hands. shop. vanishings.

a) i would like to thank handmodel.ca for supplying me with some kick-ass photos.
b) store news! i have a new slick shop via big cartel. check it out.
c) as you have probably noticed, i have been quite absent lately. there is lots of work and family stuff to deal with at the moment. i hope to be back in the new year (and hopefully a bit more relaxed).

crunch time.

if a messy work space indicates a troubled mind then what does the above picture say about me? that heap indicated the dishevelled state of all of my home, mind and schedule these days in preparation for the impending city of craft weekend. at least i have been getting lots done, though!

there will be both new and old stuff on my table for the show, too. i just got some long out-of-print button sets returned from consignment in rural saskatchewan, so there will even be some rare old chestnuts on offer.

speaking of which, i should get back to everything!

see you on the weekend.

city on the horizon.

city of craft 2011 poster by sandi falconer

this week i am all city of craft all the time - organizing, plotting, planning, emailing, blogging and, of course, making stuff to stock my own table. if you don't come out next weekend you are missing some serious magic!

my imperfections are your deals.

who likes deals? you. who makes a lot of mistakes? me.

i whipped up this batch of super deals especially for tomorrow's handmade holiday show. if you don't mind the odd ink smudge, fluff bit or prototype, then this is the deal for you. get 'em while they last . these packs are a perfect way to secretly cheap out on your stocking stuffers or office gifts (just remove packaging).

socks appeal.

these socks are troopers. also ground zero for my experiments in various darning techniques. i thought i would share these evolutionary images of their continued frankensteinification.

happy friday!

a handmade holiday.

this weekend will be my first fair of the winter season - a handmade holiday. it will also be my second-to-last, as i scaled back considerably this year to make time to work on running city of craft.

run by the amazing mike, bianca and jordy at kid icarus there isn't enough time or space to express how great this show will be (or how great they are as artists and humans). just check out the vendor list if you like to be wowed.

just to keep things interesting, i have set aside a few products to be fair exclusives at each show. for a handmade holiday there will be deep discount multi-packs of buttons and some of my mystery loot bags (while supplies last).

plus, i will have my all my button sets (including the newest ones) available at both shows!

handmade holiday arts & crafts show
saturday, december 3rd 2011
11:00am – 6:00pm
st. stephen-in-the-fields
103 bellevue ave
(college and bellevue)
$2.00
$5.00 with a mystery bag
12 and under free

sweater weather cometh (or time to fill in holes).

i am just about to head out to make a mountain of pom poms, but before i do i thought i would quickly share last night's mending project. above is a favourite woollen sweater vest that had gotten a little chomped by moths while we were away this summer. not wanting it to unravel completely i laid into it with some pretty lace weight yarns. expanding upon the swiss darning technique i have become some entranced by, i was extra proud in this case to actually mend holes (swiss darning is usually just use for reinforcement or decoration). i don't currently have time to explain the whole process here but basically, i made loops where there were none and pinched them with my fingers until i came back through on the next row up. thankfully, these particular moths were not too hungry. i also reinforced the weakest, most eaten parts by doubling over some sections (in a different colour for reasons of pure aesthetics). i say if your mending can't blend entirely, make it show!

aitor says it looks like a video game from the 80's.