Daft is Closing, But Not Dying

*sadface* Only two days left until the closing of Daft Crafts, the brick and mortar store that we own.

Exterior before

Exterior Dafter

Interior before

Interior Dafter

It's going to be a busy two days. We are having a huge going out of business sale, selling displays, meeting the new shop owners (They are opening a handmade boutique in our location, so at least it is continuing to bring handmade joy to the neighborhood!) and artists will be stopping in to pick up their merchandise. On Thursday, we will box up everything left and ship it back to the artists, with final checks. Then cleaning out the shop and removing the left over furniture. It's all very bitter sweet, remembering all the hard work that went into it, all the fun times and great memories at the shop.

Me, my kidlet and Jessica playing dress up!

Soap making classes were always a riot

If you never visited Daft, you don't know about that toilet

Tie dying was always a huge hit at Daft!

 But instead of allowing the Daft Crafts dream (to offer unique art at affordable prices, and an affordable venue with unrivaled exposure for artists), I have decided to grow it into something else! The Daft Crafts Facebook and Daft Crafts blog will remain active, and function as art advocacy and an art business resources. We will promote artists, provide indie business resources, and also an epic outlet for Midwest artists!

I am working with Debbie Luttrell, long time Daft Crafts vendor, even longer artist and event coordinator, to coordinate a large indie event called Daft Crafts Show!

While still very loose in the planning, Debbie and I have so many ideas and a great event outline already! A large indoor/outdoor two day event with poi (fire) spinners, a drum tribe, live music, free craft stations to experiment with new mediums, local bakeries selling yummy cupcakes and goodies, and dozens of artisans and indie designers! Swag bags with merchandise and coupons from the vendors and businesses that sponsor the show, raffles, and games! Face painting, Henna art, and more!

So far we are planning tentatively for May or June of 2013 for Kansas City's first Daft Crafts Show! It will be held in Independence, Missouri, where Daft Crafts was born. Since we are relocating to South Carolina and will be back to visit at least once a year in Missouri, I figure why not make it a really big deal!?

I am very excited about this! It's going to be a grand event, and a lot of fun to plan with Debbie! :) Not much actual planning can be done until closer to the event, but as we begin the process of securing a location, booking artists and entertainment, and developing media for the event I will share with all of you! ♥ As always, thank you for supporting me in my monster making, and my crazy and ambitious dreams! You guys are amazing!

Value.

This is incredibly difficult to write for me, and it may not be the most coherent post I've ever done because it's a very emotional subject for me right now and I imagine it always will be. 

After 11 months of awesomeness, Trace and I have decided to close the doors of Daft Crafts, the brick and mortar shop we opened last July in Independence, MO. It's not like we weren't getting enough foot traffic - in fact, last week we had customers come in that were visiting the International Quilt Market who had heard about our store from all the way in Australia. They were in Kansas City visiting from Australia, and made it a point to come visit Daft Crafts. Astounding, huh?

And our doors aren't closing for a lack of support from the community. Quite the opposite - we have had the most amazing band of artists and customers. The artists volunteered at the shop, filled the shelves with incredible art and handmade wares, taught work shops and made donations of  their times as well as art and office supplies. We have regular customers we see weekly at the workshops and who stop in at least once a week to shop. We have worked closely with the local animal shelter to set up a cat fostering program to help them increase the amount of cats being adopted by fostering cats in Daft Crafts, who can be adopted by our wonderful customers! Being such a large part of the community and getting to know all the beautiful people who have been involved at Daft Crafts has been such an honor and touched my heart. I will never forget any of them and hope to keep in touch with everyone that has been a part of Daft Crafts.

So, you are probably wondering why are we closing Daft Crafts then? I still ask myself this as well, and have to keep reminding myself why it is for the best.

During the twelve week breast cancer scare, I lost my grandfather, and a very, very dear person in my life had to begin dialysis. These were devastating blows, as when I learned the news, I was still battling with the fear that I may have breast cancer. It was a very difficult time for me. And I spent more time during that chaotic, depressing period at the shop and lining up promotions and advertising for my artists than I spent with my fiance that I moved half way across the country for and my six year old son. I began to feel like I really needed to re-prioritize my life. I talked to Trace and we have struggled with the decision since the end of February. 

