Little Silver Box update

I received an email last night from the organiser of Little Silver Box to let me know that the box release date is delayed until 8 December. While the delay is making me a little impatient to get my goodies, it's really a blessing in disguise... It means that more people will get the chance to participate with samples, and also to buy the boxes. And the little treasures I donated will find new homes all over the place!

You can find out more on how to participate or buy a sampler from the Little Silver Box blog at http://www.littlesilverbox.blogspot.com/

Taking part not only supports the handmade movement, but means a donation to charity and a whole host of new goodies just in time for stocking stuffing, if you buy a box.

More markets - check them out!

Alchemy

You know, it's a funny coincidence but I've heard the word 'alchemy' on 3 different occasions in the last couple of days. Once on the radio in some political debate programme yesterday morning, once from my fiance in some lame conversation I don't even want to remember about an online game thing he plays, and once when I was explaining to him about alchemy in the etsy.com sense.

It's a brilliant tool, and I've always had excellent results from using it. The latest is today! I had a seller in mind on etsy to make up a rubber stamp so I could personalise the back of some note cards I'm about to work on. It was looking a little bit on the pricy side, so I clicked onto Alchemy to see if anyone could put something together for the amount I wanted to pay.

Within literally seconds of my placing the ad, I had a response from etsy seller AssPocketProductions. In the ten minutes it took for me to stop laughing at the name, I had a mocked up design in my inbox and a price quote exactly half of my original find.

While I was putting together new photos and listings for my Laura Ashley envelopes, Stacey came up with the idea of 'thank you' stamps with my logo and some promotional extras to send me, which I'm planning to share out with my new Glasgow Craft Mafia colleagues. All in all, a successful day.

I can't wait for the stamps to arrive so I can show them off here. In the meantime, thank you Stacey, and everyone else, go and check her out!

Made in the Shade - tomorrow!

If you're looking for an escape from the crowds on Buchanan Street tomorrow, and want to rest your feet, check out some art, or continue your shopping in style, check out the Lighthouse.

All the exhibits are now free to enter on a Saturday, and the Doocot restaurant is one of my favourite little hideaways. In fact I'm going there today for a work lunch. Everything from their soup to their scones is utterly irrestible.

Tomorrow has the added advantage of being a Made in the Shade sale. A treasure trove of oodles of crafty sellers with everything from bespoke designer clothing to handmade soaps to gorgeous art for your walls, your shelves, your life!

I'll be there bright and early (not just for the promised goody bag!) but because I'm off to Pitlochry for the weekend, to take in a sound and light show in Faskally Woods. An ideal opportunity to road test my latest product - fingerless gloves. Now where's my tapestry needle...

I got made!

Check me out on Glasgow Craft Mafia...





I'm so excited about working with such a lot of talented individuals, especially now the nights are drawing in and it's definitely crafting weather...

Shhh, top secret...

I have a few projects that are just waiting to come to fruition before I can tell you any more about them. I have a new self-designed product, which just needs a little bit of sewing before it's done, I have a collaboration with a fellow etsian all lined up, which I'm very excited about. I've come up with a design and materials, she has the skillz - if it works, it'll be awesome, if it doesn't well, we tried.

I'm also waiting for news on a collective project, an application to another festive craft fair and another couple of things I'm keeping quiet on... Oooh, hope you like a bit of mystery and intrigue on a Wednesday night.

Weekly roundup

What a week! I've been subscribing to the watched pot theory over at etsy.com and have taken a little time away from the internet this week.



Mainly I've been working on research and development of all things crafty. I've been experimenting with self-designed patterns for fingerless gauntlet gloves, building up stock for the two fairs I'm hopefully signed up for in December, and putting more destash items in my shop. This flat won't empty itself.



Craft fairs are very much on my mind. I visited the excellent Mugdock Makkers fair yesterday - it's still on today if you fancy a run out to the leafy suburbs and the countryside beyond - and found a delightful mix of traditional crafts like glass bead making, soap making and wicker work, to more of the neo-crafts I'm used to seeing at these events, cool cuffs and brooches, retro aprons and super snuggly phone cosies. There's also a record fair in a back room of the same venue, as if we didn't need excuse enough to visit, we spent a happy half an hour flicking through Scottish 45s from the 80s and early 90s. I recommend it, and hope people will make the trip on 13 and 14 December, when you can visit the Girl Industries stall.



I've been catching up on recording some of my old videos onto DVD over the past week - it's a task which lends itself so well to knitting on the sofa! I've caught up with social commentary from the 70s to the 90s, with a look at a not much changed Glasgow in Just Another Saturday, life against a backdrop of the Queen's silver jubilee in The Spongers, far too many episodes of South Park, YTS and the 80s in Brick is Beautiful and disturbed Canadian teens running wild in the heady days of 90s grunge in Fun.



I also managed to take in the Coens' new film on Friday night - phew, what a week! Friday was the deadline for submission of hats in Innocent's annual big knit campaign, and I managed to take a photo of part of my contribution before it went in the post, too...

I'd love to hear if you see one of my hats at a Sainsburys near you!

Keeping it green

In my etsy shop I have a mini-range of plarn (with more to come). What's that you're saying? What the heck's plarn?



Contrariwise explains it far better than I ever could over on her blog. There are plenty of completed plarn articles for sale over on etsy, but if you're all about doing it for yourself, but have moved on from plastic bags or don't have the patience to make your own plarn, that's where I come in.

Taking up the gauntlet

Yesterday was a very inspirational day! I came up with a couple of new product ideas, which will help me get rid of my fabric mountain. Recently I was given a pair of curtains, second hand, which I can't use as curtains because I tried that once, and my cats climbed them.

I had been toying with ideas of what to do with them for a little while, and in response to a call for recycled Christmas decorations on the etsy forums yesterday, I got myself into action and quickly sewed up a prototype to pop into my shop as a taster of things to come. Of course I started at 5.30 when I got home from work, and didn't finish until 7, by which time the light had gone, but I managed to take a shot outside which kind of works, and here it is:

I've put this one into my shop at a prototype price of $3. Next time I won't be so rushed, so future ornaments will be retailing at $4.

I'm delighted to share the following items which popped up on the same thread - handmade and reused by sosorosey, misscourageous and eastcoastkitsch.