Make the Base (Top):

I call this part of the hat the Base because that's where a hat usually begins. Crochet the Base of the hat from the Basic Hat Pattern. Work in the dc stitches as described until the underlined number is 4. You should end up with a nice circle that has 60 sts around the outer edge. Do not tie off.

6. Join the Base to the Crown:

Hold the Crown and the Base wrong sides together with the labels facing you and matching up the stitches as you work. Sl st into any st at top edge of Crown, *insert hook through same st and corresponding st of Base, yo and draw a loop, yo and draw a lp through both lps on hook. One Joining Sc done. Repeat from * around top of Crown, working into edge dcs only (not the stitches joining the labels). Sl st into first sc worked (60 sts total). Tie off.

At this point, the hat can make a great Beer Can Fez. Just sc around bottom edge, then make a tassel and attach to the top. Boom, Fez. Still a very respectable party hat.

7. Make the Brim:

Hold the Crown with the labels facing you, working from the lower edge. Stitches will be worked into each edge dc, and 2sts into the space under joining dcs (the joining dcs are laying sideways, work 2 sts around each of these bars as you work around).

Optional: To even out the lower edge of your Crown before adding the brim (and make working the first row of increase a little easier), you may choose to work one row of sc all around before moving on to the next step.

Start Brim: Sl st into any edge dc, [ch3 (counts as 1 dc), dc into next 6 sts (7dc total). *Work 2 dc into next st. Dc into next 7 sts. Repeat from * around, sl st into third of starting ch3.]

Repeat from [ to ] adding 1 to the underlined number for each additional row (ie. Row 2 = 8, row 3 = 9, etc) until your brim is as wide as you like. I worked 3 rows for a big sunhat brim, but I think 2 would have been better for the fisherman style I was going for.

After you're happy with the brim, work one row of sc around (no increase). I went one step further and worked another row of sc into the same sts worked (over the top of the sc just worked), which adds a little more stability to the edge. That's totally optional of course.

Ok there you go! Please forward any photos of finished projects to me! Or better yet, fan me on Facebook and post photos there. Woohoo!

Outdoor Dog Bed

2010-01-23T16:23:00.000-08:00

My girl Panda likes to sleep outside. In the summer, she likes sleeping on the dirt and grass... but now that it's winter and rainy, she can't really sleep in the mud. So she lays on the cement, which is not very easy on her old bones. I wanted to make her a dog bed that would be soft and weather resistant. I looked around the net for instructions and found nothing, so I thought I'd post my own How To Make an Outdoor Dog Bed project. Here you go...

Honestly, I wasn't sure what to make it out of... I went to the fabric store to see what I could find. Here's what I bought:

1 yd Vinyl upholstery fabric (54" wide)
1 yd wool/polyester twill fabric (54" wide)
1 22" zipper
Heavy duty sewing machine needles

Starting with the vinyl, fold the fabric in half short-ways, to make the widest rectangle you can and measure it. Mine came out to 27" across by 36" long. Fold it right sides together so the edges match all around. On one short end, mark with a pen where your zipper will start and stop. Using 1/2" seam allowance, sew around 2 edges. On the zipper side, sew only where your zipper will not be. At the corners, reinforce the stitching by running backwards once then continuing on.

To add the zipper, line up the zipper's outer edge with the fabric edge (where we left it open) and sew 1/4" seam all the way from one end of the zipper fabric to the other. Repeat for the other side of the zipper. Rather than using my zipper foot (which let the fabric slide all over), I used my regular foot and moved the needle to the left. I did not bother with top stitching. (Use the diagrams inside the zipper package if you're not familiar with how to sew a zipper.)

Turn it right side out and the outer part of the dog bed is complete.

For the inner case, I used a heavy wool/poly twill fabric. Wool will naturally repel moisture, and the polyester will add durability. Again, fold the fabric short-ways for a wide rectangle. Cut to measure the same as the vinyl cover. Sew around 2 sides and 1/2 of the third side. Leave the last 1/2 for stuffing. Turn right side out.

To stuff my dog bed, I used two funky old bed pillows my boyfriend inexplicably wouldn't throw out. Two fit into my case perfectly. I also took some old t-shirts, cut them into pieces and added them as extra filler.

To close the inner case, fold the edges inward and top stitch from the outside. You may opt to add a zipper to the inner case as well, for ease of washing. I am hoping mine will stay relatively dry inside and I won't need to wash it.

Now fit the inner case into the vinyl case and zip up. Boom! Quick and easy, just like we like. I couldn't get Panda to lay down for the pic, she thought we were playing. But I think the size is just right. Victory!

I Heart 70s Craft Books

2010-01-23T11:31:00.000-08:00

(From my stash of little articles written about 10 yrs ago... I've not changed my mind. In fact the 70s styles are even more popular today. Woot.)

Let's not forget those awesome days of yore...when crafting and needlework were having a real heyday. No, not the Renaissance, nor the Victorian era, classic though they may be. I am referring to the colorful and creative 1970s. I am a child of that period, and as such took part in nearly every creative whim of my parents...latch hook, crochet, needlepoint, crewel. And do I recall some of those cellophane dipped flowers and some sort of toxic resin plaques? Yes, those were the days. Funk was the norm and looking through my mom's craft book collection was so much rainy day fun.

"Granny Square Vest Family" painted from a 70s crochet pattern booklet

I have now amassed my own impressive collection of craft books, also of the 70s variety. Most of these (surprise) relate to working with fibers in some way. I just can't rave enough about how much I love those books. They are full of techniques, histories, creativity and inspiration. The crochet books are without a doubt the most interesting I've found...I have books on crochet and needlework as sculpture and fine art, wearable art, clothing design and the usual pattern magazines and booklets. Some may whine about the outdated styles available in these oldies, but really the styles are very interesting and back in fashion. Usually these can be updated simply by altering the color scheme (even too much for me at times). Not only that, but where else can you find a pattern for 4 types of crochet sandals?

Here's an example to illustrate my point. A while ago I decided it was time to own a good overall book about quilting. I wanted a good source book with info about each of the common techniques. So, I moseyed to my favorite used bookstore, which has exceptional art and craft sections. I had noticed on previous visits the volume of quilting books, and so settled down on the milk crate to do some searching for the end-all-be-all of quilting books.

Well, let me tell you...I looked through all the modern type books and was sorely saddened by the lack of basic instruction and creativity in these books. They were generally ten projects for your cutesy home and I thought they really lacked room for experimentation. When I did find the book I desired it was a 70s type...no surprise. This one has it all: numerous methods of quilting including trapunto, piecework basics, borders, cutwork, appliqué and cultural styles like Hawaiian and Amish. Of course, there are projects included for each process and style. There's even a whole chapter devoted to designing your own quilt, step by step. Now THAT'S what I call a craft book. And it was much less expensive than the modern ones.