Two weeks ago, a few weeks or so after I got my breast cancer screening results (which were all clear, thank God) a very dear friend of mine got not-good results on her mammogram and had to have a lumpectomy, which thankfully showed the tumor to be benign . But I knew then when I heard what my friend was going through, that terrible wait between appointments and tests to get an answer, what our decision would be. I need to make more time in my life for the people who need me, and I need time to cope with things. My life has been in turmoil since February and I need time to heal and collect myself. I need time with my family. It seems so selfish to me since I am taking a valuable resource away from the community, and it hurts so badly but I know that this is the right thing to do for my family, and they are the most important thing to me. ♥

I will miss Daft Crafts and all the amazing people it has brought me in touch with SO much that it literally hurts my heart. I can't think about it without tears rushing to my eyes. These past 11 months being a shop owner have been amazing, and I love everyone it has brought me in contact with. The experience has been phenomenal and I plan to stay active in the artist community. I will continue to promote indie designers and artists via social media, and I hope to revisit being a shop owner in the not-too-distant future. I have already made plans to volunteer at Scrivner's in Leavenworth so that I can stay involved with local artists while helping another shop grow, and I am very excited by this.

I wrote this article for The Examiner, a local paper here. They wanted to showcase me talking about why I wanted to open a shop that sells handmade things, and asked me to write the article for them. So I decided to focus on the economical and environmental impact of buying handmade versus buying from big box stores. I had limited space for the article, so I had to really condense my thoughts on this to make sure it would all fit on the page. I wrote this a few weeks ago and it just hit the streets this Friday, and though it's bittersweet, I wanted to share it all with you now.

The Value of Buying Handmade

When you buy handmade from a local artist, you aren't just buying a bow, dress, wallet, belt, hat, blanket, toy, or what-have-you. You are buying something that someone made a personal investment in. They invested their time, energy, and supplies into that one thing that you purchased. The money from your purchase often stays local and is often times invested back into your community - at the grocery store, post office, gas stations, and local stores to buy more supplies for the artist to continue their trade. When you buy from an artist, you are supporting a person, an individual, not a corporation. You are supporting their lifestyle, their dreams, their goals and their hopes. Your purchases have power - make them count!


Buying handmade doesn't just give you a warm-and-fuzzy feeling of doing something great for your local economy though. It also has it's environmental benefits as well!


When you buy local, and buy handmade, one of a kind items, especially from eco-friendly artists, you don't have the waste of energy and resources that happens in big box stores -Thousands of products are made (where's the individuality in that?), individually wrapped, packed in a larger box, stacked with other boxes, saran wrapped and shipped to distribution factories. They are then divided, extra packaging is discarded, and shipped when needed to big box stores, who then throw away all the extra packaging, and stick them on a shelf waiting for a person to buy it. Real personal shopping experience, right? When you buy from a local artist, they make the product in their home or studio, and then it goes from their hand to yours. Or a local shop's shelf to your hand. Or it's packed and shipped to you if purchased from their online venue. Not even a fraction of the amount of fuel, packaging waste and pollution from factory production occurs when you buy handmade, versus buying from big box stores. Why not make every purchase have a positive impact - on the economy, and the environment?


I am proud to be an owner of an establishment that thinks big with small actions. Every product in Daft Crafts is handmade, or items that have been revitalized to keep them from the landfills - old books turned into sketch books, suitcases turned into art, watch parts turned into jewelry, game pieces turned into kitchen ware. All of our products are unique, and each  artist brings a new form of creativity to the mix. Our art education workshops every Wednesday and Saturday help encourage the community to think creatively and try new mediums, and reduce their product consumption and replace it with a means to create for themselves.


♥ We are still exploring options to transfer ownership, but if that doesn't happen June 14th is set to be Daft Crafts last day open. Thank you to everyone for all your support, this has been the greatest journey.

New type of posts...

Latest Monster In The Shop!

Hey guys! Sorry I have been kinda MIA lately. I think in my last post, I promised I would post more? Yeah, total fail on that!

I have been sick, off and on. First a really nasty stomach bug, got over that. Then my son was sick with a really nasty cough, that kept us all up all hours of the night. By day I was too exhausted to consider sewing, unless anyone wants a hand sewn into their monsters. Then I got the nasty headcold, cough, sore body thing my son had. Still recovering from that. Ugh!

