Wait....what?!

No. I am not dead.

Rather than try to catch up on all the events of the past year (yup...it's been that long, folks), I will assure you that I am still among the living and the crafty.

Guess who else call herself a crafter now....

Things have begun to get interesting in the craft room.

More to come....soon.

xo

Lovers

Drop what you are doing this instant and trot on over to The Shooting Gallery.

We had some professional pics done of sweet Joan and .....*sigh*.....they are beyond dreamy.

Dionne is the talent in charge and you would be a fool not to book her as your photographer for every important occasion in your lifetime.

So browse through her blog and have your mind completely blown. I'll be busy getting misty and fuzzy-hearted over these photos of my daughter.

xo

September? Seriously?

Um...where did August go?
No matter, really.
Where did we leave off? Oh yes. The Shadow Art Fair.

What fun!! I have never seen such a packed craft house! We were there from ten in the morning until one o'clock the next morning. Intense, you say? Yes...but so well worth it.

My new set-up. My dreamiest photo moment yet.
My mouth is huge.

The crowd of fellow crafters were so talented and super friendly. I saw some familiar faces from some of the Handmade Detroit events that I've done, so that put my little nervous heart at ease. There was such diversity in the crowd! God, I love the Ann Arbor area. I had a chance to talk to some really interesting people and meet a couple repeat customers face to face.

My little brother Shaun was my wingman for the morning until husband Clint came to help me out for the evening. I had been a total idiot and volunteered for a half table (which I will never do again, for sure) and we were squished into a little three foot space. But...how could I complain? At least I was there and business was brisk, baby! We sold about half of what we brought with us...success, bitches!

The crowd...blurry, but insane!

Clint at the Roos Roast booth...again.

Baby Shaunie...excited face.

Highlights include:

Selling alongside Taryn from Talking Squid, Sean Hages and Thomas of St. Joshua Norton Press. (Also making trades and purchases from these fine craftspeople as well.)

Seeing the loves of my life, sweet Marcy from All Things Grow, Jill from Barrel of Monkeys and Wei from Wei's Open Secret. Craft love. *sigh*

Working alongside my lil brother, who didn't flinch at all when people asked him if he was the artist who made the brooches. (ha!) and my real-life lover, Clint, who has to be the best, most genuine salesperson ever.

Coffee from Roos Roast saved my life several times throughout the day.

Shadow comes twice a year, baby, so apply!

I have to admit, I have not been craftin' it up as of late. My hand went all bunk on me and I had to get some shots to get it going again. Plus...just general summer laziness and air-conditioned hermitry have prevailed. I have applied to be a part of the Detroit Urban Craft Fair once more and am awaiting word on whether or not I've made the cut. My husband is planning on applying too...which makes me pretty giddy. He's a extremely handsome pinstriper and has really become quite good at his craft (I am his harshest critic, to put it gently). It would be sooo exciting and *cute* if we could do this thing together. Aw. Love. My good friend Becca has also applied...so we are all keeping our fingers crossed. When we know the verdict, you'll know soon after. xo

Press

What?!
This is amazing. The Proper Peach was named one of sweet Devon's favorite vendors at the Shadow Art Fair. Find the article at her Viscous Platypus blog.....
Hooray!

Shadow Art Fair

Watch this video amazingness by Mike Ambs. He really is talented, for sure.
My beavers make an appearance and I wore a mustache disguise so no one would know it was me....

More info on how the Shadow Art Fair changed my life coming soon.

1 day. 40 artists. 9,000 gallons of beer. from mike ambs ☂ on Vimeo.

Summer so far....

I will readily admit that I hate summer.
I mean, the idea of summer is nice...I guess. It's just that I truly detest hot weather and/or being hot and /or sweating. Uck. When we moved into our house, I gave Clint 2 days to get central air installed. Being the good husband that he is (and fearing for his safety), it was up and running the next day. He knows that I am serious about my air-conditioning....and he knows what a miserable bitch I am when I get hot. I cannot stand it when the husband comments "It's so nice out. You should be doing something outside". Really? Like what? Go jogging or something equally ridiculous? No thanks.
Ironically, my daughter lives for the outdoors. Particularly, anywhere there isn't shade....like the park or a pool or the driveway. I imagine most kids are the same, wanting to go play and frolic and whatnot. *sigh*
I have been doing my very best to not be selfish and get my daughter all the fun, carefree, outdoor playtime she desires. Luckily for us all, this summer has been tolerable here in Michigan and I can partake in playgrounds and sprinklers without crying softly. I will do anything for sweet Joan...even if it means sweating until my eyes burn with dripping SPF 50 and risking blistering sunburns.
Now, that's love.
I have been able to sneak away to my a/c paradise on the account that the Shadow Art Fair is only 18 days away and I need to get crack-a-lackin.
I've made the decision that I will be veering away from my line-up of goods and trying my hand at some new things when this show is done. It's not that I don't love my stuff....it just gets tedious making batches of the same items for each craft show and that's not cool. I need to get some fresh goodies in my Etsy shop and start experimenting. I'll be sure to post some pics of works in progress. Until then, photos of our glorious summer and my indoor activities.

Trike-ridin' gangsta.

Ukulele playing. I'm trying to teach her "Lady" by Styx

Big chillin' in her pool. I blew this up all by myself. And then almost fainted.

Sexy summer pic of the hubby.

Some flowers for the indoors since I can't bring myself to go outside and enjoy them.

My workstation every evening. Here are a ton of brooch pieces. You should see the scissor callous I have created on my hand. Disgusting and amazing!

Such great summer colors... you would almost think I liked the season.

One of many 'to-do' list for the Shadow Art Fair.

Ooh! I almost forgot to mention that one of our huge house projects was finished! We refinished all of our hardwood floors ! Take a look at that before pic of the dining room and you'll understand why I was so relieved! There was carpet on top of linoleum that had been glued to the hardwood floor. Big suck....it was a papery mess that we lived with until we couldn't stand it a minute longer.

Before.

After.

We polyurethaned the living room and left it a natural oak color. But the dining room! Wheee! We painted it aqua. Trust me...it's amazing. I'll post photos of that wonderfulness soon.

Hoping to see you at the Shadow Art Fair: July 18 12pm-12am at the Corner Brewery in Ypsilanti.

This made my day.

I will be there and I'll most likely be square.
See you there lovers!

More info to come, I promise! Taking a time out to enjoy some summer fun...which is mostly indoors since I have a passionate hatred for the heat.

Hearts and hearts and hearts.