Craft shopping - part 4

I bought this little animal at fern animals back in April. I have to add it to my Craft shopping post because I think it may be my all time favourite item found on etsy.

this is the side view with his hood down

His name is Max and he hangs out in our kitchen under the orchid plant. Looking after it. For such a small animal he exudes a kind of calm confidence. Something about his stance maybe.

Max pictured with a fork to show scale

I love the way fern animals creations are all tiny and perfect and showcase Ashley's lovely choices of fabrics and materials beautifully. When I received mine it was lovingly packed with little extras tucked in the box and I was amazed at how my animal was so well-made.

I suggest you rush over to the fern animals shop right now and pick up one of Ashley's adorable creations. And visit her blog for updates.

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Crafty shopping - part 3

This year I managed to make it out to the vintage sale at the CNIB. I first discovered this on the Toronto Craft Alert blog, the people that link us to all the local crafty goodness.

This sale is in a large room with dealers set up in a kind of square so you can walk around in a loop to see everything easily. The content included a lot of vintage clothes, jewellery and textiles and some craft supplies such as vintage thread, buttons, patterns and fabric. I ended up going around four times because it was hard to make decisions about what to buy and also very easy to miss things the first time around. Or in my case, the third.

In the end I bought three items. The first was a small wooden case for needles that cost $5. The second was some pale blue ribbon with flowers also for $5 (pictured at the top of this post).
The last item was a piece of feedsack cloth with an elegant black and grey print for $15. This was actually from a seller I see every time I go to the Sunday Market in the middle of the back wall.

I think it was fun, and the $8 admission fee goes to a good cause. Now I just have to decide what to make with my new ribbon and fabric...

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Crafty shopping - part 2

This item was also found in a new online art/craft shop. This one is a beautiful little art print by the talented Gemma Correll purchased from Bakers Dozen. I found this shop after visiting Fieldguided who is also featured in the shop.
This one is still available if you'd like the same print (from a limited edition). The bubble is made from actual tissue paper. I just have to find the perfect frame for this little treat. For now it's perched on my studio shelves for inspiration.

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Crafty shopping - part 1

Recently I've bought a few little handmade things, and they're so nice I thought I would share some links. The first is a lovely apple pincushion made by the talented Nicole from Craftapalooza. I was tempted by the kit, but then again I only really needed one, so I splurged and bought one ready made with adorable fabrics.

So in Nicole's new shop you can buy the pattern, kits that come with the fabric and other materials needed to make your own apple pincushion or one already made - even the same one pictured here.

My favourite part is the clever idea of a having the leaf on top for your needles. That way they don't get lost in the pincushion. I keep most of mine in a needle book, of course, but sometimes I like to just have a pincushion with a needle or two on hand.
The shelves in my studio are getting pretty crowded. Partly because I can't resist buying pretty ceramic planters whenever I see them! The new yellow fan shaped one is from the Sunday Market at St. Lawrence. I love it so much...

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Backpacks

The front. This one is made with Mameyakko fabric SOLD

Ahh, just when I was getting used to posting more often our internet stopped working! Well it's back again but of course living without the internet makes you realize how much you rely on it to stay connected.

The side. This one is made with Joel Dewberry fabric from the Ginseng collection

So one of my jobs the last couple of weeks was making some backpacks. I had designed one for myself because I just wasn't finding ones I liked in stores. And as much as I like messenger bags and other styles sometimes you just have to carry around a big bunch of stuff and the backpack is a lot easier on your back!

I had a request after I had sold the only backpack I had in my etsy shop for me to make another one. I decided to make a few so that I could try to streamline the work a bit. These things are really time consuming! Even just cutting out all the pieces took ages.

The inside. This one is made with Amy Butler fabric from the Lotus line

Luckily me-in-the-past had done an amazingly helpful thing for me-in-the-present which was create pattern pieces for the backpacks along with a long list of the steps it takes to make them. Phew! So now they're done and I'm putting them the shop... except for the one that was chosen by the person who requested one in the first place.

You may have already noticed, but I've added a widget on my sidebar so you can see what's in my etsy shop. This way you know when there's anything in the shop and don't have to visit it when it's empty. See, I'm trying to keep up with new blogging things!

The back. This one is made with Amy Butler fabric from the Midwest Modern line

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