Then, there was also the mechanical failures. Bernie, my Bernina sewing machine, decided to start choking on thread. Every inch or so it would go bargblargityblargblarrrrrrrrrrrrh and when I pulled out the fabric, there would be a huge WAD of thread on the bottom. D: Set him aside and started saving for a trip to the repair shop. My friend loaned me an old Brother Pacesetter and it worked for a few monsters, but then it decided it didn't like me. :'( The thread got to a point where I couldn't remove my product from the machine without breaking the thread or jacking up the stitching in my monsters. I'm pretty this is 100% user error on my part somehow, though I didn't mess with the tension at all! Oh well. So, packed him up, teared up a bit. :'( Then my fiancè insisted upon taking me to buy a back up machine so I could continue to work, since it would be a week before I could even take Bernie in, and two weeks for the repair. So, we went out, and picked up the Brother Project Runway machine. It ain't half bad, but I can't tell it won't be able to handle the workload I push through Bernie regularly so I'm anxiously awaiting dropping Bernie off for repairs and then his  arrival back to me in shining, minty condition.

Then, there was also all this beautiful March weather! I don't think it will last, I keep expecting to wake up to a blizzard, but while it's here, we are trying to enjoy it as much as possible when we aren't hacking and sickly! We have been hiking, visiting parks in the evenings, and yesterday, we hit up the zoo! Here's my favorite pic from that.♥

And that explains the very limited amount of monsters you have seen recently! ;)

But now all the beautiful Spring-y colors, flowers, prints, patterns, and birds are inspiring my creativity and I am so stoked to start making new monsters! I am still not officially taking custom orders at this time, so I can focus on stocking my online store to max capacity. My time is so divided right now - 11-6 three days a week at Daft Crafts, and 11-9 two days a week at Daft Crafts. That leaves me a few hours here and there on those days to sew, and then two days off. Sundays are family days, but I squeeze in some sewing when the boys are doing their boy things, and Mondays are full tilt coffee and monster days! :) But, as you can see, with the limited time slots to commit to sewing, I can't really take on custom orders at this time. :[ I miss them!!! But  I have started training volunteers at Daft Crafts so I can have more time off from the shop to handle the business side of things (taxes and such, ugh) and more time to ♥sew♥. So things are in motion, I just have to remind myself to be patient and calm... :)

In the mean time, I have decided to start adding new types of posts to this blog! Some artist showcases, featuring items from my favorite (handmade) online shops, artist interviews, and possibly hosting giveaways for some of them! I can put my two favorite things together - handmade art and my monster biz! ♥ What a great mix. I hope you will all enjoy it as much as I do! First post will be either later today, possibly tomorrow. :) Leave me comments on the posts or click the amount of hearts you think it deserves so I know what content you are enjoying the most! :)

I have kept a secret for far too long

I am terrible at keeping secrets. Honestly, just terrible. I guess you could say my lips are a bit loose or maybe even make it sound like a cool character trait, like believing in the free flow of all information, if you want. No matter how you word it I have just never liked keeping things from people. But this time I felt it was necessary to protect the integrity of Lu & Ed and everything I had worked so hard for. I didn't want anyone to even speculate that I had even lost a sliver of my dedication to this monster making madness that I call my job. I love what I do. I am passionate about it, and I made the decisions recently in the best interest of Lu & Ed, and all my monster loving fans. Most people would probably start the next paragraph with "I thought long and hard about this before I decided..." but not me.

I decided I wanted to open a local brick and mortar store. Less than two weeks later I sat outside in the rain on E Lexington Ave waiting to view a store front right off Main St that was for lease. Less than a week later, I'm planning the grand opening event to take place in July.

It has all flown together so fast. It's exhilarating! I have known the name of this store for years, and had a vision for this store for even longer. Daft Crafts will be a colorful shop filled with amazing, off-the-wall handmade merchandise geared towards punky young adults and parents. As a 20-something mom, this will be the shop I always dreamed existed but never did. I'm so excited to have vendors such as Shear Nonsense with furry hats galore, Kamikaze Kreations with duct tape creations, JB Baby with up cycled clothing, Quilted Callings with amazing quilts(these aren't your grandma's quilts, guys!), Karma Crochet with fun tile pendants and button pins, Melli's Trinkets with unique beaded jewelry, and many more. I love their creations and can't wait to be surrounded by them and sharing them with everyone else!

Now let me address the top three questions I've had since beginning to release the news about the store:

Yes, I will still be making monsters. I am going to be taking my machine into the shop with me to work on orders and stock monsters during down time, and still working on them when I'm at home! I could never stop making monsters!

