Apron Belle

 
This is the lovely Emily modeling her finished apron on Tuesday. Because she was the only student in the class we were able to do a few customizations that turned out really cute. She chose to add a contrasting ruffle that added the perfect touch. We did this apron all without a written pattern. This gave us the opportunity to really learn how the parts go together to make a finished product. It also enabled us to customize the size and length to Emily's measurements.

Now that I've been at this for a month or so I'm seeing the need to adjust things a bit. I'm going to be changing the way classes are scheduled and possibly lowering the maximum number of students per class. This will give me more flexibility in what classes I can offer and provide more personalized service for students. Plus with physical space limited, it will make it more comfortable for all of us. Stay tuned for changes. I'll post them here, in the newsletter and have new flyers in the store.

Christmas in July!

         

Way back in March before I even had any real furniture here in the store I met with my Moda Fabrics rep. She had all the new holidays lines for 2008. It was really hard choosing because I had never done this before and they were all so cool. They've started to arrive this week and I'm thrilled with all of them.

To get everyone in the mood for holiday crafting I've decided to put all these new fabulous fabrics on sale for the month of July! They are regularly priced at $8.99/yard and for the month of July they will be marked down 25%!!! Stock up now and get ready for gift giving and decorating early.

In the news!

Last week I was thrilled to receive calls from two local papers asking to come take some pictures and interview me. I'm afraid I got overexcited and rambled too much but the articles turned out just fine.

Read them here:
TribLocal
Courier News

I was interrupted while typing this to talk with a reporter from the Daily Herald! Nice.

I stopped at a couple places Sunday afternoon after we got home from the airport to look for copies of the Courier News but had no luck. If any of you blog readers get this paper and still have Sunday's edition I'd love to see the article in print. I don't think the TribLocal article made it into the print edition.

Signing off.

Just a quick note to let everyone know that I won't be here tomorrow through Sunday. Hence, the store will be closed until Tuesday, June 24.

I should lie and say that I have some super-duper-craft-and-business related stuff to attend to but the truth is that I'm flying to Vegas tomorrow afternoon to meet Mr. Mess and some friends for a weekend of fun and sun. Yeah, about that, Steve informed me yesterday that it has been around 107° there all week (he's been there since Sunday for a conference) but the a/c is set so high everywhere that I'll probably need a cardigan or shawl. Nice. Back in January when this trip was proposed that sounded delightful.

I see a couple days of lounging in a shaded, mist-cooled, poolside cabana in my very near future. Oh and SPAMALOT! (You know I will be saying the lines along with the actors.)

I will try not to fart in your general direction.

Crafts for Boys

This may be the coolest thing I've seen all summer! Over at Skip to My Lou they have a fabulous tutorial on how to make a Duct Tape Bullwhip!

I'm frequently asked if I have craft classes and activities for boys. I always answer in the affirmative because I think boys can and should sew, knit, paint, make books, felt, etc. etc. But in all honesty, it isn't always easy to find projects that would interest boys. Add to this the fact that I'm a Mom of two girls who grew up in the shadow of two older sisters. I do have an older brother but he is 10 years older than me so I don't really remember him as a kid. So I'm stuck in a no (wo)man's land of having no clue what boys like to do and make.

I would really appreciate any ideas, links, books, or suggestions to help me add to my crafty repertoire some boy friendly projects and activities.

Beau Brummell*

 

Saturday I had the pleasure of teaching Addie and Miriam how to make a custom tie for Father's Day. Addie's chose Amy Butler's Midwest Modern Martini in yellow and Miriam chose Large Petals in Raspberry by Tina Givens. "Mr. Rick" is going to be one styling Daddy-O!

 
 
 
In addition to a lot of pinning, cutting, stitching, pressing and hand-sewing we had time for groundhog watching (I didn't get a picture for some reason!), music appreciation, lunch and chatting. Did you know that groundhogs (or woodchucks, but NOT otters!) can climb trees? Not very well mind you but we did observe some mild tree climbing capabilities in the neighborhood herd. (It seems that I am located in the middle of quite the population of groundhogs. I may have to set up a video camera aimed at the neighbor's on each sides' porches and make my own "Groundhog Manor" show for Animal Planet.)

