Mama Squirrel

Owlcrafting With Nicole McGee

Last night I had the pleasure of joining several other ladies for an owlcrafting workshop led by Nicole McGee.   Nicole  is one of my crafting role models. She is the creator of both  Plenty Underfoot and  Collective Upcycle, two businesses that use upcycling to create beautiful, original works of art.  In addition to learning how to upcycle vinyl tile samples into adorable, wearable art, I was childishly excited to finally get to see Nicole's studio.  

Check out this amazing decoration on her studio door.  (Sorry for the glare, it was early evening and the sun was definitely making its presence known.)

Here is Nicole's studio.  I love how the pool noodles that made their debut at an installation at CMA's Solstice Party a few years back (and then graced the store front at last summer's Collective Upcycle) found a new home here as a festive curtain.  

 

After some introductions and snacks, we were all ready to create our owls.  Nicole had all of the supplies really well organized into separate containers for owl bodies, beaks, eyes and those little crests owls have on their foreheads.  Crafters could assemble their owls from Nicole's pre-cut pieces, or cut their own embellishments.  

Owl assembly was quick, easy and fun.  Since we were using super glue, Nicole  recommended we gather our pieces and lay them out first.  This was important, because once a beak or eye was glued down it wasn't going anywhere. As we crafted, Nicole and her helper Devon were on hand to assist with glasses and nests, which some of the ladies opted to make.    

Before we left, we put our owls together for a class picture.  Here they are:

Nicole is offering a second owlcrafting workshop next week, but it is already full.  I hope that last night's success will inspire her to offer more workshops for different projects in the future.  

Collective Upcycle Holiday '12

Although Collective Upcycle's Holiday '12 pop-up shop does not officially open until next week (check out the opening party on Tuesday the 27th) you can get a sneak peek of what will be available during Cleveland's Winterfest TODAY!  Celebrate Small Business Saturday by purchasing items handmade from upcycled materials by local crafters!

The Milk Belly Princess and I took some Fuzzy Wigs, pins and hair clips down to this season's location in the Colonial Arcade (also known as the Colonial Marketplace) at 530 Euclid Avenue. Here is Miss Princess with our basket full of Fuzzy Wigs:

All of the loveys in the basket are made with the sleeves of cashmere sweaters and are very soft and cuddly.  I'm not sure if all of the dolls this season will be made this way, but I'll see what I can do.

Although Princess was excited to drive out to CU with me and took great pleasure in selecting her own dancing horse ornament made by the amazing Kris Barnes, her attention span was short.  I wanted to walk around the store,take pictures and read the artists' stories on their hang tags and business cards, but she wanted to get home and hang her horse on the tree.

The opening party for this season's pop-up shop is Tuesday November 27th from 6-8 PM.  You can read detailed information about dates, hours and parking for Collective Upcycle here.  I will be at Tuesday's party and plan to take more pictures.  For now, I'll leave you with a couple I managed to take on my way out the door.

These vinyl collage trees really caught my eye.  Volunteering at Zerolandfill, I saw LOTS of vinyl wallcovering. and I love how the artist grouped similar colors together.  I also appreciate how these trees are for sale, but double as seasonal decor in the shop.  

This little pin made me smile.  I admire anyone who can take small, discrete findings and transform them into something so endearing.

trash and TREASURE

From the thrill of finding great deals to the satisfaction of turning someone else's castoffs into something valuable,  I love everything about thrifting.  While I'm always up for a good rummage or estate sale,there are a few annual events I look forward to...and tomorrow is one of them.  Unlike most other bargain-hunting extravaganzas I attend, this time I will be working instead of shopping (but, really, why should the two be mutually exclusive?)  

If you're local, I hope you'll come visit me this Saturday (TOMORROW October 6th) at Rocky River Presbyterian Church during our  annual Trash and Treasure Sale.  The sale is from 9-2 and for the last hour everything is half off.  I was just there today pricing items in the childrens' room (that's right, this isn't one of those puny, half of a multi-purpose room sales--we've got six rooms with different departments) and EVERYTHING IS PRICED TO MOVE.  ALL of the procceds from this sale are donated to charity so it is a great way to find amazing deals and donate to a worthy cause at the same time.  