Lu & Ed monsters and Mon-stors will still be available in my online store, though I am going to be focusing primarily on selling local! I won't be promoting as much online anymore. I love all my online fans and I will always provide you guys with monstery awesomeness, but I am spending too much time online every day trying to make sales! That's time I could be sewing more of these guys for you, or spending time with my kid and fiance. Even workaholics like me have priorities. :)

I will keep selling my monsters at Scrivner's in Leavenworth, KS as well as in Daft Crafts in Independence, MO. If you are local and you haven't checked out Scrivner's yet, you should. :)

I hope that clears up any confusion, and if you have any questions, feel free to ask me! :) I will keep you updated on news about Daft Crafts, but if you want day by day updates be sure to fan our page on Facebook. :)

Hello, Blog. It's been a while.

Why, hi there. Remember me? I look vaguely familiar? It has been a while, hasn't it?

Here's what's up: 

At the moment I am practically sold out of Mon-stors. This is such an amazing thing, and I am so thankful to every person who has adopted a Mon-stor out of my online shop, from Scrivner's in Leavenworth, KS or Daft Crafts in Independence, MO. I don't have as much time to sew as I would like, so custom orders have been put on hold until I can replenish stock in all three locations and do all my seasonal sewing (trick or treat bags and stockings). I hate to put customs on a hold (again) but operating Daft Crafts daily and getting ready for the huge street festival about to come to the Independence Square (Santa Cali Gon days, baby!) I have had ZERO free time. Finally, Santa Cali Gon is upon us (this weekend, Sep 2nd-Sep 5th) and I think afterward I may be able to find time to breath again. And of course, sew!  And then maybe I can even find time to sleep. But, hey, priorities! 

In October, there is another Alpacas for Autism event that I am eager to start stocking up for! Around Mid-September I will be setting up a raffle to win a small Mon-stor. $1 entries and all of the proceeds will be donated to Alpacas for Autism! We will also be donating a Mon-stor and stuffie for their live auction next April. I will post more details about these events soon! As always, I'm super excited to be a part of their fundraising, and can't wait for their upcoming events! They are always so fun and I get to meet so many amazing people at these events. If you are in the midwest, definitely make it a point to come out and see me Oct 2nd and 3rd at the Farm Days event in Adrian, MO! :) 

If you have been eagerly awaiting trick or treat Mon-stors, swing by my Storenvy shop and snag one! We have a few listed, and I am trying to make and list at least one a day. :)

And that's all the business-y updates I have. There have been other exciting things happening. Like, opening a brick and mortar business, and the daily operations of that are still pretty new and exciting! Plus we do fun events there like tie dye events and craft things with little kidlets. You know, something fun and artsy for the community that is free or super cheap. :)

And the next big, exciting event was my son starting kindergarten!!!! Wow!

 

He is a super big fan of kindergarten. He absolutely adores his teacher and already has a new bestie. They even have matching shoes! ;) It's super cute. 

And then, there's... Well....

...Okay, actually, between opening Daft Crafts and my son starting kindergarten, nothing exciting has really happened besides just being BUSY... But, LIFE is exciting! Every day is new and mostly fun. :) And hopefully after Santa Cali Gon days I will be able to sew more, post more, blog more. Thank you for being patient with me during these big life changes! ♥

What I've been up to.

During the two weeks of Spooktacular awesomeness on my blog (seriously, did you check out those sponsor showcases over to the right yet? Um, so much talent it's nuts!) a lot has been going on!

Mostly, I have been sewing like crazy. Pushing for one last stocking of monster totes in my shop before Halloween and getting ready for a craft show I have on the 27th!

(trying to decide if I should keep them stocked after the holiday... They do make cute tote bags for kids to take to the library, or to use as over night bags for sleep overs, over even just to hold toys in for car trips. Thoughts?)

I have also been blogging like crazy, working on new content for daftcrafts.net. I am gearing up to do a big virtual relaunch - not as a store front, but as a blog to connect consumers with awesome shops and products, and to provide great business, marketing, branding, photography and more advice to artists! Also there will be tutorials, recipes, and more!

I am super stoked for this relaunch. I have really missed Daft Crafts. It still feels like a little part of me died inside when we closed the doors for the last time. I can't even bring myself to sell our old display pieces yet. I think Trace is starting to miss parking in the garage, where all the Daft stuff is stored.

But working on this relaunch, writing content to help artists grow their handmade businesses, is sparking something inside of me - passion and excitement! There is nothing I love more than helping others, and I have really missed doing that since Daft closed. By bringing together my years worth of marketing experience with the knowledge of my lovely volunteer contributors I feel like we can really help the handmade community by offering valuable resources in an upbeat atmosphere, as well as shine the spot light on some amazing handmade shops and get them the exposure that they deserve by offering low-cost marketing through our sponsorship program. :)

So, that is what I have been up to during the big ole Spooktacular Giveaway! :)

Be sure to follow me posting as Daft Crafts on Facebook and Twitter - so much awesomeness is in the works and I want to share it with all of you! :D

Oh, and what do you think about the monster totes? Keep them in the shop year round, or just as a seasonal item?