Overall it was a fun day.

*Beau Brummell is credited with introducing and establishing as fashion the modern man's suit, worn with a tie.

New Books!

   
   
Getting new books is like my birthday, Christmas and Halloween all wrapped up in one for me. Why Halloween? Because is is my favorite holiday and it involves candy. Duh. Anyway, I love ordering and getting new crafty books. There are so many great ones being published right now. If I had nothing else to do all day I'd just grab a random stack of them and sit out on the front porch and get inspired.

Once I have a chance to really dive into these a little more I'll type up some reviews. I've flipped through Alternacrafts and Subversive Seamstress and there are some really cool projects in both of them. Doodlestitching looks to have some really cute embroidery ideas. There is a lot of creative eye candy in all three of the Artist Trading Card (ATC) books too.

Chilling out.

 
I know I've been posting a lot about Little E's crafting and sewing projects here at the shop lately. It has been really exciting for me to watch her explore and learn new skills. I didn't really expect my girls to be all that interested in what I was doing down here at the store all day. You know how it is with teens and preteens, if Mom is doing it they want to stay as far away as possible. But I guess as a testament to our relationship, they've been fairly into all this crafty stuff.

 
This is Oswald. He kind of reminds me of Chilly Willy. E drew the idea up herself and I showed her how to transfer a two dimensional drawing into a pattern she could use to make a 3-D figure. She did all the sewing herself. Penguins are hot with the preteen set. I think this one is pretty cool.

My favorite part of this job.

After being a stay at home mom for almost 15 years I had forgotten what it was like to be out out in public again. When I look back to all my years selling shoes, greeting cards, and cameras it was easy to remember the jerky customers, the long hours, the low pay and the other less than glamorous parts of the retail life. But today reminded me of why I loved it and when it was time to "go back to work" I chose this as my life.
 
I've only been open for business a little over a month and I already have regular customers that are starting to feel almost like friends. I honestly get a real thrill when people come through my front door (and not just for the obvious business related reasons.) Slowly, day by day, this business is becoming what I envisioned all along. A warm, inviting, friendly place that I can't wait to get to everyday and where I hope everyone who comes through the door feels welcome.

Today I had a very special customer. Her name is Sierrah. She came in with her mom and two sisters. She asked if she and her little sister could color at the little table I have in the corner set up for just that purpose. She drew the fabulous artwork you see in this post. It is now hanging behind the counter. I even got her signature! So when Sierrah (with 2 r's and an h!) is famous I can say I helped in some small way to encourage her in her art.

I've also had the pleasure of meeting some really cool teenage girls (who says they are all petulant and scary?) who I am really looking forward to teaching to sew. And another customer today pointed out the "eclecticness" (a new word I just made up) of having "Rage Against the Machine" playing on the radio while purchasing retro inspired fabric to make into an apron.

Yup, this is definitely "me" and exactly what I had in mind.

It must be the aprons.

64 As a 1930s wife, I am Superior Take the test!

Because it certainly isn't the cooking and being "neat and dainty!"

It's Time to PARTY!

I haven't been posting in my usual fashion this week because I've been a busy little squirrel preparing for my Grand Opening this weekend. This weekend is also the Pride of the Fox RiverFest here in downtown St. Charles.

Friday night (6-9pm) I'm having a Wine & Cheese reception here at the store to celebrate my Grand Opening. All day Saturday there will be door prizes, craft demonstrations, specials, and refreshments.

Door Prizes
• Red Fox Kit from WoolPets™
• “Be Yourself” Lainie’s Ladies
• Blooming Apron Pattern by Paisley Pincushion
• Chipboard butterfly kit by Doodlebug Designs
• Pock A Book Kit from ArtGirlz
• Creativity Journal Kit from ArtGirlz
• Gift Certificate good for one free class at My Eclectic Mess
• $25 Gift Certificate

Craft Demonstrations/Make and Takes

Needle felting

Marble Magnets

Bottle Cap Pins

Fabric Fortune Cookies

Scented Bath Salts

If you are in the area, stop in and say hello!