Curious, but unsure?  Here's a sneak preview.  Rather than full room shots where you can't get a good look at anything, I've opted to zero in a few select items I thought were interesting in an effort to give you a little taste of the sale.  Descriptions precede each picture:

This children's rocker is really sweet.  It comfortably fits both of my 45ish pound girls and I think they both wanted to take it home.

If you like mid-century furniture, the piece behind it is a set of drawers that is part of a bedroom set from that era.  I believe there is a dresser with a large mirror, the drawer set and a full size bed.  The set is located right next to one of the exits for easy  shopper removal.  The bedroom set is STURDY.  I actually thought about purchasing it to replace the trendy, but cheap set I have in The Milk Belly Princess' bedroom, but after the major decluttering I went through at my house  to get ready for this sale, I'm just not up for all of the heavy lifting that would be involved.

This little folk doll is in an area of the sale known as "The Boutique" which is a museum of sorts, lovingly curated by all of the volunteers who worked hard all week to prepare for the sale.  I like how her posture suggests that she, too, is shopping.

 

My mother originally bought this larger-than-life Strawberry Shortcake at the estate sale of an American Greetings employee.  My daughters loved it, but it was a little...much.  I knew The Milk Belly Princess sold me out when my mother told me she heard I found it "creepy."

These puzzles/educational games  are wooden and seem to be very high quality.  I'm not exactly sure how they work, but my mom thrifted several games and puzzles for my daughters by the same company and my girls and I both love them because they are aethestically pleasing, sturdy AND educational.  A new teacher trying to build a collection of classroom games would be able to put these to good use. 

If the five dollar price tag on Miss Madeline's hat is off-putting, fear not.  She is definitely one of the more expensive toys at the sale.  (I think there is a vintage metal Tonka truck for $15 and some brand new big K'nex sets at about the same price, but most of the toys are a dollar or two.)  I'm not sure if the high chair is a children's toy or more of a decoration for a doll collector, but I love the color.  It would look great holding one of  The Milk Belly Princess' baby dolls in her room, but her imaginary play doesn't really involve feeding. 

This is in the room with all of the seasonal decorations.  I'm not sure what season it is supposed to represent, but it reminds me of Parade the Circle.

Here is a small sampling of the many lamps for sale.  The volunteer in charge of organizing this room (who is a thrifting/estate sale styling GENIUS) made the observation that, with green shades, this lamp would look really good.  I know she's right because I've seen her house and it is brilliantly decorated.

The Apollo glass is one of several we donated.  I originally bought eight and the matching carafe for The Mister as a birthday present one of the years we were dating.  Then, we either received more as gifts, or the glasses mated in the cabinet because somehow we ended up with double that amount.  I think it looks nice next to this taller, blue swirly piece.  

There is a whole room devoted to books.  While there are dozens of contemporary childrens' titles,  I was drawn to the covers of these two vintage volumes.  The Milk Belly Princess REFUSED to move her finger, so that's the little pink digit you see hovering over Nancy Drew.  

Not sure what the story is on these McGuffeys.  They are not first editions or anything, but that red leathertte binding looks smart.  They would be perfect for the den or office of an elementary school teacher or principal.  

Even though we have many of these titles, I really enjoyed looking at the artwork in some of these older Little Golden Books.  We bought "Raggedy Ann's Tea Party" and "Nurse Nancy" when we were  sorting on Tuesday.  The Milk Belly Princess loved both of them (although the latter turned out to be a commerical of sorts for Band-Aids' mid-century release of "Stars and Stripes" printed bandages).

As I've been typing these descriptions I've been thinking of all of the other items I should have photographed, including:

• an artist's painting set complete with a stool, an easel and oil paints that folds up into an easy to manage carrying case. $20
• a unicorn pillow pet $2 (I know the little girl who donated this and she takes VERY good care of her things.)
• a tiny vintage ambulance/abacus toy  (ten cents)
• two ruffly, twirly, swirly square dancing dresses

...and so much more.  But my hour for writing this is up.  I will have a very sad, scared little girl at tumbling class, if I don't hit "Publish" and go pick her up right this minute.  I hope I've piqued your curiousity and see you tomorrow at the sale.