Butterfly

I still get butterflies in my stomach when I think about how this one time, not too long ago, I owned my own brick and mortar handmade gift shop called Daft Crafts. 

It was the most amazing experience of my life and I can't wait to revisit it. Daft was only open one year before we had to close due to a death in my family, my aunt's kidneys failing, and my own breast cancer scare. We were going to move back home to SC to be with my family during that trying time, but then our car fell apart and we had to use all of our savings repairing it, and two years later here we are, still in Missouri. 

That was a rough patch, the roughest of patches I've ever went through, but I chose to bloom where I was planted & boy, I guess all that crap was just amending the soil because I am blooming like crazy now. ♥ Life is oh so good here now, in our cozy little home with my little family! I'm blessed with so many wonderful friends and I am so thankful that my little monster biz is thriving!

One day, in the next few years, I would truly love to revisit Daft Crafts as a gift shop but for now, I've converted that dream into a blog full of businessy goodness and tips, tricks and tools of the trade and marvelous meet the maker interviews, hoping it can bring as much joy to other makers through it's cheerful, enlightening content as it always has to me. ♥

2013 Week by Week - Week 11

Happy Monday! Hope everyone's week is off to a great start!

How was your St. Patrick's Day? How did you celebrate? (Tell me about it in the comments!) We stayed home - it was wet and snowing/raining yesterday here. So I spend the day cutting out and sewing in my studio!

Last week we had the 7 Days of Color giveaway on my blog - wow! So much fun! Thanks again to my lovely sponsors - Melli's Trinkets, La Alicia, The Mollie Shop, Squshies, A Single Dream, Echoland, Impistry, Zeeuh, Little Green Guy, Sew Do Something & Melli's Yarn Works! This giveaway had over 8,000 entries total over the course of the week! Amazing! It has me pumped for my three year Envyversary giveaway in April to celebrate three years on Storenvy with prizes from over a dozen Storenvy shops! More details soon!

My Mon-stors at LGG grand opening!

Friday was the grand opening over Little Green Guy in Wyandotte, MI! I have my Mon-stors there - well, I did! All but one sold on opening day! Eek! So exciting! Scrambling to get more finished to restock! :) So happy for Brittany - watching her open a brick and mortar gift shop full of awesome handmade products makes me really miss owning Daft Crafts. Daft was only open for a year but it was such a great year! I learned so much and made so many amazing friends! I cannot wait to revisit Daft Crafts as a gift shop in the future! :) If you are in or around Michigan and want to visit Little Green Guy, you can stop by Tuesday-Saturday 10am - 7:30pm at 2955 Biddle Ave, Wyandotte, Michigan, 48192.

 Now, on to the studio recap for this week! To prep for Zeleny eco-arts fair on the 30th, I have been cutting out Mon-stors and sewing 'em up production style so all I have to do is add faces! Here is my huge stack of completed Mon-stor bits that just need faces and sewn together.

It may not look like much, but that is twelve Mon-stors! I also have (not pictured) five more plush cut out right at this moment. Here is some of the new fabric combos for Mon-stors this week!

Bright blue with rainbow ♥s

This green is so much brighter than it looks here - like a bright celery green!

Sweet embossed star fabric in pale pink with pink and white pinstripe lining!

Hehe, love this combo!

Mustard with a dainty charcoal lining

More of the sweet embossed stars with vintage blue and white print.

I also whipped up these two plush this week. I love that even when I make two monsters at the same time from a fabric scrap, they end up with completely different looks and personalities!

I love what I do so much! I hope you have enjoyed this peek into my studio! :) It's time for me to turn the computer off and get back to work! Have a great Monday!

What a taxing situation.

