happy friday!

working, working, working...

happy friday!

fantasy land with flying critters

Small little guys on sticks. Plant stakes? Not really sure what to call them. They started out as hanging boggies, but once the stick idea hit me I couldn't let go of it. It's easier to control their position when they're on a stick than when they're hanging on a string. Cut out 30 of these little guys and now I'm in the process of getting them all painted and strung up with wings. So hard to know how they'll do at the bazaar. If they don't sell then, at the very least, they'll do their part in dressing up the table. I'm happy with several new little paintings I've been working on - my table should look like a wonderful little fantasy land with flying critters all around. Somehow I've actually managed to not let myself get too behind on my daily to-do lists. If I can keep this up I'll show up in San Mateo with more product than I've ever brought to a show to date - that's my goal anyway. For anyone interested, I'll have bibs, booties, appliqués, fabric, pillows, paintings, prints and zippered pouches.

squeeze in what i can

I've created quite a workload for myself for the next 11 days - yep, the countdown to BazBiz has begun. Trying to finish up the last couple items from yesterday's to-do list this morning so I can begin to whittle away at today's to-do list. Can't fall behind.

Working assembly-line style on a lot of things... like these zippered pouches. I try to squeeze in what I can in the kitchen while the boys are distracted with breakfast, and then when I hit a point where I need to be back in the workroom I set it aside until I can escape. All the boys (including the husband) went to bed early last night so I had a chance to finish up these 9 zippered pouches:

Love the feeling of filling up my box of goods that I'll be taking up to the faire. Fill it up! Also love checking off things on my very long list. So exhilarating. Love working at night and listening to the sounds of the night - really love it when I can hear the freight train miles and miles away. Love the bay area and can't wait to head up. Love San Francisco and hope I'm not too tired after the event on Saturday and Sunday to head into the city.

Back to work!

small paintings

Working hard to squeeze in as much productivity as I can in between all the mommy duties. Finding that working on small canvases and wood blocks for paintings works really good because I can carry them around with me as I follow my crazy little boys outside the house, inside the house, outside the house, inside the house. This one here is painted on an oval wood plaque. I hope to have a collection of small paintings by May 3-4 for the BazBiz @ Maker Faire. My focus for the next 2 weeks: bibs, fabric, mobiles, appliqués, pouches and paintings. Yeah, that's a lot. Well, we'll just see what I can do. Thank god the table is small so there won't be as much space to fill!

buttercream

~cupcakes with buttercream frosting~

Don't think the kids are going to let me sit here and write much, but I had to post this picture of the cupcakes I made over the weekend for my Mother-in-Law's birthday. After "cupcake week" on Martha I'd been itching to whip up some buttercream - YUM!

get my focus back

Starting to wonder what I was thinking when I applied to be a vendor at the Bazaar Bizarre @ Maker Faire. I haven't done a thing in days and the list I generated when I had six weeks to create stuff has barely been stabbed at and now there are only three weeks left. I'm going to have to start drinking Red Bull at night or take ginseng shots or something to get me working on stuff and not falling asleep on the couch immediately after dinner.

I was surprised to get a minimal amount of silk-screening done the other day. Gotta just jump on that wagon and get moving. Now that the little one isn't in constant needy mode (molar is finally breaking through) and is enjoying playtime with big brother I might just be able to get my focus back. Go, Dawn, go! Okay, so why am I still sitting here?

Check out the Bazaare Bizarre Vendor List!

talk and clip coupons

I have a problem - I'm ready to admit. Not really even sure how to put this. You know the saying - "My eyes are bigger than my stomach"? Well, my wishes, my desires - my intentions - are greater than my days, my hours - the time I have to actually do all the fun things I like to do. I know this is worded awkwardly. (The journalism teacher in 8th grade often wrote "awk?" next to a lot of my sentences) Yep, Mrs. Adams, I agree, this is an awk. But, you know what I mean? Case in point - my scrapbooking tote is busting at the seams with supplies I can't stop myself from buying and I have yet to complete my second ever scrapbook page. Going to the art supply store yesterday (a long haul down to Little Italy in San Diego but I figured that would be easier than waiting for much needed silk-screen supplies to arrive by mail) I found myself throwing cute little 4x4-inch canvases in my basket. It was only on the drive home that it occurred to me that I had done it once again. I spent money on supplies that I probably won't have time to use. I mean, sure, someday I'll have the time... but where does the consumption of art/craft/sewing supplies stop?

My eyes are starting to feel cross-eyed when I paint. I've always had perfect vision. But now I find myself squinting when I do detailed work. Yikes. Suppose a visit to the optometrist couldn't hurt. Years ago the optometrist told me my eyes were lazy and that I needed to do exercises - shifting from focusing on something up close and on something far away for 10 minutes a day. Just give me glasses. If I can't find time to paint or scrapbook or use all this fabric then I'm surely not going to find the time for eye push-ups.

Speaking of surely (Shirley), I had dreams about my Grandma Shirley twice this week. In the first, we were sitting at the kitchen table talking. She told me she had run out of coupons, so I grabbed the paper and we were going to clip new coupons. Just talk and clip coupons. Then I woke up and instantly realized what I had been dreaming and tried to quickly go back to sleep so I could return to the coupons and talk. No luck. A few days later I dreamt we were walking together at a street fair. She stopped to try on a necklace. I helped her look at it in a hand mirror. I told her she should buy it and she said she would if I would let her buy me something too. Then we walked on, arm in arm. That one was nicer because it had an ending. I just hate it when a dream ends before something has really happened.

put a cork in it bub

If only this were the way things were more often. Seeing this photograph sends me into a blissful state unlike the one I am in most of the time these days. Feeling like I'm completely on edge lately and would love nothing more than to enter into a vow of silence off in one of those meditation retreats up in the hills. Yeah, I could get into sitting for hours to meditate. Little boy has molars coming in, so he's fussy and noisy. Big boy is just plain noisy. Screaming! Where on earth did this screaming come from?!? I thought little girls were the screamers and I'd been patting myself on the back for having boys. When I hear screams it rattles my skull - sends shivers through my brain and makes me feel like my eardrums are going to burst. Can't stand the screaming. So, we're trying to learn that we don't go crazy in the house. "Crazy" includes laughing maniacally, running in circles, screaming, tackling and any kind of behavior that is generally hysterical. There's been a lot of crazy going on and I can't figure out where it's coming from. I know, I know... he's a boy. No quiet tea parties and afternoons slumbering about in dress up clothes. Most of the crazy I can sort of put up with. But not that screaming. Put a cork in it bub or you're gonna send your mama to the crazy house. Needless to say, no crafting or creativity going on round these parts.