Etsy Craft Party At Stitch Cleveland

There are MANY things I love about teaching, but sitting through meetings is not one of them.   So, after my first "teacher day" of the new school year,  I was extra excited to attend the Etsy Craft Party at Stitch Cleveland last  Friday.  I was hoping to meet some fellow crafters and learn more about how to launch a successful craft business.  I was not disappointed.  

I knew it would be an amazing evening when I walked through the door and was greeted by this sign:

Prior to the gathering, Heidi and Megan went through their stash and offered everything they didn't need to good homes.  For free.  Since I made the decision to teach part time this year I've had to really cut back on buying pretty much everything (more on that later) but I can afford free.  Beautiful fabric remnants, sample projects, buttons, trims and even craft kits were up for grabs for all of the party guests.

Guests ranged from people like me, someone who is  interested in launching a craft business but hasn't  made her move, to established entrepreneurs.  Megan and Heidi were very candid and helpful in sharing strategies they've used to develop their business.  Megan warned us against the dangers of accepting too much noncreative work and stressed the importance of scheduling time to explore our own creativity, which really resonated with me.   Here is a  picture of Megan sharing her wisdom with us:  

I was  excited to meet Jenny of Craft Test Dummies and hear her speak about how she has developed her blog over the past four years.   Craft Test Dummies is a site that reviews craft books and products.  Jenny is able to tactfully and articulately review all sorts of craft items in a way that makes her accessible to both the craft product manufacturers and at-home crafters.  She is a crafter through and through.  Seriously, she has business cards with rounded edges so she can store them in her card cases made from repurposed Altoids tins--this girl walks the walk!  In addition to giving us practical strategies, Jenny shared some of the "defining moments" in her crafting life, like the one project that caused her readership to skyrocket and how it happened.  Here she is talking to the group about her experiences.  

I came away from this event with a lot to think about.  I'm inspired, but I also know that before I get too carried away I need a business plan, both short and long term goals and a mission statement. 

If you're local and you've never been to Stitch Cleveland on Detroit Road in Lakewood, you really should check it out.  The mother-daughter team of Heidi and Megan have worked hard to cultivate a small business that is welcoming, inspiring and educational.  Their creativity is evident the moment you walk in and look at their displays.  

 

I have dozens of old, empty wooden spools in my craft room.  The necklace on this mannequin made me want to go home and start making jewelry with them.

If you've always wanted to learn to sew, call Stitch Cleveland and make an appointment for a private lesson with Megan or Heidi.  They can teach you to use your own machine or  give you a lesson on  one of the machines in the shop.  If you are an expert sewist, you can sign up for a class to learn a new technique, or simply stop buy Stitch to pick up some of their amazing fabric and browse their selection of craft books.  Feast your eyes on this deliciousness by Amy Butler:

...and this is just one of several shelves.  We're on the edge of a dreary, gray winter here in the CLE.  Shouldn't we all stock up on yards of beautiful, saturated color?

Zerolandfill '12: The Third Harvest

 At the third ZL harvest of the season the ZL Gallery was at its best.   The diversity of projects was truly impressive.   Jan, a Lakewood art teacher,  made all of the pieces on this display board ( AND the board itself) from ZL materials.  In addition to the pouches and the book, the small purple and green object on the left is a wrist cuff.  I believe the item directly below it is a belt.

ZL receives quite a few decorative trim samples.  When checking them in, I'm always drawn to the bright colors, beads and fringe, Although I am enamored with this eye candy, I've never taken any home with me.  What would I do with it?  What can anyone do with 50 different two inch samples of fringe--all featuring dramatically different colors?  

Jan used samples of fringe and upholstery trim to make the accessories displayed on this board (pictured below).  They are decorative belts meant to be worn while belly dancing.    When I asked, Jan said that these  belts would cost $100 if she bought them, but she is able to make them for free with ZL materials, a needle and thread.  

The most adorable object in the ZL Gallery this season was this little turtle made by Nikki, an art teacher who will begin a new teaching adventure in Columbus this fall.  Not only did Nikki use ZL upholstery fabric for the outside of this project, it is stuffed with ZL scraps as well.  Here she is with her creation.