I just filed my quarterly state taxes for Lu & Ed. Most people would say this grudgingly, but I find it exciting! It's so liberating to own a business - To have created it from the ground up, to be in control - while at the same time being very constraining and time consuming. But then I look over the books and see how many colorful and fun monsters I have shipped off to new homes in the past three months and I get excited and inspired all over again! I have a few little critters cut out in the basement I'm going to attend to this evening, one for a custom and a few for the shop. :)

I've been so busy getting Daft Crafts off the ground I haven't had much time to make monsters. Time to make time! Gotta get back to what I love to do! I sorted a little space for myself at Daft, tucked behind the register and by the bathroom door, to set up my machine so I can sew during my ten hour days at the shop. I am so excited for this new adventure and all the places it will take my monsters and me! I am so lucky to have such fantastic customers and friends who have been patient with me while I have been scrambling to get the store ready for it's opening next week. I doubt that the actual opening of the store means less time spent scrambling like a crazy woman, I just assume I will eventually find a beat to march to in the chaos and make it all look orchestrated.

I will post some pictures of Daft Crafts here tomorrow to show off to you guys. :) Without you, I wouldn't be where I am now! ♥ Thanks for all the support! You are all wonderful! And remember, you can do anything you put your mind to. Live your dreams!

Yesterday, I was filmed!

I have a really neat and fun story to tell you all... About the film crew who came to my house yesterday!

The website Cafemom contacted me about a month ago and asked if I would like to be a part of their "Real Moms of Cafemom" series to talk about my monsters, my store, and my son!! I was flabbergasted and *almost* turned them down. I have never been interviewed or on camera or anything before so it was a totally crazy concept in my head, y'know? But I waited a day, thought about it, and sent them an email back agreeing. Then I didn't hear anything for a while. 

About 2.5 weeks ago, the producer called me and set up the shoot date, and I almost died. IT WAS REALLY HAPPENING! Holy cow! How cool! Nervous, I almost cancelled like 457716432158 times. But I stuck it out. I didn't tell anyone, cause there was a chance due to time constraints they wouldn't be able to film everyone on their roster. Then, I got a call on Friday, and expect it to be them cancelling. I was half relieved, half sad. Until I answered and found out it was my pre-interview so Tommy could write up questions to ask me and film me saying. :) 

So, they got here yesterday at noon. It was the producer, videographer, and his wife who came along for the ride. They set up in my sewing room, and gave me an overview of how it would work. We did some scenes of me introducing myself, talking about my monsters, the idea, the concept of them, what they were for. Then they filmed me making a plushie kinda, and demonstrating how they work, and then talking by my fabric shelves about how I use a lot of found or thrifted fabrics and use all the scraps because I want Lu & Ed to be a green business. Then we talked about how I own Daft Crafts, about some of the artists that sell at Daft Crafts, and then they wanted to go film there. So they shot the front, panned the entire store (ugh, it looked awful yesterday, we had just had a big soap class and I left at like 11:30 and it was a mess, lol) and did some close ups in the shop of stuff. Then it was over. :) 

It wasn't too bad. It was pretty fun. I goofed up a lot and got really nervous every time I got a new prompt. I really hope they can edit out how red my face was! lol 

Anyway, I just wanted to share my neat experience with you all!

Paint pARTy!

If you follow me on Twitter you have already seen these photos (if you don't follow me on Twitter, you should!) but I just had to show off my latest non-sewing art project! I spent Saturday morning playing de Blob and got super inspired to paint something crazy-colorful, so I went straight to the garage and grabbed my favorite display piece from Daft Crafts, cleaned it off and set to work!
 

Let's get this pARTy started!

Just getting started, one coat and some primer

3/4 finished! Needs 2-3 more coats of color and to finish be trimmed in black

Finished!

Here is my logo, where I drew color inspiration from!

Sorry about the whack picture quality, I used instagram and the lighting was weird. Isn't this going to make SUCH a fun display piece with my Mon-stors on it at craft shows? I have other pieces from Daft Crafts I am going to tackle and convert to team Lu & Ed colors too! I don't have any shows booked currently, so if you know of any in the SC area, let me know! :)

Fan Mail Friday!

Oh hai guys! The past two weeks have been crazy busy - if you follow me on Facebook you know that I was doing a live in nanny job last week for four kids. It was a total blast! :) I am doing it again next week, for three short days. Kids are fun. :) While I was there gettin' my nanny on, I unfortunately got super sick. Fever, headache, congestion, cough, sore throat. Ugh! It was awful! I am just getting over the end of it, lots of drainage and nastiness. This week I have been really busy with the new foster program at Daft Crafts, getting ready for our big reverse tie dye event, and working up the nerve to do a super huge announcement for all my fans. I think I will air that next week, along with a radical surprise for all of you! :)

I have been sewing in what little bit of free time I have. I have a camo Mon-stor for a friend almost finished, and a green spotted one to list in my store almost complete, just needs an eye! :D I am going to be scaling back hours at the shop soon and really get cracking on stocking! I miss sewing all day, every day. This year has thrown me so many curve balls, illnesses and losses, and so many positives, including the great growth of Daft Crafts, house hunting and my son's first year of kindergarten, plus so many more great things.

