Halloween - better late than never!

Wow, I honestly had no idea that it had been a month since my last post. October was ridiculously crazy, I even had a bit of a breakdown at one point. And really, I wasn't very happy with my ability (or lack of) to handle the stress, so I wasn't about to blog about it :)

So, it has been brought to my attention that I didn't share my kid's costumes this year. And I didn't even talk about them... which is weird since we are normally discussing them several months in advanced. But this year, I feel like I got off easy... which was probably a good thing.

My daughter was Luke Skywalker (wearing black) and my son was Anakin (he didn't want to be the pod racer one - I thought the helmet would have been fun to make). I didn't make the pants or shirts, just the robe, tunics and belts. And yes, my daughter even got to have a lightsaber. This was a huge criteria for her and what costume she wanted since I didn't allow her to carry weapons last year. I think I was just weak this year and liked the idea of an easier costume.

We did all Halloween "stuff" on Halloween - including carving the pumpkins which is why they still look nice and fresh.

This year was a learning experience for me. After the chaos, I figured out that having two online shops that sell costumes - meaning twice as much business. Which is awesome... if I had anticipated it and been ready. I am happy to say though, that this Halloween was my best yet. And probably the most enjoyable in terms of creativity as I really liked making costumes from recycled tshirts. They added a bit of challenge. My favorites were the Bjork dress and the Queen of Hearts... both of which sold (yay!). I don't have great pictures of the Bjork swan dress (I made it too big for my daughter to model). But you can see the Queen of Hearts in my photos on my Facebook page for NueToMe.

I wasn't accepted to any big craft fairs this holiday season, so I've decided to mostly take it off and focus on my shops (and family :)).

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It's that time of the year

Warning... this is going to be a rambling post!

I'm busy! I think if I charted my blogging frequency, I'd find that August, September and October are three months where I blog less frequently. I'm just so busy. But it's also my favorite time of year. I get to make custom orders... where I learn more about the kids that are going to wear my costumes.

I've been busy enough that I've had to turn down a few requests. My favorite... the Lady Gaga Hello Kitty dress. But rest assured, this is going to be a side project for me - I just can't do it by Halloween as it will demand a lot of time to do it correctly. I think it'll make a fantastic display piece for my NueToMe shop when I'm at shows. Just as the Bjork swan dress has brought lots of people into my booths at shows.

My back issues keep reoccurring... which has definitely had an impact on how many custom orders I can accept. I think I have just about all I can handle since I need to allow at least a week to make costumes for my own kids. My daughter will be Luke Skywalker (last year she wanted to be Han Solo, but I talked her into Princess Leia because I refused to make a holster). She has been very specific as she has requested the black costume (to be honest, I didn't even know he wore a black costume... obviously this wasn't during the times that I was awake during the movies). My son has requested a velociraptor. I'm going to try to change his mind as I'm just not up to the challenge since he has already told me that he doesn't want it to be a cartoonish one... it needs to look real. Yikes! I think my kids are a little spoiled when it comes to costumes... and a little over confident in my abilities.

And finally, I need to share that EtsyRAIN's Pre-Holiday Craft Show is this month. We've been working very hard at making sure that this is our best one yet! I'll share more details a little later, but right now... mark your calendars for October 16th and 17th!

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Seattle Tilth Festival

This was weekend we participated for the first time in the Seattle Tilth Harvest Festival. What a cool event! My husband worked the booth most of the day while I walked the kids around -there was a lot to do and see and I know I really only did half of what was offered.

I'm not a smoothie drinker (I'm not crazy about fruit) and I couldn't convince my son to do this... but I love the idea of mixing your own smoothie with your own peddling.

My daughter and I made an herb crown (isn't that a great idea! We are going to try this at home). While it was a bit advanced for her, she enjoyed picking the flowers and herbs while I wired them all together. And she loved wearing it!

The produce stands were awesome as well. We got some nice fresh produce. My favorite was the stand that had tons of peppers... we chose a few different varieties (unfortunately I had already forgotten the names of them by the time we got home).

My son also climbed his first tree. I know - a shame that it took him until he was 8! But really, it's a bit out of character for him... so we were surprised and proud to see him climb up nice and high (higher than I would have preferred since I was not crazy about the idea of having to get him out if he couldn't get down on his own - he did fine though).

The crowd was great and the people super friendly. Our items were well received. This is an invitation only event for vendors, so we'll see if we have the opportunity to do it again next year. At the very least, we will be attending.

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Designing with my daughter

My son started school a week and a half before my daughter. This left my daughter very lonely... and wanting to "help" me a lot. So, I decided to have her help me design a few dresses. I had picked up a skirt and a shirt while thrift store shopping. I liked the design of the fabric - patterns that you can't find in little girl dresses. I hadn't initally intended on making them with my daughter, but it seemed a lot easier than starting from scratch.



So, I had her pick the color of the top of the dress and I attached the skirt to it. This particular skirt had a knit waist band with the fuller part being cotton. It was my daughter's idea to leave the top edge exposed (although I did zig zag it to give it a more finished look). She chose all the colors and a ruffle. She even decided it needed a belt, flowers,and little green stems hanging down. She had a great time picking and choosing what she wanted... pinning things in different places and just experimenting. She's very opinionated and had me redo several flowers because they weren't the right color. I love how the dress came out - I think it's one of my favorites.

Today we finished up a second dress made from an adult top. I'll try to get pictures of that one to share tomorrow. It's super cute too... and quite different from this one. But they are both fairly fancy dresses. She seems to like them long. She hasn't worn the first one yet - she keeps telling me that she needs the perfect thing to wear it to so it won't get dirty. I have a feeling, whatever that event is, she's going to stand out :)

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Summer is coming to a close

Today is my son's last day of summer vacation... and it's a rainy, dreary day. I've been so excited for the kids to get back to school so that I can have a better balance of work and kids... but now I'm a little sad. During the summer months I definitely struggle to spend time with them and still get things made (summer can often be one of the busiest times with craft shows)... so I long for the days when I don't have to choose between them and work. But now that it's upon me... I don't want them to go.

I know I'll be fine (even happy) once I get that alone time once again. But I'll miss our picnics, our quick trips to the beach, our car rides to lessons (oh, wait, I'll still have those) - and the spontaneous hugs while they are playing.

Here's to a great school year with my Pre-K daughter and my second grade son. Wow, they are getting so big! Friends - call me. Let's do lunch!

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