Barnabus and Siggy

Meet Barnabus and Siggy.  I’ve slightly changed my approach to my softies.  I used to sew a wool felt circle on the face and then add the eyes, nose etc.  Now, without the circle, my softies have furrier faces and this makes them cuddlier and cuter. 

It is pouring rain here in Los Angeles and that’s just the way I like it because it keeps me cozy and indoors and I am able to get a lot of sewing done. 

I have a MOCA order to complete and there is no time likes the present to be productive.

I am going to listen to the rain and pretend that it’s snowing outside as I think of all of my Whistler friends shredding the snow today.  I’ve traded in my snowboard for a sewing machine!  Yours in crafting,

Sewing Frenzy…

I am busy doing some fun things right now.  I am making a little hedgehog for Jayden, my friend’s little neice who is recovering from Leukemia.  My friend wanted to buy one, but I insisted that I wanted to give her one.  What a brave and special little girl.  I will post a photo when it’s finished.

I have been hanging out with Boo Boo the cat.  His owners went away for a Thanksgiving and so Boo Boo and I have a little cuddle session everyday and he gets some treats.  He’s quite old, but he has become increasingly affectionate with me.  Cats are so challenging to photograph.  They are so squirmy. 

These guys got sent off to Massachusetts.  I hope they arrive safely.  I was trying to create a softie “totem” effect here.

I had a lovely dinner the other night at my friend’s place in Santa Monica.  She cooked up a wonderful Thanksgiving dinner, pescatarian style, with salmon instead of turkey!  It was delicious.

We had vegan pumpkin pie, with a pumpkin whipped cream.  It was great!

I stayed over in Santa Monica because I didn’t want to drive home late at night and the best was brunch at a cafe called Huckleberry.  I highly recommend this place if you are in Santa Monica.  It’s near 9th and Wilshire.  I had eggs with kale, and grilled tomatoes and pesto.  How awesome is it to put kale in a breakfast dish? 

Alright, I am off to sew some incredibly cute and cuddly things today.  I hope you had a great Thanksgiving and didn’t get too sucked into all of the Black Friday shopping. And that you supported your local businesses on Small Business Saturday!  Yours in crafting,

 

Sweet Saturday!

It’s a very pleasant temperature here in WeHo.  It’s 75F and feels like it may get a bit hotter.  It’s sunny and I have been cat sitting for a very pleasant and adorable cat named Boo Boo!

I have been extremely busy sewing and am sending off some new pieces today to the Crompton Collective in Worcester, MA.  Here are a few of them.  

Here are some separate photos of each of them.

I love this little lion and this grey wolf has sweet glasses.

And this Raccoon is actually a superhero because he has a cape and can fly!

I am off to a girls Thanksgiving in Santa Monica and it should be a lot of fun!  Saturday night + females + wine + food + laughs = good times!    Yours in Crafting,

My Second Thanksgiving…

 

Have a great Thanksgiving everyone!   Hope you have a great celebration.  And may your clothes be as funky as these! 

Talking Poppytalk…

 

I am happy to announce that I will be featured on Poppytalk for the next few months.  Poppytalk is a curated online craft market and I am very pleased to be a part of it!  There is a link on the sidebar to the right on this page!

My bunnies and some of my other softies are featured there!  Yours in crafting,

Sunday oh Sunday.

Well, the rain has finally stopped here in West Hollywood and the sun was out today for a brisk, autumn day.  I just baked cheesecake swirl brownies from scratch for a friend’s dinner that we are attending tonight.  I hope they like cheesecake.

The reason I am posting is to show you the finished sasquatches, Archibald and Ignacio.  I quite like how they came out.

That is Ignacio above and below is Archibald the Sasquatch Mixologist.

I am off to a dinner with friends and cheesecake brownies for dessert.  I hope they taste okay!  Yours in crafting,

These Sasquatches are all over Movember!

In exciting news, my softies are now for sale right here in West Hollywood at Tweak on Beverly!

This is a wonderful shop that I happened to wander into one day on a brisk walk.  It’s full of great gifts and you can choose something and it comes already wrapped, which is a great convenience.  I think my softies are very happy there and in the company of the delightful owner of the shop, Tara.

It is currently pouring rain here in L.A. and there is quite the downpour happening.  It reminds me of Vancouver, which I affectionately call “Raincouver”.  November is the rainy season I guess, but here at my place the Sasquatches are partaking in “Movember”.  See for yourself!