I am ready for things to calm down, and focus on my art and monsters again, though. I can only take so much craziness.

Though I don't have lots of new monsters to show off this week, I wanted to share some fan photos! :) Enjoy, y'all!

From Mrs. Curtains (isn't this kid the cutest!? I LOVE her glasses!):

Showing off her Mon-stor!

 From Heidi, this is the beautiful Miss Z and her two monster friends:

Z showing off her two monster friends, Quigley and Libby!

20 Things I'm Thankful For.

I categorized. :)

Family:
 
1. My adorable, brilliant, hilarious son. He can always makes me laugh. Just moments after he makes me want to scream.
2. My fiancè. I moved half-way across the country on a whim to be with him after being good friends for about 9 years, and it was the best decision I ever made.

3. My family. They're all crazy, but I love 'em anyway!

4. My future in-laws are all very epically awesome and I love them dearly. I really lucked up. ;)

5. Denise, my future mother-in-law. She taught me the basics of sewing and loaned me her machine to go on a monster making frenzy with. Plus she's an amazing writer and gives me new copies of her books to read. Eep!

Friends:

6. They're all awesome, and put up with my crazy ideas and off-color sense of humor. ^_^ Friends make the world go round. ♥

7. A special little thankful section here for Jessica, Chris, Barrek, and Sharolyn. You guys totally just rock my socks and I am so appreciative of all the help and support you have given me this year. ♥

8. My bestie Rob. Been around for years, always puts a smile on my face. ^_^ Love you dude!

Business:

9. I am so thankful for Bernie, my sewing machine. He always gets me through the monster-making day, he's very low maintenance, and he is always ready when I get a creative burst of energy.

10. Every single customer and fan of Lu & Ed. You guys fire my creativity and empower me to live a creative lifestyle.

11. Modern technology, which enables more people to provide for themselves as entrepreneurs in today's world.

12. Storenvy.com - being a free e-commerce site that is easy to use, looks great, and makes it possible for indie artists to have a great starting pointing for their business.

13. I'm so thankful that my dream of owning a real, brick and mortar store, became a reality this year, and that the launch of Daft Crafts has went so smoothly.

14. I'm thankful for all the customers and fans of Daft Crafts and the indie artists and crafters who make the shop possible!

Misc. Things

15. My garbage disposal. Seriously. Until three years ago, never used one. These things are amazing.

16. Central heat and air. I grew up in a house with no heat. I am beyond thankful for living in a home that is warm.

17. Shoes. I have five pairs, when so many have none.

18. Food, clothing, shelter and transportation. I wish everyone in the world had these.

19. Art. It inspires, it can make people smile, it can give people an outlet.

20. My kitties. If it weren't for my fiance, I would totally end up being a crazy cat lady. ;)

And there you have it, 20 things Cody is thankful for. Hope you enjoyed!


Happy Thanksgiving!

Don't break a tooth on this sweet prize!

How sweet is this prize from The Marker Maiden? A three piece wooden play food set, Halloween style! Candy corn, caramel apple and a chocolate candy! These chunky wooden toys are great for babies and toddlers. Each is cut out and handpainted by husband/wife team Jaken and Josh, who believe that creative imaginary time is necessary for brain development and future interest in creativity. I think their toys definitely provide that opportunity for creative stimulation - Jaken and Josh also make wooden doll houses, play kitchens, wall art, puzzles, matching games and several different sets of wooden play food.


In addition to these sweet wooden candy sets (which also make cute holiday decor!) The Marker Maiden also has a new addition to their inventory this season - 2D chalkboard pumpkins! These are so cute, you can write a spooky message for trick or treaters, or put a simply display a "Happy Fall" message on it, or leave it out for neighbors to leave messages on! Very sweet addition to any home's Autumn decor. ;)

Jaken and Josh are still in the process of setting up an online shopping venue for The Marker Maiden, so for any orders or requests, please send them an email or message through their Facebook 

Email to order

 What is your favorite thing about Autumn?

We love, love, love Autumn for the cooler temps!!!

 Email to order

What are you dressing up as for Halloween? What about your kids?

