Friday, June 22, 2012

Be Kind; Everyone You Meet is Fighting a Hard Battle* Part 2

*Quote source - could be Plato; could be Ian MacLaren.

Earlier this week I posted a bunch of small businesses whose hard working owners are using their skills to improve their financial situations. Medical bills, job loss, and other economic reasons.

Here are a few more.

I'm not telling their stories, as I do not feel it is my place to talk about their private lives. Some of them have their story posted on their web page.

However, for this first store, I can tell her story.

Rena is an absolutely fantastic artist. I am jealous of her skills, to be honest. Here's her story in her own words:

Loads of people, friends & family have told me that I should tattoo... How? There's no real schools around here, only lengthy & very expensive internships ($15,000+)... Being a mother of three, I can't do that... But I can be gone for only two weeks!

The course I'm aiming for is this September 2012, very close to my birthday...

What's stopping me?

I need to pay over $6000 for tuition, travel (from Oregon to Luisiana)... I may have to put it on my credit card but that still needs to be paid...

Help me follow my dream & I'll pay-it-forward somehow, it's only right, Thank you!
Here's Rena's store: Purple Daizie Fine Art

Next is a UK group with fantastic items that could use some love and assistance. Their story can be found HERE.  Their store:  ReCreations Project

Lots of jewelry sellers on Etsy, but few as spectacular as Phoenix Fire Designs. If you like or buy jewelry, you must check out this woman's store! Phoenix Fire Designs

For beautiful and unique art and jewelry, you have to see this lady's shop, too! Be sure to ask her about custom work. Aphotica 

Some very unique knit items in this store: Dress Me Up In Stitches

That's all I have for today. If you want to shop, shop these (and Part 1's) store first!

Got a busy weekend, so look for a new post early next week. I have some fundraisers I want to share.


Tuesday, June 19, 2012

Be Kind; Everyone You Meet is Fighting a Hard Battle* Part 1

*Quote source - could be Plato; could be Ian MacLaren.

These days, all of us have our struggles, and too often, it's financial.

When faced with financial difficulties, most people try to solve them, generally doing one of two things - cut expenses/go without or increase income.

In desperate times, some people take the moral low ground.

This post is NOT about those types of people. No scammers, grifters,  or beggers allowed.

This post is about people struggling financially and are looking for help by way of selling their items. 

Please take a look at these shops. There are many, many great items, made by wonderful, caring people.

To start, we have stuffed Hellephants!
https://www.wepay.com/stores/hellephant-4-sale

Awesome vintage toys!
http://www.etsy.com/shop/IusedtoLOVEthat

Some cool knitting!
http://www.etsy.com/shop/ShopPoopsPlease

More knitting!
http://www.etsy.com/shop/Knithulhu

Whimsey!
https://www.wepay.com/stores/princess-buzzkill-crying-glitter-eagle-s-emporium-of-whimsy

Lip gloss, and such!
http://www.etsy.com/shop/eatmeintimates 

Etched glass!
https://www.wepay.com/stores/little-shop

Vintage!
http://www.etsy.com/shop/EstateSaleShop

Crochet!
https://www.wepay.com/stores/penguinfly-designs

More small shops ran by wonderful people coming soon.

Thursday, June 14, 2012

Busy Times

I've been a little lax about keeping this blog up to date for the past 10 days or so. Mainly because the other aspects of my life - the non-crafting parts - have needed my attention. I have a couple of big meetings coming up fast - a political convention with party elections and a big DSAC (Disabled Services Advisory Council) meeting with elections.

Craft-wise, I have been working on a custom order of a baby sweater and hat set. It is just about done. I just have to finish the sleeves and sew the buttons on. Here's the finished hat:



I have more swatches for custom icons in the works, also. Set 2 is about half done. Five are complete, and I want to add another five before I photograph and add those as options.

Sunday is Father's Day. Nothing too strange for dad this time, but is something he needs/wants. Since he and some of his friends know about this blog, I won't say more until after Sunday.

Also coming up fast is my Mom's birthday on July 1st. I have a couple of ideas, but have not made a decision yet. She does not like the weird stuff that Dad does. lol

So more picture and new products coming as fast as I can make them. The Valknut tote has sold, but will be replaced by another shortly. Just stay tuned.

Sunday, June 3, 2012

The Rest of the Story

As I wrote yesterday, some FJL's assisted me in coming up with a birthday gift for my dad. I won't say what other ideas were brought up, as Father's Day is fast approaching. It was Poops that reminded me about the Penis Pack.

Like a Fanny Pack, a Penis Pack is a small pouch that it worn around the waist (or over the shoulder) to keep your small crap in that you cannot/don't want to put in your pockets. And it looks like a penis and ball sack.

For my dad, I made the sack part out of the leftover blue yarn from the lace sweater I made for mom. The flap and strap were done in tan. Dad chose to wear his around his neck.


(It was at this point that I realized that blue may not have been the best color to use. Or it was the perfect color to use. Guess it depends on your outlook.)

After snacks and cake, off we went, heading to our American Legion Post for the Saturday Night Draw. Dad put his cigarettes and lighter into his new bag and grabbed a jacket as it was starting to get chilly.


At the Post, we stepped out to smoke. Yes, dad knew exactly how this looked. He kept waving the "penis" at people, teasing them about how they were jealous of him - if they did that, they would be arrested - and basically just being silly with friends.

After the draw, dad wanted to show his friend Norm the shirt. It's Johnny Cash giving the finger. So we went to see Norm where he runs karaoke.

Overall, it was a pretty good night. I think dad mostly had fun. Dad and I talked about taking a trip to the coast this month, just the two of us.

Speaking of just the two of us, as I wrote the blog post yesterday, I realized I have no images in my computer of just dad and I. Our friend Gaylenn use my cell to take this pic. My cellphone camera is very difficult to use without blurring the picture, so it's not the clearest pic in the world, but I do not mind.


A final note - A big thank you to all the FJL's that helped me make my dad smile!

Saturday, June 2, 2012

Happy Birthday Daddy!

Today is my dad's 77th birthday. I feel very blessed to have my parents still around.

This (blurry cell phone) picture was taken last March. My parents are in the front, us kids in the back.

Dad is an interesting character. He likes practical jokes and definitely has a warped sense of humor. When I was younger, people would think me slightly odd, until they met my dad. Then things made sense.

 I've had a lot of fun making my dad things over the years. And since he requests items from me, I guess he appreciates them. From the ski mask above, to the neon robe below, it's been an interesting time.
Like this pic from Father's Day 2011. I made him a couple of fish, fishing pole and fish hook. Not only was he playing with it at the table, he later started fishing behind the bar!

And he just likes to be weird. Here he is, goofing around with Liz, during my twin's birthday dinner last year.

 And again, showing off his Christmas gift from Liz.
But after all these years of making fun things for him, I ran out of ideas. So I turned to my FJL friends, and asked them for ideas. I got some great ideas, many of which are saved for later use. But Poops came up with the perfect item to made for my dad's birthday day.

But I'm not going to spoil the fun. I'll post pics and details AFTER the party tonight.

I love you, daddy. Thank you for being my dad.