This little guy is both sweet AND functional as a pin cushion.  Just lift his shell to reveal the pins.

The ZL Lab was  a busy place at yesterday's harvest.  Throughout the majority of our shift Laura had a steady stream of harvesters interested in watching her demonstrate different ways to use ZL materials.  

At one point I looked over and she had such a large crowd I thought she was putting on a magic show.  When I asked her about it, she said people were most interested in seeing how different tile and laminate materials could be used for printmaking.   As you can see here, these ZL Lab samples were used in several demonstrations this season.

  Since yesterday was exclusively a harvest (pollination is over for the season) the rest of the volunteers and I spent the better part of the afternoon tidying up and working with the carpet samples.  Most of the carpet samples donated to ZL arrive in cardboard books.  The carpet that is not picked up by harvesters at the end of the final harvest on the 24th will need to be recycled.  The carboard books will be recycled too, but cardboard is recycled by one company while carpet is recycled somewhere else. So, armed with pliers, several volunteers and I spent  half the afternoon separating the carpet from the cardboard.  Here are three smiling volunteers making a dent in the towers of cardboard carpet books.   

 If you have any need for small pieces of carpet, stop by the final ZL harvest of the season this Friday from 12-3 and help yourself.  If you are a pet lover of the feline persuasion (yes, pun intended) you can definitely find enough carpet samples to make a spectacular cat castle .  Or find some small colorful samples with a rubber backing and take home a ready-made set of coasters.  These are waiting for  anyone who wants them:

There is still quite a lot of stone, tile and brick.  All of this will be available at noon on Friday:

Once again, the FINAL harvest of the season is Friday August 24th from 12-3.  Since that is my first day of school I will not see you there, but if you go I would love to hear about your experience.  

Zerolandfill '12 First Harvest: The Debriefing

When I arrived at the Zerolandfill (ZL) Cleveland site on Friday, I was pleased to walk into the biggest ZL harvest crowd I've ever seen.  There was a positive energy in the air as eager harvesters listened to an explanation from ZL's founder of what ZL was about and what to expect when they entered the warehouse.  

Meanwhile, volunteers inside the warehouse made sure everything was ready for the first harvest of the season.  Laura was busy setting up the ZL Gallery and ZL Lab for their inaugural use.  (You can read more about the ZL Gallery and the ZL Lab here.)  

One of the first entries in the ZL Gallery was this  mixed media collage piece made by a high school art student:

The ZL Gallery will be accepting donations at the next harvest on August 10th.  If you've made something wonderful from ZL materials, please consider temporarily donating it to the ZL Gallery.  You can donate it for the afternoon, or until the final harvest on 8/24.  Let your work serve as the inspiration for other artists, students and teachers!

At noon, eager harvesters descended on the warehouse floor searching through textiles, wood, glass, and stone.  Elementary teachers counted out class sets of carpet squares and crafters happily collected candy-colored glass tiles.  There were several children in attendance, many with their own little tote bags for choosing treasures.  I ran into my next door neighbor and her grade school-aged daughter who was excited to tell me about the quilt she was going to make from some fabric she found.

In my last post I wrote a caveat about bringing children to this event, but from where I was stationed on Friday,  all of the children  looked like they  were staying near their parents and following directions.  Here is a picture of the floor shortly after noon:

It was my intent to take more pictures throughout the afternoon, but several donations arrived and I was busy weighing and sorting.  I didn't take another picture until two o'clock when I stopped to take a break just as a man was bringing in this very generous donation from American Greetings:

The boxes in the foreground and the plastic wrapped boxes on the pallet in the background contain 480 binders.  ZL receives 100s of binders that are donated by designers, but most of those have the names and logos of various textile companies on them.  The binders from American Greetings that I saw were all 5  inches and plain black.  Since they arrived  toward the end of the afternoon, very few of them were taken by harvesters.  If you want to get your classroom or home office in order and need some organizational tools, get to ZL at noon on 8/10 and you should be able to help yourself to as many as you need.  

