sew, a needle pulling thread

I went for a stroll the other day and came home with a sewing machine. I told you I would. The lessons, however, will have to wait. The saleswoman (Angela at Cloverdale Sewing Centre is awesome!) showed me the basics - wind a bobbin, thread the machine and away I went. My first project was this advent tree (does sewing paper count?) for Stella. The holiday issue of MS shows how to make these tags. I used 2" wide ribbon sewn onto card stock I cut in a tag shape. It makes a nice little pocket for a chocolate loonie.

That project went pretty quickly so I sewed these cards using scraps of felt. It brought to mind a saying that goes something like "he who is good with a hammer sees everything as a nail." But they're cute, right?

and the winner is...

Can you imagine winning $15,000 worth of nursery gear? I think I'd keep the velvet rope up at my house. The winner of the Savvy Mom Win a Dream Nursery Contest I mentioned back in October was announced the other day, she's from Oakville, and the lucky gal takes home all the loot shown in the pics above. Eye spy with my little eye a few things from Honeybunch: a birdie mobile, knit cowboy booties, a Japanese nightlight. That's a Mally leather bib dangling from the dresser (I cannot say enough about these bibs, especially now we're in the mushy pea phase here. They are total genius.) and that cute little blue club chair is in my shop too. I think that's an Oeuf crib. Nice. And where did they find a glider that's not covered in bonnet-wearing geese fabric?

It's a lovely room, no? But I'm biased because it's similar to Henry's (which he's now actually sleeping in after a ridiculous eight month sojourn in my bed). I used Farrow and Ball's Blue Grey on the walls. It's a gorgeous not quite blue, not quite grey hue that's really smart and fresh. Natural linen drapery panels from good old IKEA: we cut off the tab top for a cleaner finish and I'm planning to add an 18" band of print fabric to the bottom for interest (one day). The stylish glider eluded me once again, so I opted for a brown leather club chair and ottoman. I reused a lovely white and walnut change table from Stella's room and mounted pages from an antique ABC book in simple frames I painted white. Like Stella's nursery, the whole room cost less than $500. Which is not to say I wouldn't jump for joy at $15,000 worth of free tack, I'm just saying it can be done. If the lighting outside improves I'll take a few photos of Henry's room and post them later.

friday!

Hmm. Doesn't have quite the same feeling when you work from home, but what the heck. It's Friday! And it's my fifth wedding anniversary! What a busy five years: one lovely husband, two scrumptious kids, three houses, five jobs (between us) and one new business.

But there's no time to be tired - I've got one hectic weekend ahead of me: tomorrow is Holly Jolly, hosted by my talented and very creative sister-in-law (I married well in more than one sense). I'll be there with BabyLegs on (including some brand new styles not in the shop). They'll be 2/$30, so stop on by if you're in the neighbourhood. (psst: the handmade truffles from TruffleTree are not to be missed)

Feeling a bit Rip Van Winkle-ish, having come back from surf and sun to...full blown Christmas. Most houses on the street are in full regalia, Jingle Bell Rock is blasting in Loblaws, and, my God, were those snow flurries yesterday morning? My gourds look a little silly now.
So while everyone is feeling optimistic and happy and by gosh almost Christmas-y, let me point out a few great indie shopping sites.

Indie Collective is a great place to start shopping for handmade. You'll find lovely (inexpensive too) jewelery, things for your house, pretty purses and wallets, cufflinks and laptop bags and of course, baby and kid stuff - where you'll find me listed, of course!

For my fellow Torontonians, Toronto Craft Alert is an amazing resource. They list all the best local designers - small and large - as well as upcoming events. The Church of Craft's Pedal to the Metal 2 December 2nd at the Rivoli will change any lingering perceptions that crafty means uncool, lumpy macrame tea cozies. Think 40 designers of everything from zines to art to jewelery to t-shirts and 5 bands jamming all afternoon while you shop.

If you like to read as well as shop, head to Delightful Blogs for a quick pitstop. It'll point you in the direction of people who create good stuff and write about it too. The DIY-crafting section is the place to head.

Kaboodle lets you save what you find online (or offline, I suppose), organize into wish lists and share favourites so everyone in your extended family can see what's on the kids' lists. Handy. Here's an example.