So, there you have it. I love the 70s books. They are well written, colorful, creative, stylish, cheap and available everywhere. Now, I'm off to read about granny squares...

Easy Crochet Slippers Pattern

2010-01-09T15:16:00.000-08:00

OK, as promised... more free crochet patterns. I wish I had better photos for you, but I used to sell these printed out, so the photos are small. Unfortunately I don't have the original pics or samples. I made these years ago. As always, feel free to contact me for help if you get stuck. Enjoy.

Bohemian Mermaid Crochet Pattern
Warm &Comfy Slippers

Description: Simple and warm house slippers with optional non-slip soles, size adult large.

Materials: 4oz worsted yarn, K hook, rubber shelf liner (optional).

Pattern:
Instructions are for adult size. Work 2 strands worsted tog (1 or 2 colors as you wish) throughout. Make 2:

Rnd1: (Toe) Ch 3 (counts as 1^st hdc here and throughout). Working into 1^st ch made, 8 hdc. Sl st into 3^rd ch of ch3 (9 sts total).

Rnd 2: Ch 3. Hdc into same st. Work 2 hdc into each st around. Sl st into 3^rd ch of ch3 (18 sts total).

Rnd 3: Ch 3. Hdc into same st, hdc into next st. *Work 2 hdc into next st, hdc into next st. Repeat from * around. Sl st into 3^rd ch of ch3 (27 sts total).

Rnd 4-9 (6 rnds): *Ch 3. Hdc into next st and into each st around.
Sl st into 3^rd ch of ch3 (27 sts total). Repeat from * for each rnd.

Row 10-18 (9 rows): (Start mouth) Ch 3. Hdc into next st and into each st across. Ch 3, turn. Repeat from * for each row, ending with ch1. Do not finish off.

Finishing:

Mouth edge: Working along edges of rows just worked, work 26 sc, ending in opposite corner of work. Do not finish off.

Heal seam: Continue working sc down folded heal edge, matching sts and working through both layers, until 2 sts remain to be worked. Proceed as follows: Insert hook into next st (both layers) and draw a loop. Repeat (3 lps on hook). Yo and pull through all 3 lps on hook. Finish off.

Non-slip Sole (optional): Make a paper pattern by tracing foot and evening out into a long light bulb shape. Cut ¼" inside lines drawn. Fold lengthwise to check symmetry, trim as necessary. It should measure approx 10" long, 4" at its widest, 3" at its narrowest. Pin pattern to rubber shelf lining (with stripes going vertically) and cut 2. Pin to slipper with wide end at toe and narrow end at heal. Hand stitch using whipstitch and doubled thread.

Etsy again.

2010-01-09T14:25:00.000-08:00

Yay! I've been working hard to get my online listings going again... and my first round of etsy stuff is up. Oh, let me put up some sort of cool gadget.

Jeesh. The photos, as always, are a challenge. The light has to be perfect to see the colors properly & clearly. I thought it was bright enough outside even though it was partly cloudy... I mean, I had to squint! But the pics were still quite dark. So I had to mess around with brightening them and tweaking some of the colors. Ah well, I'll get better and faster as I go.

Anyway, my goal is to list 10 items per week on etsy, and concurrently update my regular web site with the new photos. This week the goal was 20 things, to get started. Done.

Oh and I have become completely addicted to the etsy forums. I'm learning a ton about all sorts of craft business stuff, not just more about etsy. It's quite a bit of craft nerd fun. A couple examples... there is a great wholesaling thread going, started by the owner of a shop who answers lots of helpful questions. I found this page of neato etsy aps, which was very helpful as well.

Crafty Crafty

2009-12-18T09:11:00.000-08:00

Ok well I get distracted...I'll try harder.

Well, holiday craft shows are done. I only did one (as usual) which was the Arcata Holiday Craft Market. I'll call this year's a success. Sales were pretty good... AND I finally connected with the owner of The Rocking Horse and now have bamboo onesies and some kid's T-shirts in the shop. I'm way excited about this, thinking it's a first step to getting all my little Mermaid dresses in there too!

Ok, now that I have left yet another dayjob (yay!!)... I have plenty of time to work on Mermaid projects around here. My plan for this particular blog is to start posting some more craft projects. I came across my old teaching plans for kids (well, they were for disabled adults, but work for kids), which has tons of neat little projects of all sorts.

Of course I also have some more crochet patterns, a couple silk painting projects, simple beading... and ideas for more stuff. I'd like to eventually offer supply kits for these projects as well. Woohoo!

A girl's got to keep busy!

I'm still here.

2009-11-21T09:55:00.000-08:00

Well, I've been busy ok? sorta. Stupid dayjob tends to take over my life... luckily, only for a few more days and it's back to Mermaid land.

After TG, I have about 2 weeks until the Arcata Holiday Market at the Community Center 12/12 & 12/13. I'm working on some new wire wrapped jewelry, which I'm excited to play with. Also been fooling with some polymer clay beads. Fun fun.

Oh and I now have some goods in the mall store Schatzi's Hidden Treasures. I had some clothing there last year... so this year I'm back. Not tons of stuff, but ponchos, ladies knit tops, skirts, pants and little girl dresses. I haven't met a little girl yet who doesn't love a mermaid dress.

So anyway... I should be around here more often once stupid dayjob is done. Yippee!!

Basic Hat Pattern

2009-09-29T11:27:00.001-07:00

Ok, here you go... this is my own pattern for a basic crocheted cap, including adjustments for size and stitch variations. Rock on! See Crochet Basics for stitch descriptions and abbreviations.

Bohemian Mermaid
Crochet Pattern

Basic Hat

Description: Simple, flexible instructions for a basic cap using any stitch design, sized for anyone in the family.

Materials: Worsted weight yarn, I or J hook.

Pattern: Instructions are for average adult/teen size fitted cap. The base is worked in dc. After working the base as described, any stitch can be used for body. Work is not turned. Change colors as desired.

Base:

Start: Ch 4. Sl st into first ch to form loop.

Rnd 1: Ch 3 (counts as 1^st dc here and throughout). Work 9 dc into ch4 loop (10dc total). Sl st into 1^st dc (3^rd ch of ch3).

Rnd 2: Ch 3, dc into same st. Work 2 dc into next st and each st around. Sl st into 1^st dc.

Rnd 3: Ch 3, dc into same st and into next st. *Work 2 dc into next st, dc into next st. Repeat from * around. Sl st into 1^st dc.