 Although I spent the overwhelming majority of my time volunteering, I did manage to find a few things, inlcuding more of this beautiful tile:

 When combined with tile from last week, it looks like the tile table I planned on making is going to have a decidedly floral/leafy theme:

My spatial relations are not the best.  Clearly, I need to spend more time with these in order to create something that shows them to advantage.  All of you expert Tetris players out there can probably see it right now and are cringing at my ineptitude.  By all means, I'm open to suggestions.

Some other volunteers beat me to the awning fabric, so there was not as much as I thought there would be, but I did pick up a few yards for The Milk Belly Princess' teacher.  She expressed interest in having more sewing projects for the children this year, which I'm really excited about.  Her methods for teaching little ones to sew amaze me ( she taught The Milk Belly Princess to sew a button and do basic cross stitch) and I want to support those efforts in any way I can.  Hopefully, she likes cool colors:

I'll admit, my nerdy English teacher instincts got the better of me when the font on the labels drew me to this box:

It is a collection of vinyl wallcovering samples, but I see great potential for mini books, hairclips and other crafty goodness.  Check out the intensity in the book titled "Vibrant Colors"

The final book of the collection is called "Walltalkers" and it is full of samples of dry-erasable wallcovering.  The possibilities for this are endless.  

The remaining ZL Cleveland harvests this summer are from noon until three on the following Fridays:

• August 10 Pollination and Harvest
• August 17 Harvest Only
• August 24th Harvest Only 

If You Go Part Two:  I wrote some basic guidelines here.  The following are some thoughts I want to share with you based on my most recent ZL experience.  I know that stern directives delivered in bold, capital letters can seem bossy and harsh, but it is not my intent to be off-putting.  Please understand that this message is being given with love and the best of intentions so ZL can be the best it can be.

1.  PLEASE CONSIDER VOLUNTEERING:  If you have benefitted from this organization in the past, ZL could really use your help during one of the remaining harvests this summer.  It would be especially helpful if you could volunteer on August 10th because it is both a pollination and a harvest.  While it is exciting to have the selection of materials replenished during harvest times, this means volunteers are needed to take in  donations AND organize the selection on the floor. On Friday we were a little short handed to start and really short on helpers at the end of the afternoon.  Volunteers  are allowed in early.  However,with this privilege comes the understanding that at noon you will stop your personal shopping and pitch in for the duration of your shift.  If you are interested in volunteering (truly helping, not "helping"--you know the difference--the way you want people to assist you when you move as opposed to what your toddler does for you in the kitchen) send an email to [email protected]

2.  RESPECT THE YELLOW LINE:  Like I said, the event on August 10th is both a pollination and a harvest.  This means that donors will be dropping off their samples at the same time harvesters are selecting their materials.  Designers will drop off their donations on the far side of a bright yellow line where they will be weighed and sorted before being put out for harvesters on the other side of the yellow line.  ZL takes pride in being able to share the number of pounds of material it keeps out of landfills, therefore,  ALL ZL DONATIONS MUST BE CHECKED IN AND WEIGHED BEFORE THEY CAN BE HARVESTED.    Items will be brought to the harvest area when they are ready.  Standing on the yellow line and asking about materials that still need to be weighed slows down the volunteers.  If you are truly worried about missing something and want to see everything that comes through the door, please see item #1.  

3.  YOUR STASH = YOUR BUSINESS:  Keep all of the items you plan to take with you by your side at all times in your own labeled reusable bags, boxes or a wagon (but remember, there are stairs).    If you find that you have too many items to carry or keep track of, take a load out to your car, then return and browse some more.  There is no guarantee that items you place "off to the side" will be there when you return.  Chances are, if you see something amazing, then walk away from it, someone else will think it's amazing too.  

4.  BYO-B(and-Aids):  I learned this the hard way last week when I was looking through the tile, slipped and fell.  Since I left  my kids at home, I did not have my "mom purse" with me and I was completely unprepared.  Fortunately, Kate, one of my fellow BAYarts teachers, was able to help me out, but next time I might not be so lucky.  

I know there are potential ZL harvesters out there reading this who still aren't sure about coming because they want to know more about what it's like.  Do any other volunteers or harvesters have any advice to share?  I'd love to read it.  