Friday. Vintage spotting

I've been eyeballing this canister at the vintage store down the street all week. Finally gave in. It's our last day and that's no time to dilly dally. It's cute, no? I also spotted the '50s telephone table - not crazy about the fabric but that's an easy fix. It would be great in my little bungalow entrance way. And I just might go back to an old school phone with a spirally cord after several failed attempts to find a cordless with decent sound and reception.
And I love the little matching fabric pouches for the vintage table linens. Smart. I'm a such a sucker for ric rac. My post-vacation resolution includes taking a sewing class before Christmas. I want to make something similar for the shop.

kick up yer heels

The girls at Skirt! magazine included our cutie patootie cowboy booties in their holiday gift line up. Yippee!

Got the latest e-newsletter from weewelcome today. The big feature is this Mama Mingle event. Like the graphics. I like the idea - it can be a long, lonely year off if you don't have any friends on mat leave with you - though the term "hip" used to describe mothers and their offspring makes me shudder. Too much pressure to have the right bag, the right stroller, the non-stained outfit. Stuff I stopped caring about with baby two. Besides, I was totally reminded about how I joined the WeeWelcome forum back in April, trying to find some west-end moms or dads to hang with this spring. No one replied to my posting. Not a single person. Isn't that sad? It brought every sitting-alone-in-the-school-cafeteria humiliation roaring back.

But I'm putting myself out there again - but in a different way. When I read Shannon's post yesterday it made me yearn for a similar group in Toronto. Like-minded folks who are balancing young kids with a young business and want to get together every now and then to talk shop, compare notes, share resources. Non-competitive and totally supportive, of course!

So if you're interested, give me a holler: nicole(at)honey-bunch.com.

speaking of handmade goodies

I'll be at Holly Jolly on the 25th of November. My sister in law organizes this annual craft show that features a dozen or so jewelry, card and craft makers. I may bring a few BabyLegs, if I have enough stock (does every tot in Canada now have at least 5 pairs or what?) but I will definitely be manning the table of delicious and beautiful gingerbread cookies. Stop by and say hello if you're in Bloor West Village.

Technically I'm on vacation. But the wireless Internet works in the lanai. And by the pool. So what's a self-employed girl to do? I've got two things on my mind this week: illustrations for the new website (coming February) and Christmas prezzies. After a lengthy flirtation with modern, I'm once again loving crafty, handmade things. Pining for them, in fact. And so I've decided to only buy handmade and independent this year. It makes me happy.

So far I bought these pretty cards printed with soy ink on paper embedded with wild flower seeds, so you can actually plant the card in the garden when you're done admiring it. Isn't that clever? And this terribly cute bird made from vintage wool boucle from here.

I like to think that what my own handiwork lacks in polish is made up in enthusiasm, so I'm going to attempt these silly embroidered vegetables on a set of tea towels for a friend.

One concession to the non-handmade holiday, is the Tord Boontje collection at, yes, Target. I picked up the last two packs of the lovely laser cut paper garland pictured above ($5.99 each) and some possibly garish garland I might regret. Along with the jade green eye shadow duo. I simply cannot contain myself at that store. I hope it never comes to Canada.

gone fishin'

We're on holiday. We come back to this beach (our third year now) because this is what it looks like when it's busy. Seriously. It is a lost-in-time kind of place.

Whenever I feel guilty that I'll probably never take my kids to Disney World, I must remind myself how relaxed and happy Stella is here. We get to see her real personality (she's amazing and funny) when the usual distractions aren't present. I love that a 3-year old can be this contemplative, given the chance.

crafty, crafty, crafty

The only nice thing about having a cold is luxuriating in bed rest. Fortunately Henry is happy to just be by my side, whether that's jetting to the post office, wrapping orders, or sending endless email. So the arrival today of my highly anticipated copy of the Crafter's Companion meant we could hunker down in bed, he with a few favourite toys, me with my new book.

I don't sew or knit or embroider (I really wish I did. Maybe one day I will.) but the talented and creative folk whose work is featured here really inspire me. I buy their things - my recent purchase of gift tags and iron-on transfers came from here - and read their blogs. Occasionally, I get to sell their things in my shop.

The book profiles 17 crafty types from the US, Europe, Australia, and even a fellow Torontonian. The photos are beautiful, the projects adorable and clever and witty. Best of all, each artist contributed a pattern so there are are 17 great things to make. If I ever learn to sew, embroider or knit.

boo!

Despite an inconvenient head cold that left me woozy, pumpkins were carved, costumes made and loot bags assembled. Normally I'd advise against climbing a ladder with legs shaking and vision blurred, but it was Halloween after all, and there were bats to hang and shredded tulle to pin to the veranda. I might be a teeny tiny bit of a stage mom.

Despite the thoroughly unimpressed expression, Henry in fact had a good time making the rounds. Someone thought he was a snowball. Those are lamb ears, people, lamb ears. Pretty cute, I thought.