Rnd 4: Ch 3, dc into same st, dc into each of next 2 sts. *Work 2 dc into next st, dc into each of next 2 sts. Repeat from * around. Sl st into 1^st dc.

Successive Rnds: Continue as in rnd 4, adding 1 st to the underlined portions for each successive rnd. Work until the underlined number is 4.

**For a child:

1. Work rnds 1 - 4 (rnds 1 - 3 for an infant), or

2. Work as above substituting sc for dc (remember to adjust chs too), or

3. Work as above substituting G hook and sport weight yarn.

** For a larger head:

1. Work until the underlined number is 5, or

2. Work as above using K hook and bulky or doubled worsted weight yarn.

**For a tighter base stitch:

1. Work as above substituting hdc for dc, or

2. Work base using sc instead of dc BUT to maintain the correct size: after each round, work one round of sc without increasing, then return to next rnd as written.

Body:

The body of the hat is worked one st to a st (no increases), creating a tube. Work about 5-7 rows of dc for a short cap, 12-15 for a folded brim. Adjust if other sts will be used.

To work hat body in a simple sc (hdc, dc): Ch1(2, 3) and work 1 st into each st around. Sl st to 1^st st. Repeat. Many interesting striped patterns can be achieved by alternating colors and stitches by rows.

**To work hat body in any other stitch pattern:

Once the base is complete, count the number of sts in the last round. If you follow the above adult/teen instructions, you should have 60 sts in the last round. Choose a stitch pattern that has repeating sections that go into 60 evenly (ie, a shell st repeats a shell every 6 sts, so 60/6 works out perfectly).

To make adjustments: Divide the # of sts in the rnd by the # of sts in the pattern st. Whatever is left over should be adjusted either in the last rnd of the base or the first rnd of the body.

For example: My body st pat repeats every 8 sts. 60/8 leaves 4 sts too many in my base row. I can either skip 4 sts throughout the last row of the base (spread them out so no one can tell)...OR I can work the first rnd of my pat st by working 2 sts into the same st at 4 points throughout rnd (still, no one can tell).

Crochet Basics: A Handy Reference

2009-09-29T11:05:00.001-07:00

Pattern Abbreviations:

Ch: chain

Ch st: chain stitch

Dc: double crochet

Dec: decrease

Dtr: double treble crochet

Hdc: half double crochet

Inc: increase

Lp: loop

Pat: pattern

Prev: previous

RS: right side

Rep: repeat

Rnd: round

Sc: single crochet

Sk: skip

Sl st: slip stitch

Sp: space

St: stitch

Tog: together

Tr: treble crochet

WS: wrong side

Yo: yarn over hook

Crochet Stitches:

Slip Stitch: Insert hook into designated st, yo and draw a loop through work and through loop on hook.

Chain Stitch: Make slip knot and place loop on hook. Yo and pull a loop through loop on hook.

Single Crochet: Insert hook into designated st, yo and draw a loop (2loops on hook). Yo and draw a loop through both loops on hook.

Half Double Crochet: Yo and insert hook into designated st, yo and draw a loop (3 loops on hook). Yo and draw through all 3 loops on hook.

Double Crochet: Yo and insert hook into designated st, yo and draw a loop (3 loops on hook). Yo and draw through 2 loops, yo and draw through last 2 loops on hook.

Treble Crochet: Yo twice and insert hook into designated st, yo and draw a loop (4 loops on hook). Yo and draw through 2 loops at a time until only one loop remains on hook.

Changing Colors:

Work last stitch of color 1 to the point of having last 2 loops on hook. Leaving 2-3" tails, cut color 1 thread and tie color 2 thread close to lps on hook. Pick up color 2, draw final loop of stitch. Continue as directed, working thread ends into sts as you go.

Beer Can Hat - Part 2

2009-09-26T09:08:00.000-07:00

(Continued from Part 1) See Crochet Basics for stitch descriptions and abbreviations.

Note: I used tall cans for my sample hat, adjustments for using regular size cans shown in [brackets].

3. Edge the Can Labels

Basically, the cans will be edged just like a granny square. 5 dc into each corner, and 3 dc into each hole along the sides. For those who prefer a written pattern, here you go:

Sl st into corner hole, ch 3 (counts as 1 dc). Work 2 dc into same hole. *Work 3 dc into next hole and each hole across. Work 5 dc into corner hole. Repeat from * around label, ending with 2 dc into starting hole. Sl st into 2nd of ch 2 from beginning. Tie off.

Repeat this for each can label.

4. Join the Labels

This part is a little bit tricky. You will be joining the pieces while holding them back-to-back, one is in Front, one is in Back. The Front label will be worked by inserting your hook from the front, the Back label will be worked by inserting your hook from the back. I find it helpful to hold the Front label a little lower than the Back label while I work.

To join these, we will use a sort of joined sc, hdc, and dc to get an A-line shape to our hat. I can't describe it much better than that, so I'll defer to my written pattern instructions:

A) Starting in the top left corner of Front label, sl st into 3rd of 5 dc. Insert hook into same st, *yo and draw a loop, insert hook into corresponding st of Back label, yo and draw a loop (3 lps on hook), yo and draw a loop through all lps on hook. Insert hook into next st on Front label. Repeat from * across next 5[2] sts (6[3] sts total).

**Yo, insert hook into next Front st and draw a loop, yo, insert hook into corresponding Back st and draw a loop. Yo and draw a loop through all 5 lps on hook. Repeat from ** for next 2[5] sts (3[6] sts total).

***Yo, insert hook into next Front st and draw a loop (3 lps on hook), yo and draw a loop through 2 lps on hook. Yo, insert hook into corresponding Back st and draw a loop, yo and draw loop through 2 lps on hook (3 lps on hook). Yo and draw lp through all lps on hook. Repeat from *** across, working last st into 3rd of 5 dc in corner. Tie off.

Repeat from A) until all labels are joined together.

If you want to stop here with the Beer Can Crown, simply sc along the top and bottom edges to finish, covering the yarn ends as you go. Boom, done.

Or, stay tuned for Part 3 finishing the hat top and brim.

Beer Can Hat - Part 1

2009-09-25T14:32:00.000-07:00

I'm going to attempt to share with the world my pattern for the coveted Beer Can Hat. Some years ago I started making these and spread them around to many friends and unsuspecting acquaintances. I believe they originated during the 70s cheesy crafts era, which I completely adore.

Many a birthday party have I attended bringing a 6 pack of beer, a skein of yarn, a couple compact tools... and a few hours later, left the host with a special party hat and gift made right before his drunken eyes. Now YOU can be that fascinating craft nerd, amazing your friends at parties. Or just drinking and crocheting at home.