 

Zerolandfill '12: The First Pollination and a Primer For Friday's Harvest

Last year I volunteered at one of the August pollination shifts for Zerolandfill (ZL) and wrote about it here.  At that point in the season there were already stacks and stacks of donated materials in the warehouse.  During that shift, my primary job was sorting and stacking a very generous fabric donation from the daughter of an interior designer who recently passed away.  I did not see the dramatic difference in the contents of the warehouse before and after the first pollination.  Walking into an empty room and leaving when it was full of tons of materials like Laura and I did last  Friday was a very different experience

One after the other, cars and vans arrived full of donated materials.  They were sorted, weighed and  taken to different areas of the warehouse.  One of my first jobs was carrying stacks of weighed glass to the glass table.  As I write this, there are HUNDREDS of 12 x 12 inch pieces of glass in need of new homes.  Some of it is plain, but some is striped and even polka dotted.  I wish I could think of a use for the polka dotted glass but, alas, I cannot.  

Along with the expected swatches of upholstery fabric, yards of outdoor awning material were among Friday's donations.  I snagged a couple of pieces of this to reupholster  two tired looking patio chairs.  Here is a picture of the fabric--isn't it cheerful? 

I'm not sure about the polka dots, but I know there is more of the striped fabric, at least enough to cover the seats of a couple of cafe chairs, if any of you are interested.

We were really busy processing new donations at ZL last Friday so I did not have a lot of time to select my own materials.  My selections happened furtively in between running loads of fabric, wallpaper, glass and tile to their locations in the warehouse.  However, in addition to the awning fabric, I did grab a few more things that caught my eye.  Two large swatches of this fun fabric were already serged around the edges, so I grabbed  them to use as placemats for my girls:

In the hot summer months we are perpetually drinking glass after glass of ice water at Casa de Costello and our four coasters are forever missing from the living room after being taken for use on bedroom nightstands.  As I was sorting carpet samples, I found these industrial strength, rubber-backed discs, and decided they would be perfect.  

I'm not sure I'm exaggerating (at least not by much) when I say that TONS of tile was donated, including these:   

 

I thought long and hard about whether to take these because I wasn't sure what I would do with them. Then I decided that between the two tables I wanted to tile and the work I wanted to do on my (dare I call it a studio?  "supply pit" seems crass) work space, they would find a good home.  

While I spent my time last week lifting, carrying and sorting, Laura was hard at work on two new features of ZL:  the ZL Gallery and the ZL Lab.  The ZL Gallery is a place where anyone who has created something with ZL materials can show off their work or that of their students.  The purpose of the ZL Gallery is for creative people to share and inspire others with their creations.  Items can be brought to ZL during harvest times and left for the duration of your harvest experience or this summer's entire ZL season.  Items that are not picked up by 3PM on the final harvest date (8/24) will become the property of ZL.  All items submitted to the ZL Gallery must be accompanied by a complete entry form.  The form is quick and easy to fill out with a few questions about what the item is made of and how it was created.

The ZL Lab is a place to see how different ZL materials work with different tools and media so when you leave the site  you know they will work as anticipated with your personal or classroom tools and media.   The materials at the ZL Lab are divided into four categories containing the following items for you to experiment with:

Cutting:  school scissors, Exacto knife, coping saw, utility blade and drill

Gluing: paste, glue stick, white glue, duct tape, hot glue, rubber cement

Applying Color:  crayon, Crayola marker, Sharpie, acrylic paint, watercolor paint, tempera paint, colored pencils, ink pads.

Fiber Arts:  fabric shears, regular sewing needle and thread, tapestry needle and yarn, iron

Please understand that the ZL Lab is a work station manned by art teachers willing to offer their professional expertise about media and tools.  It is not free babysitting nor is it a place for you or your children to complete "make it and take it" crafts.  (In other words, you can visit the ZL Lab to see what kinds of cutting materials work well with laminate, but you cannot complete your entire bird house, picture frame etc, at the lab.  )  

 If you go:

1. ZL Cleveland is located at 4750 East 131st Street in Garfield Heights.  The harvest times this season are from 12-3 on the following Fridays:  7/27, 8/10, 8/17 and 8/24.  Arrive on time, but not early.  Last year the doors did not open until noon.  You will see people entering between 11:15 and noon, but those are volunteers.  If you are a few minutes early, form an orderly line at the door.
2. Be prepared to get dirty.  This event is held in a warehouse at what is essentially the county dump.  While the donated materials are clean, the space is not.  (After kneeling to sort fabric for about five minutes my knees were black.)  Wear old clothes and close-toed shoes.  Bring gardening or work gloves if you're interested in tile, stone, brick or glass.
3. Think carefully about whether or not you should bring your children.  I have nothing against children.  In fact,  I say this as the mother of two little kids, one of whom is a bit wily.  This event is held in a big, dirty warehouse full of potentially sharp and heavy materials.  There is no one available to watch your children except YOU (the ZL Lab is staffed by and for use by adults).  There are some children who have a great time at ZL.  They stay close to their parents, follow the rules and delight in choosing craft materials.  There are others who run amok and create potentially dangerous situations.  Please, know which kind of kid you have,  what kind of day they are having and make your decision accordingly.
4. Bring provisions.  There is A LOT to look at.  You don't want dehydration to bust up your good time, so bring a water bottle. If you decide to bring your children with you, bring some snacks (and wipes to use before handling the snacks--see item #2).  
5. Supply your own boxes and bags.  Most of the boxes we received last week are being used to store donations.  While there seemed to be several empty boxes at the end of last Friday's pollination, those will be needed by ZLF if more donations are received this week.  While you can bring some sort of wagon or dolly to take heavy items to your car, there is a small staircase from the entrance to the warehouse floor, so you will need to negotiate that.
6. Be courteous.  Materials are available for free on a first come, first serve (and self-serve) basis.  If you see something that you like or believe would be useful to you, take what you need, but don't hoard.  
7. Don't judge the other harvesters.  Saying "I teach" or "I need this for my business" as a means of talking someone out of something you want implies that you are somehow more important than they are.  Everyone believes they have a worthy purpose for the available materials--they wouldn't take them if they didn't.  
8. Be flexible.  This year the International Interior Design Association is in charge of Zerolandfill.  In other words, it is under new management and, consequently, you might notice some things that are different.  Remember what it was like when you were newly in charge of something?  Remember how unhelpful it was for oldtimers to tell you how "this wasn't how we did it last year"?   The group from IDA has done a phenomenal job organizing tons of donations in a short time.  Be supportive.  Introduce yourself and tell them what a great job they're doing.  

 

Summer at BAYarts: Part Two

I'm excited to be teaching at BAYarts again this summer.   If you're local you can look here to find the descriptions for all of the the BAYarts July camps that begin next week (July 16-19).  I will be teaching Basic Hand Sewing in the mornings from 9:30 to 11:30.  The following week (July 23-26) I'm also hoping to spend the afternoons teaching  a class called Hand Sewn Accessories where students will use their sewing skills to create a variety of quick, fun projects to wear or give as gifts.  After all, handmade is so much nicer than store bought.  

Side note:  although "story time" has not traditionally been a part of my sewing classes I REALLY want to buy this book to read to my students.  I stumbled upon it while browsing at my local bookstore and, oh my,  I wish I'd written it myself.  There's even a blog based on the book which I will definitely check out the next time I have two minutes to spare.

At the present time, the enrollment for Hand Sewn Accessories is a bit low.  I'm really hoping more students sign up because I'm excited about the projects for this class.  Here is a picture of three of them:

The elephant is a pin, the violet is a hair clip and the pendant...well...it's not just an ordinary necklace.  Underneath the decorative cover is...

...a place to hide a key!  As someone who spent the better part of her childhood wearing a house key on a thick, itchy cord from the hardware store, I would have loved something like this.  I know that times have changed and there may not be as many children who need to carry house keys, but it could also be a useful place to keep a neighbor's key when tasked with feeding pets or watering plants while they are on vacation.

There is one more project for this class, but after I made the model I realized it needed some modifications.  My goal is to finish this evening and have a picture for you tomorrow...provided that the littles cooperate.

Ta-da!

