Happy Etsyversary to me.

So, it was a year on October 28, oops, I'm late! Who'd a thunk I'd be up to 311 sales a year later?? Not me. That's why I posted an adorable picture of a kitten. It's unexpected, just like my success.
(Just kidding about the kitten symbolism, I really just felt like posting a cute kitten).
Anyways, Etsy is still giving me that teen-age feeling and I love it now just as much as I did a year ago. Actually, more.
In other news, I'm smack-dab in the middle of screen-printing 700 business cards, so....bye!!

Cable Knit

Wow! That's a cable-knit deer head. I found it at erachel.etsy.com, and then remembered how much I love cable knit. Oh, who am I kidding, no one could forget about the glory of cable knit.

Scarf from Urban Outfitters

Tights from Stockingirl.com

Sweater from freepeople.com


Wrist Warmers from moolightbaker.etsy.com

So, there you have it. I lerve cable knit.
AND...in case you were wondering, I finished an astounding 62 batik scarves in the last three weeks. I just overnight mailed them to my favorite dry cleaners in North Dakota this morning so I can pick them up when I'm there over the weekend. It may sound strange to ship things out to have them dry-cleaned; it may sound even stranger to send them to a cleaners in a small town in North Dakota. Anywho, I trust them with my silk, and...it's half the cost of any cleaners in Minneapolis, so...
Tomorrow: Gocco and house cleaning!

Happy Halloween, and....Cuteable hearts me; I heart them back.

So, it's Halloween weekend, and you know what that means: the Leprechaun movies can come out and play. Maybe something sounds weird about that sentence. Maybe it's the fact that Leprechauns are synonymous with gold, rainbows, and overall joviality. Not this Leprechaun. Nope, he's a biter with a shoe fetish and a severe four-leaf clover allergy. But he is pretty jovial.
We also watched Leprechaun 4: Leprechaun in Space. I don't endorse 4, but I will say that there's some pretty awesome light saber action. So, Happy Halloween!

In other news, how delighted was I to find myself featured on the indie-hip website cuteable? Pretty darn delighted.
Here is a recreation of what the post looked like (or you could just go to the post here):




It's the kind of site you poke around on for way too long. I poked around and found this charming necklace from new etsy seller BuzzBuzzDesigns.
So, go poke around!

Jill Bliss and Gocco

Ah, Jill Bliss, how I intend to buy your artwork! I first encountered Jill Bliss design when I bought this stationery set:

It's a really adorable stationery set for grown-ups that comes with stickers! I got that Lisa Frank feeling when I saw it. Only without all the Hot pink and glitter. The set features the "Native Flowers" series, which I was pleased to learn are available in poster form from Jill's site, blissen.com
I really adore her simultaneously simple and complicated style. I plan on decorating with it someday.
Anywho, what got me thinking of Jill Bliss today was this article I read about gocco in the NY times magazine. Like many a gocco article, it left me a bit mystified, but it was an article nonetheless, and worth reading. I still feel so uncertain about the future of the gocco; if the gocco was a cute boy, I would not date him for fear he would dump me. Also, I'm married.
So, the article mentions the website savegocco.com and then tells me Jill Bliss started the website! Could she be any cooler? Now that my blog post has come full circle, I'm going to go batik.

Poppies have Infiltrated my Basement

You could be next!

Letterpress!

Letterpress Cards designed by me and printed by Kseniya Thomas of Thomas Printers. Available today in both of our shops!!

Where have I been?

I've been soooo busy doing custom orders and trying to make stuff in between! Not that I'm complaining. I'm actually quite pleased with the situation.
But alas, I've had no time for my blog. So tonight, I present you with these tiny envelopes from crye.etsy.com
Why tiny envelopes? Why not!? I love the vintage paisley paper she used. You could put your business cards in them. They could be gift tags. They could hold miniature love letters. You could put a single key in one. Then, when you ask someone to watch your cats while you're away, you can present said key in said tiny envelope and watch their inhibitions about cat sitting melt away. Ah, bewitching paisley.
And...if you're feeling really crafty and pumped about tiny envelopes, you can buy tiny envelope templates, here's some from paper source:

And, possibly the coolest thing I've learned in the last month: You can make your own envelope glue! So, you glue most of the envelope together with a glue stick, but when you get to the end, you can't glue the flap shut. Instead, you apply this awesome envelope glue that you MADE to the flap, let it dry, and it becomes a "lick-able" envelope. I mean, you lick it, and then it sticks. Is there anything more brilliant?
Envelope Glue Recipe
So, back to work now. I'll be unveiling some new card designs tomorrow or Wednesday, depending on when I get the photos taken. I collaborated with letterpress artist Kseniya Thomas of Thomas Printers on some really lovely letterpress cards. Bet you can't wait to see that.

Kind of a Boring Post.

So, I really like the rounded corner effect on my cards. I like it so much, that against my own better judgment, I offer it on all my custom cards. Then, when I get an order for 70 invites, I calmly print and trim the cards, set up a TV tray in my living room, grab a bottle of chilled beer and my teeny tiny mcgill craftivity corner punch and get to work.
Sure, the mcgill punch is fine for rounding the corners of, say 5 cards. But 70? And don't get me wrong, it's not the fault of this tiny eight dollar device; no, it's me, I'm abusing it.
After several months worth of cardstock trimming, it jams, it drags, it catches. Sometimes I have to actually step on it, using all my body weight to get the punch to go down. For one corner!
The solution:

Heavy Duty Corner Rounder!
Yeah, it cuts almost a half inch stack at once. But it costs $139.00. I think ironically, I may have to corner punch my way to punching freedom (you know, by making more orders with my current punch...). I'm not sure if that was ironic or not.

New Awesome Etsy Seller: Wiksten

So, this little write-up is probably kind of a tease, because I found this awesome new seller, but she has no items in her shop. They all sold. That's how awesome this stuff is. Check out the photos, I think you'll have to agree. I adore all the peter pan collars and GENTLE babydoll-ness, some of the baby doll these days is getting too pushy. Er, poufy. But not this babydoll, this babydoll is where it's at. You can look through her sold items, at least, and maybe she'll still take a custom order, who knows.
Oh, and it's called Wiksten (clicking on the photos will take you to the shop), made by Jenny Gordy, and here's her blog:
wiksten blog




P.S. It's the last day of my blog sale!

Blog Sale! 10.1.07 through 10.4.07

Yeah, sale! Also, here's some new personalized note sets I just rolled out:




They have my name on them, but if you ordered them ,they'd have your name on them. Ah, customization....