All told, this project takes me about 2 hrs if I'm really paying attention… up to maybe 3 or 4 hours if there's beer and distraction involved.

Part 1 covers materials & preparing the cans.
Part 2 will cover edging and joining the cans into a Beer Can Crown.
Part 3 will cover adding the top and brim to finish the beer Can Hat.

The Cans:

You will need 5 can labels for one hat. Assuming your cans have two labels on them, front and back, you will need 3 cans (if your cans have only 1 label each, you will need 5 cans).

Choose cans that have colorful or interesting labels... I have used Kern's, Miller High Life (w/ the girl on the moon), Pabst Blue Ribbon, Harley Davidson Beer, Schlitz Malt Liquor and Guinness. Coors is rather boring, but it's what I had available. Obviously the cans should be relatively clean.

The Other Supplies:

- Yarn - one 3oz skein in a color to match your cans
- Crochet Hook - size H or I
- Utility Scissors - regular household scissors will work fine
- Paper Hole Punch - very inexpensive at any office supply or drug store

Note: I used tall cans for my sample hat, adjustments for using regular size cans will be shown in [brackets].

1. Cut the Cans

*Safety Note* Yes, you should be careful while cutting the cans. Jagged edges could scratch or poke you. But once the cans are cut smoothly along the edges, they are not sharp at all. You will not slice up your fingers doing this.

To start cutting the cans, choose an area that won't affect your label (such as the warning/bar code area) and stab through the can with one end of your scissors.

Continue to cut up the side, and then along the top edge of the can all the way around. Do the same for the other side.

You will have the body of the can minus the top and bottom ends. Cut the two labels apart.

Now cut around the labels, leaving no jagged edges and rounding the corners as you go. The edges should be as straight as possible to keep a rectangular shape. Cut as large a label as you can without showing any of the warnings or small print.

Yes, the labels should be close to the same size and shape, but don't get too finicky about it. Imperfections will be covered by the yarn and will not make much difference in the end.

2. Punch the Holes

Using the paper hole punch, punch holes into the can labels as shown. The holes should be about 1/4" from the edge. Place one hole at each corner, then a total of 5 [4] holes along the tall sides, 4 holes along the short sides. Space them as evenly as possible, about 1/2" apart.

Again, you probably don't need to get out your ruler here. Eyeballing the placement will be good enough for a lovely result.

Move on to Part 2!

Mendocino Art Center Craft Fair

2009-08-03T10:07:00.001-07:00

As predicted, a wonderful time was had in beautiful Mendocino, CA. I asked for a view of the stage and got just that. As usual, my neighbors were fun and talented. I'm considering going back for their holiday show over Thanksgiving weekend. hm, we'll see.

Plans & Schemes

2009-07-17T08:03:00.000-07:00

Well I'm heading today to the beautiful town of Mendocino for the Mendocino Art Center Summer Craft Fair. Woo! I love going there. So pretty and the people are so cool. I think I have a couple photos from last year... hm where are they?

August is looking a little lean on the festival schedule for me... I might get back to the Mendo coast for Casparfest. We'll see, but I have a few other irons in the fire of course.

I still have goods for sale at Schatzi's Hidden Treasures in the mall. I'll be beefing up my display when I get back next week. If you haven't checked it out you should. Pretty neat importy store full of interesting stuff.

I also need to get my web site updated, duh. How long have I been saying that? Well I got a new camera last fall and now have some much better pics I can put up. I still want to get some sort of photo shoot lined up with models, as in real people. And I'll be going back online selling on the wonderful etsy.com. Possibly some ebay stuff as well... but there have been lots of weird things going on there so who knows.

Oh and I'm starting to get the itch for non-dyeing crafts. I do other things too you know, or I did before I started my little biz. I'm thinking it's about time to start making my own beads. I did a couple semesters of glassblowing in college... with the big furnaces and all. Loved it and I always wanted to learn the smaller scale stuff so I could make beads. Well my dear friend Kevin happens to teach classes at the Fire Arts Center in Arcata. So I can certainly hook this up. Oh I need some handblown bead jewelry in my booth. Yessss!

But for today, I'm on the road. See ya!

4th of July in Mt. Shasta

2009-07-11T11:43:00.000-07:00

I think this time I'll skip the commentary and just post some photos. Such a beautiful town!

Benbow, Fairfax and Tiny Mermaid Dresses

2009-06-29T10:19:00.000-07:00

Hey do I have time for this right now? Hm, if I make another cup of coffee, sure... mmm. ok.

Well lagging still on my reports. However I have photos! woo! The Benbow show was nice as usual. That is, the Mateel Arts & Music Festival. Perfect weather, good attendance from what I could tell. Although Stu pointed out there is usually a time when it's elbow to elbow and we didn't see it get that crowded. Still lots of folks. We were across from the Holistic Hooping booth which was fun to watch all weekend...

Two little bummers, ok 3. 1) Stu was a freakin grump. Note to self, leave him home next time and take a girl. 2) and I haven't dwelled on this at all really, but one of my nicest pieces was stolen. It was a bummer, but I hate giving that sort of thing much energy so that's the end of that. 3) I managed to get poison oak, which finally cleared up a few days ago (that's 3 weeks of pure torture my friends).

Haha. Still my favorite show... I mean look at our view out the back of the booth. Hello.

So next was my little trip to Fairfax, down in Marin Cty. I stopped over at my friend Shannon's new house on the way, which was lovely. Then up at the crack of dawn to set up at the show. Thank gawd for GPS is all I can say. This is The Bay Area and as close to City as I can handle I think. Whew.

Well the town is cute as a button, very cool and eco-groovy. The fair was held in this beautiful wooded park with two stages, food, crafts, and a flea market area which I didn't actually get to see. Saturday there was a big parade and I had a great view.

My booth neighbors were fun too... two old Italian guys with cigars and about a ton of bird houses, each one different. They are obviously local favorites here. Super nice guys... father & son it turned out.

I ended up doing quite well, sales wise. The only hard part of the show was the parking. Yikes. Literally half of the town is a no parking zone, no designated vendor parking. That part was so difficult I might not go back. Of course my whole weekend was soured a bit by the fresh poison oak situation. We'll see how I feel next year... overall a really nice festival.

So now I'm up to my elbows in little dresses preparing for the big 3-day 4th of July hootinany in Mt. Shasta. This year it take place thurs, fri, sat. So I'm leaving after work wed. Whew. I was a bit late in reserving a campground in Castle Craggs which is like 20 min out of town... but got a spot instead at the KOA practically right downtown. My first koa stay, but it should be super convenient and with nice showers. aaaaaahh showers.