After months of work, I finally finished it.  Before hanging in it's new home in Little Tiger's bedroom I took it outside to take a picture in the summer sun:

I really enjoyed this project.  Sewing took some time, but accumulating enough buttons of certain colors is really what made this take so long.  Purple and orange (especially orange) were the most difficult to come by.  I thought I had a large collection of orange buttons, but a lot of them turned out to be more pink or brown when I placed them on the canvas next to those that are truly orange.

As I sewed on the final button last night, I thought I would feel a huge sense of relief, but I didn't.  Instead I was anxious and kind of sad.  I've grown really comfortable with this project. Unlike other projects where I've questioned what I'm doing until I'm almost finished, I knew this piece was going to look good from early on.  It was comforting to spend hours every night working on something I knew I would be happy with in the end.  

But now its over and I'm not sure what I should do next.  I have a blank 8x10" canvas waiting patiently for me.  I could do another white heart.  I thought about a bluebird with the plethora of blue buttons I have in my stash, but then I thought that might be too silly.  Would I be getting too close to being the little old lady who recreates The Last Supper with different colored bread ties?  Is there something wrong with that?   

Pop In!

In this post I concluded with a picture and promised to tell you more about it later.  The photo was taken by The Mister when he brought Little Tiger and The Milk Belly Princess to visit me during my volunteer hours at Collective Upcycle last Friday.  For those of you who are unfamiliar with Collective Upcycle, it is a seasonal pop-up shop featuring work made from recycled and repurposed materials.  I wrote about CU's winter pop-up in Shaker Square in this post.  

Since June 7th, Collective Upcycle's summer pop-up shop has been occupying 6706 Detroit Road in the Gordon Square Arts District.  This is the same retail space it was in last summer, but what's different is that this year I HAVE STUFF  FOR SALE THERE!!!

This is my first foray into the world of selling my work and I'm really excited.  I've been making things for my family and friends for years, but I've never had the opportunity to sell my work to people I don't know.  

I'm selling dolls made of felted sweaters and other repurposed materials.  After days of trying to think of a name for them I finally settled on Fuzzy Wigs.  Why?  Well, I was taking pictures of the dolls before I dropped them off at CU and, to carry them all outside into my front yard, I put them in a big basket.  When they were all in the basket together they looked like this:

They reminded me of a silly nickname my mother called me when I was young (despite the fact that I had poker-straight hair).  When I posted this picture to Facebook the caption was something like "not much here...just a bunch of fuzzy wigs" and their name was born.  Here's a picture of what they look like from the front:

In addition to Fuzzy Wigs, here are some other items for sale through Sunday at Collective Upcycle:

Robin Neorr of The T Shirt Diaries is selling skirts and dresses made of  upcycled T shirts.  Her creations come in sizes for both women and children.  Here she is on CU's opening night holding one of her pieces:

Reclaimed Cleveland takes building materials from torn down structures in Cleveland and makes household items and beautiful furniture like this chair.  I sat in it while I was volunteering last week and it is really comfortable.  It would be MINE except, well, the life choice I wrote about here  has limited my budget for the forseeable future.  Every piece from Reclaimed Cleveland has a serial number on it which can be used to find out where the materials for your item originated.  I believe this chair is made from a former church pew.

These accessories were made by Maudy Paden of Sewing by Maudy.  Maudy is a seamstress who is selling hair clips and brooches made of beads and fabric to help fund her daughter's study abroad adventure.  

Jeanetta Ho makes beautiful jewelry from objects she finds in nature like this necklace and earrings made from tiny twigs: 

If you prefer more colorful jewelry, check out these earrings made from Legos:

When Little Tiger and The Milk Belly Princess came to visit they had a fantastic time running around the store and identifying the original materials of the pieces that were for sale.  While they were pleased to recognize magnets as originally being bottle caps and bracelets made of bicycle chains there were some things that stumped them.  For example, at 6 and 4 years old, they had no idea what this used to be:

This is the last weekend for Collective Upcycle.  The shop is open today (Friday) and tomorrow from 12-9 and on Sunday until 5. Whether you think my Fuzzy Wigs are cute or creepy, there is a lot of other stuff there, so you should definitely check it out.