WREN handmade

Oilcloth placemat

Now that Leo has started eating food (and making a mess of it!) I decided to make an oversized oilcloth placemat. When it's time for him to eat I can just slide the whole thing to the edge of the table. I ended up using Nani Iro oilcloth from Purl. It's a bit of a splurge but they are such beautiful florals. I bound it with homemade linen bias tape, easy to make with this gadget by Clover.

Vintage craft file

I've posted before about amazing craft stuff I luckily got from my aunt, who got it from the janitor's wife at her school. I'm still not sure how I exactly ended up with her craft files, but it's an amazing treasure trove. She filed them all in this accordion file, all labeled diligently. Lately I wanted to make a small afghan in the classic chevron pattern. So I turned to the files. Here is the progress. I received all this after she died, but I wish I could have met her.

Getting organized.

Sorry for my absence around here. I'm not really sure what happened except I got pretty busy making stuff and preparing for the upcoming fall and Holiday sales. I have several in the works which is exciting. It's always a busy but fun time of year. Here are some of my latest attempts to get my supplies and such organized. It always helps to feel productive.

Crafting supplies

Not too much here to report but a few of my supplies I've been stocking up on around here...

I went shopping this weekend to Purl and City Quilter. I can't resist the call of buying more and more cute prints and lovely yarn. I especially love the Heather Ross fabric and the Kaffe Fassett shot cotton which comes in such beautiful colors. The yarn which I make my doll cardigans out of is Koigu mori which also comes in an amazing range of hand dyed colors. It's dangerous for me to go to these stores because I already have SO much fabric and yarn.

One place I've newly discovered for inexpensive supplies is Etsy. Maybe you already know this but supplies on Etsy seem very reasonably priced. Probably because sellers in other parts of the country don't have the overhead costs sellers in New York do! I've always found the tiny buttons I use for my doll clothes great at places like M + J Buttons and Tender Buttons here in the city but SO expensive.

Aren't these calico china buttons so cute from kalliedesigns?

Lots of mother of pearl buttons also on Etsy. (grlyhead)

Also, I just discovered that Variegated is now selling vintage wallpaper by the piece in their Etsy shop. Vintage wallpaper rolls are so expensive at places like Second Hand Rose here in NYC (which is amazing by the way) but all I ever need are small pieces for backdrops or collaging so I love these assortments.

And finally some vintage feedsack fabric from thecherrychic which I love.

Do you have any tips for saving money on craft supplies? Or great sources to share with us?

A few things Japanese

One day last week I wasn't feeling well so I sat on the sofa and worked on Shashiko embroidery. I've always wanted to try it and I found it very quick and satisfying as far as embroidery goes. I bought a kit at City Quilter but they sell similar ones at Purl. Purl also did a nice tutorial. I ended up making two pillows, one out of the Shashiko and another with some woven fabric I bought at Habu Textiles (the thin stripes). I love the subtle shades of blue in the stripes.

My friend Leigh just back from a trip to Japan. She brought me back these sweet items from Loft and Uniqlo, totally my colors and aesthetic. Thanks Leigh!

Crafting update and Habu textiles

Do you guys know about Habu Textiles? It's a Japanese yarn company here in NYC. If you live here or are ever in town it is definitely worth a visit. I always buy too much. It's so tempting because they have small amounts and leftovers which are not that expensive. I like to use little bits of different yarns for my granny squares or necklaces, bracelets, etc.

Here is a pic I took in the store with my phone.

I bought these small cones of thread specifically for necklaces....(oh, and I splurged on 1 yard of this hand woven linen too.)

Here are some necklaces ready to go for the sale this weekend.

And, just a random shot of my desk today.

ironing board cover

As I am getting my craft room settled, I decided to make a cover for my ironing board. Because I have an extra wide board it's hard to find nice looking covers. I made this of striped linen edged with a bias tape I already had. I used my last cover as a template and also used its drawstring mechanism. I took more pictures of the process but then lost them as I was loading them onto the computer. I've been having computer problems lately. Yesterday I accidently deleted my email inbox!

Have a good Wednesday!

saving every scrap

Yesterday I posted about craft stuff I inherited from a very thrifty woman. I never met her but I can imagine her pouring over and sorting her craft supplies. Here is her embroidery floss carefully saved on bits of chipboard from food packaging. With the way things are going I bet we will be saving and reusing every little scrap too.

recreated craft room

For the article I posted earlier today I had to recreate my craft room in our photo studio. It was too complicated to send the photographer to our different work spaces all over Brooklyn and even upstate New York so we all had to bring in our stuff in and set up our space. This is what my craft room really looks like. What we go through for a pretty photo!

Singer 337

I borrowed my mom's sewing machine recently for a photo shoot. Isnt' it cool? I always loved it. I found a blog that reviewed that model, he said it was only made in 1964 and '65. My basic Singer is okay but they just don't make sewing machines like they used to.