I plan on hitting the Goat's Head Tavern (I'm pretty sure I got the name right) again, which Stu and I found last year to be off the hook awesome. Great fresh food and a bunch of micros on tap. Also gonna bring stuff to cook over my campfire. Going solo this year, but I'm ready for some quiet time. The show should be rockin and I'll be seeing my friend Doug the Whale Guy.

But still tons to do before I go... onward!

Festivals in Full Swing Baby!

2009-05-30T08:46:00.000-07:00

Yep another hopping spring turning into a busy summer... along with my new day job (sigh) I'm super busy right now. Loving it.

Of course, the big one coming up is the awesome Mateel Arts & Music Festival next weekend June 6-7 in Benbow. Our biggest and most fun local event, I would say. Tons of music and performances on 4 stages, over 100 high quality craft booths, a big kid's area and a beautiful location. Just lots of smiling folks and a super fun time. I'm SO happy to return this year, after my little hospital vacation last year. Yes... this is a much better year by far.

I've been a little behind on my postings here... um let's see... I'll briefly recap my festivals so far.

After the local Spring Fever Festival, which was fun as usual... I headed up to Gold Beach, OR for the Art & Wine Festival. A lovely little show near the beach with wine tasting and nice quality crafts. Not a huge money maker for the crafts vendors I think... but the beach camping, gorgeous area and friendly folks (and wine!) make it worth while for me. I have a great time there. This time around I was happy to meet two lovely ladies from the Moose Creek Bath & Body who are now carrying a nice selection of my hand dyed clothing (Hi to Alice & Haley!!). If you find yourself in the area, you need to check out the Gold Rush Historical Cultural Arts & Health Center where they are located (right on 101). It's a beautifully made-over school building, really gorgeous and worth stopping for.

Last weekend Stu and Panda and I headed for Lakeport for their Memorial Day Crafts Fair held right on Clear Lake. Again, the location is 50% of the draw for me (this was the view from our camp site). Just a nice mellow weekend on the lake, perfect weather and margaritas at sunset. Lovely. This year we were joined by my dear friend Caroline and it was great to catch up with her.

Ok enough chitchat... I have some serious work to do. Oh did I mention my new hemp and bamboo wraps?? SO super excited to get these out! Visit me at Benbow for more new goodies, like wonderful rayon gauze flowy jackets... wooo!

Spring Fever in Eureka

2009-04-23T11:15:00.000-07:00

I know I have the fever, so do you! First local craft show of the season... woo!

Bodega Bay Fisherman's Festival Report

2009-04-16T20:27:00.000-07:00

Hey that was fun! I know that's what I always say... but really. A great festival, (nearly) perfect weather, gorgeous location, nice quality crafts & music and very well organized event. The show folks came by VERY regularly to see if we solo vendors needed breaks or food. That alone was quite impressive. We even got food vouchers, very nice.

I was pleasantly surprised at how many art friends I saw there. Always fun to catch up with my peeps. And Stu joined me on Sunday so I got a couple smooches too.

The van ran great, no problems there whatsoever. I did have one minor adventure during setup. Gale force winds were a-blowin when I arrived. Most other vendors chose to wait to set up in the morning... oh but I was sure I could do it. Once my booth is up it's very heavy, I never have wind troubles. So I stubbornly insisted on trying to set up my tent, as I watched my neighbor's tear right through the top. She and another neighbor held my frame as I tied tubs and racks to each corner... and the thing STILL moved along the ground. After a half hour of this, I said I could take it from there and relieved the troops. But I really couldn't. lol. A few minutes after my kind helpers left the scene, my friend Doug The Whale Guy and team 2 came over saying "can we help you take all this down?" I guess it was obvious to everyone but me that it just wasn't possible. Sigh. So I piled everything in my spot for the morning. (That's the stage tent in the background totally collapsed, they had to remove it the next day!)

Luckily the rest of the weekend was pretty mild. Here's a photo of some colorful kites flying over these guys playing jazz. Lovely.

They also had this cool wooden boat contest. There were teams who had an hour (I think) and set materials (including a sheet of plastic and duct tape) to built a little boat on site. I ran over to see them go into the bay, and saw one sink which was pretty exciting. They left them on the shore afterwards, so that night after some margaritas and calimari, we got to take a closer look. A couple even had time to paint theirs.

But Bekki, you may be asking, how were sales? Huh. Well some folks said they did great. But most of us agreed the crowd was pretty thin and not buying much. I heard tales of shows being down overall so far and some are being cancelled altogether. Bah... every year it's something. Last year it was gas, this year 'the economy'. Whatever. Sometimes you do well, sometimes not so well. Some folks have money to spend, some don't. All we can do is keep working, right?

And have fun. That doesn't hurt either.

Spring Shows Baby!

2009-03-25T19:57:00.000-07:00

Oh man... do I really have to say how excited I am that show season is starting? Nah. It's understood.

My first show this year will be the Bodega Bay Fisherman's Festival down near Santa Rosa. Last year, as some may recall, this was also my first show scheduled and I was equally excited to go. However, it also turned out to be my first New Van breakdown, one of many in a string of unfortunate events. So I am feeling um... hm... a little nervous at the memory of being stranded in Willits. But I'm also feeling it will be a small milestone. If all goes smoothly, I will see it as a sign of a better year to come.

Anyway, I came across this video of the festival so I thought I'd share. Seafood, boat parade, pet parade, kite flying, wooden boat contest, music, and crafts of course.

Bodega Bay Fisherman's Festival

Quick Recycled Notebook

2009-02-06T10:22:00.000-08:00

This is the first in a series of How-To articles I'm working on. I have a billion little projects in my head and I thought it would be fun to start posting them here. A girl's got to keep busy…

The other night I was brainstorming some of these projects, itching to make some lists, but couldn't find a clean notebook (I swear I have a green one that's practically new argh). After tearing up the house a little bit, I decided to just make one. I wasn't fussy so it took me about 10 minutes. Maybe I should number the steps, huh? Ok...

1. Prepare the Paper. I have acquired a good stack of reusable paper under my printer, as you have I'm sure. You can use full sheets or cut them in half. I personally had lots of 3/4 and 1/2 sheets from printing mailing labels for my ebay stuff, so I used those. I didn’t worry about them being the same size or cut straight, but you could use a paper cutter to even them out. Make a stack of paper thin enough for your stapler to go through. Face them all the same way (sounds obvious, but I missed a few in my fervor).

2. Add a Cover. Making the cover out of something a little heavier will help the notebook last longer. I used some misprinted card stock for my cover. If you don't have any, you could use an old phone book or catalog cover. Even slightly heavier paper with an interesting design (like an old poster) would be fine. Again, just make sure the stapler can go through it. Cut 2 pieces of your cover material slightly larger than your paper.

