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Tuesday, October 30, 2012

"Hello, it's been a while."

I've come to the realization that I, Rachel, have not posted anything new for quite sometime...It's not that it's not on my mind. I feel like I am constantly taking photos and coming up with ideas to blog, I just don't get around to finishing them.  SO without further ado, here is a look at some of the artistic endeavors that my hands have been creating over the past month.
These little babies are my most recent accomplishments. :)  They are teeny tiny.  About 1.5 inches.  I can see them as an addition to Hannah's Skaboot'ns Collection.

Fox catching snowflakes...Just a sketch.  I decided that this year, we are most definitely sending out Christmas cards. Handmade ones, with a photo or two of our little darling of course. 

A couple of my little alien "Peace on Earth" Christmas card sketches.

More sketches for Christmas cards.  I am also going to make  some to sell too! 

I'm also working on making price tags for all our goods displayed at upcoming craft fairs. It's a lot of fun!  

Something I made a month or so ago, but I am yet to find the right sized frame at a thrift store.  But once I do, keep an eye out at our etsy shop for its arrival! 

This is a cowl I made for my Momma.  She's a fourth grade teacher and wanted an orange and black cowl to wear on Spirit Days for the Tigers!  It took me a few attempts to get it just right.  The first try, I just wasn't crazy about it.  The second try, it was too short to wrap around twice, but third times a charm!

And, I leave you with this.  Cypress is growing like crazy.  She's going everywhere now!  Even now, she is crawling all over me!  I took this photo first thing in the morning about a week ago.  Suddenly she pulled herself up to standing position (on her tip toes)!  How did this happen so quickly?  She's pretty fantastic.


Tuesday, October 23, 2012

A Growing Collection

A free hand embroidery project I did this week. I just went for it using some of my vintage romance comics for some inspiration. 

Since my last post I've noticed that my embroidery projects have turned into a nice collection. Its been about a year since I started embroidering. I started out with one of my favorite stories as a child "Princess and the Pea". I found a super cute pattern on Etsy that served as a great stitch sampler. It was a perfect pattern for a beginner and allowed me freedom for some creativity too. I recommend purchasing the pattern if you wanna give embroidery a try. The pattern can be purchased on Etsy from the shop Follow the White Bunny for a good price!


The first of many embroidery projects!
A little one for my youngest son. I used his birthday as the elevation level instead of the actual height. 
A sentiment toward my favorite time of year. 
This snowflake has some metallic french knots to add some sparkle. The finished product from my last blog post. 
My collection fits perfectly on the interior wall of my nook. I've been looking for something to fill this space and these to the job beautifully!

Here are some sites to check out for some embroidery inspiration!

Sublime Stitching - Truly isn't your grandma's embroidery
they have their own line of Sublime Floss too. The colors are absolutely beautiful and perfect for any project! I'll be looking for any excuse to use them.

September House - Has some super cute modern embroidery patterns. I'm in love with the snow angel pattern! I'll be working on that sometime soon.

Follow the White Bunny on Etsy! Where I got my fun Princess and the Pea pattern. I love the fur in this  red fox too. 

Everyone needs to check out this site MaricorMaricar even if you don't have an interest in embroidery I think everyone can appreciate the intricacy and beauty of the work done by them. Take a look at this post from their blog. I'd love to try something like this when I get better. 


- Hannah

Tuesday, October 16, 2012

Time to Myself


While I may not be alone, it's time to do what momma wants. I'm watching one of my all time favorite movies, eating a nice snack, drinking some cider, and working on a embroidery project just for the fun of it! My kiddos are down for the night and my husband ended up falling asleep too. The night is young so I'm going to enjoy this minute by minute.


I don't know why it took me so long to get into embroidery. I've always preferred sewing by hand vs. machine. Controlling the color in each stitch by is so similar to painting for me. Each stitch provides a particular feel and texture just as a brush stroke would. Embroidery and painting seem to go hand in hand with me, while I'm working on one I have a fun idea for the other. I often get torn on what to sit down and work on.

Though I love all kinds of crafting, this week I've been into sitting down, enjoying the cool weather, and hand stitching something from scratch. My current project is a fun small snowflake. One of my favorite things on this earth is snow! I can't get over how unique they all are and their intricacy. I thought it would be a perfect piece to just make up as I go and just have fun with it. This piece is inspired by a photographed snowflake with all kind of colors reflecting off of it. I love where I'm at so far and I can't wait to show you how it turns out.

Cheers to time for myself and a chance to chill out and enjoy the little things!

- Hannah

Monday, October 8, 2012

Red Flannel Festival

We just got done with an eventful weekend! Saturday we set up a booth at the Red Flannel Festival in Cedar Springs, Michigan. Boy, when they say red flannel, they mean it! Everyone was wearing red or flannel. We came prepared with multiple shirts on hand to wear and decorate with. 

This was our first experience indoors and was a nice change of pace. I'll be honest, I didn't miss packing and unpacking the bricks to prepare for some wind. We got a taste for a new kind of set up and were able to show off some new items that we've made! Rachel's gotten some made skills from her crocheting all the time. She's made some adorable infant winter hats, and super stylish cowls that I wanna snag and keep for myself! I've been working on more seasonal items like Christmas themed envelopes, cards and ornaments. 


First indoor display!
New bows and envelopes made from teen romance comic books. Saucy!

Infant sized winter hats. Our kids sport them and love to chew on the tassels.

Rachel's favorite color block scarf. Great color combinations!

Sweet drawings done by Rachel in vintage frames imported from Italy!

I crocheted this out of old telephone wire. I couldn't crochet anything for at least two weeks afterward! Thick stuff, but very cool. This type of wire is pretty hard to find for me. I'd love to get my hands on some more!

I love the tight stitching in this vibrant cowl!

Small crochet snowflakes. All uniquely made from a similar base pattern, but all different in their own way. I dip some of them in paint too!


Adorable bow barrettes for your hair!

Envelopes made from vintage "The LIFE Book of Christmas" books. 



Another cool thing we've decided to try out are some gift bundles of our handmade goods! Perfect for gift giving. We have a small bundle that will include items like a recycled crochet bowl, card with a original watercolor drawing (not a print), handmade themed envelope, recycled paper gift bow, and a hand crocheted snowflake ornament! Our larger bowls may include some crochet goods, or paper bead ornaments. We hope to have a variety of sizes up on Etsy within the week, and each bundle will vary slightly in colors and contents. Of course it's all in the process right now, but if you have an idea of a bundle you'd like from our shop make sure to let us know and we will hook you up!

- Hannah

Sunday, October 7, 2012

New Family Addition


Welcome to the earth precious Tanner True Streasick!


Today I got to meet my first ever niece! These last nine months couldn’t have come sooner. I am sure my sister, Tess, agrees too! We have been so excited to meet this new addition to the family ever since seeing the positive sign on the pregnancy test. We wondered what type of personality she would have. Who's traits would she pick up from the family, heck we didn't even know the gender until today! Now she has finally made her debut. A swift one too! My sister was a complete powerhouse through her pregnancy and the birthing of her daughter was no exception.  From what I’ve heard everything went perfectly as far as the birthing experience and everyone's health. I'm so happy for them!






I admire Tess' bravery and passion that has grown in her since knowing she would become a mother.  She and her husband have done a great job teaching and preparing themselves to the best of their ability for this new journey in their lives. I’m glad that my family can live next door to such wonderful people. It seems too good to be true that I have my sister next door raising her daughter and we still get to hangout together nearly every day. What a great life I live!

- Hannah