This is cut and pasted from the Movember website…

OVERVIEW OF MOVEMBER

During November each year, Movember is responsible for the sprouting of moustaches on thousands of men’s faces, in the US and around the world. With their Mo’s, these men raise vital awareness and funds for men’s health issues, specifically prostate and testicular cancer initiatives.

Well, it turns out the Bigfoot isn’t just a monster, but has a heart!

I’m just glad they are so kind.  Well, I feel kind of stranded here today because Los Angeles isn’t a great place to drive in the rain.  People are very agressive here and when you add wet roads to that scenario, the result is a lot of careless driving and accidents.  I think I’ll finish up these Sasquatches and watch a cheesy movie.  Yours in crafting,

 

Holiday Season is fast approaching!

As a Canadian living in the States, I find that the festive season is approached slightly differently here.  In Canada, we celebrate Thanksgiving in early October and here in the States, it is celebrated over a month later.  After Thanksgiving in Canada, the holiday shopping begins, but here in the States it doesn’t get started until the day after Thanksgiving – Black Friday.  I am scrambling to finish commissions and am still being approached for holiday shows and on top of that, I have to start gathering together some gifts for my husband and family.  It should be an interesting holiday…

Last year was my first Christmas in L.A. and I am positive that it was my first Christmas that I wore shorts on Christmas Day!  It was over 80F last year.  That was a new experience for me.  I told Barry that I don’t ever remember sweating on Christmas Day, except maybe if I remained all day in my fleece pajamas with feet in them as a child.

I am finishing up a commission that I am very excited about and will announce as soon as my pieces are in the shop.  Here is a sneak peek…

These two hedgehogs(hoglets) and this lion cub are just getting stitched up after being stuffed.  My sister just sent me yards of brown wool fabric that she got from her neighborhood wool store(in Massachusetts) and I have started using some of it for their arms.

Sunny the Lion is brand new and as you can see, about as big as a 2 year old.  She will be perched high atop a shop shelf, smiling down at everyone. 

I really like her green and pink wool plaid shoes!~

I had a really nice time last night with my husband.  We ventured a few blocks down the street to Talesai Thai Restaurant on the Sunset Strip.    At Talesai there is a dining room side, and a street market side.  We chose the street market, which is funkier and serves more of the “street meat” dishes of Thailand.  We had tofu pad thai, crab fried rice and a chili, garlic broccoli dish.  We accompanied this with Thai beer and I have to say that it was a delicious, memorable meal, not to mention I was in good company.  We followed this up with a trip to the bar at the Rainbow room to share a piece of their delicious chocolate cake.  A great night all in all.

Okay, I must finish sewing up my little friends now,    Yours in crafting,

Sewing makes me happy!

On Sunday I participated in the Long Beach Patchwork Craft Fair.  It was a sunny, fall day in the 70’s and very pleasant!  The people in Long Beach were very pleasant and friendly and everything went very well.  I had a few great suggestions from teens and kids about what to make next or what to add to my softies and I had a few very excited customers who were happy to purchase a Jenny Smith original.  I didn’t take any photos, but it was very beautiful there, on the water.   Thanks to everyone who came out and stopped by!

I am working on a very large lion for a display piece in a retail shop.  This lion will be 32 inches or 2.5 feet when finished.  About the size of a tall 2 year old.  Here is the pre-sewn lion.I am excited to finish this lion and give him a big hug! 

His arms are made a of a weaved short cashmere fur that is very soft!

I must go and take some photos and replenish my online shop, which has taken a hit after a few craft fairs!  So, I’m off to the rooftop!  Yours in crafting,

Hello!

I haven’t blogged for a few days.  A good friend is visiting from Whistler, B.C. and we have been exploring Los Angeles.  A few days ago we hiked Runyon Canyon and ate lots of good food, and yesterday we went to Santa Monica.  It was sunny, but freakishly windy and we came home with a lot of sand in our clothes and shoes.  Today we are hiking over to the Greystone Manor in Beverly Hills, followed by lunch at Lemonade and a trip to the Grove outdoor shopping mall.

I have been making more bunnies!And these bunnies, along with numerous other softies will be for sale tomorrow in Long Beach at Patchwork Indie Craft Fair!  If you interested in attending, it’s from 11 – 5pm and here is a link to the directions and address.

http://www.patchworkshow.com/locations-long-beach.php

Okay, I’m off for some more fun!  Hope to see you tomorrow in Long Beach!  Yours in crafting,