3. Staple the Binding. Stack your paper between the covers like a sandwich and line them up evenly on one edge to be your binding. Staple through all the layers. Mine was a bit too thick, so I stapled on both sides and covered the edge with clear packing tape to protect myself from the staple ends.

That's it! I'm happy with how it turned out… and how quickly. I felt great satisfaction in using those odd pieces of paper. Probably too much, I'm like that.

The photo also shows a sketchbook I made in college using more involved methods. Still it was really easy and completely recycled. I was broke and just wanted it to last through the semester, but it lasted for years!

In the close-up, you can see I took small stacks of paper (from a ream I'd had forever, those were pre-computer days) folded in half and stitched them at the crease with a needle and thread. Then I took all the little sewn stacks and hot glued them to a strip of felt in the binding. The cover is cardboard that I decoupaged with grocery ads. To make it a little nicer, I glued the front/back pages to the inside covers. Pretty fancy!

Score on the Christmas Gifts for Me!!

2009-01-14T08:52:00.000-08:00

Hey I did pretty well with my Christmas scores this year. Luckily, I got to ask for what I need... so it worked out well.

Ok so first on my New Year agenda is to get my biz records in order. Stu got me Quickbooks for Christmas. Yay! I have used it at a couple jobs in the past, but now I'm learning all the ins and outs. I'm going to use the inventory tracking... so (theoretically anyway) after a show I will type in each item that sold and be able to see updated inventory levels. That will make quick supply orders so much easier. Rather than unloading the whole van and doing a physical inv each time, or trying to do it at a show. Argh. Lots of other neato features, and it cost less than I thought.

Oooh I also got a few gift cards from Mom... one I used to buy 3 new craft books. Heehee I get all giggly looking at them. I guess it's been a while since I added to my (awesome) craft library. I decided I needed some specific beading and jewelry making books. I want to start making more interesting stone pendants, so I got two books on wire work and one on bead weaving. Oh man... I can't wait to order some wire and get to work. My hands hurt just thinking about it.

Slacker

2009-01-07T07:53:00.000-08:00

Yep I know. Hey I have been doing stuff...

I had to wait for particular gifts to be received before I could post photos. Man, I had some fun crafting this Christmas. It was great to do some crafts I haven't done for a while, some totally new ones, and none of them dyeing (which my friends probably appreciated too). So, woo!

The big ones of course, were the long awaited Bacon Scarves! tada! I first found this idea at the super awesome Monster Crochet Blog. My brother A) loves bacon and B) questions the wonderfulness of crochet...so I sent him the link, and he made me promise to make him one. I didn't use her pattern though, I printed out a bacon photo and just looked at it while I went totally freeform.

Really fun, but they took forever (I actually made 3). Good thing I got that nasty cold so I could sit around and crochet for a whole week.

Hmmm... where's that other photo? I'm sorta between computers these days. Anyway, I made Stu a duck tape wallet. I ordered him some stuff online that didn't make it here in time for Christmas, so I had to give him something. It actually turned out pretty neat, a little harder to do than it looked. Took about 2 hours. But there's little pockets and an ID window and everything. Ha. it was fun. I'll have to switch compies for the photo... (here you go!)

The other gifts are still in progress... well 2 are finished, so I need a pic. I made power necklaces for my closest girlfriends (except Nell who wanted bacon). I'll come back with photos... hm I thought I was so prepared.

Cafe Nooner

2008-11-15T09:37:00.000-08:00

I don't think I have mentioned this... I was waiting until I had a photo to go with it. But, my dear friends Tom & Dimitra Chase have opened a new restaurant in old town Eureka, Cafe Nooner. Oh man it is good!

Located at the site of the old Opera Alley Bistro... in Opera Alley, sort of behind ChinChin around the corner from Ramone's. They are open from 11am - 6pm daily.

The food is really really good and interesting. Focus on local fresh ingredients, the menu is Greek & Cajun inspired but very California. So far my favorite has been the falafel... either as a kabob with red bean hummus, veggies, and pita - or on top of a big spinach & feta salad. Oh man.

Ok so that's my plug. These are very old and dear friends of mine, they've owned two other restaurants... the Vista was theirs a number of years ago, then the Afternoon Deli in Nevada City (which they sold as a thriving cafe, still open to my knowledge).

Really really great food, fresh and different. Outdoor seating too... go try it!
(there will be a grand opening in a couple weeks I'm told, you should hear something about it during their media blitz soon! woo!)

Wow

2008-11-07T09:36:00.000-08:00

Ok that was really fun and exciting... I'm still a bit stunned. Now let's keep Obama from being killed by idiots, ok?

On the other side, I'm also stunned and saddened by the passing of prop 8. I really don't get it. Look, people... nobody wants to go to your house and sleep with YOU ok? Why would my little sister's marriage affect YOURS?? Oh wait, IT WOULDN'T! Argh. And trying to say it's not discriminatory is just ... well I can't buy it.

Clearly we have a ways to go. But what an exciting time! Wooo!

(Still a few Obama shirts left in the ebay store.)

Election Day woooo!

2008-11-04T11:04:00.000-08:00

I'm practically vibrating right now... I'm so pumped up for election day! I was out the door by 10am to vote. No crowds, no problems. I even turned in Stu's absentee ballot with no issues.

Oh man, I am so full of um... a mix of excitement and fear, I almost can't stand the wait. Either way it goes, it will be a huge deal. Aaaaahhhh I just want to watch cnn all day. But alas I must dye some stuff...

Speaking of coverage, the CNN web site has some great maps of results & polls. Not only for the national election, but state issues as well. Looks like locally, the Journal and khum radio will be covering results together. North Coast Journal website will turn into an interactive live chat-blog-thing today at 4pm. I'm all over it.

Fall Projects

2008-10-14T09:34:00.000-07:00

Hey wow... I am way behind on my updates here. Jeesh. Suddenly a whirlwind of creative activity and it feels so good! Let's see how much I can summarize here...

Well, the big one right now is the mall store. That's Schatzi's Hidden Treasures near the food court center in the Bayshore Mall. This is my friend Timotek's shop full of fair trade imports from Vietnam, Ghana, Thailand... AND my own locally-dyed Bohemian Mermaid clothing and jewelry. Woo! The store just opened up and will remain through December. I'll be setting up the rest of my display Thursday. It's a beautiful store, not your usual importy stuff... an interesting variety of very high quality artisan goods. (You may have seen their store last year in old town behind the gazebo, this one is 3x the size!)

Oh, we (Timotek and I) also have some Barack Obama T-shirts for sale on ebay. Free shipping, adult and kids sizes... now is the time, my friends.