This Halloween I will be dressing up as Lucille Ball and I'm trying to convince Josh to be Ricky, but I haven't quite gotten him on board yet!:) Our kids are still VERY undecided:). They change their minds about every day.

 Email to Order

Do you decorate for Halloween? How?

 We love decorating for Halloween b/c it's a favorite holiday for us. I love everything Martha Stewart suggests for decorating b/c all her ideas are timeless.

 Email to Order

What has been your most epic Halloween costume to date?
 
In 1999, I went as Dorothy from the Wizard of Oz. A lady from my job at the time, sewed the entire thing for me. It was amazing!

 Email to Order

What is your favorite thing about Halloween?

 My favorite thing about Halloween is definitely the dressing up! It's sooo much fun to be somebody else for a day. I usually start planning my costume in the Spring!:)

 Email to Order

Do you have a favorite Halloween candy?

My favorite Halloween candy is definitely the orange and green sugary pumpkins. They remind me of being a kid every time I eat one.

 Email to Order

How does Autumn inspire your creative business?

Mostly Autumn inspires me just because I feel so energized this time of year, so I really WANT to create and paint and work. The chill in the air makes me calm and relaxed so it's easy to be inspired.

 ~

How sweet are these spectacular creations from the hands of Jaken and Josh?! I have always loved their products, ever since I first met them when they were selling at Daft Crafts. :) They will always stand out in my mind, they are some of the sweetest people I have ever met with some of the cutest and most high quality products I have ever seen.

Their puzzles and play food sets always sold like hot cakes for Christmas and birthday gifts at Daft Crafts, and they make adorable baby shower gifts as well! If you are looking for a great, one of a kind, unique gift, be sure to check out The Marker Maiden's Facebook page and give it a browse, and "like" it to stay on top of the news so as soon as they launch their online store you are one of the first to know!

What is your favorite toy from your childhood?

happy sunny day! :)

A peek in my studio, where I will be spending my day!

My inspiration board (and yeah, I have a rainbow pillow on my wall, haha).

I haven't had much to post here because I have been working on new content for Daft Crafts and sewing a lot, but if you want to check out what I have been writing pop over to daft!

Hope everyone has a great Sunday!

Celebrating Kiser Krafts Envyversary with a giveaway!

Kelly of Kiser Krafts is a good ole buddy of mine. When I first opened Daft Crafts as a brick and mortar store she was one of my first vendors, and her sock lions and sock bunnies were some of Daft's best sellers! It has been awesome to watch Kelly's journey, and today I am excited to help her celebrate her one year Envyversary!

One year ago today Kelly opened up her Storenvy shop, and she has decided to celebrate with a giveaway! She is giving away one of her supremely adorable sock lions - this one is titled Birthday Ryan Lion.

Isn't he cuuuuuute?! You can enter to win him below. While you are at it tweet or Facebook my girl Kelly and tell her happy Envyversary! :) a Rafflecopter giveaway

Pardon my language...

But &#@$ YEAH!

We are officially shop owners! :D 

If you don't see me for a few days, it's because a whirlwind frenzy of dusting, scrubbing, sweeping, mopping, painting and moving stuff is about to ensue! I only have TWO WEEKS to get this store set up! O.O A little about the store:

Daft Crafts will have it's grand opening on July 15th in Independence, MO. It will bring the coolest handmade items from across the nation right to the The Independence Square, with an enriching and fun shopping environment full of color, fun, and of course, only the most fantastic arts and crafts, some practical and others ornamental! :D Our goal is to make it easier to buy handmade, by providing people with a local shop filled to the brim with amazing hand crafted items! :D

I'll write more on it later. Carpal tunnel is kickin' my booty right now.

Fan Mail Friday!

Ah, finally! I can post some of the AWESOME photos I got in the past few weeks! I have them saved on all different computers and devices so it took a while to gather them up, since I have been so busy running around with classes and events at Daft Crafts, restocking my online store, restocking the two brick and mortar stores I sell in, being a mom, and trying to buy a house! Haha! So, here is several pieces of Fan Mail, but I have a lot more I need to organize and post as well! :D


Your monsters were a huge hit this Christmas!!
my son...Christmas morning:)

my beautiful 1 year old nephew with his...it's yummy i guess cause he chewed that horn all day :)

and once again...my son. Christmas night...and this is how it's been every night since :)

Thank you so much!! They are getting much love here :)

My dd LOVES her monster!! Thanks Cody :) She is extra cuddly.







Kayla's cuties with their plushes and sun glass Mon-stor

Cute little Huddy enjoying his monster at bedtime!