Winter 2008 - Events

Oh, the holiday markets abound. Here is a list of my upcoming events. Be sure to visit me & receive up to 20% off retail prices! Click on the web links below to view some of the other amazing vendors that you can shop from as well. All handcrafted, all local, and all unique!!

*HAPPY HOLIDAYS*

December 2nd (Tue), 10am - 6pm
Handmade NW
Downtown Holiday Artisans Fair
World Trade Center
121 SW Salmon St
Portland, OR 97204
www.handmadenw.com

December 5th (Fri), 3pm - 6pm & December 6th (Sat), 9am - 4pm
French American International School
8500 NW Johnson Street
Portland, Oregon 97229
www.faispdx.com

December 6th (Sat) & 7th (Sun), 11am - 5pm
Urban Craft Uprising
Seattle Center Exhibition Hall
Seattle, WA
www.urbancraftuprising.com

December 7th (Sun), 11am - 6pm
Handmade NW
Formal Holiday Artisans Fair
Chelsea Ballroom
1510 SE 9th (SE Hawthorne at 9th)
Portland, OR 97214
www.handmadenw.com

December 14th (Sun), 11am - 7pm
Crafty Wonderland
Oregon Convention Center
Exhibit Hall - E
777 NE MLK Jr. Blvd.
Portland, OR 97232
www.craftywonderland.com

December 20th (Sat), 8am - 3pm
Handmade NW
2nd Annual Winter Solstice Sale at PSU
Smith Memorial Student Union
1825 SW Broadway
Portland, OR 97201
www.handmadenw.com

Monster Crafts

The day after Thanksgiving is such a perfect day to spend time with your family. All of the cooking is done, leftovers are at the ready and most people have the day off of work. I usually spend time working on the weekends, but with Saturday & Sunday still on the horizon I found myself relaxed and in no hurry to work today. After a morning trip to the Children's Museum to entertain my 2-year old, I took the rare opportunity to spend time with my older son during nap-time. There was some serious fun to be had in my studio making monsters. I thought it would be a good idea to start making some Christmas gifts, so we drew pictures of monsters. The pictures were sweet, but we needed more, so Jackson named his monster "Bob" and wrote a story about him.

We took our image of "Bob" and used him as a pattern to make a stuffed monster, cutting two pieces for the body (front & back). Jackson chose the fabric that he wanted "Bob" to be made of, and I sewed the eyes, mouth, and arms to the front piece. Once all of the little bits were sewn together we placed the back of his body face down on the front of the body, and sewed it all together (except for one little spot in order to turn it inside out & stuff it).

Stuffing the little guy was the most fun, because he really came to life. Once he was all stuffed I sewed the little opening shut with a few stitches & voila we had a little monster with a story. Jackson will give this little gift to his brother, but he loved the project so much that he insisted on making more for himself. We might need to make a few more for his friends as well.

p.s. If you look closely you'll notice that Jackson is wearing a B Hive Designs shirt.......and I did not even ask him to, what a good son!

I Love Paris........all the time!

I love Paris! I can't say it enough, I absolutely love Paris. I recently had the opportunity to travel to Paris for 5 days. Needless to say, it was a much needed break from reality & a wealth of inspiration for my designs.
The best part about my trip was everything! I had a great time hanging out with friends, eating great food, visiting the Musee de L'Orangerie, photographing the Notre Dame gargoyles, walking the grounds of Chateau de Versailles, stumbling upon an antique market (purchases pictured below), buying new boots, walking, walking, and more walking...........oh, I love Paris!
Many many thanks to John & Nancy, Jonathan & Andy, & Hilary for letting me crash their vacation!

Shopping in Paris is such a treat. I love everything about walking through town, peeking into shops of all kinds, and people watching. The residents of Paris are unassumingly glamorous, and there are so many rare treats to find. I was so overwhelmed with all the wonderful items to find at the antique market that it was difficult to concentrate on what I wanted.

Strolling around at my leisure afforded me ample time to think about new designs & to collect inspiration. I have already started working on my latest design, which I call "Parisian Bird". It is a two part design with scroll work from Notre Dame Cathedral and an original B Hive Designs bird. The bird is especially precious with a little piece of antique lace decorating its belly.

Come check out my new design this weekend at the Secret Society Sale this Sunday, 11/30, at the Secret Society Ballroom (116 NE Russell). All of the vendors of the Secret Society Sale will be donating 10% of their sales to the Oregon Food Bank. You can shop for the holidays, support your local economy, and feed the hungry with just one purchase!