I have this great new print I want to share... but first I need to set up the new compy and figure out my shiny new camera. Woo! Finally. Stu hooked me up this weekend with a nice one, which I needed very much. I can't wait to fix up my web site with nicer quality photos! Anyway, I'll post the new print asap... the Butterfly Goddess, exactly how I'm feeling right now.

Going back a couple weeks... the Hoedown was so much fun! A little hotter than I expected, but so was the music. Holy moly. Devil Makes 3 is my new favorite band. They were amazing live. As was Laura Love, wow. We got a booth spot right by the main stage, so it was perfect. My other new favorite band is the Absynth Quintet... who I loved before, but now I really need a cd for sure. Add in David Lindley and Huckleberry Flint. We really soaked up the righteous music... goal achieved. Oh and the new Mateel venue at the SoHum Community Park is beautiful!

Ok more recently, this past weekend we attended the Steele Wines Harvest Festival in Kelseyville down on Clear Lake. Another great event, what a fun time! A beautiful venue in the middle of vineyards, wine tasting, music, and high quality crafts. The people are so friendly, the sun was shining, it was great. We sprung for a lakeside cabin for a little after hours romance... bonus!

So yeah... lots happening. First I need to figure out my cool new camera so I can share some photos here. I'll get right on that.

Sunshine and Other Good Stuff

2008-09-24T07:54:00.000-07:00

Holy smokes! Was anyone else totally amazed by the weather this weekend?? Who could have predicted so much warm sunshine, after the cold grey week we had before it? Nobody that's who. That was by far the most miraculous thing about the weekend to my mind. I couldn't shut up about it. No wind, very few clouds or fog. Party perfection.

Of course, we all know what follows the sun... everything. Tons of smiling people came out to festivize with us at the fair. It was great. I heard multiple vendors saying sales were great as well. Saw lots of friends, plenty of regular customers, made some good connections. My sweety hung around all of Sat, which was extra fun. Oh, and my friends Kulica finally played on the stage near me! They are usually on the other side of the plaza... so I got to dance a little. In my booth, between customers. lol.

Yes, another awesome North Country Fair. I'm all aglow... I took some pics of the parades, I'll post them shortly.

For this upcoming weekend, I managed to squeeze into the Humboldt Hills Hoedown at the last minute. Normally I try not to do one-day shows, and I was planning on heading to Mendo for the Casparfest... but with gas as it is, last year's Casparfest sales iffy (even though it's a Superfun event), and when I saw the music line up for the Hoedown... I started thinking differently. That's really what made my mind up, wow. It will be a long day but the music is off the hook! David Lindley, Devil Makes Three, Laura Love, Buckey Walters, Absynth.... and on and on. I'm excited. And one more taste of warm weather... mmmm...

It's time for North Country!

2008-09-16T10:26:00.000-07:00

Yes, once again I'm up to my elbows in dye baths and mermaids as I prepare for another North Country Fair. Takes place each year on the Autumnal Equinox weekend at the Arcata Plaza. That's this coming weekend by the way. A great great festival. Tons of local and area artists, great quality of crafts every year. Music and dance on 3 stages. Local food and brew. Really a showcase of local talent, everyone comes out to play. You are sure to see friends you haven't seen since last year's festival. So so much fun! And entrance is free.

Oh and the parades. Saturday at 1:00 is the Samba Parade, which is fun to watch. Steel drums and dancing women, hello. Sunday the All-Species Parade, anyone can join this one. Kids and adults in creative costumes, kinetic sculptures, and who knows what else.

On the vendor inside tip... this year for the first time (at the last minute), they required vendor liability insurance. I know at least one vendor who withdrew, hopefully it didn't impact the booth attendance too much.

I was a little late with my application, so I'll be in a new spot... in front of Moonrise Herbs on G Street. Maybe it will be sunnier there, my booth is usually a bit dark on the 8th St. side.

What will I have that's new? Hmmm... well the afore mentioned Rust color, possibly a couple other new colors since last year. I'm up to about a dozen now. Tons more little girl dresses, from 3 months to size 10. Haven't met the little girl yet who doesn't love a mermaid dress. New hats, new prints, oh these great new linen cropped pants. Oooh they are nice! And some beautiful cotton empire waist tops with lace, up to size 3x. Super flattering and cute. Probably more that I can't recall... bah, much more work to be done.

Hope to see you there. Come by and get a Bohemian Mermaid sticker!

Blues Again

2008-09-13T17:19:00.000-07:00

Hey, another fun year at the Blues by the Bay festival. Check out my sorta panoramic view from the booth. That pointy thing just to the left of the glare spot is the stage. As usual the music was awesome, the crowd fun, the sun shining. We were only a few booths from the stage in one direction, and 2 booths from the beer in the other. Perfect!

Well, the only imperfection was the wind. Wow. Super super windy, especially Sunday. I know there was at least one tent taken by the gusts, and setups were definitely shaky. And it was quite cold. But the sun shone and that was all we could really ask for.

Saw some friends too... like CJ here, who turned out to be one hellofa sales woman. Jeesh. Who knew. She's just a natural schmoozer, and cute as a button. Who can resist? We had a great time visiting with her and her hubby. I also got to see Sarah at her booth nearby... found out she and her man are expecting a baby!! yowza. They will be opening a temporary store in the Bayshore Mall from Oct-Dec and asked me to add my clothing to the mix. That should be a fun adventure...

Oh and the new color was a big hit. Sold that poncho and hat in the photo, and folks were coming by looking for them after they sold. So that's a good sign I guess. I made a fresh batch of Rust stuff for the North Country Fair next weekend. Ooooh it's getting close...

Creative Update

2008-08-27T10:56:00.000-07:00

Wait! Don't forget about Blues by the Bay in Eureka, CA this weekend!! I'll be there with tons of goods, my new color and prints... we'll all dance and have a great time in the sun. Wooo!

Hm well I'm not usually good about posting my creative updates here. So I thought I'd share my latest color adventure... Rust. I've had lots of requests for orange, so this is my version. Happily, it turned out exactly as I pictured. Rich and earthy, but with lots of orange light... a bit brighter on the rayon than the cotton.

I was a little shocked by the orange dye bath... it was practically neon orange. Barney would call it safety orange. Most of my dye colors begin with a bright under color, much like underpainting. I think it gives my fabrics an energy, some of them sort of vibrate. (or maybe I'm just a dye geek... )

Then I overdyed it with my favorite dark brown, and I'm really happy with the result.

Oh, and I have a couple new prints I've been using... um two florals. My favorite is the one I'm calling Bohemian Floral. It's actually based on a traditional Indian design. I really like how the shapes interact with the textures of the material. Especially in this color combo... although I might be alone on this one. ha.

I'm planning on finishing up my new Swimming Mermaids prints for the blues show too... oooh they are pretty. Hope to see you there!

Blues Baby!

2008-08-11T21:49:00.000-07:00

Oh yessss, it's almost time for another Blues by the Bay, coming up on Labor Day weekend. Wooo! It's gonna be great. We had such a fun time last year... and this year my booth is much closer to the stage. Oh I'm excited alright. I just love a good music festival. If you haven't been, do it. It's really a family event... lots of dancing, food, local brew. Right on the water. People paddle their kayaks right up to it.

Looks like there are more vendors than last year... of course, crafts have only been included for the past 2 years. I'm hoping their move to a holiday weekend will bring in more folks. And that the weather is nice. Woo!

Meanwhile, the Buddy Brown Blues Festival in Blue Lake is also coming up on um... this Saturday, the 16th. I might need to go check that out as well. It's nice to be at a festival and not working, from time to time.

South Beach Gallery

2008-08-05T09:55:00.000-07:00

As I believe I mentioned a while back... I did a nice art & wine festival in Gold Beach, Oregon, where I met Mary from the South Beach Gallery. A very nice lady who now carries some hand-dyed Bohemian Mermaid pretties in her shop. Entire colorful outfits of ponchos with matching pants or jackets with matching tanks and skirts.

So if you're in the area, check out her gallery. South Beach Gallery on hwy 101 in Gold Beach. Wooo!

Another 4th

2008-07-09T08:32:00.000-07:00

What a weekend! I took my little clothing booth to Mt. Shasta for the big 3-day 4th of July festival. It's gorgeous up there and the show was fun. Barney's been working in the bay area for the past few months, so it was great to hang out with him and camp. My friend Doug the whale guy was right behind me, visiting with him was a nice bonus.

Most notably though, was the drive across 299 and all the fires still going on there. Wow. I mean it's sad enough to hear all the reports... but seeing all the fire crews, big base camps, and thick smoke really brought things to life. In a few spots, fire spread all the way down to the river and was in view from the highway. Heartbreaking.

But, thankfully, the smoke in the Mt. Shasta area cleared for the weekend and the weather was beautiful. Now I'm preparing to head down to Mendocino for the Mendo Art Center's summer craft fair. Time to get busy dyeing...

Now in a store near you!

2008-06-27T12:00:00.000-07:00

Finally! I have put my hand-dyed clothing into some local stores. Yippee!

The Emerald is located in Arcata at the corner of Alliance and Spear (in the Westwood Hood, where I lived for many years). This is a fairly new shop, filled with all locally handmade goods... like jewelry, T-shirts, Bohemian Mermaid skirts and tanks, sculpture and more. She's still adding artist, so I'm sure there will be plenty more interesting things to see. They also have a pool table and plans for a coffee bar. So, when you are picking up your burrito at the taco truck there, go in and check it out. Gorgeous murals on the walls too! um mermaids! helloooo!

Conscious Home is located in McKinleyville in the Miller Business Park, behind Miller Farms. A great little shop full of natural goods for the home, foods, and a large selection of natural fiber clothing... now including Bohemian Mermaid skirts. Woo!

I'm sooo happy to have my goods in these great local shops! Go check them out!!

Let's move on shall we?

2008-06-14T10:03:00.000-07:00

I'm sick of looking at that heart post... now let's move things along. How about a craft show eh?

Well, since my hospital stay, I've had to cancel 2 more festivals I had lined up. Add that to all the previous van misadventures and hm... not good. I'm thinking this recent episode has to be the grand finale of all these problems the past few months and I'm ready to get back on track!

So, next we have the Nor Cal Blues Festival in Fair Oaks, which is a burb of Sacramento. This should be fun! It's relatively small, I think, just one stage... possibly akin to our local Blues by the Bay in size. Which means a mellow setup and some hang-out time watching blues. Sounds great to me.

It's close to my dad's house, so I'll be visiting with him as well. He's been home with a smushed foot for the past 4 months, so he could probably use some company and lovin.

Also, my friend Leisa wants to host a home party for me while I'm down there. Have her friends over for a bbq to peruse my Mermaid goods in her home. That will be fun too!

So I'm back on the road! Wooo!

(ok, barney and dad and everyone else I know have been expressing concern about my abilities to take this trip, but I am confident. My strength is better each day and the docs said I can get back to work as soon as I feel able. No sweat, folks... but it's nice to be loved.)

Ready for this?

2008-06-10T13:40:00.000-07:00

I don't think I was... lol. A little over a week ago I had a heart attack. No kidding.

I'm a little embarrassed to say so... I guess because it sounds so weird, or like I live an unhealthy life or something. Not so. Aside from the blockage that caused this, doctors say I'm perfectly healthy.

And lucky in so many ways.

It's pretty rare for someone my age (under 40) to go through this, and often women have odd symptoms that are misdiagnosed. Not me, luckily. My chest hurt, my left hand went tingly, I started hyperventilating and sweating. I had a good idea of what was probably happening, unbelievable as it was.

And I was at home, only a couple miles from St. Joe's. Lucky.

I called 911 before I could pass out... with nobody knowing where I was or that anything was wrong. Lucky.

I'm recovering quickly and plan to back to work next week. Lucky lucky me! :-)

Fun times...

2008-05-19T21:05:00.000-07:00

Well the art & wine thingy in Gold Beach was so much fun! Ok... there were mishaps, but first the positive. Gold Beach is gorgeous! Right on the ocean, as was the Event Center on the Beach, aka Curry County Fairgrounds. And the people were SO so friendly, wonderful crafts and wine vendors. I just had a great time. Not only that, but I was approached by a nice lady who owns a shop in town, South Beach Gallery on 101... and she'll be carrying some of my nicer clothing items from now on. Woo! I really made some great new friends and business contacts. Fun fun.

The downside (and I'm a little embarrassed to add this) was that Shiny Van broke again. Seriously. Barney came up all the way from the bay area to help me tow it back home. Again. I know... ridiculous.

Well, the good news is that a) I believe the correct diagnosis has finally been made and is on its way to being fixed, and b) after a little sit-down with the lot we bought it from (used & 'as-is'), they seem to be amiable (or at least willing) to help with some of the costs we have incurred since buying it. SIX weeks ago. Especially now that we figured out the van has been in a front end collision, poorly repaired and that's the cause of our problems. Uh huh. Don't make me bring my hippy friends to picket your lot, dude.

And again, the situation did offer some needed Barney time. I wouldn't have seen him for a couple weeks otherwise... so, you know. Overall I'll call the weekend a success. ha.